The Bayeux Tapestry is Returning to England – Why Does This Matter?

On the 8^th of July, it was announced that the Bayeux Tapestry – the world-famous embroidery depicting the events of the Norman conquest – would be returning to England for the first time since its creation, more than nine-hundred years ago. As part of an exchange with France, the British Museum will take custody of the Tapestry in 2026 whilst its home in Bayeux undergoes repair, with artefacts from the Sutton Hoo dig site crossing the Channel in return. Talks of such a display have been ongoing since 2018, but now that the Tapestry’s journey is finally confirmed, the question remains – why is acquiring this artefact so important to us?

Spanning from the end of Edward the Confessor’s reign to William of Normandy’s victory at the Battle of Hastings, the Bayeux Tapestry chronicles the end of Anglo-Saxon rule in England. The survival of this hand-embroidered tableau, which is approximately seventy metres in length, is little short of miraculous, having travelled countless miles in its almost thousand-year history. Its immense size is unique among the remaining embroideries from this period - most of which can be measured in centimetres, if not millimetres – and stands as a testament to a craft that was once the pride of England. Known as Opus Anglicanum (English work), the luxurious embroideries coming out of England in the medieval period were some of the most desirable goods in Europe, earning their (almost always female) creators significant respect for their craft.

And, whilst the exact details of the Tapestry’s creation remain unknown, it is now widely accepted among historians that its construction took place in England – Kent, to be specific. The most common hypothesis credits the construction of the piece to a process of collaboration between the nuns and monks of Barking and St Augustine’s, respectively. It is believed that the monks of St Augustine’s were responsible for the planning and design of the Tapestry, which bears striking similarities to some of the other artworks that can be more definitively credited to the Abbey. Then, the highly trained embroiderers at Barking would have spent weeks – even months - huddled alongside one another, hand stitching each intricate detail as the Tapestry’s narrative slowly came to life. Proof of their labours is seen in the piece itself, as its embroiderers visibly grow in skill as the project progresses, needlework growing more refined from one scene to the next as seams in the fabric become less visible and epic action scenes grow more complex. Simply put, the Bayeux Tapestry would not exist without the painstaking efforts of talented English artisans, who spent countless back-breaking hours designing and assembling the now incomparable masterpiece.

Although the creation of the Tapestry can stand as a point of national pride, the artwork itself has proved hugely influential in the perception of English history, and not always for the better. For generations, one standout moment from the Battle of Hastings, immortalised in the Tapestry, has cemented itself in the national conscience – the death of King Harold Godwinson, who took an arrow to the eye in the midst of battle. Or did he? It appears clean cut – we see Harold in the middle of Scene 57, beneath a heading that reads ‘Here King Harold is Slain’, seemingly clutching an arrow as it protrudes from his face. However, close examination in the 1980s revealed a series of tiny holes at either end of the arrow, indicating that, at some point, this weapon had in fact been a spear, not an arrow at all. Fibre analysis found that the wool used to stitch this seemingly fatal blow originated from the nineteenth century – far from the Abbeys of eleventh century Kent.

In fact, if we consider the narrative patterns in the rest of the Tapestry, the action described in each heading usually takes place directly below the corresponding text. The phrase ‘rex interfectus est’ describes the killing itself and draws our eye to the figure on the false-Harold’s far right, who lays on the floor as his leg is hacked into by a horseman. It is impossible to be certain, but texts describing Harold’s death by arrow typically come from foreign authors writing long after the fact, with the first known description attributed to an Italian author writing in 1080, although only a fourteenth century translation remains. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle never mentions an arrow at all, and the earliest surviving account of the Norman conquest, ‘The Song of the Battle of Hastings’, described Harold’s mutilation by sword in graphic, gruesome detail. A key element of the Bayeux Tapestry’s significance comes in its ongoing ability to guide – and potentially mislead – popular perceptions of English history, making its upcoming display to the British public all the more prudent, providing an apt opportunity to correct the misconceptions of the past for an eager audience.

But the Tapestry’s influence on historical understanding is far from ambiguous. More often overlooked are its insights into social and material history. Across its seventy-metre spread is a myriad of imagery depicting everyday facets of medieval life, from clothing, to weaponry, to food. We see the visually-distinctive Normans in early scenes, whose hair is shorn behind the ears and up to the scalp in a strange style that sets them apart from their Anglo-Saxon counterparts. We watch servants prepare and serve William’s half-brother Odo with a luxurious feast, and we see dozens of times over the armour, shields and weapons that characterised perhaps the most formative battle in all of Britain’s history. We may think of the Bayeux Tapestry as one piece in a long line of artworks designed to commemorate conflict, but its scenes often reveal a far more domestic view of medieval life, illustrated in visual detail unlike anything we’ve ever seen before.

The Bayeux Tapestry is known worldwide, and for good reason, as it remains a remarkable survivor of a period of upheaval which permanently shifted the course of British history. But despite its long-term home in France, the Tapestry owes much of its existence to England and the talented artists and storytellers within it. Its visit to the British Museum marks a monumental event in the Tapestry’s life and an invaluable opportunity to witness the immortalisation of some of our history’s most defining moments in the flesh. 

The Bayeux Tapestry will be available to view at the British Museum from September 2026 to July 2027.

Bibliography

Barral i Altet, Xavier, and David Bates, The Bayeux Tapestry (Citadelles & Mazenod, 2024).

Department for Culture, Media and Sport, Bayeux Tapestry to go on display at the British Museum in 2026 (8^th July, 2025) < https://www.gov.uk/government/news/bayeux-tapestry-to-go-on-display-at-the-british-museum-in-2026 >

Khomani, Naida, Morgan Ofori, Bayeux Tapestry to return to Britain for first time in 900 years, The Guardian (8^th July 2025) < https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2025/jul/08/bayeux-tapestry-to-return-to-britain-for-first-time-in-900-years >

Khomani, Nadia, Call for British Museum to take Bayeux tapestry to ‘1066 country’, The Guardian (14^th July, 2025) < https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jul/14/call-for-british-museum-to-take-bayeux-tapestry-to-1066-country >

Legge, M. D., Bishop Odo in The Bayeux Tapestry, Medium Ævum, Vol. 56, No. 1 (1987), 84-85.

Owen-Crocker, Gale R., The Bayeux ‘Tapestry’: invisible seams and visible boundaries, Anglo-Saxon England, Vol. 31 (2002), 257-273.

Ramirez, Janina, Femina (WH Allen, 2022).

Razzell, Katie, Bayeux Tapestry to return to UK on loan after 900 years, BBC (8^th July 2025) < https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c14ev1z6d5go >