🚩 Support HistoryMarche on Patreon and get ad-free early access to our videos for as little as $1: www.patreon.com/historymarche 🚩 According to legend, a single Viking warrior held the narrow bridge against the English for a time. He killed about 40 English warriors before he was killed. In the fierce fighting that followed, both Harald Hardrada and Tostig were killed, along with most of the Viking host. Harald's death in battle is considered to have marked the end of the Viking Age in Europe. The English had experienced a swift and decisive victory at Stamford Bridge, but just three days later news reached King Harold that William of Normandy was commencing his invasion to take the throne.
One battle you may want to look at is the battle of Maldon. The English army trapped a viking army on one of the islands with only a small path to the mainland. The vikings asked to be allowed to get onto the mainland and fight which the English allowed. The English leader then fought a single handed duel against 4,or 5,vikings. He was killed. This battle led to the English king,ethelred the unready to start paying danegeld.
Lo, there do I see my father. Lo, there do I see my mother, and my sisters, and my brothers. Lo, there do I see the line of my people, Back to the beginning! Lo, they do call to me. They bid me take my place among them, In the halls of Valhalla! Where the brave may live forever!
@andreas956 @TannerWilliam07 Though it would most likely be God* instead of gods in this case and heaven instead of Valhalla, since Harald Hardrada was a Christian king.
Harold Godwin's is one of those Kings/Commanders that goes unappreciated. Being able to force march his army and army 185 miles (298 km) in only four days stunned even the Vikings. Then he immeditatly attacked without chance for rest won and against a legend like Hardrada. Then he forced marched his army barely days later the same distance down to the coast and almost annihilated William the Conquerors army as well. If only his armies discipline holding the shield wall had held instead of chasing a feigned retreat it would have gone down as one of the great feats of Military history.
The length of the Battle of Hastings is a Testament to Haralds shield wall. Lasting from roughly 9am till dusk. That's very long for early miedeval Battles.
Have to think that maybe if Stamford bridge hadn't been so bloody a few more experienced troops would've held the line instead and William never gets the gap in the line he so badly needed.
I do agree, this write up on his tactical ability and command, should be lauded. But I wouldn't say he was close to annihilating Williams forces at Hastings.
@@AkodoGaroumost casualties come after the battle, in the rout. If William’s army had actually broken it’s likely that many would die before reaching the coast/Normandy.
Vikings: Valhalla depicts Harald Sigurdsson (Harald Hardråde), but that show is so full of bullshit. I agree, we need a proper miniseries with high quality, focusing on all the crazy stuff he did in his life.
@@blinkbubs3994 It's almost easier to list examples that aren't BS. Almost none of the characters depicted in the show actually interacted with eachother, or even lived at the same time. Harald wasn't born yet at the St. Brice's massacre, yet in the show he seems to be in his 20's or 30's at the time. He was also born about 40 years after Leif Eiriksson, yet they look about the same age in the show. Erik the Red died about 10 years before Harald was born. And I can go on and on about the characters. Most of the events in the show either happened before the characters were born, or after they had died. And very few of them ever met or had anything to do with eachother in real life. Generally they have just taken a bunch of famous names and events, and jammed them all together in a fictional story.
Yup, I've learned a lot from these videos. Most of all how brutal life was. Most of us would have just been chattel and not 1 fuck given if we lived or died. Born in squalor, die in squalor. Constant intrigues, battles and wars for a noble.
I can't believe History isn't "popular", I mean sure, there are still many people who like it, but despite being such an important thing and what basically transformed the world we know today, it's... Unpopular? Really sucks...
I doubt he was real... that has to be an embellishment from the chroniclers. Why wouldn't the English archers just smoke him the second he stepped out onto the bridge? We KNOW they had archers, because Harald Hardrada was killed by an arrow to the throat. And even if there were no archers forward deployed, Saxon infantry absolutley used a lot of javelins, so either way, that dude would have been dealt with long before they decided to throw away 40 housecarls.
@@ianmedford4855yeah, 100% a legend. Maybe there was a little truth in it, like a strong guy holding them back for a minute and maybe killing a hand full of people, but no way this one man army guy could have been true.
I don't know why people don't believe that the man did what we've heard (or close to it). It was the English, not the Vikings, who recorded his feats. And RIP probably isn't quite right for a Viking, though I appreciate the intent. If any man ever wanted to go to Valhalla to battle every day, it was that man.
@@georgebailey8179 because this was a massacre, not a proper battle. The Vikings didn't have armor or spears, and weren't expecting a fight at all. Look at the results... they arrived in 400 ships and left in 25. I think its very likely that the chroniclers had to put something glorious and interesting to give the victory more weight than the reality of essentially slaughtering more or less defenseless and drunken heathens. Just use your head here... If you were in command would you throw 40 housecarls away for no reason, or would you order a volley of javelins or arrows, step over the guys corpse, and get to work? Not only that, but have you ever been in a proper fight? It is VERY tiring to just bang away with fists and wrestle; let alone being swinging an axe and holding a shield. There is no way one guy fought 40 dudes straight. It beggars belief to think he'd have the stamina, and also to think that he wouldn't take accumulating wounds that took their toll long before he got around to fighting his 40th trained household soldier.
Dont ever stop making these videos. This is the history the world needs to know. Thank uou so much. Thru Ancestry ive traced both sides of my family to Norway, Scotland and England back to the mid 1200's. No doubt some of these soldiers were part of my family.
I agree that he shouldn't stop making these videos but I think Hannah Arendts take on the banality of evil is a little more important than ancient battle results
It's crazy how that single ax-wielding warrior is remembered over a thousand years after the fact, and we don't know anything about him. Few could ever expect to achieve such an immortal fame over the course of an entire lifetime, and he did it within the span of a few minutes.
