Vikings!

Today was the 950th anniversary of the Battle of Stamford Bridge.  This took place in 1066, between an English army under King Harold Godwinson and an invading Norwegian Viking force led by King Harald Hardrada and the English king's brother Tostig Godwinson.

To commemmorate this event, a recreation of the battle was held on a field in Stamford Bridge.  The organisers had created a bridge out of wood, and laid a blue tarpaulin out to represent the river.  The two sides were well armed, and they fought well.

What was great about the day was that it wasn't just a re-running of the battle - once they showed us what actually happened, they then had a free for all battle between the two sides and the outcome could have gone either way!

Other events included horsemanship displays, a living history village and and other examples of events that would have taken place including a King's court showing Viking justice.  At the end of each battle the soldiers would line up and face the audience, chosing their target to attack before advancing.  This gave great photo opportunities.  At one point, the following exchange took place:

Leader: "Vikings, choose your target!"
Viking: "I choose the one with the magic box!"
Other Viking:"They've all got magic boxes!"

Perhaps the funniest event of the day was the children vs the vikings.  They lined them up, gave them swords and shields and then set them to attack.  The kids had a great time, and the Vikings enjoyed hamming up the action.  Of course each event ended with "It's a victory, for the children!"

The day ended with a ceremonial boat burning, though it was slightly delayed as we had to wait for the fire engine to arrive for insurance purposes...

A great and fun day out - recommended if you get chance to go next year.  More photos on Flickr.