|
 | Anglo Saxon History |  | |
| | Battle of Hastings 1066AD - J - The Landing , where was it ? |
|---|
| | Table of Contents |
|---|
|
Map of the Hastings area in 1066AD ▲
|
|---|
This is my latest map showing the landscape of the Hastings area in 1066.
(Created using
Google My Maps.) |
|---|
In this map the following assumptions have been made:
The sea levels shown are at a high tide mark of 4.5 metres higher than at present.
Landscape - Was the sea level in Saxon
times at Pevensey 4 to 5 metres higher ?
Was the high tide in Saxon times 5 metres
higher ? - the Wash
Landscape - High Tide changes in the last 2000 years
The Great Oak Forest of Andredsweald is shown.
The Great Forest of Andredsweald - Anglo
Saxon Chronicles
The location of Old Winchelsea is shown on its shingle bank.
Old Winchelsea an elegant explanation
The shape of the land near Hastings in 1066AD including coastal erosion.
Battle of Hastings 1066AD - H - Landscape of
Haestingaport
The Romney Marsh in 1066AD, the river Rother has changed its course through time.
Landscape - The History of the Romney Marsh in
maps(Pre-Roman to Modern times)
Fécamp Abbey influence
Battle of Hastings 1066AD - I - Hastings and its links to
Fécamp Abbey
New Romney and its destruction
Battle of Hastings 1066AD - G - New Romney
| | Documentary Evidence from the Chronicles ▲ |
|---|
Anglo Saxon Chronicles
Meantime Earl William came up from Normandy into Pevensey on the eve of St. Michael's mass; and soon after his
landing was effected, they constructed a castle at the port of Hastings.
Battle Abbey Chronicles
The duke, therefore, with a prodigious army, and attended by the divine favour, arrived safely near the castle
called Pevensey. The soldiers leaped joyfully upon English ground at intervals along the shore.
It happened as the duke left his ship, that he fell upon his face, making his nose somewhat bloody upon the beach, and
grasping the earth with his outstretched hands.
Many of the bystanders feared the consequences of so unlucky a presage, and stood whispering together. But the duke's
ewer, William Eitz-Osbert, a man of great merit and much ready wit, being at hand, boldly rallied the failing courage of
the waverers with a word. 'Cease men,' said he, 'to interpret this as a misfortune, for by my troth, it is a token of
prosperity ; for lo ! he hath embraced England with both his hands, and sealed it to his posterity with his own blood ;
and thus by the foreshowing of Divine Providence is he destined effectually to win it !'
Bayeux_Tapestry
Troops disembark and are sent to Hastings to get provisions.
hic exeunt caballi de navibus et hic milites festinaverunt haestinga ut cibum raperentur
(the horses are taken from the ships and the soldiers make haste to Hastings to seize food)
|
Carmen de Triumpho Normannico
Nor fear the Northern gale, but to a charming landing place
Nor the rocky coast looming perilous
The third hour of the day overspread the earth
Since leaving the sea behind when you seize a sheltered strand
The land belonging to you had been stripped of tenants
You rejoice as you and yours seize a peaceful arc of strand
You secure the bridgehead fearing to neglect the ships
And raise palisades, that you may site the camp within
You restore the forts that were long since destroyed
You station garrisons that they may be defended
Not much space has been occupied by your men in peace
Florence of Worcester
While these events were passing, and when the king might have supposed that all his enemies were quelled, he received
intelligence of the arrival of William, earl of Normandy, with an innumerable host of horsemen, slingers, archers, and
foot soldiers, having taken into his pay auxiliary forces of great bravery from all parts of France ; and that he had
moored his fleet at a place called Pevensey.
Henry of Huntingdon
No reference to this subject in this document.
Master Wace
The ships steered to one port; all arrived and reached the shore together ; together cast anchor, and ran
on dry land ; and together they discharged themselves.
They arrived near Hastings, and there each ship ranged by the other's side. There you might see the good sailors,
the Serjeants and squires sally forth and unload the ships ; cast the anchors, haul the ropes, bear out shields and
saddles, and land the warhorses and palfreys.
