Why did William win
the Battle of Hastings?
L/O – To describe what happened at the battle
at to identify why William won
Starter – Who won the Battle of Stamford
Bridge? How did they win it?
The Saxon Army
The Saxon army was made up of…
Housecarls – professional soldiers
armed with battleaxes
Fyrd – armed with spears and
sometimes swords
Total strength = approx. 6000 men
The housecarls were highly trained and formed the core
of the army. The fyrd were ordinary men called up to
serve in times of emergency. They were unpaid and had
little or no training.
The Norman Army
The Norman army was made up of…
Archers (armed with bows and
arrows)
Cavalry (men on horseback,
armed with swords)
Foot soldiers (armed mainly with
spears)
Total strength = approx. 6000 men
All William’s soldiers had training and
experience. Many were professional
mercenaries.
Label your pictures with the following…
round wooden shield
overlapped with neighbour’s
shield to form a shieldwall
destrier (warhorse
capable of carrying a
knight and his armour)
English fyrdmen (lightly
armed or unarmed part-time
soldiers)
English housecarl (heavily
armoured foot soldier)
Large kite-shaped
shield that can cover
the whole body
Long chainmail hauaberk
reaching to the knees
Lance for use on horseback
Short chainmail tunic
Heavy axe that could
be used with one or
two hands
Norman archer
Mounted Norman
knight
Long, straight sword
Helmet with nasal guard to
protect the nose
Look at the weapons and armour of the two sides at Hastings. Who
do you think had the upper hand? Explain your answer carefully…
The Battle of Hastings
Why did William win
the Battle of Hastings?
L/O – To describe what happened at the battle
at to identify why William won
Starter – Which side had the better army?
William or Harold’s?
The Normans
arrive!
8.30am – William’s army arrives and finds Harold and his army already in place on
the Senlac Ridge. Harold and his standard are just behind the English shieldwall.
William divides his army into three sections; the Bretons under Alan of Brittany
next to some marshy ground; the French and Flemish under Roger of
Montgomery; the Normans, whom he commands himself, in the centre.
Each section of William’s army has three parts: the archers at the front; the
infantry in the middle; the cavalry at the back.
The Battle Begins!
9.30am – The archers in William’s army are ordered forward to the bottom of the
Senlac Ridge. From here they shoot at the English.
10.00am – William sends all of his infantry against the English shieldwall.
11.00am – The Breton infantry lose heart and retreat back down the hill. Panic
spreads among William’s infantry and they believe William has been killed.
11.30am – William’s infantry turn and retreat down the hill. William removes his
helmet to show he is still alive and to stop his infantry from running away from
the battlefield. Some English fyrd soldiers chase the retreating Norman infantry
but they are cut down by William’s cavalry.
William’s cavalry attack!
12.00 noon – William launches all of his cavalry against the shieldwall but they fail
to break through. The cavalry pretend to run away in panic; some English fyrd
soldiers fall for the trick and chase after them. The cavalry turns around and
slaughters them.
The Final Attack!
2.00pm – William orders his archers to fire high up in the air so that their arrows
drop down on to the heads of the English.
2.30pm – William throws all of his remaining cavalry and infantry at the weakened
English line.
3.00pm – Harold’s brothers, Leofwine and Gyrth, are killed as the English fight
desperately to hold the shieldwall together. Even Harold joins the fighting.
4.00pm – William’s army finally bursts through the shieldwall and breaks the
English up into small groups of exhausted soldiers.
The End of the battle!
5.00pm – Harold is killed, surrounded by his bodyguard. The English fyrd, seeing
their king dead, flee the battlefield.
5.30pm – The remaining housecarls retreat from Senlac Ridge, fighting as they go.
They stop on the top of Caldbec Hill and make their final stand. They fight to the
death.
Why did William win the Battle of
Hastings?
• There are a number of reasons
why William won the battle.
Before you write your essays,
you need to decide what those
reasons were.
1.Look at the cards and decide if
any sub-headings could be
used to divide the cards into
groups.
Why did William Win?
2. Now sort the cards into the following groups:
a)William’s skill
b)Harold’s mistakes
c)Luck
d)The nature of the two armies
Which factor was the most important in
helping William win?
Why do you think William won the
battle?
Why did William win the Battle of
Hastings? Essay Plan
Introduction - Where was the battle? When was the battle? Why was there a battle?
Finish by completing the following sentence: “William won the Battle of Hastings for
four types of reasons. These are…”
1. William’s Skill
Write about how William’s skill as a soldier and leader helped him win the battle.
Give the best example of William’s skill first and then any other examples.
2. Harold’s Mistakes
Give examples of how Harold’s mistakes helped him lose the battle.
3. Luck
Give examples of Harold’s bad luck.
4. The two armies
It is possible to argue that William was bound to win the battle because his army
was better than Harold’s. Give examples to show this.
Conclusion
Summarise your information. Was is the most important type of reason? Give
reasons for your choice.
Plenary: Can you remember?
The Battle of Hastings
• Create a presentation about the Battle of Hastings.
Think about:
• When was it?
• Where was it?
• What were the two armies like?
• What happened?
• Who won and how?
• What happened after the battle?
• What was the main reason why William won?