Very frequently the means which we adopt to secure our ends are those by which Providence designs to thwart them.

During that disastrous period when England was subject to the incessant depredations of the Danes, Ethelred II. contracted a marriage with Emma, a daughter of Richard I., Duke of Normandy. Ethelred’s conduct to his wife proved that the match was not one of affection; his object evidently was to obtain the assistance of the powerful house of Rollo in resisting the attacks of the Vikings of the north. Instead of doing this, the alliance resulted in arraying the Normans amongst the enemies of England. Alfred and Edward, the sons of Ethelred and Emma, found an asylum in the Norman court during the supremacy of Sweyn and Canute. At one time an expedition was in readiness to leave the shores of Normandy, with a view of placing by force a son of Ethelred on the throne of his father. William of Malmesbury, speaking of the two youths, says—“I find that their uncle Richard (II.) took no steps to restore them to their country; on the contrary, he married his sister Emma to the enemy and the invader. Robert, however, whom we have so frequently before mentioned as having gone to Jerusalem, assembling a fleet and embarking soldiers, made ready an expedition, boasting that he would set the crown on the head of his grand-nephews; and doubtlessly he would have made good his assertion, had not, as we have heard from our ancestors, an adverse wind constantly opposed him: but assuredly this was by the hidden counsel of God, in whose disposal are the powers of all kingdoms. The remains of the vessels, decayed through length of time, were still to be seen at Rouen in our days.”[24] Thus half a century before William the Conqueror set out upon his expedition, a Norman invasion loomed in the distance.

Whilst the ships of Robert were rotting in the harbour of Rouen, Alfred and Edward, the sons of Emma, were being trained up in the court of Normandy in those habits and feelings which eventually led to the assembling of an armament which adverse winds were not destined to baffle. Alfred visiting England, was barbarously murdered; the Norman chroniclers assert that the cruel deed was instigated by Godwin. At length, by the death of Hardicanute, a way was opened for Edward, afterwards styled the Confessor, to the throne of his father. He was, however, at the time of his accession, as Camden expresses it, thoroughly Frenchified. He could scarcely speak a word of English. His court was filled with Normans, who usurped most of the official dignities. When advancing years compelled the monarch to take some steps for securing a fitting successor to the throne, his mind reverted to the court of

Normandy. His immediate heir, Edgar Atheling, was too feeble a youth to be placed, in such turbulent times, in so responsible a position. When the choice lay between Harold the Saxon and William the Norman, the Confessor’s early predilections necessarily induced him to look favourably upon the youthful head of his mother’s house. Independently of any communications which the English king may have made to the young Duke of Normandy, the partiality which he manifested towards him could not fail to nurture in Duke William’s mind the most ambitious views. Hence sprung the Norman invasion.

We are now prepared for examining in detail the scenes depicted in the Tapestry.

The first compartment exhibits to us Edward the Confessor giving audience to two personages of rank. The king is seated on a throne; his feet rest upon a footstool. A crown, ornamented with fleurs-de-lis, is on his head, and he holds a sceptre in his left hand. The robe of the monarch is full, and is ornamented at the collar, the wrists, and down the front, probably by needle-work of gold. Similar ornaments appear upon his knees. The arms and feet of the throne, according to the usage of the period, terminate in carvings of the head and feet of a dog. The taller of the persons waiting upon the king is no doubt Harold, as the face bears a strong resemblance to that of one of the horsemen in the next group, which the inscription tells us is Harold. A general likeness is preserved throughout the Tapestry, both in the case of William and Harold, so that we may reasonably suppose that the delineations of these personages bear some resemblance to the originals, and that they were drawn by an artist who knew them both. Edward is in the attitude of a king giving law to his subjects. Harold and his companion stand in the royal presence, both to betoken their reverence for their monarch, and their readiness to depart on the instant in the performance of the royal behests. They evidently pay earnest attention to the commands of the king.

The subject of this interview is no doubt Harold’s intended expedition to the court of William. Unhappily, there is no point in history respecting which a greater diversity of statement exists among contemporary writers, than the visit of Harold to the court of William. Three views are taken of it:—one is, that Harold was commissioned by Edward to inform the young Duke of Normandy that he had been nominated by him as his successor to the throne; another is, that Harold, whilst taking recreation in a fishing-boat, was accidentally carried out to sea, and driven on the shores of Ponthieu; the third is, that Harold had begged permission of Edward to go into Normandy, in order to release from captivity two relatives, a brother and a nephew, who, after Earl Godwin’s rebellion, had been placed as hostages in the hands of the Norman duke. The question for us to consider is which is the view countenanced by the Tapestry. Unfortunately, the inscription over the group is simply EDWARD REX, and, so, gives us no definite information. It will be well to examine the statements of the chroniclers, and then compare them with the representations of our worsted work.

