The battle of Hastings

To begin to tell the story of Harold II, we must return to the reign of Canute. Following the departure of Aethelred the Unready to Normandy in 1013, after a reign of semi incompetence and mismanagement, he left the country to be defended by his son, Edmund Ironside. For three years he battled against the Danish invaders until finally being defeated at Ashingdon on the 18th October 1016. Edmund was granted Wessex as a peace offering, but died or was murdered soon afterwards. Son of Sweyn Forkbeard, Canute, was declared king of England in 1017.

Canute was a good king. He upheld the peace and was true to his oath to the Witan. This son of a Pagan was totally captivated by England. It is often said that England conquered Canute rather than the other way round. Canute was baptized and set about building churches and monasteries and promoting the faith as Edgar had done. In 1027, Canute even went to Rome on Pilgrimage where he laid a tribute to St Peter. He slowly rebuilt everything his countrymen had destroyed in the previous centuries. Canute was not only king of England but of Denmark and latterly of Norway. Canute died at the age of 40.Series of murders followed. At the end the only surviving heir to the thrown was Edward, brother of the murdered Alfred the Aetheling and son of Emma and Aethelred the Unready. As far as Godwin was concerned, this was the worst scenario. A king with Norman leanings would threaten his power. He already was the king of England in all but name. It was thought that he was responsible for the death of Alfred the Aetheling and now his brother at the age of 40 came to power. So affected was Edward by the way he had been treated by his mother, he removed her entitlement to her land and confiscated all her possessions. He had Stigand, the Archbishop of Canterbury removed but later re-instated. A deeply religious man, he promised to go on a pilgrimage to Rome but never did. As penance He was ordered by the Pope to build a church. This was called the Church of St Peter and was situated to the West of London. It is now known as Westminster Abbey.

Canutes conversion to Christianity led him to the meeting with Harold's father. Harold's father was also a religious man, who spent his younger days in Sussex. Godwin, which was his surname, was on a visit to the shrine of Dicul, who was a missionary, and St Wilfred. Located in Bosham, which is near Chichester, became a great favourite with Canute.

So much so that he built a home and church there. It was here that Godwin and Canute met. Bosham is the famed location where Canute was said to have attempted to turn back the tide. It was an act to show that he was not as powerful as God but merely mortal. The act was meant to fail. Godwin at this time was a thegn (a noble fighting man). Canute and Godwin became friends, culminating in his appointment as the Earl of Wessex. To become the Earl of Wessex was a position of such power that he only needed to answer to the king. Canute who was the king of England, Denmark and later Norway, bestowed great power on Earl Godwin. He became acknowledged as the Bretwalda of all England.

Godwin had eight children, six sons and two daughters. His wife Gyda was from the Royal house of Denmark (probably another shrewd move). The sons were named Harold, Tostig, Gyrth, Sweyn, Leofwin and Wulfnot. The daughters were Edith, Elgifu and possibly a third named Gunhild.

Edward the Confessor became king in 1042. Godwin seeing a opportunity to increase his power and influence over the realm, arranged the marriage between Edward and his daughter Edith. It was a marriage of convenience and was probably never consummated. It was almost as though Edward had walked into a trap. Not only did he have the all powerful Godwin to reckon with, but the ambition and squabbles of his children and Godwin's ongoing feuds with Leofwin of Mercia and Sward of Northumbria.

Realising that now there could only be one ruler of England, Edward decided to act against Godwin and his growing army. Godwin had been preparing for this very showdown. The king called on Mercia and Northumbria to come to his aid. This they prepared to do. Marching south, they had a change of heart. They began to realise that civil war was unacceptable, so returned home. A hasty meeting of the Witan was convened in London. Here a solution could be argued out. Neither side trusted the other. It was an uneasy stand-off on both banks of the river Thames. Godwin and Harold requested safe passage to the meeting, but were refused. The Godwin family were given five days to leave the country. All their possessions were confiscated. Their cry for help to his once loyal forces came to nothing. In those days, fighting against the kings interests would have been considered treason, akin to mutiny on a naval ship. Having totally run out of options, they departed for Flanders and sanctuary with Count Balduin, who always seemed available for English exiles.

