At this time, Western Europe was in the age of obscurantism in the Middle Ages, and the people who lived in an era when witchcraft and magic were not yet separated, did not see witchcraft as a simple imagination, but as a valid law of survival.

The crops were hard to cultivate but the harvest was small, and the livestock that had been fed so hard died inexplicably, and suddenly became ill. He saw the calamities, the losses, and the pains he experienced not as enemies exercising magic, but as spirits venting hatred, anger, or trouble. They were always entangled in his presence, they weary him, they disturbed him day and night, they made him angry, he was so eager to get rid of them that he sometimes had no choice, he could not bear it any longer, he turned his face fiercely, and against his persecutors, they tried to drive them out of his land. At that time, among the various rituals of the people to drive away these demons that plagued them, there was a special substance that appeared frequently - salt.

In many regional cultures, salt is considered a symbol of holiness and has the effect of warding off evil spirits, dispelling diseases, and reducing disasters. In the fifth month of the Korean lunar calendar, girls would use impatiens with salt and alum, mash them and dye their nails red to ward off evil spirits; Three days after giving birth, a woman in Thailand asks a witch doctor to remove the fire poison for her, and the witch doctor recites a charm, chews white rice and salt grains in the mouth, and sprays them on the mother's back. In Egypt, there was a strong belief in the poisonous eye, which means that some people's eyes have vicious and special functions, and that people or animals that have been seen by such eyes will either be seriously ill, injured, or dead. The antidote is to sew a pouch into the turban, filled with minced salt, and hang it around the neck of a child or on the horns of an animal. After the baby is born, the midwife and others sprinkle salt or a mixture of salt and black grains in the houses to protect the child and the mother from poisonous eyes.

Whether in China or abroad, salt has a special position in history. It can be linked to the country's economic lifeline through taxation and other means, and can be completely penetrated into people's daily life, and it is also closely related to the development of industrial technology.

Salt permeated social life, initially as an important and necessary food. It is no longer known when humans first consumed salt, but since ancient times, people and livestock have had the habit of licking rock salt. What is certain is that since the dawn of mankind, its life has been closely linked to salt. The demand for salt continues to drive the development of salt technology. In ancient times, humans discovered that salt could be used to preserve food in addition to direct consumption. Initially, this technology was widely used in meat production. Since the middle of the Middle Ages, salted vegetables have become popular, and cured meats are in great demand both for the army and the general public. By the late Middle Ages and early modern times, there was a marked increase in the availability of meat for peasant consumption, but cured meat still played a major role.

As early as the time of the Western Roman Empire, salt had become an important economic factor, and the role of salt in preserving food was also well understood.

In Rome, in addition to being eaten directly, salt was also used to preserve meat and as an ingredient for marinating fish and fish sauces.

Salt was an important factor in the Roman economy. The Latin word sal is the root of both sary and soldier, both of which are paid with salt.

The Salt Works were one of the main buildings of the Roman Empire, and more than 60 of them have been identified, and salt and salt products such as cured meat and fish became the most important commodities in the Roman Empire.

So who occupied these salt works until the mid-11th century? The salt industry was largely controlled by the monks, and during the period of the manor system, there was hardly a salt well that was not wholly or partially owned by a monastery.

The Salt Works of Reichhar in Bavaria, Germany, and the Marsal Salt Works in Lorraine, which were profitable in Roman times and continued to be the case during the barbarian invasions, were later under the control of the monastery.

In addition to controlling the production of salt, monasteries and churches also have an overwhelming advantage in the salt trade, because churches are the most important, if not the only, places of public activity in urban and rural areas.

In the Middle Ages, fairs and markets were first opened in the square in front of the church, because people gathered here from all over the world on Sundays and religious holidays, and armed fights and looting were strictly prohibited in front of the church, which ensured relatively safe trading activities.

This tradition continues to this day, with fairs held every Saturday in the squares in front of many churches across Western Europe. On the other hand, churches and monasteries were more favourable than secular merchants in their trading activities, and they enjoyed exemptions from land and water taxes under the sign of religion, and they could trade in agricultural and handicraft products from different regions, enriching the goods of the market. The kings gave the privilege of establishing markets and bazaars to the church and the monasteries.

As a result, the monastery controlled the salt economy in terms of both production and sales. It is reasonable to infer that even though the monastic movement gradually turned and declined after the 14th century, it was still abundant during the transition from the Middle Ages to the early modern period.

In this sense, salt is closely associated with religious institutions. This opened up the possibility for the symbolism of salt to be incorporated into the religious system later.

As Normans who converted from Norse polytheism to Christianity, they are all shallow believers in Christianity, in fact they are the same religion as the people of the Celestial Empire, and when God is beneficial to them, they will be fanatical and pious, but when faith is useless to them, the Normans will abandon it.

Therefore, the Christian atmosphere in Normandy has never been strong, and the church in Normandy in other regions is much weaker, so that successive dukes of Normandy can manipulate church affairs at will, and use the church in Normandy as a tool that can be used at will, for example, the previous Archbishop of Normandy is William's uncle and grandfather, the Normandy family, and during the reign of William the Conqueror in Normandy, William's half-brother Otto. Morality. Contewell was appointed Archbishop of Normandy by William.

In addition, Normandy during the Roman Empire was a desolate and remote area, and no salt works were established here, so the local salt industry in Normandy was not well developed, and the main sources were some of the salt wells produced locally, some of which were imported from the Leychal Salt Works in Bavaria, Germany, and the Marsal Salt Works in Lorraine, and most of the salt farms of the Duchy of Brittany.

The sea salt of Brittany is different from the sea salt and well salt produced in other regions. If other places still need development to make money, then the Breton aristocracy is like today's Saudi princes, who can make money even in bed, and Breton sea salt is like the same as the modern industrial process, and perhaps even better, so it has always been a sought after by the wealthy aristocracy.

William and most of the nobles, officers and officials in Normandy also ate high-grade salt from Breton, and even the low-grade salt from Brittany tasted much better than the well salt produced in Normandy, so most of the middle-class people such as Norman merchants, gentry, soldiers and surplus free farmers were also willing to eat the low-grade salt of Brittany, and only those poor serfs and free farmers had to choose Normandy well salt.

But now that William had made the Duchy of Bretagany his target, it meant that the salt trade between Normandy and Breton would be cut off at any time, so William had to prepare for one of the salt works in Honfler's seaport.