In my last medieval post, we followed Hereward and his men as they attacked Peterborough Abbey in June 1070, burning its buildings and taking its treasures. The Danes who had been helping the English rebels eventually returned home, but Hereward stayed in the Fenlands. He was still fighting against William the Conqueror.
By 1071, Ely had become a place where Englishmen who opposed William could take refuge. It was surrounded by marshes and waterways, quite unlike the countryside we see there today. Anyone trying to reach the island had to find a way through the wet, difficult ground, and the local men knew the area far better than the Normans.
Several important Englishmen had made their way to Ely, including Earl Morcar, whose brother Edwin had been killed by his own followers. Bishop Æthelwine of Durham and Siward Barn were there too, along with many other rebels. William had been king for almost five years, yet there were still plenty of men who had no wish to be ruled by him.
William had already spent years putting down rebellions, and he now brought his army to Ely. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle tells us that he also gathered a fleet of ships and had a bridge built across the marshes. The very landscape that had protected the rebels was no longer enough to keep his soldiers away.
Eventually, Morcar, Bishop Æthelwine and many of the others surrendered. William took their ships, weapons and treasures, and the bishop was sent to Abingdon, where he died later that year. Morcar was taken prisoner, but Hereward had somehow managed to escape with some of his men.
I would love to know exactly how Hereward got away, but unfortunately the Chronicle gives us very little detail about it. Stories written much later describe him using disguises and all sorts of tricks to escape the Normans. They make interesting reading, but we have no way of knowing how much really happened.
Ely had been one of the last places where a large group of English rebels could still hold out against William. With its surrender in 1071, their resistance had suffered another serious defeat. Hereward was still free, but we know very little for sure about the rest of his life.
Do you think Hereward was brave to keep fighting, or should he have surrendered with the other rebels?
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Image info:
William the Conqueror, British School (artist unknown), c. 1618–1620. Oil on oak panel. Dulwich Picture Gallery, London, via Wikimedia Commons. Public domain.
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