Battle Report: Hastings, the end of the beginning
Ask anyone in England, they will likely tell you what happened in 1066. Usually something to do with a battle, a tapestry and an arrow to the eye. The events surround the Battle of Hastings and subsequent conquest of England by the Norman Duke William the Bastard, has gone down in history as a turning point in Franco-Anglo relations but ironically, compared to later events, there’re very few (two to be precise) contemporary sources.
A scene from the Bayeux Tapestry showing Norman knights attacking the Anglo-Saxon lines SOURCE: Public domain
We three kings
Before delving into the detail of the Battle of Hastings, it is important to understand why it was fought and, who by. On 5th January 1066, Edward the Confessor died leaving no heirs, leaving his brother-in-law, Harold Godwinson Earl of Wessex, as the favourite to take the throne. The issue with this was that there were rumours that Edward had promised his throne to a distant Norman relative named William, a man who took this apparent promise very seriously and didn’t take the news of Goldwinson’s crowning very well.
With one king dead and the two would be rulers of England readying them selves for war, yet another potential claimant decided to throw in his lot. Harald Hardrada, King of Norway, was distantly related to the previous Danish dynasty that had ruled England at the start of the 11th century, choosing the moment of uncertainty to have a go at taking the kingdom for himself.
Hardrada was first to launch his attack, landing near York in September, forcing Harold of England to march his army, that had been stationed on the south coast awaiting Williams landing. The Battle of Stamford Bridge took place on 25th September and was a resounding victory for the Anglo-Saxons, killing Hardrada and forcing the remaining Vikings to flee back to Scandinavia but just as Harold settled down to celebrate, bad news came from the south.
Battle of Stamford Bridge (1870) by Peter Nicolai Arbo SOURCE: Public domain
William’s arrival
William crossed the Channel after some typically English bad weather, landing just four days after the victory at Stamford Bridge. His massive fleet consisting of thousands of knights and their horses, was spearheaded by the Duke’s own flag ship, the Mora, which made land of the shores at Pevensey.
The popular myth around William’s landing is that upon the Mora reaching the shore, William stumbled and fell face first into the ground. If this did happen ( the sources are unclear), this was a bad omen for the invaders who, like most people of the time believed deeply in superstition and luck. William was able to turn this into a positive by stating that he had ‘grasped England with both hands’ rather than ‘sorry lads, don’t worry about me, just a bit muddy.’
With William now on English soil, Harold and his remaining men had to march the 260 miles (420km) south to meet his Norman foe near the village of Battle in Surrey, hoping to cut off the invaders before they reached London.
The battle of Hastings
On the morning of 14th October, Harold arrived first. the exact location of the battle is still unknown but, it is likely that Harold positioned his men on a small ridge called ether Senlac or Caldbec Hill.
A modern map showing the location of Hastings and of Battle Abbey, believed to have been built by William the Conqueror after the carnage of Hastings SOURCE: English-heritiage.org.uk
The exact numbers are unknown but, it is said that Harold had over 5000 fyrdmen left with about 2000 Huscarls after the battle in the north. Slightly outnumbered by the Normans and their 5000 infantry and 3000 mounted knights, the Anglo-Saxon army would try and use their superior positioning to win the day. The mounted knight was the centrepiece of the Norman army, with its highly trained rider and large spear, they were used similarly to how fighter jets are used in warfare in the 21st century. Shock an awe tactics were used to decimate both men and moral but how effective could horses be up hill against a well disciplined wall of Englishmen?
The battle started early in the morning, with William sending his archers half way up the slope to start weakening the English shield wall but eventually he knew, he would have to advance. The Norman knights had been sent to sniff out weak spots in the English lines but, were unable to find a gap in the wall of shields and spears. The call was made for the knights to charge the centre of the line and hope they could break through with pure force but the English held, minimising the usually devastating effect of mass cavalry charges. With nether side willing to budge, the fate of Anglo-Saxon England hung in the balance.
As the day continued, and Harold’s shield wall continued to hold, the Norman lines began to falter. to add to the desperation, there were rumours that Duke William himself had been killed in the melee and soon the call for retreat was made.
A scene from the Bayeux Tapestry showing the English on the hill throwing projectiles at the oncoming Calvary SOURCE: Public domain
Without being prompted, the centre lines of the English followed the Normans down the hill thinking the day was their’s but, William in fact was not dead and was very much ready to take the fight to the English. Legend has William taking of his helmet showing his men that he was ok and ready to go, turning his horse around and charged into the oncoming English.
In the open plain at the bottom of the hill, the English were no match fo the mounted knights who cut them down and routed them in there hundreds. It is unknown whether William knowingly called the retreat to lure the English into the counter charge down the hill or, it was a happy coincidence that allowed the Norman Duke the perfect opportunity to counter and rout the English centre. All sources agree that after the bulk of the English army was routed or killed, Harold, with his few remaining bodyguards continued to fight on bravely but his death is still one of the greatest mysteries in history.
According to the Bayeux tapestry, there are two possible ends for King Harold II. The most common is the now world famous ‘arrow in the eye’ figure that can be seen under the words, ‘Harold Rex interfectus est’ meaning, King Harold is killed but, right behind this in the same scene, there is a similarly dressed man being cut down by a Norman knight and this is right under the words ‘is killed’ leading may to believe, this is the slain king.
Bayeux tapestry scene showing the two possible deaths for Harold SORUCE: Public domain
By the time the battle was over, the vast majority of the English nobility had been killed, leaving London and the rest of the Kingdom open for William to conquer, being crowned King William I of England on Christmas Day, 1066.
The Battle of Hastings was the end of the beginning, ushering in a new way of life for the English also bringing the new Anglo-Norman ruling class into direct conflict with the Kingdom of France, a foe that would give the Kingdom of England a headache for centuries to come.
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Thanks for Reading.
