Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Norman rule was to change everything in England and Wales, but already the tribal
rivalries that still trouble Great Britain—between the Celts in Wales, Scotland, and
Ireland, and the Anglo-Saxons in England—were well established.
The Middle Ages
(1066-1599)
Among the most impressive legacies
of these unstable ages are the medi-
eval castles and cathedrals, which
have stood the test of time. See Wil-
liam the Conqueror's Tower of Lon-
don with its sublime
White Tower
(p. 112).
Other examples are the impregna-
ble Conwy and Caernarfon castles in
Wales. Visit remarkable Ely Cathedral
near Cambridge and the incomparable
Canterbury Cathedral.
The Normans descended
from another branch of the
Viking tribes who had left the cold, wet, infertile islands of Scandinavia to seek a
better life. Although they had changed their name, they hadn't changed their ways.
They quickly colonized England and, unlike the Romans, tamed the more fertile (and
therefore profitable) parts of South Wales.
William's success came partly from his building impregnable castles wherever
they were needed. In 1078, for example, he built the White Tower at the Tower of
London and used it as a palace and fortress, and he built the original castle at
Windsor
(p. 199).
William was crowned King William I at
Westminster Abbey
(p. 103) in 1067, and
his supporters went on to build simple motte and bailey castles on the land William
2
White Tower, London
1727
George I, the fi rst of the
Hanoverians, assumes the throne.
1756-63
In the Seven Years' War, Britain
wins Canada from France.
1775-83
Britain loses its American colonies.
1795-1815
The Napoleonic Wars lead, fi nally,
to the Battle of Waterloo and the
defeat of Napoleon.
1914-18
England enters World War I
and emerges victorious on
the Allied side.
1936
Edward VIII abdicates to marry
an American divorcée.
1939-45
In World War II, Britain stands
alone against Hitler from the fall
of France in 1940 until the U.S.
enters the war in 1941. Dunkirk is
evacuated in 1940; bombs rattle
London during the Blitz.
1837
Queen Victoria begins her reign
as Britain reaches the zenith of
its empire.
1945
Germany surrenders. Churchill is
defeated; the Labour government
introduces the welfare state and
begins to dismantle the Empire.
1901
Victoria dies, and Edward VII
becomes king.