Harold and his brother Leofwin were not to be put down so easily. They sailed to Ireland with Flemish and Irish mercenaries and started to raid the English coast. Edward the king continued his imports of Norman advisers and positioning them in high office. These actions were beginning to annoy the population. The support for the Godwins began to grow. They eventually sailed up the river Thames to Southwark where the loyal kings forces of Mercia and Northumbria were stationed. Demanding a meeting with the king, who immediately refused, another stand-off occurred. Eventually Edward relented. After an exchange of hostages, the Witan was convened. Edward realised that he had no choice because the tide was turning against him. He was trying to turn England into another province of Normandy. Godwin and his sons argued well. Being accused of harbouring and being traitors, they fought their case. All titles and property removed from them was returned. Even his exiled wife was reinstated as queen. Sweyn on the other hand was killed on a crusade. Godwin did not get away absolutely free, he was required to allow his son, Wulfnot and Sweyn's son Harkon, held hostage in Normandy subject to Duke William becoming king of England. Harold, who had always been the dominant son, succeeded his father. A political move was made when he gave up his earldom of East Anglia in favour of the son of Leofwin of Mercia. Sward of Northumbria died in 1055 which left the door open for Tostig. When Leofwin died, Alfgar, now in East Anglia, returned to Mercia to take over. This vacancy in East Anglia was taken by Gyrth, Harold's younger brother. The Godwin children now were becoming all powerful. Harold became a good sub-regulus, acting for the good of the country. He worked well with the king and managed the administration of the kingdoms under his control. He had always found Mercia to be a problem especially when they allied themselves to the Welsh. He managed to inflict a heavy defeat on them. By 1065, with the help of Tostig, who led the fleet, he invaded North Wales. By defeating Gruffyd ap Llewellyn he ended his aggression.

In 1064, Edward the Confessor ordered Harold to make a voyage to Normandy to confirm Edward's promise of the throne to William on his death. This must have been a humiliating exercise for him. I am sure he felt that the kingdom should be his. Harold must have known that this was a difficult and dangerous expedition. He also had other ideas.

His brother, Wulfnot and Harkon ( Harkon ) were still being held as hostages and he saw that this may be a way to get them released. Setting off from the Sussex Coast they run into storm which forces them off course. Thanks to the Danish sailors who were used to sailing in bad weather, a forced landing was made. Unfortunately, bedraggled and half drowned they waded ashore, only to the captured by Guy, Count of Ponthieu. Guy, who was a vassal of Duke William held them to ransom. He sent a messenger to William with his demands. William refused the offer and called Guy's bluff. Guy decided to give Harold up, possibly because of disguised threats or fear of invasion. Whatever the reason, Harold was handed over to Duke William.

By all accounts, Harold and William became reasonable friends during this time. Obviously it was in Harold's interests and health to keep it this way. Harold was involved in a campaign in Brittany during this time and was noted for saving a Norman knight from quicksand. It could almost be said that these two powerful men actually liked one another eventually. Political expediency may have given the wrong impression. Whilst they gave onlookers that impression, each had other ideas. Both however, wanted to be king of England.

As was expected the subject of Wulfnot and Harkon was introduced into their conversation. A battle of words and deeds followed. William for some time would have been expecting an oath of allegiance from Harold but Harold found it difficult to comply with his orders from Edward. Finally Harold mentioned the release of the two. Without doubt, William was expecting it. Now was his chance to force his hand. Harold stated how there could be an Anglo Norman empire, William would have none of this. William knew he had the upper hand as well as the hostages. He used his advantage to attempt a oath of allegiance from Harold. Harold knew he could not leave without the hostages, so he agreed. To make sure he honoured his pledge, the marriage was mooted between Williams daughter Adelisa and a reluctant Harold. He managed to escape this fate, but Harold was made to swear the oath of allegiance over religious relics. Expecting Wulfnot and Harkon to be released, William informed him that Wulfnot would be held until such time that he became king. Harold and his remaining brothers returned to England with Harkon only. Harold went through a period of soul searching, knowing he had sworn over holy relics. By the same token he was also reminded that he had made this pledge under duress. Harold returned to his duties.

