1966 900^th ANNIVERSARY OF THE BATTLE OF HASTINGS

1966 saw the 900^th anniversary of the Battle of Hastings and Norman Conquest, 1066 to 1966.  The set contains the eight coins issued and dated in the year, namely: halfcrown, florin, English and Scottish shilling, sixpence, threepence, penny and halfpenny plus the official British 1966 one shilling and threepence commemorative postage stamp issued for the Battle of Hastings.

The coins are in Fine (or better) condition and the stamp is in unused Mint condition as issued.

The Battle of Hastings

The Battle of Hastings was the last time England was successfully invaded and conquered by a foreign army. It brought greater unity and strength to a country which was already wealthy and strong in governmental systems but which was dynastically and territorially insecure.

Introduction

The Battle of Hastings was the last time England was successfully invaded and conquered by a foreign army. It brought greater unity and strength to a country which was already wealthy and strong in governmental systems but which was dynastically and territorially insecure.

Origins

Centuries of conflict had preceded the Battle of Hastings. Both the Normans and the Saxons were descended from the Danes who between the fifth and eleventh centuries continually attacked, invaded and settled in England. In 911 a group of them moved across the channel to the Seine Valley where they were given land to live on by Charles III of France. They became known by the French as Northmen or Normans. Over the years their population expanded, merged with the French culture, acquired more land, and grew in power. In 1013, King Sweyn Forkbeard of Denmark successfully invaded England and became the new king so establishing the Danish dynasty and forcing the deposed King Ethelred II to flee to Normandy.

'The Battle of Hastings was the last time England was successfully invaded and conquered by a foreign army.'

Edward died without a successor. Duke William of Normandy claimed Edward had named him successor some Years previously. Harold Godwinson, Earl Godwin's son, claimed that words uttered by Edward to him on his deathbed nominated himself as his successor. The Witan, a council of chief advisers, noblemen and churchmen, were responsible for choosing a successor to the throne. If the king had children, the first born son would often inherit the throne with the Witan's approval but, if the king died childless, the Witan selected the successor. It was the Witan who elected Harold as king.

The main protagonists

Harold was the grandson of a Viking warrior and son of Earl Godwin, the earl of Wessex and Kent. His mother was a Danish princess. Upon his father's death in 1053, he had taken his father's titles and become one of the most powerful people beside his brother-in-law, King Edward the Confessor.

Harold had a difficult and short reign. Many nobles viewed him as a commoner and only royal by marriage. At the time of Edward's death, Harold's family controlled Wessex, Kent, Sussex and East Anglia giving him a strong and secure position in the southern part of England. He lacked support in the north of England where his brother, Tostig, had been the Earl of Northumbria until he was overthrown and exiled to Flanders as a result of a rebellion by his subjects. After the rebellion, Edwin, Earl of Mercia and his brother, Morcar, Earl of Northumbria became powerful ruling earls in the north and had the political support of Wales because their sister, Aldyth, was the widow of the former king of Wales. Hoping to secure unity and their support, Harold married Aldyth.

Harold's brother, Tostig, posed the first threat to Harold during his reign. Determined to regain his earldom, Tostig invaded the north of the country via the River Humber. He went on to attack Northumbria and Mercia. The Earls of Mercia and Northumberland successfully defended their territory and Tostig retreated to Scotland where he was given refuge by King Malcolm.

A greater threat to Harold's kingdom came from Harald Hardrada of Norway. While Tostig's interest had lain in regaining his earldom, Harald Hardrada believed he had a claim to the English throne. Tostig allied himself to Harald Hardrada and together they sailed up the River Humber to the village of Riccall and then began marching to York, the capital of Northumbria. The Earls of Northumberland and Mercia intercepted Harald's troops outside York at Fulford Gate. On this occasion the army led by the earls was no match for the Norwegians and they were defeated. Harald Hardrada took control of York and demanded that he be given 100 hostages to ensure the support of the people. They were to be handed over at Stamford Bridge on 25th September 1066.

Harald Hardrada's victory forced Harold to march his army north to defend his title. He succeeded in surprising Harald's troops at Stamford Bridge. Harald Hardrada and Tostig were both killed and the remaining Norwegian army retreated to Riccall and sailed back to Norway.

Harold's victory at Stamford Bridge secured his position against Harald Hardrada of Norway but it also distracted him from the biggest threat to his position, Duke William of Normandy. William was the illegitimate son of Duke Robert I of Normandy and his mistress, Herleve. His grandfather Duke Richard II was the brother-in-law of Ethelred II. Despite his illegitimacy, Duke Robert I declared William his successor. William fought hard to secure his position. He grew up with his great-uncle Robert, Archbishop of Rouen, and his uncle Walter as his protectors and then, when he was older, he staved off challenges from his cousin, Guy of Burgundy, Count Geoffrey of Anjou and King Henry of France who, having originally given him support, felt his own position threatened by William's growing power. Over the years, William became politically and militarily stronger and by the time King Philip I inherited the throne in France, William had stabilised his position and married Mathilda of Flanders, the daughter of King Philip's guardian.

Whether it was because he believed Edward had named him as his successor, or because he felt he could lay claim to the throne of England as the grand-nephew of King Edward the Confessor's mother, or because he wanted to increase his power and position by conquering England, William was a threat to Harold's position from the day he became king of England. William spent the winter months preparing and then, once ready, waited for the right moment to invade the country.

