1 00:00:07,960 --> 00:00:10,200 Late afternoon. 2 00:00:10,200 --> 00:00:12,400 Saturday, the 14th of October. 3 00:00:16,400 --> 00:00:18,680 The year is 1066. 4 00:00:22,520 --> 00:00:25,720 And this is the Battle of Hastings. 5 00:00:34,600 --> 00:00:38,640 But 1066 was about far more than just one battle. 6 00:00:41,400 --> 00:00:46,760 This is the story of three kings, three battles and three invasions. 7 00:00:46,760 --> 00:00:49,280 Of 12 months that transformed Britain. 8 00:00:54,280 --> 00:00:56,040 As well as Harold of England... 9 00:00:57,440 --> 00:00:59,680 ..and Duke William of Normandy... 10 00:00:59,680 --> 00:01:00,840 Do you recognise me? 11 00:01:02,120 --> 00:01:06,240 ..there was also a Viking, King Harald Hardrada, 12 00:01:06,240 --> 00:01:09,280 all facing off in a series of bloodbaths... 13 00:01:11,080 --> 00:01:14,040 ..that brought an end to the long terror of the Vikings. 14 00:01:17,520 --> 00:01:21,720 Before, finally, the epic Battle of Hastings itself. 15 00:01:23,200 --> 00:01:28,920 In a few bloody hours, the Anglo-Saxon world was swept aside. 16 00:01:28,920 --> 00:01:31,920 It was the greatest rupture in British history. 17 00:01:33,960 --> 00:01:37,000 What it led to is stamped on our landscape. 18 00:01:38,160 --> 00:01:40,840 The Normans forged a new Britain 19 00:01:40,840 --> 00:01:45,000 with language, laws and customs we still live with today. 20 00:01:47,000 --> 00:01:50,000 But just how a tiny region of France 21 00:01:50,000 --> 00:01:53,040 seized such power is much less clear. 22 00:01:56,080 --> 00:01:59,520 Now I'm going to travel Europe in search of answers... 23 00:01:59,520 --> 00:02:01,240 Come on! 24 00:02:01,240 --> 00:02:03,720 ..experiment with weapons and tactics... 25 00:02:06,120 --> 00:02:07,280 That is terrifying. 26 00:02:08,360 --> 00:02:11,920 ..and discover revelations hidden within a unique document 27 00:02:11,920 --> 00:02:15,800 written just months after those great battles... 28 00:02:15,800 --> 00:02:19,240 The Carmen tells us that Harald died in a very different way. 29 00:02:21,080 --> 00:02:24,240 ..to reveal a bitter tale of family betrayals... 30 00:02:24,240 --> 00:02:27,240 My brother is a lying dog. 31 00:02:27,240 --> 00:02:29,200 ..and tragic twists of fate... 32 00:02:29,200 --> 00:02:32,440 Soon we will be filling England's graveyards. 33 00:02:32,440 --> 00:02:35,520 ..which would change the shape of Britain... 34 00:02:35,520 --> 00:02:37,640 March to battle. ..and Europe... 35 00:02:39,200 --> 00:02:41,760 ..forever. 36 00:02:41,760 --> 00:02:44,960 Shall we do battle? 37 00:02:44,960 --> 00:02:46,360 MEN CHEER 38 00:02:46,360 --> 00:02:50,040 This is the real story of 1066. 39 00:03:15,760 --> 00:03:19,640 'They say that becoming king is a gift from God.' 40 00:03:22,760 --> 00:03:24,440 How is he? He's not going to last. 41 00:03:26,680 --> 00:03:28,520 How long? Not long now. 42 00:03:32,680 --> 00:03:37,680 'But sometimes, it's about being in the right place at the right time. 43 00:03:40,920 --> 00:03:44,920 'Edward the Confessor is King of England. 44 00:03:44,920 --> 00:03:46,440 EDWARD MUTTERS 45 00:03:50,520 --> 00:03:53,200 'But his long reign is coming to an end.' 46 00:04:02,480 --> 00:04:03,520 Close your eyes. 47 00:04:04,520 --> 00:04:05,560 Rest. 48 00:04:06,960 --> 00:04:11,520 We can never be absolutely sure what happened as Edward lay dying, 49 00:04:11,520 --> 00:04:15,520 but we do know that it led to war 50 00:04:15,520 --> 00:04:19,440 and made 1066 the most famous date in British history. 51 00:04:29,880 --> 00:04:34,040 To go back to 11th-century England is to enter a very different world 52 00:04:34,040 --> 00:04:36,080 which lived by different rules. 53 00:04:36,080 --> 00:04:37,920 It's a long time ago - 54 00:04:37,920 --> 00:04:43,320 you have to go back 500 years to the Tudors and then another 500 years 55 00:04:43,320 --> 00:04:46,960 before them. And the problem is, we don't know very much about it. 56 00:04:54,720 --> 00:04:57,800 Take the battlefield of Hastings. 57 00:04:57,800 --> 00:05:02,040 Today, there aren't many clues here that tell us how things went 58 00:05:02,040 --> 00:05:05,800 on that bloody day. And the sources we do have are fragmentary, 59 00:05:05,800 --> 00:05:08,440 ancient texts which are often conflicting, 60 00:05:08,440 --> 00:05:10,720 semi-fictional poems and sagas. 61 00:05:10,720 --> 00:05:12,840 There are huge gaps in our knowledge. 62 00:05:14,960 --> 00:05:19,320 This was a world still emerging from the Dark Ages, 63 00:05:19,320 --> 00:05:22,440 where reality mingled with epic tales... 64 00:05:23,680 --> 00:05:26,280 ..myths and legends... 65 00:05:26,280 --> 00:05:27,800 to create stories we have been 66 00:05:27,800 --> 00:05:31,600 telling ourselves for almost 1,000 years. 67 00:05:31,600 --> 00:05:35,200 I want to try and get to the heart of what actually happened 68 00:05:35,200 --> 00:05:36,800 in that extraordinary year, 69 00:05:36,800 --> 00:05:40,320 a year that began with King Edward on his deathbed. 70 00:05:48,120 --> 00:05:50,080 EDWARD MUTTERS 71 00:05:52,600 --> 00:05:56,880 'The problem is that the old king is childless. 72 00:05:56,880 --> 00:05:58,840 'England has no successor.' 73 00:05:59,880 --> 00:06:03,080 It's just a fever. God is with you. 74 00:06:05,280 --> 00:06:09,320 'Across Europe, three powerful warlords are watching... 75 00:06:10,760 --> 00:06:11,920 '..and waiting.' 76 00:06:24,280 --> 00:06:26,600 Come on, bloody well mean it! 77 00:06:27,880 --> 00:06:30,440 '200 miles south of London, 78 00:06:30,440 --> 00:06:34,960 'a 38-year-old illegitimate duke rules with an iron fist.' 79 00:06:39,840 --> 00:06:42,040 It's not that hard! 80 00:06:42,040 --> 00:06:44,120 'William of Normandy has fought 81 00:06:44,120 --> 00:06:46,640 'his way to the top since the age of seven.' 82 00:06:51,360 --> 00:06:53,440 At least he can do it. 83 00:06:53,440 --> 00:06:56,000 'He expects to be the next King of England. 84 00:06:57,120 --> 00:07:01,680 'Because he claims that Edward himself has promised him the crown. 85 00:07:09,560 --> 00:07:11,840 'Nearly 1,000 miles north. 86 00:07:17,280 --> 00:07:20,560 'The Viking Harald III is King of Norway.' 87 00:07:22,360 --> 00:07:25,640 You really should know better. I mean, where's your gratitude? 88 00:07:25,640 --> 00:07:28,160 I keep you and your parents safe and you see fit 89 00:07:28,160 --> 00:07:30,880 to ignore your responsibilities. 90 00:07:30,880 --> 00:07:34,200 You need to pay your count. 91 00:07:34,200 --> 00:07:36,520 You simply leave me no choice. 92 00:07:40,640 --> 00:07:46,000 'He'll be known in time as Hardrada, the hard ruler.' 93 00:07:46,000 --> 00:07:50,040 Not that I don't enjoy hearing you squeal like a wretched hog, 94 00:07:50,040 --> 00:07:52,040 but that's enough. 95 00:07:52,040 --> 00:07:57,000 Now, crawl home and tell your neighbours 96 00:07:57,000 --> 00:08:00,880 what happens when you don't pay your dues. 97 00:08:04,320 --> 00:08:06,560 Out of my sight. 98 00:08:07,720 --> 00:08:11,240 'Hardrada is a Viking warrior, of the old school.' 99 00:08:11,240 --> 00:08:12,880 That's that sorted. 100 00:08:14,920 --> 00:08:18,160 'The Vikings ruled England just 30 years ago.' 101 00:08:19,240 --> 00:08:20,600 He did squeal, didn't he? 102 00:08:21,880 --> 00:08:24,200 'Perhaps their time will come again.' 103 00:08:30,320 --> 00:08:31,840 You've been a strong king. 104 00:08:35,240 --> 00:08:36,840 You defended the kingdom... 105 00:08:39,400 --> 00:08:41,760 ..under the eyes of God Almighty. 106 00:08:43,240 --> 00:08:46,200 'Harold Godwinson is the third contender. 107 00:08:48,920 --> 00:08:50,640 'He's the King's brother-in-law...' 108 00:08:51,680 --> 00:08:52,960 Amen. 109 00:08:52,960 --> 00:08:55,680 '..and the power behind Edward's throne.' 110 00:08:57,440 --> 00:09:00,400 You created God's kingdom here on earth. 