The Battle of Hastings

Question 1

How did William demonstrate his organisation prior to the battle? - Hastings

Answer 1

Flat bottomed boats were built which could carry supplies, a huge army assembled whom he waited with on the French North Coast until conditions improved. He kept his army well fed and happy.

Question 2

How was Harold ORIGINALLY prepared for the Battle of Hastings? - Hastings

Answer 2

Harold knew an invasion was imminent. He gathered his fleet on the Isle of Wight to attack William’s troops. He attempted to keep his army together but attack from William never came

Question 3

What problems did Harold encounter after being prepared? - Hastings

Answer 3

He was unable to sustain his army whilst waiting for William to attack as he was running out of supplies and many men had to return home for the harvest

Question 4

When did Harold have to disband his army? - Hastings

Answer 4

8th September 1066

Question 5

What can be argued is the main difference between the Norman professional army and the Anglo-Saxon fyrd? - Hastings

Answer 5

The Norman professionals were constantly in service, whilst the fyrd only served 2 months a year

Question 6

How was Harold’s preparation damaged by war? - Hastings

Answer 6

He learned of a Viking invasion in the North and had to march 200 miles in 4 days to York and assemble an army to battle at Stamford Bridge, and then use exhausted troops in battle against William.

Question 7

What was William’s attitude like towards battles? - Hastings

Answer 7

William avoided them between 1048 and 1065 when there was little chance of victory, and rarely risked losing by fighting close fought battles. He was happy to take marginal territorial gains

Question 8

What was William’s normal style of warfare? - Hastings

Answer 8

William enjoyed seizing land and laying waste to the area to ensure that the opposition struggled for resources and force the enemy to concede defeat

Question 9

How did William use scouts to his advantage prior to Hastings? - Hastings

Answer 9

He scouted the town of Alençon in 1050, and discovered it was in a poor state of preparedness. He knew they couldn’t fight so forced them to surrender or suffer the same fate as previous opponents to William

Question 10

How was William’s Reconnaissance technique unique? What example is there of this prior to the battle? - Hastings

Answer 10

William went on patrol himself in order to be as well informed as possible
Immediately after landing in England he went on patrol with 25 other men

Question 11

Harold had witnessed William at war before. How may Harold have not used this to his advantage? - Hastings

Answer 11

Harold did not know about William’s aggressive move at Alençon, rather he knew his careful, calculated strategy from 1064 where William avoided battles.

Question 12

How was Harold at a disadvantage as a DEFENDER? - Hastings

Answer 12

Harold was awaiting an attack which he was unsure when it would arrive, and also he could not promise land to his troops if victorious, whereas William could promise English land to his soldiers

Question 13

Describe Harold’s Anglo Saxon Army - Hastings

Answer 13

Made up of around 7000 fyrd (volunteer soldiers, serving 2 months a year), Housecarls and Thegns

Question 14

Describe William’s Norman Army - Hastings

Answer 14

Used a mixture of 7000 trained mercenaries from Normandy and conquered territory in West Europe. Contained Knights who were trained from the age of 3 to fight on Horseback

Question 15

What weaponry and armour did Harold’s Army use? - Hastings

Answer 15

Housecarls - Double handed axes, large shields, pikes

Peasants - Pitchforks, farming equipment and weapons from fallen soldiers

Question 16

What weaponry and armour did William’s army use? - Hastings

Answer 16

Knights - Lance/sword/mace, shield protecting left side

Infantry - bows (archers), armour, pikes, large shields, swords

Question 17

What battle style did Harold use at Hastings? (Army/Personal) - Hastings

Answer 17

Used a 1 mile shield wall which interlocked to prevent enemy penetration
Harold positioned on foot in centre to fight with men

Question 18

What was William’s battle style? (Army/Personal) - Hastings

Answer 18

Infantry attacked on foot and archers wore down enemy
Troops in divisions used flags to communicate during battle
William rode on horseback as part of cavalry, wearing armour

Question 19

Where was Harold positioned in the Battle? - Hastings

Answer 19

Positioned at the top of Senlac Hill (high ground)

Question 20

Where was William positioned in the battle? - Hastings

Answer 20

William positioned himself at the bottom of Senlac Hill on an old Roman road which could be used to access London. Marshland on either side meant that the road became the battle

Question 21

Compare Harold and William’s previous battle experience - Hastings

Answer 21

Harold had fought off many Welsh rebellions as well as fought with William and against the Vikings. William had conquered areas in France and a Western Europe such as Sicily.

