HOUSES WITH A HISTORY 
BATTLE ABBEY 
By P. H. Ditchfield, M. A., F. S. A. 
A MONG the historic homes of England, 
^ * the interest of none ranks higher than 
this ancient Abbey of Battle, founded by 
William the Conqueror in order to commem¬ 
orate the crowning victory of the Field of 
Senlac, and in expiation of his vow. “I make 
a vow,” he said, as he donned his armour on 
the morn of that day fatal to the English, 
“that upon this place of battle I will found a 
suitable Monastery for the salvation of you 
all, and especially of those who fall, and this 
I will do in honour of God and His saints, to 
the end that the servants of God may be 
succoured, that even as I shall be enabled to 
acquire for myself a propitious asylum, so 
it may be freely offered to all my followers.” 
The Abbey of Battle represents the fulfil¬ 
ment of that vow, a memorial of one of the 
fiercest fights ever fought on English soil, 
and one fraught with the most far-reaching 
destinies for the English people. 
Students of Professor Freeman’s Norman 
Conquest need not be reminded of the details 
of that portentous battle, how victory wavered 
in the balance, how bravely the English 
fought for their homes and country against 
the on-rushing Norman host. In the still¬ 
ness of a summer eve we seem to hear again 
the clash of arms and the echoing Norman 
battle-cry, Dieu aide , and the answering 
English shout, “Out, out! Holy Cross! God 
Almighty!” We seem to see in the hazy 
sunlight the gleam of the conical helmets of 
the Norman warriors, their kite-shaped 
shields, and spears and swords, as they 
marshal their ranks to charge the English 
armed with their clubs and heavy battle- 
axes. Taillefer, the Norman troubadour, 
chanting the song of Roland, begins the fight, 
and is the first to fall. Hundreds of the in¬ 
vaders perish miserably in the Malfosse, the 
stream that flows beneath the ridge extending 
from Mount Street to Caldbec Hill. A panic 
seizes the invading hosts, they turn to fly. 
TELHAM HILL AND THE BATTLE FIELD 
