William the Conqueror
The text of the book fit into two volumes. The first covered thirty-one counties. It was called 'Great Domesday' because of its size. The second covered the counties of Essex, Norfolk, and Suffolk and was called 'Little Domesday'. The facts were recorded by several panels made up of bishops and earls. Each panel collected information on several counties. William was presented with a large collection of written records on 1 August 1086. This became the Domesday Book, though it wouldn't be bound into books for almost another century.