Well, in my youth I had contact with a guy from Norway, living in GB. His grandad teached him stav, an old norse martial art based on rune stances. We trained with stafs, swords and axes. You wouldnt swing the dane axes, but use it quite controlled. The blade allows to cut, the edges to sting. You use all parts of the axe for fighting, and that allows you to fight even in a dense crowd.
The length of the great axe allows one to hook an enemy shield and pull it down, then you jab with the axe, or hook the leg and toss him down.I have trained for many years with ancient weapons, starred in music videos and performed in front of audiences, lol. My absolute favorite weapon combo is a gladius and a small spiked war hammer, or small axe. I win a lot of challenges with that combo.
Interesting that an elderly woman doesn't think that a warrior in his mid 20s to mid 30s couldn't hold a sword above his head because her old self can't.
That's not what she said. She said that the depiction of that in the tapestry doesn't make sense, especially when it comes to combat. And no, it doesn't make sense. Why would someone ride in and carry a sword at attention the entire time? That doesn't make sense.
@@orangejjay Its not in motion the tapestry was depicting a downward blow. What I believe she was on about was the size of the sword handle as they aren't huge often Under 4 inches but that's just how they are. Big hands are squished but that's how those swords are supposed to handle(hammer grip). Not to mention while a sword like that would have been seen at hastings it is never less a bit of a dated design for Hastings (not the norm think grandads sword). The truth of it is men of the period on average were about the same height as us in the west today, at most an inch shorter. I have no doubt that on average they were a lot brawnier, larger developed and fitter due to the physicality and manual nature of the period(on average obviously bodybuilders of today would be larger than anyone back then no trt or steroids an all).
@@deusvult5875 there’s no way they were close in height to us buddy, like look at a ww2 uniform their tiny, but according to you they were bigger hundreds of years ago
@@SladetheBlade.. You have access to Google no? look it up. People went from being taller in some periods and shorter in others there isn't a linear height increase throughout history. During the industrial revolution people were much shorter on average than people 1000 years earlier its all down to nutrition.
It took the Normans another five years to conquer England entirely and at one point (the siege of Ely) the country could've been split, English North and Norman South. But some monks sold out Hereward and that one came unstuck too. But they basically conquered England by hiding behind castle walls .
Great stuff ! Keep em coming a nice mix of practical demonstration ,history and a little story telling ,fantastic ! Also always love the tail of the Norseman that held Stamford bridge ,halting the advance and taking down 20 warriors in the process ,till a jab to the eggs with a pike or spear took him down ! Top stuff ,keep up the good work chief 👍
It is interesting to note that most wounds, even lethal ones, would leave the victim crawling around, on the ground, bleeding to death - the Daneaxe (in later forms, the poleaxe) would put someone down in one hit - which was different enough that it entered the language - "he went down like he'd been poleaxed". Something that people seem to miss with these things is that maille is flexible - it turns a cutting blow into a crushing blow (hence why maces were useful, maille doesn't protect against them at all - you need a rigid armour to spread the impact) - so, even if the daneaxe didn't manage to actually penetrate the maille, the impact would break bones and cause terrible internal damage to the target.
Strange that is, you need rigid armor - preferably blocking to defend against the mace considering the club was used all through the history and same with the mace but the mace specialized in armored combat for crumbling helmets and joints crushing bones through gauntlets etc, but ya your right your better off in full plate but full plate is kind of designed to defend against all weapons, the mace is kind of one the the best things to use besides a spear or pole arm at distance and close range mace or dagger. Idk this documentary kind of bugged me I now I know why historical UA-camrs cringe at some of the documentaries produced.
Speaking without any form of authority what so ever.....modern warfare must be horrendous.....but the brutally in those earlier ages must have been nothing short of shear and absolute terror....what grim lives our predecessors must have led is almost unimaginable.
I've been to Senlac Hill and am going again next year. I was fascinated by the history of it. They did say that in WWII they levelled the ground a bit because food was being grown there, so was probably a bit steeper in 1066.
Always been fascinated by Hastings! Many battles are said to be "pivotal" points in history and fall short. But Hastings by far meets all those requirements of a history changing military engagement! This affected England,France & surrounding territory. It was most historians agree the end of the Viking age. It reoriented England from a north sea empire to a continental engagement with the mainland for centuries. All this hinged on a bastard Duke of Normandy. Who started off life probably hiding under his bed from assassin's trying to take his father's territory. Because his mother wasn't noble. William rose to meet these challenges and became King of England!
It's a bit disingenuous to say this battle gave England to the Normans. In fact, William stayed in the area for a further two weeks or so after the battle expecting another attack from the English. Then they went to Dover where they were very ill and were not able to go any further. During this time, the nobility were meeting in London where thousands of warriors came to wait for the next English king to be chosen and then to be taken into battle. Once the king was chosen, instead of leading the English into battle, they negotiated the handover of the ground to William at that point. so, William did not win the crown at Hastings. Nobility gave it to him despite the fact that the English were ready to fight the battle against the Normans. So, more cowardice and betrayal from the nobility. A bit like Parliament today.
Harold most likely only lost because he had marched 250 miles north, fought Harold hardrada, won, and marched another 300 miles back. The Norman's were fresh.
@@blaineedwards8078 alright. So he marched north 250 miles, fought a battle and won, then marched south for 250 miles.. and rested for 5 days. I'm sure they were fresh as daisies after that!
Excellent work. Gets into the grit and grizzle of mediaevel warfare. Very amusing at the end with the doctors giving their prognosis of the "patients" future prospects after getting that arrow removed 😂
In my experience an 13:16 axe like that would tend to twist sideways when hitting something. Obvio😢it looks fierce but doesn't seem practical. If the blade was closer to the haft would have less of a tendency to twist in your grip . Just a thought.
