Wadard Knight

After oral history about a Woodward knight participating in the Battle of Hastings, 1066 AD piqued my curiosity, I determined during a visit to England in 1983 to visit the Battle site and to learn what I could about this so-called Woodward knight. I had listened to my father's tale with respect but incredulity, then subsequent to his death, came across a small book on Woodwards in the Historical Society of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. The little book asserted that the Woodward knight's name appeared on a scroll in the Great Hall of Battle Abbey in Surrey, England. However, the author gave no documentation for her assertion and thus I approached the projected visit to Hastings, England with great scepticism!

I set out from London by bus on a one-day quest to Hastings on the southeast coast about 2 hours away. I already knew that the Battle of Hastings never did take place at Hastings-by-the-Sea, but rather six miles inland in a large pasture, where subsequent to the Norman victory, William had commanded a great abbey to be built. The altar was to be constructed on the spot Harold the Saxon had been slain. The Abbey was built and a small village called Battle grew up around it.

As I stepped from the bus in the village of Battle, my state of mind ranged from doubtful resignation about finding any Woodward knight to the excited feeling of at last visiting one of the most important battle sites in western civilization. As I faced the village square in the August midday heat, I silently reminded myself that I had but six hours to investigate the existence of a so-called Woodward knight before the last daily bus to London would carry me away, probably forever.

Historically, there exist only two narratives, both Norman versions, to guide us in reconstructing the Battle of Hastings. From these we learn that DukeWilliam of Normandy sailed 10,000 men across the English Channel on a flotilla of 400 vessels and defeated King Harold the Saxon on Senlac Hill on October 14, 1066, thus forever altering the history of England and the English language.

The English fought on foot, mostly with two-handed axes, while the Normans had the advantage of horsemen with lances, as well as archers, among their infantry. Harold did hold the higher ground, but William's tactic of feigning to withdraw one flank coaxed the Saxons forward in pursuit. The Normans then turned round to fight, successfully confusing their enemy and thereby gaining some ground on the heights. Additionally, William's strategy of having his bowmen shoot their arrows into the air, above the Saxon shields, showered destruction onto the heads of the English. With Harold's death, defeat came quickly and dusk saw the valiant English vanquished. William commanded that an altar be built on the spot Harold was slain and the original abbey was thus constructed to house the altar.

With the historical background established, I had even less time for my own small quest to find evidence of the so-called Woodward knight. Little did I suspect what frustration, frenzy, and unbelievable surprise lay ahead in those few remaining hours. The little undocumented book back in the Pennsylvania Historical Society in Philadelphia had stated that a scroll hung in the Abbey's Great Hall with the name of the Woodward knight. None of the tour guides had ever heard of such a scroll, but helpfully directed me to the Abbot's House. Alas, no one answered the iron-clad door. Looking round, I spied a couple of groundsmen. They suggested the secretary might know and indicated a back entrance. Defeat there as well, since a sign indicated she was out to lunch and there was no one else on duty because of summer vacation. Despair set in. I had no further idea how to proceed. But just then, the secretary appeared round the corner! Did a guardian angel from AD 1066 arrange this close encounter? "Yes," said the secretary, "a scroll used to hang in the Great Hall, but was transferred six years ago to the little Anglican church across the street." Such luck! My hopes rearoused, I hurried across the narrow cobblestone street.

The diminutive stone Gothic church was quite dim within with just subdued light from the stained glass windows. I persistently peered along the dark walls of the interior. THERE WAS THE SCROLL! It was a glass-covered chart measuring about 24" x 15" with 8 vertical rows of names of knights. I strained intently to decipher the old English script, noting that some names had been obliterated by the aged creases. I could find no Woodward name nor even an imaginable English or French variant. I repeated the search several times, unwilling to admit the Woodward knight was not listed. But still no luck. What now to do? At this point, I could have accepted defeat and returned to London, but a few hours still remained before the day's last bus. I decided to prevail. I thought of all those American Woodwards 3000 miles back home counting on me to bring an answer. So I asked some groundsmen about finding the vicar. They indicated his home beside the church. The vicar quietly listened to my story and quandary, then revealed that the scroll was a copy. Unable to shed further light on the matter, he suggested I talk with the curator of a small museum in the village. I rushed the several blocks down the main street, but yet another obstacle lay ahead: the museum was closed until 2 for lunch. Precious time ticked away, with few hours remaining and now more than one of those would be lost waiting for the museum to reopen! At a nearby tearoom, I consoled myself with hot tea, watercress and cream cheese sandwiches, and scones. The whole Woodward knight idea looked dubious.

