LAST PAGERETURN TO INDEXRevised 10th July 2007
When this information is taken with the detailed archaeological record of growth of the inhabitation of the Combe Haven valley, it is impossible not to come to the conclusion that the ancient town of Hastings was situated on it’s northern shore, in Saxon times. Its subsequent destruction has been fully recorded in the Bayeux Tapestry and although rebuilt by the same conquerors this record has been lost until now. Absolute proof of these events will only become possible when the earthworks have been properly investigated by excavation or other more tangible proof is removed from the soil.
Those who turn to this page without having read the evidence in the hope of obtaining a neat summary will be dissapointed due to the nature of the task at hand. William the Conqueror spent in the region of six weeks in 1066 at this site with his army. Anyone seeking to prove occupation for six weeks nearly a thousand years ago should appreciate this task is not easy. The important issues come from the detailed re-examination of the historical documents from the time. When applied to the previous site of Pevensey, named by Poitiers and prominently displayed in the Bayeaux Tapestry, major anomolies come into play which could never be explained by historians. As a result the Victorians hypothesised that the only conclusion must be that only one set of documents could be right and the rest were wrong, consigning highly detailed manuscripts such as Wace's Roman de Rue and the Carmen to the waste paper basket. This was a fatal flaw in the thinking of the age - since a neat answer was required. What the experts of that age failed to realise was that in the time of William and Harold the French knew the south coast of England by the forts and castles that protected her. In consequence one simple rearrangement of our understanding that Pevensey meant the area controlled by that Castle brings all the manuscripts into one clear focus, since the port and area of Hastings was within this district. At this time the archaeology is at its early stages since funding is required to take this research forward. However the primary documents which support Wilting Farm as the landing site of the Norman Invasion are detailed and cannot be argued against. These are the detailed analysis of the Domesday Book data using the knowledge of the development of the road systems in the area, assited by computerised analysis. No historian before me has been able to do this in such a conclusive way. I have yet to meet a historian who has the ability to argue against the results even ten twelve years after first publication - indeed how could they because the data comes from an indisputable source. In the meantime I believe I have made a satisfactory case for all these matters to be thoroughly investigated. I believe this should be conducted by an independent team of archaeologists and historians, who have the necessary expertise and government funding to conduct the detailed and highly specialised nature of the examination. This area is in great need of regeneration - exactly the sort of regeneration the Norman landing site will bring.
The subject of the Battle of Hastings and the Norman Invasion has been written about since the time that these events took place. The characters involved are known only from the text books that have been written in recent history, because so little has survived intact that we can rely on. Here at Wilting Manor a unique event in English, and French, history is unfolding before our very eyes. We are privilege to be involved in the rediscovery of a page in English history that is unique to the nation.
I cannot say how history will view these events but I am certain that those matters that have led me upon this path of discovery are fundamentally correct. I have placed the information into the public domain, upon the principal that others more qualified than I will complete the task involved. I cannot say what has driven me to do this, other than it has been a monumental task, which I never doubted would be proven correct. Ultimately the evidence speaks for itself. Unfortunately some of the issues raised here need to be expanded to complete the picture. However it would have been impossible to do this without first destroying the myth of the Pevensey landing. Now that the camp and landing site have been rediscovered I shall turn my attention to the events of the battle itself. This battle was unique in English history and like the landing itself raises many unanswered questions.
It is essential for those whose duty lies in protecting the English heritage not to underestimate the importance of the site at Wilting. It holds many secrets, a few of which have been exposed to public scrutiny on these pages. Full investigation and the preservation of the site from the planners is not a matter which will wait. Even now new plans to build another road are under way by those who place no value on English cutural heritage and put house building before any historical interest. Hence the need to file this document, even though I personally would consider it premature, given the spectacular possibilities presented by proper archaeological survey prior to public scrutiny.