Iury Castro De Araujo

Ms. Doris D Boyers

May 22, 2020
Bayeux Tapestry
Part I
Image 1-
Duke William performs the feudal commitment ceremony, sacrament Harold's loyalty to him.
Duke William is now sitting on his throne, and Harold, on his left, standing, takes his oath,
touching sacred relics kept in two rich boxes, with both hands. The embroidered scene shows
one of the parts of the Vassal contract. After taking his oath of allegiance to Duke William of
Normandy, Harold is free and then returns to the English kingdom, so he takes the boat at the
right. At the back of Duke William, the count was talking to the future vassal.
Image 2-
In the left scene, King Edward receives Harold. King Edward is on his throne, like the cedar in
his left hand, while the right points to Harold - a sign that they were talking. King Edward looked
very sick. In the following scene is the funeral of King Edward that is portrayed, people were
carrying the decorated coffin of the deceased king in a funeral procession. The funeral took place
at Westminster Cathedral, Abbey Church. While confined in bed, King Edward received his
chamberlain, right, upper scene, that was informing King Edward who could be his successor
Harold or Queen Edith.
Image 3-
In this scene a crown and an ax are offered to Harold, who accepts. Harold is then crowned King
of England. The new king is sitting on the throne, with the cedar in his right hand and the globe
in his left hand. He is surrounded by nobles on his right and Archbishop Stigand, on his left,
notice that the archbishop's name is embroidered above his head and next to the Archbishop
there is five people on his left that is applauding the coronation. In the right corner a man
informs Harold about something. The boat is going to Duke William to inform him about the
death of King Edward and the coronation of Harold.
Image 4&5-
Duke William orders the construction of ships and organizes a fleet to invade the island. He
points to the work of the loggers, who cut the trees with long axes, work on the preparation of
the logs and finally build the ships. The bishop's gesticulation suggests that he actively
participated in the conception of the attack, in addition to directly advising the king on those
dynastic quarrels. The boats are taken to the sea. Weapons are transported under the boats and
the wagons loaded with armaments are pulled. Duke William's men prepare for the invasion on
the island. After the boats are built, they were pushed and taken to the sea. A team of men that
was armed with swords carry food on their shoulders to the ships, one man carries a vat of drink,
another, armed with an ax, a bag. The armament like helmets, spears, and swords is carried in
chains and covered in carts drawn by men.
Image 6-
In his elegant black horse, Duke William leads his men to the boats. Armed with spears and
shields, they embark on the invasion. The boats approach Pevensey. The sea is choppy with
boats full of warriors and horses. Duke William, Mora, and Matilde, his wife, are on the boats.
The horses are removed from the ships. Already with their mail, the milites ride the houses out.
They go to a banquet to celebrate their arrival on the island. A bull is slaughtered for the banquet.
Two men roast meat, another man prepares the dishes.
Image 7-
The armed man on the horse is Wadard a disciple of Bishop Odo de Bayeux. The banquet was
served outdoors. Duke William is sitting with his nobles. There is a lot of drink and several types
of meats. Note the chicken on the skewer served on the left. His half brother, Bishop Odo de
Bayeux, in the center of the table, says a prayer of thanks. The employees bring food. In the
scene in the center, in a tent, Duke William talks to Odo on his right and Robert, Count de
Mortain, their names are embroidered above their heads.
Image 8&9-
In the center of the scene, there are warriors standing with their hands raised. One of them is hit
on the head, the other two seem to surrender. A fourth fights a knight with his ax, who strikes
him right in the shoulder. He has his shield full of arrows. It is the beginning of the end. In the
lower side scenes, more archers run and shoot their arrows at the enemy. King Harold's brothers.
In battle, English and French are defeated. On the left, still the scene of the death of King
Harold's brothers. Then the battle continues on men and horses to the ground.
Part II
The Bayeux Tapestry tells one of the most famous stories in British history. The Bayeux
Tapestry depicts the Battle of Hastings from 1066, one of the most important battles in European
history. In addition to providing an account of what happened at the battle, the tapestry also
served as a powerful propaganda tool for the beginning of William the Conqueror's reign as king
of England. The tapestry is of greater interest as a work of art. It is also important evidence for
the history of the Norman Conquest, especially for Harold’s relation to William before 1066, its
story of events seems straight and frank, and persuasive, despite some obscureness. The
tapestry’s contribution to the knowledge of everyday life about 1100 is of little importance,
except for military equipment and tactics.
It surely contains facts about the events that happened during that time. It is also likely to be
accurate about the feelings, actions, attitudes, and outlook of the medieval culture. Some other
things that are likely to be accurate are the dress of the time period, as well as procedures and
customs of some events. In my opinion it might be considered unreliable because it is impartial
to conclude though the artist was biased to one side of the story and did not directly retell all
events occurred. The artist may have wanted to overact the bravery, heroism, or courage of his
people. In this way he would also unfairly depict the opposing side. Both sides would be tilted to
fit the artist's perspective and not record the story accurately.
The tapestry reveals many details of life in the Middle Ages. There are motte and bailey castles,
great halls, ships, houses, churches, medieval banquets, coronation, all kinds of clothes, armor,
hunting with falcons and hunting dogs, and a lot of weapons. Medieval battles are an obvious
subject that is illustrated in the tapestry. For example, the shields depicted on the tapestry
indicate that personalized arms or devices were not yet commonly used, in spite of the fact that
William and Harold may have them. The tapestry shows two types of Norman archers, if you
notice one group wearing armor and the other apparently in rags, suggesting that professional
and recruited archers were used. The aspects of everyday life depicted include the common tunic
and hose wardrobe for men of all statuses, with long dresses for the few women portrayed.
National fashions are shown, such as the Normans' preference for very short hair, with shaved
necks and the Saxons for long hair and mustaches. Agricultural scenes show plowing, sowing
seeds. The main aspect was a tribute to William the Conqueror and his successful invasion of
England, which brought about the end of the Anglo-Saxon reign of England and started the claim
of the crown by Norman leaders.