Lo, there do I see my father. Lo, there do I see my mother, and my sisters, and my brothers. Lo, there do I see the line of my people, Back to the beginning! Lo, they do call to me. They bid me take my place among them, In the halls of Valhalla! Where the brave may live forever!
I attended a lively re-enactment at Stamford Bridge, back in 1966. Most impressive it was too. Back in 1066, no doubt an even greater effort was required from the soldiers for the march down to the south coast . . .
Such an epic saga! This could be made into a magnificent movie, it has all ingredients of an epic story: legendary characters, feats of heroism and intrigue everything. Thanks for the video HM!
Imagine what Hollywood would do to this. Hadrada would be a poc. Edward, the confessor, obviously a trans gay Godwinson would be a saxon supremacist xenophobic psychopath, obviously the baddie, so played by an English actor. Duke William would be the wronged hero who bravely regained what was promised to him and just wanted to unite Europe.
@@Eogrednuke nah, I watched a few clips and it is absolute cr@p. I don't believe vikings had one single woman in their ranks going to war. That stupid narrative ruins everything.
Great video, I often run through the battlefield of Fulford. What lives they lived. Would love to see a Jacobite Rebellion series or a Battle of Myton and Old Byland one for after Bannockburn
Poor Harold Godwinson couldve been one of the greatest kings in history if he had defeated both Harold King of Norway, and William the Conqueror. And he very well couldve defeated William at Hastings as well.
@@abdulrahmanq7127for one,slavery would have continued to exist as British culture was heavily influenced by viking culture. 2, you could have 2 wives,1 for love and 1 political wife. 3,the witan would have continued and adapted into more of a democratic system. 4, England would have won Normandy and would have had a foothold in France. 5 the age of the armoured knight would have been delayed by centuries. 6,we'd get out arse kicked sooner or later
@@Trebor74 " British culture was heavily influenced by viking culture" oh god spot the viking fan boy. uoi'tr wrong, it may have had some influence, on the language, few place names and a king but not much else, can you tell me what? because all the land the Danes settled was taken back and the people married into the English population thus adopting Christianity and English customs. the most dominating cultures were Brythonic, Scottish and anglo saxon English in England.. the Danish only came here in small numbers, you make it sound like they where some majority or something, even with cnut as king he kept english customs and culture, even so both peoples shared common heritage coming from the same place, the only real change was william the bastards genocidal destruction of britain. ",we'd get out arse kicked sooner or later" what after Godwinson ends the viking era and destroyed the earl of Normandy? which france would of happily taken, there could of been endless possibilities. your takes are historically ignorant as stupid
@@Trebor74 England did have a foothold in France after the Normans took over England, as it was the British isles that were a bigger prize for the Normans than Normandy itself. Centuries later, they still held on to those French possessions after they had being anglicized for a while. The English and British Monarchs still styled themselves as Kings/Queens of France right upto the beginning of the French Republic in early 19th century.
9:16 "What about Edgar?" refers to Edward the Confessor's grandnephew, Edgar the Aetheling, who was the only remaining male member of the House of Wessex after Edward's death. Some had supported him for the throne, but he was rejected because (a) he was in his early teens and thus was considered too young for such dangerous times, and (b) Harold of course held all the reins of power at this point. In the immediate aftermath of Hastings, there was an attempt to put him on the throne, but that lasted only until William was able to begin his march on London in earnest. Secondly, as odd as it may seem, a direct male-line descendant of Tostig did eventually sit on a throne. Tostig's sons fled to Norway after the battle and settled there, being granted lands and titles, and even intermarried with the royal family. Eventually, Tostig's great-great-great grandson gained the throne of Norway and ruled as Inge II from 1204 - 1217. Through the marriage of Inge's niece to Haakon IV of Norway, all the later monarchs of Norway (well, other than the early Bernadotte kings of Sweden-Norway), and, thus, many European monarchs, are descended from Tostig.
So glad I stumbled across this. It’s especially cool to me because I grew up in Stamford Bridge. We were taught a basic version of this all through primary school, and the village has lots of relevant street names (Godwins Way, Hadrada Close, Harold’s Way) And by completely coincidence I now live in Riccall. And it was only after I bought my house that I found out the street is named after the Viking settlement they found when building the street! The fields they set up camp in are just behind my garden!
The present stone Bridge isn't situated where the original wooden footbridge was, which was about half a mile upstream, the actual battle was heading towards Full Sutton prison. I lived in Stamford Bridge from 1981 to 92 on Fossway. Lovely place, great people and some lovely pubs and restaurants. I only moved because of a promotion at work.
@@HistoryMarche - absolutely my friend 👍 .. been subbed to you for years, with my 2 channels, & been great to see how the channel has grown & your hard work paying off 🙏
I'd absolutely love a film about Harold godwinson... King cnuts trusty lieutenant, made a king, defeated the legendary Harold hardrada and then his great loss at the battle of Hastings.... has to be more than enough quantity for an epic film
Look for "Wulf the Saxon" on youtube. It's an audiobook on the events leading up to the last battles of Harold. Not a movie but even better in my view as there is so much good storytelling. Very well narrated by Peter Keeble who sounds like he belongs in the era and the book is written and researched by George Alfred Hentie who wrote many outstanding historical novels.
Harold the ass who got shot in the eye and fought to defend slavery and inequality. He’d make a great villain in a hero movie about William the Conqueror. Britain was only peaceful under Norman rule.
