Starter Activity

Describe

the three claimants of

the English throne in one
articulate word:
Harold Godwinson
William, Duke of Normandy
Harald Hardrada

The Three Battles of

1066
Who, What, Where, When and Why?

Learning Objective
Why did the Battle of Hastings end in the result
it did in 1066?
Understand

the course, nature and location

of the three main battles of 1066.

Identify

the strengths and weaknesses of

the three armies of 1066.

Explain

the reasons for the decisive

outcome of the Battle of Hastings.

The Situation September 1066

In our last lesson we talked about

the three claimants Harold,
William and Harald Hardrada.

Harold Godwinson has been King of

England for about 9 months now.

With 3 men claiming the throne

what do you think will happen?

Think about what kind of men they

are.

Do you think they would just

accept Harold becoming king?

Preparation for War

The three men gather

their armies.

Harald and William need

to get their army to
England.

How do you think they will

do this?

Look at the two images

what do you think is
happening in these
pictures?

The Situation September 1066

After months of preparation,

William of Normandy is ready to
move his army across the Channel.
The Normans will attack the south
of England.

Harald Hardrada and his Vikings are

on their way to invade England. The
Vikings will attack somewhere in
the north.

Harold Godwinson is faced with a

very difficult situation he has to
face two enemies at the same
time.

NORWAY

ENGLAND

NORMANDY

The Armies of 1066

The English

The English army is made up mostly of farmers and peasants

known as the fyrd who arent real soldiers but there lots of
them and they will fight hard to protect their homes. There
are a few well-trained soldiers Huscarls but they only
fight on foot in a tactic called the shieldwall. The English
dont have any knights and only a few archers.
Bow

Spear
Shield

Battleaxe

Shield

Ordinary
Clothes

Chainmail

This man is a
huscarl.

This man is part of

the fyrd.

Quiver
for
Arrows

Ordinary
Clothes

This man is an
English archer.

The Armies of 1066

The Normans

The Norman army is one of the most powerful in Europe at this time.
Williams army is quite small but powerful. William has hundreds of
mounted knights who are very powerful. The Normans also have lots
of archers who can kill at a distance. Most Norman foot soldiers
infantry are provided with some armour and are better motivated
than the English. William is a great leader. The Normans are
determined to win as they are away from their own country if they
lose they could all die.
Spear

Lance
Helmet

Helmet

Bow
Chainmail

Helmet

Shield
Scale
Armour

Horse

Chainmail

Shield
Sword

This man is a

This man is a

This man is an

The Armies of 1066

The Vikings

The Viking army is very similar to the English army. Harald Hadrada is a great
warrior. Like the English army only the richest soldiers will have any armour
at all. The Vikings do not have any knights and have only a small number of
archers. Most of the Vikings have fought in battles before. Also Tostig
brought some English soldiers to fight for Harald. The Vikings are also
fighting away from their home so they cant get new soldiers easily but will
be determined to win.
Spear

Helmet
Shield

Helmet

Javelins
Ordinary
Clothes

Helmet

Shield

Axe

Shield
Chainmail

Chainmail

Battleaxe

This man is a
Viking
nobleman.

This man is a
Viking
housecarl
similar to the
English one.

This man is a Viking infantry

soldier most Viking soldiers
would have looked like this.

Strengths and Weaknesses of the Three

Armies
Large army

Fill in the table for each of the three

claimants. Look over your worksheets
on the three armies for the
information.

Explain the strengths and weaknesses

of the three armies. The first strength
and weakness for Harold Godwinsons
army is done for you.

What do you notice about the three

armies? Are there any common
themes? Who appears the strongest
army? Who do you think will win the
war for England?

Defending home
Huscarls are
trained

No knights

Has knights

Fighting two
Trained soldiers
enemies at once
Determined to
Few archers
win
Soldiers dont use
armour much

Soldiers have
armour
Has archers
William as
leader

Not as many men

as the English

Harald
Hadrada

Fighting away
from home

Fighting away
from home

Tostigs
soldiers

Few archers

Experienced
soldiers

No knights

What have we learnt today?

Draw these boxes into your books and complete them.

One question you

have about what we
learnt today.

In the next lesson

Two links you have

identified to a
previous lesson.
Three new things
you have learnt
today.

The Battle of Stamford

Bridge
September 25th 1066

Starter

The War of the Three Kings Begins

Harald Hardrada makes the first move to

claim the throne of England for himself.

Why do you think Harald attacked first?

He is joined by Tostig, brother of the

new King of England, Harold Godwinson.

He sails with 300 longships from Norway

in early September.

He lands in England, near York. This area

was once under Viking rule known as
the Danelaw.

Harald defeats the English army at a

place called Fulford Gate on the 20th
September.
NORMANDY

Viking Invasion!

Harold Godwinson hears of the Viking

invasion a few days later.

Harold has his army on the south coast

ready to fight Williams army when
they land from Normandy.

What kind of position does this put

Harold in?

How would you feel if you lived in

England at this time?

Harold took his army from the coast

and marched north to fight the Vikings
marching to York in 5 days. This is
very fast.

