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NEW Images of flood on the day of the battle 12 panoramas of the battle site YouTube videos
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Summary of Evidence for the site of the Battle of Fulford 20 September 1066No single piece of evidence is likely to be conclusive. Faced with this challenge, we devised a broad project. This is what we set out to do.Methodology outlined and the report on a decade of work
2. Landscape studies allow much interpretation relevant to the battle (Model)
3. Finds Work began in 2001. Over 5000 metal items were recovered during the monthly fieldworking during 03/04. This has provided much evidence of how the land has been used over the years. Half of the material has been examined and the most significant find was evidence of some short-term metal working. This can be interpreted as an indication that there was a lot of short-term glut of metal in the area. It was hoped that this can be further investigated but the developers have repeatedly refused access so much more work remains to be done. But the sample recovered during our work have yielded some exceptional results. The metal from the areas of the identified metal-working areas have been subjected to XRF examination. The overall pattern might also prove significant but there is no methodology available yet. But we are working to develop such a model in case the distribution indicates hotspots of fragmentary metal. And, so far, it looks promising. · A search of much of the site has not yet been permitted. There have been no existing finds to tie this area to the battle. Battlefields of this era have not yielded any significant finds. The evidence of metal working we have uncovered might explain this. There have been two digs - these have produces some impressive finds and also given us the vital dating evidence for all the recycling work 3. Geology The subsurface structure is revealing. It explains why the Beck breaks through to the river at that point. The geology does not reveal any other drainage ditches in the vicinity of Fulford or indeed between Fulford and York. No drain could have existed for at least a kilometre north or south of the proposed site. Core samples have plotted the line of the Beck which can be traced back to the retreat of the last ice sheet. The alignment of the paleo-channel explains the current route that the Beck takes towards the river. There is environmental evidence that the Ings existed in 1066. The geology therefore precludes much of the area as suitable for fighting. A geophysics plot was uncovered in the EH archive which confirmed the location of the hearths. 4. Topography and Maps
5. Military
No other site in the area has suggested itself to the experienced military eye. In military terms, it is easy to envisage the course of the battle given in the narratives including the encirclement of part of the army if the flank on the riverbank was lost. Most of the Ings, with the exception of the area of the suggested battle site is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) managed by English Nature. Consultation with them did not yield the hoped for soil profiles which might allow the age and history of the area adjacent to the river to be plotted. English Nature is concerned with the surface. But in their view, this environment has been stable for at least 1000 years with the drier parts of the Ings providing summer grazing for sheep. A collection of the various strands of evidence about the number of troops taking part in the battle. 8. The Tidal Ouse & York as a tidal port Colin Briden has kindly let us reproduce his work on the tide in the Ouse. The ebb and flow of the river is relevant to any interpretation of the battle.
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Related sites Facebook Twitter (@ helpsavefulford) Visiting Fulford Map YorkThere is a site devoted to saving the battlesite: The site has the story of the process that has allowed the site to be designated an access road to a Green Belt, floodplain housing estate.And another website for the Fulford Tapestry that tells the story of the September 1066: This tells the story embroidered into the panels.The author of the content is Chas Jones - fulfordthing@gmail.com last updated February 2015
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