William of Malmesbury says, “King Edward declining into years, as he had no children himself, and saw the sons of Godwin growing in power, despatched messengers to the King of Hungary to send over Edward, the son of his brother Edmund, with all his family; intending, as he declared, that either he, or his sons, should succeed to the hereditary kingdom of England, and that his own want of issue should be supplied by that of his kindred. Edward came in consequence, but died almost immediately. He left three surviving children; that is to say, Edgar, who, after the death of Harold, was by some elected king; and who, after many revolutions of fortune, is now living wholly retired in the country, in extreme old age;[25] Christina, who grew old at Romsey in the habit of a nun; and Margaret, whom Malcolm King of the Scots, espoused.... The king, in consequence of the death of his relation, losing his first hope of support, gave the succession of England to William Earl of Normandy. He was well worthy of such a gift, being a young man of superior mind, who had raised himself to the highest eminence by his unwearied exertion; moreover, he was his nearest relation by consanguinity, as he was the son of Robert, the son of Richard the Second (of Normandy), whom we have repeatedly mentioned as the brother of Emma, Edward’s mother. Some affirm that Harold himself was sent into Normandy by the King for this purpose; others, who knew Harold’s more secret intentions, say, that being driven thither against his will by the violence of the wind, he imagined this device, in order to extricate himself. This, as it appears nearest the truth, I shall relate. Harold being at his country seat at Bosham, went for recreation on board a fishing-boat and, for the purpose of prolonging his sport, put out to sea; when a sudden tempest arising, he was driven with his companions on the coast of Ponthieu. The people of that district, as was their native custom, immediately assembled from all quarters; and Harold’s company, unarmed and few in number, were, as it might easily be, quickly overpowered by an armed multitude, and bound hand and foot. Harold, craftily meditating a remedy for this mischance, sent a person, whom he had allured by great promises, to William to say, that he had been sent into Normandy by the King, for the purpose of expressly confirming in person the message which had been imperfectly delivered by people of less authority, but that he was detained in fetters by Guy, and could not execute his embassy.... By these means Harold was liberated at William’s command, and conducted by Guy in person.”[26]

Master Wace inclines to the opinion, that he went to rescue the hostages. His statement is, “When his father (Earl Godwin) had died, Harold, pitying the hostages, was desirous to cross over into Normandy, and bring them home. So he went to take leave of the King. But Edward strictly forbade him, and charged and conjured him not to go to Normandy, nor to speak with Duke William; for he might soon be drawn into some snare, as the Duke was very shrewd; and he told him that if he wished to have the hostages home, he would choose some messenger for the purpose. So at least I have found the story written. But another book tells me, that the King ordered him to go for the purpose of assuring Duke William, his cousin, that he should have the realm after his death. How the matter really was I never knew.”[27]

Let us now attend to the questions, How are we to reconcile these various statements, and what is the view taken by the draftsman of the Tapestry?

We must at once abandon the fishing boat story. The preparation which Harold makes for his expedition, and the numbers he takes with him, are irreconcileable with this view. Besides, the ships do not seem to be suffering from stress of weather, and, according to the inscription, Harold appears to have made a prosperous voyage, ET VELIS VENTO PLENIS, VENIT IN TERRAM WIDONIS COMITIS—And his sails being filled with the wind, he came into the territory of Count Guy.

We must also abandon the view which represents him as going to procure, in a direct and open manner, the hostages which William held. He knew that William was as shrewd as he was ambitious, and would not be so simple as to give up at his request, however reasonable it might be, the only means he had of holding him in restraint. Besides, the Tapestry represents the King, in the first compartment, in the attitude of one giving a command, rather than administering advice. The interview which Harold has with the King, on his return, strengthens this view. (Plate VII.) Harold comes into the presence of the Confessor like a guilty person, deploring his misdeeds and craving pardon. An axe, carried by an attendant on the left of the King, is turned towards him, apparently betokening that he has committed an offence worthy of death. The King is evidently reproving him sharply, but the attendant on the right of the King having the edge of his axe turned away from Harold, shows that the result of the interview was a pardon. The monarch was in fact too powerless to adopt any rigorous steps towards so influential a subject as the son of Godwin. If Harold had simply failed upon a private errand of his own, but which the King had forewarned him would be a bootless one, the King would have been more disposed to laugh at the trouble into which he had brought himself than take such serious notice of his conduct.

