The Burning of Southwark was a battle fought in

Southwark Southwark ( ) is a district of Central London situated on the south bank of the River Thames, forming the north-western part of the wider modern London Borough of Southwark. The district, which is the oldest part of South London, developed ...

during the

Norman Conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Normans, Norman, French people, French, Flemish people, Flemish, and Bretons, Breton troops, all led by the Du ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

in October 1066. The Norman soldiers of William, Duke of Normandy fought with

Anglo-Saxon The Anglo-Saxons, in some contexts simply called Saxons or the English, were a Cultural identity, cultural group who spoke Old English and inhabited much of what is now England and south-eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. They traced t ...

soldiers in Southwark for control of

London Bridge The name "London Bridge" refers to several historic crossings that have spanned the River Thames between the City of London and Southwark in central London since Roman Britain, Roman times. The current crossing, which opened to traffic in 197 ...

, crossing the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, s ...

to the English capital

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. The Normans defeated the Anglo-Saxons in the battle but withdrew from Southwark due to strong local resistance, setting fire to the town during their retreat to spread terror. Southwark was destroyed and William marched westwards and cut off Anglo-Saxon supply routes to London which led to the city submitting to his rule.

Background

William, Duke of Normandy had launched his invasion of the Kingdom of England in late September 1066, declaring his claim to the

English throne The Throne of England is the throne of the Monarch of England. "Throne of England" also refers metonymically to the office of monarch, and monarchy itself.Gordon, Delahay. (1760) ''A General History of the Lives, Trials, and Executions of All t ...

following the death of the childless

King

Edward the Confessor Edward the Confessor ( 1003 – 5 January 1066) was King of England from 1042 until his death in 1066. He was the last reigning monarch of the House of Wessex. Edward was the son of Æthelred the Unready and Emma of Normandy. He succeede ...

, the son of his great-aunt Emma of Normandy. Edward's death in January 1066 saw his brother-in-law Harold Godwinson proclaimed king by the Anglo-Saxon

Witenagemot The witan () was the king's council in the Anglo-Saxon government of England from before the 7th century until the 11th century. It comprised important noblemen, including ealdormen, thegns, and bishops. Meetings of the witan were sometimes ...

, but still resulted in a violent

succession crisis A succession crisis is a crisis that arises when an order of succession fails, for example when a monarch dies without an indisputable heir. It may result in a war of succession. Examples include (see List of wars of succession): * The Wars of Th ...

contested by his brother Tostig Godwinson, the King of Norway

Harald Hardrada Harald Sigurdsson (; – 25 September 1066), also known as Harald III of Norway and given the epithet ''Hardrada'' in the sagas, was List of Norwegian monarchs, King of Norway from 1046 to 1066. He unsuccessfully claimed the Monarchy of Denma ...

, and

Ælfgar, Earl of Mercia Ælfgar (died ) was the son of Leofric, Earl of Mercia, by his famous wife Godgifu ( Lady Godiva). He succeeded to his father's title, Earl of Mercia, and responsibilities on the latter's death in 1057. He gained the additional title of Earl of E ...

's sons Morcar and Ēadwine. Harold had defeated his other opponents by 25 September, leaving William's invasion on 28 September his only remaining threat. On 14 October, William defeated an English force at the

Battle of Hastings The Battle of Hastings was fought on 14 October 1066 between the Norman-French army of William, Duke of Normandy, and an English army under the Anglo-Saxon King Harold Godwinson, beginning the Norman Conquest of England. It took place appr ...

and killed Harold, then moved to secure the English capital at

, where Edgar Ætheling had been proclaimed king by the Witenagemot. Expecting little resistance, William sent a small force of

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from ''cheval'' meaning "horse") are groups of soldiers or warriors who Horses in warfare, fight mounted on horseback. Until the 20th century, cavalry were the most mob ...

to the strategic town of

to secure the southern end of

, which provided a crossing of the

and direct access to London. At the time, Southwark was a partially- fortified suburb town of London and formed part of the personal estate of Godwinson's family.

