Free Essay: The Battle of Hastings
There are hundreds of battles that have been fought in the world. These battles have impacted many nations in one way or another. The battle of Hastings is one of the widely known battles in history. It was fought on October 14th, 1066. It was a ground-breaking battle between the Norman-French army of Duke William II of Normandy and an English army led by the Anglo-Saxon King Harold II during the Norman conquest of England. The battle took place about 7 miles of north-west of Hastings and was a decisive victory for Norman.
The battle was instigated by a succession battle after the death of King Edward the confessor in 1066. A struggle for power between several suitors emerged to claim his command. Harold was crowned the king shortly after his death, but faced invasions by William, his brother Tostig Godwinson and the Norwegian King Harald Hardrada. Tostig and Harald had fought and won numerous wars including the battle of Fulford on September 1066, but were defeated by Harold at the battle of Stamford bridge. Their death left William as the only opponent against Harold.
The English army was quite organized and camped along regional lines. Harold spent mid-1066 preparing for war on the south coast. He had a large army and fleet set for Williams’s invasion or any other attack. William on the other hand had also assembled a large invasion fleet and army from Normandy and the rest of France. William had a well-prepared team and artillery with estimated 776 war ships. He also had about thousands of men and cavalry, archers and crossbowmen who presented a great force against any enemy. Harold had an unknown number of soldiers who were more determined to emerge victorious.
The battle took place between two hills Caldbec and Telham hill. The Harold’s team was deployed in small teams around the top of the Caldbec hill, forming a shield wall that made it hard to hit. William arranged his groups in three groups and opted to open the battle with archers in the front part and weaken the enemy with arrow wounds. Norman’s strategies failed as they could not destroy the barricade set by Harold. There were lot of casualties and Harold lost his brothers Gyrth and Leofwine together with many other soldiers.
Harold is known to have died late in the battle but much is not known on the entire incident. It is believed one of the arrows used by Williams’s archer struck Harold in the eye. After the victory, William marched on to London and received city submission. On 25th december1066, he was crowned the first Norman King of England in Westminster Abbey. William built the tower of London in 1067, a great fortress which demonstrated his power and dominance within the city of London. On the other hand, the Anglo-Saxon English leadership came to an end. Many kings have come from the William bloodline ever since. William I died in 1087 and his son William Rufus became William II and the second King of England.
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Sources:
http://primaryhomeworkhelp.co.uk/bt/king.htm
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/the-battle-of-hastings
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Hastings