Chapter XI: William I. a Conquering King

In the year 1066 occurred the other memorable date in English History, viz. _William the Conqueror, Ten Sixty-six_. This is also called _The Battle of Hastings_, and was when William I (1066) conquered England at the Battle of Senlac (_Ten Sixty-six_).

When William the Conqueror landed he lay down on the beach and swallowed two mouthfuls of sand. This was his first conquering action and was in the South; later he ravaged the North as well.

The Norman Conquest was a Good Thing, as from this time onwards England stopped being conquered and thus was able to become top nation.

DOOMSDAY BOOK AND THE FORESTS

William next invented a system according to which everybody had to belong to somebody else, and everybody else to the King. This was called the Feutile System, and in order to prove that it was true he wrote a book called the _Doomsday Book_, which contained an inventory of all the Possessions of all his subjects; after reading the book through carefully William agreed with it and signed it, indicating to everybody that the Possessions mentioned in it were now his.

William the Conqueror (1066) is memorable for having loved an old stag as if it was his father, and was in general very fond of animals: he therefore made some very just and conquering laws about the Forests. One of these laws said that _all the forests and places which were not already Possessions belonged to the King_ and that anyone found in them should _have his ears and legs cut off_--(these belonged to somebody else under the Feutile System, anyway)--and (if this had not already been done) should have his _eyes put out with red-hot irons_; after this the offender was allowed to fly the country.

Another very conquering law made by William I said that everyone had to go to bed at eight o’clock. This was called the Curfew and was a Good Thing in the end since it was the cause of Gray’s Energy in the country churchyard (at Stoke Penge).

Although in all these ways William the Conqueror (1066) was a very strong king he was eventually stumbled to death by a horse and was succeeded by his son Rufus.