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The Battle of Hastings: a Geographic Perspective

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The Battle of Hastings: a Geographic Perspective Western University Scholarship@Western Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository 3-4-2016 12:00 AM The Battle of Hastings: A Geographic Perspective Christopher E. M. Hewitt The University of Western Ontario Supervisor Dr. Philip Stooke The University of Western Ontario Joint Supervisor Dr. Michael Gervers The University of Western Ontario Graduate Program in Geography A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the equirr ements for the degree in Doctor of Philosophy © Christopher E. M. Hewitt 2016 Follow this and additional works at: https://ir.lib.uwo.ca/etd Part of the Geographic Information Sciences Commons Recommended Citation Hewitt, Christopher E. M., "The Battle of Hastings: A Geographic Perspective" (2016). Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository. 3628. https://ir.lib.uwo.ca/etd/3628 This Dissertation/Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by Scholarship@Western. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository by an authorized administrator of Scholarship@Western. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Abstract The Battle of Hastings (1066) is one of the most widely studied battles in medieval history. Yet despite the importance that research shows geography to play in the outcome of such conflicts, few studies have examined in detail the landscape of the battle or the role the landscape played in its eventual outcome. This study, consequently, seeks to assess the impact of geographic factors in understanding the events that shaped the Battle of Hastings. The analysis was undertaken using a geographic information system (GIS) with qualitative and quantitative techniques. Historical and current data combined in a series of detailed state of the art maps are used to bring an entirely new perspective to the nearly millennium long literature on the battle. Factors considered in the study included variables associated with mobilization of the respective armies, the topography and land use at the time of and since the battle, population, food/animal sources, metal resources, water, and the location of the battle. The final section of the thesis provides a detailed cartographic discussion of the development of the battle itself. Among the findings of this thesis were that location was indeed important in the mobilization of the armies, that the local topography has not changed significantly since the battle, that the distribution of resources available to the armies varied spatially, and perhaps most importantly, that there may exist at least one viable alternative battle site to that on Battle Hill. Keywords Battle of Hastings, England, France, GIS, Landscape, Medieval Warfare, Spatial Analysis, Topography, William I ii Acknowledgments I would like to thank my supervisors Drs. Philip Stooke and Michael Gervers for their help and guidance through this project. I would also like to thank my committee, Drs. Jason Gilliland and Marco Van De Wiel for their suggestions and feedback. In assembling my data, Bayeux Tapestry scenes 55, 61, 66, 68 and 71 are reproduced with special permission from the City of Bayeux. The Bodleian Library granted me permission to reproduce an image of the Gough Map. My digital reproductions of the Armada map came from the British Library. The hydrologic data was accessed through the Centre of Ecology and Hydrology. Mrs. Sophie Unger of the East Sussex County Council provided me with a GIS copy of the East Sussex Historical Environmental Record. The team led by Mr. Philip Bye at the East Sussex Record Office provided me with access to the maps in their collection which I required. Dr. Dominic Fontana supplied me with a digital copy of the Yeakell and Gardner map of Sussex. The nineteenth century parishes and digital Domesday Book were accessed through the UK Data Archive. Beyond the members of my thesis committee, I also consulted with a number of experts including Drs. David Bates, Pierre Bauduin, Bruce Campbell, Dominic Fontana, Brian Luckman, Stephen Morillo, Katrina Moser, Russell Poole, Oliver Rackham, Eric Schneider and Rob Wilson. Helpful suggestions were provided during the Social Sciences History Association conference, the Canadian Archaeological Association conference and the History Graduate Students Association conference. Mr. Christian Boulley from the Classics department at Western assisted with Latin translations where needed. Also consulted was Mr. John Hare, the archaeologist who investigated Battle Abbey in the 1980’s. Local East Sussex historian Mrs. Heather Grief was consulted as well with regards to the Hastings area. I also had numerous discussions about my project with former geography graduate student Dr. Don Lafreniere. Sections of the thesis were proof read by Ms. Daron MacQueen. The presentation was previewed by toastmasters’ Ms. Becky Blue and Ms. Donna Moore. Additionally, I would like to thank the staff in the Geography department and at the Weldon Library for all the help they have provided during my project. Finally, I would like to thank my parents for their help, suggestions and guidance. iii Table of Contents Abstract ............................................................................................................................... ii Acknowledgments.............................................................................................................. iii Table of Contents ............................................................................................................... iv List of Tables ...................................................................................................................... x List of Figures ................................................................................................................... xii List of Appendices ......................................................................................................... xviii Abbreviations and Units .................................................................................................. xix Chapter 1 ............................................................................................................................. 1 1 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Background to the Battle ........................................................................................ 2 1.2 Statement of Problem .............................................................................................. 4 1.3 Definition of Study Area ......................................................................................... 9 1.4 Social Context ....................................................................................................... 11 1.5 Research Approach and Questions ....................................................................... 15 1.6 Data Acquisition ................................................................................................... 15 1.7 Analysis................................................................................................................. 16 1.8 Limitations ............................................................................................................ 18 1.9 Chapter Outline ..................................................................................................... 18 Chapter 2 ........................................................................................................................... 20 2 Sources and Debates on the Battle of Hastings ............................................................ 20 2.1 Contemporary Literary Sources ............................................................................ 21 2.1.1 English ...................................................................................................... 21 2.1.2 Norman ..................................................................................................... 23 2.1.3 Anglo-Norman .......................................................................................... 25 iv 2.2 Documentary Sources ........................................................................................... 27 2.2.1 Surveys ...................................................................................................... 28 2.2.2 Laws and Customs .................................................................................... 30 2.3 Artistic Representations ........................................................................................ 31 2.3.1 Bayeux Tapestry ....................................................................................... 31 2.4 Cartographic Sources and GIS Databases............................................................. 32 2.4.1 Historical Maps ......................................................................................... 32 2.4.2 Geospatial Data ......................................................................................... 34 2.4.3 Ordnance Survey ....................................................................................... 34 2.4.4 Historic Environmental Record ................................................................ 35 2.4.5 Historical Parishes and Counties .............................................................. 36 2.4.6 High Resolution Point Data ...................................................................... 36 2.5 Environmental Sources ........................................................................................
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