Editing William the Conqueror (section)

== Invasion of England ==
{{Main|Norman conquest of England}}

=== Harold's preparations ===
[[File:Norman-conquest-1066.svg|thumb|Locations of some of the events in 1066]]

Harold was crowned on 6 January 1066 in Edward's new [[Norman architecture|Norman-style]] [[Westminster Abbey]], although some controversy surrounds who performed the ceremony. English sources claim that [[Ealdred (bishop)|Ealdred]], the [[Archbishop of York]], performed the ceremony, while Norman sources state that the coronation was performed by Stigand, who was considered a non-canonical archbishop by the papacy.<ref name=Huscroft115>Huscroft ''Norman Conquest'' pp. 115–116</ref> Harold's claim to the throne was not entirely secure, as there were other claimants, perhaps including his exiled brother Tostig.<ref name=Ruling12>Huscroft ''Ruling England'' pp. 12–13</ref>{{efn|Edgar the Ætheling was another claimant,<ref name=Bates78>Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 78</ref> but Edgar was young,<ref name=Thomas18>Thomas ''Norman Conquest'' p. 18</ref> likely only 14 in 1066.<ref name=Conquest132>Huscroft ''Norman Conquest'' p. 132</ref>}} King [[Harald Hardrada]] of Norway also had a claim to the throne as the uncle and heir of King [[Magnus I of Norway|Magnus I]], who had made a pact with Harthacnut around 1040 that if either Magnus or Harthacnut died without heirs, the other would succeed.<ref name=Huscroft118/> The last claimant was William of Normandy, against whose anticipated invasion King Harold Godwinson made most of his preparations.<ref name=Ruling12/>

Harold's brother Tostig made probing attacks along the southern coast of England in May 1066, landing at the [[Isle of Wight]] using a fleet supplied by Baldwin of Flanders. Tostig appears to have received little local support, and further raids into [[Lincolnshire]] and near the [[Humber]] met with no more success, so he retreated to Scotland. According to the Norman writer William of Jumièges, William had meanwhile sent an embassy to King Harold Godwinson to remind Harold of his oath to support William's claim, although whether this embassy actually occurred is unclear. Harold assembled an army and a fleet to repel William's anticipated invasion force, deploying troops and ships along the [[English Channel]] for most of the summer.<ref name=Ruling12/>

=== William's preparations ===
[[File:BayeuxTapestryScene37.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.8|Scene from the [[Bayeux Tapestry]] showing the Normans provisioning armour and wine for the invasion of England]]

William of Poitiers describes a council called by Duke William, in which the writer gives an account of a debate between William's nobles and supporters over whether to risk an invasion of England. Although some sort of formal assembly probably was held, it is unlikely that any debate took place: the duke had by then established control over his nobles, and most of those assembled would have been anxious to secure their share of the rewards from the conquest of England.<ref name=Bates79>Bates ''William the Conqueror'' pp. 79–81</ref> William of Poitiers also relates that the duke obtained the consent of [[Pope Alexander II]] for the invasion, along with a papal banner. The chronicler also claimed that the duke secured the support of [[Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor]], and King [[Sweyn II of Denmark]]. Henry was still a minor, however, and Sweyn was more likely to support Harold, who could then help Sweyn against the Norwegian king, so these claims should be treated with caution. Although Alexander gave papal approval to the conquest after it succeeded, no other source claims papal support prior to the invasion.{{efn|The [[Bayeux Tapestry]] may depict a papal banner carried by William's forces, but this is not named as such in the tapestry.<ref name=Huscroft120/>}}<ref name=Huscroft120>Huscroft ''Norman Conquest'' pp. 120–123</ref> Events after the invasion, which included the penance William performed and statements by later popes, lend circumstantial support to the claim of papal approval. To deal with Norman affairs, William put the government of Normandy into the hands of his wife for the duration of the invasion.<ref name=DNB/>

[[File:Þæt ƿyllelm bastard wolde hider.jpg|left|thumb|The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle records fear 'That William the Bastard would come hither']]
Throughout the summer, William assembled an army and an invasion fleet in Normandy. Although William of Jumièges's claim that the ducal fleet numbered 3,000 ships is clearly an exaggeration, it was probably large and mostly built from scratch. Although William of Poitiers and William of Jumièges disagree about where the fleet was built&nbsp;– Poitiers states it was constructed at the mouth of the [[River Dives]], while Jumièges states it was built at [[Saint-Valery-sur-Somme]]&nbsp;– both agree that it eventually sailed from Valery-sur-Somme. The fleet carried an invasion force that included, in addition to troops from William's territories of Normandy and Maine, large numbers of mercenaries, allies, and volunteers from [[Brittany]], northeastern France, and Flanders, together with smaller numbers from other parts of Europe. Although the army and fleet were ready by early August, adverse winds kept the ships in Normandy until late September. There were probably other reasons for William's delay, including intelligence reports from England revealing that Harold's forces were deployed along the coast. William would have preferred to delay the invasion until he could make an unopposed landing.<ref name=Huscroft120/> Harold kept his forces on alert throughout the summer, but with the arrival of the harvest season he disbanded his army on 8 September.<ref name=Carpenter72>Carpenter ''Struggle for Mastery'' p. 72</ref>

=== Tostig and Hardrada's invasion ===
[[File:Battle Flat - geograph.org.uk - 285158.jpg|thumb|Modern site of the [[Battle of Stamford Bridge]] in the [[East Riding of Yorkshire]]]]

