Battle of Hastings, Brighton and Portsmouth
June 24th, 2008 at 9:05 pm by David FarrarAfter seeing Hastings Fort, we headed North a few miles to Battle, location of Battle Abbey and the field where the Battle of Hastings was fought.
This is the Battle Abbey leading to the field. It was built by William the Conquerer as penance to the Pope for killing so many English. The Pope had approved his mission to claim the Throne, but having 8,000 casualties was unexpectedly high. This is not the original Abbey but we’ll see parts of it later.
This is the field where the battle took place. This is the view from where the English were up the hill. They had the better position but were defeated by superior tactics from the Normans. You do a 40 minute walk around the field with a really interesting audio tour.
Now we see parts of the older Abbey.
Can I just say I love mazes!
This is inside part of the old Abbey. This room was the one where the Monks were allowed to talk.
If people are in the South East of England, I really recommend this as a place to visit.
It was then an hour or so’s drive to Brighton and the famous Brighton Pier. Pretty tacky nowadays but I can see it still being popular with the kids. As you can see it is pretty long.
And a view of the beach and the numerous hotels from the pier.
After Brighton we drove to Portsmouth where we were staying the night. There are no photos from Portsmouth as it is the most boring place we have encountered. Ginga Ninja suggested it made Hamilton seem a fun hip place. I think that was unfair to Hamilton and that a better comparison would be Wanganui or Palmerston North. Yes Portsmouth is the Palmerston North of England – the place that John Cleese described as an ideal place to live if you want to kill yourself but just haven’t been able to summon up the motivation!
The GPS was set to take us to the city centre and we ended up going around the block three times. We then realised it must be because there is no city centre in Portsmouth. It is just a collection of boring buildings and some ships.
We eventually found an Indian restaurant where we had dinner before heading back to the hotel. Even the Hotel was boring!
Originally our plan was to stay in Portsmouth for two nights and maybe visit the Isle of Wight. But we decided unanimously that we would get up as early as possible the next morning and flee to the North.
Despite Portsmouth it was a great day though.
June 24th, 2008 at 9:11 pm
Looks like good times were had!
Thanks for sharing the pictures. Do you find it great to be in a country that actually has some history? Hard to believe so much flowed from one event in time at Hastings.
Vote:June 24th, 2008 at 9:20 pm
You only have to spend a couple of hours in the Rotorua museum to start to appreciate that our little country has amazing history and a life of its own – unless you draw a line above 1840 and assume New Zealand history started then!
…Is this what they used to call “the cultural cringe”?
Vote:June 24th, 2008 at 9:20 pm
While at Brighton Pier, did you consult with Madame Petulengro about the results of the forthcoming election – that would be a useful adjunct to the recent polls.
Vote:June 24th, 2008 at 10:36 pm
The Anglo-saxons weren’t defeated by superior tactics by the Normans. If the Norman tactics were superior then the battle would have been far shorter than the eight hours it took. All that can be said is that the Normans finally succeeded in breaking up the shieldwall. And if King Harold Godwinson hadn’t had to fight the battle of Stamford Bridge the previous week, he would have had more troops and won.
You didn’t see the Old Brighton Pier? Or have a look at the Royal Pavillion? How about gawking at the Brighton Hotel?
As for Portsmouth, the definitive statement about it would have to be made during the Iraq War when the Secretary of Defense compared the port of Umm Qasr to Southhampton to explain why it was taking so long to subdue. This prompted an anonymous British Colonel to remark:
Vote:June 25th, 2008 at 12:22 am
The only reason to go to Portsmouth is to hop on the ferry to the Isle of Wight. Great natural beauty, and excellent seafood and pubs.
Vote:June 25th, 2008 at 12:41 am
DPF: We had our own “Battle of Hastings” here during the weekend – Mongrel Mob at Bridge Pa.
Vote:June 25th, 2008 at 7:21 am
Brighton from the Pier looks like Blackpool.
I agree re Portsmouth, we picked up a rental car there and got completely stuffed by the roading system as we wnt back to our hotel (the Ibis) to pick up our gear. Certainly nothing to see.
Are you going to Bath? It is fantastic.
Vote:June 25th, 2008 at 9:29 am
Senlac Hill, say it with me David. Senlac Hill.
And as metcalf pointed out there was NOTHING superior about Williams “tactics”. He repeatedly threw himself at a strong position and was slapped down time and again. He is on a tactical par with Douglas Haig.
The Fyrd breaking out and pursuing the fleeing Bretons was the key factor. Anglo-Saxon ill-discipline. And before we get all excited about William “faking” a withdrawal. No sorry never happened. A faint retreat is one of the most difficult actions to pull off sucessfully. If you’re going to to try it you use you best troops, the ones under your control. In this case the Normans innthe center giving you a double envelopment. NOT the Bretons on you flank who have spent the entire day breaking and were never considered that reliable anyway wihich is why they were stuck out on the left with broken ground.
