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The Last of the Saxons
(1910) United States of America
B&W : One reel / 1005 feet
Directed by Albert E. Smith
Cast: James Young [Harold, Duke of Wessex], Clara Kimball Young
The Vitagraph Company of America production; distributed by The Vitagraph Company of America. / Released 7 October 1910. / Standard 35mm spherical 1.33:1 format.
Drama: Historical.
Synopsis: [The Moving Picture World, 8 October 1910, page ?] By way of introduction: Harold, Duke of Wessex, second son of the powerful Earl of Godwine. He laid claim to the throne of England after the death of King Edward the Confessor in the year 1066 and succeeded to the kingdom. “William the Conqueror,” the son of the Duke of Normandy, came to England, defeated Harold at the Battle of Hastings, in which Harold was killed, and William took possession of England and was raised to the throne at Westminster on Christmas Day, 1066. This ornate and magnificent picture, “The Last of the Saxons,” has to do with the betrothal of Harold to Lady Edith, one of the court attachés. This occurred when he was the “Duke of Wessex.” After the death of King Edward and Harold’s selection as ruler of the kingdom, he was obliged to break troth with Edith in order to sustain his relations with Edwin and Mocar and stand in with his allies. Therefore, he married the Princess Aldyth, although he did not love her and always kept in communication with Edith, who was as much in love with him as he with her, as is evidenced at the gorgeous and elaborate marriage ceremony at Westminster, where Edith is seen mournfully witnessing the wedding of her rival to her love, the King. Then, again, when she bids him farewell, just before he starts for the Battle of Hastings, and finally when she searches among the dead after the fatal encounter with William, finds the body of Harold, and expires of a broken heart when she discovers it.
Reviews: [The Film Index, 10 September 1910, page ?] There were very many amusing and thrilling features connected with the directing and arranging of this picture. There was a large number of horses necessary to give the proper effect at the battle of Hastings and, while some of them were ancient enough, they were not accustomed to armored riders and emblazoned trappings. They had to be rehearsed and trained to do the charge and keep within the lines of the camera. The flying arrows from the Norman hordes put plenty of ginger into them, and they soon got a move on that looked enough like the real thing to keep the actors guessing as to just where they were going to land. Some of the riders had to be shot, or pretend to be; they had to fall from the horses, and they did it quite naturally, too naturally for some of them, as they afterwards remarked when they were lined up by the Vitagraph Ambulance Corps. For repairs. Harold, the King of England, took a tumble when he was pierced in the heart by an arrow from William the Conqueror’s Archers; and he was very glad to lay there until the charge of horsemen was out of the picture, and he didn’t open his eyes or move for fear of getting a kick in the “coco.” And he looked quite natural as a dead person is usually said to look by his admiring friends. There is one scene in particular in this picture which is as imposing as it is impressive; that is the cathedral scene where Harold marries Aldyth. The depth of the nave is tremendous, showing the entrance aisle clear back to the chancel; plainly showing the altar with bishops, priests and satellites participating in the marriage ceremony. The procession headed by the bishop starts from the chancel rail and comes forward down the long passage way presenting a most inspiring spectacle. There was an immense congregation employed in this cathedral scene; every available man, woman and child in the studio and neighborhood were called into service in addition to all the extras employed. Mr. A.E. Smith was directing the picture and lost no time in making knights, lords, dukes and barons out of every mother’s son of them, although Superintendent [John B.] French and Mr. McIntosh of the negative department insist he made monkeys out of them. Mr. [Rollin] Sturgeon of the manuscript department felt that he was a born baron, lacking only in curly locks and flowing robes. When he stepped from the costume room arrayed in these, the disguise was complete. “Auto John” tried to fasten his tunic around his waist and insisted upon wearing his collar and necktie. They all passed in the crowd, however, and were soon lost in the merry throng. // [The Moving Picture World, 22 October 1910, page ?] A spectacular production dealing with the episode in English history by which Harold, Duke of Wessex, came to the throne in 1066. Then came William the Conqueror, who defeated Harold at the Battle of Hastings, where Harold was slain, and William came to the throne on Christmas Day in 1066. The picture has to do with the love affairs of Harold and Lady Edith. The magnificent ceremonies connected with the betrothal are produced with care. Then comes the political necessity of marrying Princess Aldyth. But Harold and Lady Edith keep in communication. She is the one who bids him a mournful farewell just before he starts for the fatal battle, and she it is who searches for his body among the slain after the battle ends. Perhaps this is the most elaborate picture of the week. How accurately it may reproduce the scenes of which it treats, the writer cannot say. Yet it has all the appearance of accuracy and is produced with so much care that it seems safe to accept it as historically correct. Love stories are the same whether the principal characters be royalty or peasants; but the costuming and the staging afford opportunities to acquire knowledge of the life and customs of that time more graphically than would be possible by long reading. Here is where motion pictures perform a service which cannot be equaled.
Survival status: (unknown)
Current rights holder: Public domain [USA].
Listing updated: 7 August 2023.
References: Website-AFI.
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