6:13 The idea that a sword is to big and heavy for an old lady to wield means that it is too big and heavy for a full grown man of Nordic descent to wield is silly.
@@CH-ml4rz No, but I did suffer some hearing loss from my service in the 18th Airborne Corps Artillery and the 2nd ID Artillery when I was stationed on the DMZ in Korea.
Yes, I've watched that bit several times and she's either saying it's too heavy, or the grip is too small, or holding a sword above your head is wrong - all ridiculous..
the battlefield has never been found conclusively. there are a few likely places but nothing ever proven. i hate these documentary films that try to tell us where the battle was fought. - The Battle of Hastings, fought on 14 October 1066, is the most famous battle in English history. There is widespread consensus among historians that William the Conqueror founded Battle Abbey in penance for the blood shed at the battle and to commemorate his great victory, on the very spot where he defeated King Harold. It has been suggested, however, that the battle was not fought here. Several alternative locations have been put forward, including Crowhurst, about three miles south of Battle, and Caldbec Hill, about a mile to the north. Advocates of both sites claim that the Battle Abbey monks invented the association between their abbey and the battlefield in the Chronicle of Battle Abbey, written in the late 12th century, 100 years or more after 1066. -
Possibly the shield wall could be breached by instead of attacking the helmeted heads of the enemy or the shield, an attack to the feet and legs of the soldiers with the shields could be successful, especially as they are expecting to have the shield attacked. Have heard of this happening in other battles.
I'm not so sure? How would you attack? If it's infantry vs infantry your attacking troops at least in first couple ranks would have to bend or stoop to reach at the defenders..I think a better approach to break up that formation you use fire and some type of rounded projectile..use those rocks like the old guys in WW2 blowing up dams,same idea,send em in bouncing and on fire If possible! Fire is a natural fearsome weapon that any soldier would run from..
That was a recognized tactic going back to Roman times. It is against this tactic that grieves were created for the lower legs. Also, I seem to recall one of the sagas mentioning a sword named leg biter as a bit of anecdotal evidence
I don’t know about anyone else but I am officially convinced that BEAR 🐻 Is actually a Viking or Saxton warrior or whatever that never died and just continued to live and never aged since that time period “DID Y’ALL SEE HOW HE SWUNG THAT AXE 🪓 LOL” When they were doing the shield wall and he told Bear to step out to show how strong the wall was I screamed at the TV DROP YOUR SHIELDS AND RUN😂😂 😂
Hey, I'm Bear, it was a pretty fun time filming it, they don't show all the footage of the pig, but they dane axe took the head clean off it wad brutal lol Also in the shield wall shot, there was a 6 foot drop behind them so I had to go steady lol
18:15 kinda makes me wonder if it would have been more effective to wield a literal sledgehammer rather than an axe. For an unarmoured opponent it would probably not have mattered much. And for an armoured opponent it might have been more effective.
I write in detail about Hastings in my book, 'Gateway to Gandamak'. My research shows that the majority of the Anglo-Saxons walked away after Harold's death. They inflicted a sharp bloody nose in the Normans at the end of the day but decided not to continue the fight once the Godwins were dead. William was fought to a standstill. The Anglo-Saxon nobles accepted his claim to the throne, which had considerable legitimacy.
William was not fought to a standstill. For 3/4 of the entire day the battle was intensely fought with significant losses to both sides. This could be described as stopping the Normans for a prolonged period. But after Harold was injured in the eye and lying on the ground, there was probably a sudden loss of morale and a rout. (Wace admittedly tells a different story, he says Harold was hit much earlier in the day, he yanked out the arrow in anger and broke it, and continued with the fight). Four Norman cavalrymen rushed through and slaughtered the injured King who was on the ground, and some of his loyal retinue. The retreating Anglo-Saxon army was chased up the road to London, and a great many were cut down by Norman cavalry. Some Anglo-Saxons rushed up a steep hill a few miles North and bravely made a last stand. This second smaller battle was also very bitterly fought, but they were eventually entirely wiped out.
The time team used a Laser Radar gizmo to scan the entire area and showed that the actual place of the battle was near the crossroad / Roundabout of the close by town. Interestingly the only Axehead thought to be from the battle was actually found near the same place...
Said ax head can only be dated to pre-15th cent. Earliest date for the claim that BA was built on actual battlefield is 1125 courtesy of Orderic Vitalis.
2:34 "It was here, Duke William of Normandy, or William the Conqueror, as he came to be known ..." His real name was 'the Bastard'. Why didn't you lead with that?
14:33 I really don’t want to offend anyone with this comment-but I feel that might not be possible-because it’s my opinion that when we consider the effectiveness of these types of weapons, we do well to be mindful of the fact that the ax a technology that is incomplete without the inclusion of the technology of the human that wields it. And what I mean by that, as a simply this: there’s a difference between an ordinary (even a particularly large) human wielding the ax, and the Housecarl who is a professional soldier, and who has trained for years or decades in it’s murderous use, and who’s job when not performing in battle it is to train ongoing-ya da ya da ya… Principle of super compensation, triggered by muscular resistance overload, is what I’m talking about. A kid gets a tiny ax head, a youth gets a small one, a teen gets a medium one, adult big one, soldier in training a bigger one, professional a huge one….you get it, it’s basic but this is how a normal human trains the body to come to wield an ax head that is way to big for a normal human to wield, as though it were a loaf of bread, and do it over and over again. So what’s offensive about that? Well, watching history and fantasy nerds demonstrate how to use a weapon that the Housecarl I just described used….not exactly a veritable proposition. Sorry history and fantasy nerds. But we need to understand that the ax is trouble enough for anyone to face down on its own…..but the reality of that ax in the hands of a professional household warrior is a whole new world of shit. Now I’m not saying smaller axes weren’t used, it’s likely that axes of all sizes were around, and many different types of combatants to use them. I’m just talking about the créme de la créme, because that’s who we need to talk about.
basic weapons, the weapons used there were among the best at the time and the tactics used not just weren't rudementary, but were the norm at the time and had been used for over a thousand years. it just starts bad for the guy on the video. hardrada also claimed the throne for himself, completly seperate from william.
