BOOK III. PERIOD FROM THE NORMAN CONQUEST TO THE DEATH CHAPTER I.-CIVIL AND MILITARY HISTORY. WILLIAM I., SURNAMED THE CONQUEROR.-ACCESSION, A.D. 1066-DEATH, A.D. 1087. Battle Abbey founded-William's advance to London-Feeble resistance of the English-William crowned at Westminster-Riot at his coronation-He revisits Normandy-Revolt in England during his absence-His merciless proceedings to complete the conquest at his return-Anarchy and sufferings thereby occasionedWilliam's military operations in the north of England-Desertion among his nobles-Revolt in Northumberland-William suppresses it-Confiscations and oppressions which follow-Resistance of Hereward, Lord of Brunn, in Lincolnshire-Hereward's Camp of Refuge at Ely-His successes over the Normans-He is obliged to capitulate-Completion of the conquest-William departs to the Continent-Revolt of his nobles during his absence-They are defeated-Execution of Waltheof, Earl of Northumberland--Rebellion of William's family against him-Demand of Robert, his eldest son, for a separate government-He makes war upon his father-Combat between William and his son under the walls of Gerberoy-The Northumbrians again in rebellion-They kill their Norman governor and his garrison-Their suppression by Odo, brother of William -Odo intrigues for the popedom-He is arrested and imprisoned by William-Tyrannical formation of the New Forest-Williain's inordinate love of hunting-He repairs with an army to France-His death occasioned by an accident-Ingratitude of his sons and courtiers-Inglorious funeral of William the Conqueror. HE first feelings of the Normans after the battle of Hastings seem to have been sensations of triumph and joy, amounting almost to a delirium. They are represented by a contemporary' as making their horses to prance and bound over the thickly strewed bodies of the AngloSaxons; after which they proceeded to rifle them, and despoil them of their clothes. By William's orders the space was cleared round 1 William of Poitiers. This writer asserts, that although Harold's mother offered its weight in gold for the dead body of VOL I. the pope's standard, which he had set up; and there his tent was pitched, and he feasted with his followers amongst the dead. The critical circumstances in which he had so recently been placed, and the difficulties which still lay before him, disposed the mind of the Conqueror to serious thoughts. Not less, perhaps, in gratitude for the past than in the hope that such a work would procure him heavenly favour for the future, he solemnly vowed that he would erect a splendid abbey on the scene of this his first victory; and her son, the stern victor was deaf to her request, professing indignation at the proposal that he should enjoy the rites of sepul23 when, in process of time, this vow was accomplished, the high altar of the abbey church stood on the very spot where the standard of Harold had been planted and thrown down. The exte tlemen of mark who came with the Conqueror and survived the battle of Hastings.3 The most sanguine of the Normans, in common with the most despondent among the English, expected that, immediately after the battle of Hastings, the Conqueror would march straight to London, and make himself master of that capital. But the first move was a retrograde one; nor did William establish himself in the capital until more than two months had passed. While the army of Harold kept the field at Senlac or Battle, several new ships, with reinforcements, came over from Normandy to join William. Mistaking the proper place for landing, the commanders of these vessels put in to Romney, where they were at once assaulted and beaten by the people of the coast. William learned this unpleasant news the day after his victory, and to save the other recruits, whom he still expected, from a similar disaster, he resolved, before proceeding farther, to make himself master of all the south-eastern coast. He turned back, therefore, from Battle to Hastings, at which latter place he stayed some days, awaiting his transports from beyond sea, and hoping, it is said, that his presence would induce the population of those parts to make voluntary submission. At length, seeing that no one came to ask for peace, William resumed his march with the remnant of his army, and the fresh troops which had arrived in the interval from Normandy. He kept close to the sea-coast, marching from south to north, and spreading devastation on his passage. He took a savage vengeance at Romney for the reverse his was fortified by permission of the king. The circuit of the ruins is computed at about a mile. Gilpin considers that the prevail. ing style indicates the rebuilding of the greater part of the edifice in the time of the later Henries. The remains consist of three sides of a quadrangle, the fourth having been removed. The grand entrance was a large square building, embattled, with an octagon tower at each corner. The abbey church is supplanted by the edifice of Sir Thomas Webster. The refectory lies in utter ruin, and the crypts have been converted into a stable. Many fine minor vestiges exist in different parts of the ruin. 2 Thierry, Histoire de la Conquête. BATTLE ABBEY.-From a drawing in the King's Library, British Museum. rior walls embraced the whole of the hill, the centre of their position, which the bravest of the English had covered with their bodies, and all the surrounding country where the scenes of the combat had passed, became the property of the holy house, which was called, in the Norman or French language, l'Abbaye de la Bataille, and was dedicated to St. Martin, the patron of the soldiers of Gaul. Monks, invited from the great convent of Marmontier, near Tours, took up their residence in the new edifice. They were well endowed with the property of the English who had died in the battle, and prayed alike for the repose of the souls of those victims. and for the prosperity and long life of the Normans who had killed them.2 In the archives of the house was deposited a long roll, on which were inscribed the names of the nobles and genture for whose excessive cupidity so many men lay unburied. Harold, it is added, was buried on the beach. Most of the English historians, however, say that the body was given to his mother without ransom, and