A View of the battlefield looking towards Senlac Hill and Battle Abbey.

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The battle took place 7 miles (11 km) north of Hastings at the present day town of Battle, between two hills - Caldbec Hill to the north and Telham Hill to the south. The area was heavily wooded, with a marsh nearby. The name traditionally given to the battle is unusual as  there were several settlements much closer to the battlefield than Hastings. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle called it the battle "at the hoary apple tree". Within 40 years, the battle was described by the Anglo-Norman chronicler Orderic Vitalis as "Senlac", a Norman-French adaptation of the Old English word "Sandlacu", which means "sandy water". This may have been the name of the stream that crosses the battlefield. The battle was already being referred to as "bellum Hasestingas" or "Battle of Hastings" by 1086, in the Domesday Book.

Source: Wikipedia