Harold II

1066

aka Harold Godwinson

Harold was crowned King at Westminster Abbey in January 1066. The royal council, known as the Witan, considered him a worthy successor to his brother-in-law Edward the Confessor. This was not suprising as he had been running the country for Edward since the death of his father Earl Godwin a decade previously. It’s fair to say however that Harold hadn’t always been Edward’s right-hand man.

In 1051 he was forced into exile by Edward along with his brothers and his over-bearing father. He was able to return a year later, partly because the English nobility backed his father’s campaign. The Normans at court were seen as becoming too powerful for the native Anglo-saxons. Harold proved his loyalty to Edward and became indispensible to him during his reign. His troops ruthlessly secured England’s borders against the Welsh by allegedly killing every welsh man they encountered. In 1064/1065 he travelled to Normandy on Edward’s behalf and was kidnapped for a ransom. William, the Duke of Normandy, secured his release. They went on a campaign together across France to battle with one of William’s enemies, Conan II of Brittany. During this time Harold saved two of William’s knights from drowning in quicksand. Following this service, William knighted him. In return Harold is said to have promised to honour his claim to the English throne in the event of Edward’s death. Some say that Harold was kidnapped by William and forced to swear an oath of allegiance to him. Either way, Harold was later forced to fight for the crown when Hardrada of Norway invaded the north and William the Conqueror the south.

One of Harold’s strengths was that he was a great warrior. He had energy and endurance, he could manage sleep and food deprivation and still fight on. It was said that despite this strength he had a gentle nature and listened to the opinions of others. He was tall and handsome, playful but also compassionate. In 1065 the people of Northumbria were rebelling against the high taxes being imposed by Harold’s brother Tostig, Earl of Northumbria. Harold supported his subjects against the Earl, who eventually lost his lands and title. The following year Tostig joined forces with Hardrada of Norway to fight against Harold. Harold met them in York at the Battle of Stamford Bridge. Hardrada challenged Harold, asking him how much of England he would give him. Harold replied fearlessly “6 feet, no 7, because you’re taller than most men”. This became the amount of land used for Hardrada’s grave when both he and Tostig were killed and the invasion thwarted.

Unfortunately for Harold, hard on the heels of this victory came news that William, Duke of Normandy, had landed on the coast 250 miles south. Harold marched his battle-weary army from York to the Sussex coast covering 30 miles a day. They met fresh troops on the way, but again they were unlucky. The meeting of Harold’s army was in full view of the Norman invaders. The element of surprise was lost. William’s army was well-rested. Harold’s anglo-saxons and anglicised Danes fought with spears, swords and battle-axes. The Normans wore suits of armour and rode horses. The defending army fought hard but were too tired and depleted in numbers from their previous battle. Harold and his brothers Gyrth and Leofwine were killed.

The last Anglo-Saxon king of England met a bloody end. He famously died during the battle of Hastings as a result of suffering a wound from an arrow in his eye. Not everyone agrees with this, mainly because the story emerged 30 years after his death. A more likely version is that he was hacked to pieces by four of William’s knights. His body lay, virtually unrecognisable, beside that of his two brothers. His wife, Edith Swan-neck is said to have identified his torso by marks known only to those closest to him. His place of death was marked by an Abbey built by William the Conqueror.

Harold II Factfile