The archers came forth, and touched land the foremost; each with his bow bent, and his quiver full of arrows slung at
his side. All were shaven and shorn, and all clad in short garments, ready to attack, to shoot, to wheel about and
skirmish. All stood well equipped, and of good courage for the fight ; and they scoured the whole shore, but found not
an armed man there.
After the archers had thus gone forth, the knights landed next, all armed; with their hauberks on, their shields
slung at their necks, and their helmets laced. They formed together on the shore, each armed up on his warhorse. All had
their swords girded on, and passed into the plain with their lances raised.
William of Jumièges – Gesta Normannorum Ducum
The Duke, with God prospering him, directed his fleet toward the land of the English and, carried by a favorable wind,
reached Pevensey within a few days. There, having disembarked his army, he ordered a fort to be built.
Orderic Vitalis – Gesta Normannorum Ducum
When at last by the grace of God the favourable wind sprang up in answer to so may prayers, the Duke impatient to set
out, called all of his men forthwith to the ships and commanded them to set sail with courage. So the Norman army
crossed the sea on 29th September, the night where the universal church celebrates the feast of St Michael the
archangel, and reaching the coast of England, where they met no opposition, gladly came ashore. They took possession of
Pevensey and Hastings and gave them into the charge of chosen soldiers as a base for the army and shelter for the
fleet.
William of Poitiers – Gesta Guillelmi
The vast fleet, which had assembled at Dives and Saint-Valery, awaited the wind... At last, with divine mercy sending
the wind, they entered the sea and reached England. They landed at Pevensey, where the soldiers immediately
disembarked and began to secure the place. The English, seeing the Normans’ ships, were terrified and took flight. The
Duke, being a man of great wisdom, ordered a fort to be built there.
William of Malmesbury
No reference to this subject in this document.
Quedam Exceptiones de Historia Normannorum et Anglorum
Everything having been prepared, he set forth for England together with his fleet, propelled by a steadily blowing
following wind, and landed at Peneuesel, where at once he restored the most strongly entrenched fortification
and, entrusting it to his soldiers, he went to Hastings and there established another fortification.
| | Landscape Overview ▲ |
|---|
The first thing to note is that there were and still are cliffs to the west of Eastbourne
and also between Hastings and present day Fairlight.
The cliffs are mentioned in the The Carmen de Triumpho
Normannico(Carmen)
'Nor the rocky coast looming perilous'
'One Englishman kept hidden under the
sea cliffs'.
If this is true then we can deduce that the fleet went past some cliffs on the way to the landing spot.
If the fleet sailed from the direction of St Valerie then they would have been very unlikely to sail past Beachy Head
and the cliff off the coast at Eastbourne.
Hence the only logical cliffs that could be sailed past were the ones between Fairlight and
Bulverhythe.
There are also references in the Carmen to 'Since leaving the sea behind when you seize a sheltered strand'
also
'I rejoice as you and yours seize a peaceful arc of strand' and 'And so carried with him, returned to his
seaside camp'.
So this would imply a sheltered or protected not too hilly seaside landing place. If we also assume that there were
about
700 Norman ships which when landing they would occupy about 6 metres per ship this would mean the landing site would
need
to be about 4200 metres wide, so about 2 1/2 miles from one end to the other .
There are also references to the location in the 'Gesta Normannorum Ducum(Gesta)'
'and crossing the sea he landed at Pevensey where he immediately built a castle with a strong rampart'.
and
'He left this in charge of some troops, and with others he hurried to Hastings where he erected another similar
fortress'
We also seem to have a reference to the ships sailing towards the West as a vessel appeared to land at New Romney
where the Normans were killed, as William attacked New Romney on his way to Dover(This could only have been by sea
as the marshes did not really support marching). This implies that the Normans were sailing towards the west and
passed
the Romney marsh on the way to their landing at Pevensey(Cooden).
| | Referenced items that effect the Landing Location ▲ |
|---|
Anglo Saxon Chronicles - 'into Pevensey on the eve of St. Michael's mass; and soon after his landing was
effected, they constructed a castle at the port of Hastings'
Battle Abbey Chronicles - 'arrived safely near the castle called Pevensey'
Bayeux Tapestry - 'William sails to Pevensey' and 'He lands at Pevensey'..