111 00:09:01,960 --> 00:09:04,080 And I will look after it for you. 112 00:09:06,880 --> 00:09:09,040 I owe it to you as my king. 113 00:09:10,760 --> 00:09:11,880 And as my friend. 114 00:09:14,280 --> 00:09:17,840 England is in safe hands. 115 00:09:24,600 --> 00:09:25,760 'Three warriors... 116 00:09:27,240 --> 00:09:29,080 '..all lusting for Edward's crown... 117 00:09:32,360 --> 00:09:33,760 '..and the English throne.' 118 00:09:41,000 --> 00:09:45,360 I've asked three historians to step into the world of 1066 119 00:09:45,360 --> 00:09:48,880 and enter the minds of our three competing warlords. 120 00:09:48,880 --> 00:09:50,920 This is lies, lies, lies. 121 00:09:50,920 --> 00:09:53,800 All you ever speak are lies. 122 00:09:53,800 --> 00:09:57,120 They'll explore the thinking behind their battle plans. 123 00:09:57,120 --> 00:09:59,760 And that's the moment for my secret weapon. 124 00:09:59,760 --> 00:10:02,800 And this is a glorious bloodbath. 125 00:10:04,800 --> 00:10:06,040 William of Normandy... 126 00:10:07,840 --> 00:10:09,440 ..Harold Godwinson... 127 00:10:11,120 --> 00:10:12,400 ..and Harold Hardrada. 128 00:10:14,920 --> 00:10:17,680 I'm here in Norway and the Vikings 129 00:10:17,680 --> 00:10:21,000 take a pretty keen interest in England. 130 00:10:21,000 --> 00:10:25,200 And by a keen interest, I mean, in the ninth century, the Danes, 131 00:10:25,200 --> 00:10:28,920 another group of Vikings, had conquered and colonised England, 132 00:10:28,920 --> 00:10:31,760 splitting it effectively in two. 133 00:10:31,760 --> 00:10:38,160 Between 1016 and 1042 the whole of England was under Viking rule, 134 00:10:38,160 --> 00:10:40,720 so when I looked from Norway at England 135 00:10:40,720 --> 00:10:43,160 I just see part of a Scandinavian empire, 136 00:10:43,160 --> 00:10:45,680 a place just waiting to be reconquered. 137 00:10:45,680 --> 00:10:50,200 The land I rule, Normandy, is indeed small compared with England 138 00:10:50,200 --> 00:10:52,600 and with Norway. But... 139 00:10:52,600 --> 00:10:56,080 I'm at the head of a terrifying war machine 140 00:10:56,080 --> 00:10:58,880 and I'm a man of indomitable ambition. 141 00:10:58,880 --> 00:11:00,520 HE SCREAMS 142 00:11:00,520 --> 00:11:05,520 And I know that beyond this tantalisingly narrow strip of water 143 00:11:05,520 --> 00:11:10,920 England is waiting, promising me land, plunder, and perhaps, 144 00:11:10,920 --> 00:11:14,960 above all, the chance to become an anointed king. 145 00:11:14,960 --> 00:11:18,200 I'm really not worried about foreign invasion. 146 00:11:18,200 --> 00:11:22,240 After all, we are an island, not easy to get into. 147 00:11:22,240 --> 00:11:26,400 Really, Norway, you have not been a threat for 50 years. 148 00:11:26,400 --> 00:11:31,200 Normandy, you're tiny and you're so busy fighting amongst yourselves 149 00:11:31,200 --> 00:11:33,120 and fighting with the rest of France 150 00:11:33,120 --> 00:11:37,160 that you're not a threat to me at all. I am sitting pretty. 151 00:11:47,000 --> 00:11:49,320 In 1066, England was a glittering jewel. 152 00:11:51,440 --> 00:11:53,520 It was prosperous, it was wealthy, 153 00:11:53,520 --> 00:11:58,200 it had the most sophisticated financial system in Europe. 154 00:11:58,200 --> 00:12:01,520 It was remarkably well organised, very centralised. 155 00:12:01,520 --> 00:12:04,080 The King sat right in the middle of it all. 156 00:12:04,080 --> 00:12:06,680 Taxes flowed in to the Royal Treasury, 157 00:12:06,680 --> 00:12:10,320 making the monarch the richest man in the kingdom. 158 00:12:14,520 --> 00:12:16,800 King Edward spent years using his 159 00:12:16,800 --> 00:12:19,320 vast wealth to build a new royal base 160 00:12:19,320 --> 00:12:21,600 right on the River Thames. 161 00:12:21,600 --> 00:12:25,080 Upstream, to the west of London. 162 00:12:27,960 --> 00:12:33,000 Nowadays, Westminster is the cradle of British power and Parliament. 163 00:12:33,000 --> 00:12:35,280 But 950 years ago it was a very different scene. 164 00:12:35,280 --> 00:12:36,760 Back then it was just a scrap of 165 00:12:36,760 --> 00:12:38,840 English countryside a mile upriver 166 00:12:38,840 --> 00:12:41,080 from the bustling City of London, 167 00:12:41,080 --> 00:12:43,880 home to nothing more than a small monastery. 168 00:12:43,880 --> 00:12:45,200 Until, that is, 169 00:12:45,200 --> 00:12:47,960 King Edward the Confessor decided to build a palace there 170 00:12:47,960 --> 00:12:50,840 and commission a mighty church. 171 00:12:50,840 --> 00:12:54,880 A great symbol of his power, piety and wealth, 172 00:12:54,880 --> 00:12:56,200 Westminster Abbey. 173 00:13:00,640 --> 00:13:03,280 This was a massive labour of religious devotion. 174 00:13:05,000 --> 00:13:08,680 And by 1066, his work was almost complete. 175 00:13:12,240 --> 00:13:14,880 But Edward wouldn't live to see it finished. 176 00:13:14,880 --> 00:13:17,960 Instead, the abbey would become his burial place. 177 00:13:20,040 --> 00:13:23,080 Edward's tomb still stands at its heart. 178 00:13:24,320 --> 00:13:27,280 The previous kings of Anglo-Saxon England, going back to the time 179 00:13:27,280 --> 00:13:30,200 when they're Kings of Wessex, their capital was Winchester, 180 00:13:30,200 --> 00:13:34,680 but Edward is creating a new seat of royal power at Westminster. 181 00:13:34,680 --> 00:13:38,320 We are told because it is a pretty spot, he liked the monks there, 182 00:13:38,320 --> 00:13:41,120 but also because it's conveniently close to London, 183 00:13:41,120 --> 00:13:43,880 and London is taking over as a commercial centre, 184 00:13:43,880 --> 00:13:47,080 so there's good political and economic reasons 185 00:13:47,080 --> 00:13:49,520 for wanting to create that new seat of power. 186 00:13:53,320 --> 00:13:56,760 Edward the Confessor was not in the mould of the traditional 187 00:13:56,760 --> 00:13:59,080 warrior king of the medieval period. 188 00:13:59,080 --> 00:14:01,040 He was much more devout and pious 189 00:14:01,040 --> 00:14:03,600 and was, of course, later made a saint. 190 00:14:05,920 --> 00:14:10,080 The story goes that Edward's extreme piety led him to live 191 00:14:10,080 --> 00:14:13,040 a life of marital chastity. 192 00:14:13,040 --> 00:14:14,760 Whether or not that's true, 193 00:14:14,760 --> 00:14:18,640 Edward's childlessness did leave England with a dangerous problem. 194 00:14:29,040 --> 00:14:30,640 'Three days pass. 195 00:14:32,080 --> 00:14:35,680 'And unexpectedly, the old king suddenly rallies.' 196 00:14:38,880 --> 00:14:42,160 So this is the only surviving copy of the Vita Edwardi Regis, 197 00:14:42,160 --> 00:14:43,920 the life of King Edward, 198 00:14:43,920 --> 00:14:49,040 and it gives us this incredible description of his deathbed, 199 00:14:49,040 --> 00:14:53,480 when Edward hadn't spoken for days, and then he regained consciousness 200 00:14:53,480 --> 00:14:56,000 and he described the people gathered around his bed, 201 00:14:56,000 --> 00:14:59,480 this dream he had had, in which two monks had appeared to him 202 00:14:59,480 --> 00:15:01,440 and given him a prophecy. 203 00:15:01,440 --> 00:15:04,560 And he says then that he's been told... 204 00:15:04,560 --> 00:15:06,240 SHE SPEAKS LATIN 205 00:15:08,600 --> 00:15:11,920 ..within a year and a day after your death, 206 00:15:11,920 --> 00:15:15,680 God has delivered all his kingdom 207 00:15:15,680 --> 00:15:18,120 into the hands of the enemy. 208 00:15:18,120 --> 00:15:23,960 And devils shall come through all this land with fire and scorn... 209 00:15:25,680 --> 00:15:27,280 ..and the havoc of war. 210 00:15:37,960 --> 00:15:40,200 'A day later, 211 00:15:40,200 --> 00:15:43,080 'King Edward is at last at peace.' 212 00:15:44,520 --> 00:15:47,800 PRIEST SPEAKS LATIN 213 00:15:54,640 --> 00:15:56,000 Amen. 214 00:16:02,400 --> 00:16:07,000 Edward's premonition of disaster was about to become all too true. 215 00:16:07,000 --> 00:16:09,240 His death was like a starting gun, 216 00:16:09,240 --> 00:16:12,080 triggering the race to seize the English throne. 