Leofwine Godwinson
Encyclopedia
Leofwine Godwinson was a younger brother of Harold II of England, the fifth son of Earl Godwin
.
When the Godwin family was exiled from England in 1051 he went with Harold to Ireland. He would have returned with the rest of the family the following year, but was not present at the death-bed of his father in April 1053.
Following the death of his father in April 1053, the Godwinsons managed to retain their hold on England. Harold inherited the Earldom of Wessex and became second in power only to the king. Leofwine was made Earl of Kent, Essex, Middlesex, Hertford, Surrey and probably Buckinghamshire some time between 1055 and 1057. Together with his brother Gyrth
's Earldoms of East Anglia, Cambridgeshire and Oxfordshire the Godwinsons now controlled the entire East England.
He was killed alongside his brothers Harold and Gyrth in the Battle of Hastings
.
Leofwine was portrayed by actor Sebastian Breaks in the two-part BBC
TV play Conquest (1966), part of the series Theatre 625
.
Godwin, Earl of Wessex
Godwin of Wessex , was one of the most powerful lords in England under the Danish king Cnut the Great and his successors. Cnut made him the first Earl of Wessex...
.
When the Godwin family was exiled from England in 1051 he went with Harold to Ireland. He would have returned with the rest of the family the following year, but was not present at the death-bed of his father in April 1053.
Following the death of his father in April 1053, the Godwinsons managed to retain their hold on England. Harold inherited the Earldom of Wessex and became second in power only to the king. Leofwine was made Earl of Kent, Essex, Middlesex, Hertford, Surrey and probably Buckinghamshire some time between 1055 and 1057. Together with his brother Gyrth
Gyrth Godwinson
Gyrth Godwinson was the fourth son of Earl Godwin, and thus a younger brother of Harold II of England. He went with his eldest brother Swegen into exile to Flanders in 1051, but unlike Swegen he was able to return with the rest of the clan the following year...
's Earldoms of East Anglia, Cambridgeshire and Oxfordshire the Godwinsons now controlled the entire East England.
He was killed alongside his brothers Harold and Gyrth in the Battle of Hastings
Battle of Hastings
The Battle of Hastings occurred on 14 October 1066 during the Norman conquest of England, between the Norman-French army of Duke William II of Normandy and the English army under King Harold II...
.
Leofwine was portrayed by actor Sebastian Breaks in the two-part BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
TV play Conquest (1966), part of the series Theatre 625
Theatre 625
Theatre 625 is a British television drama anthology series, produced by the BBC and transmitted on BBC2 from 1964 to 1968. It was one of the first regular programmes in the line-up of the channel, and the title referred to its production and transmission being in the higher-definition 625-line...
.