This chapter concludes the volume’s first thematic strand (Home and Away) with a study of Scandinavia and the North Sea world in the age of William the Conqueror. Beginning with Denmark and Norway, it moves on to scrutinise the legacy of Cnut’s North Sea empire, before turning to Scandinavia’s Christianisation and the consolidation of its Church. This is followed by a study of towns, trade centres, and the settlement and increasing urbanisation of the North Atlantic. The chapter is rounded off by discussions of Sweden and the two Baltic Islands of Gotland and Bornholm.

This chapter introduces the volume’s first thematic strand (Home and Away) with a study of Normandy and the Continent in the age of William the Conqueror. It commences with a consideration of terminology, followed by an analysis of Normandy’s developing boundaries and the Normans’ adjustment to Christianity. The chapter then takes a comparative view of Normandy’s neighbours (Brittany, Flanders, Maine, Blois, and France) before studying the duchy’s rise as a major player in eleventh-century north-western Europe. It concludes with discussions of knightly culture, Church reform, and the influence of popes and emperors.

Continuing the volume’s first thematic strand (Home and Away), this chapter is dedicated to eleventh-century England and the insular world. It begins by studying England, before analysing England’s connections with the territories and peoples of Wales and Ireland. This is followed by specific discussions of William the Conqueror’s dealings with the Welsh and the relationship between the Danelaw and northern England. The chapter then shifts its focus beyond Northumbria to investigate the history of the Normans in the north and their contacts with the Scots.