Pope's claim to transfer the sovereignty of England from Harold to William. Moreover, according to Wace, William formally adopted the consecrated gonfanon as his own before the battle: Li Dus apela un servant Son gonfanon fist traire avant Ke li Pape li enveia, E cil le trait, cil le despleia: Li Dus le prist, suz le dreça Raol de Conches apela Portez dist-il mon gonfanon The Duke called a servant Caused his gonfanon to be brought forward Which the Pope sent him And the man brought it, he unfolded it The Duke took it, raised it erect Called to him Raol de Conches Bear, said he, my gonfanon. _Roman de Rou_, V, 12713-9. Thus it appears that William's original gonfanon was not borne in the battle, but was replaced by the consecrated flag, which would thereby become the rallying point for the army and the special sign of the Duke's location in the field. Raol, who was the hereditary gonfanoner of the Duke of Normandy, asked permission to decline the honour of bearing the consecrated flag on the ground that he wished to take part in the fighting, as did Gautier Giffard, to whom it was subsequently offered, and it was finally handed to Toustain. Before we deal with the remaining flags we must first examine the square object shown at the masthead of William's ship the 'Mora.' This has been commonly supposed to be the "consecrated banner" in question, but, as pointed out by Freeman[39], it is really a great lantern. The Norman army embarked at St Valery in the estuary of the Somme late in the afternoon of the 27th Sept., and before William had got on board the 'Mora' the sun had set. As he did not wish the fleet to make the English coast before daybreak, he gave orders that on reaching the open sea the ships were to anchor near him until he gave a signal by lighting the lantern at the masthead and sounding the trumpet, when they were to follow him across[40]. The object above the lantern, which resembles a cross, may be intended to represent the weather-vane spoken of by Wace: Une lanterne fist le Dus Metre en sa nef el mast de sus Ke les altres nès le veissent Et empres li lor cors tenissent Une wire-wire dorée Out de cuivre en somet levée. The Duke caused a lantern To be placed in his ship at the masthead So that the other ships might see it And hold their course near him. A gilded weather-vane Of copper it had raised on top. _Roman de Rou_, V, 11592-7.