Before William could sail, the king of Norway invaded northern England.
King Harold hurried north and defeated the Norwegian invaders at Stamford Bridge.
William landed before Harold could return to defend the coast. The Normans destroyed the Anglo-Saxon army and killed Harold at the Battle of Hastings.
On Christmas Day, 1066, William was crowned king. William then suppressed local rebellions. He took lands from those who resisted him, and gave them to his followers to hold in return for their military service to him.
To emphasize the legitimacy of his crown, William confirmed the laws of Edward the Confessor and retained all the powers of the Anglo-Saxon monarchy. He levied Danegeld, the only national tax on landed property in all of Europe at that time.
At Salisbury in 1086, he made all the landholders, even the vassals of his barons, swear allegiance directly to him as king.
William was devout, firm in purpose, and unchanging in gaining his ends. His greatest monument is Domesday Book, an exhaustive survey of the land, the principal landholders, the farm population, and the material and financial resources of his realm.