There comments on the strength of soldiers is crazy to me. If you meet a old boy that was in the SAS they will run a marathon with a backpack and a beer belly after eating a full English. Imagine Eddie hall or the mountain with the cardio of a paratrooper is how I imagine the berserkers fitness to be
What's interesting about Hastings is we have good records of who was there in William's army. Anyone with a Norman French or Breton Surname almost certainly had ancestors who came over with William and statistically all indigenous modern Britons are descended from William every land owning family in Britain apart from the north of Scotland, the North West of Scotland, North west Wales and west Ireland. An awful lot of us are descended from William my Mother's also a direct descended of Alain Rufus who was the grandson of the Duke of Brittany and led 4000 Bretons, about 30% of William's army. Those Normans and their Breton and Flemish allies got everywhere. Even Scotland, King David invited Norman adventurers to take lands in Scotland and introduce their feudal system so he could get the highly independent Celtic/Norse/Angle aristocracy under his heel. Families like Stewart (Breton), De Brus (Bruce) (Norman), Campbell (Fleming), Ramsay (Norman). Settled and feuded with the native aristocracy MacLeod (norse), MacGregor and MacDonald (Celtic). Even 1000 years later there's still slight cultural tensions between the Celt and the Anglo Norman Scots. The cultural impact of the Normans on Europe was extraordinary.
what is the old lady going on about? does she expect her small ladies hands to be the size of a possibly 6 foot norseman who spends his times fighting and generally exercising?
@@tinysaxon3826 The Normans were the descendants of Vikings, Northmen = Norman. Besides, the Anglo-Saxons and other Germanic ethnic groups were related culturally and genetically to the Scandinavians.
Not convinced on `Bears` axe technique its not a sling, the main force would be similar to a boxer shifting feet plus rotation of the upper body then transferring the energy of the moment of that mass into the axe, he seems to be trying to generate energy in the axe itself., plus that telegraphs the blow which is not good in real combat.
That's under instructions from the director, they mixed in two units film there filming at different times, all the other times that they didn't show I did as you described, but they went with that one I assume for dramatic effect
@Steve.K47 yes mate I am. We shot a ton of stuff that day and we tried to advise them the best we could but sadly had no control over what they kept in
@@tomisdead Then I duly apologise to you, I understand unarmed combat Judo and Boxing not Axe combat but even that give me a grasp of how force is applied, that must be bloody irritating to you knowing your stuff and having someone `Hollywood` it .. I have noticed similar Hollywood combat it numerous BBC historical documentaries so have no problem believing you . Thanks for clarifying and respect to you for taking the time to understand such combat, we need physical research in such historical items as well as archaeology and text.
@Steve.K47 no problem at all mate and yeah I've done a few of these and it's always the most aesthetic and least accurate stuff that gets put in. I appreciate there needs to be a certain level of entertainment but it was quite frustrating by the end of the day When we did it we worked through a few different things that it sadly doesn't show. We actually took the head off the pig on one swing which was pretty brutal.
Harold had fought alonside William, whilst being held hostage, therefore he understood the badass tactics, and utilised that knowledge during their opposing battle, and that is thought to be one of the reasons that the battle lasted for eight or nine hours. Had the battle been fought at battle abbey, the topography would have allowed cavalry use at a much earlier stage, thus ending the fighting within Two/ three hours !
when speaking about the horses, stirrups etc, they mention once that the horses probably weren't Contacting the Saxon line, so how hard they'd hit with their spears is not really germane They don't mention the three defensive ditches King Harold constructed which would largely neutralize the power of the cavalry it is interesting though Plains Indians in America hunted buffalo with spears from horseback without stirrups....if that has any bearing to this....
Why have the reenactors got what appears to be thick grime all over their faces in streaks like camouflage face paint? Obviously one would hope that the director art department didn't think that they actually worse face paint because it wasn't a thing at the time. Which leads you to think that they decided that everybody at the time had filthy faces. That would be an odd idea, they knew how to wash themselves in 1066.
The anglo Saxons had better gear and soldiers. If it wasnt for the two pronged assault from 2 massive armies , namely Norwegian invasion in the north and Norman invasion in the South, i believe Harold could have crushed William. Remember Harold force marched to Hastings, didnt have his full army, didnt have his archers, nor all his heavy infantry, nor his cavalry... it was really stupid to engage this early.. though he thought he could win.. riding on the adrenaline of crushing Harald a few days ago.
35:17 this guy is not even riding like a Norman knight. His saddle has no back on it. The whole point of having stirrups is to be able to press feet forward, while your but is pressing back into a high cantle -the ‘back rest’ of the saddle they used. And this guy says you lean forwards, but your actual leaning as far back as your stirruped feet can push you. And while the lance is couched, from that riding position, a horse can bare fully down on an enemy, and when that lance hits, it’s the enemy that gives way, not the rider. Poor demonstration, sorry, but it was piss poor.
