0:00:02 > 0:00:04Late afternoon,
0:00:04 > 0:00:06Wednesday the 27th of September.
0:00:08 > 0:00:12The year is 1066,
0:00:12 > 0:00:16and a vast Norman battle force is bent on the destruction
0:00:16 > 0:00:18of Anglo-Saxon England.
0:00:24 > 0:00:28But 1066 is about far more than just the Battle of Hastings.
0:00:30 > 0:00:35This is the story of three kings, three battles and three invasions,
0:00:35 > 0:00:38of 12 months that transformed Britain.
0:00:43 > 0:00:45As well as Harold of England...
0:00:46 > 0:00:48..and Duke William of Normandy...
0:00:48 > 0:00:50Do you recognise me?
0:00:50 > 0:00:52..there was also a Viking,
0:00:52 > 0:00:55King Harald Hardrada,
0:00:55 > 0:00:57all facing off in a series of bloodbaths...
0:01:00 > 0:01:03..that brought an end to the long terror of the Vikings...
0:01:06 > 0:01:10..before, finally, the epic Battle of Hastings itself.
0:01:15 > 0:01:19What 1066 led to is stamped on our landscape.
0:01:20 > 0:01:23The Normans forged a new Britain,
0:01:23 > 0:01:27with language, laws and customs we still live with today.
0:01:32 > 0:01:36But just how the Normans seized such power is much less clear.
0:01:40 > 0:01:44Now I am travelling Europe in search of answers,
0:01:44 > 0:01:48experimenting with weapons and tactics...
0:01:48 > 0:01:50I mean, that is completely terrifying -
0:01:50 > 0:01:52you could chop someone in half.
0:01:52 > 0:01:56..and discovering revelations hidden within a unique document
0:01:56 > 0:01:59written just months after those great battles...
0:01:59 > 0:02:00What it essentially says,
0:02:00 > 0:02:03is that William sent in a dedicated death squad.
0:02:05 > 0:02:09..to reveal a bitter tale of family betrayals...
0:02:09 > 0:02:11My brother, he is a lying dog.
0:02:11 > 0:02:13..and tragic twists of fate...
0:02:13 > 0:02:17Soon we will be filling England's graveyards.
0:02:17 > 0:02:20..which would change the shape of Britain...
0:02:20 > 0:02:21March to battle.
0:02:21 > 0:02:22..and Europe...
0:02:24 > 0:02:25..forever.
0:02:26 > 0:02:29Shall we do battle?!
0:02:31 > 0:02:35This is the real story of 1066.
0:02:55 > 0:02:59Early morning, and Harold of England is in York,
0:02:59 > 0:03:03200 miles north of London.
0:03:03 > 0:03:07Just three days have passed since the Anglo-Saxon king fought for
0:03:07 > 0:03:10his kingdom and his life.
0:03:14 > 0:03:17The battle for York at Stamford Bridge
0:03:17 > 0:03:19was a watershed in British history.
0:03:22 > 0:03:24Harold had killed his rival brother,
0:03:24 > 0:03:29the exiled Earl Tostig, ending a bitter family feud.
0:03:31 > 0:03:34And the Viking, King Harald Hardrada,
0:03:34 > 0:03:38had died a warrior's death in his bid for immortal glory.
0:03:41 > 0:03:44The English victory marked the beginning of the end
0:03:44 > 0:03:47of the great Viking age of conquest.
0:03:52 > 0:03:56Harold has destroyed two of his great foes in a single battle.
0:03:58 > 0:04:03But he has no idea that, 300 miles away,
0:04:03 > 0:04:07William and 700 Norman ships are now bearing down
0:04:07 > 0:04:09on England's southern shores.
0:04:12 > 0:04:14After months of planning and preparation,
0:04:14 > 0:04:18William was finally making his bid for the English crown.
0:04:18 > 0:04:22He believed it was his right, he believed that God was on his side,
0:04:22 > 0:04:24and he was certain that it was just a matter of time before
0:04:24 > 0:04:30Anglo-Saxon King Harold was toppled from his throne, dead or alive.
0:04:30 > 0:04:33William, by 1066, is at the height of his power.
0:04:33 > 0:04:36He is getting on for 40 years old,
0:04:36 > 0:04:39he has been very successful in defending and expanding
0:04:39 > 0:04:41his Duchy of Normandy,
0:04:41 > 0:04:45and now he has his eyes set on the prize that he was promised
0:04:45 > 0:04:4715 years earlier - the throne of England.
0:04:51 > 0:04:53My Lord.
0:05:00 > 0:05:04William has been trapped in port for two long months.
0:05:07 > 0:05:12Now finally at sea, it seems his troubles are far from over.
0:05:12 > 0:05:13Where are they?
0:05:17 > 0:05:20William's ship is adrift,
0:05:20 > 0:05:21alone in the Channel.
0:05:23 > 0:05:26William sent a man up the mast to try and spot the rest of the fleet,
0:05:26 > 0:05:29but it was nowhere to be seen.
0:05:29 > 0:05:31Trying to appear unconcerned, he sat down,
0:05:31 > 0:05:34ate a hearty breakfast accompanied by spiced wine.
0:05:34 > 0:05:37But he must've been feeling sick inside.
0:05:37 > 0:05:40He'd spent most of 1066 and vast amounts of money
0:05:40 > 0:05:42gathering this invasion fleet
0:05:42 > 0:05:46and now it seemed to have just disappeared.
0:05:49 > 0:05:52Having faced delays and vicious storms,
0:05:52 > 0:05:56William had taken a massive risk,
0:05:56 > 0:06:00sailing into changeable autumn winds and bad visibility.
0:06:10 > 0:06:13But as his fleet appeared in the distance,
0:06:13 > 0:06:18he knew that, at last, the great invasion was on.
0:06:18 > 0:06:20HE SPEAKS OWN LANGUAGE
0:06:23 > 0:06:28With King Harold in the north and his navy stood down,
0:06:28 > 0:06:31William sails on unopposed.
0:06:32 > 0:06:37Already he is closer to London than the English King himself,
0:06:37 > 0:06:40without a single arrow being fired.
0:06:47 > 0:06:50I've invited two historians to get inside the heads
0:06:50 > 0:06:54of our remaining rival warriors.
0:06:54 > 0:06:59I've been wronged before God and now I will have my vengeance.
0:06:59 > 0:07:00Harold of England...
0:07:03 > 0:07:05..and William of Normandy.
0:07:07 > 0:07:11They'll explore the thinking behind their battle plans...
0:07:11 > 0:07:15Then I'm going to send in my fleets into the channel to block you,
0:07:15 > 0:07:18in case you try and get back to Normandy.
0:07:18 > 0:07:22..as the two warlords gear up for the final battle.
0:07:24 > 0:07:29So here I come crossing the Channel, heading for Pevensey in Sussex,
0:07:29 > 0:07:33and what adds to my sense of achievement is that Pevensey
0:07:33 > 0:07:36is in the earldom of Wessex, which is your heartland,
0:07:36 > 0:07:40so that is a delicious seasoning for my revenge.
