Book Excerpt & Promotion! The Norman Conquest: William the Conqueror’s Subjugation of England by Teresa Cole
The Norman Conquest: William the Conqueror’s Subjugation of England look at the origins, course and outcomes of William the Conqueror’s conquest of England 1051-1087.
The Battle of Hastings: A Geographic Perspective
The Battle of Hastings is one of the most widely studied battles in medieval history. Yet despite the importance that research shows geography to play in the outcome of such conflicts, few studies have examined in detail the landscape of the battle or the role the landscape played in its eventual outcome.
Harold Godwinson in Wales: Military Legitimacy in Late Anglo-Saxon England
On January 6, 1066, Harold Godwinson ascended the throne of England. He succeeded King Edward the Confessor who had died after reigning for twenty-three years over the English people.
The Peaceful Part of the Norman Conquest of England
What happened between the Battle of Hastings and William’s coronation on Christmas Day, 1066?
Hastings: An Unusual Battle
Part of the reason academic warriors have covered the ground so often is that the battle is by no means easy to understand. It was unusual in a number of ways; so unusual, that the battle demands special care in interpretation.
The Bayeux Tapestry: Author, Art and Allegory
The Bayeux Tapestry is a complex visual history of the Norman Conquest of England. Its creation and the story it weaves were defined by its dichotomous authorship, its physical form as textile art and its analogous narrative imagery.
William the Conqueror and the Harrying of the North
This lecture examines the events leading up to the Harrying of the North and the impact of this event on the North of England.
Medieval Books for Christmas
It’s that time of year again – the mad scramble for the perfect Christmas gift for the historian, nerd, avid reader on your list. Here are a few suggestions for you – new releases for December and January!
The Norman Conquest of England: The Alternative Histories
We take a look at two alternative histories of the Norman Conquest – Waces’s Roman de Rou and the Vita Haroldi
Quiz: The Norman Conquest
How well do you know the Norman Conquest of England? Here are ten questions about the Battle of Hastings and other events of 1066.
The Bayeux Tapestry: The Case of the Phantom Fleet
There is a large bibliography of secondary works concerning the Bayeux Tapestry, but when one reads much of the published material it is clear that a high proportion of this comment, as one would expect, copies and builds on previous authors.
Aelfgyva: The Mysterious Lady of the Bayeux Tapestry
One of the most intriguing of these puzzles centers upon a scene in that initial segment of the Tapestry treating with Earl Harold Godwinson’s famed and controversial visit to the court of the Norman duke
Ten Things You May Not Have Noticed in the Bayeux Tapestry
The designer of the Bayeux Tapestry also included little details that the casual viewer might miss. Here are ten images to take a second look at.
Book Review: The Rhyme of King Harold
The Rhyme of King Harold is an entertaining way to learn more about the flip side of the Bayeux Tapestry and getting in touch with your Saxon roots.
The 1066 Norwegian Invasion of England in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle
The goal of this paper is to understand how the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle portrays the Norwegian Invasion of 1066 and how they characterize the Norwegians, particularly the figure of Haraldr Harðráði.
Unpleasant Affairs That Please Us: Admonition and Rebuke in the Letter Collections of the Archbishops of Canterbury, 11th and 12th Centuries
From the Norman Conquest in 1066 up to the famous “murder in the cathedral”2 in 1170, six archbishops of Canterbury ruled over the English church…
Harold Godwinson’s Posthumous Reputation, 1066-c.1160
This text will show in which ways Harold’s posthumous reputation was constructed to cement the Norman claim to legitimacy and how this legacy lasted well beyond William the Conqueror’s death.
Writing conquest: traditions of Anglo-Saxon invasion and resistance in the twelfth century
Writing Conquest examines the ways in which Latin, Old English, and Middle English twelfth-century historical and pseudo-historical texts remembered and reconstructed three formative moments of Anglo-Saxon invasion and resistance…
Great Medieval Fiction 2013!
For those of you who enjoy some fantasy or a historical novel – this list is for you!
1066: The Limits of our Knowledge
As the most pivotal and traumatic event in English history, the Norman Conquest continues to generate controversy and debate, especially among those who know little about it or enjoy passing judgement on the past.
The Norman Conquest: The Battle of Hastings and the Fall of Anglo-Saxon England
The Norman Conquest: The Battle of Hastings and the Fall of Anglo-Saxon England By Marc Morris Pegasus Books, 2013 ISBN: 978-1-60598-451-3 Publisher’s Description: An…
A stitch in time
Who commissioned the tapestry? Who made it, where and when? Where was the Tapestry first displayed? Was the message of the Tapestry outright Norman propaganda or a more evenhanded attempt at Anglo-Norman reconciliation?
King Harald Sigurdsson of Norway in History and Legend
Yet behind the legend we find that Harald is a much more complex figure than Adam of Bremen would have you believe. The most extraordinary episodes in Harald’s life were in fact historical, and can be discerned from the tales that have come down to us if only we are willing to tease out the facts from the corpus of myth surrounding him.
Theft, Homicide and Crime in Late Anglo-Saxon Law
In order to understand these issues properly we must first consider our own ideas about ‘crime’, a deeply problematic term for the period before the late twelfth century.