Question 22

Compare the states of the 2 armies prior to battle - Hastings

Answer 22

Harold has marched 400 miles in total to and from York and fought the Vikings at Stamford Bridge. They were exhausted.
William has landed at Pevensey Bay on the 28th September and pillaged land in the area. Rested for many days prior to battle.

Question 23

How was William’s support important? - Hastings

Answer 23

William had been given the papal banner by the pope, identifying the invasion as a Holy War. This gave his men incentive as if they did die, they believed they would go to heaven and be rewarded.

Question 24

How did Harold’s recruitment differ from William’s? - Hastings

Answer 24

Harold had to recruit landowners, peasants and mercenaries from the entire country to fight a double invasion (Vikings and Normans)
William had to recruit men to join a dangerous military invasion. Had to offer incentives like land / heaven

Question 25

Why did the English army lack archers at the battle? - Hastings

Answer 25

Fighting methods tended to be regional, and in Wessex and the south there were few archers. It is believed that if archers fought at Stamford Bridge or Fulford Gate they would not have been at Hastings.

Question 26

How did the Norman archer situation differ from the English? What problems did this cause Harold? - Hastings

Answer 26

The archers were a fully integrated section of the Norman army, whereas Harold likely had very few, if any, archers at his disposal. This meant Harold’s attack was fairly one dimensional, limited to using a shield wall and the odd attack using housecarls

Question 27

What was the difference between the English and Normans in terms of horses? - Hastings

Answer 27

The English tended not to use horses in battle as it was not admired as it was seen as an easy way of escape from battle. Swordsmen and spearmen (infantry) were admired by English.
It was a sign of nobility to fight on horseback as a Norman, as it showed you were part of a warrior elite

Question 28

When had Normans used cavalry in the past? How? - Hastings

Answer 28

At the Battle of Varaville in 1057, William used a speedy cavalry charge of 300 knights to cut off an enemy when crossing a river.

Question 29

What Norman tactic was particularly useful, and when was this used? Who by? - Hastings

Answer 29

The Normans has invented the feigned retreat in order to draw out the enemy, before they turn to attack. Used against the French in 1053, usually commanded by Walter Giffard.

Question 30

How did the entire English army fight? - Hastings

Answer 30

The entire English army fought on foot, including Harold. He fought with his men.

Question 31

Describe the Anglo Saxon Shield Wall, and explain its effectiveness - Hastings

Answer 31

The shield wall was made up of nearly all of Harold’s men, and was a mile long. The wall was so close together that the dead could hardly fall and the wounded could not remove themselves from battle.

Question 32

How did the Normans use cavalry at the battle? - Hastings

Answer 32

Cavalry was deployed in the final line of offence in order to strike a final blow in what was meant to be a shock charge. Hastings was described as a battle between cavalry and infantry.

Question 33

How did the Anglo Saxons use horses prior to the battle? - Hastings

Answer 33

The English mainly used horses for transporting people and supplies, specifically from Stamford Bridge to Hastings

Question 34

What damaged Norman confidence during the battle? How was this resolved? - Hastings

Answer 34

A rumour began to spread that William had died in battle. This led to the Normans beginning to fall back as a result of a perceived lack of a leader.
William galloped in front of his troops and took off his helmet, revealing his face and leading a counter attack

Question 35

How was the feigned retreat a sophisticated tactic? When had it previously been used? - Hastings

Answer 35

It required discipline, ability and organisation to organise a mass false retreat to fool the enemy. Performed by professional Norman Knights.
At Messina in 1060.

