alternatehistory.com

In 1120, the White Ship left port at Barfleur, Normandy and set off across the Channel. A few hours out of port it strikes a rock and swiftly sinks, killing almost everyone on board- including the heir and spares of Henry I of England, leading directly to the Anarchy.

In 1066, only 54 years earlier, the Mora left port from Normandy and set off across the Channel. It was carrying William the Conqueror.

What if, in 1066, the Mora hit that very same rock, sank swiftly, and William drowned before ever setting foot in England? What if that Norman yoke was never placed around the English neck?

I've been rolling around this idea in my head for a while, but being a linguistics nerd I've mostly been thinking about it in terms of a more Germanic evolution for the English language. What about the politics of the time? Would England remain Anglo-Saxon? Without the English monarch directly owning lands in France, when, where, and how would England get involved with affairs on the Continent?
Top