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The Normans: A History of Conquest
A powerful and evocative portrait of the Norman Conquest of Europe, revealing the permanent cultural and political legacy that resulted in their ascendency.
The Norman’s conquering of the known world was a phenomenon unlike anything Europe had seen up to that point in history.
They emerged early in the tenth century but had disappeared from world affairs by the mid-thirteenth century. Yet in that time they had conquered England, Ireland, much of Wales and parts of Scotland. They also founded a new Mediterranean kingdom in southern Italy and Sicily, as well as a Crusader state in the Holy Land and in North Africa. Moreover, they had an extraordinary ability to adapt as time and place dictated, taking on the role of Norse invaders to Frankish crusaders, from Byzantine overlords to feudal monarchs.
Drawing on archaeological and historical evidence, Trevor Rowley offers a comprehensive picture of the Normans and argues that despite the short time span of Norman ascendancy, it is clear that they were responsible for a permanent cultural and political legacy.
The Norman’s conquering of the known world was a phenomenon unlike anything Europe had seen up to that point in history.
They emerged early in the tenth century but had disappeared from world affairs by the mid-thirteenth century. Yet in that time they had conquered England, Ireland, much of Wales and parts of Scotland. They also founded a new Mediterranean kingdom in southern Italy and Sicily, as well as a Crusader state in the Holy Land and in North Africa. Moreover, they had an extraordinary ability to adapt as time and place dictated, taking on the role of Norse invaders to Frankish crusaders, from Byzantine overlords to feudal monarchs.
Drawing on archaeological and historical evidence, Trevor Rowley offers a comprehensive picture of the Normans and argues that despite the short time span of Norman ascendancy, it is clear that they were responsible for a permanent cultural and political legacy.
268 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 1999
17 people are currently reading
185 people want to read
About the author
Trevor Rowley
30 books7 followersTrevor Rowley is Dean of Degrees and an Emeritus Fellow of Kellogg College, University of Oxford, England.
Trevor Rowley was educated at University College, London and Linacre College, Oxford. Although originally trained as a geographer, he moved his academic interests into landscape history and archaeology and promoted a flourishing programme of teaching, fieldwork, research and publication in these areas based in the Department for Continuing Education. He was for several years Honorary Secretary of the Council for British Archaeology and was a founding member of the Professional Institute of Field Archaeologists. He was closely involved with Rescue excavation, directing work along the line of the M40, in Dorchester on Thames and on Thames Valley gravel sites. For many years he directed a training excavation for continuing education students at Middleton Stoney in Oxfordshire.
He was appointed Staff Tutor in Archaeology and Local Studies in the Department for Continuing Education (then the Delegacy for Extra-Mural Studies) in 1969, and until his retirement in September 2000 was the longest serving academic in Rewley House. In 1990 he was appointed Director of Public Programmes; he was twice Acting Director of the department. In addition to directing Public Programmes for over a decade he directed the Oxford-Florida Programme at Christ Church and established a national professional archaeology programme based at Rewley House. As Director of Public Programmes he was responsible for significant expansion of the Public Programme. He was a founding Fellow of Kellogg College and was Senior Tutor in 1993/4 and Vice President in 1994/5. He continues to teach regularly for OUDCE’s weekly class and certificate programme and summer schools as well as for Stanford in Oxford. He is the external examiner for the Historic Landscape Studies programme at the University of Wales Newport and is also a Vice-President of the Oxford Architectural and Historical Society.
He has published extensively and his books include: The Shropshire Landscape( 1972); Landscape Archaeology (1974) with M. Aston; Villages in the Landscape (1978); The High Middle Ages (1984); The Landscape of the Welsh Marches (1986); Norman England (1997); The Normans (1999) and The 20th Century English Landscape (2006). He is currently working on A History of Oxford for Carnegie Publishing and a number of other major landscape history initiatives.
Trevor Rowley was educated at University College, London and Linacre College, Oxford. Although originally trained as a geographer, he moved his academic interests into landscape history and archaeology and promoted a flourishing programme of teaching, fieldwork, research and publication in these areas based in the Department for Continuing Education. He was for several years Honorary Secretary of the Council for British Archaeology and was a founding member of the Professional Institute of Field Archaeologists. He was closely involved with Rescue excavation, directing work along the line of the M40, in Dorchester on Thames and on Thames Valley gravel sites. For many years he directed a training excavation for continuing education students at Middleton Stoney in Oxfordshire.
