The Duke Becomes a King Starter - With King Harold Godwinson dead – who would the Witan turn to in order to be the new King? Challenge – Why should this person be king? Identify two strengths of their claim.

Post-Hastings William and his army waited at Hastings for the Saxon nobles to surrender him – but no one came. The remnants of Harold’s army regrouped in London under the leadership of the Witan. Edgar Aethling was proclaimed king and had support from the Archbishop of York and Caterbury as well as Earls Edwin and Morcar. The fragments of Saxon nobility waited in London and prepared to fight the Norman army. William made moves to secure the south coast – he marched on Dover but he and his army became very ill from dysentery. They were very vulnerable.

The Submission of the Earls Once securing the south coast, William marched to London. William decided to force the Saxons into submission with a policy of devastation. As his army marched, they destroyed homes and farms and slaughtered the peasant populations. Weakened by disease and lacking siege weaponry, they avoided London and decided to take Newbury, Wallingford and Oxford to show their strength. At Berkhamstead, he met with Edgar and the Saxon nobles. They surrendered to him, gave him homage and handed over hostages. In return for the crown, William promised to be a ‘gracious lord’ to them.

The Duke becomes a King William and his army marched on London with ease. On Christmas Day 1066, William I was crowned at Westminster Abbey. When the Saxon elite were asked whether they would accept William as their king – the screamed yes. Fearing a trap, the Normans outside set fire to the buildings around the abbey. King William I of England literally had a baptism of fire. His coronation marked the death of Anglo-Saxon England. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aZ0Ny0jTiGc

Learning Tasks All Create a table to show evidence for and against the rebels attacking William after Hastings. For each of the problems below, identify how William solved them when he became king. Grade 9 – 7 “After Hastings, the Anglo-Saxon earls were in a stronger position than William and his Norman army” – How far do you agree with this statement? Grade 6-4 William promised to be a ‘gracious lord’ to his earls. Using your knowledge of Anglo-Saxon society what might this look like? Grade 3-1 If Edgar had attacked after Hastings – would he have kept his throne? Explain what you think may have happened with evidence.

The Answers Evidence to suggest the earls should attack William Evidence to suggest the earls should not attack William William and his troops were deep into enemy territory with no secure place to retreat. William’s claim to the throne was irreverent if the Witan had already chosen a new king, backed by the Church. William’s army was tiny compared to what the Saxons could put together. The Normans were ill and easy to crush. London was strongly fortified – William could never have invaded it. William may have had Wessex, but Mercia and Northumbria were still under Anglo-Saxon control and represented half the country. William could easily cut off London’s supply route and starve it into surrender – they had to stop this from happening. William’s army had already captured Winchester which gave him control of the royal treasury. Without this – Edgar could not reward his followers while William could. William was a very strong military leader – although weakened by disease, he would not be easy to defeat. William had already scared many of the people of England into submission – he was gathering in strength.

The Answers Problem Solution How would he keep the Saxons on his side? He allowed many Anglo-Saxons to keep their lands. Earls like Edwin and Morcar kept their earldoms, Gospatric was made Earl of northern Northumbria. He promised Edwin that he could marry his daughter which would make him very powerful. He allowed archbishops like Stigand and Ealdred to keep their positions. How will I make the supporters in the Church know I appreciated their help? He sent rich gifts to the Pope and to his church supporters in Normandy. Probably gold and silver from the treasury. How will I make my followers (the ones who helped me) are rewarded? He set a geld tax to raise money to pay the men who helped him win at Hastings. He declared that all land in England belonged to him and he was free to grant this to his followers. Much of the land that he took from the Godwinsons was given to his followers. He created new earldoms (Marcher Earldoms) on the English/Welsh border with special powers – these were given to his followers. How will I make sure Wales does not threaten by new Kingdom? His new Marcher Earldoms were designed to protect the border. These three new earls were allowed to build castles without the king’s permission. This meant the entire border was heavily defended and troops could launch attacks into Wales quickly.