Continuous, definitely, but also sudden. It's remarkable how fast the transition takes place. Henry II is firmly stuck in the old framework, fighting with barons who were striking out on their own in Ireland to bring them to heel, and squelching rebellions centred around his sons. (The fight with Becket is another aspect of the same change, as Henry's centralisation aim clash with the similar direction the church is heading in across Europe.) By Edward I we're beginning to see the firm emergence of the courts in the Year Books, which is the new order.
But, agreed, the replacement of plunder by standard mechanisms of taxation - still disguised as "gifts" at the time the transition is taking place - is notionally continuous. Instead of people worrying about occasionally having all their harvest taken away by unruly knights, they have to cope with rents/levees/whatever on a regular basis, and now backed by the royal and not the baronial courts.
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2022-05-14 11:28 pm (UTC)But, agreed, the replacement of plunder by standard mechanisms of taxation - still disguised as "gifts" at the time the transition is taking place - is notionally continuous. Instead of people worrying about occasionally having all their harvest taken away by unruly knights, they have to cope with rents/levees/whatever on a regular basis, and now backed by the royal and not the baronial courts.