For many people Le Mans is all about the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the race and the museum. It’s a heady mix that rises to fever pitch every June when the annual 24 Hours of Le Mans event takes place.

We visited the track and the museum in the week before the race started. The roads were crowded and many of them blocked with diversions in place so it took longer than usual to get there. We had to park quite a way away and walk past the track where the cars were practicing. This might not be Formula 1 but it’s pretty fast and very noisy. Next year I plan to attend the event, and camp in one of the nearby sites.

The next 24 Hour Race is on June 11-12, 2022. It will be the 90th race and quite an event.

But let’s start with a bit of history…

The 24 Hours of Le Mans Race

The first ever automotive race, the Grand Prix (Le Grand Prix de l’ACF) took place on June 26 and 27 1906 in Le Mans. It covered 103 kms/64 miles and ran between Le Mans, Ferté-Bernard and Saint Calais on public roads closed for the race. Certain towns with narrow streets totally unsuitable for a cavalcade of racing cars were bypassed for the race…with specially constructed roads made out of wood.

The Hungarian driver Ference Szisz won the event in a Renault AK.

In 1923 the race was changed from a speed event to an endurance 24-hour race, encouraging reliable and fuel-efficient vehicles that last and spend as little time in the pits as possible. It’s now one of the world’s great sporting events.

In 1923 the average speed was 92 kph/57 mph; today it’s 210 kph/130 mph. The race is run on the 13.6 km Sarthe Circuit.

Some 60 cars compete; the winner being the car that covers the greatest distance in 24 hours.

They’re off!

Originally the start of the Le Mans race involved the drivers lining up opposite their cars, running across the track to get in and get going. It led to some ingenious starts.

Stirling Moss had his car waiting with first gear already engaged. He jumped in and turned the starter on without pushing down on the clutch. So the starter jerked the car forward without starting the engine. After a few seconds of moving, Moss pushed the clutch down so the engine speeded up and started while the car was already moving.

The start became increasingly dangerous as teams and drivers got up to all sorts of tricks to get off to a speedy start. So in 1970 it was changed to the rolling start (also called the Indianapolis start). The cars do a formation lap behind the safety car. On their return to the pits, the starter waves the French flag and the race starts.

Le Musée des 24 Heures du Mans (The Museum of the 24 Hours of Le Mans)

I loved Le Musée des 24 Heures du Mans with its gleaming beasts on show. But rather than the technical aspects (I have to confess that I’m still not sure how a carburettor works) it’s the stories that I find fascinating. And there are so many of them. So this article is about the stories of the cars and the personalities behind the whole industry.

If you want to read an excellent article explaining more about the museum’s cars and all their technical aspects from MechTraveller, click here.

The museum is located on the edge of the Bugatti circuit, the dedicated track section where the race starts and finishes.

Originally founded in 1961 as the Automobile Museum de la Sarthe, the organisers of the 24-hour race took over the site in 1991.

What you See

The museum is easy to walk around and divided up into different parts. The main section is devoted to the cars. But there’s a lot more. The Hall of Fame depicts the great names of the sport – manufacturers, drivers and enthusiasts.

There’s also a comprehensive car model section. If you’re a collector it may leave you in despair at the models you don’t have.

Finally there’s a large motor cycle section.

The Start of it all

The story of Le Mans starts with the Boullée family. Amédée Bollée, a bell founder, moved to Le Mans in 1842. In 1873 he invented the 12-seater Obéissante (‘Obedient’) car which he drove from Paris to Le Mans in a spectacularly short 18 hours. In 1895. His son Léon Boullée founded Léon Bollée Automobiles and Le Mans became a centre of car production.

The original vehicle is in the Musée des Arts et Métiers in Paris.

Precious Old Cars

Cars are displayed chronologically so you start with what today look frankly bizarre but back in their day really had the wow factor!

150 or so cars are on display with excellent and surprising information about each one.

Did you know that an electric car, the CGE Tudor electric, built in 1942, drove the 225 kms/139 miles from Paris to Tours at an average speed of 42 kmh/26 mph on a single charge? 

The Great Names

The great names are all here: Bentley and Bugatti, Ferrari and Ford, Jaguar, Porsche, Audi, Peugeot and more. The design changes are fascinating to look at. Early cars are sleek beasts with rounded outlines; later models are aggressive go-faster models like the 1957 Cadillac Eldorado III.

What I found so fascinating about the museum is the way the explanations bring the cars to life. But I apologise for the enhanced stories here. The information in the museum served to whet my appetite. Then when it came to writing this article, I went back to more research so some of the information in this article is not from the museum.

