Continuing on from the Battle of Fulford Gate I approached writing about the Battle of Stamford Bridge in exactly the same way. I had received many positive comments regarding how I had gone about describing the action. It seems that I had hit on a successful technique for describing both the action from the point of view of the characters involved and in the wider development of the conflict itself.

Stamford Bridge is a much better-known battle than Fulford Gate, but in terms of historical facts that is not saying much. What we do know is the date, the participants, and the outcome, but very little else. The actual location of the battle has never been verified for example. The numbers of combatants is a best guess, and tales such as the lone giant Norseman defending the narrow bridge against a horde of Saxons appear to be no more than poetic embellishments. This is a good situation for an author to find themselves in.

It was apparent from the beginning that I had a lot of holes to fill by my imagination. I knew this when I ended The War Wolf and my account of the Battle of Fulford Gate. It seemed reasonable to me that any Saxon survivors from that encounter who had not given up the fight would head for Tadcaster. There was good reasoning behind this, Tadcaster is in reach of York and lies on the Roman road of Ermine Street. Any relief force sent north by King Harold could be expected to move down Ermine Street as it led to York. I decided that Coenred was wily enough to know this and so he announced his intention of moving to Tadcaster with whatever men he could muster at the end of The War Wolf.

How did King Harold acquire the information he needed to surprise King Hardrada? That was an interesting question. King Harold knew that York was under attack and possibly learnt that it had fallen even while he was on the road. However, what is clear that he also knew of Hardrada’s demand that the men of York send hostages and supplies to him at Stamford Bridge. He not only managed to stop that from happening but went to meet the Vikings himself. The gaps in the known facts allowed me to play with the idea of the Saxons, led by Coenred, sneaking back into York and recapturing the city. This also meant that he could be reunited with Mildryth, even if only temporarily. Of course, that gave rise to a point of conflict between them. Coenred is a huscarl, a warrior and a man of honour. His lords, Edwin and Morcar, might have deserted him but there was no way such a man could not answer his king’s call to arms. For her part, Mildryth might regret falling for a warrior, especially after having lost one husband to violence, but she understands the nature of the man she now loves. Although she fears to let him go, Mildryth cannot allow herself to become the reason why he might lose his honour.

I thought long and hard about the famous story of the sole Viking champion on the bridge and whether to include it in my novel. There are no verified accounts of this event. At best, I think that it is little more than an attempt by Norse writers to instil some degree of heroic glory into what was to be their largest ever defeat. However, that said, it is a good tale. I decided to keep it.

The battle itself followed a well described path. The Vikings were outnumbered and, because they thought that they were meeting with the defeated townsfolk of York, many had come without their heavy armour. It was unseasonably hot in 1066 and the march from Riccall, where Hardrada had his fleet, to Stamford Bridge was some ten miles. Travelling light must have seemed perfectly understandable at the time.

Once the Saxons captured the bridge the Vikings had only two choices, which were, to either stand and fight or to withdraw to a better location, such as Kexby where they would be closer to their reserves. There was a good reason to stay and fight; they had the high ground. In fact, their position, as described, was very strong defensively. This probably swayed King Hardrada’s decision to stay put. Although fighting on horseback was largely unknown between Saxons and Vikings many of the huscarls, theigns, and eorldermen would have arrived on horseback. They may well have been tempted into attacking a body of retreating Viking warriors, most of who were on foot and lacked armour. It must have been a consideration? Hardrada had fought for Byzantium where cavalry tactics were well developed. The Vikings showed a disinclination to move. They even chose not to send a spoiling attack against the bridge crossing.

The lack of motivation on the part of Norse allowed King Harold to form his army into a formidable shield-wall at the bottom of the hill. The Saxons attacked and pressed their enemy very hard. King Hardrada could see his men wavering and so threw himself into the fray. He was killed by a single arrow to the throat.

Following the king’s death King Harold offered the Vikings the opportunity to withdraw to Riccall and take their fleet home, but for some reason they chose not to accept. Using artistic licence, I made Tostig, Harold’s traitorous younger brother, the villain of the piece. He spurns Harold’s offer and prompts a character to observe that “it comes to something when a Saxon shows me how to be a Viking”. I am quite proud of that line.

Tostig’s intransigence also allowed me to bring him face to face with Coenred on the battlefield. It is a fact that Tostig died at Stamford Bridge. Someone killed him, it may as well be Coenred. Of course, I had given him reason to seek out the former Eorl of Northumbria. Previously, Mildryth had recounted to Coenred how Tostig had killed her husband and son when they had accompanied their lords to a meeting with the then Eorl of Northumbria. Again, this murder is a historical fact.

Although the Vikings did fight on after the death of the King of Norway it gained them nothing. The Saxons broke the Norse shield-wall and a similar result as to that at Fulford Gate occurred, only it was the Saxons doing the slaying. They chased the remnants of the greatest Viking army to set foot in England all the way back to Riccall, killing as they went. It is recorded that of the three hundred ships that Hardrada brought to England only some thirty were required to take the survivors home, amongst them his son, Prince Olaf. The bodies that remained on the field were For the Rapture of Ravens.

Wyrd is a kind of fate known to the Saxons. It was known for being unpredictable. A man could enjoy good fortune one moment and the worst fortune next. At Fulford Gate, Coenred walked from the battlefield with barely a scratch. At Stamford Bridge he was not so lucky. On his return to York, Mildryth cannot help but question whether he will be lucky enough to survive a third battle. Coenred is not alone in thinking that there is scant chance of their being another battle that year. Of course, he was a warrior, not a soothsayer.