(nobody fought on THAT field) no battle debris Ever found there....doesn't match the descriptions of the land....no where for King Harold to anchor his line....no malfoss
I think that the armour used would have been cow horn scale armour. Chain mail would have used to protect the heart etc . William was the better general. The Normans had learnt their superior military tactics from their interaction with the Byzantine Empire. The Normans gave the English army military "advice " prior to 1066. The Normans would have known the weakness of the English military. The Norman army was more professional. No cross bows and the cavalry fought like mounted infantry, lance charging came later. The best way to remove an arrow is to push 2 feathers down the arrow shaft to the arrow head ( opens up the wound) then ease the arrow and feathers out. Then Normans weren't French but were Danish, spoke French and learnt to use southern European battle tactics,🤔
Saw a documentary about the warrior in Finland buried with 2 swords, one a medieval sword made around the same time the warrior lived, and the second a 200 year older Viking sword. The Viking sword was a little over 1 kilogram. The longer medieval sword was 1.6 kilograms. Very light for a most likely trained and well built soldier. The Viking sword had a relatively short handle, something not at all uncommon ua-cam.com/video/CPYbKpARz2I/v-deo.htmlsi=Z2f-8SdDlhm_wY86
The historian needs sacking. William, Duke of Normandy was Ed the Con’s cousin once removed. Ed did have a cousin named William but he died in 1025. You could say that Duke William (born 1028) was named for his dead uncle. The historian made other errors too.
PS. If reinforcements were continuously coming to Harold from all England, then why not wait another week or even just a few days before playing his hand? How much time could William afford to field such a large force of men on the other side of the Channel? In the the end time was playing all in Harald's favour, so why noy not wait just a couple of days more? - rest - prepare and only then strike?
Read Nick Austin's book ' Secrets of the Norman Invasion', you will find your asnwers there, and much, much more besides. His work is superb, his reasoning (typo) and 'OnSite' work far Outstrips the 'Lazy Victoian Academic's' accepted version of events. Battle Abbey topography bears NO resemblence to the historical recordings of the event, it goes on and on! I have read Nick's book Twice, and I will read it again. I wish that we could have been presented with his findings, decades ago.. In my view, more near to the Truth than Fiction. Snooty academics, don't generally like their boats to be rocked! This book doesn't rock them, it sinks them!
Nick Austin believes the Normans landed in a place that had only one exit point onto the main land and Harold arrayed his army blocking that exit www.youtube.com/@SOTNI1/videos
My worst date in History. If only? Would we (like Iceland) be speaking a form of old English tongue, or would the Normans have just come back for a 2nd bite at the cherry?
Wtf is this historian about. The axe is not gonna care about mail. Even plate would be seriously damaged. Its not gonna be difficult to kill over and over again with the dane axe. Axes in general are great tools for killing. Only problem with this axe is you need great stamina to really make it shine. And the more strength you have the more lethal the blows.
It's the concussive effect, mail stops the cutting but not the concussive force. Mail and padding may stop the initial blow but that energy is translated as concussive force. It might not kill you but it will injure at the very least leaving you open to be killed.
Physics, the pig was dangling at the end of a rope so force wasn't resisted effectively, someone standing on their trotters would have experienced the blow very differently 😕
The Romans certainly did have saddles. There were horns on the front of them to lock your thighs under and some in the back that went over the hips. No stirrups though...
Sounds like you need serious mental health treatment. An old quote for you "History is written by the winner". Wether right or wrong class distinction has nothing to do with it. Your brain is screwed up.
Well, in my youth I had contact with a guy from Norway, living in GB. His grandad teached him stav, an old norse martial art based on rune stances. We trained with stafs, swords and axes. You wouldnt swing the dane axes, but use it quite controlled. The blade allows to cut, the edges to sting. You use all parts of the axe for fighting, and that allows you to fight even in a dense crowd.
That’s great info. Thanks. I never thought of it like that.
No such thing
The length of the great axe allows one to hook an enemy shield and pull it down, then you jab with the axe, or hook the leg and toss him down.I have trained for many years with ancient weapons, starred in music videos and performed in front of audiences, lol. My absolute favorite weapon combo is a gladius and a small spiked war hammer, or small axe. I win a lot of challenges with that combo.
@@lordeden2732 ua-cam.com/video/hYz8mJxu6ys/v-deo.htmlsi=LVr4uySiqTJzKeRC
Interesting that an elderly woman doesn't think that a warrior in his mid 20s to mid 30s couldn't hold a sword above his head because her old self can't.
That's not what she said. She said that the depiction of that in the tapestry doesn't make sense, especially when it comes to combat. And no, it doesn't make sense. Why would someone ride in and carry a sword at attention the entire time? That doesn't make sense.
@@orangejjay Its not in motion the tapestry was depicting a downward blow. What I believe she was on about was the size of the sword handle as they aren't huge often Under 4 inches but that's just how they are. Big hands are squished but that's how those swords are supposed to handle(hammer grip). Not to mention while a sword like that would have been seen at hastings it is never less a bit of a dated design for Hastings (not the norm think grandads sword). The truth of it is men of the period on average were about the same height as us in the west today, at most an inch shorter. I have no doubt that on average they were a lot brawnier, larger developed and fitter due to the physicality and manual nature of the period(on average obviously bodybuilders of today would be larger than anyone back then no trt or steroids an all).
@@deusvult5875 there’s no way they were close in height to us buddy, like look at a ww2 uniform their tiny, but according to you they were bigger hundreds of years ago
@@SladetheBlade.. You have access to Google no? look it up. People went from being taller in some periods and shorter in others there isn't a linear height increase throughout history. During the industrial revolution people were much shorter on average than people 1000 years earlier its all down to nutrition.
Ha! Ha! Ha! So true! 😊
Excellent. Not all knees buckled completely after the defeat of Godwinson. The Harrying of the North is worth investigating.
It took the Normans another five years to conquer England entirely and at one point (the siege of Ely) the country could've been split, English North and Norman South. But some monks sold out Hereward and that one came unstuck too. But they basically conquered England by hiding behind castle walls .