0:07:40 > 0:07:44I feel excited and now I can see with my own eyes
0:07:44 > 0:07:46what my spies have been telling me -
0:07:46 > 0:07:48that the south coast is indeed undefended.
0:07:48 > 0:07:54And what that means is that I can land and build a base unopposed.
0:07:54 > 0:07:58Things could hardly be going better for me.
0:07:58 > 0:08:03Well, I was waiting on the Isle of Wight for you to attack for weeks.
0:08:03 > 0:08:07And you did nothing. So I assumed you had given up, at least for now.
0:08:07 > 0:08:08No.
0:08:08 > 0:08:12And also, summer is over - we all know it's incredibly difficult
0:08:12 > 0:08:14to cross the Channel in the autumn,
0:08:14 > 0:08:17so I reasonably assumed you would wait until the spring
0:08:17 > 0:08:19- before you tried anything else. - You underestimated me.
0:08:19 > 0:08:22OK, well, things haven't panned out as I expected either.
0:08:22 > 0:08:28I am up in the north, I have been fighting off the Vikings and Tostig.
0:08:28 > 0:08:32All I want to do is get to London and get some rest.
0:08:42 > 0:08:449am.
0:08:56 > 0:08:58By the grace of God, I've taken hold of my kingdom.
0:08:59 > 0:09:01England is in my hands.
0:09:04 > 0:09:06This was a classic moment of William the politician, where you
0:09:06 > 0:09:08take something that could be a terrible omen -
0:09:08 > 0:09:11you know, he falls headfirst, the failure of his mission.
0:09:11 > 0:09:14And instead it's turned into a sign of God's total support
0:09:14 > 0:09:17for his rule, his success, his kingdom.
0:09:25 > 0:09:29William began to dig in here at Pevensey, and quickly captured
0:09:29 > 0:09:32the neighbouring town of Hastings.
0:09:34 > 0:09:39Over the course of the next 24 hours, an estimated 14,000 men,
0:09:39 > 0:09:443,000 horses and tonnes of supplies came ashore
0:09:44 > 0:09:48to establish a powerful base which would eventually become
0:09:48 > 0:09:49this Norman castle.
0:09:53 > 0:09:55Conquest couldn't have been easier.
0:09:58 > 0:10:01Where were the English soldiers to fight them off?
0:10:01 > 0:10:03Where were the tough Anglo-Saxon warriors
0:10:03 > 0:10:05to drive them back into the sea?
0:10:05 > 0:10:09Where was King Harold to repel Duke William?
0:10:11 > 0:10:13They were all hundreds of miles away.
0:10:16 > 0:10:20Harold doesn't even know that William has left France,
0:10:20 > 0:10:21let alone landed.
0:10:23 > 0:10:27But William also has to make guesses, because he doesn't know
0:10:27 > 0:10:31the fate of Harald Hardrada and his great Viking army.
0:10:34 > 0:10:38So what I do know is that you've headed north to confront Hardrada
0:10:38 > 0:10:40and you have taken your army with you.
0:10:40 > 0:10:45But who has won the great battle that I have to assume has been fought?
0:10:45 > 0:10:47And most saliently, from my point of view,
0:10:47 > 0:10:49who am I going to be facing in battle?
0:10:49 > 0:10:52Is it going to be Harald of Norway...
0:10:54 > 0:10:56..or is it going to be Harold of England?
0:11:03 > 0:11:07No-one knows exactly when the terrible news of William's arrival
0:11:07 > 0:11:11reached Harold, 300 miles away to the north.
0:11:11 > 0:11:14But we can work out what might have happened.
0:11:16 > 0:11:18Bad news travels fast.
0:11:18 > 0:11:22We know that messengers were able to ride around the clock,
0:11:22 > 0:11:24constantly using fresh horses.
0:11:24 > 0:11:28Now, a horse can gallop up to 30mph for short periods,
0:11:28 > 0:11:32so by constantly using fresh horses, it is possible that the word
0:11:32 > 0:11:36could have travelled from Pevensey down here to York
0:11:36 > 0:11:37in as little as a day.
0:11:38 > 0:11:41The news must have been a body blow to Harold.
0:11:41 > 0:11:45He had just fought one great battle to secure his kingdom,
0:11:45 > 0:11:48and now he realised that he faced another,
0:11:48 > 0:11:50possibly even bloodier fight.
0:11:58 > 0:12:03Six days after William's landing, and a still battle-weary Harold
0:12:03 > 0:12:04rides south for London.
0:12:07 > 0:12:10With William securing his base and taking land,
0:12:10 > 0:12:13the English King is in deep trouble.
0:12:17 > 0:12:21All his life, Harold had been in the right place at the right time.
0:12:23 > 0:12:26Born into the most powerful family in England, he had been at
0:12:26 > 0:12:28the previous King's deathbed.
0:12:30 > 0:12:33He had managed to win the support of the ruling nobles.
0:12:35 > 0:12:38And he'd moved fast to defeat his brother
0:12:38 > 0:12:39and the great Viking invasion.
0:12:43 > 0:12:47But now Harold was still more than 200 miles away from mounting
0:12:47 > 0:12:49a defence of his kingdom.
0:12:49 > 0:12:54And after York, his own force was badly depleted.
0:12:57 > 0:13:01Harold would have to do as best he could without many of his best men.
0:13:01 > 0:13:05As he marched south to London, he ordered that a new army be raised.
0:13:05 > 0:13:08He was determined to repeat his success at Stamford Bridge,
0:13:08 > 0:13:11to repel the invader and secure his crown.
0:13:14 > 0:13:17The obvious thing to do is to keep going south and to take you on
0:13:17 > 0:13:20in battle, but that is not my only option,
0:13:20 > 0:13:23because I can sit and wait it out in London.
0:13:23 > 0:13:25Your provisions are going to run out.
0:13:25 > 0:13:26Winter is on its way,
0:13:26 > 0:13:30it is only a matter of time before your supplies give up.
0:13:30 > 0:13:34Well, by now I have heard about your victory at Stamford Bridge
0:13:34 > 0:13:36and I think it is reasonable to assume
0:13:36 > 0:13:39that you have heard about my landing.
0:13:39 > 0:13:44I want to goad you into attacking me while you are still exhausted,
0:13:44 > 0:13:49and so to that end I am literally branding my authority
0:13:49 > 0:13:53on the countryside of Sussex.
0:13:53 > 0:13:58I am sending my troops out to put villages to the torch,
0:13:58 > 0:14:03to kill the locals, and I'm doing that because I am banking on the
0:14:03 > 0:14:07fact that that will infuriate you, and thinking that,
0:14:07 > 0:14:09I'm going to be honest here,
0:14:09 > 0:14:10makes me smile.
0:14:24 > 0:14:27- What do we do now?- Fight.
0:14:27 > 0:14:30He's in our country, destroying our lands and our people -
0:14:30 > 0:14:31we have no choice.
