Exactly 960 years ago to the day, the Battle of Hastings took place in England.
The battle which occurred on Saturday 14th October 1066 saw the Norman-French army led by William Duke of Normandy take on King Harold Godwinson and the English army.
The bloody battle saw thousands dead by the end of the day and King Harold defeated, but how do we know what we know?
The Battle of Hastings is one of the most detailed and reported on battles specifically through the Bayeux Tapestry. Which sees the entirety of the battle depicted onto the tapestry.
One of the main mysteries with this is that whilst it depicts King Harold II being killed, we are unsure as to whether he is the man with the arrow through the eye or the man being charged by William’s cavalry and pierced with a lance.
Before the battle, England was under Anglo-Saxon rule but with Harolds defeat the Norman Conquest began. William the Conqueror was crowned King on Christmas day 1066 and brought with him a new ruling class, the Norman-French aristocracy.
Whilst you may not think that the Battle is still something we experience effects of. The battle permanently reshaped the language that we speak and is the reason we now all have surnames. After adopting the throne William I commissioned the Domesday Book. This was a census which allowed for all land, properties, and livestock to be surveyed maximising taxation. To keep this information legible and understood people were assigned a surname linking them to their trade so tax could be paid efficiently.
So, whilst you may think the 12th century was as long ago as it is, to this day we still find ourselves affected. It was a battle that has changed life forever even 960 years later.