Stamford Bridge: The battle that ended an era: The Conclusion

 

The Norwegians have landed and have defeated the northern earls, brothers Morcar and Edwin, at Gate Fulford. Harold has marched north, gathering an army as he goes, to face his brother Tostig and King Harald of Norway as they unwittingly waited at Stamford Bridge for hostages and  supplies to arrive from York.

Stamford Bridge crossed the River Derwent a few miles south of York and was far enough away from York to be of little further threat to the city and half way between York and where the Norwegians had left their ships at Riccall. Harald, the  King of Norway, commonly known later as Hardraada, with the somewhat inimitable reputation and King Harold of England's implacable brother, Tostig, had brokered a deal with the defeated leaders of York that they would meet them here at this little settlement with the agreed 150 hostages and provisions that were promised. On Monday, September the 25th, their men were camped on both sides of the river Derwent. It was a warm sunny day and they were enjoying the warm weather. Then came the storm in a form of a dust cloud. The marching feet of thousands of infantry and horsemen could be seen, their glittering weapons and steel tipped spears sparkling like shards of broken ice. Harold Godwinson and his army were about to fall upon them in a surprise assault.  


The battle as drawn by
Tony Wait

 There are a variety of versions of the prelude to the battle, having done my best to piece the known evidence together, I have consolidated them into what seems the most feasible interpretation. What seems to be pretty conclusive is that unfortunately for  the Norsemen, they had gone to Stamford Bridge to meet the English hostages without their maille, the very thing necessary for survival in a battle. They did however, carrry their helmets, shields and weapons. The chronicles all agree that this was due to the warm and sunny weather and having defeated the Northern armies quite decisively at Gate Fulford, they were  certainly not expecting to have to use them so soon after their victory in York. Half of Hardrada's forces were back at Riccall with the fleet, led by his son Olaf and the Earl of Orkney. Some of his men had been out rounding up cattle (Rex 2011) and were on the open ground on the west bank of the river when the scouts spotted Harold's army approaching them. Marren (2004), in his book about the battles of 1066, describes the bridge by 11thc reckoning as being wide enough for the roads which reached the bridge, to go through it. This seems a reasonable reckoning seeing as the roads continue out to the battle flats and beyond.

According to Snorri Sturluson, Harold wanted to parley first, offering his brother peace and his former earldom back, plus more. Other sources state that Harold came upon them on horseback and swooped down on the Vikings on the open ground of the west bank, catching them unawares. They cut them down, slashing and spearing them.  The Norwegians fought to create a circular shieldwall as the horses ride round them. In the meantime, Hardrada rallies his men over from the east bank to cross the bridge in a boar-snout, Svinfylking,  to come to their aid as he sees the English ride them down. Despite losing many men, Harald of Norway manages to form a circular shieldwall and with his famous Landwaster banner flapping in the wind, get his men back to the bridge and across the otherside as the English are recoiling from this ferocious attack. 

Many of the sagas report the English use of cavalry, although there is some discrepency from historians as to the validity of it. The English were generally thought to favour fighting on foot as infantry, however this battle would not have been the first  that had seen the English fight on horseback as they did at The Battle of Hereford. It seems reasonable enough to believe that if Harold and his huscarles had journeyed on horse along that road from York,  seeing the Norwegians camped by the river, Harold may have felt that to stage a mounted surprise attack  would have given them the edge, rather than wasting time dismounting.

Once over the bridge, Hardrada was able to take in the gravity of the situation. There he was with just half his of his  lightly armed warriors, facing the hordes of English soldiers with only the bridge and the river between them. Both sides would have paused to regroup and marshall their troops ready for the next clash. At some point King Harald was said to have sent 3 riders to summon the rest of his forces back at Riccall to re-inforce his outnumbered army.

This would have been a good time to parley and if Snorri's version is to be believed, it was Harold who wanted to parley. Both kings are said to have ridden up to their respective riverbanks on their horses. Tostig was with Hardrada, perhaps to translate. Harold adressed his brother and offered him terms, saying that he would give him a third of his kingdom in return for abandoning the invasion.

