Poems



STAMFORD BRIDGE

The longships are here , sailing silently along the Ouse,
Loaded with Berserks from northern lands.
They rape and pillage , infused with booze,
Wanting to rule our Angeland.

They are led by Harald Hardrada , their king,
The most feared of europes men.
Earls Edwin and Morcar , their Fyrd they bring,
At Fulford , they fight and die.

The Vikings move off to ravage York town,
Then off to Stamford , they advance and encamp.
Our King Harold says “He’ll not take my crown”,
And off north the king and his army do tramp.

The English arrive and surprise Hardrada,
At a bridge over a stream , king meets king.
No truce is made , the day will get harder,
Great battle they’ll fight and blood it will bring.

The Vikings are slain , Hardrada dead , an arrow through the throat,
King Harold is victorious , to prisoners he is kind.
In Sussex , the Norman bastard has landed by boat,
Our army marches south , no peace to find.

© Darron Fogg 2009







HASTINGS


The long march south was finally over,
The English arrived at Senlac Hill.
Over 200 miles they tramped , nearly a day from Dover,
To face the Norman invader , to kill !

William sailed over to steal our land ,
Bringing with him allied Flemings and Bretons.
But they hadn’t reckoned with so tough a band,
The brave and loyal , Anglo-Saxons.

We were led by good , King Harold,
A son of the great Earl Godwin.
Honest and mercifull , with the respect of young and old,
This was a battle he had to win.

The English formed up on the hilltop,
A phalanx of iron and wood , the shieldwall !
Determined to repel all attacks , the invasion to be a flop,
The men ready to fight , knowing many will fall.

The Normans and their allies formed up below,
With a barrage of arrows , the archers stood.
And flanking cavalry , of which the Normans liked to crow,
The infantry roared out , their noise the air to flood.

The English chanted their battle oath , old,
Handed down from father to son.
Ready with sword , spear and axe , so bold,
They would battle from dawn , to the setting sun.

Many arrows flew overhead,
Hitting earth , men and shields.
The English reformed , moving back their dead,
Unyielding on this bloody field.

The invading infantry slogged up the steep slope,
Then smashed into the shieldwall strong.
The Duke watched below , under his banner from the pope,
Knowing a victory gained , would be hard and long.

Williams men were no match for Harolds men free,
Many an invader were butchered by English blows.
“The Duke is dead “, it was said and his men began to flee,
Down the hill they ran , hearts pounding their blood to flow.




The English held firm and victory seemed near,
So William rode on horseback for all to see.
His men rallied round , fresh with hope , less with fear,
Again they attacked , again their blood ran free.


Once more they ran , though this was a trick,
The shieldwall broke , Englishmen chased them downhill.
Then the cavalry hit our men , hard as a brick,
Moving towards our King , going in for the kill.

Many English died , into the soil their blood drained,
The Huscarls  , stoutly defended our King.
Harold fought to the last , ‘till he was slain,
We were defeated , a terrible thing.

At last , the Bastard stole our land,
The English , enslaved for their part.
William ruled with an evil , iron hand,
He took the English land , but never their hearts.

Copyright ; Darron Fogg 2012 , revised 2014.
 

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