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When William sat down at his Christmas court in 1085 with his bishops the decisions they made there would result in one of the most important historical documents of all time to rank with the Bible and the Koran. Domesday Book has survived for more than 900 years and was even consulted as recently as 1965 as a source of legal precedent. But its influence is far greater and it is testament to the skills of not only the original people responsible for its creation but also to those who have preserved it over the centuries. It is acknowledged as being one of the most important historical documents of the first millennium. But how does it come to be called “Domesday Book”? Whilst it was originally known simply as a survey or later as the “Book of the Treasury”, in the 12th century the book is believed to have been given the popular name of “Domesday” as in the “Day of Judgement” against which there was no appeal. A century or so later it has adopted the name ‘Domesday Book’. So what did King William I (the “Conqueror”) want to achieve with his Survey for which Domesday Book is the “report”? He had overcome Harold at Hastings some 20 years earlier and established his Norman dominance over possibly the most important state within western Europe. He had replaced most of the previous Anglo-Saxon landowners with his own Norman friends and supporters. Yet he was uneasy about the finances of his new kingdom and worried about possible further rebellion in the North and even the possibility of a renewed invasion from Denmark or Norway. He needed to know who owned what, from where he might get more troops and, most importantly, from where he could derive more tax. We are told by one of the most influential contemporary sources of the day, the so called “Anglo-Saxon Chronicle”, that William decided to conduct a survey and we know clearly from the Chronicler what was intended: “Then at Christmas the king was at Gloucester with the council and held his court there for five days. ... After this the king had much thought and very deep discussion with his council about this country how it was occupied and with what sort of people. Then he sent his men over all England into every shire and had them find out how many hundred hides there were in the shire or what land and cattle the king himself in the county, or what dues he ought to have in twelve months from the shire. … So very narrowly did he have it investigated, that there was no single hide nor virgate of land, nor indeed... one ox nor one cow nor one pig which was there left out, and not put down in his record; and all these records were brought to him afterwards.” But in 1086 such a Survey was a very different exercise from a 21st century Census and it is remarkable that less than two years later when Willaim died, the survey was almost complete. The findings of his commissioners were recorded for no fewer than 34 counties of England and written-up on more than 800 double pages of parchment. These very same pages (or folios) can still be seen in the Treasury at The National Archives at Kew. So how was this remarkable feat achieved? It seems the work was managed by splitting the country into seven “Circuits” and commissioners were appointed to each Circuit. The first six Circuits covered the majority of England (31 counties) and these are compiled within what is known today as Great Domesday. The seventh Circuit, which covers the counties of Essex, Norfolk and Suffolk, was written up in more detail and is now known as Little Domesday (by virtue of the smaller physical size of the folios). Data were gathered by the commissioners, normally sitting within traditional shire courts, by determining the name of the manor, who held it (i.e. held its tenancy) prior to and after the Conquest, the number of men, how much and what type of land, how many animals and a variety of other fascinating detail. The original manuscripts were written on parchment made from sheep skins which were subjected to a variety of processes before they could be used by the scribes. The fact that these parchments have survived for more than 900 years is testimony to the skill of these “parchmenters” and to the durability of the inks that were used. In spite of the complexities of the Survey itself and the differences that existed between various parts of the country, there is a remarkable degree of consistency within the whole document. It is thought that Great Domesday is the result of consolidation from earlier more detailed recordings during the Survey itself whilst Little Domesday, with its greater detail, is likely to be the actual record of the commissioners and their scribe. This consolidation for Great Domesday could be the work of just one very diligent scribe based at Winchester or more likely the work of a team of scribes. By the time of William’s death in September 1087, it is possible that only the eastern counties remained to be consolidated and so in Little Domesday we have more detail than is available within Great Domesday. In order to achieve the commendable speed of recording and eventual transcription into its final form, the commissioners and scribes have used various abbreviations, in effect an early form of shorthand. “In the time of King Edward” (abbreviated to TRE from “Tempore Regis Edwardi”), and “in the time of King William” (or TRW “Tempore Regis Willelmi) are just two examples but there are many more. The use of abbreviations is common within Domesday Book in order to save the commissioners themselves, and the later scribes, a good deal of time. Most of the abbreviations are explained in “Scribal Abbreviations” within the Domesday Studies section of the relevant Alecto facsimile versions or the CD-ROM titles. Inevitably the original manuscript suffered from unintentional omissions or corrections. In other cases words may be missing from the original that were added by later hands. So within the Translation in either the Alecto facsimile versions or the CD-ROM titles, various editorial conventions have been used to assist the reader. In spite of its many shortcomings, Domesday Book statistics “… can provide more material for a proper understanding of the workings of English society than is available for any other European community until the advanced Italian cities … in the fourteenth century.” (from “A General Introduction to Domesday Book” by H. R. Loyn). |