Sward, Earl of Northumbria died in 1055 to be replaced by Harold's brother Tostig. Northumbria was the wild West of England at this time but he ruled with a rod of iron. He took law enforcement to extremes, using his position to eliminate, usually by murder, anybody who got in his way. His mentor as she had always been was his elder sister Edith. His policy seemed to emanate from her. He taxed the people heavily and was generally very hard on them. By 1065, they had had enough. They attacked his residence and destroyed it along with the murder of his chosen housecarls. Tostig was removed from office for his own safety to be replaced by Morcar, who was the brother of Edwin the Earl of Mercia. He did not take kindly to being extricated from his earldom. Harold persuaded the king to exile him. He departed for Flanders to the understanding Count Balduin.
On the 5th of January 1066, Edward the Confessor died. On his deathbed he was alleged to have said to Harold" I commend my wife to your care and with her my whole kingdom ". Without further ado, the king was burried in the morning and Harold was coronated in Westminster in the afternoon. England was a prosperous country and it did not go unnoticed by others, especially the Danes. When William heard what had happened, he must have been incensed. England was on a collision course.

William the Bastard
His father died, when he was eight. The power struggle began. William had to be removed one way or another. Series of murders began. At the end young William disappeard for several years. Around 1045, William now 17 was ready to recapture his birthright. With a band of loyal followers he returned to his home in Falaise. Here he appealed for the townsfolk's help to regain the castle. Reminding them of his origin and of his father, managed to rally their support. The castle was captured from the Dane, Toustain, who managed to escape with his life. The first stage of William's return was complete. He appealed to King Henry I for support as the king had promised to care for the boy during Robert's penance. William was now 20 years old and the struggle for power came to a head. Whoever won the next battle would be unchallenged as the Duke of Normandy. William and the Kings men on one side and an Armada of his opponents on the other. The battle took place at Val-es-Dunes and William was victorious. He was immediately knighted by the king. Normandy was again a strong force to be reckoned with. The year of 1051 heralded a strange period.

During this year, it is thought, William used the exiling of Godwin to Flanders to visit Edward the Confessor in England. Edward spent most of his youth in France, so probably welcomed this visit. Why William chose to visit Edward at all is open to question. Whatever happened on this trip, words were exchanged that gave William the impression that when Edward died , he would automatically become the new king of England. If that was his plan, he could not have picked a better time with the Godwins in disgrace. The news of the coronation of Harold a few months earlier must have infuriated William. After Harold's oath of 1064 and the promise made to him by Edward the Confessor, he must have considered all his options until he was left with only one. To this end, he prepared himself for invasion. Duke William would have discussed his plan with his half brothers Odo and Robert to see if it was viable. With their support he called a council of war. This would be made up of his immediate family, vassals and advisers. The council of war took place at Lillebonne. When Williams plan was put before the council, it was met with derision. Even though understood their commitment, their was no provision for fighting overseas. As hard as William tried to persuade them, the council eventually broke up in disarray. This made William very angry. William being William however, did not give up. He was determined and resolute enough to get his way. If he could not persuade them at the council, he would try on a one to one basis. Eventually he gained support from his vassals. William realised that he would have to turn this trip into a crusade. To do this he would need the blessing of the Pope. He managed this by persuading the Pope of Harold's promise and treachery. At first the Pope refused on political grounds because of the implications to the Church. Pope Alexander II was a pupil of Lanfranc who was now a trusted adviser to William. It was this fact that his blessing was eventually given. William now had the papal banner on his side. This made it much easier to rally his men to arms. Harold now king of England, was about to meet a challenge from invaders from across the North Sea and the English Channel in the coming months. Tostig, as mentioned earlier, was declared an exile and had departed, only to return some time later, undertaking attacks on the English coastline. He invaded the Isle of Wight in May 1066 and continued ravaging other locations along the south. With his mercenary force he was limited in his success, partly due to the Earls Morcar and Edwin.