interred by her in Waltham Abbey, which had been founded by Harold before he was king. The Cottonian MS., Julius D. 6, which appears to have been written in Waltham Abbey about a century after the event, relates that two monks, who were allowed by William to search for the body, were unable to distinguish it among the heaps of slain, until they sent for Harold's mistress, Editha, "the Swannecked," whose eye of affection was not to be eluded or deceived. The improbable story told by Giraldus Cambrensis (and in more detail in the Harleian MS. 3776) about Harold, after receiving his wound, having escaped from the battle, and living for some years as an anchorite in a cell near St. John's Church, in Chester, though a pretty enough romance, is palpably undeserving of notice in an historical point of view. The building of Battle Abbey was commenced by the Conqueror in A.D. 1067, the year following that on which the battle of Hastings was fought. In the reign of Edward III the abbey 3 The original roll of Battle Abbey is lost; but some copies have been preserved, from which the document has been repeatedly printed. It is believed, however, that these pretended transcripts are far from faithful, and that, besides other corruptions, many names have been inserted in later times by the monks of the abbey, to gratify families or individuals that wished to make it appear they were sprung from followers of the Conqueror. To date from the Conquest, as is well known, is still the ambition of noble English families. Many voices would have supported Morcar or Edwin, the powerful brothers-in-law of Harold, who had already an almoзt sovereign authority in Northumbria and Mercia; but the citizens of London, and the men of the south of England generally, preferred young Edgar Atheling, the grand-son of Edmund Ironside, who had been previously set aside on account of his little worth: and when Stigand the primate, and Aldred the Archbishop of York, threw their troops had sustained there, by massacring the in- | to have been thought of. habitants and burning their houses. From Romney he advanced to Dover, the strongest place on the coast "the lock and key of all England," as Holinshed calls it. With little or no opposition, he burst into the town, which his troops set fire to; and the strong castle, which the son of Godwin had put into an excellent state of defence, was so speedily surrendered to him, that a suspicion of treachery rests on the Saxon commander. The capture of this fortress was most oppor-weight into this scale, it outweighed the others, tune and important, for a dreadful dysentery had broken out in the Norman army, and a safe receptacle for the sick had become indispensable. Dover Castle also commanded the best landingplace for troops from the Continent, and William was not yet so sure of his game as not to look anxiously for a place of retreat on the coast, in case of meeting with reverses in the interior. He spent eight or nine days in strengthening the castle, and repairing some of the damage done to the town by his lawless soldiery. Meanwhile, in order to conciliate the inhabitants, he made them some compensation for the losses and injuries they had sustained; and in the same interval he received more recruits from Normandy. and Edgar was proclaimed king. It should seem, however, that even at this stage, many of the bishops and dignified clergymen, who were even then Frenchmen or Normans, raised their voice in favour of William, or let fall hints that were all meant to favour his pretensions. The pope's bull and banner could not be without their effect, and, motives of interest and policy apart, some of these ecclesiastics may have conscientiously believed they were performing their duty in promoting the cause of the elect of Rome. Others there were who were notoriously bought over, either by money paid beforehand, or by promises of future largesse. The party that ultimately prevailed in the When the Conqueror at last moved from Do- Witan did not carry their point until much prever, he ceased to creep cautiously round the cious time had been consumed; nor could the coast, but, penetrating into Kent, marched direct blood of Cerdic, Alfred, and Edmund, make the to London. A confused story is told by some of king of their choice that rallying point which our early historians about a popular resistance, conflicting factions required, or a hero capable of organized by Archbishop Stigand and the abbot facing a victorious invader, advancing at the head Egelnoth, in which the men of Kent, advancing of a more powerful army than England could like the army of Macduff and Siward against hope to raise for some time. In fact, Edgar was Macbeth, under the cover of cut-down trees and a mere cipher—a boy incapable of government as boughs, disputed the passage of the Normans, and, of war-with nothing popular about him except with arms in their hands, exacted from them terms his descent. The primate Stigand took his place most favourable to themselves and the part of at the council board, and the military command England they occupied. But the plain truth was given to Earls Edwin and Morcar. A very seems to be that, overawed by the recent catas-few acts of legal authority had been performed trophe of Hastings, and the presence of a com- in the name of Edgar, when William of Norpact and numerous army, the inhabitants of Kent | mandy appeared before the southern suburb of made no resistance, and meeting William with London. If the Normans had expected to take offers of submission, placed hostages in his hands, the capital by a coup-de-main, and at once, they and so obtained mild treatment. were disappointed; the Londoners were very warlike; and the population of the city, great even in those days, was much increased by the presence of the thanes and chiefs of all the neighbouring counties, who had come in to attend the Witan, and had brought their servants and followers with them. After making a successful charge, with 500 of his best horse, against some citizens who were gathered on that side of the river, William set fire to Southwark, and marched away from London, with the determination of ravaging the country around it, destroying the property of the thanes who had assembled at the Witan, and, by interrupting