and none would fight against him, so the king could not drive him away, and had to give him his earldom again. Then the Normans got them out of the country as quickly as they could. Soon after, Godwine died and his son Harold became earl in his place. Harold got on well with the king, and during the rest of the reign it was really he who governed the country. When Edward came to die he advised the Wise Men to choose Harold in his stead, and they chose him accordingly. 1 Ninth century, from the beginning of the reign of Egbert to the end of the reign of Alfred. 2 Rolf, called in Latin Rollo. 3 confessor, a holy man. 4 Boulogne, in the north-west of France, south of Calais. 5 6 quarter, to lodge. chastise, to punish. triumph, to gain a victory. BRIEF and stormy was the reign of Harold. He was crowned in January; in October he was slain yet in that short time he defended his country against two of the mightiest rulers in Europe, and fought two of the most famous battles in our history. William, Duke of Normandy, pretended that he, on the death of Edward the Confessor, became the rightful king of England. His claim was twofold: he said he was related to Edward, and that Edward had promised him the crown. He was related through marriage, but he did not belong to the royal family, and there were nearer relatives than he living. Besides, the English had till then never thought of kinship alone when choosing their kings. It is very likely true that Edward had promised William the crown; but the promise was worthless, for the Wise Men 1elected the king, and Edward himself, when dying, had advised them to elect Harold. Thus, though William in reality had no right whatsoever, he could make out what looked, to people who did not know all the facts, like a very good claim. As soon as he heard that Harold was made king he began to prepare for the invasion of England. Harold, on his part, got together a large army to withstand him. There were then in this country no regular soldiers except a small body called the king's "house-carls," so most of Harold's fighting men were farmers. After they had been with him for four months waiting for William harvest-time came and many of them returned to their homes. Then, while the king was left with only a small force to meet the expected invader in the south, an unexpected invader appeared in the north. This was a very famous warrior, Harold 2 Hardrada, king of Norway. With him was Tostig, brother of the English Harold. In the days of Edward the Confessor Tostig had been made Earl of Northumbria, but he governed so harshly that the people rebelled. Then his earldom was taken 3 away and he was banished. After a time he joined himself to Harold of Norway, hoping by his aid to win back the earldom. They came with a great fleet, entered the Humber, sailed up the Ouse as far as York, and took the city. Then, leaving their ships, they marched to Stamford Bridge on the Derwent. There they SHIP OF WILLIAM THE CONQUEROR. were met by the English king, who had hastened north with his little army. A long and fearful battle was fought wherein the Norwegians were utterly defeated. Harold Hardrada, Tostig, and thousands of their followers were slain. While Harold was at York, holding a feast to make glad for the great victory that had been won, news reached him that William Duke of Normandy had landed at 5 Pevensey. The king hurried southwards with what soldiers were left him, bidding Edwin and Morkere, the earls of Mercia and Northumbria, bring up their forces. The earls did not obey, and Harold marched into Sussex with the men of London, of Kent, and of the east and south. He pitched his camp on the hill of the town of Battle now stands. Senlac, where After staying a very short time at Pevensey William had moved on to Hastings, where he made his head-quarters. Thence on the morning of Saturday, October 14th, 1066, he marched forth to do battle with Harold. 7 The English were arrayed on the side of the hill of Senlac. On the steepest part, where Battle Abbey was afterwards built, Harold planted the old flag of Wessex and his own standard. Around them he placed all his best fighting men; away to the right and left he ranged the rest. In front of his army he put up a stout palisade. The English all fought on foot. Those in the middle of the line were armed with shields, spears, and great two-handed axes; the others only had pitchforks, pikes, and the like. The chief strength of William lay in his knights, who were clad in mail and fought on horse-back. He had also a large body of bowmen, and heavy-armed footmen. About nine o'clock the fight began. First of all the Norman archers let fly a great cloud of arrows. Then the footmen attacked the barricade, but were |