an oath was a very serious promise made on a holy item

a papal banner was a symbol from the pope showing  his support for something

in medieval society, barons were men who the monarch had granted land to directly

Norman preparations for invasion in 1066

History

In 'Norman England: how did William the Conqueror subdue England?', pupils learnt about the reaction of the Anglo-Saxons to Norman rule and how William consolidated his 1066 victories. In this unit, pupils will learn how their knowledge of Norman England can be applied to a specific historic environment linked to the Normans.

Historic environment (Norman England)

a very serious promise made on a holy item

a symbol from the pope showing his support for something

men who the monarch had granted land to directly

when an army/country uses force to go into a country and take control

Match the keywords to their correct definitions.

Complete the sentence: The {{}} support and the promise of land and wealth from England convinced Norman barons to join the invasion.

In 1064, Harold swears an oath to William.

Harold is offered and accepts the crown of England.

Men cross the Channel to take the news to William.

William sent ambassadors to Harold reminding him of his oath.

In return, Harold must have set out his own justification.

William orders an invasion fleet to be built.

Put the following events in chronological order.

Who was given the job of convincing the other Norman barons to fight against England?

How long did it take to build and prepare William's fleet?

William had decided to build more ships at the last minute.

The wind was not going in the right direction.

Harold had surrounded the area and so William's fleet could not leave.

William was waiting for his army to join the ships before the fleet could leave.

Why was William’s fleet stuck in Dives-sur-Mer by August 1066?

Harold first called out a fyrd to defend the southern coast from William's invasion in May 1066. When was he forced to disband it again?

number of days a fyrd could be called out for

number of ships in Hardrada's invasion fleet

number of men in Hardrada's invasion army

likely number of men defending the southern coast in 1066

Match the numbers to complete a correct statistic.

He gathered his housecarls and set off north

He sent messages to negotiate with his brother

He summoned the Witan and asked for their advice

How did Harold respond on hearing of Hardrada and Tostig's invasion?

Harold showed impressive military leadership.

Fyrd fighters were no match for experienced Viking warriors.

The English victory did also weaken Harold's forces against William.

The Viking invasion was a serious threat to Harold's control of England.

The Viking invasion force was too small to be successful.

Which of these are valid conclusions historians can make about the Battle of Stamford Bridge?

Launch a rapid response, perhaps aiming for another surprise attack

Send his brothers to begin attacks on William while he organised defences

Wait for William's army to run out of food and water

Wait in London until he had as many troops as possible

Which of these options for dealing with William's invasion did Harold decide to act on?

Starter Quiz