Great stuff ! Keep em coming a nice mix of practical demonstration ,history and a little story telling ,fantastic ! Also always love the tail of the Norseman that held Stamford bridge ,halting the advance and taking down 20 warriors in the process ,till a jab to the eggs with a pike or spear took him down ! Top stuff ,keep up the good work chief 👍
This was so good ! We need more of such documentaries :)
its all a lie the battlenever happoened
@@paulmurray1298 in your dreams ! 😂
It is interesting to note that most wounds, even lethal ones, would leave the victim crawling around, on the ground, bleeding to death - the Daneaxe (in later forms, the poleaxe) would put someone down in one hit - which was different enough that it entered the language - "he went down like he'd been poleaxed". Something that people seem to miss with these things is that maille is flexible - it turns a cutting blow into a crushing blow (hence why maces were useful, maille doesn't protect against them at all - you need a rigid armour to spread the impact) - so, even if the daneaxe didn't manage to actually penetrate the maille, the impact would break bones and cause terrible internal damage to the target.
Strange that is, you need rigid armor - preferably blocking to defend against the mace considering the club was used all through the history and same with the mace but the mace specialized in armored combat for crumbling helmets and joints crushing bones through gauntlets etc, but ya your right your better off in full plate but full plate is kind of designed to defend against all weapons, the mace is kind of one the the best things to use besides a spear or pole arm at distance and close range mace or dagger.
Idk this documentary kind of bugged me I now I know why historical UA-camrs cringe at some of the documentaries produced.
Speaking without any form of authority what so ever.....modern warfare must be horrendous.....but the brutally in those earlier ages must have been nothing short of shear and absolute terror....what grim lives our predecessors must have led is almost unimaginable.
I've been to Senlac Hill and am going again next year. I was fascinated by the history of it. They did say that in WWII they levelled the ground a bit because food was being grown there, so was probably a bit steeper in 1066.
Pay a visit to Crowhurst and compare it.
as well as the possible 'levelling', they must also have filled in the Mall Fosse....
Hastings is one of the only famous british battles where not a single arrowhead or crumb of archeology has been found.
Because it was fought in crowhurst, not in battle. 😅
How much have they dug?
@@jackthunderbolt4307 A lot i would guess..
@@IzzyWasborn True,they dont even know exactly where the battlefields are.
It's pronounced Astings in Hastings
Great documentaries on history. Thanks for all your work on these videos. 💚
A literal viking walks on screen:
*electronic music* 😵💫
I hope this channel gets the Boudicca episode!
The Danes Axe segment failed in mentioning that it could stab,chop,and hook opponents.
Only used to hack chop or club.
Hook never impossible
Always been fascinated by Hastings! Many battles are said to be "pivotal" points in history and fall short. But Hastings by far meets all those requirements of a history changing military engagement! This affected England,France & surrounding territory. It was most historians agree the end of the Viking age. It reoriented England from a north sea empire to a continental engagement with the mainland for centuries. All this hinged on a bastard Duke of Normandy. Who started off life probably hiding under his bed from assassin's trying to take his father's territory. Because his mother wasn't noble. William rose to meet these challenges and became King of England!
What happened to the bodies of the thousands of men killed at the battle?
It's a bit disingenuous to say this battle gave England to the Normans. In fact, William stayed in the area for a further two weeks or so after the battle expecting another attack from the English. Then they went to Dover where they were very ill and were not able to go any further.
During this time, the nobility were meeting in London where thousands of warriors came to wait for the next English king to be chosen and then to be taken into battle.
Once the king was chosen, instead of leading the English into battle, they negotiated the handover of the ground to William at that point. so, William did not win the crown at Hastings. Nobility gave it to him despite the fact that the English were ready to fight the battle against the Normans.
So, more cowardice and betrayal from the nobility. A bit like Parliament today.
William also crossed into Essex where he had local support,prior to the match into london
Harold most likely only lost because he had marched 250 miles north, fought Harold hardrada, won, and marched another 300 miles back. The Norman's were fresh.
YEP!
What about the part where they say he rested for 5 days in London after defeating Harald?
@@blaineedwards8078 alright. So he marched north 250 miles, fought a battle and won, then marched south for 250 miles.. and rested for 5 days. I'm sure they were fresh as daisies after that!
Great documentary! Montgisard and Bosworth, please!
Excellent work. Gets into the grit and grizzle of mediaevel warfare. Very amusing at the end with the doctors giving their prognosis of the "patients" future prospects after getting that arrow removed 😂
In my experience an 13:16 axe like that would tend to twist sideways when hitting something. Obvio😢it looks fierce but doesn't seem practical. If the blade was closer to the haft would have less of a tendency to twist in your grip . Just a thought.
Around 6:50 what the heck is wrong with that guy's sword grip? Huh?
15:50 Hagrid has entered the chat
6:13 The idea that a sword is to big and heavy for an old lady to wield means that it is too big and heavy for a full grown man of Nordic descent to wield is silly.
Are you deaf?
@@CH-ml4rz No, but I did suffer some hearing loss from my service in the 18th Airborne Corps Artillery and the 2nd ID Artillery when I was stationed on the DMZ in Korea.
Yes, I've watched that bit several times and she's either saying it's too heavy, or the grip is too small, or holding a sword above your head is wrong - all ridiculous..
No shield or armour on earth would protect you if a man like Bear came at you swinging that bloody axe !
Talk about scaring the sh..t out of you!
That's how it worked, but he's not invulnerable, hes got to lift that thing above his head, and if he's close enough he get a spear in his face.
So many happy flies.
Did they genuinely break bones to free arrows? It seems hard to believe.
the battlefield has never been found conclusively. there are a few likely places but nothing ever proven. i hate these documentary films that try to tell us where the battle was fought.
- The Battle of Hastings, fought on 14 October 1066, is the most famous battle in English history. There is widespread consensus among historians that William the Conqueror founded Battle Abbey in penance for the blood shed at the battle and to commemorate his great victory, on the very spot where he defeated King Harold.
It has been suggested, however, that the battle was not fought here. Several alternative locations have been put forward, including Crowhurst, about three miles south of Battle, and Caldbec Hill, about a mile to the north. Advocates of both sites claim that the Battle Abbey monks invented the association between their abbey and the battlefield in the Chronicle of Battle Abbey, written in the late 12th century, 100 years or more after 1066. -
Not many smiths fuller battleaxes, despite it being common on surviving specimens. Well done.