@@maskcollector6949 Wtf are you talking about? England was literally sent into a dark age with many rebellions and unstability because of the Normans. The Normans enforced Feudalism upon the Anglo-Saxon peasants which was more or less slavery, as well as trying to destroy their culture, their architectures and their language, they took almost all lands, food and farming equipment that were owned by the English lords and general population and gave it to his foreign invading French and Norman nobility, known as "The Norman Yoke". They also enforced French as the court language in England, a foreign language that no one but William and his Normans spoke. Forcing the English to not speak their own language. William also murdered about 75% of Northern England's population in the "Harrying of the North". Read up on history instead of making up this bullshit story trying to be edgy and hate on a hero that fought to defend his people, country and culture. William and the Normans was one of the worst things that ever happened to England.
According to the Norwegian traditional (or so it seems) song Stamford Bru, which has been quoted a little in previous comments, the axeman on the bridge is identified as "Thiodolf the Strong", which unfortunately doesn't link to any famous Norwegian of those times. The only weak link is Hardrada's skald named Thiodolf Arnorsson, which vanishes from the records with the battle, but nothing solid can be said further. Edit: The song erroneously states (but according to the Snorri's saga) the earls fighting at Fulford were Morcar and Valthiof, Morcar dying and Valthiof flying. The saga itself, funnily enough, never mentions Thiodolf the axeman on the bridge. Oh, the song and the saga also say that the rider(s) have been dispatched even before Thiodolf started the fight on the bridge. The saga doesn't mention Styrkar the marshal as that rider, the song does.
@@hansybarra Harald Foss, I know the name. That the sagas don't mention the axeman on the bridge I've already written. So the question is - what Chronicles? Anglosaxon Chronicle doesn't mention the axeman name. Why Thiodolf, and not e.g. Einar? :-)
Great upload! And congrats as you approach a million subs. Your hard work and dedication to the subject matter in your videos is commendable. Thank you
@@HistoryMarche My pleasure! You have taught me so much! The very least I could do, is comment and tell you how much I appreciate you. Especially now as YT tries to silence long form documentary content. Makes you think why History is so important. Sorry for the diatribe. I just have a lot of respect for History Marche.
One of my favorite songs by the band Amon Amarth is called "The Berserker at Stamford Bridge". When I saw the title of this episode I was hoping you would cover that part of this Battle. Thank you.
@@eadweardwoden7309 Of course I've never seen the Bridge, since the Bridge from that battle doesn't exist any longer, nor any traces of it or even it's exact location. It's a Legend, but a legend told by the survivors on both sides of the battle, which is rare.
Harold was truly a great king, unfortunate was the timing of the second invasion. A couple of weeks later and his army would have been fit to overcome the normans
Well he couldn't wait. Levies were going home for the harvest, their obligations complete. They'd have a new king but could feed their families, and the Normans wouldn't genocide everyone because dead people don't pay taxes.
Harald Sigurdsson (Old Norse: Haraldr Sigurðarson; c. 1015 - 25 September 1066), also known as Harald III of Norway and given the epithet Hardrada (harðráði; modern Norwegian: Hardråde, roughly translated as "stern counsel" or "hard ruler") in the sagas, was King of Norway from 1046 to 1066.
Hell of a great video. I laughed at the single bezerker with the battle axe smashing all the English little dots that approached. Do you have an opinion on the preparedness of the armies on either side of the engagement? It seems almost tragic that the norse allowed themselves to be surrounded upon hope of reinforcements... which were too late and then also smashed. Tactically, it makes me wonder why Hardrada didn't further reinforce the bridge crossing and make a stand there where the formidable English numbers would count for less. Unless, of course, they would be able to start fording the river instead of crossing the bridge in close order. Was it a military "blunder" or were there other circumstances lost to the mysteries of history?
Hadrada and his boys were a fierce bunch--but caught off guard with out their armor and most weapons??? amazing forced march and bold attack---fortune favors the bold!! ah except at Hastings. Godwins knew he was facing a MODERN ARMY with heavy calvery etc; he should have held back and rested and strengthened his forces v WILLIAM
@21:10 - if you know, you know Englishmen! I am waiting here In my heart I know not an ounce of fear We are waiting here my trusted axe and me Just come at me, I will not flee Death! I know that it awaits Soon I will enter Valhalla's gates!
På våren i 1066 ei ferd vart förebudde, Maktglad konge i noreg rådde, Og leidang baud ive landet. Eit hundre og fem og nitti skip, Til Orknöy-jarlen dei sigla vest, Og Torfinn Jarl sine söner lest Eit hundre fleire langskip. In Spring of 1066: A journey was appraised. Power-hungry King in Norway reigned, And bid the lands' levies raised. One hundred-and-five and ninety ships; To the Jarl of Orkney, they sailed West, And Jarl Torfinn's sons loaded One hundred more longships.
@@HistoryMarche---Your welcome. I find this Harold Godwinson interesting. Won the greatest battle of his life only to lost later on to someone much worse.
Very good as always with some one or two geographical inaccuracies. That's not where Ipswich is on the map! I've never noticed it before. Now I've got to look at the rest of the maps!
I think that there are unknown caricatures who boarded a ship to inform the "Bastard of Normandy" that the pre arranged plan with Tostig to divide the kingdom north and south respectively. Similarly to Poland in 1939. But William let Harold exhaust his House Carl Spartans marching to York and back after a brilliant surprise attack
8:37 I would argue that statements like this should be caveated with "according to the Normans" because the claim that Harold swore an oath to accept William as king only exists in Norman sources; Anglo Saxon sources like the Chronicle and third-party sources like the Edda do not mention any such oath (because they have no incentive to propagandize for William) I also think that you failure to acknowledge the Witenagamot is mildly disgraceful. England was an elective monarchy before William imposed French-style feudalism on them. Harold was elected by the Witen upon the death of Edward. To ignore this, and treat his ascension as a barely-justified coronation, is to side with Norman propagandists.