0:14:32 > 0:14:35When Harold returns to London, there is a big debate about whether they
0:14:35 > 0:14:38should go immediately and confront the Normans or wait until the army
0:14:38 > 0:14:40has been properly assembled.
0:14:40 > 0:14:44His brother and his mother are both keen to wait and pause,
0:14:44 > 0:14:46but Harold is incredibly impatient.
0:14:46 > 0:14:49You might be the King, but I am your mother.
0:14:49 > 0:14:51This isn't about me.
0:14:52 > 0:14:54This is about England.
0:14:54 > 0:14:57- Look, let me go and fight William, you stay here.- Never.
0:14:57 > 0:14:59But if you fight, you may die.
0:14:59 > 0:15:01I'll do my duty.
0:15:01 > 0:15:02Listen to me.
0:15:02 > 0:15:04If we fight William without you,
0:15:04 > 0:15:07you can raise reinforcements to back us up, and if we fail,
0:15:07 > 0:15:09you can defeat William while he is weak.
0:15:13 > 0:15:17OK, with clear eyes I can see that Gyrth's plan is sensible.
0:15:17 > 0:15:20He comes in and fights you first,
0:15:20 > 0:15:24then I come in with a second wave and finish you off.
0:15:24 > 0:15:25But...in the heat of the moment,
0:15:25 > 0:15:28I'm not going to listen to plans like that.
0:15:28 > 0:15:30And that's exactly what I want to happen.
0:15:30 > 0:15:33My tactics are working - by ravaging your heartlands,
0:15:33 > 0:15:36I've goaded you and I'm luring you into battle,
0:15:36 > 0:15:38with the result that you are behaving intemperately,
0:15:38 > 0:15:40you can't see straight for your anger.
0:15:40 > 0:15:44Look, it's my job to defend my kingdom.
0:15:47 > 0:15:49Just three days later,
0:15:49 > 0:15:53Harold leads his army south from London,
0:15:53 > 0:15:56towards Hastings and William.
0:15:57 > 0:16:02Look, I am going to come down there and I am going to defeat you.
0:16:02 > 0:16:05I'm going to keep marching south with my men to Hastings,
0:16:05 > 0:16:09then I'm going to send my fleets into the Channel to block you,
0:16:09 > 0:16:12in case you try and get back to Normandy.
0:16:12 > 0:16:16But my primary game plan is to do what worked so well for me
0:16:16 > 0:16:19at Stamford Bridge, which is to get to you fast
0:16:19 > 0:16:20and take you by surprise.
0:16:20 > 0:16:23Well, that may be your plan but you are forgetting one thing -
0:16:23 > 0:16:26I am sending my cavalry out on reconnaissance.
0:16:26 > 0:16:28They're tracking your every move.
0:16:28 > 0:16:30If you think you're going to take me by surprise,
0:16:30 > 0:16:32you've got another think coming.
0:16:35 > 0:16:36As Harold marched south,
0:16:36 > 0:16:39he was joined by fresh troops along the way.
0:16:39 > 0:16:42But he was also met by an envoy sent by William,
0:16:42 > 0:16:44in an effort to persuade him to back down.
0:16:54 > 0:16:55Well?
0:16:57 > 0:17:00My Lord would like to remind you that he is the rightful King of England.
0:17:02 > 0:17:05Both King Edward and yourself promised it to him.
0:17:05 > 0:17:07You know how I feel about that.
0:17:07 > 0:17:09The Duke has a solution -
0:17:09 > 0:17:12to put his case against you before judgment,
0:17:12 > 0:17:16by the law of the English, or of the Normans, as you prefer.
0:17:16 > 0:17:19Edward on his deathbed named me his successor.
0:17:19 > 0:17:22If they decree by right that you ought to possess this kingdom,
0:17:22 > 0:17:24let you possess it in peace.
0:17:24 > 0:17:27Fine. Then let the Duke take his army back to Normandy.
0:17:27 > 0:17:31But if they agree it should be surrendered to the Duke William,
0:17:31 > 0:17:32you must abandon it to him.
0:17:32 > 0:17:35I will not be judged for my kingdom.
0:17:36 > 0:17:37My Lord,
0:17:37 > 0:17:39if you reject this,
0:17:39 > 0:17:43the Duke does not consider it right that either his men or yours
0:17:43 > 0:17:47should fall in battle, for they have no guilt in your dispute.
0:17:47 > 0:17:48So what, then?
0:17:49 > 0:17:54The Duke offers to fight you, head-to-head in single combat,
0:17:54 > 0:17:57to prove the kingdom should be his rather than yours, by right.
0:18:01 > 0:18:03Then he takes me for a fool.
0:18:04 > 0:18:08May God this day judge the right between me and William.
0:18:08 > 0:18:09We march today.
0:18:10 > 0:18:11We march to battle!
0:18:46 > 0:18:48On the night of Friday the 13th of October,
0:18:48 > 0:18:52the two sides camped around eight miles apart.
0:18:52 > 0:18:56Apparently William feared a night attack, so he made his men stand-to
0:18:56 > 0:18:58through the night, ready for battle.
0:18:58 > 0:19:03A chronicler tells us that while the Normans spent the night in prayer,
0:19:03 > 0:19:06the English partied and drank.
0:19:10 > 0:19:13I suspect this is Norman propaganda.
0:19:14 > 0:19:17Some of those Englishmen would have fought at Stamford Bridge,
0:19:17 > 0:19:20and have marched down south with Harold.
0:19:21 > 0:19:26The others are there defending their own lands, defending their kingdom.
0:19:26 > 0:19:28I doubt they were drunkenly carousing,
0:19:28 > 0:19:32cos nobody really wants to fight with a hangover.
0:19:32 > 0:19:35Harold must face one more day of battle.
0:19:37 > 0:19:41He knows that victory would make him untouchable -
0:19:41 > 0:19:44a great warrior king to rival any who was gone before.
0:19:46 > 0:19:51Defeat would mean the fall of Anglo-Saxon England
0:19:51 > 0:19:54and almost certain death.
0:19:54 > 0:19:56LORD'S PRAYER IN OLD FRENCH
0:20:03 > 0:20:07William, meanwhile, is rested and prepared.
0:20:11 > 0:20:14Victory would make him one of Europe's richest
0:20:14 > 0:20:16and most powerful leaders.
0:20:17 > 0:20:22Transformed before God from a duke into a king.
0:20:27 > 0:20:32Both know that the future of England is about to be written -
0:20:32 > 0:20:33in blood.
0:20:52 > 0:20:55May this day,
0:20:55 > 0:20:58the most sacred powers invested in me by our father...
0:20:59 > 0:21:03..lead us to victory over wickedness,
0:21:03 > 0:21:05and bring everlasting peace to this land.
0:21:18 > 0:21:21I've been dreaming of this for months.
0:21:21 > 0:21:25I have been wronged before God and now I will have my vengeance.
0:21:25 > 0:21:28Today is my day.
0:21:28 > 0:21:29God wills it.
0:21:29 > 0:21:31Not if I can help it.
0:21:31 > 0:21:35I am already marching south towards you,
0:21:35 > 0:21:37and my soldiers are on their mettle.
