What is the harring of the north?

Answer 1

The Harrying (or Harrowing) of the Northwas a series of campaigns waged by William the Conqueror in the winter of 1069-1070 to subjugate northern England.

In the autumn of 1069 Sweyn II of Denmark had invaded England, in support of the forces of Edgar the Atheling. Edgar was the last remaining member of the House of Wessex with a claim to the throne of England. The Danes with their English allies were able to break the Norman hold on the north. William's response was to systematically devastate the countryside west and north of York, with the intention of isolating and destroying his enemies in the city of York. Instead, William made peace with the invading Danes and paid them off to return home. With the Danes gone, William continued his 'harrying' through the winter as far north as the river Tees.

It seems that the main objective of the harrying was to lay waste the northern shires and eliminate the possibility of further revolts. To this end William's army carried out a campaign of general destruction of homes, stock and crops as well as the means of food production. Men, women and children were slaughtered and many thousands are said to have died due to the famine that followed. According to the Domesday Book large areas of Yorkshire and other northern counties were still lying in waste in 1086. Although it is evident that William's army was responsible for a large portion of the death and destruction in the north, some historians have suggested that the damage inflicted by William's forces may not have been as extensive as