Nil Satis Nisi Optimum

At the Battle of Hastings, William had killed King Harold and most of the English leaders. However, there were still many who wanted to carry on fighting William.

King William had invaded England and won the crown, but it did not mean he was in control of England. William was forced to crush many rebellions.

William reacted very harshly to any resistance. This was shown in 1069-70 with the Harrying of the North. William destroyed large areas of land, turning it into wasteland. Many thousands of people died.

William faced much less resistance after the early 1070s. The harshness of the Harrying of the North was a clear warning for all!

After the Battle of Hastings in 1066, William 'the Conqueror' led his army to Romney.
Some of his troops had landed there by mistake and had been killed.The Normans burned the town and killed most of the people. News of this terrible revenge spread. When William moved on to Dover and began to do the same, Dover wasted now time and surrendered.

The people of Kent accepted William as King. The Church retained the extensive properties acquired before the conquest and the laws of gavelkind, peculiar to our county, were retained.

The lands of the lords who had opposed William at Hastings were confiscated. Strategic areas were given to William's loyal supporters. The Normans were now in control.

1) Who was the King of England at the beginning of 1066?
a.Harold Godwinson
b.Edward the Confessor
c.William the Conqueror

2) Why was there a problem when the King died?
a.It was unclear who would be King next
b.Nobody wanted to be King
c.The weather was terrible

3) Why was the year 1064 important to Duke William?
a.He was born that year
b.It was the year he became Duke of Normandy
c.Harold is supposed to have promised to support Duke William

4) Why might we doubt Harold Godwinson's claim?
a.He was lying
b.He didn't have an independent witnesses
c.He had no claim to the throne

5) In 1066, who invaded England first?
a.Harold Hardrada
b.Harold Godwinson
c.Duke William of Normandy

6) When was the Battle of Stamford Bridge?
a.Sunday 24th September 1066
b.Monday 25th September 1066
c.Tuesday 26th September 1066

7) The Vikings arrived in about 300 ships, how many did they leave in?
a. 65
b. 24
c. 40

8) How far did King Harold and his men march?
a.200 miles in 10 days
b.225 miles in 5 days
c.250 miles in 9 days

9) When was the Battle of Hastings?
a.8am to 4.30pm 14th October 1066
b.12noon to 4.15pm 14th October 1066
c. 9.30am to 5.30pm 14th October 1066

10) What was the main Saxon tactic at the Battle?
a.Defend using the shield wall
b.Attack the Normans viciously
c. Chase the Norman soldiers down the hill

11) How did Duke William win the Battle of Hastings?
a.Tricking the Saxons into breaking up their shield wall
b.Shouting louder than the Saxons
c.Attacking again and again, until the Saxons had enough

12) How was King Harold killed?
a.An arrow in the eye
b.He fell backwards off his horse
c.He was hurt by an arrow in the eye, and then killed by sword.

Give it your best shot!