The Norman Conquest marks the transition from Old English to Middle English, the chief phonological difference between the two being the falling together or coalescing of unaccented vowels.

The Normans, although finding in England a legal system in may ways more advanced than their own, have brought here trial by jury, in which jurors are witnesses summoned from the vicinity of the crime, and used as part of the proof of innocence or guilt.

The Accord of Winchester, which establishes the primacy of the Archbishop of Canterbury over the Archbishop of York in the Church of England, had originated in a dispute over primacy between Thomas, the archbishop of York, and Lanfranc, the new Norman archbishop of Canterbury, soon after the latter had taken office.

The case is first heard by King William at the old Saxon royal capital of Winchester at Easter (April 8) 1072, in the royal chapel in the castle.

It is then heard at Windsor at Pentecost (May 27), where the final settlement is made, with William deciding in Lanfranc's favor, and formalized in this document.

This does not end the Canterbury-York dispute over the primacy, as it will continue for a number of years after this.

Anselm, at the invitation of Hugh d'Avranches, first Earl of Chester, had in 1092 crossed to England, where he had been detained by business for nearly four months and then refused permission to return to Bec by the king.

The latter had suddenly fallen seriously ill at Alveston the following year, and spurred on by his wish to make amends for his sinful behavior which he believed had caused his illness he allows the nomination of Anselm on March 6, 1093, to the vacant see.

Over the course of the following months, Anselm tries to refuse, on the grounds of age and ill-health.

Anselm on August 24 gives William the conditions under which he will accept the see, which amount to an agenda of the Gregorian Reform: that William return the see's land which he had seized; that William accept the preeminence of Anselm's spiritual counsel; and that William acknowledge Pope Urban II as pope (in opposition to Antipope Clement III).

Anselm's professions of refusal aid his bargaining position as he discusses terms with William.

William is exceedingly reluctant to accept these conditions; he will only grant the first.

A few days after this, William tries to rescind even this; he suspends the preparations for Anselm's investiture.

Under public pressure William is forced to carry out the appointment.

In the end, Anselm and William settle on the return of Canterbury's lands as the only concession from William.

Finally, the English bishops thrust the crosier into his hands and take him to the church to be inducted.

He does homage to William, and on September 25, 1093 he receives the lands of the see, and is enthroned, after obtaining dispensation from his duties in Normandy.

He is on December 4 consecrated archbishop of Canterbury.

One of Anselm's first conflicts with William comes the very month he is consecrated.

William is preparing to fight his elder brother, Robert II, Duke of Normandy, and needs funds for doing so.

Anselm is among those expected to pay him, and he offers five hundred pounds.

William refuses the offer, insisting on a greater sum.

Later, a group of bishops suggests that William might now settle for the original sum, but Anselm tells them he has already given the money to the poor.

In this episode Anselm is careful, and manages to both avoid charges of simony, and be generous.

Archbishop Anselm of Canterbury, driven into exile by William II, writes, during these years of church-state struggle, his greatest theological work, Cur Deus Homo (“Why God Became Man”), completed in 1098), presenting theology as "faith seeking understanding" in the form of a dialogue that all readers can easily follow.

In his highly influential Proslogion, Anselm argues that even one who denies the existence of God knows what is meant by the term—namely, "a being greater than which none can be conceived."

As such a notion cannot, according to Anselm, exist only in the mind—for to exist in the mind and in reality is greater than to exist only in the mind—there must necessarily be in reality a being greater than which none can be conceived.

This definition constitutes for Anselm the ultimate ground for all that is believed and taught about God—namely, his unity, his Trinity, his incarnation, and his redemption of humankind from sin.

(Some philosophers view Anselm’s argument as the ontological proof for the existence of God; others reject it as an illicit inference from the mental to the physical order of existence.)

William Rufus, although an effective soldier, is a ruthless ruler and, it seems, is little liked by those he governs.

His chief minister is Ranulf Flambard, whom he had appointed Bishop of Durham in 1099: this is a political appointment, to a see that is also a great fiefdom.

The particulars of the king's relationship with the people of England are not credibly documented.

Contemporaries of William, as well as those writing after his death, roundly denounce him for presiding over what these dissenters consider to be a dissolute court.

In keeping with tradition of Norman leaders, William scorns the English and the English culture.

As regent for his brother Robert in Normandy, William from 1097 to 1099 has campaigned in France.

He has secured northern Maine but failed to seize the French-controlled part of the Vexin region.

