2. Analysing Sources on Harold’s Death, 1066 By Mr RJ Huggins

3. Aims & Objectives To learn how historians test evidence to check whether it can be trusted. To then use these skills to test the surviving evidence on the death of King Harold. Make a balanced judgement using our knowledge and the reliable evidence. To learn how historians test evidence to check whether it can be trusted. To then use these skills to test the surviving evidence on the death of King Harold. Make a balanced judgement using our knowledge and the reliable evidence.

4. Three Questions: Historical Sources Origin Nature Purpose There are three questions a historian must ask of any evidence they use What do you think they mean?

5. Origin Who made it? When? Did they witness events? Where did they get their information from? Has the evidence been damaged or changed? Has the evidence been copied or is it the original?

6. Nature What type of source is it? Is it a letter? A diary? A picture? Who was meant to read it? How was it made? Public Private

7. Purpose Why was it made? Was it meant to record what actually happened? What rewards did the author hope to get? Was it designed to persuade? Was it made to impress? What were the motives of the author?

8. You now have 2 minutes to write down 5 questions that a historian should ask whilst they are using a source. You now have 1 minute to share your answers and add to your list.

9. So how was King Harold Killed? If you stop and ask anyone in the street what do they know about King Harold, then they will tell you that he was shot in the eye with an arrow and killed at the Battle of Hastings in 1066! Spot where King Harold was killed

10. So what evidence has survived? There are a number of sources but we are going to look at three for the purposes of this lesson. Bayeux Tapestry, 1077 William of Malmesbury, 1125 Guy of Amiens, 1067

11. So what evidence has survived? Bayeux Tapestry: William sends in a hit squad of Norman knights to kill King Harold “Then it was with an arrow which was shot towards the sky, struck Harold above the right eye.” Guy of Amein, 1067 “Receiving the fatal arrow from a distance, he died. One of the Norman soldiers with a sword then cut off his leg as he lay.” William of Malmesbury, 1125 What do they all agree upon? Latin: King Harold is Killed

12. So why do historians disagree? Which of the two men above are supposed to be King Harold? You now have two minutes to spot the difference between the two men

13. So who should we trust? Lets have a look at the backgrounds of each of the sources and see if we can learn anything about their origin, nature and purpose! Bayeux Tapestry, 1077 William of Malmesbury, 1125 Guy of Amiens, 1067

14. William of Malmesbury, 1125 William of Malmesbury was born in Wiltshire in about 1095. His father was a Norman and his mother came from England. William became a Benedictine monk at Malmesbury Abbey, and while working in its library he became interested in history. William was a conscientious historian. He searched for new primary sources including those produced in other countries and was able to read documents in several different languages. He would have access to the Bayeux Tapestry and several other sources that do not exist today. So what can we learn about the origin, nature and purpose of William of Malmesbury?

15. Guy of Amiens, 1067 Guy of Amiens was educated at the abbey of St Riquier in Normandy and was a brilliant student. In 1056 Guy became Bishop of Amiens, but was later suspended by the time of the conquest. In 1067 he wrote a poem called the Song of the Battle of Hastings. Some historians believe that he may have written his poem in order to flatter William in a bid to get his old job back. In 1068, he was appointed as Queen Matilda’s Chaplin. However, at the time of his death in 1075 he had still not got his old job back. So what can we learn about the origin, nature and purpose of Guy of Amiens source? Where could he have got his facts from?

16. Bayeux Tapestry, 1077 The history of the Bayeux Tapestry is very interesting. In French historians argue that it was commissioned by Queen Matilda, whilst in Britain and everywhere else it is accepted that it was commissioned by Bishop Odo, William’s half brother. The dyes that were used to make the cloth have been found to come from Kent, which was one of Odo’s power bases. Bishop Odo

17. Bayeux Tapestry, 1077 The Tapestry was originally made in England by skilled seamstresses. Historians have debated who was in charge but one person, recently put forward by the art historian Carola Hicks is Edith of Wessex – King Harold's sister who was married to Edward the Confessor! The ladies who made the Bayeux Tapestry never witnessed many of the events in the story, but they would have got their information from first hand accounts from people who were there. The tapestry was displayed in Normandy as a official history in the newly built Cathedral in Bayeux. Why would it have make sense to have an official history in pictures in 1066? So what can we learn about the origin, nature and purpose of the Bayeux Tapestry?

18. OriginNaturePurposeSource William of Malmesbury Bayeux Tapestry Guy of Amiens

19. So who should we trust? Each of these sources have their good and bad points. They all agree that Harold was injured by an arrow. However, recent research has uncovered some very interesting evidence! Bayeux Tapestry, 1077 William of Malmesbury, 1125 Guy of Amiens, 1067

20. Recent Research on the Bayeux Tapestry People used to think that King Harold was the first figure, the soldier with the arrow in his eye. They thought that the other figure was just another soldier

21. Recent Research on the Bayeux Tapestry However, if we look closely the tapestry, it is possible to see stitch marks by the head of the second figure. These would have shown an arrow.

22. William of Malmesbury, 1125 Although William of Malmesbury would have been writing many years after the Battle of Hastings in 1066, he would have had access to Primary sources that do not exist today. He may have even seen the Bayeux Tapestry before it was damaged and restored. William of Malmesbury, 1125 “Receiving the fatal arrow from a distance, he died. One of the Norman soldiers with a sword then cut off his leg as he lay.”

23. Recent Research on the Bayeux Tapestry The Bayeux Tapestry was damaged during the French Revolution and had to be repaired. The Mayor of Bayeux had to rescue the tapestry from a soldier who was using at as a tarpaulin to cover a cart carrying ammunition. Two panels showing the crowning of William and the rest of the Norman Conquest were lost. The tapestry was moved several times during the revolution and was even put on display in Paris by the Emperor Napoleon. In 1842, the tapestry was repaired. However, several copied made before this time show an arrow in the eye of the second soldier …. Napoleon I

24. So How was King Harold killed? Arrow in the eye Arrow followed by being hacked Bishop Guy of Amiens. Bayeux Tapestry PEE Point Examples Explain Point Examples Explain Bayeux Tapestry William of Malmesbury

25. Conclusion Having weighed up the evidence this essay concludes that Harold was killed …. The best piece of evidence or information to back this up is …. Having weighed up the evidence this essay concludes that Harold was killed …. The best piece of evidence or information to back this up is ….