Now! Then! 2024! - Yorkshire On This Day

Excerpt

This year King William gave Earl Robert de Comines the earldom over Northumberland; but the landsmen attacked him in the town of Durham, and slew him, and 900 men with him. Soon afterwards Edgar Ætheling came with all the Northumbrians to York; and the townsmen made a treaty with him: but King William came from the south unawares on them with a large army, and put them to flight, and slew on the spot those who could not escape, which were many hundred men, and plundered the town. St Peter’s minster he made a profanation, and all other places also he despoiled and trampled upon; and the etheling went back again to Scotland. This year died Aldred, Archbishop of York [11 September]; and he is there buried, at his see. He died on the day of Protus and Hyacinthus, having held the see with much dignity ten years wanting only fifteen weeks. Soon after this came from Denmark three of the sons of King Sweyne with two hundred and forty ships, together with Earl Esborn and Earl Thurkill, into the Humber; where they were met by the child Edgar, and Earl Waltheof, and Merle-Sweyne, and Earl Gospatric with the Northumbrians, and all the landsmen; riding and marching full merrily with an immense army: and so all unanimously advanced to York; where they stormed and demolished the castle, and won innumerable treasures therein; slew there many hundreds of Frenchmen, and led many with them to the ships; but, ere that the shipmen came thither, the Frenchmen had burned the city, and also the holy minster of St Peter had they entirely plundered, and destroyed with fire. When the king heard this, then went he northward with all the force that he could collect, despoiling and laying waste the shire withal; whilst the fleet lay all the winter in the Humber, where the king could not come at them. The king was in York on Christmas Day, and so all the winter on land, and came to Winchester at Easter.

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To facilitate reading, the spelling and punctuation of elderly excerpts have generally been modernised, and distracting excision scars concealed. My selections, translations, and editions are copyright.

Abbreviations:

• ER: East Riding
• GM: Greater Manchester
• NR: North Riding
• NY: North Yorkshire
• SY: South Yorkshire
• WR: West Riding
• WY: West Yorkshire

Comment

Comment

Frank Stenton (Stenton 2004) and Thomas Forester in his edition of Ordericus Vitalis (Ordericus Vitalis 1854) give the same date for the Durham massacre, but I don’t know where they found it. Orderic is more interesting and complete and should probably replace the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle here.

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Original

A.D. 1068. This year King William gave Earl Robert the earldom over Northumberland; but the landsmen attacked him in the town of Durham, and slew him, and nine hundred men with him. Soon afterwards Edgar Etheling came with all the Northumbrians to York; and the townsmen made a treaty with him: but King William came from the South unawares on them with a large army, and put them to flight, and slew on the spot those who could not escape; which were many hundred men; and plundered the town. St. Peter’s minster he made a profanation, and all other places also he despoiled and trampled upon; and the etheling went back again to Scotland. After this came Harold’s sons from Ireland, about midsummer, with sixty-four ships into the mouth of the Taft, where they unwarily landed: and Earl Breon came unawares against them with a large army, and fought with them, and slew there all the best men that were in the fleet; and the others, being small forces, escaped to the ships: and Harold’s sons went back to Ireland again.

A.D. 1069. This year died Aldred, Archbishop of York; and he is there buried, at his see. He died on the day of Protus and Hyacinthus, having held the see with much dignity ten years wanting only fifteen weeks. Soon after this came from Denmark three of the sons of King Sweyne with two hundred and forty ships, together with Earl Esborn and Earl Thurkill, into the Humber; where they were met by the child Edgar, and Earl Waltheof, and Merle-Sweyne, and Earl Gospatric with the Northumbrians, and all the landsmen; riding and marching full merrily with an immense army: and so all unanimously advanced to York; where they stormed and demolished the castle, and won innumerable treasures therein; slew there many hundreds of Frenchmen, and led many with them to the ships; but, ere that the shipmen came thither, the Frenchmen had burned the city, and also the holy minster of St. Peter had they entirely plundered, and destroyed with fire. When the king heard this, then went he northward with all the force that he could collect, despoiling and laying waste the shire withal; whilst the fleet lay all the winter in the Humber, where the king could not come at them. The king was in York on Christmas Day, and so all the winter on land, and came to Winchester at Easter. Bishop Egelric, who was at Peterborough, was this year betrayed, and led to Westminster; and his brother Egelwine was outlawed. This year also died Brand, Abbot of Peterborough, on the fifth before the calends of December.

449 words.

Tags

Tags are assigned inclusively on the basis of an entry’s original text and any comment. You may find this confusing if you only read an entry excerpt.

• Anglo-Saxons (10) ·
• Anglo-Scandinavian (1) ·
• Canute IV of Denmark (1) ·
• Cardiff (1) ·
• County Durham (8) ·
• Danish attacks on Norman England (1) ·
• 📌Durham (2) ·
• Ealdred (archbishop of York) (2) ·
• East Riding of Yorkshire (66) ·
• Edgar Ætheling (2) ·
• Famine (1) ·
• Godwinson, Harold (ca. 1022-66) (2), Harold II, last crowned Anglo-Saxon English king, reigned from death of Edward the Confessor until his own death at Hastings, 6 January-14 October 1066 ·
• Gospatric, Earl of Northumbria (1) ·
• Harald III of Denmark (1) ·
• Harrying of the North (3) ·
• Humber (20) ·
• Ireland (24) ·
• Lancashire (34) ·
• Lincolnshire (15) ·
• Malcolm III of Scotland (1) ·
• Norman Conquest (6) ·
• Normans (2) ·
• North Riding of Yorkshire (51) ·
• North Sea (18) ·
• Northern England (8) ·
• Northumberland (5) ·
• Northumbria (8) ·
• Parts of Lindsey (1) ·
• River Aire (25) ·
• River Ouse, Yorkshire (19) ·
• River Taff (1) ·
• River Tyne (4) ·
• Robert de Comines (1) ·
• Scotland (37) ·
• Sweyn II of Denmark (1) ·
• Waltheof, Earl of Northumbria (2) ·
• West Riding of Yorkshire (147) ·
• William the Conqueror (5) ·
• 📌York Castle (36) ·
• 📌York Minster (27) ·

All tags.

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