Egbert was the first English national King. In 1066, William the Conqueror took the crown by force. William ordered the first census, known as the Domesday Book which was used to create the first central tax system for England. William introduced elements of French culture into England, while many of the lower classes kept the old Anglo-Saxon language and customs, French was the language of choice for nobility. William continued to expand English territory into France (Internet Medieval Sourcebook)

When Henry II took the throne, he married the powerful French duchess, Eleanor of Aquitane. Together they ruled all of England and half of France. Technically, this made English kings vassals of French kings. However, in practice, the English monarchs were much stronger and essentially ignored their feudal obligations to the French monarchy. In the 1200s, nobles became worried that English monarchy was beginning abuse its power. They drafted the Magna...
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