Although in British history William of Normandy is most famous for his conquest of England, he was first and foremost a Norman king. After defeating serious challenges in the first six years of his reign, he returned to Normany in 1073, where he spent the majority of the rest of his life. Those first years after the Battle of Hastings were tumultuous, particularly in the north of England, which had been under Danish control for much of the previous half-century. William led a campaign in the winter of 1069-70 to subjugate the local population, known as the Harrying of the North. Whole villages were burnt and one estimate has put the death toll at 100,000. William's reign also saw the implementation of a huge survey of England and Wales w…

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Citation: Editors, Litencyc. "Reign of William the Conqueror". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 31 July 2012 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/stopics.php?rec=true&UID=1189, accessed 23 November 2024.]