It's also worth pointing out that the warrior on the bridge is related here as a true story, when the reality is we just don't know. Norse sources don't mention him, only English ones, and it bears a remarkable similarity to another story from The Anarchy.
harald met Normans in southern Italy, when he was part of the varegues, he had to stop the Normans from taking more territory to hold the rest of the territory under byzantines power
Harold is one of those great kings. He had to face two invasions at the same time, and even if he lost at the end, he won one battle. This battle only ended the Viking Age in England, because the "Viking Age" was already over in different places and ended in different times. The Irish ended the Viking period in 1014, the Franks much more earlier after Rollo was granted land, Scotland, don't know exactly when, but probably in the 11th century they no longer saw the vikings as a threat, England was.
Harald Hardrada's name isn't actually his name, but an epithet. Literally translated to the Haraldur the Hard-ruler (Haraldur Harðráði), not too dissimilar to William the Conquerer. Haraldur I was known as Hárfagri - or "fair-haired". And was a common way to distinguish them both from each other (the kings were all called Haraldur) as well as the numerous men in their entourages who shared the same name. P.S. Great video.
Yes, but he hadn’t behaved like an obnoxious, greedy git in the first place, he would never have been stripped of his earldom and been forced to flee abroad.
@@greva2904 Not to mention contributing to William's victory by tying up the English forces needlessly. Tostig helped destroy Anglo-Saxon society for his failed bid.
Great character? A man that betrayed his own brother and supported an invading army of his own homeland is a great character? Tostig was a traitor who is part responsible for the destruction of his homeland.
🚩 Support HistoryMarche on Patreon and get ad-free early access to our videos for as little as $1: www.patreon.com/historymarche
🚩 According to legend, a single Viking warrior held the narrow bridge against the English for a time. He killed about 40 English warriors before he was killed. In the fierce fighting that followed, both Harald Hardrada and Tostig were killed, along with most of the Viking host. Harald's death in battle is considered to have marked the end of the Viking Age in Europe. The English had experienced a swift and decisive victory at Stamford Bridge, but just three days later news reached King Harold that William of Normandy was commencing his invasion to take the throne.
You're amazing
You're amazing man! Keep up the good work😊😊😊😊❤❤❤
if only save-scumming IRL worked the way it does in CK2, imagine the alt history 😂
Great video! Can I ask, when will we get the next part to Hannibal?
One battle you may want to look at is the battle of Maldon. The English army trapped a viking army on one of the islands with only a small path to the mainland. The vikings asked to be allowed to get onto the mainland and fight which the English allowed. The English leader then fought a single handed duel against 4,or 5,vikings. He was killed. This battle led to the English king,ethelred the unready to start paying danegeld.
21:06 *Horatius* "How can man die better: than facing fearful odds, for the ashes of his fathers, and the temples of his Gods."
Lo, there do I see my father.
Lo, there do I see my mother,
and my sisters, and my brothers.
Lo, there do I see the line of my people,
Back to the beginning!
Lo, they do call to me.
They bid me take my place among them,
In the halls of Valhalla!
Where the brave may live forever!
Beowulf “Wyrð oft nereð unfægne eorl þonne his ellen deah” or “fate often saves undoomed man when his courage is good”
The true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him, but because he loves what is behind him.
Hard to not read this like a road man
@andreas956 @TannerWilliam07 Though it would most likely be God* instead of gods in this case and heaven instead of Valhalla, since Harald Hardrada was a Christian king.
Harold Godwin's is one of those Kings/Commanders that goes unappreciated. Being able to force march his army and army 185 miles (298 km) in only four days stunned even the Vikings. Then he immeditatly attacked without chance for rest won and against a legend like Hardrada.
Then he forced marched his army barely days later the same distance down to the coast and almost annihilated William the Conquerors army as well. If only his armies discipline holding the shield wall had held instead of chasing a feigned retreat it would have gone down as one of the great feats of Military history.
Fantastically put. It does make you wonder what the outcome at Hastings would have if Harold and his army were fresh.
The length of the Battle of Hastings is a Testament to Haralds shield wall. Lasting from roughly 9am till dusk. That's very long for early miedeval Battles.
Have to think that maybe if Stamford bridge hadn't been so bloody a few more experienced troops would've held the line instead and William never gets the gap in the line he so badly needed.
I do agree, this write up on his tactical ability and command, should be lauded. But I wouldn't say he was close to annihilating Williams forces at Hastings.
@@AkodoGaroumost casualties come after the battle, in the rout. If William’s army had actually broken it’s likely that many would die before reaching the coast/Normandy.
I'd watch the hell out of a Harald Hadrada miniseries, that guy was everywhere
Vikings: Valhalla depicts Harald Sigurdsson (Harald Hardråde), but that show is so full of bullshit. I agree, we need a proper miniseries with high quality, focusing on all the crazy stuff he did in his life.
@@Kr1ssetwhatre some examples of it being BS?
@@blinkbubs3994 It's almost easier to list examples that aren't BS. Almost none of the characters depicted in the show actually interacted with eachother, or even lived at the same time. Harald wasn't born yet at the St. Brice's massacre, yet in the show he seems to be in his 20's or 30's at the time. He was also born about 40 years after Leif Eiriksson, yet they look about the same age in the show. Erik the Red died about 10 years before Harald was born. And I can go on and on about the characters.
Most of the events in the show either happened before the characters were born, or after they had died. And very few of them ever met or had anything to do with eachother in real life.
