What was the Domesday survey and why was it so called?
A book written about the Exchequer in c. 1176 (the Dialogus de Sacarrio) states that the book was called ‘Domesday’ as a metaphor for the day of judgement, because its decisions, like those of the last judgement, were unalterable. It was called Domesday by 1180.
What questions did the Domesday survey ask?
The questions asked can be summarised as follows:
- What is the manor called?
- Who held it in the time of King Edward (in 1066)?
- Who holds it now (in 1086)?
- How many hides are there?
- How many plough (team)s on the demesne (local lord’s own land) and among the men (rest of the village)?
What was the population of England in the Domesday Book?
First published in 1086, it contains records for 13,418 settlements in the English counties south of the rivers Ribble and Tees (the border with Scotland at the time). The information in the survey was collected by Royal commissioners who were sent out around England.
How many entries are there in the Domesday Book?
Detail from Domesday Book, list forming part of the first page of king’s holdings. There are fifty-three entries, including the first entry for the king himself followed by the Devon Domesday Book tenants-in-chief. Each name has its own chapter to follow.
Why was the Domesday book called the Doomsday Book?
The assessors’ reckoning of a man’s holdings and their values, as recorded in Domesday Book, was dispositive and without appeal. The name “Domesday Book” ( Middle English for “Doomsday Book”) came into use in the 12th century. As Richard FitzNeal wrote in the Dialogus de Scaccario ( circa 1179):
What did the commissioners do in the Domesday Book?
The traditional view is that all major landowners had to send in lists of their manors and tenants, which were compared to existing tax records. Commissioners were then sent out to assess the situation on the ground, questioning local juries in detail. Each was assigned circuits containing two or more counties.