0:21:37 > 0:21:42We can meet you anywhere and I am planning on being ready at the first
0:21:42 > 0:21:43chance to attack.
0:21:43 > 0:21:47Well, don't think that I'm sitting around praying all morning.
0:21:47 > 0:21:52I've got no intention of letting you come and attack me down in Hastings,
0:21:52 > 0:21:55so I will be marching northwards along the road that leads
0:21:55 > 0:21:59from Hastings to London and my plan is to stop you marching
0:21:59 > 0:22:02any further south into my territory.
0:22:17 > 0:22:198am.
0:22:19 > 0:22:21Marching north,
0:22:21 > 0:22:25William spots Harold's army emerging from a forest on a distant hill.
0:22:28 > 0:22:29At last.
0:22:37 > 0:22:42After months of waiting, William can finally ready himself for battle.
0:22:44 > 0:22:47But his mail coat is back-to-front.
0:22:53 > 0:22:54LAUGHTER
0:22:57 > 0:23:01There have been a series of very unfortunate mishaps for William.
0:23:05 > 0:23:09He loses his fleet halfway across the Channel,
0:23:09 > 0:23:12he stumbles as soon as he sets foot on English soil,
0:23:12 > 0:23:16and he puts his mail coat on the wrong way around.
0:23:16 > 0:23:20Now, this would have terrified any normal man,
0:23:20 > 0:23:23but William just laughs it off - as far as he is concerned,
0:23:23 > 0:23:27he has every right to the English throne.
0:23:29 > 0:23:32Great men of Normandy,
0:23:32 > 0:23:34great men of Brittany,
0:23:34 > 0:23:37great men of Burgundy,
0:23:37 > 0:23:40Christians one and all,
0:23:40 > 0:23:43today we fight under God's banner.
0:23:43 > 0:23:45Victory will be ours once more.
0:23:45 > 0:23:47CHEERING
0:23:50 > 0:23:54Meanwhile, Harold sees the Norman army in the distance.
0:23:57 > 0:24:02What Harold did next is detailed in a unique document that takes us
0:24:02 > 0:24:07to the very heart of events that autumn day nearly 1,000 years ago.
0:24:13 > 0:24:18Hidden in the National Library in Brussels is an ancient book
0:24:18 > 0:24:20containing an epic poem.
0:24:20 > 0:24:24The Carmen, or Song Of The Battle Of Hastings,
0:24:24 > 0:24:27is our earliest surviving account of 1066.
0:24:28 > 0:24:30It gives us a blow-by-blow description
0:24:30 > 0:24:33of this pivotal moment in history.
0:24:33 > 0:24:36This is the Battle of Hastings laid bare,
0:24:36 > 0:24:40from the first move to the last death.
0:24:43 > 0:24:47It tells us a little about the way Harold deployed his forces.
0:24:48 > 0:24:52So you have a line here that says there was a hill nearby
0:24:52 > 0:24:54that they seized and the English...
0:24:54 > 0:24:56HE SPEAKS LATIN
0:24:56 > 0:24:58..as was their wont...
0:24:58 > 0:25:01HE SPEAKS LATIN
0:25:01 > 0:25:06So they advance to occupy the hill in their famous dense formation,
0:25:06 > 0:25:09the shield wall. So Harold, it's telling us,
0:25:09 > 0:25:11begins the battle by seizing the high ground.
0:25:18 > 0:25:23950 years on, and one of the most seismic moments in British history
0:25:23 > 0:25:25has become the stuff of tourism.
0:25:29 > 0:25:33This is the town of Battle, eight miles from Hastings.
0:25:35 > 0:25:38And it stands right next to the historic site itself.
0:25:41 > 0:25:45On the early morning of the 14th of October 1066,
0:25:45 > 0:25:48the English and the Normans faced each other on this battlefield.
0:25:48 > 0:25:52The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle said that the battle took place
0:25:52 > 0:25:54near the hoary apple tree.
0:26:00 > 0:26:05OK, so, we are halfway, a third of the way up this big, gentle,
0:26:05 > 0:26:07but quite long slope. Is this no-man's land, then?
0:26:07 > 0:26:10Effectively, at the beginning of the battle, I suppose we are.
0:26:10 > 0:26:12So what you have to imagine is that behind me...
0:26:12 > 0:26:15Forget about all the ruined buildings you can see behind me, that's the later Abbey...
0:26:15 > 0:26:18Right at the top of the slope beyond what you can see
0:26:18 > 0:26:21of the ruined buildings, is where Harold has placed his standard.
0:26:21 > 0:26:24I'm feeling pretty good about where we are.
0:26:24 > 0:26:26We've got the better position,
0:26:26 > 0:26:29we're in a good tight formation,
0:26:29 > 0:26:32all we need to do is hold this position for the rest of the day.
0:26:33 > 0:26:36Behind you at the bottom of the valley is where you are
0:26:36 > 0:26:39going to find Duke William's army, and they are at an immediate
0:26:39 > 0:26:42disadvantage because if you imagine that the bottom of
0:26:42 > 0:26:45the valley is rather marshy, very damp,
0:26:45 > 0:26:48they would come through that damp land and then start climbing
0:26:48 > 0:26:50the hill to take Harold's position.
0:26:50 > 0:26:53It's true that we absolutely do have the worst position.
0:26:53 > 0:26:56We're going to have to take the battle to you, we're going to have
0:26:56 > 0:26:58to go uphill and that is always a challenging thing to do.
0:26:58 > 0:27:01Knackering and quite intimidating. That's the English army up there,
0:27:01 > 0:27:03and they are not going to be moved easily.
0:27:03 > 0:27:06That's the English army up there shouting at you, shouting,
0:27:06 > 0:27:07"Ut, ut, ut!"
0:27:07 > 0:27:09You've got the Norman army apparently singing
0:27:09 > 0:27:12The Song Of Roland as they approach, you've got the sound of trumpets
0:27:12 > 0:27:15at the start of the battle, you've got the noise, the fanfare,
0:27:15 > 0:27:19the adrenaline and the fear - as the Norman advance
0:27:19 > 0:27:21comes on to the Saxon.
0:27:21 > 0:27:23We do have certain advantages.
0:27:23 > 0:27:27We, for instance, have three lines of battle here in the front.
0:27:27 > 0:27:29We have our archers,
0:27:29 > 0:27:34and then behind them we have a line of infantry and then behind them,
0:27:34 > 0:27:37our strike force, our cavalry.
0:27:37 > 0:27:41And looking around I can see that you have absolutely no cavalry
0:27:41 > 0:27:43on the field at all,
0:27:43 > 0:27:46and that leads me to conclude that you are going to be fighting
0:27:46 > 0:27:50in the old-fashioned, plodding English way that you always do,
0:27:50 > 0:27:54and that makes me feel good about our prospects.
0:27:54 > 0:27:59Before the sun sets, you will have honour, fame and riches.
0:28:01 > 0:28:02Do not fear.
0:28:03 > 0:28:05We will not be slaughtered,
0:28:05 > 0:28:08or captured and mocked by our enemy.
