Editing Norwich (section)

===Early English period and Norman conquest===
[[File:Norwich Cathedral, spire and south transept.jpg|thumb|[[Norwich Cathedral]] is one of the great Norman buildings of England.]]

It is possible that three separate early Anglo-Saxon settlements, one north of the river and two either side on the south, joined as they grew; or that a single Anglo-Saxon settlement, north of the river Wensum-Yare, emerged in the mid-7th century after the abandonment of the previous three. [[Mercia]]n coins and shards of pottery from the [[Rhineland]] dating from the 8th century suggest that long-distance trade was happening during this time. The Vikings were a strong cultural influence in Norwich for 40 to 50 years at the end of the 9th century, setting up an [[Anglo-Scandinavian]] district near the north end of present-day King Street. Between 924 and 939, during the reign of [[Æthelstan|King Æthelstan]], Norwich became fully established as a town, with its own mint. The word ''Norvic'' appears on coins across Europe minted during this period. The ancient city was a thriving centre for trade and commerce in East Anglia in 1004 when it was raided and burnt by [[Sweyn I of Denmark|Sweyn Forkbeard]], the [[Viking]] king of Denmark.

At the time of the [[Norman Conquest]], in 1067, the city was one of the largest in England. The [[Domesday Book]], compiled in 1086, states that the city had approximately 25 churches and a population of between 5,000 and 10,000. It also records the site of an Anglo-Saxon church in Tombland, the site of the Saxon market place and the later [[Norwich Cathedral|Norman cathedral]]. Norwich continued to be a major centre for trade, described officially as the [[Port of Norwich]]. [[Quern stone]]s and other artefacts from [[Scandinavia]] and the Rhineland have been found during excavations in Norwich city centre. These date from the 11th century onwards.

[[File:Norwich Castle.jpg|thumb|[[Norwich Castle]]'s 12th-century keep]]

[[Norwich Castle]] was founded soon after the Norman Conquest.<ref>{{PastScape |mnumber=132268 |mname=Norwich Castle |access-date=29 December 2010}}</ref> The [[Domesday Book]] records that 98 Saxon homes were demolished to make way for the castle.{{sfn |Harfield |1991 |pp=373, 384}} The [[Normans]] established a new focus of settlement around the Castle and the area to the west of it: this became known as the "New" or "French" borough, centred on the Normans' own market place, which survives today as Norwich Market, the largest permanent undercover market in Europe.<ref name="Visit Norwich"/>

In 1096, [[Herbert de Losinga]], [[Bishop of Thetford]], began construction of [[Norwich Cathedral]]. The chief building material for the Cathedral was limestone, imported from Caen in Normandy. To transport the building stone to the site, a canal was cut from the river (from the site of present-day Pulls Ferry) up to the east wall. Herbert de Losinga then moved his [[Episcopal see|See]] there, to what became the cathedral church for the [[Anglican Diocese of Norwich|Diocese of Norwich]]. The Bishop of Norwich still signs himself ''Norvic''. 

Norwich received a [[royal charter]] from [[Henry II of England|Henry II]] in 1158, and another from [[Richard I of England|Richard the Lionheart]] in 1194. After a riot in the city in 1274, Norwich has the distinction of being the only complete English city to be excommunicated by the Pope.{{sfn |Blomefield |1806}}