My thoughts on 1066 events

    Where did William land at Hastings? In this post I'd like to discuss where William landed at the port of Hastings. This is not about the knights leaving Hastings on the night prior to the battle but rather about where the foot of the Norman invader touched English mainland soil. To start, I'm going to use a page out of Hastings Historic Character Assessment Report April 2010.  https://www.westsussex.gov.uk/media/1728/hastings_eus_report_maps.pdf The above irl refers to a map of the underlying geology of Hastings Town centre. You will notice the extensive deposits of alluvium on what is now dry land ( alluvium is deposited by rivers?). At one point in time there must have been a large river emptying into the sea here thus making a good harbour. Key: Green = land, Orange = water in the time of 1066, Blue = present day sea extent.  Here's what I think the inlet would have looked like back in 1066.  Now, the default wind direction is from the South west so any c...

  Cross Section of the Main Battle Area In my last post I showed where I thought the main battle took place in 3D and what it looks like today courtesy of Google Earth. Today I bring you a cross section of the area to show Harold's battle planning.  At zero on the "x axis"  is Wadhurst Lane where according to Wace the accompanying clergy of the Norman Army decanted to in order to watch the battle and pray. Looking at the slope now I think they might have been a little closer to the battle at the 80 metre mark say in order to see the debacle at the prepared defences. It is interesting to note that English Heritage when questioned about Wace's comment referred me to that Wace is describing a battle that happened in 1105 at Tinchebray but offered no supporting evidence. I would also draw your attention to the fact that the Normans would have charged downhill towards the English line. I don't know if you have tried running downhill with abandon but it usually ends in ...

  My Chosen Battle Site for 14th Oct 1066   This site lies to the north west of Battle and as stated on the picture this represents the area where the main battle and Malfosse took place.  The purple line represents where, according to Wace, the observing clergy stood praying and watching the battle. This also happens to be part of Wadhurst Lane, a restricted byway ( not for use for mechanically driven vehicles), which runs in part from the B2096 and Netherfield Road. It is high ground (109m - 111m) overlooking the the lowest levels of the English line.  The turquoise ring represents where the English formed up to receive the Norman charge. The remaining portion of the English Army was here. Both the Carmen and Henry of Huntingdon indicate that the English were closely packed in their defensive line By my estimation there were 4500 English facing at least a comparable number of of Normans.  Imo, this is what part of Scene 53  and Scene 54 of the Bayeux Tape...