0:28:08 > 0:28:14Now is the time to dare and then to rejoice in a triumph that will echo
0:28:14 > 0:28:18down the centuries, with our names and our deeds.
0:28:18 > 0:28:20CHEERING
0:28:24 > 0:28:29The stage was set for a day that would shape the future of Britain
0:28:29 > 0:28:30and Europe.
0:28:32 > 0:28:35The unfolding dramas of 1066,
0:28:35 > 0:28:40ever since the death of the old, childless King Edward the Confessor,
0:28:40 > 0:28:41had come to this.
0:28:42 > 0:28:44Two great armies...
0:28:45 > 0:28:46..and a field.
0:28:50 > 0:28:529am -
0:28:52 > 0:28:54battle begins.
0:28:57 > 0:29:00My first order is to my archers.
0:29:05 > 0:29:10Volley after volley is aimed up the hill at the English line.
0:29:14 > 0:29:16A rain of arrows was a terrifying sight...
0:29:18 > 0:29:22..and every sharpened point potentially devastating.
0:29:32 > 0:29:35That's just gone clean through - it shows how much power there is in that bow.
0:29:35 > 0:29:37There's a lot of velocity.
0:29:37 > 0:29:40It was only really the rich who had all that mail and all that helmet,
0:29:40 > 0:29:42so there's a lot of vulnerable people on the battlefield,
0:29:42 > 0:29:45and if you're vulnerable, that's going to happen to you.
0:29:45 > 0:29:48The advantage of this is you don't have to be up close and personal.
0:29:48 > 0:29:50You can actually be, what? 100 metres, almost 200 metres
0:29:50 > 0:29:52away from someone and still do them great damage?
0:29:52 > 0:29:55Indeed. If you're selecting an individual, then you're probably
0:29:55 > 0:29:5720, 50 metres away. If you're raining it down,
0:29:57 > 0:29:59then you can be 200 metres back.
0:29:59 > 0:30:02So, yeah, it is one thing worrying about the threat on the ground,
0:30:02 > 0:30:05- the guys coming, but you've also got an aerial threat.- Exactly.
0:30:05 > 0:30:07Draw.
0:30:16 > 0:30:19But my archers are just the first wave, a kind of softener.
0:30:19 > 0:30:21Next, up the hill I send my infantry
0:30:21 > 0:30:24and they too are a fearsome proposition,
0:30:24 > 0:30:28armed as they are with daggers, with axes and with swords.
0:30:45 > 0:30:50The great thing is that our shield wall means that you can't actually
0:30:50 > 0:30:52do any major damage,
0:30:52 > 0:30:55so we grab hold of everything we can lay our hands on -
0:30:55 > 0:31:00spears, sticks, rocks, and we hurl them at your incoming infantry.
0:31:01 > 0:31:05OK, but you are yet to face my most lethal weapon of all,
0:31:05 > 0:31:08something that you English, wielding your axes,
0:31:08 > 0:31:10rooted to the spot as you are,
0:31:10 > 0:31:13will find a truly terrifying novelty -
0:31:13 > 0:31:14my cavalry.
0:31:25 > 0:31:28The Normans and the English do warfare in quite different ways,
0:31:28 > 0:31:33and the main difference is that the Normans have cavalry,
0:31:33 > 0:31:34whereas the English,
0:31:34 > 0:31:37because they've been fighting the Vikings for a century or so,
0:31:37 > 0:31:39do things in a more Scandinavian way.
0:31:39 > 0:31:43They ride to battle but then they dismount, and fight on foot,
0:31:43 > 0:31:47so the Norman elite does have this advantage.
0:31:50 > 0:31:53But it wasn't a done deal for the Norman cavalry.
0:31:56 > 0:31:58Facing them was a wall of linked shields.
0:32:00 > 0:32:04This was a sturdy defence perfected against the Vikings.
0:32:07 > 0:32:10And it was said to be virtually impenetrable.
0:32:15 > 0:32:18So with the help of some local sixth formers from Battle,
0:32:18 > 0:32:20I'm going to put it to the test.
0:32:21 > 0:32:26The idea behind a shield wall is that individually we are weak,
0:32:26 > 0:32:28together we are...
0:32:28 > 0:32:29ALL: Strong!
0:32:29 > 0:32:30You've got it. There you go.
0:32:30 > 0:32:33Interlocking wall of shields, right.
0:32:33 > 0:32:35All right, guys, I'm coming right in the middle here like King Harold.
0:32:35 > 0:32:38Here we go. Brace yourselves.
0:32:38 > 0:32:40One, two, three, go.
0:32:42 > 0:32:44OK, hold them, hold them!
0:32:45 > 0:32:47Well done, guys.
0:32:47 > 0:32:51OK, so now we are in the formation that the Anglo-Saxons were in,
0:32:51 > 0:32:53and as you can see, it does give you great strength.
0:32:53 > 0:32:57You're working together, you can get your body weight and can withstand anything coming at you.
0:32:57 > 0:32:59It feels impenetrable,
0:32:59 > 0:33:02especially when the Normans have had to attack all the way up the hill
0:33:02 > 0:33:04as well, they'd have been knackered.
0:33:04 > 0:33:07The English were so tightly packed together that there was hardly
0:33:07 > 0:33:11any room for the slain men to fall to the ground.
0:33:11 > 0:33:15There we go. Push them back. One, two, three, go. OK.
0:33:22 > 0:33:24William's invasion force,
0:33:24 > 0:33:28used to the European style of agile fighting on horseback,
0:33:28 > 0:33:29had never encountered a solid,
0:33:29 > 0:33:32old-fashioned English shield wall before.
0:33:37 > 0:33:43So all I need to do is to hold fast behind the shield wall.
0:33:43 > 0:33:45Let you do all of the running.
0:33:45 > 0:33:49You are advancing again and again uphill.
0:33:49 > 0:33:53Now, I know that if I can hold this until nightfall, I've probably
0:33:53 > 0:33:56got a pretty good chance of winning the battle.
0:33:56 > 0:33:59You'll be exhausted, then I can call for reinforcements
0:33:59 > 0:34:03- from across England.- OK, so the battle has been going on now for a couple of hours
0:34:03 > 0:34:07and I will confess, I am starting to feel just a little bit worried.
0:34:07 > 0:34:11I am painfully aware that I have to break your shield wall,
0:34:11 > 0:34:13and force victory by nightfall,
0:34:13 > 0:34:16and so it is that I send in wave after wave of attack -
0:34:16 > 0:34:19my archers, my infantry, my cavalry,
0:34:19 > 0:34:22in a desperate attempt to defeat you.
0:34:29 > 0:34:32Noon, and the battle is locked in stalemate.
0:34:34 > 0:34:37After three hours of repeated attacks,
0:34:37 > 0:34:39William is failing to break through.
0:34:43 > 0:34:47Then, without warning, an entire flank of William's army
0:34:47 > 0:34:50turns and runs away from the English line.
0:34:53 > 0:34:58This unexpected turn of events has long been the subject of debate.
