Editing William the Conqueror (section)

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{{Main|Norman conquest of England#Consequences}}

[[File:William the Conqueror 1066 1087.jpg|thumb|upright|English coin of William the Conqueror]]

After 1066, William did not attempt to integrate his separate domains into one unified realm with one set of laws. His [[Seal (emblem)|seal]] from after 1066, of which six impressions still survive, was made for him after he conquered England and stressed his role as king, while separately mentioning his role as duke.{{efn|The seal shows a mounted knight and is the first extant example of an [[equestrian seal]].<ref name=Bates138/>}} When in Normandy, William acknowledged that he owed fealty to the French king, but in England no such acknowledgement was made&nbsp;– further evidence that the various parts of William's lands were considered separate. The administrative machinery of Normandy, England, and Maine continued to exist separate from the other lands, with each one retaining its own forms. For example, England continued the use of [[writ]]s, which were not known on the continent. Also, the charters and documents produced for the government in Normandy differed in formulas from those produced in England.<ref name=Bates138>Bates ''William the Conqueror'' pp. 138–141</ref>

William took over an English government that was more complex than the Norman system. England was divided into [[shire]]s or counties, which were further divided into either [[hundred (county subdivision)|hundreds]] or [[wapentake]]s. Each shire was administered by a royal official called a sheriff, who roughly had the same status as a Norman [[viscount]]. A sheriff was responsible for royal justice and collecting royal revenue.<ref name=Bates23/> To oversee his expanded domain, William was forced to travel even more than he had as duke. He crossed back and forth between the continent and England at least 19 times between 1067 and his death. William spent most of his time in England between the Battle of Hastings and 1072; after that, he spent the majority of his time in Normandy.<ref name=Bates133134>Bates ''William the Conqueror'' pp. 133–134</ref>{{efn|Between 1066 and 1072, William spent only 15 months in Normandy and the rest in England. After returning to Normandy in 1072, he spent around 130 months in Normandy as against about 40 months in England.<ref name=Bates133134/>}} Government was still centred on William's [[royal household|household]]; when he was in one part of his realms, decisions would be made for other parts of his domains and transmitted through a communication system that made use of letters and other documents. William also appointed deputies who could make decisions while he was absent, especially if the absence was expected to be lengthy. Usually, this was a member of William's close family&nbsp;– frequently his half-brother Odo or his wife Matilda. Sometimes deputies were appointed to deal with specific issues.<ref name=Bates136>Bates ''William the Conqueror'' pp. 136–137</ref>

William continued the collection of [[danegeld]], a land tax. This was an advantage for William and the only universal tax collected by western European rulers during this period. It was an annual tax based on the value of landholdings and could be collected at differing rates. Most years saw the rate of two shillings per hide, but in crises, it could be increased to as much as six shillings per hide.<ref name=Bates151>Bates ''William the Conqueror'' pp. 151–152</ref> Coinage across his domains continued to be minted in different cycles and styles. English coins were generally of high silver content, with high artistic standards, and were required to be re-minted every three years. Norman coins had a much lower silver content, were often of poor artistic quality, and were rarely re-minted. In England, no other coinage was allowed, while on the continent other coinage was considered [[legal tender]]. Nor is there evidence that many English [[pennies]] were circulating in Normandy, which shows little attempt to integrate the monetary systems of England and Normandy.<ref name=Bates138/>

Besides taxation, William's large landholdings throughout England strengthened his rule. As King Edward's heir, he controlled all of the former royal lands. He also retained control of much of the lands of Harold and his family, which made the king the largest secular landowner in England by a wide margin.{{efn|In ''[[Domesday Book]]'', the king's lands were worth four times as much as the lands of his half-brother Odo, the next largest landowner, and seven times as much as [[Roger of Montgomery]], the third-largest landowner.<ref name=Bates150>Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 150</ref>}}