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Domesday Book
Domesday Book , record of a general census of England made (1085–86) by order of William I (William the Conqueror). The survey ascertained the economic resources of most of the country for purposes of more accurate taxation. Royal agents took the evidence of local men in each hundred (county subdivision), the latter acting as inquest jurors. Descriptions of each piece of land, its present and former holders, the holding itself, and the population on it were among the facts recorded. For the thoroughness and speed with which it was taken, the Domesday survey as an administrative measure is unsurpassed in medieval history. Written from the data thus gathered, the Domesday Book is an invaluable historical source. It furnished the material for F. W. Maitland's masterly survey, Domesday Book and Beyond (1897), which deals with social and economic conditions in Anglo-Saxon and Conquest times. Many of the Domesday records have been printed by counties in the Victoria County Histories, and several portions have been independently published. The name domesday is a variant of doomsday, meaning day of judgment.
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"Domesday Book." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Domesday Book." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-Domesday.html "Domesday Book." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-Domesday.html |
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Domesday Book
DOMESDAY BOOKAn ancient record of land ownership in England. Commissioned by William the Conqueror in the year 1085 and finished in 1086, the book is a superb example of thorough and speedy administration, unequaled by any other project undertaken during the Middle Ages. Minute and accurate surveys of all of England were done for the purpose of compiling information essential for levying taxes and enforcing the land tenure system. The work was done by five justices in each county who took a census and listed all the feudal landowners, their personal property, and other information. The judges gathered their information by summoning each man and having him give testimony under oath. This is perhaps the earliest use of the inquest procedure in England, and it established the right of the king to require citizens to give information, a foundation of the jury trial. Domesday was a Saxon word meaning Judgment Day, at the end of time when God will pronounce judgment against all of mankind. The name given to this record may have come from the popular opinion that the inquiry was as thorough as that promised for Judgment Day. Two volumes of the Domesday Book are still in existence, and they continue to be valuable for historical information about social and economic conditions. They are kept in the Public Record Office in England. |
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"Domesday Book." West's Encyclopedia of American Law. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Domesday Book." West's Encyclopedia of American Law. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3437701477.html "Domesday Book." West's Encyclopedia of American Law. 2005. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3437701477.html |
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Domesday Book
Domesday Book was the result of the great survey commissioned by William the Conqueror at Gloucester at Christmas 1085. Domesday Book's name shows that it was a source of awe and wonder. It is fundamental for all types of historical enquiry and is important for geographers, lawyers, and linguists. It is primarily a record of landholders, both in 1086 and in the time of Edward the Confessor, and of the manors which they held. The survey's purpose and the method of its compilation are subjects of debate. The current emphasis is on a financial purpose, since it seems to be primarily concerned with resources and assessments. However, its value as a register of title must not be overlooked. Computer‐based studies of Domesday Book's contents are starting to yield impressive results.
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JOHN CANNON. "Domesday Book." A Dictionary of British History. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. JOHN CANNON. "Domesday Book." A Dictionary of British History. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O43-DomesdayBook.html JOHN CANNON. "Domesday Book." A Dictionary of British History. 2004. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O43-DomesdayBook.html |
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Domesday Book
Domesday Book a comprehensive record of the extent, value, ownership, and liabilities of land in England, made in 1086 by order of William I. The name was apparently a popular one applied during the 12th century because the book was regarded as a final authority (with allusion to doomsday ‘the Day of Judgement’); it is sometimes referred to as Doomsday Book.
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ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Domesday Book." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Domesday Book." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-DomesdayBook.html ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "Domesday Book." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-DomesdayBook.html |
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Domesday Book
Domesday Book, ‘the Book of the day of assessment’, is the name applied since the 12th cent. to the record of the great inquest or survey of the lands of England made by order of William the Conqueror in 1086. It contains a record of the ownership, area, and value of lands, and of the numbers of tenants, livestock, etc.
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MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "Domesday Book." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "Domesday Book." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O54-DomesdayBook.html MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "Domesday Book." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O54-DomesdayBook.html |
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Domesday Book
Domesday Book (1085–86) Census of the English kingdom commissioned by William I (the Conqueror). Its purpose was to ascertain potential crown revenue. The most complete survey in medieval Europe, it is an important primary historical source. It lists property and resources manor by manor.
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"Domesday Book." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Domesday Book." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-DomesdayBook.html "Domesday Book." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-DomesdayBook.html |
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