The Normans: A History of Conquest

The Normans: A History of Conquest by Trevor Rowley

The Normans occupy a key role in the history of Europe, yet their period of control was very short. They were originally from Scandinavia and came down to occupy Normandy. While they ruled, they also adopted much of the language and culture of the region they occupied. Later they conquered England. (There was some conflict in succession and the Normans had some claim that they chose to occupy.) There, they also assimilated. There rule lasted a relatively brief period. The Normans were highly pious Christians. This lead to their involvement in the crusades. They went down to Sicily to work on chasing out the Moors. They also participated in the middle eastern crusades that would oftentimes seek to "reform" eastern Christians as much as Muslims. The book is a concise history of the Normans with many references to the Bayeux tapestry. It is interesting to read the context of many of the places that I have seen in Normandy and especially Caen.