Question 36

What was unusual about Hastings? - Hastings

Answer 36

Hastings lasted for 9 hours, an unusually long time as most medieval battles were quick, lasting for only an hour or 2.

Question 37

What examples are there of Hastings being closely fought? - Hastings

Answer 37

Saxon battle axes were evenly matched with Norman swords and lances.
The Anglo-Saxon shield wall was matched to hold off a Norman infantry and cavalry charge

Question 38

How was the Anglo-Saxon leadership damaged during battle? How was it already weak? - Hastings

Answer 38

Harold’s brothers Gyrth and Leofwine were killed in battle before they could lead a counter attack against the Normans. This explains the Saxon disorganisation.
Harold fought on foot with all his men and had no way to communicate his orders to his troops easily

Question 39

Why could the Saxons afford to draw the battle but the Normans not to? - Hastings

Answer 39

If the Saxons has been able to hold together for an hour more, the battle may have been drawn, giving them time to remobilise their troops and plan further.

Question 40

What happened to the Battlefield afterwards? - Hastings

Answer 40

The battlefield was littered with carnage and corpses, so William buried the bodies of the Norman dead, but left the English apart from Harold. After the battle, William built many churches and cathedrals, building an abbey on the battlefield.

Question 41

What examples of Norman preparation is there? - Hastings

Answer 41

William went on reconnaissance with 25 escorts straight after landing at Pevensey Bay
The Normans laid waste to the land surrounding Hastings to put Harold at a disadvantage.
Waited on the French Coast with 700 ships to cross the channel, keeping his army sustained.

Question 42

Give examples of the Anglo-Saxon preparation (or lack of it) - Hastings

Answer 42

Had to travel over 200 miles from Hastings to Stamford Bridge
Marched 200 miles from London - York to fight at Stamford Bridge
Assembled largest army in living memory to fight at Hastings

Question 43

Name examples of Saxon leadership (or lack of it) - Hastings

Answer 43

Harold’s brothers were killed before being able to lead a counter attack, which led to the stagnation of Saxon offensives as Harold had no other leaders.
Harold had the support of the Witan
After Harold died, the Saxons had no leadership

Question 44

Name example of Norman leadership - Hastings

Answer 44

William went on reconnaissance missions, going with 25 escorts immediately after landing at Pevensey Bay
Had secondary commanders like Walter Giffard who could lead a feigned retreat, and allow William to command others
William avoided battles when chances of victory were low before 1066

Question 45

Name examples of Anglo-Saxon tactics and strategy - Hastings

Answer 45

Used a shield wall as a defensive strategy (1 mile long, so tightly packed that the dead didn’t fall, interlocked shields)
Fighting lasted for 9 hours as a result of defensive longevity from Harold’s troops

Question 46

Give examples of Norman tactics and strategy - Hastings

Answer 46

Used archers to aerially challenge Saxons as they fired into the air
Cavalry was used as a final, decisive blow in order to eliminate the enemy
Feigned retreat (used at Messina in 1060)
Fighting lasted for 9 hours due to attacking determination

Question 47

Give examples of Anglo-Saxon luck? (Or lack of it) - Hastings

Answer 47

Harald Hadrada’s Northern invasion meant that Harold was fighting on 2 fronts and had to gather an army to fight immediately
The victory at Stamford Bridge gave Harold’s army immense confidence
The sea conditions in the channel remained poor enough to prevent William from invading when Harold was in the North.

Question 48

Give examples of Norman luck (or lack of it) - Hastings

Answer 48

The winds kept conditions poor for most of the summer, preventing William from crossing BUT they changed on 27th September to allow him to cross the channel
Harold’s army was exhausted due to the Viking invasion
Achieved a Papal Banner to provide incentives for his troops to fight
Arrived at Pevensey Bay largely unopposed

Question 49

When did the wind change direction to allow William to cross the Channel? - Hastings

Answer 49

27th September 1066

Question 50

When did the Battle of Hastings take place? - Hastings

Answer 50

14th October 1066

Question 51

Where did the Norman fleet set sail from when travelling to Hastings? - Hastings

Answer 51

St Valery