Editing Tostig Godwinson (section)

== Earl of Northumbria ==

[[File:Kirkdale Sundial.jpg|right|thumb|400px|Drawing of the [[Kirkdale sundial]] in [[Kirkdale, North Yorkshire]], with Earl Tostig's name in the dedication ''IN TOSTI DAGVM EORL+'' ('in Earl Tostig's day', at bottom right)]]

In the 19th century, the antiquarian [[Edward Augustus Freeman]] posited a hypothesis claiming that [[Edward the Confessor]], King of England, was pursuing a policy of "[[Normans#England|Normanisation]]" of England and, by doing so, was reducing the influence of the [[House of Godwin]].<ref name=freeman125>
{{Cite book|last=Freeman|first=Edward Augustus
  |title =The history of the Norman conquest of England, its causes and its results
  |volume= II|publisher=Clarendon|location=London|year=1868
  |pages=125–129}}
</ref> In 1051, Earl Godwin's opposition to Edward's policies had brought England to the brink of civil war.<ref>Campbell, Miles W. "Earl Godwin of Wessex and Edward the Confessor's Promise of the throne to William of Normandy." ''Traditio'' 28 (1972): 141–158. {{JSTOR|27830940}}.</ref> Eventually, the Godwins' opposition convinced Edward to banish them in 1051.<ref name=freeman125 /><ref name=devries91>DeVries. ''The Norwegian Invasion of England in 1066''. pp. 91–104</ref> Freeman's explanation of the banishment has many critics,{{efn|name=devries91|For more discussion on this see DeVries. ''The Norwegian Invasion of England in 1066''. pp. 91–104}} as it does not explain fully the relationship between the Godwins and the king.{{efn|name=devries91}}

The banished Godwin family, including Gytha and Tostig, together with [[Sweyn Godwinson|Sweyn]] and [[Gyrth Godwinson|Gyrth]], sought refuge with his brother-in-law the [[Count of Flanders]]. They returned to England the following year with armed forces, gaining support and demanding that Edward restore Tostig's earldom. Three years later in 1055, Tostig became the [[Earl of Northumbria]] upon the death of Earl [[Siward, Earl of Northumbria|Siward]].<ref>
{{cite web
  |url= http://users.hunterlink.net.au/~mbemdm/chapter1.html
  |title=History of Ireleth and Askam-in-Furness
  |publisher=Bruderlin MacLean Publishing Services
  |author=MacLean, Mark
  |date=1999|access-date= 30 March 2016}}</ref>{{sfn|Chisholm|1911}} He was on intimate terms with his brother-in-law, Edward the Confessor, and in 1061 he [[English embassy to Rome (1061)|visited]] [[Pope Nicholas II]] at Rome in the company of [[Ealdred (archbishop of York)|Ealdred, archbishop of York]].{{sfn|Chisholm|1911}}

Tostig appears to have governed in [[Northumbria]] with some difficulty. He was never popular with the Northumbrian ruling class, a mix of Danish invaders and [[Anglo-Saxons|Anglo-Saxon]] survivors of the last Norse invasion. Tostig was said to have been heavy-handed with those who resisted his rule, including murdering several members of leading Northumbrian families. In late 1063 or early 1064, Tostig had Gamal son of Orm and Ulf son of Dolfin assassinated when Gamal visited him under safe conduct.<ref>Walker, Ian W. (1997) ''Harold: The Last Anglo-Saxon King'' (Alan Sutton Publishing, Ltd.) {{ISBN|0-7509-1388-6}}</ref> The ''Vita Edwardi'', otherwise sympathetic to Tostig, states that he had 'repressed [the Northumbrians] with the heavy yoke of his rule'.

He was frequently absent from the court of King Edward in the south, and, possibly, showed a lack of leadership against the raiding Scots. Their king was a personal friend of Tostig, and Tostig's unpopularity made it difficult to raise local levies to combat them. He resorted to using a strong force of Danish mercenaries ([[housecarl]]s) as his main force, an expensive and resented policy (the housecarls' leaders were later slaughtered by rebels).

In addition, it is likely that local biases played a part in his unpopularity. Tostig was from the south of England, a distinctly different culture from the north, which had not had a southern earl in generations. In 1063, still immersed in the confused local politics of Northumbria, his popularity apparently plummeted. Many of the inhabitants of Northumbria were [[Danes]], who had enjoyed lesser taxation than in other parts of England. Yet, the wars in [[Wales]], of which Tostig's constituents were principal beneficiaries, needed to be paid for. Tostig had been a major commander in these wars attacking in the north while his brother [[Harold Godwinson]] marched up from the south.