all communication, induce the well-defended capital to surrender. During these calamities the Saxon Witan had assembled in London, to deliberate and provide for the future; but evidently, as far as the lay portion of the meeting was concerned, with no intention of submitting to the Conqueror. The first care that occupied their thoughts was to elect a successor to the throne. Either of Harold's brave brothers, at such a crisis, when valour and military skill were the qualities most wanted, might probably have commanded a majority of suffrages; but they had both fought their last fight; and, owing to their youth, their inexperience, their want of popularity, or to some other circumstance, the two sons of Harold seem never Detachments of his army were soon spread over | chiefs for the nobility, and the citizens for the a wide tract; and in burning towns and villages, in the massacre of men armed and men unarmed, and in the violation of helpless females, the people of Surrey, Sussex, Hampshire, and Berkshire, were made to feel the full signification of a Norman conquest. William crossed the Thames at Wallingford, near to which place he established an intrenched camp, where a division of his army was left, in order to cut off any succours that might be sent towards London from the west. This done, he proceeded across Buckinghamshire into Hertfordshire, "slaying the people," till he came to Berkhampstead, where he took up a position, in order to interrupt all communication with London from the north. The capital, indeed, at this time seems to have been girded round by the enemy, and afflicted by the prospect of absolute famine. Nor were there wanting other causes of discouragement. The Earls Edwin and Morcar showed little zeal in the command of a weak, and, as yet, unorganized army, and soon withdrew towards the Humber, taking with them all the soldiers of Northumbria and Mercia, who constituted the best part of King Edgar's forces, but who looked to the earls much more than to the king. These two sons of Alfgar probably hoped to be able to maintain themselves in independence in the north, where, in reality, they at a later period renewed, and greatly prolonged the contest with the Normans. Their departure had a baneful effect in London; and while the spirit of the citizens waxed fainter and fainter, the partizans and intriguers for William, encouraged at every move by the prevalent faction among the clergy, raised their hopes and extended their exertions. good city of London.' During a part of this singular audience, William pretended to have doubts and misgivings as to the propriety of his ascending the vacant throne; but these hypocritical expressions were drowned in the loud acclamations of his Norman barons, who felt that the crown of England was on the point of their swords, Having taken oaths of fidelity and peace, the Saxon deputies left hostages with the Norman, who, on his side, promised to be mild and merciful to all men. On the following morning the foreigners began their march towards London, plundering, murdering, and burning, just as before. They took their way through St. Alban's. Even now William did not enter London in person, but, sending on part of his army to build a fortress for his reception, he encamped with the rest at some distance from the city. This fortress, which was built on the site, and probably included part of a Roman castle, grew gradually, in after times, into the Tower of London. Some accounts state that William's vanguard was hostilely engaged by the citizens, but according to others, they met with no resistance, and were permitted to raise their fortifications without any serious molestation. As soon as the Normans had finished his stronghold, William took possession of it, and then they fixed his coronation for a few days after. The Conqueror is said to have objected to the performance of this ceremony while so large a part of the island was independent of his authority; and he certainly hoped, by delaying it, to obtain a more formal consent from the English nation, or something like a Saxon election, which would be a better title in the eyes of the people than the right of conquest. Little, however, was gained by delay; and the coronation, which, for the sake of greater solemnity, took place on Christmas Day, was accompanied by accidents and circumstances highly irritating to the people. It is stated, on one side, that William invited the primate Stigand to perform the rites, and that Stigand refused to crown a man "covered with the blood of men, and the invader of others' rights." Although there might have been some policy in making this great champion of the Saxon cause hallow the Conqueror, it does not appear probable that William would ask this service of one who was lying under the severe displeasure of Rome; and it is said, on the other side, that After some time, however, Earls Morcar and Edwin appear to have returned to the capital. On many an intermediate step the chroniclers are provokingly silent: but at last it was determined that a submissive deputation should be sent from London to Berkhampstead; and King Edgar himself, the primate Stigand, Aldred, Archbishop of York, Wolfstan, Bishop of Worcester, with other prelates and lay chiefs, among whom the Saxon chronicler expressly names the two Earls of Northumbria and Mercia, and many of the principal citizens, repaired to William, who received them with an outward show of moderation and kindness. It is related that when the man whom he most hated, as the friend of Harold and the energetic enemy of the Normansthat when Stigand came into his presence, he "Bugon tha for neode," says the Saxon Chronicle, "tha saluted him with the endearing epithets of father maest waes to hearm gedon; and thaet waes micel unread thaet man aeror swa ne dyde tha hit god betan nolde for urum synand bishop. The puppet-king Edgar made a num." (They submitted them for need, when the most harm verbal renunciation of the throne. and the rest was done. It was very ill-advised that they did not so before, swore allegiance to the Conqueror-the bishops seeing that God would not better things for our sins.-Ingram swearing for the whole body of the clergy, the Translation.) 2 Roger Hoveden; Chron. Sux. 3 William of Newbury. |