In the quiet village of Bosham, nestled along the coast of West Sussex, a modern-day house hides a secret that stretches back nearly a millennium. Beneath its floors and gardens lie the remnants of a palace that once belonged to Harold Godwinson, the last Anglo-Saxon king of England. Archaeologists now believe they have pinpointed the exact location of this royal residence, thanks to an unexpected clue: an 11th-century toilet.
The surprising discovery sheds new light on the life of King Harold, whose reign ended tragically at the Battle of Hastings in 1066. The findings also offer a rare glimpse into the opulent world of England’s pre-Norman aristocracy, a class largely erased by the Norman conquest.
A Royal Residence Revealed
The story begins with the Bayeux Tapestry, the famed 70-meter-long embroidery that chronicles the Norman Conquest. Bosham appears twice in the tapestry: first as the site of a lavish feast in Harold’s hall, and later as the place where he sets sail for Normandy. For centuries, historians speculated that Harold’s residence lay somewhere in the village, but its exact location remained a mystery.
Now, a team of archaeologists from Newcastle University and the University of Exeter has solved the puzzle. By re-examining evidence from a 2006 excavation and conducting new surveys, they identified two medieval buildings on the site: one integrated into the current house and another in the garden. The key to unlocking the site’s royal past, however, was a latrine.
“A latrine was the killer clue to find what was, essentially, the palace of King Harold,” said Dr. Duncan Wright, a medieval archaeologist at Newcastle University and lead author of the study.. “That was surprising, but an en-suite bathroom would have been found only among the highest elites.”
A Window into Anglo-Saxon Opulence
In the 10th and 11th centuries, high-status homes in England began to incorporate private toilets—a luxury that signaled wealth and power. The discovery of a latrine within a large timber building suggested that the site was no ordinary home. Combined with other evidence, including the remains of a private port, a water mill, and a church, the team concluded that this was Harold’s power center, the very hall depicted in the Bayeux Tapestry.
Harold’s estate was more than just a residence; it was a symbol of his family’s wealth and influence. The complex included a banqueting hall, a private chamber with an en-suite latrine, and a church that may have been taken over from a larger monastery.
The estate also featured a water mill, which ordinary villagers likely paid to use, and a sundial at the church—a symbol of the aristocracy’s control over time itself. These details paint a picture of a society marked by “conspicuous consumption,” where the elite flaunted their wealth through grand buildings and lavish feasts.
A Legacy Preserved in Stitch and Stone
The Bayeux Tapestry immortalizes Harold’s final years, from his feast at Bosham to his death at Hastings.
Harold Godwinson’s reign as the last Anglo-Saxon king of England was as brief as it was dramatic. Crowned in January 1066, he faced immediate threats to his rule, most notably from William, Duke of Normandy, who claimed the English throne had been promised to him. By October of that same year, Harold’s life—and his kingdom—would come to a brutal end on the battlefield near Hastings. The clash, immortalized in the Bayeux Tapestry, saw Harold’s forces, weary from a recent victory over the Norwegian king Harald Hardrada at Stamford Bridge, confront William’s Norman army. The battle was fierce and chaotic, with Harold’s shield wall initially holding strong. But as the day wore on, the Normans feigned retreats, luring the English into breaking formation. It was in this chaos that Harold fell, famously struck by an arrow to the eye, according to the tapestry, though some accounts suggest he was cut down by Norman knights.
William’s victory at Hastings marked the end of Anglo-Saxon rule and the beginning of Norman dominance in England. Harold’s body, mutilated and unrecognizable, was reportedly buried near the battlefield, though legends persist that he was secretly laid to rest at Waltham Abbey, a church he had patronized. The Norman Conquest reshaped England’s landscape, culture, and power structures, as William redistributed land to his followers and built castles sa. For Harold, the man who had feasted in his hall at Bosham just months earlier, the conquest erased not only his life but much of the physical legacy of his rule.
The discovery of Harold’s residence adds a new layer to this story. It connects the tapestry’s vivid imagery to a real place, grounding the legend in the soil of West Sussex.
“The Norman Conquest saw a new ruling class supplant an English aristocracy that has left little in the way of physical remains, which makes the discovery at Bosham hugely significant — we have found an Anglo-Saxon show-home,” said Professor Oliver Creighton of the University of Exeter, and Co-Investigator of the project.
The findings appeared in The Antiquaries Journal.
