1. The Norman invasion Flashcards
When was the Battle of Hastings? Who fought?
On October 14th, 1066, William’s Norman army faced Harold’s Anglo-Saxon army.
What were the four main reasons for explaining William’s victory?
Army composition
Tactics
Leadership
Luck
Anglo-Saxon army composition
Housecarls - well equipped, trained soldiers with proper armour and axes
Fyrd - the main body of the army. They were ordinary men who Harold forced to join up with him on the march south. They weren’t professional soldiers, and only had agricultural tools to fight with
There weren’t many Anglo-Saxon archers, and they had around 6000-7000 soldiers overall
Norman army composition
Good mix of knights, infantry and archers
Knights useful as charges could cause devastating damage. They carried javelins, lances, maces and swords
Foot soldiers were a mixture of Norman troops and soldiers-for-hire across Europe. Some were archers and crossbowmen
Most wore armour of some sort - lower ranks wore padded jackets as protection
800 knights and 4000-6000 foot soldiers
Luck
Harold suffered when Hardrada decided to attack from the north - resulted in his army becoming tired
William was lucky that his fleet wasn’t destroyed in the storms
William was lucky that the fyrd lost control
Anglo-Saxon tactics
SHIELD WALL:
Effective against archers - arrows caught in the housecarls’ shields
Effective against knights - they couldn’t go up the hill fast enough to cause sufficient damage, allowing the battle axes of the housecarls to then kill the horses
Norman tactics
Mix of troops = multiple fighting styles
At first, archers made little impression on the shield wall, but were more effective as it was depleted
When the walls were weakened, the knights would also prove to be more effective
FEIGNED RETREAT
Harold’s leadership
Calling out the southern fyrd in May was an issue, as he had to pay and feed it for four months, essentially for nothing
he rushed to the coast, making his army tired. Some sections weren’t even there at the start of the battle
He left London in a hurry, when he could’ve stayed to gather more men
He was unable to retain the discipline of his soldiers when they broke the shield wall, which ultimately lost him the battle
William’s leadership
William waited until Harold disbanded the southern fyrd in autumn - showing strategic leadership
Keeping his army and fleet together while waiting took strong leadership
The crossing was ambitious - taking horses meant that he had to build special boats (normally horses would be found in the country)
As soon as he arrived in England, William marched to Hastings and put up a pre-fabricated castle (that he’d brought from Normandy), giving them security against attack.
