Norman Conquest Encyclopedia

In 1705 Edmund Halley, Professor of Geometry at the University of Oxford, showed that a particular comet, now named after him, reappeared every 76 years. This fact was not known in 1066, and when it appeared on 24 April it was taken as a divine indication that the cause of William the Bastard in seeking the English throne was approved and Harold Godwinsson was doomed. The comet is vividly illustrated in the Bayeux Tapestry.

See also: Bayeux Tapestry; Harold Godwinsson; William the Bastard

Related Reading:

• Hastings 1066 (Revised Edition) - The Fall of Saxon England
  (Campaign 13 )