217 00:16:14,040 --> 00:16:17,200 'Harold's rivals are at a disadvantage, 218 00:16:17,200 --> 00:16:19,640 'hundreds of miles away across the sea. 219 00:16:21,520 --> 00:16:23,600 'While Harold is on the spot. 220 00:16:25,040 --> 00:16:27,320 'And timing is on his side. 221 00:16:31,600 --> 00:16:35,920 'The leading nobles of England have been in London since Christmas. 222 00:16:37,840 --> 00:16:42,280 'And with no clear heir, it's they who must choose the next king.' 223 00:16:45,080 --> 00:16:48,760 I came to celebrate the birth of our saviour. 224 00:16:48,760 --> 00:16:51,880 And now I lament the death of a king. 225 00:16:51,880 --> 00:16:53,840 A very sad day for England. 226 00:16:53,840 --> 00:16:55,680 A very sad day for us all. 227 00:16:58,040 --> 00:17:03,320 'The Council of Nobles includes one of Harold's brothers, Gyrth, 228 00:17:03,320 --> 00:17:04,960 'Earl of East Anglia.' 229 00:17:04,960 --> 00:17:08,680 He was a good man. A decent king. A great king. 230 00:17:10,240 --> 00:17:14,880 But his illness left him weak and reliant on his true friends. 231 00:17:16,080 --> 00:17:20,200 I think you will find that everybody here was a true friend to him. 232 00:17:24,720 --> 00:17:26,040 When kings die... 233 00:17:28,640 --> 00:17:30,120 ..there is danger in the land. 234 00:17:31,240 --> 00:17:34,320 So we must act quickly and crown a new king. 235 00:17:37,440 --> 00:17:41,320 Harold was well placed and had support. 236 00:17:41,320 --> 00:17:43,120 There was just one problem. 237 00:17:44,280 --> 00:17:48,440 Harold still faced a significant obstacle to becoming king. 238 00:17:48,440 --> 00:17:50,880 Even though he was the most powerful man in the land, 239 00:17:50,880 --> 00:17:52,800 even though he was the king's brother-in-law, 240 00:17:52,800 --> 00:17:55,960 he had no direct blood link with the Crown. 241 00:18:01,000 --> 00:18:04,120 And Edward had left one blood relative. 242 00:18:05,440 --> 00:18:11,160 Just 14 years old, Edgar the Atheling was Edward's great-nephew. 243 00:18:11,160 --> 00:18:12,680 Of course, there is the boy. 244 00:18:13,920 --> 00:18:15,080 But he's a boy. 245 00:18:16,440 --> 00:18:19,080 A boy with royal blood. 246 00:18:21,360 --> 00:18:23,840 These times are dangerous. 247 00:18:23,840 --> 00:18:25,640 We don't need a boy. 248 00:18:25,640 --> 00:18:31,560 We need a man. Someone who knows how to rule, someone who has ruled. 249 00:18:40,160 --> 00:18:43,800 From 1056, Harold has been king in all but name. 250 00:18:43,800 --> 00:18:48,720 He is Edward's right-hand man, he is ambitious, he is a proven soldier - 251 00:18:48,720 --> 00:18:51,520 he's the perfect man to become king. 252 00:18:55,160 --> 00:18:59,520 His father Godwin had successfully built up a great dynasty and also 253 00:18:59,520 --> 00:19:03,720 amassed an enormous fortune of land and of lordship. 254 00:19:03,720 --> 00:19:06,120 You might think of Godwin as being the godfather 255 00:19:06,120 --> 00:19:08,320 of Edward the Confessor's regime 256 00:19:08,320 --> 00:19:12,240 and the organisation that he built up as being a Mafia. 257 00:19:12,240 --> 00:19:14,000 It was very hard to govern England 258 00:19:14,000 --> 00:19:17,040 without that, and so Harold had become the natural choice. 259 00:19:18,520 --> 00:19:22,160 I do have to acknowledge a lot of it is down to my father. 260 00:19:22,160 --> 00:19:25,480 Everything I ever learnt about power and politics 261 00:19:25,480 --> 00:19:26,720 I learned from him. 262 00:19:26,720 --> 00:19:29,480 When he died, King Edward rewarded 263 00:19:29,480 --> 00:19:33,400 me and my brothers with vast areas of land, 264 00:19:33,400 --> 00:19:37,000 so I got the great prize of Wessex. 265 00:19:37,000 --> 00:19:40,200 My younger brother Gyrth, he got East Anglia, 266 00:19:40,200 --> 00:19:42,840 another brother got Kent, 267 00:19:42,840 --> 00:19:45,320 another brother, Tostig, 268 00:19:45,320 --> 00:19:48,800 got that great northern earldom of Northumbria. 269 00:19:48,800 --> 00:19:53,160 So you can see we have pretty much got the whole country sewn up. 270 00:19:59,160 --> 00:20:02,200 Harold was certainly the consummate politician. 271 00:20:02,200 --> 00:20:05,800 He knew he had to clinch the deal and get the King's Council 272 00:20:05,800 --> 00:20:10,320 to make him king. So just a few minutes after Edward's death, 273 00:20:10,320 --> 00:20:12,640 Harold pulled an ace from his sleeve. 274 00:20:15,160 --> 00:20:18,120 An astonishing report of what he claimed 275 00:20:18,120 --> 00:20:20,600 had just happened in Edward's bedchamber. 276 00:20:23,480 --> 00:20:26,560 In these times of loss and uncertainty, 277 00:20:26,560 --> 00:20:29,600 a great burden falls upon us all. 278 00:20:31,480 --> 00:20:33,160 I fear the future for us all. 279 00:20:33,160 --> 00:20:36,160 There is nothing to fear if we have a strong king. 280 00:20:37,640 --> 00:20:39,760 You shouldn't be afraid, my friend. 281 00:20:41,760 --> 00:20:44,720 Edward, in his wisdom, had planned for this day, 282 00:20:44,720 --> 00:20:47,560 and I know there are those who are saying that in the end 283 00:20:47,560 --> 00:20:49,600 he was not of sound mind, but I was there. 284 00:20:52,320 --> 00:20:53,840 He knew what he was saying. 285 00:20:55,040 --> 00:20:56,240 What did he say? 286 00:20:58,480 --> 00:21:03,400 He told me, to my face, that it is an onerous and grave undertaking... 287 00:21:04,840 --> 00:21:05,880 ..to be king. 288 00:21:11,520 --> 00:21:13,400 And I have given my word, friends. 289 00:21:15,000 --> 00:21:18,800 Now, there is much work to be done. 290 00:21:27,280 --> 00:21:29,640 Right, I don't think so. 291 00:21:29,640 --> 00:21:35,320 You really expect me to believe that Edward made you king? 292 00:21:35,320 --> 00:21:38,040 This is an absolutely shameless power grab. 293 00:21:38,040 --> 00:21:40,760 It doesn't matter to me if I convince you, 294 00:21:40,760 --> 00:21:44,440 I only need to convince the earls of England. 295 00:21:44,440 --> 00:21:48,360 I'm sorry, but you're just in the wrong place at the wrong time. 296 00:21:48,360 --> 00:21:50,880 But this is the oldest story in the book. 297 00:21:50,880 --> 00:21:53,760 The deathbed bequest, how convenient! 298 00:21:53,760 --> 00:21:58,720 Well, neither of you were there, I was, so I know what happened. 299 00:22:06,880 --> 00:22:11,160 The disputed moment is depicted in the Bayeux Tapestry, 300 00:22:11,160 --> 00:22:15,360 a 70 metre long work of embroidery that was sewn in England 301 00:22:15,360 --> 00:22:17,720 a decade after 1066. 302 00:22:19,640 --> 00:22:21,720 It's a vivid cartoon strip 303 00:22:21,720 --> 00:22:24,280 depicting the key events of that momentous year. 304 00:22:27,200 --> 00:22:31,160 Edward, on his deathbed, touches Harold's hand, 305 00:22:31,160 --> 00:22:34,000 perhaps naming him as his successor. 306 00:22:35,720 --> 00:22:38,160 Then, after Edward has died, 307 00:22:38,160 --> 00:22:43,680 English nobles hand Harold the crown and point back towards Edward. 308 00:22:45,800 --> 00:22:48,960 Do these images suggest that Edward did indeed choose Harold 309 00:22:48,960 --> 00:22:50,080 to succeed him? 310 00:22:52,680 --> 00:22:53,720 We'll never know. 311 00:22:57,040 --> 00:22:59,640 Either way, truth or lie, 312 00:22:59,640 --> 00:23:02,840 the story was one which the nobles on the King's Council 313 00:23:02,840 --> 00:23:05,920 were happy to go along with. They knew that they needed a strong, 314 00:23:05,920 --> 00:23:10,200 powerful warrior king, and Harold was the best candidate. 315 00:23:10,200 --> 00:23:13,680 So, on the 6th of January, 1066, 316 00:23:13,680 --> 00:23:17,680 England buried one king in the morning and crowned another 317 00:23:17,680 --> 00:23:19,240 in the afternoon. 