Editing Norman Conquest (section)

===Revolts of 1069===
{{Main|Harrying of the North}}
[[File:Baile Hill, York.JPG|The remains of [[Baile Hill]], the second [[motte-and-bailey castle]] built by [[William the Conqueror]] in York, on the west bank of the [[River Ouse (Yorkshire)|River Ouse]]|thumb|upright=1.5|left]]

Early in 1069 the newly installed Norman Earl of Northumbria, [[Robert de Comines]], and several hundred soldiers accompanying him were massacred at Durham. The Northumbrian rebellion was joined by Edgar, Gospatric, [[Siward Barn]] and other rebels who had taken refuge in Scotland. The castellan of York, Robert fitzRichard, was defeated and killed, and the rebels besieged the Norman castle at York. William hurried north with an army, defeated the rebels outside York and pursued them into the city, massacring the inhabitants and bringing the revolt to an end.<ref name=Williams27>Williams ''English and the Norman Conquest'' pp. 27–34</ref> He built a second castle at York, strengthened Norman forces in Northumbria and then returned south. A subsequent local uprising was crushed by the garrison of York.<ref name=Williams27/> Harold's sons launched a second raid from Ireland and were defeated at the [[Battle of Northam]] in Devon by Norman forces under Count [[Brian of Brittany|Brian]], a son of [[Odo, Count of Penthièvre|Eudes, Count of Penthièvre]].<ref name=Williams35>Williams ''English and the Norman Conquest'' p. 35</ref> In August or September 1069 a large fleet sent by [[Sweyn II of Denmark]] arrived off the coast of England, sparking a new wave of rebellions across the country. After abortive raids in the south, the Danes joined forces with a new Northumbrian uprising, which was also joined by Edgar, Gospatric and the other exiles from Scotland as well as Waltheof. The combined Danish and English forces defeated the Norman garrison at York, seized the castles and took control of Northumbria, although a raid into Lincolnshire led by Edgar was defeated by the Norman garrison of [[Lincoln, England|Lincoln]].<ref name=Williams35a>Williams ''English and the Norman Conquest'' pp. 35–41</ref>

At the same time resistance flared up again in western Mercia, where the forces of [[Eadric the Wild]], together with his Welsh allies and rebel forces from [[Cheshire]] and Shropshire, attacked the castle at [[Shrewsbury]]. In the southwest, rebels from Devon and Cornwall attacked the Norman garrison at Exeter but were repulsed by the defenders and scattered by a Norman relief force under Count Brian. Rebels from [[Dorset]], Somerset and neighbouring areas besieged [[Montacute Castle]] but were defeated by a Norman army gathered from London, [[Winchester]] and [[Salisbury]] under [[Geoffrey de Montbray|Geoffrey of Coutances]].<ref name=Williams35a/> Meanwhile, William attacked the Danes who had moored for the winter south of the Humber in Lincolnshire and drove them back to the north bank. Leaving [[Robert, Count of Mortain|Robert of Mortain]] in charge of Lincolnshire, he turned west and defeated the Mercian rebels in battle at [[Stafford]]. When the Danes attempted to return to Lincolnshire, the Norman forces drove them back across the Humber. William advanced into Northumbria, defeating an attempt to block his crossing of the swollen [[River Aire]] at [[Pontefract]]. The Danes fled at his approach, and he occupied York. He bought off the Danes, who agreed to leave England in the spring, and during the winter of 1069–70 his forces systematically devastated Northumbria in the [[Harrying of the North]], subduing all resistance.<ref name=Williams35a/> As a symbol of his renewed authority over the north, William ceremonially wore his crown at York on Christmas Day 1069.<ref name=Huscroft142/>

In early 1070, having secured the submission of Waltheof and Gospatric, and driven Edgar and his remaining supporters back to Scotland, William returned to Mercia, where he based himself at Chester and crushed all remaining resistance in the area before returning to the south.<ref name=Williams35a/> [[Papal legate]]s arrived and at Easter re-crowned William, which would have symbolically reasserted his right to the kingdom. William also oversaw a purge of prelates from the Church, most notably Stigand, who was deposed from Canterbury. The papal legates also imposed [[penance]]s on William and those of his supporters who had taken part in Hastings and the subsequent campaigns.<ref name=Huscroft145>Huscroft ''Norman Conquest'' pp. 145–146</ref> The [[see of York]] had become vacant following the death of Ealdred in September 1069. Both sees were filled by men loyal to William: [[Lanfranc]], abbot of William's foundation at [[Abbey of Saint-Étienne, Caen|Caen]], received Canterbury while [[Thomas of Bayeux]], one of William's chaplains, was installed at York. Some other bishoprics and abbeys received new bishops and abbots, and William confiscated some of the wealth of the English monasteries which had served as repositories for the assets of the native nobles.<ref name=Bennett56>Bennett ''Campaigns of the Norman Conquest'' p. 56</ref>