The Story: Scene 3

Interpreting The Tapestry: Scene by Scene

Scene 3



Harold's ship leaves Bosham after he and his companions have feasted and rested. The here shows Harold and his men leaving his manor and wading into the sea to the prepared ship. Harold his carrying his dog and a hawk as does the fellow next to him. They are either gifts for the Duke of Normandy or he brings them because he is eager to hunt during the journey.

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Next we see Harold's boat sailing out with around 14 men aboard. these were obviously Harold's handpicked men, his bodyguard, the well-trained huscarles. They are obvioulsy not expecting trouble for they bear no armour or arms. It appears that there may have been another boat load of men with him, for the boat in front is very different from the boat behind, although this is pretty consistent with theTapestry's habit of changing the style and colour of the same image. However there is also a boat that carries Harold and his men to the shore at Ponthieu that appears not to have a sail so he may have brought more than one boat with him.

According to the Norman sources, as we know, Edward has sent Harold on a journey to Normandy, to meet with Edward's second cousin, William, Duke of that land. Harold's mission was allegedly to confirm that the English crown would belong to the Duke upon the King of England's death.

Eventually they reach Ponthieu, the tapestry gives no indication that they have been blown of course, however if Normandy was there destination then perhaps they have. Sailing in the 11thc relied on engaging a sail with the wind and it was not uncommon for boats to get blown off course, though Harold was an experienced sailor having commanded Edward's Royal fleet in his youth. Interestingly, the borders of the Bayeux Tapestry are said to be a guide for the main piece but there doesn't seem to be any relevance in the imagery until we see the men with swords, indicating that as Harold and his men were alighting their ship, a fight ensued with Guy of Ponthieu's men on the shore.

William de Jumièges was a contempory chronicler and man of the Duke's. He stated that Harold landed in Ponthieu and was taken prisoner by Count Guy. The Bayeux Tapestry appears to reflect this and Harold is seen being manhandled as a man on a horse gives orders.

Ponthieu is a state to the north of Normandy. It was never part of the land that was handed over to the founders of the duchy and they are at this time, very proud of the fact that they successfully resisted any attempt to make them such. Their many songs and poems pay testimony to their wars with the Pagan invaders, then the religion of the ancestors of the Christian Normans. Guy of Ponthieu, or Wido, as he is referred to on the Bayeux Tapestry, had succeeded his brother Enguerrand in 1053 as count. Enguerrand had been married to Adelaide, William of Normandy's sister but around 1050, the marriage was anulled on the grounds of consanguinity. Another alliance had been forged between William of Talou, who was half uncle to William, and Enguerrand's sister. William of Talou challenged his nephew's right to the dukedom but the younger William had the backing of his great uncle Robert, powerful Archbishop of Rouen. As he was a brother-by-marriage to the Ponthieu brothers, they backed him in his rebellion. Of course this did not endear the brothers to William in the 1050s. It is interesting to note here as an aside, that the earliest surviving account of the Battle of Hastings was written by the brothers' uncle, Bishop Guy de Amiens. In 1053, William of Talou built the Castle of Arques and holed himself up there whilst William of Normandy sent an army to lay seige to it, allowing him and the rest of his army to be able to deal with other problems elsewhere on his borders, such as the French King. His loyal brother-in-law, Enguerrand was killed coming to the aid of Talou. Henry, the French king withdrew and William of Talou surrendered Arques and was sent into exile. This is when Guy took over as comites in Ponthieu.
In 1054, Henry decides to march into Normandy to bring his errant vassal to heel. His brother leads another army that contains Guy and his younger brother Waleran who is killed and Guy captured when they are ambushed.Guy spends two years imprisoned in Normandy whilst his uncle, the Bishop of Amiens sees to the running of his county. King Henry I of France was again defeated for the last time.
In 1056, Guy is released. William has been merciful, however, Guy is now his vassal and would have sworn an oath of allegiance to his new master. So why did Guy de Ponthieu take Harold prisoner when the Englishman, probably washed off course, lands on his beachhead;  especially when he knew what it was like to be held against his will.
According to a custom dating back to the 9thc, the counts of Ponthieu were able to ransom any persons, ships or property that landed upon their shore. The two men would have already met in 1056 at St Omer when they both bore witness on a charter for Eustace of Boulogne. Harold was a well travelled man who was thought to have been visiting Europe at that time on his way to meet with the nephew of King Edward, known as Edward the Exile, whom he may have been charged with bringing back to England. It is of course not known whether or not the men had discourse with one another. We can speculate that perhaps they did not like each other, or Guy did not like Harold, but most people spoke well of Harold. He was amiable, witty, intelligent, well read and could speak many languages. He may have been very charming to the women and no doubt many women would have admired these qualities. It might have had nothing to do with whether or not Guy disliked Harold; he was money as far as the greedy Count was concerned and whether or not he liked him was by the by. 