Carmen de Triumpho Normannico - 'leaving the sea behind when you seize a sheltered strand'
Florence of Worcester - 'he had moored his fleet at a place called Pevensey'
Master Wace - The ships steered to one port' and 'They arrived near Hastings'
William of Jumièges - 'reached Pevensey within a few days'
Orderic Vitalis - 'They took possession of Pevensey and Hastings '
William of Poitiers - 'They landed at Pevensey, where the soldiers immediately disembarked and began to secure
the place'
Quedam Exceptiones de Historia Normannorum et Anglorum - 'and landed at Peneuesel, where at once he restored
the most strongly entrenched fortification and, entrusting it to his soldiers, he went to Hastings and there established
another fortification. '
So to condense all requirements for the location we come to the following possibilities:-
- Near Pevensey or Pevensey Bay and near Hastings
- Went past a rocky coastline
- In a sheltered landing place
- Create a moated fort(flat pack)
- Visible from a high hill or cliff
- Near to the wasted or damaged villages in the Domesday book
- Within horse riding distance of Hastings
- You restore forts long since destroyed
|
How much space would 695 ships need to land side by side ▲
|
|---|
This image of a Viking longboat is from https://www.thildekoldholdt.com/post/viking-age-ships,
and shows that they were able to carry large numbers of people possibly 50 or 60 if just used for transport.
The Ship list of William counts the number of vessels at 770 probably on leaving Dives, Master Wace suggests 695 on
leaving St Valerie so we will use that figure.
The ships we are talking about were most likely Viking long-ships so we should allow about 5 metres for the width of the
vessel. (Battle of Hastings 1066AD - B - Ships
- Drekka, Snekkja and Knarr)
The Oseberg ship, a Karve, was 5.10 meters (16.7 feet) wide.
The Gokstad ship was 5 meters (16 feet) wide
If we then allow for the oars then we have to allow a further 2.5 metres per side hence we come to about 10 metres as a
total width.
We then need to leave space between the vessels so lets add a further 3 metres to the width which means we are at 13
metres total width.
The summary below shows how much landing space is required for 695 ships:
Just the 5 metres for the width of the vessels = 3,475 metres = 3.5Km (2.1 miles)
Width of vessel plus oars at 10 metres = 6,950 metres = 6.9 Km (4.2 miles)
Width of vessel plus oars plus space at 13 metres = 9.035 metres = 9.03Km (5.6 miles)
This is a significant width of space for the landing and would mean that the whole coastline from Cooden to Hastings
would be taken up.
Note:
This is calculated for Viking longships, if you look at the transport ships, these were about 7 metres wide so would
take up even more space.
|
Where were the Damaged/Destroyed villages from Domesday ? ▲
|
|---|
| The Domesday villages around the Hastings area 1066AD (made using Google My
Maps) |
This map shows the location of all the villages recorded in the Domesday Book 1086AD
The area surrounded by red shows those villages that were wasted according to Domesday, these seem to start from the
coast at Bexhill, this also appears to imply that the Normans were aware of the road network.
The area surrounded by yellow shows those villages that were damaged according to Domesday, these were mostly near to
Pevensey Castle, with a few near Bexhill.
The area surrounded by purple shows the land that had been given to Fecamp abbey before the invasion.
Villages shown in red were those recorded as wasted.
Villages shown in yellow were recorded as being damaged.
Villages shown in green were recorded as not damaged.
The map also shows a line of 9 Km or 5.6 miles which is the length of coastline that 695 ships would take up when landed
side by side.
Domesday anomalies:
The modern town of Battle was only settled after the battle when the Monks built the Abbey, and it is the only
place in the area whose name is not a Saxon derived name. It is named after the French 'la Bataille' - the battlefield.
Hastings is not recorded anywhere in Domesday, even though we know it was a major port prior to the invasion.
(could this be because the people of Hastings invited William in ? - we shall never know)
Winchelsea is also not recorded in Domesday, even though it was also a major port, but the estate of Rameslie was
owned by the Norman Abbey of Fécamp, and had been since 1017AD. (Battle of Hastings 1066AD - I - Hastings and its links to Fécamp
Abbey)
| | Proposed Landing places ▲ |
|---|
As you can see in the next map there are a large number of damaged villages near to Pevensey, implying that the Normans
took the fort and carried out raids mostly towards the west, so probably had cavalry based in the old Roman fort of
Anderida, which was owned by the Godwin family prior to the invasion.
