Highlands Ranch High School - Mr. Sedivy
Highlands Ranch, Colorado

The Entire Bayeux Tapestry - Part II

An eavesdropper hiding behind a column may have carried the news of Harold's capture to William. Armed with lances, two messengers come from the duke to command Harold's release. A bearded dwarf holds their stallions. Scholars debate whether the name "Turold" refers to one of the messengers or to the dwarf.

Normans wear their hair shaved at the backs of their heads; mustaches distinguish the Anglo-Saxons. In a flashback scene, the powerful Lord of Normandy, enthroned at Rouen, learns of Harold's capture by Count Guy.

"When Duke William heard what had happened he sent messengers at speed, and by prayers and threats he brought about Harold's honorable release," wrote William of Poitiers. "As a result, Guy in person conducted his prisoner to the castle of Eu, although he could at his pleasure..."

"...have tortured or killed him, or sold him into slavery." Count Guy on a black charger points out Earl Harold to Duke William, resplendent in a rich cloak, a sign of his high station. Fair-haired Harold then leads the way to Rouen.

At the duke's castle, the English earl describes his adventures since leaving home. The inscription that follows is a mystery. The figures - an agitated clergyman who appears to be striking a woman called Aelfgyva - may represent a scandal of the day that needed no explanation.

Join me in battle against my enemies, invites William. The duke and his English friend lead a company of knights to relieve Dol Castle, besieged by Count Conan of Brittany. They ford the River Couesnon where it flows out to sea near the monastery of Mont St. Michel.