Tostig (tŏs`tĭg), d. 1066, earl of Northumbria; son of Earl Godwin of Wessex. He was banished with his father in 1051 and returned with him in their armed invasion of 1052. Made earl of Northumbria in 1055, Tostig jointly invaded (1063) Wales with his brother Harold (later King Harold Harold, 1022?–1066, king of England (1066). The son of Godwin , earl of Wessex, he belonged to the most powerful noble family of England in the reign of Edward the Confessor . Through Godwin's influence Harold was made earl of East Anglia .
..... Click the link for more information. of England). The Northumbrians revolted against Tostig's severe rule in 1065 and chose Morcar, brother of the earl of Mercia, to be their earl. Tostig fled to Flanders. The next year he raided the English coast, then joined the Norwegian king Harold III in defeating Morcar. Tostig and his ally were killed by Tostig's brother Harold at Stamford Bridge.

Tostig

(died Sept. 25, 1066, Stamford Bridge, Yorkshire, Eng.) Anglo-Saxon earl of Northumbria. He had strong ties with Norway and became earl of Northumbria in 1055; his severity in subduing the wild northern district stirred revolt in 1065. The rebels won the support of Tostig's brother Earl Harold (later Harold II) at Oxford, and Tostig went into exile. He gave his services to William I (the Conqueror) and harried the English coast, then joined Norway's king Harald III Sigurdsson in his invasion of England. Tostig was killed when his brother Harold defeated the invading army at Stamford Bridge.