Course Handbook - Faculty of History

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4.2 Option 2 - The Normans in Britain, Europe and the Mediterranean Dr C.S. Watkins and others 4.2.1 Option Outline 4.2.2 Texts Emerging from their Scandinavian-Frankish settlements in Normandy, the Normans spread out over Europe. Around the first millennium we find them in southern Italy as pilgrims helping out the local population in their fight against the Byzantine authorities. What started as a temporary mercenary support operation then turned into a sustained Norman mercenary expansion culminating in the conquest of Capua, Apulia, Calabria and Sicily. By the middle of the eleventh century the Normans can also be found in northern Spain, often as mercenaries engaged in the struggle against the Muslims. Though no settlement on the Italian scale followed, a small principality at Tarragona was established by the beginning of the twelfth century. Expansion in the Mediterranean also led to mercenary involvement in Byzantium where Normans and Franks served the emperor, as well as feathering their own nest in eastern Anatolia. Later during the crusading movement south Italian and other Normans can be found at Antioch, Jerusalem and elsewhere in the Latin East. The most famous expansion of the Normans was the westward one into Britain after 1066, but Norman soldiers and mariners were long active in many areas – even, as late as 1400, the Canary islands. Any study of the so-called ‘Norman achievement’ raises important questions about ethnic identity in the Middle Ages, both as it was understood at the time and as it has been understood by more recent historians. Moreover, the topic lends itself very well to comparative study. Matters of emigration (exile, overpopulation) colonisation (warfare and castle building), ethnic identity and cultural amalgamation (bilingualism) modes of government (the parallel existence of legal customs), can be fruitfully studied for all areas concerned. The study of documentary sources (charters, feudal registers) can be used to study the 'feudal' impact of the Normans. Above all, however, the historical writing associated with Norman expansion (especially in Normandy, England and Italy) is an important source for exploration. Whether or not one sides with Davis and his followers, in seeing Norman identity as a later ‘myth’, or with Douglas and his friends, in extolling Norman virtues, the study of Norman activities provides an excellent framework for examining comparatively the history of Europe in the eleventh and twelfth centuries. 4.2.3 Classes All students should acquire and read M.M. Chibnall, The Normans, Peoples of Europe series (Oxford, 2000), which is now the best short introduction to the Normans in Europe. There will be eight classes, as follows: Venues Dr E Van Houts: Room 8, 22, Parkside, Emmanuel College Dr C.S. Watkins: Room 2, Old Lodge, Magdalene College Dr A Taylor: Gibbs Building, G5, King's College Dr N Berend: History Faculty Seminar Room 9. 1. The Normans and Normandy (Dr E. Van Houts) 14 Oct 2. The Normans in the Mediterranean (Dr E. Van Houts) 21 Oct 3. The Normans in Britain (Dr C.S. Watkins) 28 Oct 9
4. The Normans and the Church (Dr C.S. Watkins) 4 Nov 5. The Normans and Belief (Dr C.S. Watkins) 11 Nov 6. The Normans and Law (Dr A Taylor) 18 Nov 7. State Formation (Dr N Berend) 25 Nov 8. The Notion of Christendom (Dr N Berend) 2 Dec 4.2.4 Auxiliary Skills Candidates must attend Dr Webber’s Outline Palaeography lectures (16 sessions in the Michaelmas Term) and Dr Webber’s central medieval palaeography transcription classes (8 sessions in the Michaelmas Term). See Section 5.2. Candidates must attend the classes on Central Medieval Diplomatic, given by Dr T Webber, Dr PNR Zutshi and Prof D S Abulafia in the Lent Term (see section 5.4) and the classes for progress reports which may be arranged in the same term. For the important classes in Chronology and Codicology, see sections 5.3. and 5.5. Option 2 students are all required to take the Latin test on Wednesday 6 October, at 5.00pm, in the History Faculty. Medieval/Anglo-Norman French Some of you may need medieval/Anglo-Norman French in your research. We do not put on a specialist course on this and the most immediate requirement is to be thoroughly familiar with the grammar, syntax and vocabulary of modern French. However, once you have this expertise in the present-day language, the following will help you in reading its medieval form: J.H. Baker, Manual of Law French (1990) offers help with vocabulary and also has an introduction and guidance to further reading (UL Reading Room A785.F206) Anglo-Norman Dictionary, ed. H. Rothwell etc. (1992) (UL Reading Room A785.F201) Old French-English Dictionary, ed. A. Hindley etc. (2000) (UL Reading Room A785.F200) 4.2.5 Examination of the Taught Part of the Course For full details of the examination, see Section 6.0. For Option 2, the requirements for the essay for Part I are that it should be of not more than 5,000 words, excluding footnotes and bibliography, on a subject related to the themes and sources covered in the course. 10
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Course Handbook - Faculty of History

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