The Last Viking Invasion of England
After Godwin’s death in 1053, he was succeeded by his son Harold Godwinson as England’s most powerful figure. When Edward the Confessor died childless in 1066, Harold was crowned as king of England. The new king’s title was disputed by his younger brother, Tostig, and by Duke William of Normandy. The latter was related to Edward the Confessor on his mother’s side, and claimed that he had been promised the English throne upon Edward’s death. King Harold gathered his forces in readiness for a seaborne invasion from Normandy by Duke William.
Contrary winds kept the Normans on the other side of the English Channel. It was Harold’s brother, Tostig, who struck first. Allied with the Norwegian King Harald Hardrada, Tostig landed with a largely Scandinavian army near York, in the north of England. It was to be the last Viking invasion of England. Harold, who had had been encamped in the south of England on guard against an invasion from Normandy, led a forced march north to York, and surprised his brother and the Norwegian king by his unexpected arrival.