At the time the "Domesday Book" was compiled in 1086, the colonisation of Yorkshire by the Normans was well underway. Archaeological evidence at today's Normanton points to Haw Hill (or How Hill), an eminence that was probably a Norman defensive strategic mound once reinforced by a wooden palisade. The evidence of a Norman motte-and-bailey fortification at the town, and the name, is likely evidence that Normanton's name derived from the substantial Anglo-Norman presence in the area. Nearby, after all, were Tickhill, the fortress of Norman magnate Roger de Busli, as well as other new Norman power centres. Although the area had once been part of the Scandinavian Danelaw, William the Conqueror's scorched earth northern campaign had left the area ripe for exploitation by his Lords. By all measures, Normanton likely owes its name to these new aggressive warriors.