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1066, the most famous date in English history. The Battle of Hastings. To be precise, the 14th of October, 1066, the day when William, Duke of Normandy, led his conquering army against King Harold II of England. (You may boo-hiss William if you wish...)
Today, all these years later, one could be forgiven for thinking that politicians had invented spin doctoring, but media manipulation is nothing new. By 1077, Duke William's half-brother, Bishop Odo of Bayeux, had commissioned an embroidery - now called the Bayeux Tapestry - to depict the victorious events; William of Poitiers and William of Jumièges had both written a detailed (Norman) version of the Conquest. William himself had ordered the building of a splendid abbey on the battle site, the altar, supposedly, being placed at the spot where Harold fell. Killed by an arrow in the eye. He did die, but his death was not because of an arrow.
Battle Abbey
However, the Norman versions are heavily biased, their explicit purpose: to prove to a papal inquiry, concerned at the level of brutality and aggression meted against the English, that William's conquest had been justified. Strip away the Norman gilding, and what do you get? Twisted truths and blatant lies. Start with the fact that William had no right whatsoever to claim the English throne.
He was the result of Duke Robert's liaison with Herleve, the daughter of a tanner. No-one in Normandy expected Robert to die before he took a wife and had a legitimate heir. In fairness to the boy, who grew up to be little more than a sadistic, psychopathic tyrant (well I am a Harold supporter) he did suffer a traumatic childhood. The Norman nobles were not happy bunnies, they did not want an eight year old by-blow as their next duke. As a child, William had to flee for his life more than once; saw his trusted servant murdered before his eyes. (Of course, in my opinion it's a shame William wasn't murdered as well.)
William's claim, in 1066, was that his great-aunt, Emma, had been Queen of England - the only woman to have been queen to two different kings. Æthelred, better known as the Unready, and Cnut - that's the p.c. spelling of Canute - the king famous for attempting to holding back the tide.
Bosham Harbour
Her firstborn son was Edward, later canonised and called the Confessor. Blame the Conquest on him. He was sent into exile when, with Æthelred dead and England falling to the conquest of the Dane, Cnut, Emma decided to remain queen by marrying him. For more than twenty-five years Edward languished in Normandy. He was a boy when he left, a man of nearly forty when he came back to be crowned King of England. He was indoctrinated with the Norman way of life, was profoundly devout and would have preferred to take Holy Orders. He may have declared a vow of chastity, or he may have been impotent or gay. His wife, Edith, Harold's sister, bore him no children. In this period of history barrenness was always the woman's fault but Edith was never blamed. Edward even took her back as wife after a nasty incident when her father was accused of turning traitor and forced into exile. Edith was sent to a nunnery, always a woman's fate, but after a year, with Godwine forgiven and re-instated as Earl, she too was recalled. Despite being childless.
King Edward's death
According to William's biographers, King Edward had appointed him his heir and despite swearing an oath to support his claim Harold had seized the throne in indecent haste and had himself crowned on the same day as the old king's funeral, January 6th 1066. Outraged, William ordered an invasion of England, and while Halley's Comet blazed in the April sky, a fleet was assembled. In September, he crossed the English Channel without mishap. In the meantime, Harold's brother, Tostig, possibly supporting William, had invaded Yorkshire alongside the Norwegian king, Harald Hardrada. Moving swiftly, our Harold marched to Stamford Bridge near York and won a victory on 25th September 1066, but when he heard of William's landing, he had to return, hot foot, south with a weary and battered army.
So how had Harold become King? His father, Godwine, was the most powerful man beneath Edward. He had risen to power under Emma and Cnut. Five of his six sons became earls and his daughter, Edith was Edward's childless queen. When Godwine died Harold stepped into his boots as Earl of Wessex. Harold proved, several times, that he was an able and capable soldier. He conquered Wales, not Edward I in the thirteenth century. Harold became King of England because he was the most suitable man for the job. Edward could not have appointed William as heir, things did not work like that in Anglo-Saxon England. When a successor had to be found, the most suitable man was chosen by the Council, the Witan. William might have been considered, but against Harold? No contest. (And this is one of the instances where TV documentaries so annoy me - they never mention the above fact!)
The coronation took place on the day of the funeral because, knowing the king was dying, everyone of importance had been summoned to the Christmas Court. By early January they needed to return home, and England could not be left vulnerable until the next calling of Council at Easter. There was nothing untoward about accomplishing such important issues on the same day... although the Normans would have us think different, (as would those TV documentaries which also don't mention this!) Oh, and by the way, the Normans were not French. They were re-located North Men... they were Christianised Vikings.
England, 1044. Harold Godwinesson, a young, respected earl, falls in love with an ordinary but beautiful woman. In Normandy, William, the bastard son of a duke, falls in love with power.
In 1066 England falls vulnerable to the fate of these two men: one, chosen to be a king, the other, determined to take, by force, what he desires. Risking his life to defend his kingdom from foreign invasion, Harold II led his army into the great Battle of Hastings in October 1066 with all the honour and dignity that history remembers of its fallen heroes.
In this beautifully crafted tale, USA Today bestselling author Helen Hollick sets aside the propaganda of the Norman Conquest and brings to life the English version of the story of the man who was the last Anglo-Saxon king, revealing his tender love, determination and proud loyalty, all to be shattered by the desire for a crown – by one who had no right to wear it.
“Helen Hollick has it all! She tells a great story, gets her history right, and writes consistently readable books” Bernard Cornwell
“A novel of enormous emotional power” Elizabeth Chadwick
“Thanks to Hollick’s masterful storytelling, Harold’s nobility and heroism enthrall to the point of engendering hope for a different ending…Joggles a cast of characters and a bloody, tangled plot with great skill” Publisher’s Weekly
“Don’t miss Helen Hollick’s colourful recreation of the events leading up to the Norman Conquest” Daily Mail
“An epic re-telling of the Norman Conquest” The Lady
“If only all historical fiction could be this good” Historical Novel Society Review
1066 Turned Upside Down:
Eleven alternative 'what if' short stories by nine different authors
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Thank you for leaving a comment - it should appear soon. If you are having problems, contact me on author AT helenhollick DOT net and I will post your comment for you. That said ...SPAMMERS or rudeness will be composted or turned into toads.
Helen