1SC3.] 



Oppressions following the Conquest m 



Insult, slavery, and misery, spread 

 themselves over the land of the Anglo- 

 Saxons, ill proportiou as the standard 

 of the three lions advanced, and was 

 unfurled. Tlic forms of distress were 

 various, — the towns sufTercd less tiian 

 the country, — and the towns and Ihe 

 country shared a dilfercnt fate under 

 diflercnt circumstances. Calamity was 

 every where, — controlled, modified, or 

 multiplied, liy that crowd of accidents 

 to wiiich human nature is subjected, 

 and which it specially belongs to his- 

 tory to record. At Pevcnsey, in the 

 county of Sussex, to begin with tlie 

 first corner of England trodden by the 

 stranger, tlic Norman soldiers divided 

 among themselves the dwellings of the 

 conquered. Guillaumc dc Gareime, 

 one of the chiefs, took twelve houses* 

 for himself, and thus commenced that 

 long list of possessions whieh he ob- 

 tained in every part of England. One 

 man-of-arms of William's seized upon 

 the property of seven Englishmcn.f 

 In the town of Lewes, the Saxon in- 

 liabitants were counted and distri- 

 buted per head. The Norman king 

 took sixty of them for his own share, 

 each paying nine shillirgs of annual 

 rent.t One Assclin had three lowns- 

 men paying only a rental of four shil- 

 lings ; Guillaume de Caen (in the 

 words of the Chronicle,) had two 

 townsmen of two shillings.|| Girauld, 

 Buzelin, Gilbert, Hugue, and Roger, 

 had all their share of the iidiabitants 

 of the fortified town of Arundel.§ One 

 townsman of twelve pence, — we use 

 again the words of the roll, — was re- 

 served for the monks of St, Martin de 

 la Bataille.^ An Englishman had 

 ransomed his lands by the payment of 

 nine ounces of gold ; but was compel- 

 led, in order to protect himself from a 

 second violent dispossession, to make 

 himself tributary to a Norman, named 

 A'igot.** There is no end to circum- 

 stances of this character scattered 

 over these pages of history. 



In London itself, — the head-quar- 

 ters of the chief of the conquest, the 

 city which contemporary authors call 

 the great, the rich, tlie emporium of 

 commerce, — three citadels were built 



* Doomsday Book, i. 26. 



t Do. 



t Do. 



II Do. ij biirgcn'cs de ij solides. 



$ Do. 



1 Do. i. 23. 



•* Do. 



11 



at the same time, in order to represi 

 (says a Norman historian,) the busy 

 spirit of a population too numerous 

 and too proud.* In one of these forts 

 the bastarii took up his abode. It was 

 constructed at one of the angles of the 

 town-wall towards tlie cast, and on 

 the banks of the river. It was called 

 the Palatine Tower, a name taken 

 iVora an old Roman title v/hich Wil- 

 liam had borne in Norinaudy, com- 

 bined with that of Duke or Count.f 

 The two other fortresses, erected to- 

 wards the west, were confided to the 

 care of the Normans, Bayuard and 

 Gilbert Monfichet ; and each of tliem 

 look the name of its governor. The 

 banner of the three lions passant float- 

 ed over the fortress of William ; over 

 the others were raised the banners of 

 their respective governors ; but these 

 captains had both sworn that they 

 would remove their standard, and 

 erect that of William, their chief, their 

 duke, their lord, at his first command, 

 whether pronounced with or without 

 anger, supported by major or minor 

 force, with crime or v.ithout crime, 

 according to the formularies of the 

 age.t Before making their first en- 

 trance with the blast of the trumpet 

 into their castles, before garrisoning 

 them with their own dependants, they 

 had placed their hands between the 

 hands of the Norman king, and had 

 acknowledged themselves his depen- 

 dants in service and in faith, 'I'hey 

 had engaged themselves to acknow- 

 ledge, without opposition, as to a just 

 and legal act, the sentence of degra- 

 dation suspended over them, if ever 

 they took a part against their lord, if 

 they ever voluntarily separated their 

 cause fi om his cause, their power from 

 his power, their flag from his flag. 

 Their oaths to the conquering chief- 

 tain, others repeated to them, and to 

 these again the same pledge of faith 

 and homage was given. Thus the 

 forces of the invaders, though spread 

 and scattered over the territories of 

 the invaded, were united by a great 

 chain of duties; and the same laws 

 were observed as when embarked on 

 the vessels that conveyed them, or 

 united behind the redoubts of Has- 

 tings. 



The subaltern owed faith and service 

 to his military superior ; he who had 



* Giiill. Pict. p, 208, 



t Bayiiavd Castle, Castlc-laiie, Strand. 



$ Du Cangc, 500-jlO, 



received 



