For many the cathedral is seen as a symbol of the greatness and control of the Normans, who were able to build such monuments to their power despite having only conquered England recently. The precarious situation of being a newly established alien power was even more pronounced in the north, where even the Anglo-Saxon kings had had only superficial control, arguably making the building of Durham “one of the greatest Anglo-Norman successes”. This so-called achievement is not limited to architecture but also refers to political developments that allowed the Normans to apparently gain sufficient control to achieve this goal within 30 years. However, the study of Durham Cathedral alone cannot be sufficient to provide a satisfactory picture of Norman policy and achievement in Durham and must be placed in the context of the region. So it can be argued that Durham Cathedral and all its powerful connotations are just an anomaly compared to the reality of Norman England and its politics. Apparently Durham Cathedral can be seen as the product of the stability and prosperity brought by the Normans to the area which had previously been dominated by barbarism. At first glance this appears to be the case, since if the region had been poor and unimportant, such a large-scale project would not have been possible. Certainly the first Norman bishop of Durham, St Calais, was often involved in official royal affairs and is described as "perhaps the most eminent Norman clergyman in England" giving the impression that the north was important to the Normans as such an eminent figure was not would have been placed there, Durham was marginal to their interests. Therefore the focus in this time period seems to shift from war and regional separatism to a more civilized approach... to the center of the paper... iographyBarber, Malcolm, 'The Two Cities, Medieval Europe 1050-1320' ( Routlidge 1992 ) pp305-340Bartlett, Robert, 'The Making of Europe: Conquest, Colonization and Cultural change 950-1350' (Penguin Books 1994)Chibnall, Marjorie 'Anglo-Norman England 1066-1166' (Blackwell 1986)Dalton, Paul 'Scottish influence on Durham 1066-1214' in Rollason David, Harvey Margaret and Prestwich Michael, 'Anglo-Norman Durham' (Boydell 1994) pp339-353 Kapelle, WE 'The Norman Conquest of the North: the region and its transformation 1000-1135' (Croom Helm 1979) Matthew, Donald, 'Durham and the Anglo-Norman World' Rollason David, Harvey Margaret and Prestwich Michael 'Anglo-Norman Durham 1093-1193', (Boydell 1994) pp1-25Offler, HS 'North of the Tees' ( Variorum 1996) Pevsner, Niclaus 'The Buildings of England: County Durham' (Penguin Books 1953) pp77-137