At this point in a normal year, Natasha Williams would be planning her battle strategy. Being softly spoken and quick to laugh, she doesn’t seem the fighting type – but managing the logistics of the annual re-enactment of the Battle of Hastings is all part and parcel of her role overseeing English Heritage’s Sussex sites. One is Battle Abbey, the location of the 1066 clash between Harold Godwinson and William the Conqueror. The other is Pevensey Castle, most famous for being the landing place of William’s army.
After studying ancient history and archaeology at Exeter University, Natasha took a job at Battle Abbey as a part-time seasonal steward, reasoning that it would be a good stopgap “before I found my calling”. As it turned out, she’d already found it.
“I just fell in love with the site at Battle,” she says, reflecting on her decade with English Heritage. “Everyone knows 1066 and has a vague idea of what happened here. I love the discussion of different theories as to what happened at the battle. But there’s a lot more to the site than 1066. That’s what brings visitors to the site but hopefully they leave realising that there’s another 950-odd years of history that happened here.”
This story is from the October 2020 edition of Sussex Life.
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This story is from the October 2020 edition of Sussex Life.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
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