He was appointed Staff Tutor in Archaeology and Local Studies in the Department for Continuing Education (then the Delegacy for Extra-Mural Studies) in 1969, and until his retirement in September 2000 was the longest serving academic in Rewley House. In 1990 he was appointed Director of Public Programmes; he was twice Acting Director of the department. In addition to directing Public Programmes for over a decade he directed the Oxford-Florida Programme at Christ Church and established a national professional archaeology programme based at Rewley House. As Director of Public Programmes he was responsible for significant expansion of the Public Programme. He was a founding Fellow of Kellogg College and was Senior Tutor in 1993/4 and Vice President in 1994/5. He continues to teach regularly for OUDCE’s weekly class and certificate programme and summer schools as well as for Stanford in Oxford. He is the external examiner for the Historic Landscape Studies programme at the University of Wales Newport and is also a Vice-President of the Oxford Architectural and Historical Society.
He has published extensively and his books include: The Shropshire Landscape( 1972); Landscape Archaeology (1974) with M. Aston; Villages in the Landscape (1978); The High Middle Ages (1984); The Landscape of the Welsh Marches (1986); Norman England (1997); The Normans (1999) and The 20th Century English Landscape (2006). He is currently working on A History of Oxford for Carnegie Publishing and a number of other major landscape history initiatives.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
December 31, 2021
Good overview of the origins, ascendance, and absorption of the Normans both in northwestern Europe and Britain and in southern Europe, the Mediterranean, and Outremer.
About a quarter of the book covers the Normans’ Scandinavian origins; the middle half the rise of Normandy and the Conquest of England, with good attention to William’s campaign in 1066 as well as subsequent campaigns to subdue and repress the Saxons; and the final quarter or so covers the Norman presence in Italy and Sicily and, yet further afield, the Norman role in establishing and maintaining the Crusader states. Good sections on Norman culture, language, religious practice, art, and architecture in each, especially where each of these reflect military concerns, eg castle-building in England.
Rowley also does a good job on the interesting way the Normans conquered a place, established themselves as a ruling elite, radically reshaped local institutions, and essentially disappeared through marriage into local and foreign elites within a generation or two. The effects of this on culture are often interesting—he notes that one Norman king of Sicily kept a harem. And while Norman regions could often be called cosmopolitan, rarely did a unified culture emerge that gave life under Norman hegemony permanent. England is the exception rather than the rule. The much-vaunted tolerance of multicultural, multiethnic, polyglot Norman Sicily, in which Latin and Greek Christians, Jews, and Muslims all lived and had places at court, never meaningfully cohered anywhere but at court and eventually broke down. Fascinating stuff.
My only complaints are that the two chapters on Italy and the Crusades and the Norman kingdom of Sicily, being topical rather than chronological, had quite a bit of overlap and felt repetitive in places, and I would have liked thorough endnotes, as there were a few interesting quotations and insights that I wanted to look into further.
A good short guide to one of the most briefly consequential peoples of medieval Europe. Recommended.
About a quarter of the book covers the Normans’ Scandinavian origins; the middle half the rise of Normandy and the Conquest of England, with good attention to William’s campaign in 1066 as well as subsequent campaigns to subdue and repress the Saxons; and the final quarter or so covers the Norman presence in Italy and Sicily and, yet further afield, the Norman role in establishing and maintaining the Crusader states. Good sections on Norman culture, language, religious practice, art, and architecture in each, especially where each of these reflect military concerns, eg castle-building in England.
Rowley also does a good job on the interesting way the Normans conquered a place, established themselves as a ruling elite, radically reshaped local institutions, and essentially disappeared through marriage into local and foreign elites within a generation or two. The effects of this on culture are often interesting—he notes that one Norman king of Sicily kept a harem. And while Norman regions could often be called cosmopolitan, rarely did a unified culture emerge that gave life under Norman hegemony permanent. England is the exception rather than the rule. The much-vaunted tolerance of multicultural, multiethnic, polyglot Norman Sicily, in which Latin and Greek Christians, Jews, and Muslims all lived and had places at court, never meaningfully cohered anywhere but at court and eventually broke down. Fascinating stuff.
My only complaints are that the two chapters on Italy and the Crusades and the Norman kingdom of Sicily, being topical rather than chronological, had quite a bit of overlap and felt repetitive in places, and I would have liked thorough endnotes, as there were a few interesting quotations and insights that I wanted to look into further.
A good short guide to one of the most briefly consequential peoples of medieval Europe. Recommended.
September 27, 2023
For most readers, I suspect that this will provide them with as much about the Norman adventure in history as they really want to know. That said, I really picked up this book to learn about the Normans in Italy and Sicily, and it would appear that J.J. Norwich's works on that topic are still the "go to" choices to read. Also, I come away with a question I've never had before, as to what the real sources of Norman military efficiency were, considering how a pack of Viking raiders apparently managed to turn themselves into some of the most efficient cavalry troops in Europe, besides being masters of fortification.
