• General Notes

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  Last Anglo-Saxon King of England, reputedly named heir by the during Edward (his brother-in-law).  After becoming King, he crushed the forces of his brother Tostig & Harold III Hardraade of Norway, who claimed the throne, at Stamford Bridge.  He was killed in the Battle of Hastings by the army of a successful claimant to the throne, William the Conqueror of Normandy.
  
  REF: British Monarchy Official Website: On Edward's death in 1066, the king's council elected his brother-in-law, Harold Godwinson (Jan-Oct 1066), king. In September, Harald of Norway invaded England and was defeated by Harold at the Battle of Stamford Bridge near York. Meanwhile, William, Duke of Normandy (whom Harold had acknowledged in 1065 as Edward III's successor and who was also related to Edward by marriage) had landed in Sussex. Harold rushed south and on 14 October 1066 his army was defeated near Hastings and Harold was killed.
  
  David Humiston Kelley's explication of a possible descent of Harold II from Aethelred II appears in the Festchrift for Charles Evans edited by Neil Thompson. Kelley's paper, which is an enlargement of evidence presented by Lundie W. Barlow in the New Eng. Hist. & Gen. Register in the 1950s, shows the descent of land from a son of Aethelred to Earl Godwin, Harold's father. The argument is strong, especially since it is a group of manors that descended together. Bierbrier, however, in the Genealogists' Magazine, denies the lineage and indicates that Godwin received this land as a unit from the Danish conquerors. I have not seen any contemporary evidence that would take settle this question either way. The key article on the proposed descent of Harold II from Aethelred I is David H. Kelley, "The House of Aethelred," in Lindsay S. Brooke, ed., Studies in Genealogy and Family History in Tribute to Charles Evans on the Occasion of His Eightieth Birthday_ (Association for the Promotion of Scholarship in Genealogy, Ltd., Occasional Publication No. Two, 1989). As I posted earlier, the descent of land provides strong evidence for the descent of Harold II's father, Earl Godwine, from Aethelred I (not II), but it is also possible that the land was expropriated and presented to Godwine and his possession of it does not indicate genealogical descent.
  Acceded Jan 1066-Oct 1066.Acceded Jan 1066 - Oct 1066.
  
  Harold II
  On Edward's death, the King's Council (the Witenagemot) confirmed Edward's brother-in-law Harold, Earl of Wessex, as King. With no royal blood, and fearing rival claims from William Duke of Normandy and the King of Norway, Harold had himself crowned in Westminster Abbey on 6 January 1066, the day after Edward's death. During his brief reign, Harold showed he was an outstanding commander.
  
  In September, Harald Hardrada of Norway (aided by Harold's alienated brother Tostig, Earl of Northumbria) invaded England and was defeated by Harold at the Battle of Stamford Bridge near York. Hardrada's army had invaded using over 300 ships; so many were killed that only 25 ships were needed to transport the survivors home.
  
  Meanwhile, William Duke of Normandy (who claimed Harold had acknowledged him in 1064 as Edward's successor) had landed in Sussex. Harold rushed south and, on 14 October 1066, his army of some 7,000 infantry was defeated on the field of Senlac near Hastings. Harold was hit in the eye by an arrow and cut down by Norman swords.
  
  An abbey was later built, in 1070, to fulfil a vow made by William I, and its high altar was placed on the spot where Harold fell. The ruins of Battle Abbey still remain with a stone slab marking where Harold died.

Details of Harold II Godwineson's family with Ealdgyth of Mercia

Details of Harold II Godwineson's family with Ealdgyth "Swan-neck" (of England)