318 00:23:32,200 --> 00:23:34,360 'Harold is anointed king. 319 00:23:35,520 --> 00:23:39,040 'Just feet away from Edward's freshly buried body.' 320 00:24:03,440 --> 00:24:06,960 This gets worse and worse! 321 00:24:06,960 --> 00:24:10,120 This is shocking behaviour! 322 00:24:10,120 --> 00:24:15,040 The holy convention is that a king is only crowned months after 323 00:24:15,040 --> 00:24:18,800 he has been elected, but Edward is still basically warm! 324 00:24:18,800 --> 00:24:21,480 All the nobles are gathered in Westminster, 325 00:24:21,480 --> 00:24:24,600 they've been there since Christmas waiting for the king to die. 326 00:24:24,600 --> 00:24:27,960 What am I going to do, send them all home and then get them back 327 00:24:27,960 --> 00:24:30,760 in a few months so they can see me getting crowned? 328 00:24:30,760 --> 00:24:35,120 No, the sensible thing is for me to be crowned right here, right now. 329 00:24:37,000 --> 00:24:41,560 Harold had beaten his rivals and won the great prize of the English crown 330 00:24:41,560 --> 00:24:43,720 but his glory would be short-lived. 331 00:24:43,720 --> 00:24:46,400 As the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle put it, 332 00:24:46,400 --> 00:24:49,480 "Earl Harold was consecrated king, 333 00:24:49,480 --> 00:24:53,480 "but he met with little quiet as long as he ruled the realm." 334 00:24:58,720 --> 00:25:01,000 'Across the sea, Harold's rivals 335 00:25:01,000 --> 00:25:03,880 'haven't yet heard news of Edward's death, 336 00:25:03,880 --> 00:25:07,720 'let alone reports of the English earl's rapid rise to the throne. 337 00:25:10,600 --> 00:25:15,040 'William is 200 miles away across the Channel in Rouen, 338 00:25:15,040 --> 00:25:16,880 'the largest city in Normandy. 339 00:25:19,680 --> 00:25:23,200 'The Viking Harold Hardrada is even further away, 340 00:25:23,200 --> 00:25:25,080 'in the uplands of Norway.' 341 00:25:27,200 --> 00:25:31,640 Let the flames cure our wayward peasants of their disloyalty. 342 00:25:32,720 --> 00:25:35,280 'But Harold knows that their state 343 00:25:35,280 --> 00:25:39,040 'of ignorance will very soon come to an end. 344 00:25:59,680 --> 00:26:03,560 'Just seven days into 1066 345 00:26:03,560 --> 00:26:07,040 'and Harold wakes for the first time as king.' 346 00:26:10,360 --> 00:26:12,480 Firstly, it would have made him 347 00:26:12,480 --> 00:26:15,320 three times richer, this is wonderful. 348 00:26:15,320 --> 00:26:18,320 He is suddenly a multi-multibillionaire. 349 00:26:18,320 --> 00:26:22,560 But he would have hoped that the process of being crowned 350 00:26:22,560 --> 00:26:24,480 would have made him special. 351 00:26:27,040 --> 00:26:29,040 He had a great devotion to God 352 00:26:29,040 --> 00:26:31,280 and it must have made a difference to him 353 00:26:31,280 --> 00:26:35,000 to be recognised by God as a different kind of man, 354 00:26:35,000 --> 00:26:38,240 because a king is a different kind of man from an earl. 355 00:26:38,240 --> 00:26:42,160 A king has a connection with God that an earl does not. 356 00:26:46,920 --> 00:26:47,960 Does it feel good? 357 00:26:49,600 --> 00:26:50,680 Not bad. 358 00:26:52,200 --> 00:26:53,880 No, there is much to do. 359 00:26:53,880 --> 00:26:57,440 We have enemies everywhere. Here and abroad. 360 00:26:58,440 --> 00:27:01,320 Keep your friends close and your enemies fearful. 361 00:27:10,960 --> 00:27:12,960 Brussels. 362 00:27:12,960 --> 00:27:14,440 In the 11th century, 363 00:27:14,440 --> 00:27:19,040 this was home to little more than a small religious shrine in Flanders. 364 00:27:21,760 --> 00:27:24,440 Today, Brussels houses a secret... 365 00:27:25,800 --> 00:27:28,600 ..preserved for nearly 1,000 years. 366 00:27:33,800 --> 00:27:36,680 Hidden in the bowels of the Belgian National Library 367 00:27:36,680 --> 00:27:40,520 is an extraordinarily precious manuscript. 368 00:27:40,520 --> 00:27:44,320 A fragile book containing an epic poem, 369 00:27:44,320 --> 00:27:47,440 surviving only in this unique copy. 370 00:27:49,440 --> 00:27:53,440 For decades, historians thought these words were written generations 371 00:27:53,440 --> 00:27:55,040 after the Norman conquest. 372 00:27:57,080 --> 00:27:59,760 But now it is widely accepted that this 373 00:27:59,760 --> 00:28:02,880 is our very earliest account of 1066, 374 00:28:02,880 --> 00:28:05,840 written just months after the Battle of Hastings. 375 00:28:07,040 --> 00:28:10,520 It's packed with vivid details that challenge much 376 00:28:10,520 --> 00:28:12,160 of what we thought we knew. 377 00:28:14,160 --> 00:28:19,160 This document is the Carmen de Hastingae Proelio, 378 00:28:19,160 --> 00:28:22,840 the song or poem of the Battle of Hastings. 379 00:28:22,840 --> 00:28:25,920 And it does have some very vivid descriptions 380 00:28:25,920 --> 00:28:29,920 and it talks about Harold, and it paints him in very black terms. 381 00:28:29,920 --> 00:28:32,080 There's a line here that begins... 382 00:28:32,080 --> 00:28:34,240 HE READS LATIN 383 00:28:38,080 --> 00:28:43,520 "Meanwhile, that emboldened inheritor of the blackest deceit." 384 00:28:43,520 --> 00:28:49,000 He is described at one point as a "fatuous rex", a stupid king. 385 00:28:49,000 --> 00:28:51,520 Elsewhere in the manuscript, Harold is described 386 00:28:51,520 --> 00:28:53,400 as "sceleratus," wicked. 387 00:28:53,400 --> 00:28:55,560 This is what this manuscript is about, 388 00:28:55,560 --> 00:28:58,320 it's not trying to give us an impartial history. 389 00:28:58,320 --> 00:29:00,640 The author tells us in his prologue 390 00:29:00,640 --> 00:29:03,160 that he is writing to praise William. 391 00:29:03,160 --> 00:29:05,160 So it's incredibly partisan. 392 00:29:08,400 --> 00:29:10,600 Partisan it might be, 393 00:29:10,600 --> 00:29:13,080 but the Carmen gives us valuable clues 394 00:29:13,080 --> 00:29:15,560 as to what Harold's rivals would think of him 395 00:29:15,560 --> 00:29:18,600 as soon as they found out that he'd seized the crown. 396 00:29:23,120 --> 00:29:27,640 And in early January, 1066, news was travelling fast. 397 00:29:32,440 --> 00:29:36,040 So how long did it take for the news to reach William in Rouen? 398 00:29:36,040 --> 00:29:38,960 There are basically two routes it might have travelled by. 399 00:29:38,960 --> 00:29:41,240 One is down the Thames by boat, 400 00:29:41,240 --> 00:29:45,280 around the coast of Kent through the Straits of Dover and down that way. 401 00:29:45,280 --> 00:29:49,080 The other is by horseback from London to the south coast and then 402 00:29:49,080 --> 00:29:51,880 on a longship straight across the Channel. 403 00:29:51,880 --> 00:29:55,520 By horseback it took about a day and a half to go from London 404 00:29:55,520 --> 00:29:58,040 to the south coast, then with a following wind, 405 00:29:58,040 --> 00:30:01,080 a day to get across the Channel and a bit longer to get up the river 406 00:30:01,080 --> 00:30:03,160 here to Rouen, so William could have 407 00:30:03,160 --> 00:30:05,560 heard the news in as little as three days. 408 00:30:12,680 --> 00:30:14,400 My lord. 409 00:30:14,400 --> 00:30:15,640 William. 410 00:30:16,760 --> 00:30:18,120 I bring news from England. 411 00:30:19,800 --> 00:30:21,320 Good King Edward has died. 412 00:30:24,200 --> 00:30:25,640 May his soul rest in peace. 413 00:30:27,240 --> 00:30:29,000 The English have crowned a new king. 414 00:30:31,680 --> 00:30:34,080 Harold Godwinson. 415 00:30:34,080 --> 00:30:37,360 How? Edward decreed it on his deathbed. 416 00:30:37,360 --> 00:30:39,240 Why? It makes no sense. 417 00:30:39,240 --> 00:30:41,800 When was he crowned? On the very same day 418 00:30:41,800 --> 00:30:44,720 Edward was buried, and in the same place. 419 00:30:46,000 --> 00:30:47,520 Godwinson! 420 00:30:54,720 --> 00:30:57,280 William wasn't a man to take things lying down. 421 00:31:02,560 --> 00:31:04,680 Within the pages of the Carmen, 422 00:31:04,680 --> 00:31:07,920 William is described in marked contrast 423 00:31:07,920 --> 00:31:10,160 to the fatuous, wicked Harold. 