A brilliant new reading of the Bayeux Tapestry that radically alters our understanding of the events of 1066 and reveals the astonishing story of the survival of early medieval Europersquo;s greatest treasure.This edition does not include illustrations.The Bayeux Tapestry was embroidered (itrsquo;s not really a tapestry) in the late eleventh century. As an artefact; it is priceless; incomparable ndash; nothing of itrsquo;s delicacy and texture; let alone wit; survives from the period. As a pictorial story it is delightful: the first feature-length cartoon. As history it is essential: it represents the moment of Britainrsquo;s last conquest by a foreign army and celebrates the Norman victory over the blinded Saxon Harold. Or does it?In this brilliant piece of detective interpretation; Andrew Bridgeford looks at the narrative contained within the tapestry and has discovered a wealth of new information. Who commissioned it? Who made it? Who is the singular dwarf named as Turold? Why; in a work that celebrates a Norman conquest is the defeated Harold treated so nobly? Is Harold indeed the victim of the arrow from the sky? And who is the figure depicted in the tapestry who; at the moment of crisis for the Normans rallies the army just at the point when it mistakenly believes William is dead and it will be defeated?Using the tapestry; the book retells with vivid characterisation the story of the remaking of England in and after 1066. It is a compelling story; as is the tale of the extraordinary survival of the tapestry itself: history has rarely been writ so large; with such fine detail and yet been so veiled in mystery.
#3573448 in eBooks 2008-08-28 2008-08-28File Name: B01NAH912M
Review
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. Interesting ThesisBy StraubingMs. Barnouw does create a compelling argument for re-examining the role of ordinary Germans during the Third Reich. I grew up in Germany in the 50s and 60s with short spells spent in the United States. These were times when everything German was vilified. Movies. comic books. novels. etc.. were all about the great evil of Germans and the need to punish the entire country. My family experience was that some members supported Hitler. others merely went along with the regime and tried to know as little as possible. and others flatly refused to support the regime even if only in the privacy of their own homes. In the Europe of the WWII era war was an acceptable means of achieving national goals. including revenge and retribution for past defeats. The war was quite acceptable to most Germans and it was seen as separate from other things that the regime did. Unfortunately. most Germans who openly resisted. and these people were a small minority. did so in the closing days of the war when. evidently. they felt free enough to act in order to prevent the destruction of their own homes and towns. Ms. Barnouw subjectively reviews and analyzes photographs of Germans taken during and immediately after the final conquest of the country in 1945 and does weave an interesting thesis supporting the view that Germans as a group and as individuals were completely naive and unable to act as individuals and as a group to end the Nazi terror before it overwhelmed them. She does touch upon the utter completeness of Germanys defeat. which explains the numbness of the population in facing the revelations of the horrors committed in their name. and she is sympathetic to the 16 million German expellees from Eastern Europe. who were expelled as a group even if they assisted non-German neighbors. if they were Communist party members. if they. themselves. had spent time in the concentration camp system. Most Germans eventually conceded that they were liable for the crimes even if they knew little about them because. as individuals and as a group. they did not resist. I recommend this study--it may increase the students ability to view those times objectively and perhaps comprehensively.3 of 3 people found the following review helpful. Incredible StudyBy The ProfessorThe immediate post-war period in Germany is incredibly interesting from a historical perspective. The way Germans tried to come to terms with the aftermath of the Nazi regime and the way the occupying Allied forces contributed to the post-war German identity are well explored in this text. which is thoroughly documented with formative images from the period. If you are at all interested in modern European history. this is worth a look.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Three StarsBy Thomas ErdmanNOTHING MORE.