Generally they have just taken a bunch of famous names and events, and jammed them all together in a fictional story.
As always, a high quality video for free, I really appreciate all of you for working hard making these videos for years! ❤
Thanks for the kind words. Cheers!
Keeping history alive, a more vital task today than most may realise. Thank you for the video HM.
For realsies!
Yup, I've learned a lot from these videos. Most of all how brutal life was. Most of us would have just been chattel and not 1 fuck given if we lived or died. Born in squalor, die in squalor. Constant intrigues, battles and wars for a noble.
? We have the receipts! You know books and things....?
I can't believe History isn't "popular", I mean sure, there are still many people who like it, but despite being such an important thing and what basically transformed the world we know today, it's... Unpopular? Really sucks...
Just goes to show that no matter how badass you are, everybody is the same after getting hit in the balls. Rip to that viking.
F
I doubt he was real... that has to be an embellishment from the chroniclers.
Why wouldn't the English archers just smoke him the second he stepped out onto the bridge? We KNOW they had archers, because Harald Hardrada was killed by an arrow to the throat.
And even if there were no archers forward deployed, Saxon infantry absolutley used a lot of javelins, so either way, that dude would have been dealt with long before they decided to throw away 40 housecarls.
@@ianmedford4855yeah, 100% a legend. Maybe there was a little truth in it, like a strong guy holding them back for a minute and maybe killing a hand full of people, but no way this one man army guy could have been true.
I don't know why people don't believe that the man did what we've heard (or close to it). It was the English, not the Vikings, who recorded his feats.
And RIP probably isn't quite right for a Viking, though I appreciate the intent. If any man ever wanted to go to Valhalla to battle every day, it was that man.
@@georgebailey8179 because this was a massacre, not a proper battle. The Vikings didn't have armor or spears, and weren't expecting a fight at all.
Look at the results... they arrived in 400 ships and left in 25. I think its very likely that the chroniclers had to put something glorious and interesting to give the victory more weight than the reality of essentially slaughtering more or less defenseless and drunken heathens.
Just use your head here... If you were in command would you throw 40 housecarls away for no reason, or would you order a volley of javelins or arrows, step over the guys corpse, and get to work?
Not only that, but have you ever been in a proper fight? It is VERY tiring to just bang away with fists and wrestle; let alone being swinging an axe and holding a shield. There is no way one guy fought 40 dudes straight. It beggars belief to think he'd have the stamina, and also to think that he wouldn't take accumulating wounds that took their toll long before he got around to fighting his 40th trained household soldier.
Dont ever stop making these videos. This is the history the world needs to know. Thank uou so much. Thru Ancestry ive traced both sides of my family to Norway, Scotland and England back to the mid 1200's. No doubt some of these soldiers were part of my family.
I agree that he shouldn't stop making these videos but I think Hannah Arendts take on the banality of evil is a little more important than ancient battle results
It's crazy how that single ax-wielding warrior is remembered over a thousand years after the fact, and we don't know anything about him. Few could ever expect to achieve such an immortal fame over the course of an entire lifetime, and he did it within the span of a few minutes.
Lo, there do I see my father.
Lo, there do I see my mother,
and my sisters, and my brothers.
Lo, there do I see the line of my people,
Back to the beginning!
Lo, they do call to me.
They bid me take my place among them,
In the halls of Valhalla!
Where the brave may live forever!
He was a beast.
I just find it funny imaging a guy in a barrel with a spear trying to poke someone in the balls
Lol I’m starting to wonder. He would have a name if he was somebody. We have names of all the Norman’s who invaded
@@maskcollector6949 we have names of every single norman soldier or mercenary? I doubt that.
Erling Halaand has been getting his revenge in at Stamford Bridge
🤣🤣🤣
Thank you for the video. This is one of the most important battles in the history of Great Britain along with Hastings.
The Vikings age is definitely one of my favorite and most interesting times in history to watch and learn about
This is one of the best videos from this channel yet, and one of the most fascinating episode in the long history of Britain.
I attended a lively re-enactment at Stamford Bridge, back in 1966. Most impressive it was too.
Back in 1066, no doubt an even greater effort was required from the soldiers for the march down to the south coast . . .
Harold godwinson's finest hour. Love your hardwork! Much appreciated! Suggestion: Ferdinand the saint og castile
Thanks so much Daniel. This one's been a long time coming. I've done Hastings some years ago, so Stamford Bridge was long overdue.
@@HistoryMarche yessir
Such an epic saga! This could be made into a magnificent movie, it has all ingredients of an epic story: legendary characters, feats of heroism and intrigue everything. Thanks for the video HM!
Imagine what Hollywood would do to this.
Hadrada would be a poc.
Edward, the confessor, obviously a trans gay
Godwinson would be a saxon supremacist xenophobic psychopath, obviously the baddie, so played by an English actor.
Duke William would be the wronged hero who bravely regained what was promised to him and just wanted to unite Europe.
The last kingdom on Netflix is basically the entire "history" of the downfall of the vikings, obviously much more Hollywood for dramatic effect.
@@Eogrednuke nah, I watched a few clips and it is absolute cr@p. I don't believe vikings had one single woman in their ranks going to war. That stupid narrative ruins everything.
@ComboMuster lol that's why I put quotes around history
@@Eogrednuke Sorry mate 😂😂😂
Guys, we got to take this great channel to one Million!
Yes please 😂
Great video, I often run through the battlefield of Fulford. What lives they lived. Would love to see a Jacobite Rebellion series or a Battle of Myton and Old Byland one for after Bannockburn
One of my favorite channels!!