Battle Plans

Harold learnt that William had landed at Pevensey in the south of England when he was in the north of the country retaking Stamford Bridge and York. He marched his troops south as fast as possible, stopping in London for reinforcements. He took up position at Caldbec Hill, along the Sentlache Ridge, a few miles north of Hastings. As the ridge had deep ravines, streams and marshy ground on either side, Harold blocked William's only road out of the Hastings peninsula so forcing him into a frontal attack. By positioning his army at the top of the hill, he had clear visibility all around him and forced William's army into continually running up the hill to attack. Harold built a shield wall that stretched in rows along the ridge and which was made up of his housecarls, thegns and fyrdmen. Being skilled fighters, the housecarls and thegns were positioned in between the fyrdmen who were unskilled, poorly armed and inexperienced peasant soldiers. Harold expected the wall to hold firm against assault and for William's men to tire and weaken from having to attack uphill. This would eventually allow Harold's army to launch a counter-attack with relatively fresh troops strong enough to defeat the opponent.

'William was unprepared for Harold's speedy arrival at Caldbec Hill'

William was unprepared for Harold's speedy arrival at Caldbec Hill but quickly gathered his troops and went to meet him at Senlache. His army was divided into three sections, each with a commander. The left section comprised mainly of Bretons, the central section were Norman under Willliam's command and the right section was made up of the French and Flemish. Each section was divided into three rows - the archers, the infantry and the cavalry. William's plan was to use the archers first to send their arrows into the English ranks, followed by the infantry in hand-to-hand combat and to finally advance with the cavalry who had the height and power of being on horseback. The effect would be a three pronged attack and a gradual build up in power that would demoralise the English.

The Battle

The battle took all day beginning early in the morning of 14th October 1066 with William's archers firing the first arrows into English ranks. William followed up his plan with an attack by the infantry and then by the cavalry, but Harold's army was stronger than expected and William's army sustained many casualties. The Bretons on the left flank panicked due to their lack of experience, the unexpected strength of Harold's army and the noise and confusion. They failed to keep in line and got ahead of the other two sections on their right. In their panic they began to retreat. Harold's less experienced fighters broke rank when they saw the Bretons retreating and William's army slaughtered them.

'With the morale of the English troops shattered by the death of their leader, the battle ended in defeat'

William retreated and regrouped. The second and following assaults went according to William's plan and he supported his troops by joining in the charge on horseback. Both sides became more tired as the day wore on and suffered heavy casualties. As the supply of arrows was running low, William ordered the archers to fire them high into the air for the final assault so that they fell into the rear ranks of the English army. This caused high casualties and the collapse of the English shield wall. The Normans penetrated the ranks and killed Harold. With the morale of the English troops shattered by the death of their leader, the battle ended in defeat for the English, although the housecarls and thegns continued to fight to their deaths. Over the following months, William captured Canterbury, Winchester and London. He was crowned king on Christmas Day 1066.

Why did Harold lose?

Harold was badly prepared to face William's troops. William had spent months preparing for invasion in a secure position and environment in Normandy. Harold's tenure as king was weak from the time of his accession and, although aware of the threat from Normandy, he was occupied by other events at home.

William built up his army and support in feudal tradition promising lands in England to those who joined his army and eternal paradise to anyone who died during the battle. He’d also obtained the approval of the Pope in his plans so gaining greater support and turning the invasion into a crusade. The knights were recruited with their own horses, men and equipment. Over the months, William's army was rigorously disciplined and trained before being ready to sail for England, but they had to wait until September before having a favourable wind. William's plans suffered a set back when the fleet got caught in a storm and he had to take refuge and regroup in the Somme estuary. However, as a result, the distance he had to cover in his crossing was considerably shorter and the next opportunity he had to sail was at the time when Harold was in the north of England.

William's decision to land at Pevensey was important. Pevensey was on a lagoon to the west of Hastings and was a sparsely populated area. The lagoon was a shelter from the weather as the ships could be beached high up on the land at high tide. The Hastings peninsula was bordered by Pevensey Lagoon to the west and the River Brede to the east so providing it with natural protection from attack and only one way in and out of the peninsula to the main land in the north. William quickly established his presence on the peninsula including building up the Roman Fort at Pevensey and taking Hastings.

'Harold's men were not trained and did not have the distant attack advantage of the archers or the power of the cavalry.'

Harold was not so lucky in his plans. Some weeks before the invasion, he had mobilised troops along the coast and sent his navy to the Isle of Wight to intercept William's fleet, but he was unable to keep them there as they became demoralised waiting for William's army to set sail and concerned about gathering in the harvest in their home towns. Harold disbanded them at the beginning of September and lost many of his ships in the same storm which William had been forced to take refuge from. When he received news that William had landed at Pevensey, Harold was fighting the invasion of Harald Hardrada of Norway in the north.

Despite his battle plan and his choice of a strategic location, Harold's army was exhausted from having to travel north and fight at Stamford Bridge, and then hastily return south without time to rest. Harold's support from the north was limited and although the Earls of Mercia and Northumberland had begun riding south, they turned back when they heard of Harold's death. Except for the housecarls and thegns, Harold's men were not trained and did not have the distant attack advantage of the archers or the power of the cavalry. In accordance with English tradition, those of Harold's army who were on horseback rode to the battle location and then fought on foot while William's cavalry walked to the location and then mounted for battle.

The results

William was crowned king of England on Christmas Day 1066. There followed 88 years of Norman rule. The French and English cultures merged and the feudal system was introduced. This led to a tough discipline and training and took away much of the Anglo-Saxon's freedom and rights. England's strength grew and she became a powerful force in European politics because of her tie with Normandy. Her army and navy were built up as well. In 1085 William ordered a survey of English assets and this became known as the Doomsday Book. William's reign was not easy and there were rebellions which were quickly stamped out, but the Norman Conquest changed the face of England for ever.