0:34:58 > 0:34:59Just what was going on?
0:35:01 > 0:35:03Could William's well-trained soldiers really
0:35:03 > 0:35:05have simply turned and fled?
0:35:08 > 0:35:10The ancient sources disagree.
0:35:11 > 0:35:14Some say that William's men were fleeing,
0:35:14 > 0:35:16defeated by the English shield wall.
0:35:18 > 0:35:21But the very earliest account of the battle contains a revelation.
0:35:22 > 0:35:26The Carmen talks about this episode
0:35:26 > 0:35:27and it says...
0:35:27 > 0:35:29HE SPEAKS LATIN
0:35:33 > 0:35:38"And, as if beaten, they cunningly simulated flight."
0:35:38 > 0:35:42So in other words, it's a ruse, it's a feigned retreat.
0:35:42 > 0:35:44Yes, of course it's a tactical move.
0:35:44 > 0:35:48We Normans do it all the time - it is a tried and tested manoeuvre.
0:35:48 > 0:35:52You see, the thing is, if you can convince an enemy that they have
0:35:52 > 0:35:54victory within their grasp,
0:35:54 > 0:35:57then you can persuade them to leave the security of their
0:35:57 > 0:36:00shield wall and your men certainly have been suckered.
0:36:00 > 0:36:03Look at that - my trap is working beautifully.
0:36:05 > 0:36:08Smelling victory, the English charge in pursuit.
0:36:12 > 0:36:17Meanwhile, in the Norman camp, a terrible rumour begins to spread.
0:36:18 > 0:36:21That William himself is dead.
0:36:23 > 0:36:26In medieval battles, the death of a commander usually meant the end,
0:36:26 > 0:36:27certain defeat.
0:36:27 > 0:36:30William's line began to waver.
0:36:30 > 0:36:31But William was not dead -
0:36:31 > 0:36:34he removed his helmet, showing his face to his men.
0:36:34 > 0:36:35Look at me!
0:36:37 > 0:36:39Do you recognise me?
0:36:42 > 0:36:46I am alive! With God's help, I will conquer!
0:36:49 > 0:36:52I've seen a lot of fighting and I know that at moments like this
0:36:52 > 0:36:56you have to show your face and rally your men.
0:36:56 > 0:36:57And it works.
0:36:57 > 0:37:02They turn round and hack the pursuing English to death.
0:37:02 > 0:37:05Again and again they attack the shield wall.
0:37:05 > 0:37:11And twice we try the feinted retreat, and twice your men
0:37:11 > 0:37:14come pouring down the hill.
0:37:14 > 0:37:18Now, I sense a real shift in the fortunes of battle here
0:37:18 > 0:37:20and an opportunity.
0:37:20 > 0:37:26Because your previously solid shield wall is now perforated
0:37:26 > 0:37:28with gaping holes.
0:37:35 > 0:37:39Harold's impregnable defence has splintered.
0:37:41 > 0:37:46The Norman retreats have opened up the battle into fluid and brutal
0:37:46 > 0:37:47close-up fighting.
0:37:51 > 0:37:57OK, we are rapidly losing our advantage and being forced to fight
0:37:57 > 0:38:02on open ground. We're going to have to step up and fight hard,
0:38:02 > 0:38:04hand-to-hand, face-to-face.
0:38:04 > 0:38:09Everything seems to have turned around in a matter of minutes.
0:38:09 > 0:38:13I was completely in control of the situation and now I'm not.
0:38:26 > 0:38:30Now William's cavalry has the freedom to wreak terror.
0:38:33 > 0:38:34While on the ground,
0:38:34 > 0:38:40vicious weapons are inflicting terrible carnage on both sides.
0:38:40 > 0:38:42It's basically a dagger, stabbing weapon.
0:38:42 > 0:38:43Of course, a dagger stabbing weapon
0:38:43 > 0:38:46is repeated again and again and again -
0:38:46 > 0:38:48come in nice and close, choose your target...
0:38:50 > 0:38:54Oh! That just went through like a knife through butter.
0:38:54 > 0:38:57- God!- There was no effort there at all, was there?- No. What's next?
0:38:57 > 0:39:00I think we'll go with the classic, the Norman sword.
0:39:00 > 0:39:02OK, here we go.
0:39:06 > 0:39:07Whoa!
0:39:07 > 0:39:09I mean, that is completely terrifying.
0:39:09 > 0:39:11You could chop someone in half.
0:39:11 > 0:39:13You don't need words when you see that.
0:39:13 > 0:39:16Unprotected flesh, and that's what it is going to do.
0:39:16 > 0:39:18It's terrifying.
0:39:18 > 0:39:21And that's not the most devastating weapon in the arsenal.
0:39:21 > 0:39:24Here we go - the axe, Dane-axe, battle-axe.
0:39:33 > 0:39:35That is a terrifying weapon.
0:39:35 > 0:39:36It's thuggery, isn't it?
0:39:36 > 0:39:38I mean, it's just brutality at its very worst.
0:39:48 > 0:39:49Early afternoon.
0:39:51 > 0:39:55Battle has now been raging for a gruelling five hours.
0:40:00 > 0:40:03Conscripts, mercenaries...
0:40:04 > 0:40:05..and nobles...
0:40:07 > 0:40:08..on both sides fall...
0:40:11 > 0:40:16..including the very highest of Harold's Anglo-Saxon royal family.
0:40:27 > 0:40:29Harold's brother Gyrth was cut down.
0:40:29 > 0:40:32The Carmen says it was by William himself.
0:40:35 > 0:40:39Harold's great ally and adviser, Gyrth,
0:40:39 > 0:40:44the brother who has stood by his side since before his coronation,
0:40:44 > 0:40:49right through the battles of Stamford Bridge and now Hastings...
0:40:51 > 0:40:52..is dead.
0:41:10 > 0:41:12The afternoon wears on...
0:41:14 > 0:41:17..and William's cavalry continues to charge.
0:41:22 > 0:41:26But his archers are also still at work.
0:41:26 > 0:41:28The very soldiers who began the battle...
0:41:29 > 0:41:32..are about to end it,
0:41:32 > 0:41:35bringing England to its knees.
0:41:53 > 0:41:57Harold has been King of England since the 6th of January.
0:42:01 > 0:42:04He has fought off a fearsome Viking invasion...
0:42:06 > 0:42:09..but he has given his all to defend his kingdom.
0:42:14 > 0:42:19Now, after just 281 days,
0:42:19 > 0:42:23England is once more without a king.
0:42:33 > 0:42:39The death of King Harold in 1066 is one of the most famous moments
0:42:39 > 0:42:40in all of British history.
0:42:42 > 0:42:46It lies at the heart of our nation's story,
0:42:46 > 0:42:49and is immortalised in the Bayeux Tapestry.
0:42:51 > 0:42:54But there's more to this great legend than it seems.
0:43:00 > 0:43:04The Chronicles aren't very clear about exactly how Harold died.