He found an ally in Malcolm, king of the Scots. With his assistance, Tostig raided the Northern kingdoms. To Harold II, the exploits of his renegade brother must have caused him some concern. Although Tostig became a thorn in the side of Harold, he would not have seen him as a threat to the kingdom. Harold was probably more concerned with the activity that was taking place in Scandinavia.
Harald Hardrada, the king of Norway was a giant of a man in stature as well as deed. His very name meant hard council. His exploits were legendary. He was ruthless and mercenary, his blood lust knew no bounds. Hardrada had been a seafarer from an early age. All through the early months of 1066, Hardrada prepared his invasion force. Hardrada knew that England had a large population of Scandinavian settlers from past campaigns, who he hoped would give him their allegiance. This was no ordinary campaign for Hardrada, he obviously knew of the fate of previous expeditions to England but his arrogance, blood lust and piratical mentality overcame any caution he may have had. It was in 1066 that there was a visitation by Haley's comet which had not gone unnoticed by them. A comet was considered to be an omen of bad luck. Even so, Hardrada set sail.
Across the English Channel, another claimant to the English thrown was making preparations to collect his prize. William Duke of Normandy, in his eyes the only true claimant of the thrown of England after the promise made to him by Edward the Confessor and the pledge of allegiance made by Harold under duress. Hardrada and William were not the only ones who could make a claim to the English throne.
Sweyn Estridson, king of Denmark could also have made a claim to the throne. Being a nephew of Hardicanute and grandson of Sweyn Forkbeard, would have been a serious candidate. His major concern was with Harold Hardrada and his aborted plans to invade Denmark. To this end, he threw his support behind William. His spies would have informed Harold of the build-up from beyond the North Sea and across the English Channel in Normandy. To this end, he made his plans to counteract any invasion force that might threaten his kingship. It was important to him to unify the country to combat the imminent danger. He travelled north to pacify Edwin and Morcar, who had bad memories of Harold's brother Tostig and his draconian measures in Northumbria. To cement the alliance he married Edith, the sister of Edwin and Morcar.

Remember he already had a common law wife by the name of Edith Swan Neck. How she must have felt when she heard this news is obvious. This was a political marriage for the sake of the kingdom. Harold was in a difficult position. He knew he was going to be invaded on two fronts, but who would be first? It would seem that his plans were more biased towards an invasion by William than Hardrada. The alliance with Edwin and Morcar allowed some semblance of security North of the Wash, which would be the invasion destination of Hardrada. Hardrada would seek the assistance of the naturalized Nordics. This was strange because Hardrada was Norwegian and many of the settlers in Danelaw were Danish. Considering the animosity that was taking place between Norway and Denmark, his perception that he would receive immediate support on landing seemed somewhat arrogant. It was bad enough to know how to plan a defence of his kingdom with two possible invasion forces ready to strike. He had not even managed to stop his own brother Tostig from raiding the English shores. Tostig on his own was no threat. Unfortunately circumstances were to change. Tostig forged an alliance with Hardrada. Tostig arrived with about 60 ships and men and managed to recruit others from England, mostly from the town of Sandwich, which he occupied. He continued around the Eastern coast of England and headed north. Here he came across the resistance of Edwin and Morcar. To counteract the raids of Tostig and to prepare for the invasion of William, Harold mobilized his fyrd and fleet and stationed them in Sandwich and off the Isle of Wight respectively. Harold obviously cared more about his beloved Wessex than what was occurring in the north. His political marriage was a small price to pay for the alliance of Edwin and Morcar. The logistics of keeping a large army in battle readiness in those days was itself a major achievement. Eventually when no invasion happened, Harold disbanded the fyrd and brought his ships to port to await further developments. To keep them active any longer became expensive to the Crown. It was not Harold's intention at this stage to disband his army, but by the 8th September there was no more food left to feed such a large force. Another more mundane reason for the disbandment, was the fact that it was harvest time. To try and keep the fyrd on active duty when their crops were due to be harvested, whatever the threat to the country, the land came first.

Harold must also have calculated that it was becoming increasingly unlikely that William would attempt an invasion this late in the season. How wrong he would be.
Aware of the atrocities at Scarborough and other locations on their way to Ricall, Edwin and Morcar rallied the fyrd. They marched to Tadcaster to engage Hardrada and Tostig. A battle ensued on the Northern bank of the Ouse. It raged all day. Heavy casualties were sustained by both sides but at the end of the day, Hardrada was victorious. Today this conflict is known as the Battle of Fulford, fought on the 20th September 1066. This victory for Hardrada seriously weakened Harold's options. Harold could not allow Hardrada and Tostig to continue terrorizing the north, he immediately marched north. He quickly assembled his housecarls and fyrd and in a legendary march of nearly 200 miles, covered in five days he made camp about 20 km south west of York around or in Tadcaster. Harold was now very close. Hardrada must have been unaware of the danger his men were in. Much of their armour and weapons were left at Ricall with his ships. He probably thought that Harold would not dare come north after the heavy defeat of Edwin and Morcar. Not only that, how could he possibly be here, only five days after the Battle of Fulford? Hardrada was camped on the East bank of the Derwent river and therefore had a natural barrier to aid his defence. This river would have to be breached if a battle was to take place. The only crossing was a wooden footbridge that could be defended by a single individual. Once the bridge had been breached the battle commenced. By early evening it was over. Harold was victorious. To consolidate his victory, he could so easily have marched to Ricall and destroyed what was left of the invaders. He however, allowed Hardrada's son Olaf to round up the injured and defeated and sail back to Norway. Of the hundreds of ships Hardrada had arrived with, Olaf required only 24 to return home. Hardrada and Harold's brother Tostig now lay dead. The Battle of Hastings
By the middle of August 1066 Harold`s second big enemy William was finally ready to set sail. His ships landed at Pevensey Bay. Hastings was a good choice of base for William. The area along the South Downs between Hastings and Pevensey was difficult but had the advantage of security for William's troops. He knew he would not be invaded from the east coast side. William also knew that he was only a few tens of KM's from Dover where a Roman road stretches to London, his eventual goal.