Promptly at 2, I entered the little museum, but no one was there. I called out and a voice from a back room replied she would come in a few minutes. While waiting, I noticed a facsimile of the Bayeux Tapestry mounted around the walls. I had seen the original Tapestry in 1963 in Bayeux, France. There it is considered a national treasure. It is actually an embroidery on linen rather than a tapestry, 230 feet long, 20 inches high, containing 58 scenes, 626 characters, 37 ships, 190 horses, 540 other animals and birds, 33 buildings, and numerous trees--the all stitched by many hands over a 10-year period after the Battle of Hastings to record and commemorate the great event.

As I was examining the scenes around the museum wall, I suddenly came upon a panel with a knight on horseback with the Latin inscription above, "HIC EST WADARD"! I had to suppress my incredulous excitement. My mind was racing. Surely "my" Woodward knight could not be identified, yet alone appear on the famous Bayeux Tapestry! I was afraid to even contemplate finding the equivalent of a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow! Just then a lady emerged from the back room, and I calmly tried to explain that this Wadard knight was of much interest to me. Could the lady help me with more information? Gracious Mrs. Langley invited me into the back room, where she began pulling various books from the shelves, each containing a different list of knights serving with the Duke of Normandy at the Battle of Hastings. She further disclosed that some of the lists were dubious, because of the prestige of having one's family name on the list. The name WADARD was listed on two. Mrs. Langley then consulted a book entitled The Bayeux Tapestry that showed the panel of the WADARD knight with the following accompanying comment: "One Norman knight is singled out by name in the inscription as WADARD, who must have been a figure of special note to those for whom the Tapestry was designed: a WADARD appears in Domesday Book [William's first census of his conquered country c. 1087] as holding lands in England under Bishop Odo."

In addition, Mrs. Langley showed me a commercial paper copy of a scroll the museum was selling to tourists. The name WARDEBOIS appeared on it and I consider this name to be another Anglo-Norman variant of WOODWARD, since we know that the name was GARDE DU BOIS in Normandy, "warden of the wood." All these discoveries left me breathless. I had evidence of the Woodward knight beyond my wildest dreams, but I was not completely satisfied. I needed that Bayeux Tapestry book, for who back in the States would believe such an improbable tale? And would future generations exhibit the same skepticism as I, preferring to believe that Aunt So-and-So or Uncle What's-His-Name was just embellishing family history beyond the pale? And who would accept that this WADARD knight is one of only two persons identified on the Tapestry other than the principal leaders?

Mrs. Langley thought the village bookshop just across the street might carry a copy of the book. I glanced at my watch...just one hour to go! The proprietor of the bookshop was familiar with the book, but regretted it was out of print. He had only one copy for himself. Upon listening to my saga and seeing my disappointment, he offered to doublecheck in the back. After a few moments, he emerged apologetically, but carrying a slim volume. He had found one last copy without a dust jacket! Would that be satisfactory? Needless to say, I was more than satisfied, I was ecstatic, but I tried to act British and contain my glee. I made my precious purchase then caught the last bus for the day back to London. My one-day quest forever changed my view of family history and I vowed in future to pay closer attention to the tales of the old folks. I too had participated in an important adventure at Battle, just as our ancestor of long ago in one day had participated in the event that changed English history. Such an experience could almost make one believe in angels, only mine wears chain mail and sits astride his horse!

Once back home, I did more research and found the following quote from a book about the names appearing on the Falaise Roll, a 15th century compilation of men who fought with William the Conqueror during this decisive battle of the Norman Conquest.

"WADARD. Wadard came to England in 1066 with Duke William and held estates in Kent and several other counties under Odo, Bishop of Bayeux. [Odo was a half-brother to William.] His name is clearly woven in the Bayeux Tapestry and the question arises as to the identity of this personage who was not mentioned by the historians of the period, [but] to whom such prominence is given in this ancient souvenir...."

The Wadard knight subseqently was incorporated into the banner of our family newsletter and transferred to our family teeshirts. His form, figure, and story now come to Woodwards all over the world via this website. What a Conquest!

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