The Battle of Stamford Bridge

September 25th 1066

Hardradas army is not expecting

the English to attack. Most are too
busy lying about drinking, feasting
and relaxing after winning at
Fulford. Some are even swimming in
the river!

Harolds army surprises the Vikings!

Some Vikings dont even have their

armour!

Would this have an impact on who

will win the battle?

Video

The Battle of Stamford Bridge

September 25th 1066

The fight is very brutal. Many are killed on

both sides.

One Viking holds the bridge by himself and

kills 40 English soldiers by himself!

By midday both Tostig and Harald Hardrada

are dead. Harald gets an arrow in the throat.

Tostig is apparently chopped up into tiny

pieces by the English who see him as a
traitor.

Harold gains a victory but his army is much

smaller due to losing so many men.

Is Harold losing men significant?

Is Harold in a better or worse position now

after this battle?

Aftermath of Stamford
Jester Task

Write a diary entry for Harold Godwinson

after the Battle of Stamford Bridge.

Think about what has happened and who has

been killed. How did he

How would you feel if you were in Harolds

position? Happy? Worried?

Knight Task

Exactly as the Jester Task but do the following

as well:

Think about the position Harold is in do you

think he is stronger or weaker and why?

What impact do you think the Battle of

Stamford will have on the rest of the war and
why?

Dear diary, today I won a

great victory over the
Vikings. I was able to kill
H_____ and T_____.

I was able to win the

battle because

Even though I won the

battle, I am _________
because

For a challenge:
use your own
words!

William Invades England!

3 days later William of Normandy

lands in England on the 28th
September at Pevensey.

William isnt opposed in his landing

because all the English army is up
with Harold in York!

BUT

This is something well cover next

lesson!

What have we learnt today?

Draw these boxes into your books and complete them.

One question you

have about what we
learnt today.

In the next lesson

Two links you have

identified to a
previous lesson.
Three new things
you have learnt
today.

New Terms - Glossary

This week we have some new words for your glossary make sure you take them all down with
their definitions:

Knight

Infantry Soldiers who fight on foot with swords and spears

LongshipA Viking warship that can carry soldiers.

FyrdAnglo-Saxon peasants who fight as soldiers part-time

Huscarl Anglo-Saxon elite warriors who fight for the king using a large

Archer

A soldier who fights using a bow and arrow

Tactic

A plan used in a battle

Shield Wall A tactic where soldiers line up and lock their shields together to form a tough
defensive wall.

Danelaw An area of England that once belonged to the Vikings. It maintained its
and culture.

A Norman soldier who fights on horseback, also called

cavalry

battleaxe.

own laws

The Battle of Hastings

October 14th 1066

Learning Objective
Why did the Battle of Hastings end in the result
it did in 1066?
Understand

the course, nature and location

of the three main battles of 1066.

Identify

the strengths and weaknesses of

the three armies of 1066.

Explain

the reasons for the decisive

outcome of the Battle of Hastings.

Starter Activity
Look

at the picture what do you think it

represents?

What
Who

is happening?

are these men?

Where

do you think they are going?

William has invaded England!

Think back to last lesson while

Harold was in the north fighting
the Vikings.

Why could William not move over

to England right away?

William is able to get moving on

the 27th September and lands the
next day.

He lands at a place called Pevensey

and starts building a castle to act
as a base for his invasion.

The Normans Strike

William sends out his knights to

explore the English countryside.

His knights begin attacking and

burning English villages.

Many of the villages are in lands that

belong to Harold Godwinson.

Why do you think William would

attack these villages?

How do you think Harold would react

to the Normans doing this to his lands?

William then takes the town of

Hastings this is a big town with a
port. This will help him bring supplies
and men over from Normandy if he
needs to.

Harold Decides to Strike Back

Harold is still up in York when the

Normans land and start attacking the
villages around Hastings.

News reaches Harold a few days after

Williams landing.

He decides to march south to confront

William. He takes 5 days (this is very
fast) to get to London.

BUT

Remember what happened last lesson

at Stamford Bridge is Harold in a
strong or weak position? How do you
think his soldiers are feeling?

Harolds
route
south

The Eve of Battle

14th October 1066

Harolds army arrives just outside of

Hastings.

His army is weakened as most of the

fyrd have went back to their farms
to harvest their crops.

Before the battle his army takes up

position on Senlac Hill a relatively
steep hill.

The English form a shieldwall as well

(check the glossary for this word).

Do you think Harolds battle plan

will work and give him victory?

The Battle
14th October 1066

The Normans have to attack uphill.

The shieldwall proves very hard to

beat. Harold thinks he can win.

After a few fights the English get

overconfident and try and chase
after the Normans when they run
away.

In the confusion a rumour goes round

that William is dead. What impact
would this have on the Normans?

William shows his face to his troops

to prove he is still alive.

Disaster for the English!

14th October 1066

Storyboard of the Battle

Create a storyboard of the events

of the battle.

Use drawings and words to

describe what is happening.

You have to provide six key events

in the course of the battle.

What have we learnt today?

Draw these boxes into your books and complete them.

One question you

have about what we
learnt today.

In the next lesson

Two links you have

identified to a
previous lesson.
Three new things
you have learnt
today.