Possibly the shield wall could be breached by instead of attacking the helmeted heads of the enemy or the shield, an attack to the feet and legs of the soldiers with the shields could be successful, especially as they are expecting to have the shield attacked. Have heard of this happening in other battles.
I'm not so sure? How would you attack? If it's infantry vs infantry your attacking troops at least in first couple ranks would have to bend or stoop to reach at the defenders..I think a better approach to break up that formation you use fire and some type of rounded projectile..use those rocks like the old guys in WW2 blowing up dams,same idea,send em in bouncing and on fire If possible! Fire is a natural fearsome weapon that any soldier would run from..
Yeah what your describing sounds like what happened at Gotland in 1361
That was a recognized tactic going back to Roman times. It is against this tactic that grieves were created for the lower legs. Also, I seem to recall one of the sagas mentioning a sword named leg biter as a bit of anecdotal evidence
I don’t know about anyone else but I am officially convinced that BEAR 🐻 Is actually a Viking or Saxton warrior or whatever that never died and just continued to live and never aged since that time period “DID Y’ALL SEE HOW HE SWUNG THAT AXE 🪓 LOL” When they were doing the shield wall and he told Bear to step out to show how strong the wall was I screamed at the TV DROP YOUR SHIELDS AND RUN😂😂 😂
Defo has a presence 🤣🤣
Hey, I'm Bear, it was a pretty fun time filming it, they don't show all the footage of the pig, but they dane axe took the head clean off it wad brutal lol
Also in the shield wall shot, there was a 6 foot drop behind them so I had to go steady lol
@@tomisdead In the Viking Age, you definitely would have been a jarl....most definitely. I hereby proclaim you, "Jarl Bear".
6:00 What on Earth is she talking about? How are you supposed to pick up a sword if not by the handle?
18:15 kinda makes me wonder if it would have been more effective to wield a literal sledgehammer rather than an axe. For an unarmoured opponent it would probably not have mattered much. And for an armoured opponent it might have been more effective.
I write in detail about Hastings in my book, 'Gateway to Gandamak'. My research shows that the majority of the Anglo-Saxons walked away after Harold's death. They inflicted a sharp bloody nose in the Normans at the end of the day but decided not to continue the fight once the Godwins were dead. William was fought to a standstill. The Anglo-Saxon nobles accepted his claim to the throne, which had considerable legitimacy.
William was not fought to a standstill. For 3/4 of the entire day the battle was intensely fought with significant losses to both sides. This could be described as stopping the Normans for a prolonged period. But after Harold was injured in the eye and lying on the ground, there was probably a sudden loss of morale and a rout. (Wace admittedly tells a different story, he says Harold was hit much earlier in the day, he yanked out the arrow in anger and broke it, and continued with the fight). Four Norman cavalrymen rushed through and slaughtered the injured King who was on the ground, and some of his loyal retinue. The retreating Anglo-Saxon army was chased up the road to London, and a great many were cut down by Norman cavalry. Some Anglo-Saxons rushed up a steep hill a few miles North and bravely made a last stand. This second smaller battle was also very bitterly fought, but they were eventually entirely wiped out.
They look a bit intimidated by Bear
The time team used a Laser Radar gizmo to scan the entire area and showed that the actual place of the battle was near the crossroad / Roundabout of the close by town. Interestingly the only Axehead thought to be from the battle was actually found near the same place...
King William built the Abbey on the site of his victory. I doubt he'd get the location wrong 🙂
Said ax head can only be dated to pre-15th cent. Earliest date for the claim that BA was built on actual battlefield is 1125 courtesy of Orderic Vitalis.
Nick Austin thinks not
ua-cam.com/video/kYslFFKSNpk/v-deo.html
2:34 "It was here, Duke William of Normandy, or William the Conqueror, as he came to be known ..."
His real name was 'the Bastard'. Why didn't you lead with that?
I think Bear was pulling his punches.
I was lol
Forgive my ignorance when I say this "are you from the band Duran Duran "? Anyways awesome channel and good job.
I like the one hand bearded axe more. I like being able to use a shield.
14:33 I really don’t want to offend anyone with this comment-but I feel that might not be possible-because it’s my opinion that when we consider the effectiveness of these types of weapons, we do well to be mindful of the fact that the ax a technology that is incomplete without the inclusion of the technology of the human that wields it. And what I mean by that, as a simply this: there’s a difference between an ordinary (even a particularly large) human wielding the ax, and the Housecarl who is a professional soldier, and who has trained for years or decades in it’s murderous use, and who’s job when not performing in battle it is to train ongoing-ya da ya da ya…
Principle of super compensation, triggered by muscular resistance overload, is what I’m talking about. A kid gets a tiny ax head, a youth gets a small one, a teen gets a medium one, adult big one, soldier in training a bigger one, professional a huge one….you get it, it’s basic but this is how a normal human trains the body to come to wield an ax head that is way to big for a normal human to wield, as though it were a loaf of bread, and do it over and over again.
So what’s offensive about that? Well, watching history and fantasy nerds demonstrate how to use a weapon that the Housecarl I just described used….not exactly a veritable proposition. Sorry history and fantasy nerds. But we need to understand that the ax is trouble enough for anyone to face down on its own…..but the reality of that ax in the hands of a professional household warrior is a whole new world of shit.
Now I’m not saying smaller axes weren’t used, it’s likely that axes of all sizes were around, and many different types of combatants to use them.
I’m just talking about the créme de la créme, because that’s who we need to talk about.
basic weapons, the weapons used there were among the best at the time and the tactics used not just weren't rudementary, but were the norm at the time and had been used for over a thousand years. it just starts bad for the guy on the video.
hardrada also claimed the throne for himself, completly seperate from william.
