Battlefield Britain

The story begins in 60AD when a brutal assault on Boudicca and her daughters turned the queen into a rebel leader. It was perfect timing - much of the Roman army was in Anglesey, carrying out a slaughter of the Druids. Boudicca marched her entire tribe and their neighbours on the centre of Roman rule, Colchester, which was torched. London was next; it, too, burnt to the ground. The final confrontation between the two armies took place somewhere north of St Albans. The exact location is a matter of debate but Peter and Dan investigate the most recent suggestion: an area near the village of Paulerspury. Peter uses the remarkable computer graphics to show the Romans’ predicament – outnumbered 10 to one, it was only their discipline, tactics and the cunning choice of battlefield by Suetonius Paulinus that swung the battle in their favour.

The story starts in January of 1066. Following the death of King Edward the Confessor, Harold seized control of England.The move enraged William who saw himself as the rightful holder of the crown. He immediately prepared an army to invade. Harold readied his troops along the south coast but as he awaited the onslaught from across the Channel another came from an entirely unexpected direction:Vikings had landed in Yorkshire. Harold rushed his army to Stamford Bridge and successfully fought off the Norse invaders, but this was precisely the moment William made his move. The Norman army was in England and heading towards Hastings. What followed was a battle for the survival of Anglo-Saxon rule in this country but, in one of the most famous incidents of British history, Harold was killed when an arrow struck him in the eye.The Saxon defence crumpled and Norman rule in Britain was assured.The consequences of this were far-reaching – it brought about a change of ruling class, dynasty, language and culture.