By 1064 (we cannot be sure of the exact date but most historians agree it was in this year) when Harold arrived on Ponthieu's shore, Guy might well have been an embittered man by this time. He had spent two years in a Norman dungeon, was humiliated and taught a harsh lesson by the Duke; his brothers had been killed in wars with Normandy and his own county reduced to a client-state of William's. Now here comes along a nice treasure for him, the wealthy Earl of Wessex. Many may have heard that Harold Godwinson was the power behind King Edward's throne. Next to the King he was the richest man in the land.And likely much richer than Guy de Ponthieu. Harold had land holdings all over England. His wife, Eadgyth Swanneck also had lands a plenty. Guy was well known for gaining funds through seizing shipments that came to his lands. Now here was the biggest prize of all.

References

Bates D (2004) William the Conqueror, The History Press.

Barlow F (2003) The Godwins: The Rise and Fall of a Noble Dynasty (The Medieval World), Longman.

Bridgeford A (2006) 1066: The Hidden History in the Bayeux Tapestry, Walker & Co.

 

A Tale of a King, an Archbishop and an Earl: Part One

The Story: Scene 2

Interpreting The Tapestry: Scene by Scene

Scene 2

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And so Harold and his men arrive at Bosham. As previously discussed in my first post examining the BT scene by scene, Harold is off to Normandy to pay the Duke a visit and discuss terms for the release of his kin, however if we are looking at it from the Norman's point of view, Harold was on a misssion, sent by King Edward, to confirm his succession to the English crown upon Edward's death. Edward had been playing fools advocate for years it would seem, dangling the crown in front of various contenders. At the time of Harold's trip to Normandy, the Earl was at the height of his power, a man in his early forties, well experienced in diplomacy and administration as well as campaigning against the Welsh. He had recently put an end to King Gruffydd's harrassment of English lands along the borders by embarking on an invasion of Wales of the like he had not attempted before. In a joint enterprise with Tostig, his brother, Earl of Northumberland, he marched his army into the stonghold of Rhuddlan, forcing Gruffydd to flee into the wilds of Snowdonia whilst Harold, harrying the Welsh until they themselves murdered Gruffydd, sending his head to Harold as proof.
 I personally prefer to follow the story that Harold crossed the sea to Normandy with the sole intention of bringing home his relatives, Hakon and Wulfnoth. Mainly because this seems the most feesible rationale for him going and Eadmer, albeit a later chronicler, confirms it. I do not think that Edward had decided to send Harold on a mission to pass on his blessing and offer him the crown at all. Why would he endow his great nephew Edgar with the title of Atheling if he had intended William for the crown all along. And William was never referred to as Atheling or the heir to the English throne prior to his taking it. So imagine Harold arrives at the court of Normandy only to find that the Duke has ideas about his arrival there of his own.

So why did William believe he was the King of England's heir? He was not of the line of the Kings of Wessex and there were others who might have been more qualified after all. Edward had his nephews, Ralph who died in 1057 and would have been out of the running by the 1060's, and Walter de Mantes who dies in the captivity of the Duke of Normandy along with his wife. Young Edgar the Atheling, grandson of Edward's older brother Edmund Ironside. Edgar would have had a far better claim than William. A clue, in fact, lies in the Anglo Saxon chronicle. Chronicle D claims that in the entry for 1051, Duke William came with a large contingent of 'French' men and was recieved by King Edward. It says no more than a few cursory words and says nothing about discussing the succession  with him. Historians have been known to wrangle over the validity of this claim as it is only mentioned in Chronicle D and not any of the others. Some have suggested that this possibly never happened and was a late entry to help promote William's actions as justifiable. It has been noted that there were reasons to believe that this visit did not take place: one of them is that it was likely that William's difficulties in Normandy at this time would have made it impossible for him to come to England and it is curious as to why contemporary Norman sources made no note of it either.  However later, it was claimed that in this meeting, (as goes the Norman propaganda machine) that the offer of an heirdom took place. So, if we look at the previous events, it is plausible to imagine that scenario did take place and let's face it,William cannot have plucked the idea out of thin air. There  must have  been some basis for it.    

So what did happen before William's visit to his second cousin in 1051? This is the back-story according to the Anglo Saxon Chronicles: At mid-lent, 1051, as there was now a vacancy for the Archbishop of Canterbury's job, Edward called his council-meeting in London and advised them of his wish that his great friend and advisor, Robert Champart, former Abbot of Jumieges, should be given that post. It seems that Robert Champart may have put some noses out of joint when he came back from Rome with his pallium, because when Bishop Spearhavoc, whom Edward had promoted to Robert's see of London, approached him with the King's writ, Robert refused to consecrated him stating that the Pope had refused to let him do this. Spearhavoc was an outstanding artist whose engravings and paintings had brought him to the attention of the Godwins and the King. He may have been closely allied with the Queen. Why the Pope was against him being consecrated seems to be unknown and Robert was not about to go against the Pope in this just after recieving his pallium.

What follows appears to be a chain of events that may well be linked together. Count Eustace of Boulogne, brother-in-law of King Edward for his marriage to Goda, Edward's sister, came across the sea to visit with Edward. Chronicle E states that he

           ".....he turned to the king and spoke with him about what he wanted, and
                 then turned homeward....when he was some miles or more this side of Dover,
                 he put on his mail coat   and all his companions and went to Dover."

This sounds like Eustace was looking for trouble. He was and it was to have consequences thereafter for Godwin Earl of Wessex and his family. The men of Dover took a dislike to the way that Eustace and his followers demanded hospitality from them and when one of his men wanted to lodge at the house of a man against his will, the Frenchman attacked and wounded him. He found himself at the end of the householder's rage and the Englishman killed him. A fight in the town ensued after the householder was then killed by Eustace and his men and the French killed 20 townsmen and they themselves lost 19 of their own.

Eustace and his men rode out of Dover to report to the King of the indignities that had been inflicted upon them. Edward was apparently aflame with anger. Now Dover was in the jurisdiction of Earl Godwin and Earl Godwin was a thorn in the King's side. He ordered Godwin to punish Dover by ravaging their homes and Godwin, most likely having heard the side of the townsfolk, refused. Does this actually sound like the pious, gentle Confessor we later know him as?
Edward rallied all his loyal thegns and earls to him and Godwin and his sons did also. There was a standoff and still Godwin refused to punish the men of Dover. Eventually, some of his men deserted him and went over to Edward, probably because they did not wish for there to be a civil war in the country. The Godwins were given a few days to leave. Godwin and his sons Swein,Tostig, Gyrth and his wife Gytha, fled to Bruges. Harold went with his younger brother Leofwine to Bristol and took  Swein's ship to Ireland after a storm cost them the lives of some of their follwers. It was around this time that the Godwin boys Hakon and Wulfnoth were most likely handed over to the King as hostages.  

This event would also have a negative consequence for the Queen, (who was also a Godwin) and perhaps the priestly goldsmith, Spearhavoc. The Queen was stripped of all her wealth and banished to a nunnery, although she had evaded this for awhile.  Robert most likely urged him to put her away for being a Godwin, and urged the King to look elsewhere for a wife. As for Spearhavoc, it could be that Robert knew something about his character that others didn't, for after carrying out his duties in the see for months with Edward's permission and without consecration, according to the Chronicle E, Spearhavoc was then driven out of the bishopric; but not before, according to the Historia Ecclesie Abbendonensis, he gathered all the gold and jewels he had been comissioned with from the King to fashion some regalia for him, in many bags and made off abroad with them never to be seen again.  Perhaps his patrons Godwin and Queen Edith had argued with Robert Champart against expelling Spearhavoc from the bishopric and this might have annoyed the King immensely, stuck in the middle between them and his great friend Robert. He already had no particular liking for Godwin, for he still held Godwin responsible for the death of his brother Alfred over 15 years ago. When Eustace arrives  back to the scene, perhaps they concocted an elaborate plot to stir Godwin into defiance and give the king a good reason to be rid of him at last.



Please feel free to ask any questions of me and my theories.

Hope you have enjoyed the journey through the Bayeux Tapestry so far and will continue through this amazing journey.

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A Tale of Two Boys

The tapestry shows the tale of Harold's journey to Normandy, his imprisonment by Guy de Ponthieu and his subsequent release into the hands of William of Normandy and his adventures there until he is coerced to take an oath to promise to be William's man and when the time comes, assist him to the throne of England. He is released back to England where he is shown accepting the crown himself after the death of Edward. What follows is the great preperation William undertakes to make a large fleet of boats to invade England with, the battle of Hastings and the demise of Harold and defeat of the English. There it stops abruptly but the final scenes are thought to have been damaged and probably concluded with the coronation of the victorious conqueror.

The Norman slant on this story is that Harold was comissioned by Edward to visit William with gifts and offerings to confirm his intention of naming him as heir. The English version was very different. Harold went on a mission to visit William with the sole purpose of negotiating the release of his brother Wulfnoth and nephew Hakon, against the advice of the King who told him that nought would come of it but trouble. This was Eadmer's version, a monk of Canterbury. It seems that Harold eventually returns to England with only one of the men he wanted to release, Hakon. Wulfnoth was to stay in Normandy presumably until William was crowned king. Hakon most likely died with his uncle the King at Hastings. 

The two men do not appear in the tapestry by name but in a certain scene, where Harold stands before William, who is seated on his throne as his guest is gesticulating and pointing to the man who stands behind him sporting a beard and an English hairstyle. Because most of the men in the tapestry are either English or Franco/Norman, the distinction between the two races are often marked by such differences as cropped hair above the ears and clean shaven faces for the Normans and moustaches and full heads of hair for the English. Iconography exists quite often in the tapestry to signify a certain point that the artist is making. The chap that Harold appears to be pointing to is standing very much apart from the otherNorman knights behind him. He carries his shield under his arm and Bridgeford 2004 states that the shield is not dissimilar to the one that the Bayeux Tapestry shows Harold holding in the battle scenes. He goes on to make the claim that this is most likely Wulfnoth Godwinson, Harold's brother, the kinsman that it is said he came to plead for his freedom.

So, we have the dilemma. Which version do we believe? The Norman's justification for invading England was that Edward had sent Harold to Normandy with the explicit purpose of confirming William as the heir to his throne. Eadmer, who had access to people who might have known the full truth about Harold's journey, states otherwise and that Harold's sole reason for his journey to Normandy was to release his kinsmen. The images in the tapestry seem to follow Eadmer's version but without contradicting the Norman view. In the first scene, Harold is shown in a secret meeting with King Edward. If we are to follow Eadmer's version, we can interpret Edward listening to Harold explain his plans to visit William of Normandy to negotiate with him the release of his kinsmen. However, if we wanted to, we could also follow the Norman. Edward is discussing his request for Harold to visit his second cousin accross the sea to bestow his good wishes and confirm his heirship. Neither tale can be contradicted in the images.

So despite the different opinions that historians give, Harold returned with one of the men only. Hakon, who could have been around 16-17. He is believed to have died at Hastings, whatever the case nothing appears to be heard of him after that date. Wulfnoth has to stay until William is crowned and then he shall be released. However, as Harold defaults on his oath to smooth the way for William to take the throne, Wulfnoth is never released. He remains in captivity for the rest of his life freedom evading him for the second time when due his release upon the death of the Conqueror, William's successor William Rufus reneges on his father's promise to free him.
                                                                              

                                                                               

                                                                   

Aelfgyva, the mystery woman of Bayeux: Part One, 2nd ed.

Tuesday, 3 May 2011

Aelfgyva, the mystery woman of Bayeux: Part One, 2nd ed.

Aelfgifu, or as it was sometimes spelt Aelfgyva, must have been a popular name and one of some significance, for when Emma of Normandy was espoused to Aethelred, the witan insisted that she be called Aelfgifu, which incidentally had been the name of a couple of Aethelred's previous consorts, though none of those women had been given the title of queen unlike Emma. Perhaps they had been so used to referring to their king’s women by the same name they thought it more expedient to refer to Emma as Aelfgifu too, lest they forget themselves and mistakenly call her Aelfgifu anyway. I say this tongue in cheek, but it is unclear as to why the name Emma was objectionable to them, after all, it was not unlike the English version of Ymma. But changing a queen's name is not an un heard of phenomenon; later Queen Edith, great-granddaughter of Edmund Ironside, was sneered at for her Saxon name and was forced to become Queen Mathilda when she wed Henry the first.

There were so many Aelfgyvas/ Aelfgifus amongst the women of the 11thc that it must have become quite confusing at times. Even Cnut's first consort was called Aelfgifu, mother of Cnut's sons Harold and Sweyn. She was known as Aelfgifu of Northampton whose father had been killed during Aethelred’s reign. So one can see that if anyone called Emma, Aelfgifu, by mistake, it would not have mattered as they could be referring to either of them! Even Cnut would not have been caught out by this one.

