After 900 years, the Bayeux Tapestry returns to England and goes on display in London
The historic Bayeux Tapestry has been moved from France to the British Museum in London for a 10-month exhibition. The 900-year-old artifact depicts the events of the 1066 Norman Conquest of England.
Why it matters
The loan of this significant cultural artifact represents a major diplomatic and historical event between France and the UK.
LONDON — In England, students memorize one date above all else: 1066.
It was the year of the Battle of Hastings, at the start of the Norman Conquest, an epic invasion from France, when William the Conqueror crossed the English Channel with an army of Norman soldiers of Viking descent and killed England's Anglo-Saxon King Harold II with an arrow through his eye.
The battle changed England's language, ethnic makeup and rulers. King Charles III is a descendant of the victors. People joke that 1066 is the country's most-used PIN number. It's in an advertising jingle for a famous brand of car insurance, among other things.
The oldest depiction of 1066's events is on a medieval tapestry sewn in England but whisked away to France in the late 11th century, where it's been ever since. It's normally displayed in a small museum in Bayeux, Normandy.
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