After his victory over
Harold Godwinson at
Hastings,
William of Normandy appointed a certain
Copsi or Copsig, a supporter of the late Earl Tostig, who had been exiled with his master in 1065, as Earl of Bernicia in the spring of 1067. Copsi was dead within five weeks, killed by
Oswulf, grandson of Uchtred, who installed himself as Earl. Oswulf was killed in the autumn by bandits after less than six months as Earl. At this point, Gospatric, who had a plausible claim to the Earldom given the likelihood that he was related to Oswulf and Uchtred, offered King William a large amount of money to be given the Earldom of Bernicia. The King, who was in the process of raising heavy taxes, accepted. In early 1068, a series of uprisings in England, along with foreign invasion, faced King William with a dire threat. Gospatric is found among the leaders of the uprising, along with
Edgar Ætheling and
Edwin, Earl of Mercia and his brother
Morcar. This uprising soon collapsed, and William proceeded to dispossess many of the northern landowners and grant the lands to
Norman incomers. For Gospatric, this meant the loss of his earldom to
Robert Comine and exile in Scotland. King William's authority, apart from minor local troubles such as
Hereward the Wake and
Eadric the Wild, appeared to extend securely across England. Gospatric joined the invading army of
Danes,
Scots, and
Englishmen under
Edgar the Aetheling in the next year. Though the army was defeated, he afterwards was able, from his possession of
Bamburgh castle, to make terms with the Conqueror, who left him undisturbed until 1072. The widespread destruction in Northumbria known as the
Harrying of the North relates to this period. ==Exile==