Poor Harold Godwinson couldve been one of the greatest kings in history if he had defeated both Harold King of Norway, and William the Conqueror.
And he very well couldve defeated William at Hastings as well.
Can you elaborate on the alternative history timeline?
Could have but didn't. Which is ultimately what matters.
@@abdulrahmanq7127for one,slavery would have continued to exist as British culture was heavily influenced by viking culture. 2, you could have 2 wives,1 for love and 1 political wife. 3,the witan would have continued and adapted into more of a democratic system. 4, England would have won Normandy and would have had a foothold in France. 5 the age of the armoured knight would have been delayed by centuries. 6,we'd get out arse kicked sooner or later
@@Trebor74 " British culture was heavily influenced by viking culture" oh god spot the viking fan boy. uoi'tr wrong, it may have had some influence, on the language, few place names and a king but not much else, can you tell me what? because all the land the Danes settled was taken back and the people married into the English population thus adopting Christianity and English customs. the most dominating cultures were Brythonic, Scottish and anglo saxon English in England.. the Danish only came here in small numbers, you make it sound like they where some majority or something, even with cnut as king he kept english customs and culture, even so both peoples shared common heritage coming from the same place, the only real change was william the bastards genocidal destruction of britain. ",we'd get out arse kicked sooner or later" what after Godwinson ends the viking era and destroyed the earl of Normandy? which france would of happily taken, there could of been endless possibilities. your takes are historically ignorant as stupid
@@Trebor74 England did have a foothold in France after the Normans took over England, as it was the British isles that were a bigger prize for the Normans than Normandy itself. Centuries later, they still held on to those French possessions after they had being anglicized for a while. The English and British Monarchs still styled themselves as Kings/Queens of France right upto the beginning of the French Republic in early 19th century.
Love all of your videos, the voice paired with the maps make every video so enjoable.
Thank you very much!
9:16 "What about Edgar?" refers to Edward the Confessor's grandnephew, Edgar the Aetheling, who was the only remaining male member of the House of Wessex after Edward's death. Some had supported him for the throne, but he was rejected because (a) he was in his early teens and thus was considered too young for such dangerous times, and (b) Harold of course held all the reins of power at this point. In the immediate aftermath of Hastings, there was an attempt to put him on the throne, but that lasted only until William was able to begin his march on London in earnest.
Secondly, as odd as it may seem, a direct male-line descendant of Tostig did eventually sit on a throne. Tostig's sons fled to Norway after the battle and settled there, being granted lands and titles, and even intermarried with the royal family. Eventually, Tostig's great-great-great grandson gained the throne of Norway and ruled as Inge II from 1204 - 1217. Through the marriage of Inge's niece to Haakon IV of Norway, all the later monarchs of Norway (well, other than the early Bernadotte kings of Sweden-Norway), and, thus, many European monarchs, are descended from Tostig.
So Tostig is like the reverse Rollo
jeez.....i thought this was the highlight of the battle but theres an ever MORE epic battle waiting after that? history is crazy and fun
So glad I stumbled across this. It’s especially cool to me because I grew up in Stamford Bridge. We were taught a basic version of this all through primary school, and the village has lots of relevant street names (Godwins Way, Hadrada Close, Harold’s Way)
And by completely coincidence I now live in Riccall. And it was only after I bought my house that I found out the street is named after the Viking settlement they found when building the street! The fields they set up camp in are just behind my garden!
The present stone Bridge isn't situated where the original wooden footbridge was, which was about half a mile upstream, the actual battle was heading towards Full Sutton prison.
I lived in Stamford Bridge from 1981 to 92 on Fossway.
Lovely place, great people and some lovely pubs and restaurants.
I only moved because of a promotion at work.
Yet another brilliant historical vid from this great channel .. thank you 🏴 🙏
Glad you enjoyed it
@@HistoryMarche - absolutely my friend 👍 .. been subbed to you for years, with my 2 channels, & been great to see how the channel has grown & your hard work paying off 🙏
Congratulations on 1 million subscribers guys!
I love how everyone in the comments is so positive and supportive!
This is probably the first UA-cam comment that was so kind thank you ❤❤❤
History has such incredible stories.
Well narrated and informative.
I'd absolutely love a film about Harold godwinson... King cnuts trusty lieutenant, made a king, defeated the legendary Harold hardrada and then his great loss at the battle of Hastings.... has to be more than enough quantity for an epic film
That was Godwin, Harold is his son
Look for "Wulf the Saxon" on youtube. It's an audiobook on the events leading up to the last battles of Harold. Not a movie but even better in my view as there is so much good storytelling. Very well narrated by Peter Keeble who sounds like he belongs in the era and the book is written and researched by George Alfred Hentie who wrote many outstanding historical novels.
Harold the ass who got shot in the eye and fought to defend slavery and inequality. He’d make a great villain in a hero movie about William the Conqueror. Britain was only peaceful under Norman rule.
@@maskcollector6949 Wtf are you talking about? England was literally sent into a dark age with many rebellions and unstability because of the Normans. The Normans enforced Feudalism upon the Anglo-Saxon peasants which was more or less slavery, as well as trying to destroy their culture, their architectures and their language, they took almost all lands, food and farming equipment that were owned by the English lords and general population and gave it to his foreign invading French and Norman nobility, known as "The Norman Yoke". They also enforced French as the court language in England, a foreign language that no one but William and his Normans spoke. Forcing the English to not speak their own language. William also murdered about 75% of Northern England's population in the "Harrying of the North". Read up on history instead of making up this bullshit story trying to be edgy and hate on a hero that fought to defend his people, country and culture. William and the Normans was one of the worst things that ever happened to England.
Another great video! I know you'll cover it, since you've already done a whole series on William the Conqueror.
