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William the Conqueror

The Deal

In 1064 Edward asked Harold Godwinson to go to Normandy and there to confirm publicly Duke William's right of succession. Harold agreed. It may seem odd that Harold would do this, but he wasn't ready yet for open rebellion, and to refuse the king's command in this would be an act of rebellion.

Besides, he felt he could easily recant any promises he might make, once the old king was dead. A few easy promises now, and later . . . well, who knew? Moreover, Harold would meet with William as equals, and all would know who was the greater lord.

But chance played havoc with Harold's plans. In crossing the Channel, the earl was blown off course by a storm, and was cast ashore in audio gifPonthieu. There, he was captured by Count audio gifGuy, the local lord. This sort of thing was a common enough practice, for ransoming nobles was a profitable business. Count Guy figured to hang on to his unexpected prize and extract a tidy sum for him.

Duke William, though, was Guy's lord. Instead of allowing him to hold Harold for ransom, he immediately demanded Guy release Harold into William's care. Count Guy did not dare defy William, but it must have distressed him to let his prize catch go.

William sent an armed guard to escort Harold to Caen. Instead of arriving in full dress, as a powerful baron, Harold was arriving alone and under guard, at once in William's debt for having rescued him from Count Guy and yet also uncomfortably like a prisoner being taken to court.

Nearly helpless, Harold was forced to swear an oath of fealty to William and to swear further that he would advocate William's cause in England. In return for this, William generously made the great English earl a Norman knight. Harold didn't much like William anyway, and this episode set his teeth on edge.

There is a story that, in the swearing of these oaths, Harold placed his hand on a table. He did this fully intending to break his word. Once the oath was sworn, William's men whipped off the covering or top, revealing sacred relics underneath. Swearing on relics was a very much more serious matter, and William had perpetrated the trick in order to out-fox Harold, whom he suspected of duplicity.

There is no contemporary evidence for this trick, but it fits in well with the temperament of the two men, with William always one step ahead of Harold. If you ever read a book or see a movie about William, it will likely tell this story, so I thought you should know a bit about its origin.

In any case, Harold returned to England, having had much the worse in the encounter. Despite all, however, he was determined to be the next king of England and set about ensuring his success.