424 00:31:11,480 --> 00:31:16,360 The Carmen describes William as the hero at every point. 425 00:31:16,360 --> 00:31:19,600 So here, for example, there's a line that says... 426 00:31:19,600 --> 00:31:22,080 HE READS LATIN 427 00:31:23,880 --> 00:31:26,400 "He was full of virtue, a bold knight." 428 00:31:27,400 --> 00:31:30,400 You'd expect that from the Carmen because it's written for 429 00:31:30,400 --> 00:31:33,000 William's court, possibly even for William's own ears. 430 00:31:33,000 --> 00:31:34,560 What's interesting, though, is, 431 00:31:34,560 --> 00:31:36,720 whichever source you look at for this period, 432 00:31:36,720 --> 00:31:41,000 whether it's French or Norman or even English, 433 00:31:41,000 --> 00:31:43,520 William is described in similar terms. 434 00:31:43,520 --> 00:31:46,280 In terms of his ability as a general, he is a bold knight, 435 00:31:46,280 --> 00:31:47,600 he is a fearless warrior, 436 00:31:47,600 --> 00:31:49,840 he is a great conqueror. 437 00:31:51,800 --> 00:31:56,240 William was utterly ruthless, the most feared warrior in Europe. 438 00:31:58,480 --> 00:32:02,160 He had been chiselled into this fearsome character 439 00:32:02,160 --> 00:32:04,400 from his very early years. 440 00:32:04,400 --> 00:32:09,240 He was also intensely pious and very frugal in his habits, 441 00:32:09,240 --> 00:32:12,560 but above all else, he was utterly unforgiving. 442 00:32:13,880 --> 00:32:19,200 Never let it be forgotten that I am ultimately of Viking stock. 443 00:32:19,200 --> 00:32:22,640 I am the great-great-great-grandson 444 00:32:22,640 --> 00:32:26,240 of a Viking warlord who 150 years ago 445 00:32:26,240 --> 00:32:30,400 settled in Normandy and made it his own. 446 00:32:31,400 --> 00:32:33,800 And over the succeeding 150 years, 447 00:32:33,800 --> 00:32:38,120 he and his successors carved out what has become 448 00:32:38,120 --> 00:32:43,280 the most militarily potent duchy in the whole of France. 449 00:32:44,480 --> 00:32:48,040 We are Normans, a name that ultimately derives 450 00:32:48,040 --> 00:32:50,160 from our origin, Northmen. 451 00:32:50,160 --> 00:32:54,560 Listen, you can call yourself what you like, but you've changed. 452 00:32:54,560 --> 00:32:57,320 You've come down here, you settled down, 453 00:32:57,320 --> 00:32:59,280 you built yourself some nice castles, 454 00:32:59,280 --> 00:33:01,320 you're even practising Christianity. 455 00:33:01,320 --> 00:33:03,360 I mean, I'm really sorry to say this, 456 00:33:03,360 --> 00:33:05,400 but you've basically gone French. 457 00:33:05,400 --> 00:33:08,600 Yes. I am proud to be Christian. 458 00:33:08,600 --> 00:33:10,720 Et oui. I speak French. 459 00:33:11,720 --> 00:33:13,800 But in my appetite for war... 460 00:33:13,800 --> 00:33:15,680 I will conquer! 461 00:33:15,680 --> 00:33:17,560 ..I'm true to my ancestors. 462 00:33:17,560 --> 00:33:19,560 I'm still pretty Viking. 463 00:33:33,200 --> 00:33:36,320 William's childhood had been deeply traumatic. 464 00:33:37,840 --> 00:33:40,760 He had been born here in 1028, 465 00:33:40,760 --> 00:33:44,560 at the castle that towers over the small town of Falaise. 466 00:33:47,680 --> 00:33:51,080 William's pedigree wasn't entirely aristocratic. 467 00:33:51,080 --> 00:33:55,280 Sure enough, his father was Robert, Duke of Normandy, but his mother was 468 00:33:55,280 --> 00:33:58,200 the daughter of a tanner, a beautiful young woman 469 00:33:58,200 --> 00:34:01,240 called Herleva with whom Robert had a brief affair. 470 00:34:01,240 --> 00:34:03,680 So William was a bastard. 471 00:34:08,840 --> 00:34:11,720 William's father had died when he was just seven. 472 00:34:14,040 --> 00:34:16,000 Normandy had become a war zone, 473 00:34:16,000 --> 00:34:18,800 as competing factions fought for power. 474 00:34:22,640 --> 00:34:24,440 William had to grow up fast. 475 00:34:24,440 --> 00:34:27,720 On one occasion, his steward had his throat slit 476 00:34:27,720 --> 00:34:29,960 as he slept in the bed next to him. 477 00:34:29,960 --> 00:34:34,000 Another time, William had to escape from assassination 478 00:34:34,000 --> 00:34:36,560 by galloping cross-country on horseback. 479 00:34:36,560 --> 00:34:39,360 William himself said in his older years, 480 00:34:39,360 --> 00:34:42,560 "I was schooled in warfare since I was a child." 481 00:34:47,000 --> 00:34:50,120 A brutal childhood had shaped William, 482 00:34:50,120 --> 00:34:54,400 turning him into a duke who ruled through terror. 483 00:34:54,400 --> 00:34:55,880 Trust and loyalty. 484 00:34:57,960 --> 00:34:59,000 That's all. 485 00:35:00,280 --> 00:35:01,680 Not too much to ask, eh? 486 00:35:04,560 --> 00:35:07,040 Next time, perhaps your charming wife 487 00:35:07,040 --> 00:35:09,200 and sweet children will join us. 488 00:35:22,200 --> 00:35:25,480 In 1051, when William was in his early 20s, 489 00:35:25,480 --> 00:35:27,640 the people of the town of Alencon 490 00:35:27,640 --> 00:35:30,840 rebelled against him, beat on animal skins - 491 00:35:30,840 --> 00:35:34,680 a cheap joke about him being the illegitimate son 492 00:35:34,680 --> 00:35:36,600 of a tanner's daughter. 493 00:35:36,600 --> 00:35:38,560 William didn't find it funny. 494 00:35:38,560 --> 00:35:42,440 He stormed the town and seized 32 of the men 495 00:35:42,440 --> 00:35:44,920 and had their hands and feet cut off. 496 00:35:47,760 --> 00:35:52,000 William was a man you definitely didn't want to cross. 497 00:35:53,120 --> 00:35:57,080 And Harold Godwinson had done just that. 498 00:36:08,000 --> 00:36:12,240 What's more, William commanded the most feared soldiers in Europe... 499 00:36:13,200 --> 00:36:14,440 ..the Norman knights. 500 00:36:19,800 --> 00:36:22,760 Their use of cavalry put them at the very cutting edge 501 00:36:22,760 --> 00:36:24,360 of medieval warfare. 502 00:36:32,880 --> 00:36:35,440 Horses can be terrifying. 503 00:36:35,440 --> 00:36:38,040 So I want you to get a feel of what that might be like. 504 00:36:38,040 --> 00:36:40,960 So, we've got our five horsemen there and I'm going to get them 505 00:36:40,960 --> 00:36:43,200 to come screaming up at you. Stay still... 506 00:36:44,360 --> 00:36:46,120 ..let the horses make a choice, 507 00:36:46,120 --> 00:36:48,560 and get an idea of what it might have been like 508 00:36:48,560 --> 00:36:51,560 to face a horse at a full-out charge. 509 00:36:51,560 --> 00:36:53,160 You all right? 510 00:36:53,160 --> 00:36:55,640 Perfect. Thanks very much. Think of England. 511 00:36:57,520 --> 00:36:58,840 OK, when you're ready, guys. 512 00:36:58,840 --> 00:37:00,200 Canter. March. 513 00:37:07,440 --> 00:37:10,400 Five enormous horses coming straight towards me. 514 00:37:10,400 --> 00:37:13,880 And the noise, their breathing, that's what really gets you. 515 00:37:15,280 --> 00:37:16,960 I can feel the ground shaking. 516 00:37:16,960 --> 00:37:18,240 They going to leave a gap? 517 00:37:23,800 --> 00:37:27,120 Right, I could have touched those on both sides as they went past. 518 00:37:28,520 --> 00:37:30,080 That was pretty terrifying. 519 00:37:30,080 --> 00:37:32,000 That's just the horses themselves. 520 00:37:32,000 --> 00:37:35,000 Just being that close to the beasts moving, that speed was terrifying, 521 00:37:35,000 --> 00:37:38,960 but if the men on top had had their weapons and been trying to kill me, 522 00:37:38,960 --> 00:37:41,000 that would have been... 523 00:37:41,000 --> 00:37:42,560 unimaginable. 524 00:37:44,600 --> 00:37:47,600 For the English, this was something completely new. 525 00:37:51,520 --> 00:37:53,680 What is it with the Normans and cavalry? 526 00:37:53,680 --> 00:37:55,440 I mean, why did they get it, 527 00:37:55,440 --> 00:37:57,560 have horses and were such fantastic cavalrymen, 528 00:37:57,560 --> 00:37:59,160 where other people weren't? 529 00:37:59,160 --> 00:38:03,760 I think it comes down to the fact that they're in Europe, 530 00:38:03,760 --> 00:38:07,000 and so you get the influences from the East and it comes across. 