Englishmen had but one name; and when, for convenience, another was
needed, they were called by their occupation or from some personal
peculiarity, as Edward the Carpenter, Harold the Dauntless. Among the
Normans the lack of a second, or family, name had come to be looked
upon as a sign of low birth, and the daughter of a great lord
(Fitz-Haman) refused to marry a nobleman who had but one, saying, "My
father and my grandfather had each two names, and it were a great
shame to me to take a husband who has less."

The principal amusements were hunting, and hawking (catching birds and
other small game by the use of trained hawks).

The Church introduced theatrical plays, written and acted by the
monks. These represented scenes in Scripture history, and, later, the
careers of the Vices and the Virtues were personified.

Jousts and tournaments, or mock combats between knights, were not
encouraged by William I, or his immediate successors, but became
common in the period following the Norman Kings. On some occasions
they were fought in earnest, and resulted in the death of one, or
more, of the combatants.



SIXTH PERIOD[1]

"Man bears within him certain ideas of order, of justice, of reason,
with a constant desire to bring them into play...; for this he labors
unceasingly."--Guizot, "History of Civilization."