Battle

Some of London's population supported William but many resisted the Norman invaders, with the local Anglo-Saxon forces led by Ansgar (or Esegar) the "Staller" (Royal standard bearer) and

sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland, the , which is common ...

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...

. Ansgar had been wounded whilst leading a contingent of Londoners for Harold at the Battle of Hastings, but had returned to the city with a number of other Anglo-Saxon leaders to organise a defence against William. Although Ansgar's wounds were so severe that he was not capable of walking and had to be carried in a

litter Litter consists of waste products that have been discarded incorrectly, without consent, at an unsuitable location. The waste is objects, often man-made, such as aluminum cans, paper cups, food wrappers, cardboard boxes or plastic bottles, but ...

, he seems to have mustered a force by that season's third raising of the

fyrd A fyrd was a type of early Anglo-Saxon army that was mobilised from freemen or paid men to defend their Shire's lords estate, or from selected representatives to join a royal expedition. Service in the fyrd was usually of short duration and part ...

and his troops were described as "numerous and formidable". William made an offer to Ansgar that he could retain his estates and position as sheriff and join William's council if he recognised him as king. Ansgar refused to accept the terms and led a number of London citizenry against the Norman force at Southwark: Edwin, Earl of Mercia, Morcar, Earl of Northumbria and Ealdred, Archbishop of York may possibly have been amongst the defenders. The 500 Norman

knights A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

defeated the Anglo-Saxon force and reached London Bridge but, shocked at the fierce defence put up by the defenders, they were unable to hold the structure and soon withdrew. The town of Southwark was set ablaze by the Normans as they withdrew to spread terror amongst the inhabitants of London across the river. Almost the entire town was destroyed, including the Southwark mint, which did not recover its former levels of production until the late 1080s.

Aftermath

William postponed his attempt to directly storm London as a result of the defence made at Southwark. The Norman probing force reunited with the main army which began a circuitous march around the west of London. This country was strongly anti-Norman and William found many of the Thames crossings defended, avoiding

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of symbols, often specifically those of a written language, by means of Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifacete ...

and reached Wallingford where he crossed the river after securing the support of Saxon

thegn In later Anglo-Saxon England, a thegn or thane (Latin minister) was an aristocrat who ranked at the third level in lay society, below the king and ealdormen. He had to be a substantial landowner. Thanage refers to the tenure by which lands were ...

Wigod. William then split his forces into two divisions; leading one personally northwards via Wendover to

Berkhamsted Berkhamsted ( ) is a historic market town in Hertfordshire, England, in the River Bulbourne, Bulbourne valley, north-west of London. The town is a Civil parishes in England, civil parish with a town council within the borough of Dacorum which ...

with the other marching via

Sonning Sonning (traditional: ; modern: ) is a village and civil parish in Berkshire, England, on the River Thames, east of Reading, Berkshire, Reading. The village was described by Jerome K. Jerome in his book ''Three Men in a Boat'' as "the most fair ...

, Wargrave,

Maidenhead Maidenhead is a market town in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in the county of Berkshire, England. It lies on the southwestern bank of the River Thames, which at this point forms the border with Buckinghamshire. In the 2021 Census, ...

and

Chalfont St Peter Chalfont St Peter is a large village and civil parish in southeastern Buckinghamshire, England. It is in a group of villages called The Chalfonts which also includes Chalfont St Giles and Little Chalfont. The villages lie between High Wycombe a ...

. William's forces cut off the supply routes to London from the rest of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom and, together with the burning of Southwark and the Duke's negotiation with the county of

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

, led to the submission of the city. William had been in contact with leading clergymen in the English capital to persuade them to support his cause, and it seems that they were successful in influencing the Anglo-Saxon leaders of the city who travelled to Berkhamsted to pledge their loyalty to William and deliver him the keys to the city gates. William entered the city peacefully and was crowned King of England at Westminster Abbey on Christmas Day.

References

{{reflist 1066 in England

Norman conquest of England Fires in England William the Conqueror History of the London Borough of Southwark