531 00:38:07,000 --> 00:38:10,520 The Spanish horses are all sort of bred along, 532 00:38:10,520 --> 00:38:14,560 whereas the Saxons, on their little island, have their native breeds, 533 00:38:14,560 --> 00:38:17,880 so this is a new type of horse on the battlefield. 534 00:38:17,880 --> 00:38:21,120 So, although the Saxons rode horses around and used them for farm work 535 00:38:21,120 --> 00:38:23,320 and stuff, they weren't as high-quality? 536 00:38:23,320 --> 00:38:26,200 No, exactly. The native breeds you sort of see today 537 00:38:26,200 --> 00:38:29,480 are very similar to the ones they would have had - short, stout, 538 00:38:29,480 --> 00:38:33,040 mile after mile at this lovely amble and they can get from A to B, 539 00:38:33,040 --> 00:38:35,960 but this is a very different type of horse altogether. 540 00:38:35,960 --> 00:38:37,680 Do you reckon you can show me how to do it? 541 00:38:37,680 --> 00:38:39,120 I'll give it a go, absolutely. 542 00:38:39,120 --> 00:38:41,720 If you get up on the horse... OK. ..get yourself ready, 543 00:38:41,720 --> 00:38:44,720 and then we'll show you the various ways 544 00:38:44,720 --> 00:38:47,640 of being able to use the lance at speed. 545 00:38:48,680 --> 00:38:51,880 Their chief weapon was a sharpened spear, 546 00:38:51,880 --> 00:38:54,600 the forerunner of the medieval lance. 547 00:38:54,600 --> 00:38:58,680 So, pick it up. Heft it somewhere in the middle, get a feel for it. 548 00:38:58,680 --> 00:39:01,000 And then bring the point down towards me. 549 00:39:02,400 --> 00:39:04,320 Now you've got an overhand grip. 550 00:39:04,320 --> 00:39:07,600 If you wanted to attack, you'd extend the arm a bit, 551 00:39:07,600 --> 00:39:10,960 and you're using the stirrup and the back of the saddle 552 00:39:10,960 --> 00:39:14,680 to use the whole energy of that horse to drive it forward. 553 00:39:16,200 --> 00:39:18,920 The other option is to swap your knuckles over so your knuckles 554 00:39:18,920 --> 00:39:22,040 are underneath, and now you'll find that you can come up 555 00:39:22,040 --> 00:39:24,800 and you can stab on the off side, the nearside, stabbing down, 556 00:39:24,800 --> 00:39:27,720 certainly if people are now trying to grab you from the saddle. 557 00:39:30,520 --> 00:39:32,360 Come on, let's go. Come on. 558 00:39:39,280 --> 00:39:40,320 Oh! 559 00:39:41,400 --> 00:39:45,640 William knew he had a war machine to take on any king, 560 00:39:45,640 --> 00:39:47,000 if he needed to. 561 00:39:48,320 --> 00:39:50,120 THEY PRAY 562 00:39:54,840 --> 00:39:57,000 But in the 11th century, 563 00:39:57,000 --> 00:40:00,680 there was more to power than having an iron heart and a strong army. 564 00:40:02,200 --> 00:40:05,560 All three warlords needed political connections. 565 00:40:06,640 --> 00:40:11,640 And very often these came through choosing the right wife. 566 00:40:11,640 --> 00:40:13,080 Amen. Amen. 567 00:40:15,160 --> 00:40:19,000 Oh, yeah, I really do adore my wife, Matilda. 568 00:40:19,000 --> 00:40:22,000 She is tough and I trust her absolutely. 569 00:40:22,000 --> 00:40:26,440 But I have to admit that she also has political appeals. 570 00:40:26,440 --> 00:40:29,960 I need all the friends I can get 571 00:40:29,960 --> 00:40:35,200 and the father of Matilda is the Duke of Flanders. 572 00:40:35,200 --> 00:40:39,000 Flanders is key strategically. 573 00:40:39,000 --> 00:40:40,400 It is rich. 574 00:40:40,400 --> 00:40:42,360 And Matilda is gorgeous. 575 00:40:42,360 --> 00:40:45,320 So, essentially, what is not to like? 576 00:40:45,320 --> 00:40:49,440 Well, I'm not actually married in the eyes of the church like you are, 577 00:40:49,440 --> 00:40:53,800 but I have been with Edith for 20 years. 578 00:40:53,800 --> 00:40:56,440 We're married in the Danish tradition, 579 00:40:56,440 --> 00:40:59,960 which means that the Church doesn't actually bless it and recognise it, 580 00:40:59,960 --> 00:41:05,000 but the majority of England do recognise it. It's very common. 581 00:41:05,000 --> 00:41:08,040 Here's the news - I've got two wives. 582 00:41:08,040 --> 00:41:09,800 I found the first in Russia. 583 00:41:09,800 --> 00:41:11,280 She's called Elisiv. 584 00:41:11,280 --> 00:41:14,480 Very influential, very powerful Russian family. 585 00:41:14,480 --> 00:41:17,720 My second wife is from home here in Norway. 586 00:41:17,720 --> 00:41:18,960 She's called Tora. 587 00:41:18,960 --> 00:41:22,000 She's from a very influential Norwegian family. 588 00:41:22,000 --> 00:41:25,920 Now, both of these women bring me wealth, they bring me power, 589 00:41:25,920 --> 00:41:27,800 they bring me influence. 590 00:41:27,800 --> 00:41:31,600 Oh, I think that my wife brings more to the table 591 00:41:31,600 --> 00:41:33,720 than either of yours put together. 592 00:41:33,720 --> 00:41:37,120 Russia, Norway - what kind of significance do they have 593 00:41:37,120 --> 00:41:39,520 down here in the cockpit of power? 594 00:41:39,520 --> 00:41:40,920 Look at Flanders - 595 00:41:40,920 --> 00:41:43,800 controlling the narrowest point across the Channel. 596 00:41:43,800 --> 00:41:49,440 So, Flanders, Matilda, both of them are absolutely key to my plans. 597 00:41:53,280 --> 00:41:56,560 By 1066, William was 38 years old. 598 00:41:56,560 --> 00:41:58,280 He was in peak form. 599 00:41:58,280 --> 00:42:00,920 He'd been Duke of Normandy for 30 years. 600 00:42:00,920 --> 00:42:04,080 Now his duchy was strong and powerful, 601 00:42:04,080 --> 00:42:06,920 his enemies and rivals defeated. 602 00:42:06,920 --> 00:42:10,280 Now, he was looking for new lands to conquer. 603 00:42:10,280 --> 00:42:12,800 Above all, he wanted England. 604 00:42:23,200 --> 00:42:27,200 'William responds to news of Harold's coronation immediately. 605 00:42:28,520 --> 00:42:31,400 'His envoy reaches London within days.' 606 00:42:33,280 --> 00:42:36,720 I bring a message from my lord, the Duke of Normandy. 607 00:42:36,720 --> 00:42:38,600 Oh. 608 00:42:38,600 --> 00:42:40,680 How is my dear friend? 609 00:42:40,680 --> 00:42:42,680 He is ill at ease. 610 00:42:43,920 --> 00:42:48,320 My lord wishes you to know his displeasure at recent events. 611 00:42:51,080 --> 00:42:55,680 You must understand the unforeseen position my lord finds himself in. 612 00:42:59,280 --> 00:43:01,400 William says you are a usurper. 613 00:43:02,880 --> 00:43:06,160 That he is the legitimate heir to Edward's throne. 614 00:43:06,160 --> 00:43:09,240 He demands that you yield the kingdom to him. 615 00:43:11,760 --> 00:43:12,800 What? 616 00:43:14,760 --> 00:43:16,840 And be his servant? 617 00:43:16,840 --> 00:43:21,040 My lord reminds you that you swore an oath to him 618 00:43:21,040 --> 00:43:24,160 and that he has a God-given right to the throne. 619 00:43:24,160 --> 00:43:29,320 My lord, Edward, God rest his soul, gave me his dying wish. 620 00:43:33,760 --> 00:43:34,800 Get out of my sight. 621 00:43:44,800 --> 00:43:46,080 Bastard. 622 00:43:52,000 --> 00:43:55,840 Big mistake. William now made a momentous decision. 623 00:43:55,840 --> 00:43:58,360 If Harold wasn't going to relinquish the throne, 624 00:43:58,360 --> 00:44:00,080 William was going to go to war. 625 00:44:00,080 --> 00:44:02,080 He was going to raise an army, 626 00:44:02,080 --> 00:44:05,080 invade England and take the crown by force. 627 00:44:05,080 --> 00:44:08,520 This wasn't just something that William thought he could do, 628 00:44:08,520 --> 00:44:11,160 it was something he thought he had the right to do. 629 00:44:11,160 --> 00:44:14,680 Because William claimed that he'd been promised the throne of England 630 00:44:14,680 --> 00:44:17,160 not just once, but twice. 631 00:44:17,160 --> 00:44:20,640 First by King Edward back in 1051, 632 00:44:20,640 --> 00:44:25,760 and secondly by Harold himself just two years earlier in 1064. 