Besides, it is admitted on all hands, that Edward intended to appoint William as his successor, and most of the chroniclers agree in asserting that the Norman had already received some intimation of it. Further, William, after procuring the kingdom, always claimed to hold it, amongst other pleas, Beneficio concessionis domini et cognati mei, gloriosi Regis Edwardi—By the devise of my lord and relative the glorious King Edward.[28] Now, is it likely that a document which depicted the views of the Norman court would neglect to insert so important a title?

Supposing it to be a point established, that in the first compartment the Confessor is giving orders to Harold to inform William of the honours that awaited him, and abandoning, for the reasons already stated, the view of his being accidentally cast ashore on the coast of Ponthieu, we are necessarily led to suppose that he designedly shaped his course to that place, in order to promote his own ends. The Earl of Ponthieu was jealous of William’s growing power, and had often been in arms against him. He had on one occasion been imprisoned by him for two years. Harold might readily suppose, that if he could obtain the assistance of Guy, he might, by stealth or stratagem, get possession of the persons of his brother and nephew. Hence, instead of going direct to Rouen, he seems to have shaped his course more to the north. He might argue with himself, that when once he had got possession of the hostages, the wrath of William, which would no doubt be aroused by the proceeding, would be easily allayed by his putting him in formal possession of the fact of his being appointed by the present occupant of the English crown his successor.

On the first view of the case, it seems strange that Harold should undertake an errand which was apparently so much opposed to his interests, or even that the King should intrust him with such a commission. Harold, however, could have little objection to make it known that it was the King’s wish that William should be appointed his successor; for it was of some importance to him, having an eye to the crown himself, that the direct heir should, at all events, be superseded. Edgar Atheling, the next in the succession, was a rival in the palace itself; William the Norman was separated from him and the land of their mutual ambition by a barrier which was in those days a very formidable one—the English Channel. If Harold entertained these views, he would take care to inform the King of his acquiescence in his well known intentions respecting the succession, and thus encourage him to send him upon his present errand.

This method of reconciling the different views given by the chroniclers upon this involved point of English history is, it must be confessed, purely theoretical; at the same time, no better occurs.

Harold has received his commission from the King; let us see how he fulfils it. He is first seen riding in company with several persons of distinction (as their dress indicates) to the place of embarkation. The legend here is, [U]BI HAROLD DUX ANGLORUM ET SUI MILITES EQUITANT AD BOSHAM—Where Harold the English chief and his knights ride to Bosham. Harold is represented twice in this group (by no means an unusual thing, as we shall afterwards see); once, lifting up his hand, as if in the attitude of command; and again, with his hawk upon his fist, to betoken his high rank; a pack of hounds are scampering before him.

The hawk and the hounds require a few words of remark. It is well known to persons conversant in antiquity, that the great men of those times had only two ways of being accoutered when they set out upon a journey; either in the habiliments of war, or for the chase. Harold, as going on an errand of peace, we find here represented in the latter. The bird upon the fist was a mark of high nobility. We see it frequently upon seals and miniatures, of that age, of ladies as well as men; and so sacred was this bird esteemed, that we find it prohibited in the ancient laws for any one to give his hawk or his sword as part of his ransom. Severe fines were laid on those who should steal another’s hawk. Harold, it will be observed, is the only one of all his suite who has the bird upon his fist.[29]

Several hawks are introduced in the course of the Tapestry, but in no one case is the bird provided with a hood. The hood was introduced from the East about the year 1200, and as after its introduction it was considered an essential part of the equipment of the bird, its absence in the Tapestry is conclusive evidence of its comparatively early date.[30]

The three larger dogs have collars, provided with rings through which, most probably, the leash passed; the other two are of a smaller breed. The horses are hog-maned. Harold’s horse, in the more forward instance, has some ornament entwined with its mane.

