Not surprisingly William wasn’t popular, there were enough revolts and rebellions to prompt him to maintain troublesome subjects by building the iconic castles still seen today. The landless elite, troublesome Normans and displaced Anglo-Saxons, along with disgruntled peasants, fled to Ireland, Scotland and Scandinavia. King Harold’s family fled to Ireland and around 1070 Anglo-Saxons boarded 235 ships and sailed for the surviving Eastern Roman Empire.
By the time land allocation ended almost all the old English aristocracy had gone and England had 6000 Manors. It’s thought 8000 Norman followers settled in England in 1066 and by the 1160’s, Ailred of Rievaulx was writing that ‘intermarriage was common in all levels of society.’
William had a reputation for being a bit harsh, but he was a man with a finger on the pulse of his new kingdom. Once his changes had been made he commissioned the Domesday Book, a census of land and ownership and livestock. When it was completed in 1086 he knew exactly how much money he was likely to raise, what kind of army he could muster and who he could expect to see in court.