Tostig Godwinson and Harald Hardrada invaded [[Northumbria]] in September 1066 and defeated the local forces under Morcar and Edwin at the [[Battle of Fulford]] near [[York]]. King Harold received word of their invasion and marched north, defeating the invaders and killing Tostig and Hardrada on 25 September at the [[Battle of Stamford Bridge]].<ref name=Huscroft118>Huscroft ''Norman Conquest'' pp. 118–119</ref> The Norman fleet finally set sail two days later, landing in England at [[Pevensey Bay]] on 28 September. William then moved to [[Hastings]], a few miles to the east, where he built a castle as a base of operations. From there, he ravaged the interior and waited for Harold's return from the north, refusing to venture far from the sea, his line of communication with Normandy.<ref name=Carpenter72/>

=== Battle of Hastings ===
{{Main|Battle of Hastings}}

After defeating Harald Hardrada and Tostig, Harold left much of his army in the north, including Morcar and Edwin, and marched the rest south to deal with the threatened Norman invasion.<ref name=Carpenter72/> He probably learned of William's landing while he was travelling south. Harold stopped in London for about a week before marching to Hastings, so it is likely that he spent about a week on his march south, averaging about {{convert|27|mi|km|abbr=off}} per day,<ref name=Marren93>Marren ''1066'' p. 93</ref> for the distance of approximately {{convert|200|mi|km|abbr=off}}.<ref name=Huscroft124>Huscroft ''Norman Conquest'' p. 124</ref> Although Harold attempted to surprise the Normans, William's scouts reported the English arrival to the duke. The exact events preceding the battle are obscure, with contradictory accounts in the sources, but all agree that William led his army from his castle and advanced towards the enemy.<ref name=Lawson180>Lawson ''Battle of Hastings'' pp. 180–182</ref> Harold had taken a defensive position at the top of Senlac Hill (present-day [[Battle, East Sussex]]), about {{convert|6|mi|km|abbr=off}} from William's castle at Hastings.<ref name=Marren99>Marren ''1066'' pp. 99–100</ref>

[[File:Bayeux Tapestry Horses in Battle of Hastings.jpg|thumb|left|Scene from the [[Bayeux Tapestry]] depicting the Battle of Hastings]]

The battle began at about 9&nbsp;am on 14 October and lasted all day. While a broad outline is known, the exact events are obscured by contradictory accounts.<ref name=Huscroft126>Huscroft ''Norman Conquest'' p. 126</ref> Although the numbers on each side were about equal, William had both cavalry and infantry, including many archers, while Harold had only foot soldiers and few, if any, archers.<ref name=Carpenter73>Carpenter ''Struggle for Mastery'' p. 73</ref> The English soldiers formed up as a [[shield wall]] along the ridge and were at first so effective that William's army was thrown back with heavy casualties. Some of William's [[Breton people|Breton]] troops panicked and fled, and some of the English troops appear to have pursued the fleeing Bretons until they themselves were attacked and destroyed by Norman cavalry. During the Bretons' flight, rumours swept through the Norman forces that the duke had been killed, but William succeeded in rallying his troops. Two further Norman retreats were feigned, to draw the English into pursuit and expose them to repeated attacks by the Norman cavalry.<ref name=Huscroft127>Huscroft ''Norman Conquest'' pp. 127–128</ref> The available sources are more confused about events in the afternoon, but it appears that the decisive event was Harold's death, about which differing stories are told. William of Jumièges claimed that Harold was killed by the duke. The Bayeux Tapestry has been claimed to show Harold's death by an arrow to the eye, but that may be a later reworking of the tapestry to conform to 12th-century stories in which Harold was slain by an arrow wound to the head.<ref name=Huscroft129>Huscroft ''Norman Conquest'' p. 129</ref>

Harold's body was identified the day after the battle, either through his armour or marks on his body. The English dead, including some of [[House of Godwin|Harold's brothers]] and his [[housecarl]]s, were left on the battlefield. [[Gytha Thorkelsdóttir]], Harold's mother, offered the duke the weight of her son's body in gold for it, but her offer was refused.{{efn|[[William of Malmesbury]] states that William did accept Gytha's offer, but William of Poitiers states that William refused the offer.<ref name=Godwine>Williams "Godwine, earl of Wessex" ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography''</ref> Modern biographers of Harold agree that William refused the offer.<ref name=Walker181>Walker ''Harold'' p. 181</ref><ref name=Rex254>Rex ''Harold II'' p. 254</ref>}} William ordered the body thrown into the sea, but whether that took place is unclear. [[Waltham Abbey (abbey)|Waltham Abbey]], which Harold founded, later claimed that his body had been secretly buried there.<ref name=Huscroft131>Huscroft ''Norman Conquest'' p. 131</ref>

=== March on London ===

William may have hoped the English would surrender following his victory, but they did not. Instead, some of the English clergy and magnates nominated Edgar the Ætheling as king, though their support for Edgar was only lukewarm. After waiting a short while, William secured [[Dover]], parts of Kent, and [[Canterbury]], while also sending a force to capture [[Winchester]], where the royal treasury was.<ref name=Huscroft132/> These captures secured William's rear areas and his line of retreat to Normandy, if that was needed.<ref name=DNB/> William then marched to [[Southwark]], across the [[Thames]] from London, which he reached in late November. Next, he led his forces around the south and west of London, burning along the way. He finally crossed the Thames at [[Wallingford, Oxfordshire|Wallingford]] in early December. Stigand submitted to William there, and when the duke moved on to [[Berkhamsted]] soon afterwards, Edgar the Ætheling, Morcar, Edwin, and Ealdred also submitted. William then sent forces into London to construct a castle; [[Coronation of William the Conqueror|he was crowned at Westminster Abbey]] on Christmas Day 1066.<ref name=Huscroft132>Huscroft ''Norman Conquest'' pp. 131–133</ref>