BBC Four

BBC Two Scotland

BBC Two Northern Ireland

BBC Two England

England

Original version

Until 03/01/2009 BBC Two Wales (analogue) was known simply as BBC Two Wales. BBC Two Wales (digital) was BBC 2W. From 03/01/2009 BBC Two Wales schedules on both analogue and digital became identical

BBC Two

Knowledge, drama, comedy and the arts for a broad adult audience.

BBC Two is a lively channel of depth and substance, carrying a range of knowledge-building programming complemented by great drama, comedy and arts.

BBC Two Wales

Dan Snow's Norman Walks

Dan Snow

Owen Rodd

Eric Harwood

Dan Snow's Norman Walks: Episode 2: Herefordshire and Monmouthshire - the March of Wales

Documentaries

Factual: History

Factual: Travel

Herefordshire and Monmouthshire - the March of Wales

Episode 2

Episode 2: Herefordshire and Monmouthshire - the March of Wales

BBC Four - Dan Snow's Norman Walks, Herefordshire and Monmouthshire - the March of Wales

Dan Snow's walk around the Monnow river system is dominated by motte and bailey castles.

Dan Snow's walk around the Monnow river system is dominated by the motte and bailey castles that sprang up in the Norman era.

As part of the BBC's Norman season, historian Dan Snow puts his walking boots on and sets off to see what the great British landscape can teach us about our Norman predecessors. From their violent arrival on these shores, to their most sustaining legacies, Dan's three walks follow an evolutionary path through the Normans' era from invasion, to conquest, to successful rule and colonization.

On the Sussex coast, along the Welsh border and on the edge of the North York Moors, Dan explores the landscape and whatever evidence might remain; earthmounds, changing coastlines, viewpoints, and of course the giant stone castles and buildings that were the great symbol of Norman rule. All these elements offer clues as to how the Norman elite were ultimately able to dominate and rule our Anglo-Saxon kingdom. 

As Dan discovers, there are a great many unknowns about events in 1066 and thereafter. But one thing is clear - wherever they went, the varied British landscape and its diverse people offered a fresh challenge to the Normans.

Dan's second walk explores what the invaders did next, as they aimed to cement their rule across a diverse nation. Despite William the Conqueror being confirmed as king, the Normans had only completed stage one of their colonization, and few areas were as unstable as the Welsh borders. Challenging topography and a multitude of local chieftains made for an uncivilized region and Dan’s walk around the Monnow river system is dominated by the motte and bailey castles that sprang up throughout the Norman era. These were the handiwork of ambitious barons who made their mark on the 'march' – a border zone from which the Normans pushed their influence west into Wales and Ireland. Dan's very rural walk is still touched by the agriculture, forests and common ground established by the Normans, and he discovers that one of the present-day landowning families has held its lands for almost a thousand years.

Knowledge, arts, music and culture from the UK and the world.

BBC Four reflects arts, music and culture with an ambitious range of intellectually and culturally enriching programmes, taking an expert and in-depth approach to its subjects.

Dan Snow sets off to see what the British landscape can teach us about the Normans

Historian Dan Snow puts his walking boots on and sets off to see what the great British landscape can teach us about our Norman predecessors

Accessibility links

Programme Index

Dan Snow's Norman Walks

Episode 2: Herefordshire and Monmouthshire - the March of Wales

Contributors

Genres

Formats

Series

BBC Two Wales

About BBC Two