0:43:04 > 0:43:08It is a good 35 years after the conquest when we're told then
0:43:08 > 0:43:11that Harold was pierced by a lethal arrow,
0:43:11 > 0:43:14and then it is another 30 years when we get a bit more detail,
0:43:14 > 0:43:18so William of Malmesbury, in his chronicle, tells us that it was a...
0:43:18 > 0:43:20SHE SPEAKS LATIN
0:43:20 > 0:43:23It was an arrow which pierced his brain.
0:43:24 > 0:43:28And then ten years after that, another historian finally tells us
0:43:28 > 0:43:31that in fact Harold was killed by an arrow in his eye.
0:43:33 > 0:43:37And so it has taken a good 60 years for this apparently vital piece of
0:43:37 > 0:43:41information about Harold's death to finally be stated outright.
0:43:45 > 0:43:48Our very earliest source, the Carmen,
0:43:48 > 0:43:51written just months after the Battle of Hastings,
0:43:51 > 0:43:53tells a very different story.
0:43:56 > 0:44:00Another revelation that doesn't even involve an arrow at all.
0:44:02 > 0:44:07Instead, it describes a much, much nastier death for Harold.
0:44:09 > 0:44:13What it essentially says is that William sent in
0:44:13 > 0:44:17a dedicated death squad, deliberately to take Harold out.
0:44:17 > 0:44:21Now, it is unclear from the Latin whether William is personally
0:44:21 > 0:44:25part of that death squad but it does describe in detail the way Harold
0:44:25 > 0:44:28is supposed to have died. We're told that in the first place
0:44:28 > 0:44:30he is pierced in the chest.
0:44:33 > 0:44:36Secondly, his head is sliced from his shoulders.
0:44:37 > 0:44:39Thirdly, he is disembowelled.
0:44:41 > 0:44:45And fourthly and finally, it says...
0:44:45 > 0:44:47HE SPEAKS LATIN
0:44:48 > 0:44:51His "thigh" is removed.
0:44:51 > 0:44:54And almost certainly, that is a euphemism
0:44:54 > 0:44:56for his genitals being cut off.
0:44:56 > 0:45:00Now, this, even by medieval standards,
0:45:00 > 0:45:04is shockingly brutal behaviour to inflict on an anointed king.
0:45:07 > 0:45:13So, 950 years on, our popular image of the death of Harold
0:45:13 > 0:45:15could be wrong.
0:45:21 > 0:45:23Instead of a single arrow,
0:45:23 > 0:45:28a death squad sent to assassinate and then mutilate the English King.
0:45:36 > 0:45:40We'll never be absolutely certain how Harold died, but we can be
0:45:40 > 0:45:43fairly sure that his death marked a turning point.
0:45:44 > 0:45:48With Harold's death, the English army collapsed.
0:45:48 > 0:45:51An ordered defence had become a bloodbath...
0:45:54 > 0:45:55..and then a rout.
0:45:58 > 0:46:00The English tried to flee
0:46:00 > 0:46:02but the Normans hacked them down...
0:46:05 > 0:46:06..victorious.
0:46:28 > 0:46:33Amid the carnage of a spent battle, William sets up camp.
0:46:36 > 0:46:38He has meat cooked for him...
0:46:39 > 0:46:42..and eats amongst the dead and the dying.
0:46:49 > 0:46:53There are several stories about what happened to Harold's corpse.
0:46:53 > 0:46:56One is that it was picked out on the battlefield by his mistress,
0:46:56 > 0:46:58Edith Swanneck.
0:46:58 > 0:47:01She was able to tell it apart, because of certain marks
0:47:01 > 0:47:03known only to herself.
0:47:03 > 0:47:07Another is that Harold's mother Githa offered Duke William
0:47:07 > 0:47:09the body's weight in gold for its return.
0:47:12 > 0:47:13But William refused.
0:47:15 > 0:47:18Some sources say that Harold was buried close
0:47:18 > 0:47:22to the battlefield itself, on a clifftop looking out to sea.
0:47:22 > 0:47:25We also have later records from Waltham Abbey, which claim that
0:47:25 > 0:47:26that is where he was buried -
0:47:26 > 0:47:30the monastery which he had built and endowed and enriched.
0:47:30 > 0:47:32And that's possible but dubious,
0:47:32 > 0:47:35partly because the last thing the Normans would have wanted
0:47:35 > 0:47:38would be to create the focal point for a cult of Harold.
0:47:42 > 0:47:46But it wasn't just Harold that died on this battlefield -
0:47:46 > 0:47:49the elite of England was annihilated.
0:47:49 > 0:47:53The Battle of Hastings marked the death of Anglo-Saxon England.
0:47:58 > 0:48:01Throughout the course of 1066,
0:48:01 > 0:48:05three great warlords had fought for the prized crown of England.
0:48:07 > 0:48:10Harold Godwinson,
0:48:10 > 0:48:13the Viking Harald Hardrada,
0:48:13 > 0:48:15and William.
0:48:17 > 0:48:20Now only the Norman duke is left alive.
0:48:21 > 0:48:24Victory is at last his.
0:48:25 > 0:48:28But still, he is not yet a king.
0:48:39 > 0:48:44News of William's victory reaches Westminster in hours.
0:48:45 > 0:48:49The surviving English nobles must decide
0:48:49 > 0:48:52to submit to the Normans...
0:48:52 > 0:48:54or fight on.
0:48:54 > 0:48:55What do we do now?
0:48:56 > 0:49:00Well, we have a ready-made king.
0:49:00 > 0:49:03But you can't expect Edgar to defeat William in battle?
0:49:03 > 0:49:06But he is the heir. We must put right before might.
0:49:06 > 0:49:08But you'd be throwing him to the wolves.
0:49:08 > 0:49:10What choice do we have?
0:49:12 > 0:49:14Drink this, sir.
0:49:15 > 0:49:19Just 10 months earlier, Harold had sidelined the teenage prince,
0:49:19 > 0:49:22Edward the Confessor's closest blood relative.
0:49:26 > 0:49:29Ever since, Edgar the Atheling had lived at court,
0:49:29 > 0:49:34untroubled and uninvolved in the dangerous politics surrounding him.
0:49:36 > 0:49:39Now Edgar is the last, desperate hope.
0:49:41 > 0:49:45The remaining Anglo-Saxon nobles elect him to be their new King.
0:49:49 > 0:49:52Meanwhile, William waits in Hastings,
0:49:52 > 0:49:54expecting to be offered the crown.
0:49:56 > 0:49:57But two weeks pass...
0:49:59 > 0:50:02..and still no word comes from London.
0:50:06 > 0:50:10In our war room, only one historian is still standing.
0:50:11 > 0:50:15Clearly then, I am left with very little choice but to force them
0:50:15 > 0:50:17to submit to me.
0:50:17 > 0:50:22I'm going to have to do what I do best, so I take my army
0:50:22 > 0:50:25and I head east towards Dover.
0:50:25 > 0:50:29I attack it and then I move on Canterbury.
0:50:29 > 0:50:33Both of them quickly and, I must say, sensibly, submit.
0:50:33 > 0:50:37Then it's on westwards towards London.
