|
More than 5000 entries on the history, culture and life of Britain (published in 1993 by Macmillan, now out of print)
|
Domesday Book
|
|
The written record of the survey of land holdings in England, carried out for *William the Conqueror during 1086 and summarized in this form in 1087. The entire country was covered except for the extreme north (the area that is now Northumberland, Durham and Cumbria). An unexplained omission is the two main cities of the realm, London and Winchester (the capital).
The main purpose of the survey was to ascertain the extent and taxable value of the king's lands and of land held as fiefs by his vassals (see *feudalism), but it has also been of great historical importance as the first detailed account of England and the earliest record of many place names.
|
|
|
|
It consists of two volumes: the Great Domesday, which is the summary of all but three of the counties; and the more detailed Little Domesday, consisting of the unabbreviated returns for Essex, Norfolk and Suffolk. Both are on show in the *Public Record Office. Referred to by contemporaries simply as the 'description of England', it was already known in the 12C as the Domesday Book. The analogy was with the Day of Judgement, there being no appeal against the findings of either.
|
|
|
|