Given the option I would be happy to give this book a rating of 3.5.
Given the option I would be happy to give this book a rating of 3.5.
September 4, 2014
I would have preferred a straight narrative without the stark divisions in geography (England, Sicily, etc.). Since it is the story of a people, I think it would have been clearer if Rowley kept these together and proceeded chronologically. Perhaps it wouldn't have been possible or would have made things confusing. But something felt off when I read this. Otherwise a good history.
February 28, 2022
Great little book of Norman History. It can drag sometimes, particularly in the second half, but that’s the nature of the genre. History isn’t always fantastical. Great introduction to Norman and Western European History.
December 31, 2025
The Normans were a relatively short-lived group of people who were made up of a little Viking blood. However, the author made the distinction that many Normans were from the Franks without any Viking blood.
Rollo (c. 846–932 AD) was a prominent Viking chieftain who became the founder and first ruler of the region that would become the Duchy of Normandy. He is widely remembered as the progenitor of the House of Normandy, the lineage that eventually produced William the Conqueror and the modern British royal family.
William the Conqueror (c. 1028–1087) was the first Norman King of England, reigning from his coronation on December 25, 1066, until his death in 1087. Already the Duke of Normandy since 1035, he is most famous for leading the Norman Conquest after defeating the last Anglo-Saxon king, Harold II, at the Battle of Hastings.
The Battle of Hastings pitted the English who had axes and spears against the Normans who had cavalry and knights. Although the book didn’t mention anything significant about Norman Knights, they were credited with the invention of:
Arched Saddles and Spurs: These enabled "true shock cavalry," where a rider could charge at full gallop with a couched lance.
During the Battle, the English started out with some advantage, starting out at a higher vantage point, but eventually lost to the skilled Norman Knights.
The arrival of Norman castles shifted craftsmen outside the main defensive walls. Unlike burhs, Norman castles were private residences for the lord and his military garrison. Because the interior space (the bailey) was limited and primarily for military use, most civilian craftsmen were pushed to settlements just outside the gates.
Forest laws, by William the Conqueror, were developed to protect the deer population. William could use the forest lands, but no one else could use them without risk of serious punishment.
The Domesday Book was commissioned in 1086, and was a revolutionary feat of data collection and administration, acting as a massive written "database" of landholdings and resources for taxation purposes.
Latin was the language mostly used in religion; French became the polite high society language, and English was in third place.
Rollo (c. 846–932 AD) was a prominent Viking chieftain who became the founder and first ruler of the region that would become the Duchy of Normandy. He is widely remembered as the progenitor of the House of Normandy, the lineage that eventually produced William the Conqueror and the modern British royal family.
William the Conqueror (c. 1028–1087) was the first Norman King of England, reigning from his coronation on December 25, 1066, until his death in 1087. Already the Duke of Normandy since 1035, he is most famous for leading the Norman Conquest after defeating the last Anglo-Saxon king, Harold II, at the Battle of Hastings.
The Battle of Hastings pitted the English who had axes and spears against the Normans who had cavalry and knights. Although the book didn’t mention anything significant about Norman Knights, they were credited with the invention of:
Arched Saddles and Spurs: These enabled "true shock cavalry," where a rider could charge at full gallop with a couched lance.
During the Battle, the English started out with some advantage, starting out at a higher vantage point, but eventually lost to the skilled Norman Knights.
The arrival of Norman castles shifted craftsmen outside the main defensive walls. Unlike burhs, Norman castles were private residences for the lord and his military garrison. Because the interior space (the bailey) was limited and primarily for military use, most civilian craftsmen were pushed to settlements just outside the gates.
Forest laws, by William the Conqueror, were developed to protect the deer population. William could use the forest lands, but no one else could use them without risk of serious punishment.
The Domesday Book was commissioned in 1086, and was a revolutionary feat of data collection and administration, acting as a massive written "database" of landholdings and resources for taxation purposes.
Latin was the language mostly used in religion; French became the polite high society language, and English was in third place.
January 8, 2025
A decent summary of the history of the Normans from their deal with the French king to the conquest of England, Sicily, Antioch, and Cyprus from ~900AD to 1200AD. One element I found interesting was how the Norman Dukedom was so rich and powerful that it competed and at times, warred, with the King of France. Another interesting element was the frequent rebellions of the period, and the near constant warring required from leaders during this period. It did a decent job covering some of the major events and themes, however many interesting elements were missing from events that I was familiar with that makes me question the other periods for interesting details being missed. For example, the siege of Antioch and the consequences of the acquisition of the Holy Lance were briefly covered, at best, despite being a significant Norman victory. This book serves as a good introduction to the Normans, but each region's history as well as the military strategies of the Normans could be explored further. The political, cultural and economic policies were discussed as well, and serve as good introductions.
