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Historical Title: Harold Godwinson also known as Civilization: British: Saxon Harold II of England Era: Saxon-Norman 1022 - 1066 Harold Godwinson was the last Saxon king of England, but he ruled only nine months, before being killed at the Battle of Hastings. Although Harold was king for a short time, he had inherited the estates and vast influence of his father, Earl Godwin, upon his death in 1053, and so had been the most powerful man in the realm for much of the reign of Edward the Confessor. The Goodwin family rose in power during the reign of Canute, and by the time Edward came to the throne, they possessed not only vast holdings themselves, but wielded great influence over the other Saxon nobles. Edward's relationship with the Godwin Family, and particularly Earl Godwin himself, was antagonistic. A marriage had been arranged between Edward and Godwin's daughter Edith, in an attempt to repair the breach, but it produced no children, so Godwin began to groom Harold for the Saxon throne, although he had no hereditary right to it. Meanwhile, Edward and his Norman advisors, favored the cause of William of Normandy, believing Edward's grand-nephew, the rightful heir, was not strong enough to resist influence of the Godwin family. Sure enough, on the death of Edward, the Saxon nobles bypassed the hereditary heir and elected Harold as king, but he was unable to hold his throne in opposition to the Duke of Normandy, the most renowned warrior in all of Europe. Before the death of his father, the great Earl of Wessex, Harold lived largely in his shadow. He received his first earldom, when his father arranged for the marriage of his sister Edith to king Edward. He followed his father into exile when he came into direct conflict with Edward, and then returned the following year with an army, intent on restoring the fortunes of the Godwin family. This effort was successful, largely because many of the Saxon nobles were loyal to the Godwins, rather than Edward, whose court was largely administered by Normans. Shortly after the restoration of the Godwins, the Earl died, and his influence over the Saxon nobles devolved to Harold, who proved himself a worthy successor in several campaigns. One of Harold's brothers was Tostig, and he was something of a troublemaker. Tostig was made earl of Northumbria, but abused his power to such a degree that Harold had no choice but to banish him from England. Just about this time, Edward the Confessor died and Harold was officially recognized as king of England. Meanwhile two armies were being raised against him—one in Normandy under William the Conqueror, and the other in Scandinavia under Tostig and Harald III of Norway. Both armies descended on England at about the same time. Tostig arrived first and conquered the city of York, but in a surprise attack, Harold defeated the army of Vikings at the Battle of Stamford Bridge. He had hardly returned to London before word of the Norman invasion at Senlac came. He recalled his army and bravely faced the new invaders at the Battle of Hastings, but died in battle. With no other obvious Saxon candidate ready to put forward, most of the country submitted to the rule of Normans, and William the Conqueror was crowned King of England. Post Comment Private Reply Ignore Thread Top • Page Up • Full Thread • Page Down • Bottom/Latest Begin Trace Mode for Comment # 2.
#2. To: A K A Stone (#0)
(Edited)
interesting article to post... so, how long has gobsheitwinson the LF poster been here? Has it been 9 months yet? "Boot to the head!"
#3. To: Capitalist Eric (#2)
I like that my posting causes you discomfort. More to come.
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