Tostig is said to have answered with this: "This is very different to the hostility and humiliation offered to me last winter.If this offer had been made then, many a man who is dead now would still be alive and England would be in a better state. But if I accept this offer now, what will you offer
King Harald Siggurdsson for all his effort?"
Harold was alleged to have replied, "7ft of ground as he is much taller than other men."
Tostig rejects his offer and  tells Harold to make ready for battle.

As said before, Snorri is not a reliable source so we dont know if this particular conversation happened. However, although these were violent times, men would have wanted to avoid dying in battle of they could without compromising their honour. It is doubtful however that Harold would have agreed to give Tostig his earldom back and more, without incurring the wrath of the northerners who had fought hard to get rid of Harold's brother. They may have been disillusioned by the brothers Morcar and Edwin who failed to avert the disaster at Gate Fulford but I doubt they would have been happy to have Tostig back in the seat of his earldom. Additionally, Harold would have wanted to keep the young earls on side as they were his brother-in-laws. English sources state nothing of the initial parley and terms offered by Harold and rejected by Tostig and Hardrada. The version they offer state that Harold surprised them unawares beyond the bridge and they 'fought sternly' into the afternoon, whatever their idea of 'sternly' was. 



The warrior on the bridge
drawn by Gayle Copper

The most singular feature of this battle is the story that the bridge was held for sometime against the English by a somewhat fearsome Viking with an axe who prevented them from crossing, killing any man who attempted to attack him. He was wearing a maille shirt, obviously one of the few who had decided to bring his. Aforethought is forewarned perhaps; it's a shame that none of the others did. However though, after holding them back for sometime, a quickthinking Englishman waded under the bridge and spears him up through his under carriage and the English are free to cross the bridge.This story is the stuff of legend and is added to Chronicle C in the 12thc and it is also repeated by several other writers so there maybe some credence to it.

Once the great warrior is out of the way, the English storm across the bridge and the Norwegians form their shieldwall. According to the sagas, the English repeatedly charge on horse at them. This was probably not an pre-meditated attempt at an organised cavalry charge, more likely it was intended to catch men who had been caught out in the open on foot. The fighting was hard and went on into the late afternoon. Hardrada ordered for his banner, the black raven, 'Landwaster' to be brought forward and he ran out ahead of his men in a mad charge like the one he had led at Fulford, hoping to repeat his victory as he had done then. But his huge torso was unprotected and he was hit by an arrow in the throat, though not before he had hewn and sliced many men with his terrible two handed Dane Axe. Those that had followed his charge died with him and there came a pause in the fighting. The great Norwegian King had choked on his blood and died. As everyone took time to take it all in and perhaps remove Harald's body to a place of safety, the English Harold offered quarter to his brother and the beleaguered Norwegian troops.

Vikings hurrying to the battle from Riccall

Tostig now was in charge, however the death of Harald Hardrada must have had a devastating effect on morale. It was he they had come to fight for, not Tostig, but the younger Godwinson was all that they had left. Suddenly though, at this point, they were soon to have another commander, Eystein Orri, as the re-inforcements came pouring in from Riccall, exhausted from running several miles and dusty and sweating from the heat and their heavy mail. This last phase of the battle was to become known as 'Orri's storm'. Thus the Norwegians spurned the offer of quarter and they made one final devastaing charge at the English, many of whom were  been killed in the fresh enslaught. Such was the rage that the Norwegians felt at having ran for miles to find that their leader was dead. Such was their desire for revenge that they fought valiantly, some having to throw off their maille because they were so exhausted. But the Vikings were unable to maintain the momentum. Orri fought to the death as did Tostig. Some collapsed, fatigued by the stress of the battle and the harrowing journey on foot from Riccall.

The Norse poet Arnor later tells us:

It was an evil moment
When norway's king lay fallen;

Gold inlaid weapons                                                      
Brought death to Norway's leader.

