1070 AD

Some secrecy surrounds the commissioning of an artwork to commemorate the events leading up to the Battle of Hastings in the autumn of 1066. Although news about it has leaked out, no-one has come forward to claim artistic involvement or financial investment in the project.

What seems clear is that the unknown commissioner is someone with huge resources and a great deal of personal energy.  “It takes a strong motive to drive forward such a massive project less than five years after the event, “ said one commentator. “Somebody wants to control the story rather badly.”  

Apparently the work will memorialise the major players in the events of nearly five years ago and is to consist of eight to ten panels of linen embroidered with fine woollen thread in colourful depictions and marginal scenes. It is to be undertaken at St Augustine’s Abbey in Canterbury and other undisclosed sites by teams of highly specialised craft embroiderers.

No-one has yet claimed involvement

Initial theories that King William and Queen Matilda are behind the project have been quashed by rigorous denials from the court. 

Rumours that fifty-five year old Count Eustace of Boulogne is the unknown sponsor cannot be ruled out. Count Eustace, known for his extravagant moustaches and unrestrained behaviour, has made no statement. However he was personally present at the battle and is known to be eagerly claiming a crucial role for himself.

On bad terms with the great man

Count Eustace is known to have fallen out with Duke William of Normandy on several occasions. In 1051 the rambunctious Eustace was involved in a riot in Dover when he tried to seize control of the castle. The incident resulted in forty deaths.  In the following year Eustace opposed William’s marriage with Matilda of Flanders.  Apparently, he feared that the marriage, giving William the command of Flanders and Normandy would reduce Boulogne to an inconsequential fringe state.  However, faced with the reality of subsequent events, including the marriage and preparation of a massive invasion fleet, Eustace pushed for a reconciliation with William and eventually took part as William’s ally in the battle itself. Why did Eustace fight at Hastings? Presumably in order to re-establish his credentials with the great man. 

Many witnesses attest that Eustace did not cover himself in glory during the battle and at one stage even advised withdrawal in the face of an English onslaught. Whatever the real story, it is surely a narrative Count Eustace would like to control. To have himself favourably depicted in an ambitious art project would be a highly desirable form of public prestige.

 Mystery backer

The identity of the person commissioning the work still remains uncertain.  No name has been revealed and no-one has issued any claim. Along with Eustace, William of Warenne and Robert of Mortain have been suggested. They are among the super-rich warlords who benefitted from their successful participation in the invasion and are out to make a name for themselves. Several others are believed to have sufficient funds to support the grandiose project. But these candidates are not known as men of vision who would interest themselves in an artistic project of such scope and ambition.

Some sources are suggesting another possible contender in  Bishop Odo, the Conqueror’s half-brother, who also took part in the famous battle. As yet, he has not made any claim or denial. ‘Unavailable for comment’ is the only response from Bishop Odo’s staff.

Bishop Odo of Bayeux 

As Earl of Kent, Odo is in possession of Dover Castle and at least one hundred and eighty four Kentish manors, as well as further estates and landholdings, making him one of the richest men in England. 

Odo has a murky past which he might wish to redeem. Many still remember how he took out legal proceedings against Lanfranc a few years ago in what some saw as a fraudulent prosecution. Odo pursued Lanfranc over disputed land claims and lost the case. He was thereafter on notoriously bad terms with Lanfranc, who was himself a distinguished jurist and also happened to be the Archbishop of Canterbury. 

Odo acquired an ignominious reputation when he was appointed to rule England in the absence of the Conqueror in 1067. He came to be widely hated for his tight-fisted policies and unnecessary cruelty. It was alleged that he permitted his troops to plunder and rape with impunity. As vast sums poured in from his denuded English domains, Odo spent profusely on embellishing his cathedral at Bayeux. This unscrupulous largesse, so common among the barons, enriched the church with vast sums of coin, gold and silver vessels and precious vestments for the clergy. It might be noted that these richly worked vestments were commissioned from highly skilled embroiderers. 

Is the commemorative tapisserie to celebrate the Battle of Hastings, Count Eustace or the Bishop of Bayeux?

Until a formal announcement is made we cannot be certain who has commissioned the work or what detail it is likely to contain. So we ask – just who is going to be in control of the narrative of the events of 1066 and what sort of artwork will finally emerge?