Conquest

Harold’s housecarls had grown in number. A further contingent of 500 had arrived in the early hours of the morning and swelled his force to close to 3,000 men. Unlike the Norwegians, they were fully armed and well prepared. Harold’s advance had been so rapid that no word had reached the North that the Saxons had even left the Midlands. He halted his men just outside York to wait for his scouts to report on the Norwegians’ position. When he heard of Hardrada’s disposition, he ordered an immediate attack.

This time there would be no final rallying speech.

The first the Norwegians knew of the advancing army of Saxon housecarls was the low rumble of their horses travelling on the wind from the west. At first, they thought it must be more hostages from York. Then, they suspected a double-cross manoeuvre from Edwin and Morcar, surmising that, somehow, the defeated Northumbrians and Mercians had raised a force of cavalry. Only when they saw how many horses were streaming over the hill from Gate Helmsley and heard the rising thunder of thousands of hooves, did they realize that Harold’s army was about to descend on them.

Recognizing the gravity of the situation and knowing how effective his brother’s surprise attacks could be, Tostig shouted at Hardrada, imploring him to organize a rolling retreat, fighting as they went.

The old warrior would have none of it and bellowed back, ‘We stand and fight. Send messengers to the ships and summon Prince Olaf to come at speed. Raise the Land-Ravager standard; form a shield wall around it. Berserkers come to my side. Men of Norway, stand your ground!’

Harold watched the rapid Norwegian deployment, counted their numbers and, seeing that they had no horses, no armour and few weapons, called a halt to his advance. He summoned a company from his personal bodyguard, twenty-five men in all, and asked Hereward and his three companions to join him. They rode down to the river and sought to parley with Hardrada.

The famous warrior appeared, accompanied by Tostig and a small retinue of berserkers.

‘You sit tall in the saddle for a man of modest height, Harold of England.’

Hereward could not help but be amused by Hardrada’s comment. Although the legendary Norwegian was at least six and a half feet tall, Harold was also a tall man, standing well over six feet.

‘Greetings to you also, Harald of Norway. I will try to observe noble courtesies, despite your presence in my kingdom and your treatment of my people.’

‘My Lord Earl, your occupation of the throne of this land is not legitimate. You are not of royal blood. This land was part of Scandinavia until recently; it will be so again.’

‘We will settle that argument in due course. First, I would like to speak with my brother Tostig.’ He turned to Tostig with a look of contempt. ‘You have invaded your own land seeking vengeance, and in defiance of a decision made by the Witan. Few would forgive your actions.’ Then the King’s face softened. ‘But I will do so. Return with me; bring your men. England needs you. There is a foe far mightier than these Norwegians approaching our shores. I will restore you to your earldom and increase your lands in the North. After we despatch the Normans, we will campaign in Scotland against Malcolm, your erstwhile ally. When he is defeated you can add Scotland to your domain. We are still brothers and we can be comrades once again to protect our homeland.’

‘It is an interesting offer, my brother, but your brotherly love was absent when I was hounded from my earldom. Today you propose terms because you need my support, but I fight with King Harald and the Norsemen now and I did not bring them all the way to Northumbria to desert them.’

Harold looked sad at his brother’s response, but his expression quickly became stern again. ‘So be it, Tostig, once my brother, once an earl of England. You will die for your treachery. As for you, Harald of Norway, you are ill prepared and caught in the open on English soil. If you withdraw and return to your ships and leave the plunder and hostages you have taken, I will spare you and your men.’

‘You are bluffing, Earl Harold. My force is far superior to yours. I stand on Scandinavian soil. This land is mine through the heritage of my ancestors. If you desire to take it from me, you will have to win it in battle.’

Harold breathed deeply, knowing that many were about to die, and gestured to his men to turn and ride back to the army.

He addressed Tostig one last time, deliberately ignoring his Norwegian foe. ‘If Hardrada insists on his patch of English soil, he’d better start digging his grave. As he stands so tall, he will need a big hole.’

As Hardrada watched Harold ride away, he turned to Tostig. ‘Your brother has a sharp tongue. I’m going to enjoy cutting it out of him.’