In the Bexhill and Hastings area we can see a few villages in the Filsham valley that were untouched, but a large
majority of villages north of Hastings and Bexhill were wasted or damaged, implying that the Normans again knew the
landscape.
The villages in the Winchelsea, Rye area appear untouched, this is probably due to the influence of the Abbey of Fécamp
in the area.
Between the damage centered on Pevensey and the Bexhill/Hastings cluster there are a number of other undamaged villages
near modern Ashburnham, there is a possibility that this was a shipbuilding area that William did not want damaged, or
just that they were not on the main roads.
You can also see that some of these villages are within the area of Andredsweald implying that the Normans knew the
area, roads and ridgeways before Harold arrived for the battle.
A great number of arguments for the site of the Norman landing have taken place, this is the list of locations that
have been proposed:
- Pevensey Castle
- The Hooe Peninsular
- The bay north of Barnhorne
- The Cooden area
- Bexhill
- Bulverhythe / Filsham valley
- Hastings
- The river Brede valley
| 
| | Items that influence the landing ▲ |
|---|
Anglo Saxon Chronicles - 'into Pevensey on the eve of St. Michael's mass; and soon after his landing was
effected, they constructed a castle at the port of Hastings'
Battle Abbey Chronicles - 'arrived safely near the castle called Pevensey'
Bayeux Tapestry - 'William sails to Pevensey' and 'He lands at Pevensey'..
Carmen de Triumpho Normannico - 'leaving the sea behind when you seize a sheltered strand'
Florence of Worcester - 'he had moored his fleet at a place called Pevensey'
Master Wace - The ships steered to one port' and 'They arrived near Hastings'
William of Jumièges - 'reached Pevensey within a few days'
Orderic Vitalis - 'They took possession of Pevensey and Hastings '
William of Poitiers - 'They landed at Pevensey, where the soldiers immediately disembarked and began to secure
the place'
Quedam Exceptiones de Historia Normannorum et Anglorum - 'and landed at Peneuesel, where at once he restored
the most strongly entrenched fortification and, entrusting it to his soldiers, he went to Hastings and there established
another fortification. '
| | 1. Landing at Pevensey Castle ▲ |
|---|
The Pevensey area was a protected bay, with the Downs reaching the sea near Beachy Head, this was about 0.8 Km further
out in Norman times, and appeared to have a large beachy area to the East of the cliffs.
If this was the only landing place then finding a good route across the marshes to get to Hastings would have been
difficult to find but the knights are shown riding in the Bayeux Tapestry. William would have left the area via Lewes
as that was the easiest route to get out of the area due to the Roman Road layout and he would never have gotten to
Hastings.
-
 Went past a rocky coastline - Cliffs at Hastings
- In a sheltered landing place
 Create a moated fort(flat pack) - unnecessary- Visible from a high hill or cliff - Overlooked by Beachy Head and the
cliffs at Hastings
- Near to the wasted villages in the Domesday book
- Within horse riding distance of Hastings - Route is very difficult
- You restore forts long since destroyed - one of the forts
There was a large amount of damage to the local villages, so the Normans must have been here .
Therefore the logical conclusion is that William landed here to take over the Castle, then once it was secure and
repairs made and troops occupying he took the rest of the fleet and sailed back towards Hastings. The garrison then
continued to raid the area.
| | 2. Landing on the Hooe Peninsular ▲ |
|---|
The next place is the Hooe Peninisular as its protected by Beachy Head, again this is possible but is not really
overlooked by
the Cliffs at Eastbourne, and again the damage to the villages seems to be less intense as those locations further
east.
- Went past a rocky coastline - Between Eastbourne and Hastings cliffs
- In a sheltered landing place
- Create a moated fort(flat pack) - no evidence
- Visible from a high hill or cliff - Passed by Fairlight
- Near to the wasted villages in the Domesday book
- Within horse riding distance of Hastings
- You restore forts long since destroyed - no evidence
If this was the location then William would have left the area via current day Ninfield to join the old ridgeway at
the modern day A271/B2096 junction as that would be the easiest route to get out
of the area due to the Roman Road layout and from here could ride to Hastings.
