New findings from the University of East Anglia (UEA) suggest we may need to radically rethink the build-up to the Battle of Hastings in 1066. The traditional version of the story has an exhausted King Harold II turning up to fight William of Normandy after a 200-mile forced march from northern England.
However, Tom Licence, Professor of Medieval History and Literature at UEA challenges this, saying the forced march is a Victorian misreading of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, one of the best contemporary sources for the 11th century. Prof Licence believes that it is far more likely that Harold and his men travelled by sea.
The confusion arises after Harold speeds north to head off an unexpected invasion from Danish King Hardrada – and it appears he sails rather than marches north. Having recorded that Harold won a great victory, the Chronicle states that the ships “came home”.
For years, historians have assumed this meant the navy was disbanded and that, learning of William's landing on the south coast, Harold made the weary journey back to Hastings on foot. Licence has now shown that the ships returned to London, their home base, and remained operational throughout the year.
He said: “I noticed multiple contemporary writers referring to Harold's fleet, while modern historians were dismissing those references or trying to explain them away. I checked the evidence for him having sent the fleet home and found that it was just a misunderstanding. I went looking in the sources for evidence of a forced march and found there wasn't any.”
“Harold was not a reactive, exhausted commander, he was a strategist using England’s naval assets to wage a coordinated defence", added Pro Licence.
Though contemporary sources do not explicitly mention the use of ships, Prof Licence says it's the most likely scenario. “Harold’s weary, unmounted men covering nearly 200 miles in ten days and then continuing straight to the Hastings peninsula is implausible given medieval roads and the aftermath of battle.
“Only a mad general would have sent all his men on foot in this way if ship transports were available.” It sheds new light on the Battle of Hastings in that if Harold's men came by sea, it's likely they arrived rested and ready for battle where previously their supposed weariness from a forced march contributed to their defeat.
Licence points also to contemporary sources that say Harold intended to use his fleet to blockade William after he had landed – something that had confused historians who believed the fleet had already been decommissioned. But it's likely that the fleet arrived too late, depriving Harold of the vital troops that might have turned the tide of battle.
In a year when the Bayeux Tapestry comes to Britain for an extended exhibition at the British Museum, Professor Licence's findings reveal there is always more to discover even about this most famous day in England's history.
Top image: Historical re-enactors gather on the site of the 1066 battle to mark the 950th anniversary of the battle between the Norman-French army of William, the Duke of Normandy, and the English army under the Anglo-Saxon King Harold II. King William's victory marked the beginning of the Norman conquest of England. (Credit: Jack Taylor/Getty Images)
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