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Oct 10, 2024 · Harold II (born c. 1020—died October 14, 1066, near Hastings, Sussex, England) was the last Anglo-Saxon king of England. A strong ruler and a skilled general, he held the crown for nine months in 1066 before he was killed at the Battle of Hastings by Norman invaders under William the Conqueror.
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Harold Godwinson’s succession as King of England. When Edward the Confessor died in 1066, there were four men who could claim to be the next King of England. Three of these claimants were ...
Sep 21, 2023 · Harold Godwinson, the Earl of Wessex, had been elected by the witan of England to be the new monarch, however his position was far from secure and he even faced challenges from his own family. Born in the early 1020s, Harold was the eldest son of Godwin, Earl of Wessex and Gytha, the daughter of a Danish chieftain.
- Earl of Wessex
- Harold in Normandy
- Battle of Stamford Bridge
- Battle of Hastings
- Death of King Harold
- Harold's Tomb
Harold was born around 1023 CE into the powerful Godwinson family, with his father, Godwin, being the Earl of Wessex and one of the richest men in England. Harold's mother was Gytha of the Thorgils family, and she, through her brother Ulaf, was connected to the royal house of Denmark. In 1045 CE Harold was made the earl of East Anglia, then a part ...
Harold Godwinson's star rose even higher when he was crowned king on 6 January 1066 CE following the death the day before of his brother-in-lawKing Edward the Confessor, who died childless. Harold had acquired the crown in unclear circumstances, although Edward, on his deathbed, had personally nominated Harold as his successor and, in truth, there ...
The most immediate threat to Harold's kingdom was not from William, though, but from the north and another rival claimant to the throne, Harald Hardrada, king of Norway (aka Harold III, r. 1046-1066 CE). Hardrada believed he was the rightful ruler of Denmark, a kingdom which had long-claimed sovereignty over large parts of England and which had bee...
Throughout the summer of 1066 CE William had been busy amassing a fleet on the northern coast of France near Saint-Valéry-sur-Somme. A contemporary Norman source puts the total number of ships at 776, but this is likely an exaggeration. The Norman warriors were motivated by the promise of booty and lands in the conquered territory but they were als...
The fighting had now been raging for several hours, an unusually long time for a medieval battle. However, the superiority of the Norman cavalry against the Anglo-Saxon infantry was gradually winning the day, and now that their numbers were reduced, there were not enough Anglo-Saxons to defend the ridge. It was at this point that the depleted numbe...
The fate of Harold's body is unknown. In some versions of the story, his mother Gytha offered her dead son's weight in gold to have the body for decent burial but she was refused by William. In another version, Edith Swan-Neck was called in to help identify the corpse, such was its mutilation. One 12th-century CE tradition states that his remains w...
- Mark Cartwright
- Adam Dalrymple
- Harold was the son of a great Anglo-Saxon lord. Harold’s father Godwin had risen from obscurity to become the Earl of Wessex in the reign of Cnut the Great.
- He was one of 11 children. Harold had 6 brothers and 4 sisters. His sister Edith married King Edward the Confessor. Four of his brothers went on the become earls, which meant that, by 1060, all the earldoms of England but Mercia were ruled by sons of Godwin.
- Harold became an earl himself. Harold became Earl of East Anglia in 1045, succeeded his father as Earl of Wessex in 1053, and then added Hereford to his territories in 1058.
- He defeated an expansionist King of Wales. He undertook a successful campaign against Gruffydd ap Llewelyn in 1063. Gruffydd was the only Welsh king ever to rule over the entire territory of Wales, and as such posed a threat to Harold’s lands in the west of England.
Harold Godwinson (also spelt Godwineson) reigned briefly as King Harold II of England from January to October 1066 CE, the momentous year which witnessed the Norman conquest and end of 500 years of Anglo-Saxon rule.
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A biography of Harold Godwinson who became King of England in January 1066 and was killed at the Battle of Hastings in 1066.
