Dig Into History – April 2019

47

fought in the north, William landed unopposed
on the south coast. The invaders established their
base in the town of Hastings and began a
strategic campaign of plundering and destruction.
After rushing north to repel Harald Hardrada,
Harold had to immediately turn back to face
William. He marched south, barely pausing to
await reinforcements. On the morning of October
14, he positioned his army atop a ridge of high
ground near Hastings to meet William in battle.

Tactics — and

Strategy

The English army faced a

Norman force of roughly equal

size, about 14,000 men. The

Normans fought on horseback,

with archers to support the

cavalry. The English fought on

foot. They stood shoulder-to-

shoulder in a defensive formation known as a

shield wall. The long, steep slope of the ridge gave

them an advantage by making it more difficult

for the Norman cavalry to attack them. They

hoped to force the Normans to retreat by

advancing down the slope, holding the shield wall

together to protect them from the Norman

horsemen. The Norman strategy was to break

through the English shield wall, leaving

individual foot soldiers open to attack from

horseback. The English and the Normans used

very different tactics, but either side could have

won the battle?

The fighting began around 9:00 a.m. Early in

the day, a rumor circulated that William was

dead. Part of his army retreated in panic. Some of

the English broke ranks to attack, coming as close

to victory as they did at any point in the battle.

William, however, was not dead, and was able to

rally his men and cut down the English advance.

As the day advanced, the Normans slowly

gained the upper hand. Groups of Norman

horsemen charged the English lines and

pretended to retreat. Their strategy worked. It

lured English soldiers out into the open — to

English soldiers stand behind their shield wall as the Norman cavalry attacks
(from the Bayeux Tapestry).