Battles

Question 1

The battle of Fulford

Answer 1

• 20th September 1066
• Harold Godwinson knew that Duke William of Normandy had begun preparations for invasion immediately after Harold was crowned.
• The King of Norway, Harald Hardrada and the King of Scotland were also potential threats to King Harold II.
• Harold took an army to the north of England to confront the two powerful Anglo-Saxon earls, the brothers Edwin and Morcar.
• Harold secured the loyalty of Edwin and Morcar by agreeing to marry their sister, Edith.
• Edwin and Morcar of Northumbria agreed to defend the north from any attack by Harald Hardrada.
• King Harold II then assembled a large army in the south to confront the larger threat from Normandy, led by Duke William.
• Tostig Godwinson was forced into exile in 1065 by his brother Harold. Tostig did not go into exile quietly, he travelled to Scotland, Normandy and finally Norway to gain support for his bid to return to power in England.
• Harald Hardrada, the King of Norway, assembled an army of 10,000 Norwegians and together with Tostig sailed to the coast of north-east England. The English resistance to Tostig and Hardrada was led by earls Edwin and Morcar. The two armies met at Fulford in York on 20 September 1066.
• The Battle of Fulford was a major disaster for King Harold II.
• The outcome was a decisive victory for Harald Hardrada. He captured the city of York and camped his army 15 miles south at Stamford Bridge to wait for Edwin and Morcar to send money and hostages.

Question 2

The battle of Stamford bridge

Answer 2

• 26th September 1066
• King Harold II learned of the Norwegian victory at Fulford whilst he and his army were still waiting for the expected invasion of southern England by Duke William of Normandy.
• In two days King Harold assembled an army of 15,000 men, which included roughly 3,000 of his elite troops - the housecarls.
• The outcome was a decisive victory for King Harold II. The Norwegians were caught off guard and all those camped at Stamford Bridge were killed.
• The Norwegian reinforcements were also defeated and only a small force escaped.
• Both Tostig Godwinson and Harald Hardrada were killed during the battle.
• King Harold won a famous victory but lost a third of his forces.

Question 3

The battle of Hastings

Answer 3

• 14th October 1066
• Harold had tried to catch the Norman army by surprise, like he’d done with Harald Hardrada at Stamford Bridge, but Norman scouts warned Duke William of King Harold’s advance.
• Harold and his army then decided to take up the best defensive position in the area, a small hill which the Normans later called Senlac Hill which means ‘blood-lake’ in French.
• After being spotted by Duke William’s scouts Harold and his army took up a defensive position on Senlac Hill and formed a shield wall.
• William and his army rode out of their castle in Hastings to fight at 9am.
• William ordered his archers to fire at Harold’s army but the shield wall prevented any damage to the English army. William later sent in his infantry but they were again forced back by the shield wall.
• In the late afternoon William’s cavalry tried to move the English away from their defensive position by feigning retreat.
• After many attempts some of the inexperienced English infantry left the shield wall and tried to attack the Norman cavalry who they believed were retreating.
• The Norman cavalry turned round and cut the English to pieces. As more of Harold’s army came down from the hill to join the battle, the Normans had the opportunity to break the shield wall.
• Around 5pm an arrow hit King Harold, who was fighting with his men on foot, and on hearing of his death his army lost all their discipline and were massacred by the Norman infantry and cavalry
• Duke William had won.

Question 4

Why did William win the Battle of Hastings?

Answer 4

• Luck;
  
  • If he had invaded in the summer, he would have fought an English army twice as large.
  • The wind meant William landed unopposed.
  • If Harold II had survived then the battle may well have restarted the following day.
• Leadership;
  
  • William was very successful in keeping together his large army.
  • William and his commanders continued to fight.
  • At important moments in the battle he boosted his men’s morale.
• Tactics;
  
  • William had many years of battlefield experience and the retreat that his cavalry used to break the shield wall was a tactic his armies had used before in Normandy.