Garrisoned in the city of London was William's most trusted Fitz. Osborne led an army of 3,000, including nearly 300 Norman knights, more than 700 Norman professional soldiers, and 2,000 local militias.

If it weren't for the Godwins to attack the city of London, Fitz. Osborne's 3,000 troops were enough to deal with most contingencies, but in the face of the menacing Godwin, Fitz. Osborne really didn't have the confidence to hold on.

He knew how many pounds and taels he had, and among the many Norman noble generals, he was a mediocre man, and his ability was not up to the limit, but with the trust he had gained from serving William for more than ten years, he was always able to hold important positions, such as the commander of the cavalry of his partner, the commander of the Guards, and the commander of the Third Legion.

Fitz. Osborne is like a panacea, he knows a little bit of everything, and his military ability is not bad but not outstanding, but he is not tenacious or confident, if he is generally fine, but if he is under great pressure, he is likely to be crushed.

William, who is far away in Wessex, knows his character very well, and his mediocre achievements are his best commentary, and he is responsible for defending London City against the attack of the Godwin family's army, and it is already a good result to be able to hold on to London City without losing it.

William, who knew this very well, hastened the gathering of his army, and he had to rush to the city of London to help, otherwise King Edward would be taken captive by the Godwins, and William's honor guard of honor to rule the Kingdom of England would be lost, which he would not allow.

"Lord Richard, how many troops of our army have been assembled?" William asked with some eagerness before the Earl of Richard, who was beside him.

"Back to Your Majesty, the 8,000 soldiers of your Guards Legion have long been assembled and ready to standby, but it will take a lot of time to gather the Norman knights scattered in the Wessex counties, so far there are only more than 2,200 Norman knights who have come to report in the barracks, and 3,000 civilian troops, a total of more than 13,200 troops." The Count of Richard said it all.

"There is no need to wait any longer, we will lead these thirteen thousand men to the city of London first, and the rest of the Norman knights who have not yet assembled in place will order them to hold on to the castle territory to prevent any nobles from the Godwin family from jumping out and causing trouble.

It is important to note that our Norman rule in the counties of Wessex is not yet secure, and that there are many Anglo-Saxon nobles who are hostile to us, and now that the Godwins have returned, these rebels will not let this rebel go. William shook his head and waved his hand in decline, not forgetting to admonish.

"As you command, Your Majesty," agreed the Earl of Richard, agreed:

"Last time we wiped out the main force of the Godwin family in Hastings, the troops attacking the city of London this time are certainly not as elite as the bounty, they are mixed and numerous, and the troops at our disposal are enough to destroy the other side.

Your Majesty, it is better to leave the mission of supporting the city of London to me, and I only need to lead part of the Guards and all the knights and civilians to expel the army of the Godwin family. ”

"Earl Richard, the purpose of my expedition this time is to completely eliminate the hidden danger of the Godwin family, if you only lead less than 10,000 troops to support the city of London, you will not be able to achieve the goal I want to achieve." William shook his head slightly and explained:

"Count Richard, time waits for no one, let's gather our troops and set off!"

"Yes, Your Majesty!" The Count of Richard was persuaded by William and no longer insisted on his opinion, and immediately carried out William's orders.

......

Outside London, the Godwin's army is crossing the Thames in a majestic manner, and they are less than ten kilometers away from the city, and it only takes an hour to reach the outside of London and launch a siege.

This earl. The army raised by the Duke of Godwin was 10,000 men, including 2,000 troops directly under the Godwin family, 1,000 troops of noble vassals and vassals of the Godwins, 1,000 troops and 120 transports provided by his in-laws, Baldwin V, Duke of Flanders, and most of the remaining troops were Swain. Godwinson and Tostig. Viking adventurers and mercenaries recruited by Godwinson from Ireland and the Norsgaeles, as well as troops provided by the nobles there.

Among them, the Vikings of Ireland accounted for more than half of the number of these Viking adventurers and mercenaries.

Ireland and Wales had already been conquered by William and his Normans for two years, and it was unlikely that the Godwins would have recruited so many from Ireland.

However, as the Normans were busy suppressing the rebellions on the island of Ireland, the Earl of Rodrigo, who was stationed on the island, had no time to care about the Vikings living on the eastern side of Ireland.

These Viking settlements have always been disobedient to discipline and rely on their own strong force to do whatever they want in their respective settlements, and the Normans did not want to provoke these Vikings at this time because they wanted to suppress the rebellion of the Irish, so William adopted a policy of appeasement towards the Vikings, and in the Danish legal district, as long as these Vikings did not provoke right and wrong, he ignored them.

Now was the time for William to suffer, and it was because William did not control the Vikings on the island of Ireland that the Godwins were able to recruit a large number of Vikings to fight on the island of Ireland.

When this news reached William, he had to reflect on whether the governance measures he had taken on the island of Ireland were reasonable and needed to be changed. Perhaps after this war, the political situation on the island of Ireland will change dramatically.

This time, the Godwin family will lead the army mainly to Earl. The second son of the Godwin family, Swain. Godwinson and the late Harold. Godwinson's younger brother, who was reused by his father for his elite Viking warriors he had requested from the Norsgaelis, was appointed commander of the army.

Tostig's mother was the daughter of the Danish chieftain Tolgill Sproclin, and it was through this connection that he was able to recruit enough troops from the Vikings and Nosgaelis to request a large number of elite reinforcements.

At the same time, Tostig's wife, Judith, was the sister of Baldwin V, the current Duke of Flanders, and the child of Baldwin IV, the former Duke of Flanders.

If it weren't for the fact that the Duke of Flanders had been cut off most of his territory in the last war with William, otherwise, with his hatred for William, even if he added to William's blockage, he would not have supported only a small number of 1,000 troops.