Great
That one old guy speaks so quietly i have to turn to full volume every time he comes on.
Excellent documentary. Informative and entertaining at the same time.
Harold Godwinson and Richard III, both strong and sometimes heroic leaders done in by fate, bad timing or treachery...
Yes
16:00
Hold up...who invented time travel and why was i unaware of its existence?!
All well and good exept the battle was nowhere near the present abbey
The battle was fought at Crow hurst not Senlac hill
There is a great deal of evidence that agrees with you.
www.youtube.com/@SOTNI1/videos
What is that woman historian talking about at 6:56? Holding a sword in a certain way?
Some kind of woke rubbish probably, along the lines of big bad butch men are pure invention 👈😁
The size of hands
There comments on the strength of soldiers is crazy to me. If you meet a old boy that was in the SAS they will run a marathon with a backpack and a beer belly after eating a full English. Imagine Eddie hall or the mountain with the cardio of a paratrooper is how I imagine the berserkers fitness to be
But no one did fight and die there , because you are in the wrong place, come on get the story right.
Shield wall looks like a phalanx somewhat.
The Norman's didn't couch the lance. 😅
That’s not even where the battle took place
They were so ruthless, & life meant nothing unless you were rich, What's changed?
What's interesting about Hastings is we have good records of who was there in William's army. Anyone with a Norman French or Breton Surname almost certainly had ancestors who came over with William and statistically all indigenous modern Britons are descended from William
every land owning family in Britain apart from the north of Scotland, the North West of Scotland, North west Wales and west Ireland.
An awful lot of us are descended from William my Mother's also a direct descended of Alain Rufus who was the grandson of the Duke of Brittany and led 4000 Bretons, about 30% of William's army.
Those Normans and their Breton and Flemish allies got everywhere. Even Scotland, King David invited Norman adventurers to take lands in Scotland and introduce their feudal system so he could get the highly independent Celtic/Norse/Angle aristocracy under his heel. Families like Stewart (Breton), De Brus (Bruce) (Norman), Campbell (Fleming), Ramsay (Norman). Settled and feuded with the native aristocracy MacLeod (norse), MacGregor and MacDonald (Celtic).
Even 1000 years later there's still slight cultural tensions between the Celt and the Anglo Norman Scots.
The cultural impact of the Normans on Europe was extraordinary.
You need a reply for that.
what is the old lady going on about? does she expect her small ladies hands to be the size of a possibly 6 foot norseman who spends his times fighting and generally exercising?
They where Angllo Saxons not Nodse ??
@@tinysaxon3826 The Normans were the descendants of Vikings, Northmen = Norman. Besides, the Anglo-Saxons and other Germanic ethnic groups were related culturally and genetically to the Scandinavians.
The sword handle is too small for even her hands
Not enough people are talking about Bear. Who is this absolute unit?!
A chubby guy with a beard and a strange axe swing.
@ he is the messiah!
Not convinced on `Bears` axe technique its not a sling, the main force would be similar to a boxer shifting feet plus rotation of the upper body then transferring the energy of the moment of that mass into the axe, he seems to be trying to generate energy in the axe itself., plus that telegraphs the blow which is not good in real combat.
That's under instructions from the director, they mixed in two units film there filming at different times, all the other times that they didn't show I did as you described, but they went with that one I assume for dramatic effect
@@tomisdead Ah .. are you the guy swinging the axe?
@Steve.K47 yes mate I am. We shot a ton of stuff that day and we tried to advise them the best we could but sadly had no control over what they kept in
@@tomisdead Then I duly apologise to you, I understand unarmed combat Judo and Boxing not Axe combat but even that give me a grasp of how force is applied, that must be bloody irritating to you knowing your stuff and having someone `Hollywood` it .. I have noticed similar Hollywood combat it numerous BBC historical documentaries so have no problem believing you .
Thanks for clarifying and respect to you for taking the time to understand such combat, we need physical research in such historical items as well as archaeology and text.
@Steve.K47 no problem at all mate and yeah I've done a few of these and it's always the most aesthetic and least accurate stuff that gets put in. I appreciate there needs to be a certain level of entertainment but it was quite frustrating by the end of the day
When we did it we worked through a few different things that it sadly doesn't show. We actually took the head off the pig on one swing which was pretty brutal.
Crowhurst..the proper location where , in battle King Harald Godwinson faced the Duke of Normandy.
Must be lot of weapons etc hidden in them hills
You need to find a viking that knows how to swing an axe
I wish I had hair like Karl, magnificent barnet
He's not at the right spot. Time team proved the battle took place about a mile down the road at what is now a traffic circle.
Nope, Crowhurst
Nick Austin says no
ua-cam.com/video/kYslFFKSNpk/v-deo.html
William was a badass!
Harold had fought alonside William, whilst being held hostage, therefore he understood the badass tactics, and utilised that knowledge during their opposing battle, and that is thought to be one of the reasons that the battle lasted for eight or nine hours. Had the battle been fought at battle abbey, the topography would have allowed cavalry use at a much earlier stage, thus ending the fighting within Two/ three hours !
when speaking about the horses, stirrups etc, they mention once that the horses probably weren't Contacting the Saxon line, so how hard they'd hit with their spears is not really germane
They don't mention the three defensive ditches King Harold constructed which would largely neutralize the power of the cavalry
it is interesting though
Plains Indians in America hunted buffalo with spears from horseback without stirrups....if that has any bearing to this....
Maybe the housecarls went for the horses and then finished the man off.
Why have the reenactors got what appears to be thick grime all over their faces in streaks like camouflage face paint?
Obviously one would hope that the director art department didn't think that they actually worse face paint because it wasn't a thing at the time.
Which leads you to think that they decided that everybody at the time had filthy faces.
