THE British Empire is long gone, but there once was an Empire of Britain that lasted almost as long. This belonged to those Storming Normans, spear-headed by William the Conqueror.
Comprising England, Normandy and parts of Wales and Ireland, it put England on the European stage in a new light and in a new role, and affected subsequent history in many and diverse ways.
David Bates argues that if it had not been for the Normans we would have remained on the periphery of Europe and unable to play a part centre stage. An argument that is still going on today.
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