Due to the distance away from the wasted villages and no evidence of forts, it would seem that
this site is difficult to match with all the documentation.
|
A map of the coastline at Hastings in 1066AD ▲
|
|---|
This map shows the coastline from Hooe to the Fairlight Cliffs this includes the Barnhorne inlet, Cooden, Bexhill,
Bulverhythe, the Combe Valley and Hastings.
The orange lines show the areas where it is likely that cliffs were, making them difficult to land.
The map also shows a line of 9 Km or 5.6 miles which is the length of coastline that 695 ships would take up when landed
side by side. - please Note that transport ships may have been even wider so the ratio of transports to longships would
change this.
The sea level is shown at about 4 metres higher than present, please see the following pages for an explanation.
Landscape - Was the sea level in Saxon times
at Pevensey 4 to 5 metres higher ?
The course of the river Asten that flows through the Combe Haven and the eroded land south of Bulverhythe is explained
on the following page.
Battle of Hastings 1066AD - H - Landscape of
Haestingaport
Lets look at the meaning of the locations shown in case this helps.
Barnhorn - barn derived from beorn - burn,fire or light horne derived from horn - a horn-shaped projection.
(As you can see Barnhorn is a promontory and it appears like an animal horn i it was possibly a Roman signalling
point during Carausius reign.)
Cooden (originally Cooling) - derived from cæle ænge - originally Cooling which derives from cæle - a ships
keel - ænge meaning troubled village(appear to be fortlets or pallisaded villages).
(So this area was probably a small shipyard)
Bexhill - bex derived from buxus - box trees hill derived from hyll - a hill.
(The hill where the box trees grow and the coastal area appears to be a small protected harbour)
Bulverhythe - bulver derived from burgh wær - beorg - a high place - hill
wær - the sea and hythe derived from hyð - hythe - usually a harbour or port, an important or first one, or starting
point of a tribe.
(My Interpretation - The high place on the coast where the Haestingas landed)
Combe Haven - combe derived from comb - A low place enclosed with hills, a valley or haven derived from haefen -
a haven - a protected port.
(My Interpretation - The place where the ships of Hastings were taken for protection in a storm)
Hastings - hast derived from haeste/hasta - in saxon a storm, or wild sea /in latin(roman) it is the generic name
for spears and ings derived from ænge - troubled village(appear to be fortlets or pallisaded villages).
(My Interpretation - The wild sea fort or the spear fort)
| | 3. Landing in the bay north of Barnhorn ▲ |
|---|
The next place to the East is Normans Bay - Barnhorne(Normans Bay is modern and Barnhorne Saxon) this is a
possibility as its overlooked by the cliffs at Eastbourne, but the wasted villages all seem to be
further East, but this may be due to limited local population.
Near the local area is a moated location at Cooden
which could have been built in this time as its known it was in use in the 13th century, only a few
years after the landing, and is likely that the local de Codlinge family just took over the 'flat pack' fort
after the invasion.
Also after plotting in detail the 5 metre contour line it would seem that there was
land protecting this estuary from the worst of the Channel weather by the ridge at Barnhorne,
so was a protected harbour.
- Went past a rocky coastline - Hastings cliffs
- In a sheltered landing place
- Create a moated fort(flat pack) - small fort at Cooden
- Visible from a high hill or cliff - overseen when passing Fairlight
- Near to the wasted villages in the Domesday book
- Within horse riding distance of Hastings
- You restore forts long since destroyed - no evidence
If this was the location then William would have left the area via current day Hooe to Ninfield to join the old
ridgeway at the modern day A271/B2096 junction and then passed through Battle via the old ridgeways (Roman Roads) as
that would be the easiest route to get out of the area and from here could ride to Hastings.
This location is a possiblity but because the destroyed villages are further east then this is
less likely but not impossible.
| | 4. Landing in the Cooden area ▲ |
|---|
The next place to the East is Cooden this is a
possibility as its overlooked by the cliffs at Eastbourne, but the wasted villages all seem to be
further East, but this may be due to limited local population.
In the local area is a moated location
which could have been built in this time as its known it was in use in the 13th century, only a few
years after the landing, and is likely that the local de Codlinge family just took over the 'flat pack' fort after
the invasion.