On arrival at Hastings, which probably by this time was virtually deserted, he unloaded his boats. He constructed a wooden fortress and waited for news of Harold. It would not be long.
It would have been only five days after the Battle of Stamford Bridge. Although Harold knew William was coming, he never thought it would be this soon. He was now in a dilemma. He was three hundred miles from Hastings with a depleted if not defeated force. On the 13th October 1066 he camped on Caldbec Hill, 10 km north of Hastings. Here the most famous English battle would be fought. Harold's men had been arriving all day in small groups on the 13th October 1066. These men had fought a battle on the 25th September, 260 miles to the north and were now expected to fight another only a few days later. Despite the hardship of it all, the troops morale must have been quite high. Having defeated Hardrada would have boosted their confidence, But not their numbers. Edwin and Morcar declined to help on this occasion, preferring to mind their business in the north. This lack of support severely reduced the numbers Harold would be able to use in the battle. He made the decision to fight William before he could consolidate any further. The location of the battle was chosen with care by Harold. Caldbec Hill was chosen for a number of reasons. Firstly it was well known in the area. It gave a natural advantage to anybody wishing to fight from there because of its natural all round visibility. It was easy to reach by road or track from London and was close ( possibly too close ) to William's position. By nightfall, at least 7500 men should have arrived. Made up of housecarls and fyrd, preparations were laid to challenge William as soon as possible. This would be indicative of Harold's impetuous nature. Why Harold chose to fight William the next day has always been something of a mystery. If he had waited another day for his full force to arrive, the outcome may have been totally different. The morning of the 14th October 1066 would be the culmination of a battle between two men who had politically and mentally been at war for many years. William's force consisted of three main forces. The Norman army, commanded by himself. The Bretons, commanded by Alan Fergant and the Flemish army commanded by Eustace of Boulogne and William Osbern. Seeing William take the initiative must have come as a surprise to Harold. He totally miscalculated the invasion in the first place by dismissing his ships for the winter.

Now he was being forced into battle before he was really ready.
To meet this challenge, Harold moved his men down from Caldbec Hill to within two hundred metres of William's position. The Saxon way of fighting was different to that of the Normans. The housecarls were in the front rank and were responsible for forming the shield wall. This would be particularly effective against the initial onslaught. Behind the housecarls were the fyrd or militia. Again, depending on the length of the line, would have been about ten deep. Harold set up his command post behind and centrally positioned to give him an elevated view of proceedings. The battle was about to begin. English used a tactic which was very effective against Normans and so were able to face their enemy very successfully in the first part of the battle. William, however, did not give up and made up a trap. He gave the English an impression that a part of his forces was turning and running. The Saxons followed them and many were lost. At this stage of battle, Harold was hit by an arrow. When his troops realised what happened their line was broken and the fight was soon over. William had won against all the odds. Their proud tradition honoured to the end. William surveyed the site and was moved by the emotion of it all. The body of Harold could not be identified because of the mutilation the Norman's had inflicted upon him. The following morning He called for his long term mistress, Edith Swan Neck. She would have been the only person able to identify him from body marks, as facially he was unrecognisable.
After the battle Normans had to face many difficulties and capture one town after other, but by the end of 1070 the England was their. The uniqueness of the Norman conquest in British history is that not only did the ruler change, but also the whole of the ruling class changes, and there was even a new language. The English nobility lost their lands, and the new landowners built castles like Warwick and Windsor that survive to this day. This was the beginning of a new chapter in the British history.