AQA GCSE Historical Environment 2019/20: Battle of Hastings Lessons

3 Lessons I used to introduce my class to the Historical Environment aspect of the Battle of Hastings and link it into their existing knowledge. Lessons follow the events of 1066 in a chronological way, with specific focus on the build up and events of the Battle of Hastings

Lesson One recaps on previous knowledge regarding the contenders to the throne and focusses on the preparations made for battle by both King Harold and William. There is use of the AQA provided resource pack here - page reference is on the PPT. There are also videos to add to the narrative (resources included with lessons). Lesson ends looking at the Battle of Fulford and what it meant for Harold and William.

Lesson Two begins with a video looking at the Battle of Stamford Bridge and some work around this battle and its impact on later events. I have structured some of this around a ‘write an account’ question just to take the opportunity for some more exam focus!! There is use of more of the provided sources and a focus on the armies and tactics in the build up to Hastings.

Lesson Three makes use of some of the visual sources provided by AQA. Class then, with the aid of video aids, focus on the events of the BoH and the turning point/s of the battle. Lessons finish with a look at the question type and a possible question (I will be uploading an example answer to this question in the future).

Video resources
Lesson One includes a Youtube video linked in the PPT.

Lessons Two and Three make use of BBC - '1066: A Year to Conquer England feat. Dan Snow - We have a copy at school - should be available on the internet somewhere, if not, it can be replaced - the videos focus on the Battles of Stamford Bridge and Hastings: there are lots of variants on youtube if you can’t get hold of ‘A Year to Conquer’.

Written resources
Lesson One uses the resource pack provided by AQA
I have included (and edited) some of the sources provided by AQA at certain points.
Textbook references are for Oxford AQA History for GCSE: British Depth Studies c1066-1685 (Norman, Medieval, Elizabethan and Restoration England). These can be substituted for AQA GCSE History: Norman England, 1066-1100 by Helena Clarke or another text.