There was a story about Cnut's Aelfgifu, that she had been unable to produce her own off-spring and involved a monk to help her pass off a serving maid's illigitemate babies as her sons by Cnut. In another version, it was said that the monk himself had fathered them himself. Were they a monk's children fathered on a serving maid so that Aelfgifu could present them as hers and Cnut's? Or, were they lovers themselves, the monk and Aelfgifu? These are questions that, after reading the evidence, I am pondering upon. However, Emma, it is said, hated Aelfgifu and the two women were at odds with each other for many years until Aelfgifu died. It would not be implausable that these tales, rumours, chinese whispers if you may, could have been put about by the Queen to destroy her rival's reputation.

Which leads me now to the mystery of Aelfgyva on the Bayeux tapestry. Aelfgyva is the same name as Aeflgifu only a different spelling, much like Edith and Eadgyth. For centuries people must have pondered over this scene, where a slim figure, clad in what would appear to be the clothing of a well-bred woman stands in a door way, her hands are palm upwards as if she could be explaining something to a monk, apparently behind the door. He is reaching out to touch the side of her face whilst his other hand rests on his hip in a stance of dominance and he looks as if he might be touching her face in a fatherly way, perhaps admonishing her for some misdeed, or perhaps he is slapping her? On the other hand he could be caressing her face. The text sewn into the tapestry merely states ‘where a priest and Aelfgyva...’ and the onlooker is left with no more than this to dwell on. So just what is the author alluding to? Why did he/she not finish the sentence? Perhaps they were referring to a well known scandal of the time and they had no reason to describe the events because everyone would have known about it anyway. Who knows what the truth is? It seems the answer to the questions of the lady’s identity and the relevance the scene has to the story of the downfall of Harold Godwinson, died with the creators of the tapestry long ago. Those who presented it to the owner must have given a satisfactory explanation to him about the scene. One can only wonder as to what it might have been and was it a truthful explanation, or did it have a hidden story?

This brings me to my burning question. Was this scene depicting the scandal of Aelfgifu of Northampton and the monk and if so why and what did it have to do with the tapestry? What was its creator alluding to? Or had someone woven them into the tapestry, mistakenly confusing Cnut's Aelfgifu/Aelfgyva with a similar story that did have some legitimacy with the story of the conquest? I have an interpretation, but it is just that, and most likely the fanciful ramblings of my imagination, although it could perhaps be close. I will attempt to explain my theory further sometime in part two soon. Watch this space as the mystery unfolds!

More about this post on my Sons of the Wolf blog

http://paulalofting-sonsofthewolf.blogspot.com/2011/06/aelfgyva-mystery-woman-of-bayeux-part_14.html
http://paulalofting-sonsofthewolf.blogspot.com/2011/06/aelfgyva-mystery-woman-of-bayeux-part_14.html
http://paulalofting-sonsofthewolf.blogspot.com/2012/02/aelfgyva-mystery-woman-of-bayeux.html

Welcome to My New Blog

Welcome to my new blog, THREADS TO THE PAST about the mysteries and tales embroidered into the Bayeux Tapestry. My name is Paula Lofting Wilcox and I am the author of Sons of the Wolf which is my novel set in the 11thc about the fortunes of Domesday man, Wulfhere of Horstede. I started posting various snippets of factual events, people and stories on my Sons of the Wolf blog and thought it may be more of interest to people if I created a seperate blog for the Bayeux Tapsetry aftert I started my posts about the mystery lady, Aelfgyva on the BT. I had intended to make these posts into three parts but the more I investigated the mystery, the longer the threads became. Then I realised that there was a lot more interesting tales illuminated in the threads of this amazing embroidery and felt compelled to create a blog that would be solely dedicated to the history stitched into the fabric of life as it was in  11thc Englalond.

Please join me as I begin the journey and come with me to meet characters like Edward the Confessor, his wife Edith Godwinsdottir, her brother Harold and his arch rival William of Normandy and his brother Odo, the bishop of Bayeux and Eustace of Bologne and many more. You can also learn what facts my investigations into the mystery woman Aelfgyva have turned, learn who she might have been and about what was her role in the story of Harold's fateful mission to Normandy.

I look forward to having your comapny on what I am sure will be an exciting ride.

                               
 Link to my blog Sons of the Wolf  http://www.paulalofting-sonsofthewolf.blogspot.com