Hehe, it was only a matter of time
According to the Norwegian traditional (or so it seems) song Stamford Bru, which has been quoted a little in previous comments, the axeman on the bridge is identified as "Thiodolf the Strong", which unfortunately doesn't link to any famous Norwegian of those times. The only weak link is Hardrada's skald named Thiodolf Arnorsson, which vanishes from the records with the battle, but nothing solid can be said further.
Edit: The song erroneously states (but according to the Snorri's saga) the earls fighting at Fulford were Morcar and Valthiof, Morcar dying and Valthiof flying. The saga itself, funnily enough, never mentions Thiodolf the axeman on the bridge.
Oh, the song and the saga also say that the rider(s) have been dispatched even before Thiodolf started the fight on the bridge. The saga doesn't mention Styrkar the marshal as that rider, the song does.
@@hansybarra Harald Foss, I know the name. That the sagas don't mention the axeman on the bridge I've already written. So the question is - what Chronicles? Anglosaxon Chronicle doesn't mention the axeman name. Why Thiodolf, and not e.g. Einar? :-)
This saga would make a great movie. You can almost visualise the actors, heros, villains and side story plots ending in the great battle.
We've had TV series on the Great Heathen Army and Alfred the Great, so it does seem like a logical next choice.
Harald Hardrada had one hell of a CV
You mean "resume" mon ami.
Hardrada got overconfident after winning the first battle. He would most likely have won England just by retreating as Tostig suggested!
your channel is the perfect blend of fun and information!
Great video as always, keep it up!
The quality of the videos keeps getting better!
More Scandinavian history please.
Great upload! And congrats as you approach a million subs. Your hard work and dedication to the subject matter in your videos is commendable. Thank you
Thank you so much. Yeh, long journey. Thanks for sticking with the channel.
@@HistoryMarche My pleasure! You have taught me so much! The very least I could do, is comment and tell you how much I appreciate you. Especially now as YT tries to silence long form documentary content. Makes you think why History is so important. Sorry for the diatribe. I just have a lot of respect for History Marche.
One thing that is never discussed is the use of the saxon warbow during these battles. How did they use it,what impact did it have.
Englishmen! I am waiting here! In my heart I know not an ounce of fear! Death. I know that it awaits! Soon I will enter Valhalla's gates!
Excellent choice for a video!
Battle of Stamford Bridge and Battle of Sekigahara are my favorite battles of all times!!
One of my favorite songs by the band Amon Amarth is called "The Berserker at Stamford Bridge". When I saw the title of this episode I was hoping you would cover that part of this Battle. Thank you.
myth. you seen that bridge?. id wager you my house it never happened.
@@eadweardwoden7309 Of course I've never seen the Bridge, since the Bridge from that battle doesn't exist any longer, nor any traces of it or even it's exact location.
It's a Legend, but a legend told by the survivors on both sides of the battle, which is rare.
@@Goatsmore onmy the saxon chronicle mention the lone warrior of the bridge. The sagas dont tell anything about him.
One of the very best videos I’ve ever watched on this channel. Well done 👍
Thanks 👍
Invticus did this wonderfully, with a human voice and genuine art work. You did this well, but not better
Thoroughly enjoyed this.
I was wondering where you guys were hiding! THANK YOU!
21:52 definition of gigachad
Harold was truly a great king, unfortunate was the timing of the second invasion. A couple of weeks later and his army would have been fit to overcome the normans
Harold should've waited to raise more levies, right?
William picked his moment well
Well he couldn't wait. Levies were going home for the harvest, their obligations complete. They'd have a new king but could feed their families, and the Normans wouldn't genocide everyone because dead people don't pay taxes.
My cousins have a sever case of Harold (fore-)head and are easy to spot.
@theredditexperience1 He couldn't, as William was burning and attacking villages.
Very good narration and illustration.
I'm from the Netherlands and I give you +100 for drawing The Netherlands the way it was back then.
I very much enjoyed your video and I gave it a Thumbs Up
You truly bring history to life. thanks man!
Nice! good work you actully make history fun
Harald Sigurdsson (Old Norse: Haraldr Sigurðarson; c. 1015 - 25 September 1066), also known as Harald III of Norway and given the epithet Hardrada (harðráði; modern Norwegian: Hardråde, roughly translated as "stern counsel" or "hard ruler") in the sagas, was King of Norway from 1046 to 1066.
I see a missed opportunity to use Amon Amarth's Berserker on Stamford Bridge intro on this video.
I'm not sure I could do that due to copyright.
Hell of a great video. I laughed at the single bezerker with the battle axe smashing all the English little dots that approached. Do you have an opinion on the preparedness of the armies on either side of the engagement? It seems almost tragic that the norse allowed themselves to be surrounded upon hope of reinforcements... which were too late and then also smashed.
Tactically, it makes me wonder why Hardrada didn't further reinforce the bridge crossing and make a stand there where the formidable English numbers would count for less. Unless, of course, they would be able to start fording the river instead of crossing the bridge in close order. Was it a military "blunder" or were there other circumstances lost to the mysteries of history?
My family came to Britain in 1066 with William the conqueror and been here ever since
King Harold's 4 day march up from Sussex mustve been one *_h&lluva_* high impact hike
Hadrada and his boys were a fierce bunch--but caught off guard with out their armor and most weapons??? amazing forced march and bold attack---fortune favors the bold!! ah except at Hastings. Godwins knew he was facing a MODERN ARMY with heavy calvery etc; he should have held back and rested and strengthened his forces v WILLIAM
I love your channel SO MUCH.
Great video yet again!
Fantastic video, truly fascinating.
