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With Edward’s death, there was no clear successor to the throne of England. Two claims were lodged, the first being from William of Normandy, who was his cousin through the marriage of Aethelred and Emma. It is believed that while he was alive, Edward had acknowledged his claim to succeed to the throne. However, William had a rival by way of Edward’s brother in law, Harold, who held vast estates of land and wielded unrivalled power and influence throughout England. Consequently, following a decision by the Royal Council, Harold was crowned King in Westminster Abbey. William’s disappointment at not becoming sovereign immediately fuelled his desire to take the throne by force. At the same time (and to make things even more complicated for Harold) another claimant, Harold Hardrada - a descendent of the Viking king Canute - had landed on the Humber with a sizeable army.
Things were looking grim for King Harold. Setting out from London with a makeshift army (many of his troops had to be gathered during his march north) he faced a belligerent Viking force at Stamford Bridge near York. To his great credit, the Viking’s were put to flight after a fierce battle and their leader, Hardrada was killed. Harold’s celebrations were short lived though as William was about to land at Hastings. Leading what was by now an exhausted and numerically weakened army, Harold therefore had no alternative but to march his troops straight back down to the south coast.
Landing at Hastings on 28th September 1066, William spent the time between Harold’s arrival preparing his forces for the coming battle. Impressively, Harold’s men marched from York to London, a distance of over 200 miles, in just seven days. After a brief stop in the city to muster extra troops, he then made his way down to Hastings.
On October 14th, the two armies joined in battle. Despite having a numerical advantage, particularly in cavalry, the Normans were unable to break through the Saxon defensive line which had been drawn up on a slope. Indeed, at one stage rumours that William had been killed almost broke the Norman will to fight. However, it was a moment of indiscipline by Harold’s troops that decided the battle’s outcome. With the Normans feigning retreat, a large portion of his men broke from behind their hitherto impenetrable shield wall in anticipation of delivering a decisive blow. The bluff soon meant the Saxons were cut to pieces by William’s cavalry and, despite a heroic stand by Harold’s household troops, the Normans carried the day and Harold lay dead on the battlefield. There was little now to stop William from claiming the crown and despite some resistance during his march to London (for which William exacted swift retribution), he became King on Christmas day 1066, being crowned in Westminster Abbey.
William “the Conqueror” moved quickly to consolidate his position on the throne and in the process, London’s status was significantly enhanced. William was well-aware that he had little support outside London. Indeed, it took many years for him to secure his position in England. Wisely, he immediately authorised the construction of the Tower of London, partly to protect the city and its vital port facilities but also to signal his dominance over the population.