That would be an odd idea, they knew how to wash themselves in 1066.
If harold hadnt had to go north to fight the Norse, I think he'd have beaten william.
The anglo Saxons had better gear and soldiers. If it wasnt for the two pronged assault from 2 massive armies , namely Norwegian invasion in the north and Norman invasion in the South, i believe Harold could have crushed William. Remember Harold force marched to Hastings, didnt have his full army, didnt have his archers, nor all his heavy infantry, nor his cavalry... it was really stupid to engage this early.. though he thought he could win.. riding on the adrenaline of crushing Harald a few days ago.
35:17 this guy is not even riding like a Norman knight. His saddle has no back on it. The whole point of having stirrups is to be able to press feet forward, while your but is pressing back into a high cantle -the ‘back rest’ of the saddle they used. And this guy says you lean forwards, but your actual leaning as far back as your stirruped feet can push you. And while the lance is couched, from that riding position, a horse can bare fully down on an enemy, and when that lance hits, it’s the enemy that gives way, not the rider.
Poor demonstration, sorry, but it was piss poor.
(nobody fought on THAT field)
no battle debris Ever found there....doesn't match the descriptions of the land....no where for King Harold to anchor his line....no malfoss
The hell was that nonsense about someone on horseback not being able to hold a sword? It's like 5 pounds.
Less than that. My German longsword is barely over two pounds. I’m guessing a Saxon or Norman sword is 1.6 pounds at the most. Pretty light actually.
I think that the armour used would have been cow horn scale armour. Chain mail would have used to protect the heart etc . William was the better general. The Normans had learnt their superior military tactics from their interaction with the Byzantine Empire. The Normans gave the English army military "advice " prior to 1066. The Normans would have known the weakness of the English military. The Norman army was more professional. No cross bows and the cavalry fought like mounted infantry, lance charging came later.
The best way to remove an arrow is to push 2 feathers down the arrow shaft to the arrow head ( opens up the wound) then ease the arrow and feathers out. Then Normans weren't French but were Danish, spoke French and learnt to use southern European battle tactics,🤔
Saw a documentary about the warrior in Finland buried with 2 swords, one a medieval sword made around the same time the warrior lived, and the second a 200 year older Viking sword. The Viking sword was a little over 1 kilogram. The longer medieval sword was 1.6 kilograms. Very light for a most likely trained and well built soldier. The Viking sword had a relatively short handle, something not at all uncommon
ua-cam.com/video/CPYbKpARz2I/v-deo.htmlsi=Z2f-8SdDlhm_wY86
dont let koifish see this
It's all supposition, no one really knows what went on, some little weird guy barking out shieldwall orders 👀
The historian needs sacking. William, Duke of Normandy was Ed the Con’s cousin once removed. Ed did have a cousin named William but he died in 1025. You could say that Duke William (born 1028) was named for his dead uncle. The historian made other errors too.
PS. If reinforcements were continuously coming to Harold from all England, then why not wait another week or even just a few days before playing his hand? How much time could William afford to field such a large force of men on the other side of the Channel? In the the end time was playing all in Harald's favour, so why noy not wait just a couple of days more? - rest - prepare and only then strike?
Read Nick Austin's book ' Secrets of the Norman Invasion', you will find your asnwers there, and much, much more besides.
His work is superb, his reasoning (typo) and 'OnSite' work far Outstrips the 'Lazy Victoian Academic's' accepted version of events.
Battle Abbey topography bears NO resemblence to the historical recordings of the event, it goes on and on!
I have read Nick's book Twice, and I will read it again. I wish that we could have been presented with his findings, decades ago..
In my view, more near to the Truth than Fiction.
Snooty academics, don't generally like their boats to be rocked! This book doesn't rock them, it sinks them!
Should have starved them out !
Nick Austin believes the Normans landed in a place that had only one exit point onto the main land and Harold arrayed his army blocking that exit
www.youtube.com/@SOTNI1/videos
Wrong place
My worst date in History. If only? Would we (like Iceland) be speaking a form of old English tongue, or would the Normans have just come back for a 2nd bite at the cherry?
You are in the wrong spot 🤷
Wtf is this historian about. The axe is not gonna care about mail. Even plate would be seriously damaged. Its not gonna be difficult to kill over and over again with the dane axe. Axes in general are great tools for killing. Only problem with this axe is you need great stamina to really make it shine. And the more strength you have the more lethal the blows.
It's the concussive effect, mail stops the cutting but not the concussive force.
Mail and padding may stop the initial blow but that energy is translated as concussive force.
It might not kill you but it will injure at the very least leaving you open to be killed.
Physics, the pig was dangling at the end of a rope so force wasn't resisted effectively, someone standing on their trotters would have experienced the blow very differently 😕
Just my point
My brother and sister went to battle Abby school
Fighting on foot was not the old way. The English would go onto fight on foot for centuries, look at Agincourt.
If ot dont sin,g or dan,ce aint 1 of our halfers 2 of 1 being a bi poler himself he would understand a high positin
Wow
The Romans certainly did have saddles. There were horns on the front of them to lock your thighs under and some in the back that went over the hips. No stirrups though...
ouch
Brill document ray
This woman determined that Vining’s weren’t big and strong by how they were holding their swords in the tapestry
Watch it again
A thousand years later and the Saxon way of living is dead 😔
Hastings is pronounced Astings in Hastings 😂
0800-00
LJ !!!!!!!!
First!
The class system needs destroyed. Tired of seeing entitled people telling us histrory. #Eat the rich.
fucking what
????
seek help
Sounds like you need serious mental health treatment. An old quote for you "History is written by the winner". Wether right or wrong class distinction has nothing to do with it. Your brain is screwed up.
Shield walls were used by the Greeks??
I want a pole axe for Christmas
If prefer a pole dancer,but to each his own 😀
It makes me laugh when a toff gets so much wrong !!