Bosham is a hamlet in Sussex, near to Chichester, which still retains its ancient name. It was a sea-port of some consequence in Saxon times, and we frequently read of its being the point of departure for persons going to the Continent. Bosham was the property of Harold, having been obtained by his father, Earl Godwin, from the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Among the endowed churches of England, that of Bosham was probably one of the richest. In the reign of King Edward it had land belonging to it to the extent of a hundred and twelve hides. The generality of church endowments were infinitely smaller. Hence we find the church represented in the Tapestry as a structure of considerable consequence.[31]

A tree closes the scene. It is of a species which does not flourish in our modern woods, but which nevertheless grows very abundantly in the MSS. of the tenth and eleventh centuries. Several of similar character may be seen in the Illustrations to CÆdmon’s Metrical Paraphrase, executed in the tenth century.[32] These trees, like the lions and leopards of the heralds of a subsequent date, were mere conventional forms, and not intended to be correct representations of the objects indicated.

The next compartment exhibits to us Harold and a companion (one no doubt being used to represent all) entering the sacred structure, with the view of seeking the divine blessing upon their enterprise. As the humility of their posture, when inside, could not be represented, the artist has exhibited them as entering it in a state of semi-genuflexion. In this he follows a classical model. Among the Greeks and Romans the act of adoration was expressed by the artists representing the body inclined slightly forwards, the knees gently bent, and the right hand touching the object of reverence.[33] Over the building which Harold and his companion enter is written the word ECCLESIA.—the church.

It is not a little curious to observe, that in immediate contiguity with the church in which our voyagers offer their devotions, is the festal board at which they comfort their own bowels, and pledge each other in goblets large as their own hearts. The scene is one of a truly Saxon character. Our blue-eyed forefathers never did things by halves, and whenever they sat down at the social table—and they did so as often as convenient—they exhibited a refreshing earnestness.

The scene represents the end of the feast, and hence the drinking horns rather than the platters are brought into requisition. Two of these are magnificent specimens, and remind us of the horn of Ulphe preserved in York Minster, and the Pusey horn. The individuals in the building are evidently pledging each other, and the challenged and the challenger are drinking in turn out of the same cup. Robert de Brunne refers to this practice in the following lines:—

Besides horns, semicircular vessels, or mazer cups, appear among the furnishings of the board. These vessels were generally of wood, but occasionally of gold or silver. Our ancestors, who somewhat strangely blended religion with their festivities, not unfrequently had mottos, such as the following, inscribed upon their mazer bowls:—

But the best of friends must part. A messenger, who has blown the horn, to inform our voyagers that the boats are ready, till he is tired, comes personally, horn in hand, to urge their departure.

The scene of the embarkation is curious. Harold, the most powerful subject in England—if he can be called a subject—strips off his lower garments, and wades into the sea. His companions follow him in similar guise. Harold has, as usual, his hawk upon his fist, and he and his companion (the representative of the rest), more careful of their hounds than themselves, carry them dry-shod on board the ship that waits to receive them.

No satisfactory explanation has been given of the peculiar implement held in the left hand of the attendant who is next but one to Harold. Can it be a ‘throw stick’ such as was generally used by the ancient Egyptian sportsmen in fowling?[35]

Harold has two ships, and they are represented twice over—once at their departure from the English coast, and again on their arrival at the shores of France. But before attending to the adventures which befell the Saxon Earl on the opposite side, it will be well to review the ground already trodden, in order to gather up some fragments of information respecting the tastes and habits of the ancient English.

The architectural delineations of the Tapestry are those of the Conquest. Throughout the whole, the circular arch, which is characteristic of the Saxon and Norman styles, prevails in its simplest forms. Interlacing arches which occur so frequently in the later Norman buildings, and which are supposed to have introduced the pointed or Gothic-style, never occur. The palace of Edward the Confessor, in the first compartment, is a large building as compared with the church and manor-house of Bosham in the second. In some of its details it bears a striking resemblance to the ‘heavenly abode’ in one of the early illustrations of CÆdmon’s Paraphrase.[36] Of the chequered work on the face of the chief buttress tower many examples exist to this day in Normandy. The chief feature of the church is the doorway, as is the case with all Norman buildings up to a late period. The windows are small and insignificant, and were probably unglazed. It is roofed with stone shingles or tiles, rounded at the lower extremity, and fastened to the framework with nails, as is conventionally represented in the drawing. The roofs in the Saxon illustrations already referred to present a precisely similar appearance. The traveller in Normandy will often be reminded by existing buildings of these arrangements. The house in which the voyagers take their farewell repast is worthy of observation. It is constructed upon the plan of the ancient “peel houses” of the North of England. The upper apartment has an independent entrance by stone steps from the outside, and seems to be the place of greatest comfort and security. The lower room is vaulted, and is divided into three compartments, like the aisles of a church. This was not an unusual arrangement in buildings of the Saxon and Norman period.[37]

The dress of the parties may be briefly described. It has manifestly been derived from a Roman model. A garment, doubtless of woollen, invests the body, and comes up to the neck. A tunic, having something of the form of a frock coat, is put on over this, and is bound round the waist by a girdle. In the horsemen, this tunic is brought below the knees, and, for greater convenience in riding, is divided so as to form two wide loose legs. Most of the men are furnished with hose, which fit tightly, and come well up the thigh. Most of them also are furnished with shoes, which seem to fit the foot naturally and easily. In addition to these coverings, the superior orders wear a cloak, nearly resembling the chlamys of the Roman general, and which is fastened by a fibula, or brooch, at the right shoulder.