September 2, 2025
This is a good introduction to the Normans. I thought that I was going to get more. The first 3/4 of the book mostly concerns the Vikings, the Norman Conquest of England, and the history of the early Norman kings of England. The last quarter of the book concerns the Norman creation of the Kingdom of the two Sicilies and their involvement in the Crusades. It is a good book for neophytes, but people who know a fair amount of medieval history may want to go elsewhere.
April 15, 2024
I am a bit obsessed about this period in history, for so many of the great families of England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, as well as the Mediterranean and North Africa began during this time period.
The Normans first became of note in the 10th Century, but were gone 300 years later. They developed a permanent culture in much of the world.
The Normans first became of note in the 10th Century, but were gone 300 years later. They developed a permanent culture in much of the world.
June 14, 2025
This reads much like a college report. Decent surface-level information but zero depth and the focus us entirely on the Anglo-Normans, with only two chapters devoted to Normans in other parts of Europe.
May 20, 2023
Solid survey of the Normans.
July 9, 2023
How did Edgar the Aethling just never die violently. Like. How. Anyway, great overview of norman history.
March 25, 2025
World history is an area of study that is often overlooked. Many historians seem to think that the study of the big historical picture can take away from their study of particular events, eras, or people. The Middle Ages are an historical period that historians investigate, but many seem to limit their investigations to the end of the Roman era, the Black Death, or the interactions of the church. However, author Trevor Rowley, in his The Normans: A History of Conquest (New York: Pegasus Books, 2021, $27.95 US $36.95 CAN, 224 pgs.), has shed some much needed light on an essential group that played a huge role in the Medieval world: The Normans. Rowley’s narrative does a good job of describing the Normans as a people who invaded and conquered England in 1066, but also left a lasting impact on such varied areas as Sicily, Italy, and North Africa.
The Normans seized the initiative and established a culture that would impact the course of history for centuries to come. The architecture, military might, and political skill of the Normans would become a foundational pillar of the later Middle Ages as the world transitioned into the Renaissance and the Modern period. Rowley does a good job in describing Norman genealogy, rulers, and government. He also describes how the Normans grafted their culture and civilization on to the Angles and other groups in England and how those groups were quickly given over to the rules and social mores of Norman society. Rowley depicts the Normans as conquerors and civilizing agents.
The Normans is a good example of narrative history that also contains semblances of an academic monograph. Rowley includes a seemingly well-studied bibliography with sources in both English and French. The narrative is full of interesting characters and drama that would invest themselves well in historical fiction. The Normans would be a great supplementary text in a Western Civilization or other introductory world history course. It is a little volume with a big story.
Matt
The Normans
Trevor Rowley
Pegasus Books
simonandschuster.com
ISBN 9781643136349 $27.95 Hardcover $18.99 Kindle 224 pages.
The Normans seized the initiative and established a culture that would impact the course of history for centuries to come. The architecture, military might, and political skill of the Normans would become a foundational pillar of the later Middle Ages as the world transitioned into the Renaissance and the Modern period. Rowley does a good job in describing Norman genealogy, rulers, and government. He also describes how the Normans grafted their culture and civilization on to the Angles and other groups in England and how those groups were quickly given over to the rules and social mores of Norman society. Rowley depicts the Normans as conquerors and civilizing agents.
The Normans is a good example of narrative history that also contains semblances of an academic monograph. Rowley includes a seemingly well-studied bibliography with sources in both English and French. The narrative is full of interesting characters and drama that would invest themselves well in historical fiction. The Normans would be a great supplementary text in a Western Civilization or other introductory world history course. It is a little volume with a big story.
Matt
The Normans
Trevor Rowley
Pegasus Books
simonandschuster.com
ISBN 9781643136349 $27.95 Hardcover $18.99 Kindle 224 pages.
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October 5, 2021He may be a good historian but he sure doesn’t like maps or figures. The maps are basically unlabeled scribbles. There is no list of figures or maps. You have to go online to try to figure out William’s route to and from Hastings and Normandy during the period. He doesn’t provide citations and many statements are qualified by “may” or “could be”. There must be better written and supported sources. With regard to the Normans in Sicily, Norwich’s “The Normans in Sicily” is far more erudite.
April 21, 2021
A contrast to Norman Achievement. Good to read both. Less focussed on comparing the various Norman principalities.
More concentrated on England with Sicily and Antioch as afterthoughts.
Some annoying typesetting/editing issues.
More concentrated on England with Sicily and Antioch as afterthoughts.
Some annoying typesetting/editing issues.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews