Stitching Idyllic

Stitching Idyllic by Ann Bernard

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The Bayeux Story continues

The wind direction changed allowing the Norman armada to sail.  On September 29, 1066, Duke William with his army, equipment and a multitude of horses landed in Pevensey Bay on the south coast of England and then moved east to the area of Hastings where they set up camp. They built defenses plus a castle and burned the buildings of local residents. Here is shown a woman leaving her burning house with her son. She is one of only three women depicted in the tapestry

The Norman army settles in. Food is prepared and Duke William has a feast. Bishop Odo, William’s half brother, is seated third from the right and is saying grace. He was also present at the Battle of Hastings. His religious vows prevented him from shedding blood so he was armed with a mace which is a good bludgeoning weapon. It was he who, about 20 years later, commissioned the creation of the Bayeux Tapestry.  As general literacy was not then established, the story in pictures is thought? to have been commissioned to educate and justify Dukes William’s actions to the Saxon population of England.  They were not happy with his succession to the throne and there was civil unrest for 10 years or longer subsequent to 1066.

Note the features of the two men setting fire to the house in the first picture.  Take a look at the faces of the Normans at their feast. Bishop Odo is recognizable each time he appears in the narrative.  I am not sure which one is Duke William.  Possibly, he is the one on the right hand side of the picture with his arm raised.

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A little out of context but look closely at this rendition of King Edward in the picture below.  Note the details such as his beard and hands. Look at his crown and his clothing. He is recognizable as the same person each time he appears in the narrative. Faces are difficult to stitch as anyone who has tried will know. Not only is King Edward recognizable but he also has a personality.

Amazing design and amazing stitching.  The Bayeux Tapestry has been repaired over the years as the threads have disintegrated over time. Even though it is now housed in a climate controlled gallery, the fabric is very fragile.  I have read that its length was designed fit all round the entire inside of Bayeux Cathedral.  There is an empty space at the end which gives an idea of the length of the uncompleted portion.

I have read extensively about the Bayeux Tapestry and related history.  Every source says something different.  I have aimed for accuracy but it is hard to know what ‘accurate’ is.

Tomorrow:  October 14,  Battle Day.

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The Battle of Stamford Bridge

Having won the Battle of Fulford Gate, the Vikings took time off. They did not burn the City of York as they had Scarborough but, as victors, they collected tribute in the form of goods and hostages. For late September, the weather was unseasonably hot. The Vikings made camp on the western and the eastern sides of the River Derwent.

In this portion of one of fifteen panels, the Viking army is relaxing.

They are fishing, talking and sleeping.  King Hadrada gave them permission to leave off their chain mail protection because of the heat.

Meanwhile, in southern England Earl Harold Godwinson (King Harold) had his army trained and ready to meet the expected invasion from Normandy. In Normandy, Duke William had his invasion army ready but the wind and tides had been unfavourable all summer. They waited, as did King Harold and his army in England.

King Harold heard about the Viking invasion in Scarborough. The Vikings had a poor reputation which made them unacceptable immigrants. King Harold gathered some/all of his army and marched them north to York. The distance between London and York is 215 miles (350 kms) which is about the distance between here, Guelph, and Ottawa. The roads were not as they are today. It is said that they did this march in four days but, this is so remarkable as to be unbelievable, that I can only think that they started out before the Battle of Fulford on September 20.  This is surmise on my part.

Their arrival at Stamford Bridge and their attack on September 25 was unexpected. In the first panel, their arrival is indicated by the dust storm you can see in the upper right section of the first picture.   The Vikings on the western (left, wrong end) of the narrow, wooden bridge were trapped.

The bridge (same bridge as above), was a bottle neck being defended by one elite Viking warrior known as a berserker. A berserker wore a bear fur collar (baer sarkr or bear shirt). They were fed psychedelic mushrooms before a battle, and killed anyone in front of them until they were killed, or ran out of enemies – hence our modern word berserk! (Thank you, Heather Cawte for this information). The beserker was finally felled by a Saxon who floated down the river and speared him from below. These figures are not yet completely stitched.

After that, the armies formed up on the east side of the river in the manner that was traditional for the time. A bloody battle was fought with huge losses on both sides. Both King Hadrada and Earl Tostig died. The section of the army left guarding the boats, led by King Hadrada’s son-in-law (who was also killed later in the battle), arrived in haste but the victory went to the Saxon army.

I was unable to locate a stitching that I was sure was of the battle. Instead, the photo below, taken in July 2017, shows visitors viewing the work-in-progress.

The lower photo also shows stitching in progress. Note the positions of the panel and the stitchers.  They are working upside down which is necessary on an embroidery of this width.

The tapestry is stitched on linen twill fabric, a cotton backing and uses Appletons wool threads. The design is placed on the cotton backing, marked through the front linen with running stitch. It is then outlined with stem stitching and filled with Bayeux stitch. Chris Rock designed the tapestry, the volunteer stitchers are under the leadership of Shirley Smith. They are raising money for the cost of the fabric and threads by preparing and selling kits.

If you would like to stitch a small piece of the Stamford Bridge Battle for yourself or be a stitching volunteer go to publicity@stamfordbridgetapestry.org.uk

These final stacked pictures are of the longboats returning to Norway and of meal preparation. Out of the 300/240 longboats that landed, only 24 were needed to take the survivors home. Two generations of men were in that invasion army.  While researching I read that the Viking women fought alongside the men so their loss was enormous too.  One of their leaders was allowed to return home with the survivors.  This was a young boy who was possibly the grandson (supposition on my part) of King Hadrada.  The Vikings promised to never, ever invade England again.

The days of Viking supremacy were over. They stayed home, recovered, and became Norwegians.

The latest news is that a book will be written about the design and stitching of this tapestry –

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Tapestry Project Brought to Book (search this phrase for more information). Published by Laura Mary on Facebook.

Battle of Stamford Bridge Tapestry Project 1066 – 2016 Interesting videos.

Hippytstitch: Battle of Stamford Bridge Tapestry for more pictures and information.

Apologies for the long spaces –  am still trying to figure out how to do this.

Tomorrow: The Bayeux story continues.

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September 20, 1066 The Battle of Fulford Gate

The Fulford Gate Tapestry

King Hadrada (Harald) was a Viking and a fierce and experienced warrior. The Vikings had a long history of marauding, pillaging and plundering. In 1066 they were well equipped with about 7000 men and 300 longships. In mid September, they landed on the eastern shores of England near Scarborough, which they burned, and then moved on to the city of York. Earl Tostig, (King) Harold Godwinson’s estranged brother, joined the Viking forces bringing more men. Tostig hoped to claim Northumbria as his own domain. Their combined forces were around 10,000 fighting men though the number varies depending on the source. The Saxon army was about half the size.

The weather that summer was hot and dry and lasted through September and into October.   What ensued on September 20 was the first battle of 1066, the Battle of Fulford Gate, which was won by the Vikings. It was a fierce encounter with heavy losses on both sides. There was a marsh on one side of the battle field and a river with an embankment on the other. A lot of men were lost in the marsh. King Hadrada is the lone figure on the right side (below) with his sword above his head. Their prize was the City of York which the Vikings agreed not to pillage or burn. The local Saxons also agreed to join the Vikings on their trek south to London where King Hadrada planned to claim the throne of England.

In the panel below, King Hadrada, with blond hair and beard, followed by Tostig, is shown entering the city of York.  Note the shape of Tostig’s head and his features.  He is obviously the brother of King Harold.

The names of the protagonists is confusing.  King Harald was the Viking leader whereas King Harold was the Saxon leader.

The embroidery, like the Bayeux Tapestry, is a continuous strip of linen fabric about 18 feet long. The upper and lower friezes contain scenes from everyday life and battle casualties. It was designed by Charles Jones. Embroiderers from the area of Fulford Gates and York dyed their wool threads using traditional methods. The continuous strip is divided into six sections for photography of which three are included here.

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The Fulford Tapestry was completed about seven years ago but I do not know where it is stored or is on display. I have read as much as I can find about the Battle of Fulford Gate and have condensed it to a few sentences which may, or may not, give you an accurate picture.

The final photo is of the ladies who stitched on the Fulford Gate Tapestry. This is the first of the contemporary embroideries that add to our understanding of the eventful year of 1066 and fleshes out the story told in the Bayeux Tapestry.

Congratulations ladies.  It is a job well done.  I would love to meet you  but age and an ocean are in the way.

For more information on the battle and the tapestry, connect with these links.

http://www.britainexpress.com/History/battles/Fulford.htm

http://www.fulfordtapestry.info

Hippystitch: The Fulford Tapestry

The creation of the Fulford Tapestry – Images

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1066. During the Spring and Summer Duke William of Normandy prepares his Armada.

1066. During the Spring and Summer Duke William of Normandy prepares his Armada.

Duke William of Normandy has been betrayed by Harold and considers himself to be the rightful King of England. He prepares an armada of ships to carry the men, horses and the armaments he will need to defeat King Harold.

Trees were felled and boats built.

Armour and spears were made. Provisions were collected and loaded on to the boats.

Horses were acquired and loaded onto boats.

The wind and tides were against the armada sailing for England. William and his army waited in France while Harold and his army waited for them in southern England. The English army became bored and restless and some went home for the harvest. The wind and tides, however, had been helpful to the Vikings who attacked in north east England leading to the battles of Fulford Gate and Stamford Bridge.

The tapestry is really an embroidery. It is stitched on linen fabric using seven dominantly coloured wool threads. The stitches used are stem stitch, Bayeux stitch, (which is a form of laid work), and satin stitch. Notice the style of the design. The artist was gifted at showing detail and realism and in connecting the various scenes into a continuous flow. There is also a lot of energy and action in each scene which does not get lost during the process of stitching.

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It is 230 (or 270) feet long and 20 inches wide,  The borders, top and bottom, are each 3 inches wide.  They show birds, animals and incidents from Aesop’s fables.  In the battle scenes, they show archers in action, fallen soldiers and horses. There are 8 lengths of fabric stitched together to achieve the total length of 230/270 feet. There are 50/74 different scenes depicted.  You will observe that the information is variable according to source. It is all of interest to historians who see it as a revealing glimpse of life in the era before the Middle Ages.

Yes, it is all very interesting but you have to know what you are looking at to appreciate the details.

Kits are available from various resources if you would like to create a replica of a section of the Bayeux Tapestry.

Tomorrow: September 20, 1066. The Battle of Fulford Gate.

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Embroideries that Record History

Embroideries that Record History

Interest and research has resulted in this series of blogs that features the Bayeux Tapestry and other embroideries that record the events of 1066 up until the Magna Carta. All have shaped the development of the western world and democracy. By influencing the western world, these events have affected the development of the whole world. The Overlord Embroidery, which records the D Day landings in 1944 is not included in this series but is featured in an earlier blog on this site. All these embroideries are unique. Only the Bayeux Tapestry is old whereas the others are contemporary. Here is your chance to be an armchair traveler and visit them all and to read the story that they portray.

Commemorative Tapestries/large Embroideries

1066 was a difficult year for Saxon England. King Edward the Confessor died in January without a direct heir creating opportunities for contestants to the crown. Earl Harold Godwinson (of Saxon aristocracy) promptly had himself crowned king which started a cascade of events. In mid-September, King Hadrada of Norway and a huge army of Vikings invaded northeast England resulting in the Battle of Fulford Gate which they won. The next and more decisive battle a few days later was the Battle of Stamford Bridge which was won by the Saxon army. Previous blogs have focused on these two battles. They have been edited and placed in context in this series.

The Prequel to the Battle of Hastings

Along with 1944, 1066 was a year that changed the destiny of the western world. We all know the outcome of the Battle of Hastings. The first half of the Bayeux Tapestry tells us what was happening before the battle. It must have been important to have been recorded in such detail.

In the later years of his reign, King Edward the Confessor sent Earl Harold Godwinson on a visit to France probably to discuss the succession to the English throne with Duke William of Normandy.

Harold went to his country residence first and had a feast. From there he boarded the ship that would take him to France. Notice that he had to wade to get on board. He took his hawk and a hound with him as it was intended to be a friendly visit.

He was shipwrecked on the shores of northeast France and captured by Count Guy of Ponthieu.

Duke William hears about this and pays a ransom to have Harold released. Both Guy and Harold travel to William’s castle in Rouen (northwestern France) where they are received formally. After various travels and adventures around northern France and Normandy they all arrive in Bayeaux. Harold was very strong and at a beach, he pulled someone out of quicksand.(Nasty, dangerous stuff is quicksand).  This is one of the adventures recounted.

Duke William insists that Harold become his vassal. Harold swears his allegiance on the Holy Relics.

The two chests of relics are openly displayed and all appears to be peaceful.

Harold then returns to England where King Edward the Confessor is sick. He dies on January 6, 1066 and is buried in the newly built Westminster Abbey. This portion of the tapestry shows him being carried to Westminster Abbey which was consecrated a week before he died.

Note the ‘Hand of God’ coming down form heaven to consecrate the Abbey.

This is the tomb and shrine of Saint Edward the Confessor, the only king in English history to become a Saint.

Harold is crowned King of England.

About Eastertime of that year, Halley’s comet appears, terrifies the western world and is seen as an omen. Did you see Haley’s comet in 1995 or 96?

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Duke William of Normandy was a more rightful contender to the throne of a prosperous and agricultural Saxon England. He was not amused that Harold had had himself crowned King at the first opportunity. Duke William spent all summer making extensive preparations for an invasion army of men, horses, ships, weapons and armour. The wind and tides were against him sailing. These same weather conditions favoured the Viking invasion on the north east coat of England.

All these pictures (except for the Shrine of Edward the Confessor), are taken from the Bayeux Tapestry.

Tomorrow: Duke William prepares his invasion fleet.

Please feel free to share this with friends and others who would be interested.

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Yet more gardens!

This stitcher is a long time quilter and had never hand stitched anything other than a kit previous to this garden. She loved stitching the tree and the tulips and added the rocks to ground some of the plants. She loved the dandelions so included those.

A garden with promise: stitched by Josie Abel

Edna is new to stitching so she is also new to creative stitching. This is a most successful path with a lot to look at on both sides. Her primulas and forsythias are very successful. Her next, current, project is also creative being designed by herself. It appears that Edna has bypassed kits and printed designs completely and has become an ‘original concept’ embroiderer.

Action! Action! Birds in the sky: stitched by Edna Miller

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Pat started with the fence and distant trees. The flowers were added from the top down to the front. One has to look at this garden carefully as there is a lot to see. As you look and identify the flowers you will see small extra ones tucked into unexpected places. Pat is now an experienced stitcher. Other pieces of her work are included in Hand Stitch Recognizable Summer Flowers.

My Garden of Eden: stitched by Pat Harwood

Joan is a most creative lady as can be seen by her interpretation of a garden. It is completely different in every possible way. It features wisteria, magnolia, wild grasses snowdrops and grape hyacinths. This piece is a tribute to the physical challenges Joan battles with dedication and determination every day of the year.

The River of Life: stitched by Joan Prowse

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More Spring Gardens all stitched by students

More Spring Gardens all stitched by students

Pathways have been popular lately as you will see in the following gardens. Judy has been a machine embroiderer and quilter for years but has taken up hand embroidery in the last 5 years. It could have been difficult but Judy had no trouble with this concept and the variations on basic stitches. I am sure you can recognise the flowers but note the colour triangulation which gives the layout balance and harmony. The tree is the weeping flowering crab tree she has in her front garden.

My garden is full of bloom: stitched by Judy Eckhardt

Everyone in the classes stitched a sampler. Although this method of stitching flowers is easy, it is also a totally new way of portraying flowers. Having tried out all the plants and trees, the stitcher is familiar with the variations of the four basic stitches. They are then able to make a personal choice on which plants they prefer to include in their garden. The individual choices are infinitely varied but all work well. Unpicking is minimal to rare when the learning is done on a sampler.

All the flowers in this piece are well stitched with successful attention to triangulation of colour. If you are not familiar with this, a composition works better if each of the colours is included three times in a triangular layout. The fence is a successful unifying feature.

The garden by the fence: stitched by Sharon Craven

Here is one of the young stitchers featured in Hand Stitch Recognizable Spring Flowers. She is now 5 years old and graduating from Kindergarten. She is very proud of her garden as was her teacher.

Well done young lady.

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This is an example on how to use the information to create an original composition that is not a garden. There a many other examples included in the book. Elfrieda loved the information on stitching primulas and thought that they would work well in this layout. She also loved the dandelions so included a few of them. This an unique rendition of the information. She plans to use this for a book or phone cover.

Primulas and dandelions: stitched by Elfreida Janzen

There will be more gardens in a future posting.

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Cover for Hand Stitch Recognizable Spring Flowers – 2nd edition.

You may not be aware of the new edition of this book on embroidery as my website has been inactive for much of last year. The timing of this information is to help you with your Christmas shopping. It is a great gift for any stitcher. It contains basic and necessary information from a professional such as; how to thread a needle easily, start and finish threads, set up fabric with a tight tension. There are many tips and strategies to help you enjoy stitching and achieve more professional results. It is also a creative text for those who prefer to do their own thing rather than follow kits and charts.

The title is the introduction. With a total of 17 flowers to be included the first consideration was that the cover would not look like a jungle. A definite structure was necessary to keep all the plants/flowers organized.

The outer circle contains the flowers featured in the first book which is no longer available. The inner circle features those that were added for the second edition and are less well known. The bushes and trees are still in the book but are not included in this cover embroidery.

Starting at the top of the outer circle, you will see white snowdrops. To the right are bluebells, primulas and grape hyacinths. Next are narcissi, tulips with hyacinths at the bottom. Following up the left side are tall iris, daffodils, and forget me nots. Lastly are crocus and more hyacinths.

The inner circle of spring flowers are less well known and are new for the 2nd edition. These photos have been enhanced so that you can see the detail of the original and the new flowers more clearly. The colour of the fabric is inaccurate.

At the top there are dark blue and mauve dwarf or rock iris. To the right are some more snowdrops with yellow aconites.

After that blue/mauve, white and pink/mauve pasque flowers or prairie crocus. Next are cream and pale yellow english primroses..

At the lower edge of the inner ring are a wilder variety of primulas in shades of blue followed but more english primroses.

Pink, white and blue star of bethlehem include dandelions growing among them. More snowdrops and aconites complete the inner circle.

The centre contains a small circle of padded background material with small and scattered french knots. The surrounding circle is larger french knots. The radiating lines are french knots stitched in shades of mauve and green. The green thread is the same shade as the background fabric.

All the plants are stitched using only four embroidery stitches. These are straight, detached chain, buttonhole and french knots. Yes, it was a challenge to portray all these wildly different plants with such a basic and limited number of stitches. Multiple colours of DMC Floss are used. The threads are blended/mixed in the needle to obtain the correct colour for natures’ choice of each plant and flower.

Precise directions and diagrams for stitching each plant are included in the text.

None of this is difficult but it is a different way of portraying flowers. As well as creating a garden which is what most students did, these flowers are useful for small projects such as greeting cards, phone covers and glasses cases all of which you will find in the book.

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Green seems to be a difficult colour to photograph accurately. This green fabric is a soft gray green and shows off all the greens used for the leaves. When stitching green thread on green fabric, one often has to change the proportions in the thread colour recipe for them to be seen clearly.

I have discovered why fashion photographs so seldom portray green except for really dark or bright greens. This is something I had never noticed before photographing the flowers for this book.

If you are interested in this book, or its companion, Hand Stitch Recognizable Summer Flowers, you can find them at eBookIt.com It is published in an ebook format to make it affordable for everyone.

Professionally colour printing a book with as many colour photos and diagrams as are included in this text is expensive. You can print it on your home colour printer.

If you would like a printed copy, please email me at ann@annbernard.com

The next entry will feature more gardens stitched by students.

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The Battle of Stamford Bridge, the second battle of 1066

Stamford Bridge

Having won the Battle of Fulford, the Vikings took some time off. They did not burn the City of York as they had Scarborough but, as victors, they collected tribute in the form of goods and hostages. For late September, the weather was unseasonably hot. The Vikings made camp on the western and eastern sides of the River Derwent. In this portion of one of fifteen panels, the Viking army is relaxing. The leaders, King Hadrada and Earl Tostig, gave the men permission to leave off their mail shirts which they returned to their ships. The dust storm created by the arrival of the Saxon army is indicated on the upper right.

Meanwhile, in the south of England, Earl Harold Godwinson (King Harold) had his army trained and ready to meet the expected invasion from Normandy. In Normandy, Duke William had spent all summer building boats, making armour, collecting horses and training men for his invasion army but the wind and tides had been unfavourable all summer for such an undertaking. They waited, as did King Harold and his army in England.

King Harold heard about the Viking invasion in Scarborough. The Vikings had a bad reputation which made them unacceptable immigrants. King Harold gathered some/all of his army and marched them north to York. The distance between London and York is 216 miles (347 kms) and the roads were not as they are today. It is said that they did this march in four days but, this is so remarkable that I can only think that they started out before the Battle of Fulford on September 20.

Their arrival at Stamford Bridge and their attack on September 25 was unexpected. The Vikings on the western (wrong end) of the narrow, wooden bridge were trapped. The bridge was a bottle neck being defended by one elite viking warrior known as a berserker. A berserker wore a bear fur collar (baer sarkr, or bear shirt). They were fed psychedelic mushrooms before a battle, and killed anyone in front of them until they were killed, or ran out of enemies – hence our modern word berserk! (Thank you, Heather Cawte for this information). The beserker was finally felled by a saxon who floated down the river and speared him from below. These figures are not yet completely stitched.

