English Heritage has released rare colour footage of the first staging of the Battle of Hastings, the organisation has announced. The footage, recorded on 14 October 1966, captures the event marking the 900th anniversary of the battle.
The staging brought together 500 students from the universities of Kent and Sussex. The event was set on the same fields near the town of Battle in East Sussex where the original battle took place. Participants wore sacks tied around them, while swords and axes were made of wood and painted cardboard in silver.
The Norman army was held up in traffic on the A27 from Brighton, so the battle was delayed by 20 minutes while the French dressed in costume. English fighters waited on a hilltop in a field near Hastings, waving spears and shouting 'Harold! Harold!'.
Peter Sampson was a first-year student from Sussex who was persuaded to take part in the event by the prospect of a 'great adventure' and the promise of free beer. According to Sampson, when the two sides met, it turned into a 'divine scuffle'. Sampson's friend John received a sharp blow to the head from the end of a fake spear, which hurt him quite a bit in the face.
The Queen was played by Miss World. The event was filmed by Alan Wootton, an electronics manufacturer who lived in Hastings, and he was invited by the local council to record the celebration.
The footage came to light when Alan's son, Cliff, recently visited Battle Abbey. Cliff, who had assisted as a 12-year-old on that day, mentioned to a volunteer that he had 300 reels of film from the event. The footage was condensed into a 12-minute film.
The event was watched by 30,000 spectators, many of whom were biased, according to James Witcombe, the manager of Battle Abbey. The charity has continued to stage the event annually. This year's event will take place on 10 and 11 October, with the full battle reenacted each day. The presence of the Bayeux Tapestry in London has sparked interest in all things Norman, and English Heritage is inviting those who took part in the original 1966 event to join in.
The hostilities ended with a scuffle. The promised free beer did not materialise, so Sampson and the others opened several beer barrels from the back of the refreshment tent. They opened the barrels, sat with the boys and girls from Kent in the warm afternoon sun, and talked about the day's events.
