Rebellion, resistance and restoration: strategies of limited violence in late Anglo-Saxon England, 1042–1066

Strickland, M. (2023) Rebellion, resistance and restoration: strategies of limited violence in late Anglo-Saxon England, 1042–1066. Global Intellectual History, (doi: 10.1080/23801883.2023.2201951) (Early Online Publication)

Abstract

A comparative analysis of the series of aristocratic rebellions which punctuated the reign of the penultimate Anglo-Saxon king Edward ‘the Confessor' (1042-1066), and in particular the better documented case study of the revolt of Earl Godwine in 1051-1052, reveals how violence might be limited and controlled in regard both to mechanisms of armed opposition against the king and to the ruler's reaction towards dissident nobles. It explores a pattern whereby an exiled noble sought refuge abroad, there raised a force of mercenaries or allies, then engaged in limited and indirect acts of hostility, usually on the peripheries of the kingdom, to exert pressure upon the king to negotiate whilst avoiding a direct attack on the monarch. Reconciliation was not inevitable, but in the majority of cases revolts succeeded in achieving a complete restoration to lands and position, with comparatively little bloodshed having occurred. It is argued that the period 1042-1066 marks a crucial transition between the more extreme violence of earlier rulers, who inflicted death or mutilation on dissidents, and the Normans’ introduction from 1066 of more restrained conduct towards political opponents.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Early Online Publication
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Strickland, Professor Matthew
• Authors: Strickland, M.
• College/School: College of Arts & Humanities > School of Humanities > History
• Journal Name: Global Intellectual History
• Publisher: Taylor and Francis
• ISSN: 2380-1883
• ISSN (Online): 2380-1891
• Published Online: 02 June 2023
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2023 The Author
• First Published: First published in Global Intellectual History 2023
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons License