The Story of the Bayeux Tapestry
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Political intrigue and treachery, heroism and brutal violence, victory and defeat – all this is depicted in the Bayeux Tapestry, an epic account of one of the pivotal episodes in English history embroidered on a strip of linen. Famously, it shows the stricken Anglo-Saxon king Harold dying on the battlefield of Hastings in 1066 amid a shower of arrows, as axes clash, spears fly and fallen warriors are trampled beneath charging hooves.
However, there is much more to this remarkable historical and artistic treasure, which tells its tale with an intensity and immediacy that speak to our modern world, almost 1,000 years after its creation. Many mysteries and questions still surround this unique embroidery and not all is as it might appear at first glance. Who made it, when, why, where and what for? David Musgrove and Michael Lewis set the events depicted in the context of the machinations on either side of the English Channel in the years leading up to the Norman Conquest, and tease out what the Tapestry tells us of the deeds of kings as well as aspects of everyday life in medieval Europe.
A complete and accessible up-to-date account, illustrated throughout in colour with new photography, this is the definitive guide to the Bayeux Tapestry and its legacy, exploring the rich narrative behind its stitches and the turbulent times in which it was created.
However, there is much more to this remarkable historical and artistic treasure, which tells its tale with an intensity and immediacy that speak to our modern world, almost 1,000 years after its creation. Many mysteries and questions still surround this unique embroidery and not all is as it might appear at first glance. Who made it, when, why, where and what for? David Musgrove and Michael Lewis set the events depicted in the context of the machinations on either side of the English Channel in the years leading up to the Norman Conquest, and tease out what the Tapestry tells us of the deeds of kings as well as aspects of everyday life in medieval Europe.
A complete and accessible up-to-date account, illustrated throughout in colour with new photography, this is the definitive guide to the Bayeux Tapestry and its legacy, exploring the rich narrative behind its stitches and the turbulent times in which it was created.
Extent: 256 pp
Format: Paperback
Illustrations: 22
Publication date: 2021-04-01
Size: 19.8 x 12.9 cm
ISBN: 9780500252420
Introduction 1. Putting the Conquest in Context 2. A Unique Embroidery 3. The Story Begins 4. Captive in France 5. At the Court of Duke William 6. The Brittany Campaign 7. A Sacred Oath 8. Harold Becomes King 9. William Builds an Army 10. The Lull Before the Storm 11. The Great Battle 12. The Bayeux Tapestry and Its Legacy
Press Reviews
Dan Snow
Michael Wood
Times Literary Supplement
About the Authors
David Musgrove is content director of the HistoryExtra.com website and podcast, plus its sister print magazines BBC History Magazine and BBC History Revealed. He is also the author of the bestselling 100 Places That Made Britain. Michael Lewis is Head of Portable Antiquities & Treasure at the British Museum. An expert on the Bayeux Tapestry, he is the author of The Real World of the Bayeux Tapestry. He is a member of the Bayeux Tapestry scientific committee that is advising Bayeux Museum on the reinterpretation and redisplay of the embroidery.
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