1066 and the Battle of Hastings

Edward the Confessor, King of England, died on 6 January 1066. Three powerful claimants fought for the English throne: Harold, Earl of Wessex; William, Duke of Normandy; and Harold Hardrada, king of Norway. Earl Harold was declared king by the English, and immediately he had to deal with the double threat of Harold Hardrada and William. In May Tostig, Harold's brother, landed on the Southeast coast and fought his brother before being ousted from England. Harold mobilised his militia, and throughout the summer kept watch along the Channel coast. By September it was becoming clear that William would not invade, so the southern coast militia was disbanded. Suddenly Harold Hardrada and Tostig landed in Northumbria and defeated the northern earls and militia. Harold was drawn away from the south to deal with this attack, and on 25 September took the Norwegian army by surprise at Stamford Bridge just outside York. Both Tostig and Harold Hardrada were killed.

The Battle of Hastings
In Normandy William had collected an army and had been patiently waiting for the wind to change. Finally on 27 September he sailed to England. Unhindered, as the local militia had been disbanded, he marched inland while Harold force-marched his troops from the north. The armies met just outside Hastings, at the spot later called Battle. The speed of Harold's march meant that his army was about the same strength as William's - each had about 3000 men. The English were situated on a small hill with a forest to the rear.

As dawn came up on 14 October, the Normans attacked and the day-long battle began. The English used the tactic of building a shield wall, which the Normans found it impossible to penetrate: it was only broken when the English rushed headlong after the Norman who retreated, either in panic (the French version) or as a tactical move (the English Version). Twice more the tactic was repeated and the English were again cut down. At the end of the day the Normans launched a major attack and Harold was killed. Whether he died from an arrow in the eye or being killed with a sword is debatable, for either could be true as shown in the magnificent Bayeux Tapestry. This chronicles the events of the times including the Norman army building the ships and sailing across the Channel and the Battle of Hastings itself. Whichever version is true, however, Harold and two of his brothers died in the battle and the path was open for William to claim the crown. He was crowned in Westminster Abbey on Christmas Day 1066.

This article is based on material taken from A Traveller's History of England (© Christopher Daniell), published by The Windrush Press, and is by kind permission of its author Christopher Daniell.

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