On our City of London walks we tell the story of how William the first is not known as William the Conqueror in the one square mile of the City of London because he never actually conquered the city of London.
However the story of the Norman conquest of England features on several of our London walks such as Westminster and the eastern city on the latter of which we gaze upon William’s most prominent and lasting legacy to the city, the Tower of London.
But what were the events that led to the Norman invasion of England? Well, to help you and gave an understanding of what lay behind what has been called “the most famous year in British history” our next few blogs will deal with the events leading up to the Battle of Hastings, in 1066.
England in 1066 was the wealthiest, best governed, and most stable country in Europe. The Normans held its throne in great esteem, simply because of its great age.
In 1013 Edward (who would later become Edward the Confessor) was driven into exile in Normandy by invading Danish armies.
Here he was under the protection of his uncle Duke Richard, his cousin, Duke Robert, and his nephew, the young William.
Crucially, as far as English history is concerned, when Edward became King of England in 1042 he at some stage in 1051, so the Normans later claimed, promised his nephew William that he would succeed him as King of England, following Edward’s death.
Edward was childless, and he devoted many of his latter years to the building of a great Abbey to the West of the City of London, which we now know as Westminster Abbey, the graceful walls of which feature on several of our Westminster London walks.
In 1064 Harold Godwinson, one of Edwards trusted noblemen, set sail on a trip to France. A lot of mystery surrounds this trip, and the reason for it has never been fully ascertained with any degree of certainty. The Normans maintained that Harold was sent by Edward to reiterate, in other confesses promise, apparently made in 1051, to make William, his successor.
What is certain is that Harold was sent on some mission by King Edward and his ultimate destination of peers to have been Flanders (modern Belgium) where Edward had a few relatives.
What ever reason for the voyage, Harold was blown off course by a storm, and his ship ran aground at Ponthieu in north eastern France, a small independent enclave, whose ruler owed fealty to William of Normandy.
Harold was handed over to William and effectively became his prisoner.
We will continue with our look at 1066 in our next blog. In the meantime why not join us on one of our many and varied London walks?
