Changes Under the Normans - The Church

History: KS3, topic 1.13.17

Archbishop Lanfranc - Normanisation of the Church

Lanfranc was an Italian, who had moved to France. William I made Lanfranc the Archbishop of Canterbury in August of 1070.

Lanfranc centralised power towards himself and towards King William I.
Lanfranc brought every aspect of the Church of England under his control.
Lanfranc was controlled by only 2 people - the King, and the Pope (the leader of the Catholic church who lived in Vatican City).
So, William gained great power over the Church by giving Lanfranc lots of power.
In the Earls' Revolt of 1075, Archbishop Lanfranc was in charge of England whilst William was travelling.

Dioceses, were regions controlled by bishops.
Lanfranc introduced an archdeacon into each diocese, to increase his control over the actions and behaviour of members of the Church.
Previously, priests had lived relatively normal lives and mixed with normal people. Lanfranc created a separate system in society for priests and the people involved in running the Church.

English churches were rebuilt in the architecture style found in Normandy, rather than in traditional England.