The Story of the Bayeux Tapestry: Unravelling the Norman Conquest
by Beam23 Feb 2027
Michael Lewis, lead curator of the British Museum's Bayeux Tapestry Exhibition, and David Musgrove, content director of HistoryExtra magazine and bestselling author, come together to explore one of the most remarkable artefacts of the medieval world.
The Bayeux Tapestry depicts political intrigue, treachery, heroism, brutal violence, victory and defeat — an epic account of a pivotal moment in English history. In this talk, Lewis and Musgrove go beyond the familiar narrative to ask who made the Tapestry, when, where, why and for whom.
They will place the events shown in the context of the political manoeuvring on both sides of the English Channel in the years leading up to the Norman Conquest, drawing out what the Tapestry reveals about the deeds of kings and the texture of everyday life in medieval Europe. They will also put forward an intriguing new proposition: that neither Harold nor William was the true intended king.
David Musgrove is content director of HistoryExtra magazine and its podcast, and author of 100 Places That Made Britain. Michael Lewis is curator of the Bayeux Tapestry Exhibition at the British Museum, Visiting Professor at the universities of Exeter, Helsinki and Reading, and Honorary Secretary of the Society for Medieval Archaeology.
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