Synopsis

In 1066, the rivalry between two brothers brought England to its knees. When Duke William of Normandy landed at Pevensey on September 28, 1066, no one was there to resist him. King Harold Godwineson was in the north, fighting his brother Tostig and a fierce Viking invasion. How could this have happened? Why would Tostig turn traitor to wreak revenge on his brother?

To many, the name Tostig and Traitor are synonymous. But it was the sibling rivalry between Tostig and Harold that set up the circumstances leading to Stamford Bridge—and of course, put Harold in the wrong place at the wrong time when William landed at Pevensey.

The Sons of Godwine were not always enemies. Although they often competed with each other, it took a massive Northumbrian uprising to tear them apart, making Tostig an exile and Harold his sworn enemy. And when 1066 came to an end, all the Godwinesons were dead except one: Wulfnoth, hostage in Normandy. For two generations, Godwine and his sons were a mighty force, but their power faded away as the Anglo-Saxon era came to a close.