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Hardcore Viking Facts that Inspire Fear and Respect

Khalid Elhassan October 14, 2022 31 min

The Last Viking Invasion of England

Viking - Harald Hardrada — Harald Hardrada. Military Review

After Godwin’s death in 1053, he was succeeded by his son Harold Godwinson as England’s most powerful figure. When Edward the Confessor died childless in 1066, Harold was crowned as king of England. The new king’s title was disputed by his younger brother, Tostig, and by Duke William of Normandy. The latter was related to Edward the Confessor on his mother’s side, and claimed that he had been promised the English throne upon Edward’s death. King Harold gathered his forces in readiness for a seaborne invasion from Normandy by Duke William.

Contrary winds kept the Normans on the other side of the English Channel. It was Harold’s brother, Tostig, who struck first. Allied with the Norwegian King Harald Hardrada, Tostig landed with a largely Scandinavian army near York, in the north of England. It was to be the last Viking invasion of England. Harold, who had had been encamped in the south of England on guard against an invasion from Normandy, led a forced march north to York, and surprised his brother and the Norwegian king by his unexpected arrival.

Written by

Khalid Elhassan

A lifelong history buff, I developed a particular passion for WW2 history as a child, when I spent hours listening to my grandfather, enraptured, as he recounted his wartime experiences in the British East African Campaign and with the British 8th Army in North Africa.

I graduated with a history BA from George Mason University, then went on to get a JD from the University of Virginia School of Law. After lawyering for a decade, I moved to sunny Rio de Janeiro and a less demanding career, opening a tourism agency in Copacabana.

A big chunk of my free time is spent blogging (you can follow me on Quora https://www.quora.com/profile/Khalid-Elhassan ) or freelance writing, mostly about my favorite subject, history.