Battle of Hastings
History: KS3, topic 2.2.4
Battle of Hastings
Harold Godwinson defeated Harald Hardrada at the Battle of Stamford Bridge but was then defeated by William of Normandy at the Battle of Hastings.
Pevensey invasion
- William had been preparing an invasion force in Normandy in the meantime.
- He managed to gather a large army, and invaded Pevensey, on the South Coast of England, with 700 ships.
Harold's response
- On hearing about William’s invasion, Harold quickly marched back down south to face his contender.
- His men had marched around 200 miles from London to Stamford Bridge, and now from Stamford Bridge down to the south coast - they were exhausted, and many were left behind along the way.
Battle of Hastings
- Harold and William met in battle at the Battle of Hastings.
- It is thought that William had around 10,000 soldiers, and Harold had around 7,000.
- To begin with, Harold’s men had an advantage because they were positioned on the higher ground on top of Senlac Hill.
- They also formed a strong shield wall, which made it difficult for William’s men to make any advances.
Tactics
- To overcome this, the Normans used a clever tactic.
- They pretended to flee downhill, making the Englishmen break their shield wall and run after them.
- Once the shield wall was broken and the English had lost the higher ground, the Normans fought them much more effectively.
Victory
- Eventually, Harold was killed (it is claimed that he was killed by an arrow shot to the eye, but we don’t know for sure), and William had won the battle.
- He became William I or William the Conqueror, and now needed to establish himself as king of England!
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Norman Battles