Reasons Behind William's Victory In The Battle Of Hastings
The Battle of Hastings made a major difference in England’s history and took place in 1066. It all started in January, when Edward the Confessor died and had no sons to become heir therefore, there was no one to become King. Soon after his death, Harold Godwinson was crowned King, as he was Earl of Wessex. This resulted in a battle for the throne between three men: Harold Godwinson (the King at the time), Harald Hardraada (King of Norway) and William the Conqueror (Duke of Normandy). In the following piece of writing, I will explain why William Duke of Normandy won the Battle of Hastings and how he managed to become King of England. One of the first major reasons behind William’s victory in the Battle of Hastings was because he was much better
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Before the Battle of Hastings took place, Harold faced many fateful events. One example of such an event is when the Anglo-Saxon army had to march up north to fight Harald Hardraada at the Battle of Stamford Bridge, after waiting for William on the south coast all summer. William and the Norman army were extremely fortunate as the winds at the channel changed at the right time for their ship sails. Therefore, by the time they reached the south coast of England, Harold was still at the Battle of Stamford Bridge; this meant that they had plenty of time to get prepared for battle. On the contrary, Harold’s bad luck meant that Harald Hardraada had come prepared for the battle, this resulted in the Norwegian army managing to kill some of the Saxon army’s best men. Moreover, it was William’s pure luck that his army managed to gain such well-trained and professional archers. Also on of their shots, coincidentally, hit Harold Godwineson in the eye, gaining victory. To conclude, William Duke of Normandy was extremely lucky to have won the Battle of Hastings however, as historians have proven, there are also a few reasons behind his victory. The main ones being the topics covered above: being better prepared; having a stronger army; using well-revised tactics and most importantly, Harold’s exceptional bad
Before the Battle of Hastings took place, Harold faced many fateful events. One example of such an event is when the Anglo-Saxon army had to march up north to fight Harald Hardraada at the Battle of Stamford Bridge, after waiting for William on the south coast all summer. William and the Norman army were extremely fortunate as the winds at the channel changed at the right time for their ship sails. Therefore, by the time they reached the south coast of England, Harold was still at the Battle of Stamford Bridge; this meant that they had plenty of time to get prepared for battle. On the contrary, Harold’s bad luck meant that Harald Hardraada had come prepared for the battle, this resulted in the Norwegian army managing to kill some of the Saxon army’s best men. Moreover, it was William’s pure luck that his army managed to gain such well-trained and professional archers. Also on of their shots, coincidentally, hit Harold Godwineson in the eye, gaining victory. To conclude, William Duke of Normandy was extremely lucky to have won the Battle of Hastings however, as historians have proven, there are also a few reasons behind his victory. The main ones being the topics covered above: being better prepared; having a stronger army; using well-revised tactics and most importantly, Harold’s exceptional bad