#normanconquest

[whencyclopedia]

This map illustrates the shifting geopolitical landscape of North Africa and the Western Mediterranean in 1065, a pivotal moment marked by fragmentation and the emergence of new powers. As older dynasties weakened, new forces rose across the region, setting the stage for profound political realignments that would reshape the medieval world. In North Africa, the Hammadid dynasty consolidated power...

[medievalistsnet]

The Battle of Hastings, according to Anonymous of Béthune

His account of the Norman Conquest of England is short - somewhat surprising considering the importance of the event - but it does contain a few interesting pieces of information.

[whencyclopedia]

Conquered: The Last Children of Anglo-Saxon England

There are many books, both scholarly and popular, that discuss one of the most seminal events in English history: the Norman Conquest of 1066. Perspectives of the Anglo-Saxons, the French, the Normans, and the various populations living in Wales and Scotland are all available for perusal. Recent historical studies of this time period have provided opinions and viewpoints that were once ignored. As history has often shown, it is the viewpoint of the victorious side in a war that usually dominates recordings, and that of the defeated side is lost or purposefully suppressed. Eleanor Parker's book provides a platform for a subtopic under the Norman Conquest that has rarely been explored: what happened to the children of critical Anglo-Saxon families and royalties who were uprooted, disinherited, imprisoned, and hunted down after the Conquest.

Eleanor Parker's book provides a platform for a subtopic under the Norman Conquest that has rarely been explored...

The book's Introduction provides important background information on how Anglo-Norman elites were careful when integrating aspects of Anglo-Saxon society and life into their reign as well as suppressing other cultural and religious observances of the conquered people. Eleanor Parker indicates that intermarriage with aristocratic Anglo-Saxon women, for instance, was key for Anglo-Norman elites to legitimize their claims over English territories. The subsequent five chapters of the book focus on the specific stories of Anglo-Saxon individuals and families and their reactions to their reduced or eliminated status in the new Anglo-Norman society after 1066. Chapter One tells the story of England’s most illustrious rebel and hero Hereward the Wake, who led a guerrilla campaign against the Normans in the Fens in Eastern England. Chapter Two focuses on Margaret of Scotland. She was the sister of Edgar Aetheling, the last surviving direct heir to the English throne. After fleeing to Scotland, Margaret married Malcolm III and became an influential queen. Chapter Three contains a fascinating story. It talks about how the lives of the nine grandchildren of Godwine, the late Earl of Wessex and husband to Gytha Thorkelsdóttir, were virtually wiped out overnight due to the events in 1066. Their stories of exile, rebellion, and marriage are documented by Parker's engaging writing style for readers interested in following the fortunes of Harold Godwineson and his extended family.

Continue reading...

[infamoushistory]

The Horrific Burial of William the Conqueror: A King’s Undignified End

The burial of William the Conqueror in 1087 became one of the most unsettling royal funerals recorded in medieval Europe.

After his death in Rouen following a riding accident and illness, William’s body began to decompose rapidly in the summer heat. By the time preparations were made to transport him to Caen for burial at the Abbey of Saint-Étienne (St Stephen’s Abbey), the situation had already turned grim. Chroniclers describe a bloated, swollen corpse that leaked fluids and gave off a powerful stench, making the journey deeply unpleasant for those tasked with accompanying him.

When the funeral procession finally reached Caen, the difficulties continued. The stone sarcophagus prepared for the king proved too small for his enlarged body. In the attempt to force him inside, the remains were reportedly damaged further, and the burial scene descended into chaos. Some accounts claim that the pressure caused the body to rupture, intensifying the smell so badly that mourners and clergy fled the chapel.

Only a small number of monks are said to have remained to complete the burial rites. Even then, the ceremony was hurried and undignified, a stark contrast to the grand legacy William had built as conqueror of England in 1066.

Over time, even his resting place was not spared disruption. The tomb at Caen was later damaged during periods of war and revolution, a reminder that even the most powerful rulers can meet an undignified end in death.

William’s burial stands as a haunting echo of medieval realities: even kings were subject to decay, and grandeur offered no protection from the physical truths of mortality.

[wakehereward]

Legend says he's still out there, watching, waiting, ready to rise up and defend his folk in their hour of need. Seen in Ely at the weekend Hereward the Wake was being filmed for a forthcoming historical documentary before disappearing back into the wild fens...

[thebritishmonarchycouk]

On This Day In Royal History . 27 September 1066 . William the Conqueror & his army set sail from the mouth of the Somme river, beginning the Norman conquest of England. . 👑 William I (born. c. 1028 – died 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror & sometimes William the Bastard, was the first Norman King of England, reigning from 1066 until his death in 1087. . ▪️He was a descendant of the legendary Viking warrior Rollo & was Duke of Normandy from 1035 onward. His hold was secure on Normandy by 1060, following a long struggle to establish his throne, & he launched the Norman conquest of England six years later. The rest of his life was marked by struggles to consolidate his hold over England & his continental lands, & by difficulties with his eldest son, Robert Curthose. . ▪️ His reign in England was marked by the construction of castles, settling a new Norman nobility on the land, & change in the composition of the English clergy. He did not try to integrate his various domains into one empire but continued to administer each part separately. His lands were divided after his death: Normandy went to Robert, & England went to his second surviving son, William. . . . #NormanConquest #WilliamtheConqueror #Britishhistory #Royalhistory #Britishmonarchy #Otd #history #onthisday #onthisdayinhistory #historyfacts #Historyfact #lovehistory #thisday #thisdayinhistory #Normans #Norman #WilliamI #KingWilliam #KingWilliamI #Houseofnormandy #Royalty #Monarch #Monarchy #MedievalHistory #medievaltimes #Medieval #TheKing #bayeuxtapestry #KingofEngland (at The Somme) https://www.instagram.com/p/CFoy7t3DTuR/?igshid=vzblbbajn8hg

[duxirae]

#klassenfahrt #hastings #castle #lovehastings ##eastsussex #loveeastsussex #normanconquest #england #loveengland (hier: Hastings Castle)

[duxirae]

#klassenfahrt #hastings #beach #pier #eastsussex #england #normanconquest #lovehastings #loveengland (hier: Hastings, East Sussex)