The Bayeux Tapestry is a fine example of needle point and porpaganda. It is NOT a historical source of fact. William got to say whatever the hell the he liked after the battle because everyone else was dead.
The fact that he RETIRED back to his pre-fab camp and sat on his hands for two weeks is a bit of a clue that his “win” was by a very fine margin.
Harolds win over Harold Hadrada and his brother Tostig (Godwinson – not Hadradas) was a feat of arms. Harada was the kick ass fighter of the day. At Senlac Hill Harold had himself a virtually perfect position and William was saved by blind luck.
Vote:June 25th, 2008 at 10:10 am
Ah, the Battle of Hastings… the last time the French ever beat the English in a fair fight.
(Although strictly speaking Normans are Danes, not French, but the poor old French are a bit short on glorious victorious battles so we’ll let them have this one)
Vote:June 25th, 2008 at 10:29 am
The French?
With mercs from as far away as Italy. Yeah thats a French fight alright. French Foriegn Legion c 1100 maybe.
You might find more “Danes” standing on Senlac Hill than trying to get it up though. Harold was made an Earl by one and was married to a Dane.
Vote:June 25th, 2008 at 11:12 am
Never been to England, but seeing the Royal Navy Museum is on the agenda when I do. And now you’ve described Portsmouth as Hamiltron on the sea, sounds like bliss.
Vote:June 25th, 2008 at 12:25 pm
Somehow 3 people have seen fit to thumbs down my suggestion that our country’s history is interesting….
So why is there a “Kiwi” in Kiwiblog, again???
Vote:June 25th, 2008 at 2:59 pm
Perhaps suggesting an interest in the history of England is a “cringe” is not the best way to win friends amoung people who find a post on English history to be worth reading.
Vote:June 25th, 2008 at 4:53 pm
Re: The old Abbey where the Monks could talk….
Is that a really bad photo, or is it actually leaning over like it looks?
Vote:June 25th, 2008 at 4:58 pm
Ah, the Battle of Hastings… the last time the French ever beat the English in a fair fight.
Tell me again how the English won the Hundred Years War?
(Although strictly speaking Normans are Danes, not French,
The Normans had been speaking French for over 150 years when the battle of Hastings was fought. At what point would you consider them not to be french?
but the poor old French are a bit short on glorious victorious battles so we’ll let them have this one)
Ever heard of Napoleon?
Vote:June 25th, 2008 at 5:33 pm
The Battle of the Chesapeake.
Vote:June 26th, 2008 at 9:08 am
Napoleon? The dude who “liberated” Bits of Europe from oppresive monarchs then crowned himself. Wrecked his country with continual waring and conscription and got his ass kicked by the Brits all over Spain with one of the world smallest armies, got beaten like a red-headed step child out of Russia by peasents then got slapped into the pages of history by an Anglo-Dutch-German motley collection of “the scum of the earth”?
Yeah I’ve heard of him. Why do you ask?
Got to hold one of the solid gold candlesticks that had been on his dinner table. Some cavalryman scored it at that ass kicking I mentioned and took it home to England.
Vote:June 30th, 2008 at 12:10 pm
Ah, history you’ve got to love it, this period of English history is interesting… And I am sure to be corrected by a historian for my own comments…
There was a lot of inter marriage going on too of course as Edward the Confessor (a Patron Saint of England) was William of Normandy’s distant cousin and he spent a lot of time over in Normandy (in exile) and because he had no heir he promised the crown to William (according to some historians), the Harold (Harold Godwinson son of Godwin Earl of Essex who had betrayed Edward’s brother Harold Harfoot) made his own claim (after reputedly Edward had given the Kingdom on his death bed because Edward’s Great nephew Edgar the Atheling the was considered to be too young to take over the crown)
Harold was also famous for subduing the Welsh and also fought in some campaigns with William in Europe and it was then according to Norman history? that he is reputedly have sworn his allegiance to William, man this would make a GREAT movie! and the Tapestry depicts this, propaganda?) and did a long trek to beat that Norwegian/Dane up at Stamford Bridge and of course was reputedly shot in the eye (according to the tapestry)…
I think the King no one liked of course was William’s son William Rufus (II) and he got shot by an arrow in a forest while out hunting or something and historians basically say that it was deliberate but unknown as to who did it.
Then of course Henry I’s son William (and presumptive heir who was intermarried with anglo-saxons with lineage to Edmund Ironside and was popular with the Barons in both Normandy and England) died in a ship wreck at sea in the White Ship and achieved mythical status as a lost heir thus bringing in the period of anarchy where that inept King Stephen reputedly stole the crown off Matilda (Henry’s daughter on Henry I’s deathbed claiming Henry had changed his mind at the last minute and got the support of the Barons and the Pope…) and of course she had consorted with the Holy Roman Emperor and then with Geoffrey Plantagenet who sired Henry II and so on with even more intriguing history to follow…
DPF the Hastings photos look good, better than Hastings over here!
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