retired_princesspouty

Nobody in Harold's lot had a bow? </BLOCKQUOTE>
The Anglo-Saxons not bowmen of any note.

To keep in with the rugby theme - Norse and Anglo-Saxon fighting was very very similar.

Basically it was a scrum comprising two shield walls. The two lines would clash and push at each other trying to force the other back. Of course it was a particularly violent scrum - with spears being jabbed... and extremely fierce warriors running through with two-handed axes and wielding it with such skill and power they could cleave a man through his shoulder down to his abdomen. Also, two-handed axes were wielded over the heads of the warriors.

Anyway - not much in the way of missile troops.

Hardrada wasn't keen on invading England - he was talking into it by the resentful Tostig.

Hardrada said that it would take 6 of his norse warriors to defeat one Anglo-Saxon Huscarl. :cool: He didn't think the idea was practical at all.

retired_ks reddy

Don't need many bows or to be much cop with them to shoot an unarmoured bloke off a bridge.

retired_ks reddy

And a remarkably drunken one.

Nothing changes, really.

retired_princesspouty

I suspect this fella came to the fore when the Saxons were already trying to force their way over the bridge - so a huge mass of bodies congregating at the bottleneck. Shouting "tally ho chaps - just drop back while we take potshots at the fat fella on the bridge" might not have been an option.

I suspect such a simple idea would have occurred to Harold if it'd have been available - given that he was a highly respected warrior and leader.

retired_ks reddy

It is a much simpler idea than getting a boat and floating about trying to poke him with a pointy stick.

I'm not buying it.

retired_princesspouty

I've only just read the account Finneys linked to. I didn't know they got a boat out. The accounts I've read implied they simply climbed down under the bridge from one of the banks and stood under it.

I doubt he stood there for an hour either. Berserkers were normally fairly short-lived - doing a fair amount of damage before getting cut down.

retired_ehicks84

teh name of the stadium, as per wiki:-

18th century maps show a 'Stanford Creek' running along the route of what is now a railway line at the back of the East Stand as a tributary of the Thames.

The stream had two local bridges: Sanford Bridge on the Fulham Road (also recorded as Little Chelsea Bridge) and Stanbridge on the King's Road, now known as Stanley Bridge. Stanford Creek, Sanford Bridge and Stanbridge no doubt all contributed in some uncertain way to the eventual name of Stamford Bridge, which must have been further suggested by the well known Battle of Stamford Bridge in Yorkshire, a famous victory by King Harold Godwinson against the Vikings in 1066 that took place shortly before his defeat by the Normans at the Battle of Hastings.

retired_jabda

Wonder what would have happened if the Norwegians won the battle, would they have marched quickly to face William, or let him come to them?

Maybe today you would be speaking a Scandinavian dialect, have better looking women and an excellent health service?

retired_ks reddy

Neither of those is really fair compensation for making hurdy gurdy and floogen doogen sounds all day.

retired_mnw_cna

My (probably naive) view is that bows were around is 1066, else the whole Bayeux Tapestry is up the creek. I'm not saying its not one sided, but presumably they'd know how Harold G got killed.

Swedish chef ftw.