All King Harald's warriors
Preferred to die beside him,
Sharing their brave king's fate,
Rather than beg for mercy.     

Some of the enemy survivors made their escape and were pursued by the English and given no quarter when it had been already twice refused. No prisoners were taken. The fleeing Norwegians, and we must not forget the Flemmings that had come with Tostig, were chased back to the fleet where, as darkness fell the English 'fiercely attack them from behind until some of them came to ship, some drowned, and also some burnt, and thus variously perished, so that there were few survivors, and the English had possession of the place of slaughter' (Anglo Saxon Chronicle D). The author of the chronicle then went on to say that Harold rounded up the survivors and offered them safe conduct if they would swear oaths before him to leave this land and keep the peace of these islands. Amongst these was King Harald's son, Olaf, who did as he was bid, promising never to return with hostility to these lands. He and their Bishop and  Earl Paul of Orkney were sent home with only 24 of the 300 odd ships they had sailed with. Such was their loss of men that only 24 were needed to carry them home. It must have been a traumatic turn around of events for the survivors that they should come so far for a great victory at Fulford, only to have their hopes of invading dashed within a few days.The great God of War, Hardrada, had proved himself to be destructable after all. The big man's luck had run out at last.

This was the last time that Scandinavian forces would attempt an invasion on such a massive scale. This was the end of the Viking threat to England, but their bones would lay scattered over fields in Yorkshire, visible to the travellers eye, for some years to come after this year of 1066.

References
Marren P (2004) 1066 The Battles of York, Stamford Bridge & Hastings Pen and Sword books Ltd, Yorkshire.
Morris M (2012) The Norman Conquest Hutchinson, London.
Rex P (2011) 1066 A New History of the Norman Conquest Amberley Publishing, Gloucestershire.
Swanton M (200) The Anglo-Saxon Chronichles (rev. ed) Phoenix Press, London.

To read the first episodes in the series click here for part one and here and to read more about these times check out Sons of the Wolf

Excerpt Three of Sons of the Wolf

Ralph’s forces had ridden out two miles north of Hereford when they came across the amassing forces of Gruffydd and Alfgar. The Earl sensed the unease that was spreading throughout his men as the realisation that they were facing a far greater force than they had expected began to unsettle them. The horses felt it too; their ears were splayed back and they were baring their yellowed teeth. Their riders’ anxiety fizzled down through their trunks and their legs so that it seeped into the horse’s spine and nervous system. Fear filled the air with its unmistakeable tension and aroma.

“My Lord,” William said to Ralph apprehensively. “There must be four thousand of them.”

“But the scout said that there was half that number,” Ralph replied incredulously. “How can he have got it so wrong?”

“The sly vipers split up so that we would not know there was so many of them,” Malet replied. “Who would have thought that Alfgar could be so cunning?”

“Not Alfgar; Gruffydd more like. Alfgar would not be so clever. Gruffydd is the brains behind this.” Ralph shifted uneasily in his saddle. The enemy army was fast approaching. “We must send for reinforcements!”

William looked at him aghast. It was an absurd comment. “How can we? There’s no time. They’re bloody well upon us!”

Fitzscrob, captain of the middle-guard, rode over to them. “My Lord, the enemy are advancing. What should we do? We are overwhelmingly outnumbered!”

“What of it? We have the advantage. We have more cavalry than they. A man on a horse is worth two on foot. We can cut them down if we use the double circular formation and feigned retreat to break their lines,” Ralph replied. He knew that he was asking a lot from his inexperienced troops who were used to fighting in a shieldwall, but he had to save face...somehow. He looked out across the plain and saw the enemy vanguard advancing toward them, their pace quickening now as they got closer. The noise was thunderous. Trumpets were blaring and men were screaming obscenities at the “Saes bastards!” as they loomed toward them.

“My Lord, we will be cut to pieces! The men are untried and full of fear!” Fitzscrob shouted. “We must retreat and defend the town. It’s our only hope!”