Also after plotting in detail the 5 metre contour line it would seem that there was
land protecting this estuary from the worst of the Channel weather, so was a protected harbour.
- Went past a rocky coastline - Between Eastbourne and Hastings cliffs
- In a sheltered landing place
- Create a moated fort(flat pack) - small fort at Cooden
- Visible from a high hill or cliff - Overlooked by Beachy Head
- Near to the wasted villages in the Domesday book
- Within horse riding distance of Hastings
- You restore forts long since destroyed - no evidence
If this was the location then William would have left the area via current day Ninfield to join the old ridgeway at
the modern day A271/B2096 junction and then through Battle as that would be the easiest route to get out of the area due
to the Roman Road layout and from here could ride to Hastings.
This location is a possibility, maybe more so than Barnhorne due to the moated site.
| | 5. Landing between Cooden and Bexhill ▲ |
|---|
The next landing place to the East is between Cooden and Bexhill, this is a possibility as its overlooked by the cliffs
at St Leonards, the wasted villages all seem to be further East. The coast here was most likely to be sand or gravel
beaches, so a good place to land 700 ships, and not far from Pevensey.
In the local area is a moated location which could have been built in this time as its known it was in use in the 13th
century, only a few years after the landing, and is likely that the local de Codlinge family just took over the 'flat
pack' fort after the invasion.
- Went past a rocky coastline - Between Eastbourne and Hastings cliffs
- In a sheltered landing place
- Create a moated fort(flat pack) - small fort at Cooden
- Visible from a high hill or cliff - Overlooked by Beachy Head
- Near to the wasted villages in the Domesday book
- Within horse riding distance of Hastings
- You restore forts long since destroyed - no evidence
If this was the location then William would have left the area via current day Ninfield to join the old ridgeway at
the modern day A271/B2096 junction and then through Battle as that would be the easiest route to get out of the area due
to the Roman Road layout and from here could ride to Hastings.
Landing between Cooden and Bexhill is one of the most likely, as it has the space required to
park 700 ships along the sea shore, and is near to Cooden moat, but is a bit to the west of the damaged
villages.
| | 6. Landing south of Bulverhythe ▲ |
|---|
The next landing place to the East is on eroded land south of modern Bulverhythe, this is a possibility as its
overlooked by the cliffs at St Leonards, the wasted villages all seem to be local. The coast here was most likely to be
sand or gravel beaches, so a good place to land 700 ships, and not far from Pevensey.
- Went past a rocky coastline - Hastings cliffs
- In a sheltered landing place
- Create a moated fort(flat pack) - small fort at Cooden
- Visible from a high hill or cliff - Overlooked by the cliffs at St
Leonards
- Near to the wasted villages in the Domesday book
- Within horse riding distance of Hastings
- You restore forts long since destroyed - no evidence
If this was the location then William would have left the area via current day Ninfield to join the old ridgeway at
the modern day A271/B2096 junction and then through Battle as that would be the easiest route to get out of the area due
to the Roman Road layout and from here could ride to Hastings.
Landing between Bexhill and Hastings is one of the most likely, as it has the space required to
park 700 ships along the sea shore, and is directly below the wasted villages.
| | 7. Landing in Combe Haven ▲ |
|---|
Another suggestion for the landing is in the Asten Valley - Combe Haven, but there are some serious disadvantages with
landing in the valley.
The valley entrance seems to be further along the coast near the cliffs at Hastings and negotiating 700 ships through a
small entrance near cliffs seems a bit unlikely.
However if the ships weren't burnt by William as the Battle Abbey Chronicles suggest then after the landing and
consolidation of the area then this is a possibility as a fleet anchorage.
- Went past a rocky coastline - Hastings cliffs
- In a sheltered landing place
- Create a moated fort(flat pack) -
- Visible from a high hill or cliff - Overlooked by the cliffs at St
Leonards
- Near to the wasted villages in the Domesday book
- Within horse riding distance of Hastings
- You restore forts long since destroyed - no evidence
If this was the location then William would have left the area via current day Ninfield to join the old ridgeway at
the modern day A271/B2096 junction and then through Battle as that would be the easiest route to get out of the area due
to the Roman Road layout and from here could ride to Hastings.