Many thanks!
Love when I hear that music means another great video incoming
Excellent video!
Thank you very much!
Absolutely the best youtube channel
@21:10 - if you know, you know
Englishmen! I am waiting here
In my heart I know not an ounce of fear
We are waiting here my trusted axe and me
Just come at me, I will not flee
Death! I know that it awaits
Soon I will enter Valhalla's gates!
I feel like I know this, can you remind me
The Berserker at Stamford Bridge
by Amon Amarth@@uria3679
På våren i 1066 ei ferd vart förebudde,
Maktglad konge i noreg rådde,
Og leidang baud ive landet.
Eit hundre og fem og nitti skip,
Til Orknöy-jarlen dei sigla vest,
Og Torfinn Jarl sine söner lest
Eit hundre fleire langskip.
In Spring of 1066: A journey was appraised.
Power-hungry King in Norway reigned,
And bid the lands' levies raised.
One hundred-and-five and ninety ships;
To the Jarl of Orkney, they sailed West,
And Jarl Torfinn's sons loaded
One hundred more longships.
I was boutta sleep
But then HistoryMarche posted a new video…
Not yet! 🤣
Wow beautiful video, thank you.
I actually stumbled upon this battle field after visiting York.
Nicely done video
Thanks for the visit
@@HistoryMarche---Your welcome. I find this Harold Godwinson interesting. Won the greatest battle of his life only to lost later on to someone much worse.
marching 50 miles a day for 4 days is very impressive!!!
Beautiful as always
Very good as always with some one or two geographical inaccuracies. That's not where Ipswich is on the map! I've never noticed it before. Now I've got to look at the rest of the maps!
fantastic history...thank you!
Another loving sacrifice to the algorithm!
yes we norwegian we talk about the storm indeed -you are right about that .
Would be nice to have a these videos set in order.
For each regions history.
Say what you want about Tostig being an ineffective Lord, he was no backstabber or coward.
I just hope historymarche discusse the Viking raids in Iberia, wich at that time was ruled by the Umayyads :D
I think that there are unknown caricatures who boarded a ship to inform the "Bastard of Normandy" that the pre arranged plan with Tostig to divide the kingdom north and south respectively. Similarly to Poland in 1939. But William let Harold exhaust his House Carl Spartans marching to York and back after a brilliant surprise attack
8:37 I would argue that statements like this should be caveated with "according to the Normans" because the claim that Harold swore an oath to accept William as king only exists in Norman sources; Anglo Saxon sources like the Chronicle and third-party sources like the Edda do not mention any such oath (because they have no incentive to propagandize for William)
I also think that you failure to acknowledge the Witenagamot is mildly disgraceful. England was an elective monarchy before William imposed French-style feudalism on them. Harold was elected by the Witen upon the death of Edward. To ignore this, and treat his ascension as a barely-justified coronation, is to side with Norman propagandists.
The whole battle is only the word of the Norman's.
It's also worth pointing out that the warrior on the bridge is related here as a true story, when the reality is we just don't know. Norse sources don't mention him, only English ones, and it bears a remarkable similarity to another story from The Anarchy.
harald met Normans in southern Italy, when he was part of the varegues, he had to stop the Normans from taking more territory to hold the rest of the territory under byzantines power
Harald. What a beast. 6’ 6” in 1066 is like being 7 feet tall today. But talk about bad scouting. How bad ass was that Ajax?
Great video🎉❤
Thank you 🤗
@@HistoryMarche thanku so so much sir, i m your big big fan from Pakistan, thanku so so much for your reply 🥹
Love ur videos
Harold is one of those great kings. He had to face two invasions at the same time, and even if he lost at the end, he won one battle. This battle only ended the Viking Age in England, because the "Viking Age" was already over in different places and ended in different times. The Irish ended the Viking period in 1014, the Franks much more earlier after Rollo was granted land, Scotland, don't know exactly when, but probably in the 11th century they no longer saw the vikings as a threat, England was.
1263 in Scotland perhaps - the Battle of Largs.
@@postscript67
Thanks
Grazie/Thanks! 😊
Thank you so much for supporting my work. Very kind of you.
Awesome!
Thank you ❤
My account is back on man! LOVE your videos! They are the Best❤❤❤❤❤😊😊😊
Cheers! Glad to see you back hehe. I might do some premieres soon, so we might bump into each other in chat.
@@HistoryMarche sweet! 🔥🔥🔥🔥
Thank you.
Very interesting.
Harald Hardrada's name isn't actually his name, but an epithet. Literally translated to the Haraldur the Hard-ruler (Haraldur Harðráði), not too dissimilar to William the Conquerer. Haraldur I was known as Hárfagri - or "fair-haired". And was a common way to distinguish them both from each other (the kings were all called Haraldur) as well as the numerous men in their entourages who shared the same name.
P.S. Great video.
Royalty is fictional. “First Catholic King” sounds like “biggest slave around.”
Love this stuff
What a great character, Tostig was. He turned down the chance for peace twice to stand with his Norse allies, even to the inevitable end.
Yes, but he hadn’t behaved like an obnoxious, greedy git in the first place, he would never have been stripped of his earldom and been forced to flee abroad.
That's true. Perhaps he was only siding with the Norwegians just purely out of defiance of his older brother.@@greva2904
@@greva2904 Not to mention contributing to William's victory by tying up the English forces needlessly. Tostig helped destroy Anglo-Saxon society for his failed bid.
Great character? A man that betrayed his own brother and supported an invading army of his own homeland is a great character? Tostig was a traitor who is part responsible for the destruction of his homeland.
A good film.
Hey Legalna, good to see you. I'll try to return to Premiere's soon.