633 00:44:29,920 --> 00:44:34,440 When the Vikings had ruled England 30 years earlier, Edward, 634 00:44:34,440 --> 00:44:38,040 then an Anglo-Saxon prince, had fled to Normandy, 635 00:44:38,040 --> 00:44:39,720 where he'd lived for 20 years. 636 00:44:41,280 --> 00:44:46,200 In 1051, as King, he'd considered William to be his successor. 637 00:44:47,640 --> 00:44:50,800 Much later, Harold had also been to Normandy, 638 00:44:50,800 --> 00:44:53,000 making the same pledge to William. 639 00:44:55,760 --> 00:44:58,880 Or at least, that's what William claimed. 640 00:45:03,800 --> 00:45:06,080 The Norman Chronicles tell us that 641 00:45:06,080 --> 00:45:09,560 in 1051 Edward did indeed promise the throne to William. 642 00:45:09,560 --> 00:45:12,920 Now in contrast, the English chronicles, unsurprisingly, 643 00:45:12,920 --> 00:45:14,960 don't say anything about this. 644 00:45:14,960 --> 00:45:18,480 But there is one interesting account about something that happened 645 00:45:18,480 --> 00:45:21,960 in 1051, because we're told in one version 646 00:45:21,960 --> 00:45:26,040 of the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, that in this year... 647 00:45:26,040 --> 00:45:29,240 SHE READS OLD ENGLISH 648 00:45:29,240 --> 00:45:32,520 "Then, immediately, Earl William came from across 649 00:45:32,520 --> 00:45:34,760 "the sea with a great troop of Frenchmen 650 00:45:34,760 --> 00:45:38,720 "and the King received him and as many of his men as pleased him. 651 00:45:38,720 --> 00:45:40,640 "And then he let him go again." 652 00:45:40,640 --> 00:45:43,320 So, we're told that there was a meeting between them, 653 00:45:43,320 --> 00:45:45,240 but we're not told any details. 654 00:45:45,240 --> 00:45:47,920 But it is, of course, a reasonable enough assumption 655 00:45:47,920 --> 00:45:50,960 that Edward must have received him for a reason, 656 00:45:50,960 --> 00:45:52,960 must have given him something. 657 00:45:52,960 --> 00:45:55,760 You can take my word for it, 658 00:45:55,760 --> 00:45:59,280 15 years ago Edward promised me the throne. 659 00:45:59,280 --> 00:46:00,880 He was 46 years old. 660 00:46:00,880 --> 00:46:03,720 He had no heir. I was the obvious choice. 661 00:46:03,720 --> 00:46:07,000 And a promise is a promise. 662 00:46:07,000 --> 00:46:09,280 You have got to be kidding me. 663 00:46:09,280 --> 00:46:11,040 This is the 11th century. 664 00:46:11,040 --> 00:46:14,120 15 years, that's practically a lifetime. 665 00:46:14,120 --> 00:46:18,080 If he did promise it to you, which I very much doubt, 666 00:46:18,080 --> 00:46:22,760 do you really think that a promise made all that time ago still stands? 667 00:46:22,760 --> 00:46:28,200 You're forgetting that you came to Normandy and you swore to support 668 00:46:28,200 --> 00:46:33,480 my claim to the throne of England on the relics of saints. 669 00:46:33,480 --> 00:46:38,680 You swore it. And now you are going back on your oath which you swore 670 00:46:38,680 --> 00:46:41,480 in the face of God. Oh, utter rubbish. 671 00:46:41,480 --> 00:46:43,280 I promised you nothing. 672 00:46:47,080 --> 00:46:49,520 Harold had made an enemy of one of Europe's 673 00:46:49,520 --> 00:46:51,560 most feared military leaders. 674 00:46:51,560 --> 00:46:53,480 Amen. 675 00:46:53,480 --> 00:46:56,440 An enemy already planning Harold's destruction. 676 00:47:02,160 --> 00:47:05,480 But of course, William wasn't the only warlord 677 00:47:05,480 --> 00:47:07,560 hungry for the crown of England. 678 00:47:18,200 --> 00:47:20,040 Norway. 679 00:47:20,040 --> 00:47:21,840 An ancient Viking heartland. 680 00:47:22,840 --> 00:47:25,400 The kingdom of Harold Hardrada. 681 00:47:25,400 --> 00:47:27,160 MEN SHOUT 682 00:47:35,760 --> 00:47:40,000 News of Edward's death and Harold's coronation would have travelled 683 00:47:40,000 --> 00:47:41,720 on ships like this. 684 00:47:41,720 --> 00:47:44,800 In the 11th century there were well-established trade routes, 685 00:47:44,800 --> 00:47:46,960 and one of them led up to Scandinavia. 686 00:47:46,960 --> 00:47:49,880 It would have taken about a day for a ship to go down the Thames 687 00:47:49,880 --> 00:47:52,400 and reach the open sea of the English Channel here. 688 00:47:52,400 --> 00:47:55,960 Then perhaps four or five days up the east coast of Britain 689 00:47:55,960 --> 00:47:59,080 to the Viking-held islands in Orkney and Shetland. 690 00:47:59,080 --> 00:48:02,000 Across to Norway, two days with a following wind, 691 00:48:02,000 --> 00:48:04,960 and a day in land to where we know Harold Hardrada was 692 00:48:04,960 --> 00:48:07,640 in the uplands of Norway, round about here. 693 00:48:07,640 --> 00:48:12,280 So we can assume that that news reached Harold on something like 694 00:48:12,280 --> 00:48:16,440 the 20th of January, perhaps ten days after it reached Duke William. 695 00:48:16,440 --> 00:48:18,640 We don't know how Harold took that news, 696 00:48:18,640 --> 00:48:21,600 but we do know that the ageing warrior was now well aware 697 00:48:21,600 --> 00:48:24,480 who he'd have to fight if he was going to restore 698 00:48:24,480 --> 00:48:27,600 Viking control over England - he'd have to fight Harold. 699 00:48:31,320 --> 00:48:35,560 'Hardrada's royal camp high in the Norwegian uplands. 700 00:48:36,920 --> 00:48:41,840 'After years fighting overseas, Hardrada has to keep order at home 701 00:48:41,840 --> 00:48:44,640 'before he can turn to thoughts of invasion.' 702 00:48:50,040 --> 00:48:51,160 Einar... 703 00:48:52,680 --> 00:48:58,080 ..you of the flailing sword will drive me from this country 704 00:48:58,080 --> 00:49:00,680 unless I can first persuade you... 705 00:49:03,600 --> 00:49:08,840 ..to kiss my thin-lipped axe. 706 00:49:10,480 --> 00:49:11,640 Come on. Come on. 707 00:49:13,200 --> 00:49:15,920 Kissy, kissy, kissy. 708 00:49:23,160 --> 00:49:27,240 Hardrada had spent his youth fighting his way around the world, 709 00:49:27,240 --> 00:49:30,120 a sword for hire in wars in Sicily, Russia, 710 00:49:30,120 --> 00:49:32,440 Constantinople and the Holy Land. 711 00:49:32,440 --> 00:49:33,600 He loved killing. 712 00:49:33,600 --> 00:49:35,720 In fact, he wrote a poem about it. 713 00:49:35,720 --> 00:49:37,040 He wrote... 714 00:49:37,040 --> 00:49:38,840 I kill without compunction... 715 00:49:40,400 --> 00:49:42,320 ..and remember all my killings. 716 00:49:44,160 --> 00:49:47,680 Treason must be scotched by fair means or foul 717 00:49:47,680 --> 00:49:49,920 before it overwhelms me. 718 00:49:51,600 --> 00:49:54,640 Hardrada writes poetry even on the battlefield. 719 00:49:54,640 --> 00:49:58,240 He knows that this is a way of creating his own mythology, 720 00:49:58,240 --> 00:50:02,720 of recording his great victories and triumphs for future generations. 721 00:50:02,720 --> 00:50:06,040 And like all good Vikings, Hardrada knows that the most 722 00:50:06,040 --> 00:50:08,840 important thing a man can leave behind after 723 00:50:08,840 --> 00:50:11,520 he's died is his reputation. 724 00:50:11,520 --> 00:50:15,120 Oak trees grow from acorns. 725 00:50:15,120 --> 00:50:18,440 I have caused the death of 13 of my enemies. 726 00:50:20,760 --> 00:50:24,440 Like Duke William, we're told by the sources that Hardrada 727 00:50:24,440 --> 00:50:27,680 was greedy for power and possessions. 728 00:50:27,680 --> 00:50:31,400 But there was something much deeper going on in his Viking soul. 729 00:50:31,400 --> 00:50:35,040 He'd failed to conquer Denmark, and like an ageing boxer, 730 00:50:35,040 --> 00:50:38,560 his time as a powerful, virile warrior was 731 00:50:38,560 --> 00:50:40,800 running out and he knew it. 732 00:50:42,640 --> 00:50:46,080 Unlike William, for Hardrada a conquest of England 733 00:50:46,080 --> 00:50:50,440 wasn't just about power, wealth and prestige, 734 00:50:50,440 --> 00:50:54,000 it was about creating an immortal Viking legend, 735 00:50:54,000 --> 00:50:55,840 one that would live on forever. 