Who was Harold Godwinson and why is he significant?
Thank you for listening to The Rest Is History. For weekly bonus episodes, ad-free listening, early access to series, and membership of our much-loved chat community, go to therestishistory.com and join the club. That is therestishistory.com. Harold, eldest in birth as in wisdom, was by the king's favour appointed to the earldom in his father's place.
In the strength of his body and mind, he stood forth among the people as a second Judas Maccabeus, a true friend of his people and his country. He wielded his father's powers even more actively and walked in his ways, that is, in patience and mercy and with kindness to men of goodwill.
But disturbers of the peace, thieves and robbers, this champion of the law, threatened with the terrible face of our lion. Well practised he was in endless fatigues and doing without sleep and food, and endowed with mildness of temper and a more ready understanding. He could bear contradiction well, not readily revealing or retaliating, never, I think, on a fellow citizen or compatriot.
Indeed, the fault of rashness or levity is not one that anybody could charge against him. So Tom Holland, the name of this paragon, this patriotic icon. Dominic Sandbrook. This hero, this enduring hero of the English people, a man worthy to stand as England's last true-born king. It is, of course, Harold Godwinson. Earl of Wessex, the man who falls at the Battle of Hastings.
And last time we were talking about Duke William of Normandy, the villain of this story. And today we're on somebody who I've always... Held a candle for. Held a candle for, exactly, exactly. Do you see yourself reflected in his character and his prowess? The terrible face of a lion, endowed with mildness of temper and a ready understanding. He could bear contradiction well.
I mean, it's all adding up. It's all there, isn't it? Yeah, it's uncanny. It's uncanny. So this is actually from a biography of Edward the Confessor, not of Harold. That's right. So Harold is a supporting character in this book. Yes.
A lot of what we know about the reign of Edward, who was crowned at the end of the last episode, And goes on to be called the confessor. Not because he's rushing around confessing to things all the time, which is what people often think. It's because there are multiple Edwards and people haven't yet worked out that you could call them the first, the second, the third or anything like that.
I think this is a much better way of doing it. I agree. So Alfred the Great's son was called Edward. So he's Edward the Elder. And then we had Edward the Martyr. And Edward the Confessor is someone who is a saint but hasn't been martyred, basically.
Right. Or that bloke Harold Harefoot. I mean, make up a nickname later if necessary.
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