The King appears confident of regaining the remainder of Normandy from Robert, and Henry appears ever closer to William, the pair campaigning together between 1097 and 1098 in the Norman Vexin.

He is planning in 1100 to invade Aquitaine, in southwestern France.

Henry goes hunting in the New Forest, probably near Brockenhurst, on August 2 of this year, and is killed by an arrow through the lung, though the circumstances remain unclear.

The earliest statement of the event is in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, which notes that the king was "shot by an arrow by one of his own men".

Later chroniclers added the name of the killer, a nobleman named Walter Tirel, although the description of events was later embroidered with other details that may or may not be true.

The first mention of any location more exact than the New Forest comes from John Leland, who wrote in 1530 that William died at Thorougham, a place name which has since fallen into disuse but was probably located at what is now Park Farm on the Beaulieu estates.

The king's body is abandoned by the nobles at the place where he had fallen.

A peasant later finds it.

William of Malmesbury, in his account of William's death, states that the body was taken to Winchester Cathedral by a few countrymen.

To the chroniclers—men of the Church—such an 'act of God' was a just end for a wicked king.

Over the following centuries, the obvious suggestion that one of William's enemies may have had a hand in this extraordinary event has repeatedly been made: chroniclers of the time point out themselves that Tirel was renowned as a keen bowman, and thus was unlikely to have loosed such an impetuous shot.

Moreover, William's brother Henry was among the hunting party that day and benefited directly from William's death, being crowned king shortly thereafter.

Henry rides to Winchester, where an argument ensues as to who now has the best claim to the throne.

William of Breteuil champions the rights of Robert, who is still abroad, returning from the Crusade, and to whom Henry and the barons had given homage in previous years.

Henry argues that, unlike Robert, he has been born to a reigning king and queen, thereby giving him a claim under the right of porphyrogeniture.

Tempers flare, but Henry, supported by Henry de Beaumont and Robert of Meulan, hold sway and persuade the barons to follow him.

He occupies Winchester Castle and seizes the royal treasury.

Henry is hastily crowned king in Westminster Abbey on August 5 by Maurice, the Bishop of London, as Anselm, the Archbishop of Canterbury, had been exiled by William Rufus, and Thomas, the Archbishop of York, is in the north of England at Ripon.

In accordance with English tradition and in a bid to legitimize his rule, Henry issues a coronation charter laying out various commitments.

The new king presents himself as having restored order to a trouble-torn country.

He announces that he will abandon William Rufus's policies towards the Church, which have been seen as oppressive by the clergy; he promises to prevent royal abuses of the barons' property rights, and assures a return to the gentler customs of Edward the Confessor; he asserts that he will "establish a firm peace" across England and orders "that this peace shall henceforth be kept".

In addition to his existing circle of supporters, many of whom are richly rewarded with new lands, Henry quickly co-ops many of the existing administration into his new royal household.

William Giffard, William Rufus's chancellor, is made the Bishop of Winchester, and the prominent sheriffs Urse d'Abetot, Haimo Dapifer and Robert Fitzhamon continue to play a senior role in government.

By contrast, the unpopular Ranulf Flambard, the Bishop of Durham and a key member of the previous regime, is imprisoned in the Tower of London and charged with corruption.

The late king had left many church positions unfilled, and Henry sets about nominating candidates to these, in an effort to build further support for his new government.

The appointments need to be consecrated, and Henry writes to Anselm, apologizing for having been crowned while the Archbishop is still in France and asking him to return at once.

He writes that he commits himself to be counseled by Anselm.

Matilda proves an effective queen for Henry, acting as a regent in England on occasion, addressing and presiding over councils, and extensively supporting the arts.

The couple soon had two children, Matilda, born in 1102, and William Adelin, born in 1103; it is possible that they also had a second son, Richard, who died young.

Following the birth of these children, Matilda prefers to remain based in Westminster while Henry travels across England and Normandy, either for religious reasons or because she enjoys being involved in the machinery of royal governance.

Henry has a considerable sexual appetite and enjoys a substantial number of sexual partners, resulting in a large number of illegitimate children, at least nine sons and thirteen daughters, many of whom he appears to have recognized and supported.

It was normal for unmarried Anglo-Norman noblemen to have sexual relations with prostitutes and local women, and kings are also expected to have mistresses.

Some of these relationships occurred before Henry was married, but many others take place after his marriage to Matilda.

Henry has a wide range of mistresses from a range of backgrounds, and the relationships appear to have been conducted relatively openly.

He may have chosen some of his noble mistresses for political purposes, but the evidence to support this theory is limited.