Norman Invasion!

Last Saturday we traveled to Battle Abbey & Battlefield to see the largest ever re-enactment of William the Conqueror's invasion of England in the year 1066. I didn't know anything about William or the battle when we arrived here in England, so I read up on it a little. Edward I died without any having sons, so the crown was up for grabs. Two different guys named Harold along with William (who was at that time Duke of Normandy in France) claimed the throne. The two Harolds fought it out in the north of England while William landed his force in the South. The winning Harold came down to fight him in what is now known, appropriately, as the town of Battle. I bet you can guess who won. They don't call him William the Conqueror for nothing.

It was pretty cool, because there were about 3,ooo people dressed up as Saxon and Norman soldiers out there on the battlefield. Here is part of the Norman cavalry (quite the innovation at the time) showing off their stuff on the battlefield:


These next two shots are the ruins of the Abbey, which William had built to comemorate his victory. The high altar, which is no longer in existance, is supposedly the spot where Harold died, shot through the eye with an arrow. There is a little plaque there in the ground now. Saturday there were lots of flowers laid there. Brian and I thought it was a little funny to see how vehemantly the English people there supported the Saxon cause, since William's line was on the throne for quite awhile and includes guys like Henry I & II and Richard the Lion Heart.



They had all kinds of demonstrations of life in the 11th century-- how they ate, what their weapons were like, etc. This guy did a falconry demonstration.


Brian got to try on an 11th century style helm, which pleased him to no end. He told me that this was the sort of thing he was born to wear. :)



This is a shot of the empty battlefield through part of the ruins of the Abbey.


This is the from the interior of what is left of the Abbey.

Here we are, footsore, damp, and a little chilly, but having a good time none the less.


Here is Brian getting ready to duke it out with a soldier. Brian was disappointed because the guy looks so friendly in this picture.