For nine months, King Harold of England sat nervously on his throne, waiting for his rivals to make a move for his crown. Harold knew that he needed his full army to be able to defeat either William or Harald, so he took a huge gamble. Harold anticipated that William of Normandy would arrive first so he positioned the majority of his troops on the south coast.

In September 1066 his wait was over, but it wasn't William who arrived first, but Harald! Hardrada, King of Norway, had landed near York in the north of England and he wasn't leaving until the crown was his. With him was Harold's younger brother Tostig. Oh, and about 10,000 bloodthirsty Vikings!

Realising his mistake King Harold and his army had to march 190 miles up to Stamford Bridge in York to meet the Vikings. After 5 days of marching, King Harold's men finally arrived at Stamford Bridge...

•Stamford Bridge was a momentous victory for Harold. Winning in the north was important as it showed off his power.

•Tostig and Hardrada were dead.

•Harold allowed Hardrada’s son, Olaf, to sail away in return for an oath of friendship, promising never to trouble England again. He returned home with just 24 ships of men, out of as many 300 that had originally landed.

•However, Harold must have been exhausted – and his army had been weakened by wounds and deaths - but they needed to fight at least one more battle to save Harold’s crown.

•Harold’s march south again must have made his remaining housecarls less battle-ready than William’s knights. (journey of 306km / 190 miles )

•Harold’s success at taking Hardrada by surprise might have made him over-confident. Instead of waiting for William in fortified London, he rushed to do battle, with fatal consequences.