4. The Body Of King Harold II May Have Been Burned... But Nobody Is Quite Sure
Harold Godwinson - who only reigned between January 5 and October 14, 1066, before William the Conqueror's Norman army infamously killed him at the Battle of Hastings - has the ignominy of being an English King who no-one is actually quite sure what happened to his body. Legend has it that he was killed by an arrow in the eye - although this remains disputed - but it is believed his body was also trampled on by horses on the battlefield, leaving it so mangled only his wife Edith Swannesha could identify him. Some sources then say Harold's mother tried to buy the body but William I refused, and that the newly-crowned king then had it buried in secret. Others, however, claim that the body was taken to Waltham Abbey near Epping Forest and burned, although this have never been proven. Strangely enough, due to the unknown whereabouts of the body, legends cropped up for years to come that King Harold II of England did not actually die at Hastings but instead fled and became a hermit in either Chester or Canterbury. Seems unlikely, somehow...
NUFC editor for WhatCulture.com/NUFC. History graduate (University of Edinburgh) and NCTJ-trained journalist. I love sports, hopelessly following Newcastle United and Newcastle Falcons. My pastimes include watching and attending sports matches religiously, reading spy books and sampling ales.