After the death of Edward the Confessor in 1066 the lack of a clear heir led to a disputed succession in which several contenders laid claim to the throne of England, all at the same time. The one who came to the throne first was the Earl of Wessex, Harold Godwinson who was the richest and most powerful of the English aristocracy. He was elected king by the Witenagemot of England.

However. Immediately after he was crowned he was already challenged by two powerful neighbouring rulers.
Duke William of Normandy claimed that he had been promised the throne by King Edward, and that Harold had
sworn agreement to this, although he denied any such agreement.

Harald III of Norway, or more commonly known as Harald Hardraada also contested the succession of Harold Godwinson, and claimed the throne based on a supposed agreement between his predecessor Magus I of Norway, and the earlier Danish King of England Harthacanute, in which whereby if either died without an heir, the other would inherit both England and Norway.
Both William and Harald both at once set about assembling troops and ships to invade England.

In the spring of 1066 Harold's previously exiled brother Tostig Godwinson returned to England, and begin to raid in south-eastern England with a fleet he had recruited in Flanders. He was also later joined by other ships from the Orkney Islands just north of Scotland. Threatened by Harold's own fleet of ships in the south, Tostig moved his army north and raided in East Anglia and Lincolnshire en-route to meet with his fleet of ships.

It wasn't long however before he was incepted by the combined armies of the brothers Edwin, Earl of Mercia and Morcar, Earl of Northumbria. In a decisive victory the brothers quickly defeated and drove Tostig to his ships, where he was deserted by most of his followers. He then withdrew to Scotland, where he spent the summer attempting to recruit fresh forces.

Harald Hardraada had assembled his own army in the Summer himself, and invaded northern England in early September,
leading a fleet of over 300 ships carrying perhaps around 15,000 men. Harald's army was further augmented by the renewed forces of Tostig, who threw his support behind Harald's bid for the throne, as well as to get his revenge on the
two brothers who had defeated him a few months before.

The two armies began to advance on York, but where intercepted at the village Fulford enroute to York on the 20th of September 1066, by the combined army of Morcar and Edwin. Their forces were spread out at Germany Beck to secure their flanks; On the right flank was the River Ouse, while on the left Fordland, a swampy marshland area.

The English struck first, advancing on the Norwegian-Scottish army before it could be fully deployed, a tactic that may have contributed to the outcome of the battle. Morcar's troops pushed Harald's back into the marshlands with their attack, making progress against the weaker section of the Norwegian line.

This initial success in attacking however soon proved insufficient for victory to the English army, as Harald brought the force of the better of his troops to bear upon them, still fresh against the weakened Anglo-Saxons. As the battle went on Harald brought even more of his troops, many just arriving on the battlefield, to attack the centre, and sent even more men to the Marshland River.

Though still outnumbered Haralds men kept on pushing and shoving the defenders back towards Fulford. Their efforts worked, and the Anglo-Saxons were forced to give ground. Edwin's soldiers who were defending the River Bank were then cut off from the rest of the army by the Marsh, so began a retreat back to the city to make a final stand.

Within an hour however the remaining men led by Morcar on the Germany Beck were forced off by the Norwegian Army and were also forced back to the city itself. At last the final flow of men were starting to arrive, and found a way to get through the thick fighting, and opened a third front against the Anglo-Saxons. Outnumbered, and outmanoeuvred the defenders were finally forced into defeat. Edwin and Morcar however managed to survive the battle, and fled.

The remaining men in Fulford surrendered under the promise that the victors would not loot their city.
The treaty was kept, as Harald Hardraada turned his attention towards York once again, travelling mostly by ship to keep his men fresh, and to collect supplies further north.

Meanwhile, however shortly before the Battle of Fulford still awaiting for an invasion from William the Conqueror on the 8th of September, King Harold Godwinson after finding his food supplies exhausted dismissed his army. William had actually been delayed due to weather conditions on the English Channel. Nevertheless however, having soon heard that Harald had landed a fleet, and had began attacking in the north.

Harold Godwinson rushed north gathering forces as he went and managed to arrive at Stamford Bridge approximately 180 miles away in just four days with an army of approximately 7,000 Men. Despite being very tired, they were still ready to fight a long and bloody battle against the Norwegians, The Viking army could not have been in a more disastrous position. They weren't expecting an actual army for several more days, only the tribute supplies from York. Their army was split in two by the river and they had not placed any kind of defensive measures, such as lookouts.

The Vikings on the west side either put up a futile defence or ran for their lives across the bridge. Those who decided to fight were slaughtered without mercy. However, the Saxons came across an obstacle on the bridge. According to various historic sources a single Norwegian held up the entire Saxon Army. This man was said to be around seven feet high, and was armed with a Gigantic Axe that he swung without mercy to where he single-handedly cut down over 40 Saxon Soldiers.

This giant was said to have only have been killed when one Saxon drifted under the bridge in a wooden barrel, and thrust his spear through the latches of the bridge to kill the Horseman, allowing his comrades chance to cross over.

The story goes that a giant Norwegian armed with an axe held up the entire Saxon army, and single-handedly cut down over 40 Saxon soldiers. He himself was only killed when one Saxon drifted under the bridge in a barrel and thrust his spear through the latches of the bridge, killing the Norseman.

Whatever happened, this delay had allowed the Vikings to form something of a line to face the Saxon army. Harold's army poured across the bridge, forming a line face-to-face with the Vikings. The Vikings who were without armour locked their shields together to form a wall. The Saxons copied the tactic and rushed the Viking army.

The battle continued for several hours, and though the Vikings put up an impressive defence, without their armour they were exposed to the Saxon weaponry, Steel Swords and tipped Arrows cut deep into flesh with very little effort. Chinks began to appear in the shield wall and the Saxons were quick to exploit these gaps with troops spilling between them to move around to the rear of the Viking Army to surround them. The Viking leaders were killed, and their army almost completely annihilated save for a few hundred men. King Harald of Norway himself was killed when an arrow struck him in the throat.

The lost to the Norwegians was so extent that out of the 300 ships they had arrived with only 24 were required to carry away the survivors. The English victory came at great cost, however, as Harold's army was left in a battered and weakened state. After the battle King Harold Godwinson accepted a truce with the surviving Norwegians, including Harald's son Olaf, and they were allowed to leave after giving pledges not to attack England again, thus marking the end of the Viking Age, and thus their conquest of England.

Today at Stamford Bridge is a monument to the Battle with an inscription that reads:
1066: The Battle of Stamford Bridge
King Harold of England defeated his brother Tostig and Harald Hardraada of Norway here on 25 September 1066.

This victory was to be short lived however. Harold had lost much of his forces in that battle and was in a largely weakened state compared to his original army. The weather conditions on the English Channel had greatly improved shortly after his march north, which finally allowed William The Conqueror to set sail from Saint-Valery-sur-Somme in the North of France.
He arrived in England on September the 28th, at Sussex.

It is also then our story continues; later in Edition 18 of the Regnum Journal in Part Three: The Battle of Hastings.
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