Western Heritage Since 1300

Travis Torry

Mr. Phillips

AP European History

Summer Review Question: 7

The Western Heritage Since 1300

England’s new monarchy began when William the Conqueror defeated the Anglo-Saxons at the Battle of Hastings, 1066 A.D. William I was crowned the king of England on Christmas Day of 1066. William I soon constructed an equilibrium between the three major faculties of power: the monarchy, the nobility, and the Church. William I made the nobility swear allegiance to the monarchy, but also inquired to their opinions on certain issues that the kingdom had to take action on. This demonstrated that William I had achieved integration with the nobility alongside his monarchy. The monarchy continued with William’s successors: Henry II, Richard I (the Lion-Heart), and John I. The three next kings attempted to strengthen the monarchy’s power over the nobility and especially the Church. Henry II had the archbishop of Canterbury murdered inside Canterbury Cathedral. Instead, the plan failed after public outcry amassed a widespread condemnation of the king’s actions to increase power. Richard the Lion-Heart embarked on the Third Crusade against Saladin for control of the Holy Land and Jerusalem. This expensive campaign put high taxes on the country, especially onto the nobility, in order to fund it. This led to the nobility rebelling against John I, who forced him to sign the Magna Carta in 1215. The signing of the Magna Carta limited the monarchy’s power, and restored the balance between the monarchy, the nobility, and the Church in England.

French kings were extremely concerned that Norman I had gained a great deal of power with the conquest of England. With the territories of England and Normandy under William I’s control, King Louis VI and VII sought alliances and established a royal army in response to the Normans’ increase in power. Philip II repressed the estranging ideals of both the nobility and the Church to focus on taking back French lands, namely...