Contributions to the Conquest: The abbey of Fécamp and maritime memory

In 1066 Duke William of Normandy crossed the English Channel to invade the Kingdom of England at the start of a story that has been well-known and studied for centuries. However, fundamental questions remain unanswered, and indeed largely unasked, regarding where William found the knowledge, ships, and sailors required for such an undertaking. While the eleventh and twelfth-century narrative accounts of the momentous events of 1066 have in most cases been closely investigated, the testimony of the Ship List of William the Conqueror remains an under-utilised yet immensely valuable source through which these questions can be explored. This article examines the inclusion within the Ship List of the almoner Remigius and investigates the role played by both Remigius and his monastic community at the Abbey of the Holy Trinity of Fécamp in the practice and curation of eleventh-century maritime activity and cultural memory, as well as their vital contribution to the invasion in 1066. It is argued here that this approach illuminates the fundamental contributions made by this institution to not only the Norman invasion in 1066 but also Normandy’s wider social, economic, and political histories in this period. This article demonstrates that, though a short and enigmatic text, the Ship List nonetheless provides key information concerning the named contributors to the Norman cross-Channel invasion, and that by examining their connections to maritime activity and experience, it is possible to identify the communities behind the named individuals that enabled the Norman invasion to become a reality.