Landing in the Combe valley is less likely as 700 ships would have had to negotiate a relatively
small entrance to the valley near the cliffs at Hastings.
| | 8. Landing at Hastings ▲ |
|---|
Another suggestion for the landing is at Hastings, but around Hastings are a significant number of rocky outcrops so
this would be a dangerous place to land a large number of ships.
- Went past a rocky coastline - Hastings cliffs
- In a sheltered landing place
- Create a moated fort(flat pack) -
- Visible from a high hill or cliff - Overlooked by the cliffs at St
Leonards
- Near to the wasted villages in the Domesday book
- Within horse riding distance of Hastings
- You restore forts long since destroyed - no evidence
Landing at Hastings has the same risks or greater than those of the Combe Valley as 700 ships
would have had to land very near the cliffs at Hastings.
| | 9. Landing in the Brede valley ▲ |
|---|
Another suggestion for the landing is in the Brede valley due to its proximity to the land owned by Fecamp.
- Went past a rocky coastline - Hastings cliffs
- In a sheltered landing place
- Create a moated fort(flat pack) -
- Visible from a high hill or cliff - Overlooked by the cliffs at
Fairlight
- Near to the wasted villages in the Domesday book
- Within horse riding distance of Hastings
- You restore forts long since destroyed - no evidence
Landing in the Brede valley would have been very unlikely as the access to the Brede valley at
the time was via New Romney, which although destroyed after the Battle would have been unlikely to attack vessels if
there were 700 passing close to the town.
| | 10. Landing at Old Winchelsea ▲ |
|---|
Landing at Winchelsea is a possibility if the Normans landed in an area owned by the Abbey of Fecamp.
- Went past a rocky coastline - Hastings cliffs
- In a sheltered landing place
- Create a moated fort(flat pack) -
- Visible from a high hill or cliff - Overlooked by the cliffs at
Fairlight
- Near to the wasted villages in the Domesday book
- Within horse riding distance of Hastings
- You restore forts long since destroyed - no evidence
Landing at old Winchelsea is probably unlikely as the fleet would have had to sail to Pevensey
then back along the rocky coastline to land at Old Winchelsea.
This would have been a risky maneuver and also the large shingle bank at Old Winchelsea would make leaving the area more
difficult for horses and troops.
| | Conclusion ▲ |
|---|
It seems most likely that William initially landed at Pevensey, so he could take the old Roman fort of Anderida, and
only leave enough troops there to hold the fort if the Saxons tried to attack, together with cavalry to raid and scout
the local area.
The main force would then sail to somewhere between Barnhorne and Hastings.
There is really only one location, this is the coast between Cooden and the eroded land south of Bulverhythe, as this is
this only place 695 ships can fit, and also Bexhill was wasted as it would have been right in the place of the landing.
These areas would also tie in with William having a camp near the coast
Carmen de Triumpho Normannico -
And so carried with him, returned to his seaside camp
Swearing it better Harold was buried promptly on the coast of the port under a heap of stones
Therefore just as he had vowed high on a cliff
He ordered the body entombed on the ground at the summit.
That he may remain sentry over sea and strand)
William of Jumièges/Orderic Vitalis(Gesta) -
Harold could not be discovered by his features, but was
recognized by other tokens, and his corpse, being borne to the duke's camp, was, by order of the conqueror, delivered to
William Mallet for interment near the seashore, which had long been guarded by his arms.
So a seaside camp for possibly 7000 men and horses needs a large flattish area and this part of the coastline has lower
hills than the cliffs near Hastings. If the area south of Bulverhythe was where the camp was sighted, then they would
only need to cross the Asten river to easily get to Hastings.
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
Local Interest
Just click an image |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
![Landscape of the Hastings Area 1066AD](javascript:launch_resize("/images/DbImages/1066AD_landscape.png"))
![The Hastings Area 1066AD showing Domesday villages](javascript:launch_resize("/images/DbImages/1066_landscape_domesday.png"))
![Possible landing places for Duke William in 1066AD](javascript:launch_resize("/images/DbImages/1066_landscape_landings.png"))
![A map of the coastline at Hastings in 1066AD](javascript:launch_resize("/images/DbImages/1066AD_bexhill_bulverhythe.png"))
