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1、WilliamtheConquerorWilliamtheConquerorEdwardA.Freeman1WilliamtheConquerorCHAPTERI--INTRODUCTIONThehistoryofEngland,likethelandanditspeople,hasbeenspeciallyinsular,andyetnolandhasundergonedeeperinfluencesfromwithout.NolandhasowedmorethanEnglandtothepersonalactionofmennotofnativebirth.Britai
2、nwastrulycalledanotherworld,inoppositiontotheworldoftheEuropeanmainland,theworldofRome.IneveryagethehistoryofBritainisthehistoryofanisland,ofanislandgreatenoughtoformaworldofitself.InspeakingofCeltsorTeutonsinBritain,wearespeaking,notsimplyofCeltsandTeutons,butofCeltsandTeutonspartedfromth
3、eirkinsfolkonthemainland,andbroughtunderthecommoninfluencesofanislandworld.Thelandhasseenseveralsettlementsfromoutside,butthesettlershavealwaysbeenbroughtunderthespelloftheirinsularposition.Wheneversettlementhasnotmeantdisplacement,thenewcomershavebeenassimilatedbytheexistingpeopleofthelan
4、d.Whenithasmeantdisplacement,theyhavestillbecomeislanders,markedofffromthosewhomtheyleftbehindbycharacteristicswhichwerethedirectresultofsettlementinanislandworld.ThehistoryofBritainthen,andspeciallythehistoryofEngland,hasbeenlargelyahistoryofelementsabsorbedandassimilatedfromwithout.Butea
5、chofthoseelementshasdonesomewhattomodifythemassintowhichitwasabsorbed.TheEnglishlandandnationarenotastheymighthavebeeniftheyhadneverinlatertimesabsorbedtheFleming,theFrenchHuguenot,theGermanPalatine.Stilllessaretheyastheymighthavebeen,iftheyhadnotinearliertimesabsorbedthegreaterelementsoft
6、heDaneandtheNorman.Bothwereassimilated;butbothmodifiedthecharacteranddestinyofthepeopleintowhosesubstancetheywereabsorbed.TheconquerorsfromNormandyweresilentlyandpeacefullylostinthegreatermassoftheEnglishpeople;stillwecanneverbeasiftheNormanhadnevercomeamongus.Weeverbearaboutusthesignsofhi
7、spresence.Ourcolonistshavecarriedthosesignswiththemintodistantlands,toremindmenthatsettlersinAmericaandAustraliacamefromalandwhichtheNormanonceenteredasaconqueror.Butthatthosesigns2WilliamtheConquerorofhispresenceholdtheplacewhichtheydoholdinourmixedpoliticalb
