William the Conqueror's Speech at Hastings (1066) // Be Ye The Avengers of Noble Blood

In 1066 Norman Duke William The Bastard invades England with the full might of his army, loaded onto a vast armada of longships. King Harald Hardrada of Norway had already tried to do the same a few weeks earlier, losing his life in the gamble, to the new English king Harold Godwinson.

Godwinson had no time to revel in his victory however as news arrived of Williams successful crossing of the channel. The stage was set for one of the most pivotal moments of English history. The battle of Hastings.

This speech, attributed to William by the Anglo-Norman historian Henry of Huntingdon writing several decades later, is in all likelihood probably not one actually spoken by William, but is a fascinating glimpse into William’s reputation in the decades after the battle nonetheless.

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