0:50:37 > 0:50:41At Southwark, the Londoners refused to allow me across the Thames.
0:50:41 > 0:50:42They block my access.
0:50:42 > 0:50:45It's frustrating and it is pointless because they have
0:50:45 > 0:50:49no prospect now of holding me off in the long run.
0:50:49 > 0:50:54I continue westwards until I reach a bridging point at Wallingford.
0:50:54 > 0:50:59Once I'm over the Thames, I head back east towards London.
0:51:04 > 0:51:05William and his army marched on.
0:51:08 > 0:51:12The nobles supporting Edgar quickly realised that any resistance
0:51:12 > 0:51:13was impossible.
0:51:20 > 0:51:22The end came here in Berkhamsted...
0:51:24 > 0:51:26..a market town in Hertfordshire,
0:51:26 > 0:51:2925 miles to the north-west of London.
0:51:33 > 0:51:35William marched his army along this road.
0:51:35 > 0:51:38Nowadays, it is Berkhamsted High Street, but back then
0:51:38 > 0:51:41it was the Roman road leading directly to the heart of London.
0:51:41 > 0:51:44William was getting closer and closer.
0:51:44 > 0:51:47It seemed like nothing could stop him now.
0:51:53 > 0:51:55William set up camp on this spot.
0:51:58 > 0:52:01And it was here in early December that the English leaders
0:52:01 > 0:52:03finally rode out from London...
0:52:04 > 0:52:06..to submit to him.
0:52:07 > 0:52:10Among the delegation that came here to Berkhamsted,
0:52:10 > 0:52:14there were senior clergy, nobles, even Edgar the Atheling,
0:52:14 > 0:52:19whose brief hopes of being king were now snuffed out.
0:52:19 > 0:52:24These surrendering Englishmen meekly requested of the Conqueror,
0:52:24 > 0:52:25would he be their new king?
0:52:30 > 0:52:33William road unopposed into London,
0:52:33 > 0:52:36and began to fully enforce Norman rule on England.
0:52:57 > 0:53:00Christmas Day, 1066.
0:53:05 > 0:53:11The illegitimate Duke William is anointed King William I.
0:53:14 > 0:53:16William the Conqueror.
0:53:24 > 0:53:27When the assembled crowd of English and Normans were asked
0:53:27 > 0:53:29whether it was their will that William be king,
0:53:29 > 0:53:33they cheered so loudly that the Norman guards positioned
0:53:33 > 0:53:36outside the abbey panicked and thought there was a riot.
0:53:36 > 0:53:39So they set fire to the surrounding houses.
0:53:47 > 0:53:50William's coronation is hurriedly concluded.
0:53:52 > 0:53:56But just as with all the mishaps that have beset him on his journey
0:53:56 > 0:53:58to the English throne...
0:53:59 > 0:54:02..William remains triumphant.
0:54:04 > 0:54:08William sat alone on his newly acquired throne,
0:54:08 > 0:54:10as Westminster burned around him.
0:54:11 > 0:54:15It was a fitting start to the bloody rule of the Normans.
0:54:21 > 0:54:25William's coronation was far from the end of his fight for control
0:54:25 > 0:54:28of England.
0:54:28 > 0:54:31There would be years of bloody rebellion, insurrection
0:54:31 > 0:54:36and instability, especially in the wild north.
0:54:40 > 0:54:44William built a secure operations base, the Tower of London.
0:54:48 > 0:54:51He ruthlessly destroyed any opposition,
0:54:51 > 0:54:54killing tens of thousands of ordinary people,
0:54:54 > 0:54:57and laying waste to huge swathes of the country.
0:55:01 > 0:55:05The chronicler Orderic Vitalis wrote that William was guilty
0:55:05 > 0:55:09of wholesale massacre and barbarous homicide.
0:55:09 > 0:55:13Eventually, he would replace any English nobleman left alive
0:55:13 > 0:55:17after the Battle of Hastings with his own Norman barons,
0:55:17 > 0:55:20taking the wealth and the land and giving it to his supporters.
0:55:20 > 0:55:23This was a Norman takeover.
0:55:23 > 0:55:27It was the biggest transfer in land ownership in English history.
0:55:28 > 0:55:33The old ruling class of England, the aristocracy, is swept clean away.
0:55:33 > 0:55:35So you have 10,000 Englishmen
0:55:35 > 0:55:39replaced by 10,000 Continental newcomers,
0:55:39 > 0:55:42who speak a different language and who have very different ideas
0:55:42 > 0:55:45in their head about the way society should be.
0:55:45 > 0:55:48The Norman invasion changes everything.
0:55:48 > 0:55:50Of course there's a new ruling dynasty,
0:55:50 > 0:55:53but there are more obvious signs of change,
0:55:53 > 0:55:56notably the architecture of the Normans.
0:55:56 > 0:56:00Suddenly we have these vast cathedrals and castles
0:56:00 > 0:56:01dominating the landscape.
0:56:01 > 0:56:05The language changes, the traditions, the laws.
0:56:05 > 0:56:08It's a sea change in England.
0:56:10 > 0:56:13And they bring ideas of how you treat human beings,
0:56:13 > 0:56:16they bring chivalry, they abolish slavery.
0:56:18 > 0:56:20In every respect,
0:56:20 > 0:56:24England is massively transformed by the Norman conquest.
0:56:24 > 0:56:26You know, forget about the English Civil War,
0:56:26 > 0:56:29forget about the Reformation - this is the single greatest change
0:56:29 > 0:56:32that England and the English ever experience.
0:56:36 > 0:56:39And it wasn't only England that was transformed.
0:56:42 > 0:56:451066 saw the demise of the Anglo-Saxons...
0:56:49 > 0:56:53..but also the end of the great Viking age of conquest.
0:56:56 > 0:57:00From now on, England looked not north and east
0:57:00 > 0:57:03to Denmark and Scandinavia,
0:57:03 > 0:57:06but south to France and Rome.
0:57:08 > 0:57:11Europe had shifted on its axis.
0:57:14 > 0:57:19It had taken almost exactly one year for William to plan and execute
0:57:19 > 0:57:20his invasion of England.
0:57:28 > 0:57:32It would take him many more years to subdue the English people.
0:57:37 > 0:57:39Eventually he would return to Normandy
0:57:39 > 0:57:41to fight over his borders at home...
0:57:43 > 0:57:46..but England was now firmly Norman.
0:57:47 > 0:57:48Moving into a new future...
0:57:50 > 0:57:53..which left the Dark Ages far behind.
0:57:57 > 0:58:00William ended up spending most of his reign back in Normandy
0:58:00 > 0:58:03and it was there eventually, in 1087, that he died,
0:58:03 > 0:58:07a fat and bloated shadow of his former warrior self.
0:58:07 > 0:58:11It was the end of one of the most dramatic reigns in British history,
0:58:11 > 0:58:15a reigns that saw seismic changes to this country,
0:58:15 > 0:58:19the results of which, like William's great tower,
0:58:19 > 0:58:21we're still living with to this day.