After that, the armies formed up in the manner that was traditional for the time and a bloody battle was fought with huge losses on both sides. Both King Hadrada and Earl Tostig died. The section of the army left guarding the boats led by King Hadrada’s son-in-law (who was also killed) arrived in haste but the victory went to the Saxon army.

I was unable to locate a stitching that I was sure was of the battle. Instead, this photo, taken in July 2017, shows visitors viewing the work-in-progress. The tapestry is stitched on linen fabric, a cotton backing and uses Appletons wool threads. The design is placed on the cotton backing, marked through the front linen with running stitch. It is then outlined with stem stitching and filled with Bayeux stitch. Chris Rock designed the tapestry, the volunteer stitchers are under the leadership of Shirley Smith. They have some kits available if you would like to stitch a small piece for yourself or to contact them, go to publicity@stamfordbridgetapestry.org.uk

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The final picture is of the longboats returning to Norway. Out of the 300 boats that landed, only 24 were needed to take the survivors home. Two generations of men were in that invasion army. We have also experienced this huge loss of men in more recent times. The Vikings promised to never, ever invade England again. The days of Viking supremacy were over. They stayed home, recovered, and became Norwegians.

The information here may or may not be correct. Brevity is not always the best sieve for historical information. The videos below are recent and were filmed on location and will be more accurate.

Battle of Stamford Bridge Tapestry Project 1066 – 2016

Battle of Stamford Bridge Tapestry Project 1066 – 2016

Baz Battles. Historical informational video

BATTLE OF STAMFORD BRIDGE TAPESTRY PROJECT 1066-2016

Although Stamford Bridge was a great triumph for King Harold and the Saxons, their strength was sadly depleted by the fight. And now they faced an even greater foe as news arrived that Duke William of Normandy had landed in Sussex on September 28. The weary Saxons turned south once more and marched back as quickly as they had come.

Read the third and final episode to hear what really happened at the Battle of Hastings.

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1066 and all ???? Prequel Battles to the Battle of Hastings

The Fulford Tapestry

There are two years in history that changed the destiny of the western world.   One is 1944, when the the Allied Forces crossed the Channel to the coasts of Normandy and the other is 1066 when the Saxon armies fought the invasion by the Duke of Normandy at the Battle of Hastings. There were two other battles in England prior to this and both are commemorated with large embroideries But first, here is a brief account of why 1066 was such a pivotal year.

The Bayeux Tapestry, Scene 1: King Edward the Confessor and Earl Harold Godwinson

In January 1066, King Edward the Confessor died without a direct heir but leaving three contenders to the throne of Saxon England. The first was Earl Harold Godwinson, Edward’s brother in law, a competent statesman and army general who had been running the country for Edward for years. The second was King Hadradra of Norway. The third was Duke William of Normandy. As England was a prosperous farming country at the time, it was a desirable acquisition.

King Hadrada was a Viking and a fierce and experienced warrior. The Vikings had a long history of marauding, pillaging and plundering. In 1066 they were well equipped with about 7000 men and 300 longships. In mid September, they landed on the eastern shores of England near Scarborough, which they burned, and then moved on to the city of York. Earl Tostig, Harold Godwinson’s estranged brother, joined the Viking forces bringing more men. Tostig hoped to claim Northumbria as his own domain. Their combined forces were around 10,000 fighting men though the number varties depending on the source. The English army was about half the size.

What ensued on September 20 was the first battle of 1066, the Battle of Fulford Gate, which was won by the Vikings. It was a fierce encounter with heavy losses on both sides. Hadrada is the lone figure on the right hand side with his sword above his head. Their prize was the City of York which the Vikings agreed not to pillage or burn. The Saxons also agreed to join the Vikings on their trek south to London where King Hadrada planned to claim the throne of England.

In the panel below, King Hadrada, with blond hair and beard, followed by Tostig as shown entering the city of York.

The embroidery, like the Bayeaux Tapestry, is a continuous strip of fabric about 18 feet long. The upper and lower friezes contain scenes from everyday life. It was designed by Charles Jones and stitched by local embroiderers who dyed their wool threads using tradional methods. The continuous strip is divided into six sections for photography of which three are included here,

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The Fulford Tapestry was completed about seven years ago. I have read as much as I can find about the Battle of Fulford Gate and have condensed it to a few sentences which may, or may not, give you an accurate picture. I apologize for errors. You can read more about this important day on the sites listed.

The final photo is of the ladies who stitched on the Fulford Tapestry.

http://www.britainexpress.com/History/battles/Fulford.htm

http://www.fulfordtapestry.info

The creation of the Fulford Tapestry – Images