All the figures, excepting those accoutred with crowns or helmets, are bare-headed. This at first sight does not seem to be the case; the heads of the parties appear as if they were enveloped with caps of various colours. It will be observed, however, that, within doors as well as without, their heads wear the same appearance. But the shaven crown of the priests reveals the fact. These personages appear with hair as indisputably red, and blue, and yellow, as the rest, yet they show the bare poll in the centre. (See Plates IV. and VII.) It may also be observed that the hinder part of the heads of the Frenchmen is bare. In France, at this period, an absurd custom prevailed of shaving the back of the head. The men of Normandy and Ponthieu accordingly appear as if they had caps stuck upon the front of their heads, leaving the back part naked. All this seems to prove that, at the time of the Conquest, it was not customary either in England or France for men to cover the head, except for defensive purposes in the day of battle.

The Saxons are uniformly represented with mustaches; the French are not. King Edward always appears with a beard. The Saxons were fond of cultivating the hair, and exhibiting full and flowing locks. In the youthful days of King Edward both razors and scissors were eschewed. In process of time, however, through some silvery influence, men were induced to denude their chins of nature’s covering. Frenchmen made a clean sweep of it, but the Saxons held out for the mustache. King Edward maintained the customs of his youth, and he is always represented on coins, medals, and the Tapestry, with all the capillary attractions which nature ever gave him. In these respects, the Tapestry is true to history.

In ancient times, as well as in modern, fashions were subject to change. In the reigns immediately succeeding the Conqueror’s, modes prevailed different from those depicted in the Tapestry. The points of the shoes were elongated, greater extravagance of dress was indulged in, and the Normans, instead of shaving their hair like monks, suffered it to grow ridiculously long; beards, too, were cultivated. The following summary of the fashions of the late Norman period is to our present purpose:—

“During the reigns of Rufus and Henry I. the dress of the higher classes became much more costly in material and extravagant in shape. Some most ridiculous fashions are reprobated and caricatured by the historians and illuminators of that period. The sleeves of the tunics were made long enough to cover and hang considerably below the hand. Peaked-toed boots and shoes of the most absurd shapes, some terminating like a scorpion’s tail, others stuffed with tow and curling round like a ram’s horn, are mentioned by the monkish historians. Ordericus Vitalis says they were invented by some one deformed in the foot. The mantles and tunics were worn much longer and fuller, and the former lined with the most expensive furs. Henry I. is said to have had one presented to him by the Bishop of Lincoln, lined with black sable with white spots, and which cost £100. of the money of that day.

“The English now, both Saxon and Norman, suffered their hair to grow to an immoderate length instead of being cropped ridiculously short; and William of Malmesbury, who has previously complained of his countrymen having imitated the latter fashion, now laments over the long hair, the loose flowing garments, the pointed shoes, and effeminate appearance of the English generally. Even long beards were worn during the reign of Henry I.; and Ordericus Vitalis compares the men of that day to ‘filthy goats.’

“Anselm, Archbishop of Canterbury, refused his benediction on Ash Wednesday to those who would not cut their hair. Councils were held on this important matter. The razor and the scissors were not only recommended ex cathedra, but positively produced sometimes at the end of a sermon against the sinfulness of long locks and curling mustaches. Serlo d’Abon, Bishop of Seez, on Easter Day, 1105, after preaching against beards before Henry I., cropped not only that of the king but those of the whole congregation with a pair of scissors he had provided for the occasion. But nothing could long repress these fashions, which in the time of Stephen again raged to such an extent that the fops of the day suffered their hair to grow till they looked more like women than men; and those whose ringlets were not sufficiently luxurious added false hair to equal or surpass in appearance their more favoured brethren.”[38]

We can only account for the exact conformity of the manners and customs depicted in the Tapestry with those prevailing during the Conqueror’s reign, on the supposition that the Tapestry was then produced.