Word: pevensey
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Dates: during 1940-1949
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...centre of the British Empire. Its military geography was generally dismissed with one word, invulnerable. Across its wind-whipped moat-the English Channel-no invader passed to establish a position on British soil in nearly 900 years, except with the consent of feuding Britons. Yet in this area, at Pevensey in 1066, William and his mailed Norman horsemen beached the open boats in which they had crossed from the estuary of the Somme and marched inland to conquer England. And thrice since then this coast has been seriously threatened by an invading army...
...Great Britain, he assembled 700 transports (open barges) at St. Valéry-sur-Somme, waited for a fair wind, embarked an Army of 5,000 men, including 2,000 mobile armored units (mounted knights and their squires), sailed overnight across the English Channel (70 miles) and landed at Pevensey next morning. Immediately he marched to the nearest big city (Hastings), which he started fortifying (building a castle). The British (under King Harold of Wessex), though forewarned, had been drawn away by another invader on the east coast (Harold of Norway) whom they repelled (Battle of Stamford Bridge). Returning hurriedly...
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