Bayeux…home of my namesake and great, great, great…ancestors??

Bayeux has been associated with many wars. From close by, invading armies set sail in 1066 to change the shape of French and English history. Then in 1944 , Bayeux would be liberated by incoming armies from England – the same land the Normans had invaded centuries earlier. More of the DDay later, but first a recounting closer to my own history.

According to my dearly departed mother, our relatives come across from Normandy with the invading armies of the so called William the Conqueror (who had previously been given the derisive name of William the Bastard). Now since this took place in 1066, somewhat before her time, and with no supporting documentation, I cannot attest to the veracity of my heritage. But who would accept that your mother fabricated any story.

For those who know me by by middle name, it may be a surprise that my formal first name is William. So this fact and my uncanny likeness with that other William (Guillaume) as seen above may provide more conclusive evidence of the relationship.

The town has many features soon to be shown in a separate post, but I will conclude this with a borrowed picture (no photography allowed in museum) of the Bayeux Tapestry. It was created to visually regale the illiterate masses of the bravery and righteousness of William’s invasion. This was hand sewn and extended to 70 meters in length so as to tell the full story. But the propaganda message was critical to the effort to support William’s claim to the throne of England over the usurper Harold.

See for yourself at.