My thoughts on 1066 events

Routes from Port of Hastings to Second Fort ( 53'53.66"N 31'30.23E ) There are several routes up from the Port of Hastings.  1. The Western Route The graph below shows the profile of the route up from the western side of the Port of Hastings inlet near the reputed site of  Hastings Priory ( 51'20.75"N 34'38.33"E) to the Hill Fort.  So the maximum gradient is just under 5 degree for 200 metres at around 4.4 km from the shore (the shore being on the left). This is the quickest route from the Port area and therefore the route which dictates which side of the inlet the Bastard landed on.  2. The "Middle" Routes There are two routes from the inside of the inlet. They join at 51' 54.53"N 34'58.53"E and at 40 m a.s.l. I think these are modern routes out of the new town centre but I've included them for completeness.  A. Elphinstone Road Route This route is only a kilometre longer than the...

Comparison Tables TABLE 1 Suspected Battle Site             Distance from Hastings*       Suspected location of English Camp Senlec Ridge                            5.98 miles                               Caldbec Hill Caldbec Hill                             6.49 miles                                Caldbec Hill Netherfield Hill                       7.6 miles                                    Netherfield Hill Netherfield Hill                   ...

The Battle Site? I took a very old fashioned "slice" through the Earth from Telham Hill fort (53' 53.90"N 31' 30.20"E) to the Netherfield Church area (56' 29.35"N  26' 53.11"E), a distance of about 7.2 km, and plotted the result. It revealed a very interesting profile. We start off at 141 m a.s.l and descend to 100 m at the 1 km mark before rising again to 108 m after a further 400 m. So from 1.4 km from the hill fort to 2.6 km the ground descends from 108 m to 55 m. Then the ground rises to 64 m at about 2.9 km before dipping back down to 53 m at 3.2 km. The ground then rises to 103 m in 600 m and this is the summit of Caldbec Hill. After the summit of Caldbec Hill, the ground descends to 41 m a.s.l at 4.6 km from the hill fort. From here the ground rises to 109 m at a distance of 5.9 km before dipping slightly to 103 m after a further 500 m. From this point until the Netherfield end of the cross section the ground rises to 144 m and ...

Important Sites PLEASE REMEMBER TO GET ALL THE NECESSARY PERMISSIONS BEFORE DOING ANYTHING ON THESE SITES. I'M POSTING FROM NORWAY SO I DO NOT KNOW THE NATIONAL AND LOCAL REGULATIONS REGARDING ACCESS TO THE SITES.  Looking at my stats, I see that I have no readers in the UK. So using UK National Grid References to denote the locations I've looked at is nonsensical.  I have put together a short list of the locations I have mentioned in my blog posts so those with access to Google Earth can follow the action as it where. Williams's first Fort at Pevensey  49' 09.32" N  20' 02.56"E  ( All sites start with 50deg N and 0deg E) Base of Standard Hill - Approximate landing place for William's Cavalry 52' 35.49" N  24' 21.05"E Hastings Castle - Built in the 1080's on eastern side of inlet 51' 22.09"N  35' 05.09"E Hastings Priory - Suspected site of William's 2nd landing 51...

Welcome to a new post on 1066 events. Right, we left the Norman infantry at Pevensey and the cavalry en route to Port of Hastings. Before I advance my story forward a word about sea levels. Currently Pevensey Castle is about 7 to 9 metres a.s.l (above sea level) while Hastings Castle and the church built roughly at the same time ( circa 1080 -1090) are built on the current 20 metre contour. The later Hastings Priory is built on the 12 metre contour. I believe this shows that the sea level has changed considerably since 1066 times and what was on the coast then may not be now. So to sum up. The high water mark could not have been greater than say 19 metres thus making the datum in 1066 about 11 metres higher than today. The explaination of the heights around Pevensey being that the land has shrunk down as the water has receded. Main body movement When the Bastard thought it prudent, he transferred to the Port of Hastings and set up operations there. According to the Bayeaux Ta...