Harold 11 (Harold of Wessex) is crowned at Westminster in early 1066, the first picture of an English coronation, as recorded in the Bayeux Tapestry.
The coronation of Charles III is the latest of a long, long series of coronations in this country. The origins of the symbols we will see at the coronation on 6th May, the throne, sceptre and orb, have very ancient histories not only in England but throughout world civilisations. All these royal symbols are represented in the remarkable Bayeux Tapestry (actually an embroidery) created in the 11th century, housed in Normandy but almost certainly created by English people at Canterbury. It is a historical survival of apparent simplicity which contains many enigmas and hidden political statements about the nature of the events it illustrates. The talk will ‘deconstruct’ the elements of the Tapestry’s image, with reference to the survival of the same symbols and rituals in the coronation of 2023.
Barbara English is an Emeritus Professor of History at the University of Hull. After education at the University of St Andrews (MA, PhD), she worked as an archivist in the West Riding for the Historic Manuscripts Commission and as editor for Nelson’s Medieval Texts. She taughts at the Open University and Hull University. She is the author of some 100 books and articles. In retirement she continues to publish, mainly in Yorkshire history, and she is much involved in the conservation of Beverley. She is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society, and was awarded an MBE in 2015 for services to heritage and the community in Beverley.
Our meetings are open to anyone interested. Non HA members are asked to donate £2. Students are exempt.