I’m not sure if this is really new, or just new to me, but via a mailing list, I learned that the National Archives of the UK has made the Domesday Book available on-line. What is the Domesday Book, you ask?
At Christmas 1085 William the Conqueror commissioned a great survey to discover the resources and taxable values of all the boroughs and manors in England. He wanted to discover who owned what, how much it was worth, and how much was owed to him as King.
It was a massive enterprise, and the record of that survey, Domesday Book, was a remarkable achievement.
If you know what you’re looking for, you can search the Domesday Book for it, or, if you’re not so hot with the medieval Latin, you can content yourself with the on-line exhibitions on the history of the book and England under William the Conqueror. Or just look at the page images.
Cool stuff.
ID every Medieval git who came up short at tax time. Calculate interest and penalties and track down their descendents. Murder, rape, arson, extortion… the State doesn’t care. The State never forgives those who think they own their possessions. Lady Godiva (Godgyfu) rode nude 10 July 1040 in Coventry to protest taxation policies. On 14-15 November 1940, Winston Churchill delivered unto Coventry 900 years of cumulative State displeasure: principle, interest, and assessed penalties.
The thing that annoys me is that if I want to look anything up they are charging £3.50 (well over $5) for each and every page. Surely this should be a public resource!