Defend Hereford? This mob would overrun it in seconds, Ralph thought, his bravado beginning to wane. The enemy were thundering toward them now. Ralph’s fear began to overwhelm him. He lost all control of his bladder and his bowels as he sat quaking in his saddle. The ‘great’ army he had raised did not seem so great now.

Tostig, Alfgar and the Earl of Northumbria

 

by Sons of the Wolf on Thursday, 03 March 2011 at 22:16

 The Scandinavian Earl Siward, held the post of Northumbria throughout much of Cnut's reign, the whole of Harold Harefoot and Harthacnut's up until the early years of Edward the Confessor's reign. There is much recorded of him in legend but in reality, one would have to believe that there was little difference in the character of the man of the sagas and the man of reality. When he died in 1055, he must have been a great age and although he had converted to christianity, the story goes that his dying wish was that he be given a traditional Viking ceremony. his body sailing out to sea on a burning boat with his sword placed in his hand. He was actually buried at St Olaf's church in york. Possibly the death of his son Osbjorn and his wife's nephew at the battle of Dunsinane may have spurred an already old man to his grave. I like to think that perhaps his wife, in tribute, might have sent one of his boats, alight and furnished with his gear, out into the sea for him, whilst his body lay buried in the Christian manner. He left one surviving son, Waltheof, who was a child of only about 5 or 6 years old at the time, born of his young wife Aelfflaed, obviously not his first liason. Due to Waltheof's young age, the vacancy of earl was now open. Who should think themselves up for the job?

Contender No 1 was Tostig Godwinson, younger brother of Earl Harold of Wessex. Tostig was, like his brother Harold, a seasoned warrior and had married Judith of flanders, half sister to Baldwin V who was father of William of Normandy's wife Matilda. It would be easy to imagine that he may have harboured a childhood jealousy against his older more popular brother Harold, which may explain his later resentment toward Harold as grown ups, that would lead to their tragic confrontation in 1066 at Stamford Bridge. He seems to have been portrayed as more serious of character than his elder brother who was described as affable, gracious to all men and possessed charm and wit. Nonetheless, he appears to have been the favourite of both the King and Queen. Edith certainly was fond of him and because of this, he most likely got the post instead of Alfgar. For Edith, who had not that long ago been cast aside and sent away to a nunnery in shame, it would have been more expedient to have both her brothers in strong postions, so that never again would she ever be treated in such a degrading manner.


Contender No 2 was Alfgar Earl of East Anglia, son of Earl Leofric of Mercia. The old Earl was a sort of Mercian version of Siward. By the time he died in 1057, he was quite aged. He was married to Lady Godgifu/Godgyva of  legendary fame, notorious for her supposed naked ride through the streets of Coventry. Leofric and Godgifu's wayward son Alfgar was a bit of a rebel and by all accounts had trouble controlling his temper which seemed to have got him officially exiled at least twice for uttering treasonable words. It was in 1055 at a council to cast votes for the new Earl of Northumbria that he was first in trouble.  No source tells us exactly what he had done wrong  but the AS ms C&D states that he was 'outlawed without any fault of his' . In the ms E, Alfgar was said to have been 'traitor to the king and all the people of the land. And he admitted this before all the men that were gathered there, although the words shout out against his will.'  One can imagine him blurting out some terrible insult against the king and then realising that he had put his foot in his mouth somewhat to his detriment and rather publicly. What ever it was, and one can only imagine, it led to him being exiled. Most likely, when he heard that Tostig was to recieve the earldom, he did not take  kindly to it and in a fit of pique lost his temper and spoke out against it. You can imagine the intesity of his feelings, after all,  the Godwin brothers appeared to be the king's current favourites and were already in charge of a large portion of the kingdom's earldoms, not to mention the role that Harold Godwinson now played as Dux Anglorum. With Tostig now entrenched in the North, the balance was now definitely tipped in their favour.