Blog Feed: Historical Britain Blog - Mercedes Rochelle

Robert Curthose, son of William the Conqueror

Published on 2012-12-30 17:11:11

When we study the succession of post-conquest English kings, we often forget that England might not be their primary interest.  This may be the reason that William the Conqueror groomed his eldest son to inherit the Dukedom of Normandy and gave the

The Earldoms of 1045

Published on 2012-10-13 19:15:51

This map was scanned from Edward A. Freeman’s History of the Norman Conquest of England.  I found it in the Appendix of Volume 2 and I thought it was very helpful since a picture is worth a thousand words, as they say… doubly so for maps!  I  hope you can read this map through all [...]

Return of Earl Godwine, 1052

Published on 2012-03-08 13:45:12

Earl Godwine may have had a humiliating experience finding himself exiled in the fall of 1051, but by many accounts his absence made the Saxons appreciate him like never before.  King Edward the Confessor, ever more at home in Normandy than England, surrounded himself with Thegns and Prelates from his adopted land who proceeded to lord [...]

Exile of Earl Godwine, 1051

Published on 2012-01-22 17:27:02

By the middle of the eleventh century, Earl Godwine might have seemed pretty much at the height of his power.  His daughter was married to King Edward, Godwine himself held the most important Earldom in England and his second son Harold was Earl of East Anglia.  He had more strapping sons awaiting their turn to the [...]

Swegn Godwineson, Evil or Tragic?

Published on 2011-11-17 20:45:09

Swegn was the eldest son of a prolific family.  His father, Godwine of Wessex, worked his way up from relative obscurity to the most powerful Earl in the country.  Swegn’s future could have been assured if only he had behaved himself and not acted like a rogue and an outlaw.  He was the only one [...]

Death of William the Conqueror

Published on 2011-09-08 14:18:23

William the Conqueror was not a person to mellow-out in his final days.  His temper was still quick to anger and he did not hesitate to lay waste to his enemies’ lands at the slightest provocation.  He had become excessively fat, and it was said that his antagonist King Philip of France made an insulting comment about [...]

Waltheof, Last Saxon Earl

Published on 2011-08-09 08:18:19

Earl Waltheof’s foray into the history books was unlucky and unhappy. From beginning to end, it seems like he was in the wrong place at the wrong time and never managed to live up to his destiny. Waltheof was the younger son of Earl Siward, who died when Waltheof was only 10 years old.  His older [...]

Harold Godwineson in Normandy 1064

Published on 2011-07-28 10:00:27

Harold’s ill-fated trip to Normandy has sparked much debate among historians. Why did he go? How much damage did it cause? One thing is certain: Harold and William were far from strangers by the time they met on the battlefield of Hastings. It is thought by some that Harold was on a fishing trip in [...]

Tostig and Stamfordbridge

Published on 2011-06-24 10:10:10

By many accounts, the blame for Harold Godwineson’s failure to stop William’s invasion can be laid on his brother Tostig’s shoulders.  What might have started as sibling rivalry seems to have evolved into jealousy, then resentment turned into recrimination, and finally a desire for revenge seems to have swept aside all other considerations…even the safety of the [...]

Intro to THOU SHALT ‘GET KINGS

Published on 2011-05-17 12:57:56

It is of legends that I write in this story, rather than facts; for after almost a thousand years of history, what can we call truth out of the tiny scraps that survived?  When men claimed descent from a bear, and people believed that dragons  roamed the earth, who is to say what is fact [...]

Battle of Fulford 1066

Published on 2011-04-30 21:36:01

The battle of Stamfordbridge is well-known as the turning point in King Harold’s fortunes.  But how did Harold know to rush north in the first place?  It was more than just a messenger that got his attention: a full-fledged battle was fought with great loss of life.  And Harald Hardraada was the winner.  In a [...]

Death of Alfred Aetheling

Published on 2011-04-08 15:08:04

If you read my post Heirs to the Throne After Canute you would see mention of Edward and Alfred, the sons of Aethelred II and Emma.  When Emma married Canute, they agreed that the sons from their own marriage would take precedence over any previous children.  This meant that the two sons from her first marriage would [...]

Who is Harthacnut?

Published on 2011-03-25 12:19:51

Soon after Canute gained the throne of England, he invited Aethelred’s widow Emma of Normandy to be his queen.  Emma agreed, on the condition that only the sons born of their union would be next in line to the throne.  This meant that two of his sons and two of her sons from previous marriages [...]