30 October, 2013

I spent the day today in seeing some of the town of Bayeux. I learned at the Battle of Normandy Museum that this was the first town liberated in France, and survived the invasion largely undamaged, while many of the nearby towns were more or less completely demolished.

I started at the Cathedral. This is a fantastic example of the early Gothic style. It was started in the 12^th century, but the majority of the work was in the 13^th century. The large majority of the glass and the domed crossing tower stem from a major renovation in the 19^th century.

From the Cathedral I walked to the Battle of Normandy Museum on the edge of town. This is a comprehensive presentation that covers not just the landing, but the events of the summer of 1944. Displays contain uniforms and equipment from all forces involved in the fighting. I found it interesting to see these things first hand. It gives me some kind of reference for my tour tomorrow of the different sites of the invasion.

Leaving the Museum, I crossed the road to the Bayeux War Cemetery. Here 4,648 soldiers and sailors are buried – 3.935 British, and 466 Germans. I have been to military cemeteries in the US, and this one was similar. Rows of simple headstones with rounded tops in neat rows on immaculately kept grounds. There’s one major difference. The men lying here were all young – mostly early 20’s – and all died in the short period of the summer of 1944. Stone after stone in the sections I walked through all shared the same date – 6 June, 1944. The American Cemetery at Omaha Beach has twice the number, and I am assuming that I will be much more impacted by the experience tomorrow.

Back to the centre ville, and I went to see the Bayeux Tapestry. A monumental piece of Norman history, this cloth is 70 meters long, and depicts the victory of William the Conqueror over the usurper to the English Crown, Harold, at the Battle of Hastings in 1066. The embroidery is nearly 1000 years old, and is remarkable not just in its storytelling, but in its physical condition. There is a very comprehensive museum built around it that details the fabrication of the Tapestry, as well as some of the armament and construction techniques of the 11^th century.

Time to load some pics and get set for the day.