Draft:Battle of Stafford (1069)

The Battle of Stafford was a battle fought in the Autumn of 1069, contested between the newly coronated King William I and an Anglo-Welsh rebel army led by Eadric the Wild. . The rebellion was defeated, much of Eadric's land was seized, and Stafford and its surrounding areas were devastated.

Following this battle, numerous rebellions, and a warmly received Danish invasion, William I commenced The Harrying of the North with the intent of permanently crushing northern insurgency. This campaign wrought widespread famine and destruction across much of the Midlands and North of England.

Background and Prelude
Following the Norman Invasion of England in 1066, large swathes of land controlled by English noblemen had been confiscated and redistributed among the incoming Norman elites. This dispossession of wealth, land, and titles caused outrage amongst the English nobility, culminating in numerous rebellion and revolts, which in-turn led to further dispossession.

Among those dispossessed was Thegn Eadric. Prior to the conquest Eadric had been one of the wealthiest men in Shropshire, possessing up to 100 hides in Shropshire and Herefordshire. Following Harold Godwinson's defeat at The Battle of Hasting and the coronation of King William I that same year, almost half of Eadric's land were confiscated, passing into the hands of incoming Norman Lord, Ralph de Mortimer, while his remaining lands were subjected to raids by Richard Fitz Scrob.

In retaliation, Eadric raised his own force, formed alliances with Welsh Princes: Bleddyn and Rhiwallon, and pillaged his Norman neighbours in Herefordshire, using Wales as both a base from which to raid England and a sanctuary from Norman reprisal. Eadric and his forces would then unsuccessfully besiege Shrewsbury Castle, razing the surrounding town before relief could arrive

This armed campaign against the Norman conquerors quickly gained momentum, and Eadric's army swelled in size as disgruntled peasants from surrounding counties and Wales joined his army. The King himself would personally intervene, travelling with his army across the Pennines from Lindsey, while Brian of Brittany and his forces would travel north from Exeter to unite with William.

Battle
Little is known about the battle itself; and it's unsure if Eadric or his Welsh allies were present for the fighting or if they withdrew beforehand. As the battle field's location has not been identified in recent times, and as contemporary sources mentioning the battle are scarce, it's difficult to estimate the size of either army or the losses they suffered. What is certain is that the Normans defeated the rebels, while Eadric would retreat into Shropshire.

Aftermath
Following the defeat, Eadric would surrender to the Normans in 1070. There are conflicting theories concerning the fate of Eadric. Due to scant contemporary recordkeeping, as well as an abundance of Eadrics and Edrics in pre-conquest England, confidently tracing the correct Eadric through to subsequent records following the revolt is incredibly difficult.

Some historians believe that Eadric joined and assimilated into the Norman force, and would later accompany King William I on an expedition to Scotland in 1072 during which Treaty of Abernethy was signed. "Eadric son of Ælfric" - appears as the tenant of Much Wenlock Priory, holding lands at Bourton and Hughley, suggesting that he was still a land-owner (albeit with much diminished possessions) when the Doomsday Book was collated. Furthermore, some lands which had previously been possessed by Eadric were documented as being owned by William "le Savage", suggesting that he might have been a descendent of Eadric.

Stafford and it's surrounding county, as with much of the North and Midlands, appears to have suffered greatly at the hands of the victorious Normans. When the Doomsday Book was completed in 1086, seventeen years after the battle, the town was declared to still be "partially waste" with almost a third of the messuages uninhabited.

Archaeological evidence has revealed that much of the town had been abandoned following the battle, with the town suffering through an extensive period of depopulation and urban decay. Stafford Castle was built during the following decade, with the Norman motte, moat, and baily still visible to this day. Additionally a wooden castle had been built in 1070 much closer to the town centre, however this had fallen into ruin by the recording of the Doomsday Book and its precise location remains unknown.