What Happened – A Blow-by-Blow basic account of the events of 1066

1. What Happened – A Blow-by-Blow basic account of the events of 1066 1. William assembled his army on the Norman coast through a massive logistical effort, gathering mercenaries and volunteers from across northern Europe. Some historians argue that he had to wait for the wind to blow in the right direction to set sail; others argue that William waited on purpose to make things difficult for Harold. 2. Tostig raided along the English coast, causing a headache for the English until Edwin and Morcar caught his forces and defeated them in battle. Tostig sailed with his few remaining forces to Scotland. 3. By September 8th Harold Godwinson had to let most of his army (the fyrd) return to the fields as the harvest was due. He no longer had the resources to keep them and they were legally bound to provide only two-months service. This could be why William stayed in Normandy, knowing the fyrd only had a short term of service, or it might have been luck. 4. Harold Godwinson began to hastily recall his army and in a feat of brilliant military endurance he force-marched them to try to catch the Viking raiders before they had chance to establish themselves in northern England. 5. Hardrada and 300 longships sailed for England, landing in Yorkshire and heading for the traditional seat of Viking power: York. The northern brother earls, Edwin and Morcar went to deal with this threat and met the Vikings at the Battle of Fulford on the outskirts of York. The Vikings won and took York but the battle weakened their army. 6. Hardrada and his men must have thought they were safe as they marched away from York, having taken sworn oaths of loyalty and left a small Viking contingent in York. They did not even have their armour on, which they had left in the ships, as they lazed in the sun near a small village called Stamford Bridge.

2. 7. Harold Godwinson and the English army surprised the Vikings at Stamford Bridge on 25th September but even so, it is not easy to fight an army that is at the other side of a small bridge. The fighting took most of the day and legend has it that one large Viking blocked the bridge for a great deal of time. In the end Tostig and Hardrada were killed, the Vikings slaughtered and Godwinson was the victor. 8. William and the Norman invasion landed in England on 28th September, finding the coast unguarded. William needed to draw Godwinson to a decisive battle as soon as possible, his supplies would not last forever and the longer he stayed in England the more danger they would be in as Godwinson might find it possible to call more men to the defence. To draw the English to battle he ordered the Normans to cause terror amongst the local population, burning, looting and stealing. 9. Godwinson did not have long to savour his victory and knew that he must march south in case the Normans landed. During the march south, just three days after his victory at Stamford Bridge, Godwinson heard news that William had landed on the south coast. 10. Godwinson took 8 days to march from Stamford Bridge to London, arriving on the 6th October, where he considered what to do next. He decided to attack as soon as possible without waiting for further reinforcements, possibly through worry at the possibility of more Norman reinforcements landing, possibly through over-confidence, or because he could not stand to see his land ravaged. 12. William could not be sure that he was now automatically king, he would probably have anticipated the possibility of more battles, but all of the Godwinson brothers had fought at and died at Hastings so there was nobody for the English to rally around. William marched on London, had himself crowned on Christmas day at Westminster Abbey and set about establishing Norman control over England. 11. Godwinson’s – surely exhausted army – reached the south coast on the night of 13th October and took up position on a high ridge. The battle of Hastings began on 14th, lasting all day and it was an extremely close-run battle. William’s army found it hard to defeat the English who were in a strong position atop the hill, and their formidable shield wall was a tough nut to crack. Eventually Godwinson was killed, his army defeated and the Normans had won.

3. Why did William emerge victorious in 1066? • Harold’s Mistakes • Attempting the same tactic twice and in doing so force marching his army almost the length of the country twice inless than 3 weeks • Harold ignored the advice of his brother Gyrth when he arrived in London and marched as quickly as he could on Hastings. • When the Bretons first broke and fled, leading to the Norman feigned retreat, Harold could have ordered a general advance which might have carried the battle. • Either by accident or design, Harold’s trip to Normandy in 1064 was a mistake that led to William being able to portray Harold as an oath-breaker, thus making it easier to gain the significant papal banner. • William’s Bold Leadership • Immediately sought and gained Papal approval for the invasion after the death of Edward bringing him support from other areas such as Bologne, Breton and Flanders. • Covered up the loss of men at sea as fleet moved along coast • Ordered troops to ravage area around Pevensey Bay to draw Harold to battle • William prevented the flight of sections of his army at a crucial point during the battle by removing his helmet • William may have deliberately kept his invasion force for weeks on the French coast, knowing that it would stretch the English fyrd’s period of service which was just 2 months. Only a bold leader could have kept his force together for so long and remain inactive. • The feigned retreat. • Luck • Harold faced invasion from two powerful nations at opposite ends of the country at the same time. • The term of service for the fyrdlasted only 2 months and Harold had to let the fyrd return to collect the harvest in September. The Vikings invaded in September and the Normans in October. • The Northumbrian uprising against Tostig left Harold in a difficult position and ended with Tostig inciting Hardrada to invade. • A storm badly damaged the well-organised English fleet, preventing the English from attacking the Norman invasion in the channel. • The Composition of the Armies • The archers were used to deadly affect later in the battle and an arrow may well have killed Harold. • Arrows weakened the shield wall during the battle. • The Norman cavalry was used to great effect, particularly with the feigned retreat. As soon as Englishmen came off the hill they were easily picked off by the Norman cavalry. • The fyrd were not professional soldiers and proved a weak link in Harold’s army by charging from the protection of the shield wall. It must have been difficult if not impossible for Harold to command thousands of unprofessional soldiers when battle began, not least because of the noise, he needed to be able to rely on them to make the correct decisions.