Harold Hadrada, King of England?

[AltoRegnant]

We all know that before the Normans, another foreigner landed on English shores and nearly stole the crown- Harold Hadrada of Norway. Unfortunately, in landing first, he had to deal with the English at their best, and was unable to take much beyond york.

But what if his and William's fortunes were reversed in 1066, and the Kingdom of Norway and the Kingdom of England were ruled by one and the same man? Would the union last, or would it be a mere footnote in an anglo-saxon british history? Would Scotland fall to the Ango-Norwegian Kingdoms, thus turning the North Sea into a Norwegian Lake?

And what of the Scandinavian homelands? With norway ruling england i doubt they'd have much to gain in the Kalmar Union, if they hadn't already conquered the others. Or would it instead be they who dominate the union of supposed equals?

And what of the great beast that was the British Empire? could Norway-England ever hope to match otl's Britannia?

 

[Tyler96]

Isn't it possible England and Norway split up on Harald's death? Presumably Magnus gets Norway and Olaf, who accompanied his father on the English campaign, gets England.

Tostig could be problematic long term, and the other Godwinsons might be capable of more prolonged resistance if they avoid OTLs wipeout (where Harold, Gyrth, and Leofwine all died at Hastings- if some of them survive, plus Harold's teenage sons...)

 

[jocay]

The benefit to Harold Hadrada becoming King of England is the continuation of the Anglo-Dane aristocracy's hold over Northumbria. England or at least Northumbria would be more connected to Scandinavia as opposed to the European continent. As long as Hadrada is alive, he might prefer to rule England from York/Jorvik as opposed to Winchester. Re: Tostig; I expect him to be unceremoniously killed off as soon as Harold solidifies control.

 

[StrikeEcho]

The benefit to Harold Hadrada becoming King of England is the continuation of the Anglo-Dane aristocracy's hold over Northumbria. England or at least Northumbria would be more connected to Scandinavia as opposed to the European continent. As long as Hadrada is alive, he might prefer to rule England from York/Jorvik as opposed to Winchester. Re: Tostig; I expect him to be unceremoniously killed off as soon as Harold solidifies control.

Or get 'killed' in battle against the Normans.

 

[President Benedict Arnold]

Harald Hadrada as king would be extremely interesting, but I don't know if it would cause the Normans to be completely shut out. There was a lot of ties between Normandy and England before William's invasion and they wouldn't just go away. I expect that a Norse-ruled England would be a little more divided, with the northeastern coast being very influenced by Scandinavia and the south being similarly influenced by France/Normandy.

It could cause some interesting cultural shifts, perhaps causing people in the South of England to resent people in the North of England for their viking-esque kings. This would probably cause the Southerners to define themselves more closely with French culture and noble houses would marry into the French families when possible. This would probably result in Southern English marrying Normans, as they would have more to benefit than people from other parts of France. These Englishmen would of course refuse to acknowledge the Normans' own Norse roots. This could split the kingdom, with a French-ish South and a Norse-ish North.

Long term depends on if the House of Hadrada can hold onto power. IOTL, they ruled in Norway until 1184. If they were able to survive that long as Kings of England and Norway, then I think their impact would be comparable to the Norman Invasion. Many native Anglo-Saxon lands and houses were handed over to Normans and the same sort of thing would take place under Harald Hadrada. Due to his personality, I could see him granting lands to adventurers and vikings and other such exciting people who would seek out Hadrada's court. That'd have a massive impact on England, the English language (expect it to be much more easily defined as Germanic, maybe even in the North Germanic language family).