736 00:50:58,440 --> 00:51:01,320 I am 50 years old and by 11th-century standards 737 00:51:01,320 --> 00:51:02,800 that's kicking on a bit, 738 00:51:02,800 --> 00:51:05,680 so I've probably got one big conquest left in me. 739 00:51:08,120 --> 00:51:11,760 And I think England is going to be that conquest. 740 00:51:11,760 --> 00:51:15,640 Now, don't forget, historically, from a Viking point of view, 741 00:51:15,640 --> 00:51:19,640 England's just as much ours as it is the Anglo-Saxons'. 742 00:51:19,640 --> 00:51:24,320 Invading England is just what Vikings do, it's in our DNA. 743 00:51:24,320 --> 00:51:28,200 And I tell you this, if we invade, we'll head straight for the North. 744 00:51:28,200 --> 00:51:32,680 We'll come to a town like York, full of people with Viking ancestry, 745 00:51:32,680 --> 00:51:34,640 and we'll get a hero's welcome. 746 00:51:40,080 --> 00:51:42,720 'Harold's days of peace are numbered. 747 00:51:43,920 --> 00:51:46,720 'William is beginning to build an invasion force. 748 00:51:48,680 --> 00:51:52,240 'While Hardrada dreams of a great, immortal victory. 749 00:51:54,080 --> 00:51:58,240 'But Harald also faces a third enemy, 750 00:51:58,240 --> 00:52:00,280 'someone much closer to home. 751 00:52:02,280 --> 00:52:06,400 'As well as Gyrth, Harald has another brother 752 00:52:06,400 --> 00:52:08,280 'who's not quite so loyal. 753 00:52:10,640 --> 00:52:14,440 'The Earl of Northumbria, recently exiled from England. 754 00:52:15,960 --> 00:52:18,720 'His name is Tostig. 755 00:52:32,240 --> 00:52:36,520 'Just three weeks into Harold's reign and family betrayal 756 00:52:36,520 --> 00:52:39,040 'lands on the shores of Normandy.' 757 00:52:41,520 --> 00:52:44,680 My brother, he's a lying dog. 758 00:52:46,080 --> 00:52:48,920 You've come all this way to tell me what I already know? 759 00:52:48,920 --> 00:52:52,040 He betrayed me too, and I'm family. 760 00:52:54,760 --> 00:52:56,640 I've come here to bring him down. 761 00:52:57,800 --> 00:52:59,320 And why should I trust you? 762 00:53:00,720 --> 00:53:01,880 You share his blood. 763 00:53:03,240 --> 00:53:06,000 I can't help that. But I can help you. 764 00:53:07,120 --> 00:53:10,000 He's stolen my lands, he's stolen your crown. 765 00:53:11,560 --> 00:53:13,560 Together, we can destroy him. 766 00:53:23,800 --> 00:53:28,800 Tostig landing in Normandy was a stunning act of treason. 767 00:53:28,800 --> 00:53:32,960 Here was an English earl plotting with a Norman duke 768 00:53:32,960 --> 00:53:34,920 to destroy his own brother. 769 00:53:34,920 --> 00:53:37,880 It's only reported in one chronicle, but if it's true, 770 00:53:37,880 --> 00:53:42,000 it shows just how poisonous relations had become between Tostig 771 00:53:42,000 --> 00:53:43,920 and his brother Harold. 772 00:53:43,920 --> 00:53:48,920 It also shows just how fragile power could be in the 11th century. 773 00:53:50,400 --> 00:53:52,160 Tostig is a fascinating character. 774 00:53:52,160 --> 00:53:56,880 He was supposedly more handsome than Harold and braver than Harold 775 00:53:56,880 --> 00:53:59,000 and he's become Earl of Northumbria. 776 00:54:00,840 --> 00:54:03,600 But Tostig's rule in Northumbria was chaotic. 777 00:54:03,600 --> 00:54:07,960 He overtaxed the land, he oppressed the nobles... 778 00:54:07,960 --> 00:54:11,080 In fact, it's thought that he had three of the nobles of Northumbria 779 00:54:11,080 --> 00:54:15,400 assassinated, and it became too much for them and they rebelled 780 00:54:15,400 --> 00:54:16,800 and they marched south. 781 00:54:19,400 --> 00:54:21,000 Six months earlier, 782 00:54:21,000 --> 00:54:24,200 Tostig had forced Harold to make an unenviable decision. 783 00:54:26,720 --> 00:54:28,200 Harold has two choices. 784 00:54:29,800 --> 00:54:33,200 If he supports his brother, there is going to be a civil war. 785 00:54:33,200 --> 00:54:36,080 Now, the English have learnt, if there's one thing the 11th century 786 00:54:36,080 --> 00:54:37,960 has taught them, it is if they fight each other, 787 00:54:37,960 --> 00:54:40,520 then the Vikings are going to invade and conquer them all. 788 00:54:40,520 --> 00:54:42,400 So there is a stand-off and Harold, I think, 789 00:54:42,400 --> 00:54:46,080 makes the wise choice that he has to, you know, sacrifice his brother, 790 00:54:46,080 --> 00:54:47,960 his brother has to go into exile. 791 00:54:49,960 --> 00:54:53,920 Tostig now hated his brother with every fibre of his being. 792 00:54:53,920 --> 00:54:56,600 He wanted his land back and he wanted revenge. 793 00:54:58,720 --> 00:55:02,440 Tostig's thirst for vengeance was so strong 794 00:55:02,440 --> 00:55:04,960 that he didn't stop at William. 795 00:55:04,960 --> 00:55:07,920 He wanted to gain the support of another great warlord. 796 00:55:10,800 --> 00:55:15,160 According to the Norse sagas, after his trip to Normandy, 797 00:55:15,160 --> 00:55:20,480 Harold's rebellious brother Tostig sailed 1,000 miles north to Norway 798 00:55:20,480 --> 00:55:22,240 to petition the Norwegian King. 799 00:55:26,640 --> 00:55:31,040 So, the black sheep has come to Norway. 800 00:55:33,280 --> 00:55:36,360 How can you be of any use to me? 801 00:55:36,360 --> 00:55:39,800 Most of the nobles in England hate my brother. 802 00:55:41,560 --> 00:55:43,720 They support me... 803 00:55:43,720 --> 00:55:45,200 and they will support you. 804 00:55:47,000 --> 00:55:48,440 They could make you king. 805 00:55:49,840 --> 00:55:51,320 Do I look like a fool? 806 00:55:52,680 --> 00:55:57,080 There was never born in Scandinavia a warrior to compare with you. 807 00:55:57,080 --> 00:56:00,360 But England is yours for the taking. 808 00:56:00,360 --> 00:56:03,720 Invade now and your name will live forever. 809 00:56:06,520 --> 00:56:09,120 In battle storm we seek no lee. 810 00:56:10,720 --> 00:56:13,960 With skulking head and bending knee... 811 00:56:19,400 --> 00:56:25,080 ..I will out and carve my name in legend. 812 00:56:31,040 --> 00:56:34,760 'Hardrada and Tostig agreed to work together 813 00:56:34,760 --> 00:56:36,800 'to assemble an invasion force 814 00:56:36,800 --> 00:56:41,040 'and attack Harold's England in late summer, from the north. 815 00:56:43,480 --> 00:56:46,360 'Meanwhile, 1,000 miles to the south, 816 00:56:46,360 --> 00:56:49,840 'William's own preparations are already well underway.' 817 00:56:50,840 --> 00:56:52,200 By summer we'll be ready. 818 00:56:53,480 --> 00:56:57,000 If it is God's will, then his will will be done. 819 00:56:59,240 --> 00:57:02,400 'Right now, Harald knows nothing of either plot 820 00:57:02,400 --> 00:57:05,280 'being hatched from opposite ends of his kingdom.' 821 00:57:07,000 --> 00:57:10,040 Patience is half of happiness. King Edward used to say that. 822 00:57:11,040 --> 00:57:12,120 Wise words. 823 00:57:14,560 --> 00:57:18,360 The other half is a sharpened sword. 824 00:57:20,000 --> 00:57:21,720 Harold wasn't stupid. 825 00:57:21,720 --> 00:57:23,600 He was a canny warlord and he knew 826 00:57:23,600 --> 00:57:27,160 all too well the rules of 11th-century realpolitik. 827 00:57:27,160 --> 00:57:30,080 Now, just six weeks after his coronation, 828 00:57:30,080 --> 00:57:35,080 the new king must have known an attempt would be made to kill him 829 00:57:35,080 --> 00:57:37,800 and rip the crown from his bloody head. 830 00:57:37,800 --> 00:57:42,400 The question was, when would that attack come, and from where? 831 00:57:49,040 --> 00:57:52,640 Next time, family betrayal turns to war 832 00:57:52,640 --> 00:57:55,320 as Tostig attacks England's southern shores. 833 00:57:56,640 --> 00:58:00,400 While William raises a vast force of men and ships. 834 00:58:01,680 --> 00:58:05,760 And Harald fights a marauding Viking army for his life... 835 00:58:08,120 --> 00:58:09,800 ..and his crown.