But the end result of all this? I’m planning another visit to the museum to look at the cars again with greater knowledge and interest (and perhaps a little more understanding of carburettors).

Bentley

In 1923, Walter Owen Bentley came on the scene. The Bentley company might have been small but he was supported by the ‘Bentley Boys’ group of wealthy businessmen. Initially Walter Bentley thought the whole Le Mans race mad and believed no car would finish.

Persuaded by the Bentley Boys, he allowed the Canadian driver Captain John Duff to prepare his own car in the factory and in addition let his own Bentley test driver, France Clement, partner John Duff.

Duff had bought and prepared a 3-litre Bentley that he had already raced at Brooklands for the new 1923 Le Mans race. The two drivers recorded the fastest speed but suffered from a holed fuel tank. Duff had to run back to the pits then bicycle back with a can of petrol (only drivers could work on the cars). They came 4^th.

The following year Bentley committed to the race and lent Duff one of the dealership cars. They won. You can see a Bentley 3-litre sport of 1924, and the Bentley Speed 8 which won the sixth race for Bentley in 2003.

Bertha Benz

The early pioneers were an innovative lot and none more so than Bertha Benz, the business partner and wife of automobile inventor Carl Benz.

On Aug 5, 1888, Bertha set off with her sons Richard and Eugen aged thirteen and fifteen in a Model III. She didn’t tell her husband, nor get the necessary permission from the authorities for the drive from Mannheim to Pforzheim.

It was quite an adventure. The automobile had no fuel tank and only a 4.5 litre supply of petrol.  She had to find ligroin, the petroleum solvent needed for the car to run. Ligroin, along with other fuels including petrol was at the time sold only in pharmacies. With her purchase the chemist in Wiesloch became the first fuel station in the world.

Bertha Benz apparently cleaned a blocked fuel line with her hat pin. She found a blacksmith to help mend a chain; the failing wooden brakes were repaired by a cobbler using leather for the first time. The car’s two gears were too weak for uphill so the two boys had to push the car up steep roads.

She was the first person to drive such a long distance – 106 kms/66 miles. In doing so she achieved her goal with a journey that Benz and many other manufacturers needed to encourage them and add much needed publicity about the new vehicles.

Bugatti

The name Bugatti is known both for design and for cars, and Bugattis were always beautiful. Le Mans unites the two elements with this stand where a Bugatti Torpedo Type 40 stands beside a Bugatti suitcase, designed by Carlo Bugatti (1856-1940), an Art Nouveau furniture and jewelry designer. It was his son, Ettore Bugatti (1881-1947) who was the inspiration behind the car manufacturing.

Founded in 1909 in Molsheim, Alsace (part of the German Empire until 1919), the cars had huge racing successes. Bugatti’s Le Mans prizes began in 1937 with Jean-Pierre Wimille and his co-driver Robert Benoist. But it was a tragic race with a 6-car accident. The accident was caused by the inexperienced French amateur driver René Kippeurt who lost control of his Bugatti T44. He and one other driver, the Briton Pat Fairfield, died.

Bugatti won again in 1939 with Jean-Pierre Wimille and Pierre Veyron in a Bugatti Type 57C. With the outbreak of World War II, Le Mans did not take place again until 1949.

Ettore Bugatti described Bentleys (his arch competitors) as ‘the world’s fastest lorries’ for focusing on durability. 

Don’t pass by the more modest cars – each has its own honourable slot

In 1958, Jean-Claude Baudal and Jacques Séguéla took a round-the-world trip in iconic Citroen 2CV, the much-loved ‘Deux Chevaux’. They drove through 50 countries and travelled nearly 100,000 kms/62,137 miles in 12 months in the car displayed in the museum. It’s still a little battered.

Le Mans – 24 Hours Moto

Le Mans also hosts Le Mans – 24 Hours Moto race. This year it takes place on Apr 16 & 17, 2022 and like the car race, it’s an endurance test.

The Museum’s large motorcycle section contains delights like the two-seater tricycle of 1896, the voiturette, designed and produced by Léon Boullée. The passenger sat in front, which led to its nickname of ‘Mother-in-Law killer’.

Another pioneer was the British Sunbeam Longstroke 500 produced in 1921 which won various earlier motorcycle races. The rider shifted gears using a lever on the right side of the motor which meant taking one hand off the handlebars. The manoeuvre did not catch on.

There’s also the Honda RCB 1000 which won the first edition of the race in 1978. It’s a gleaming red speed machine on two wheels (as you can see, I don’t know too much about these frightening motorcycles).

Events around the 24 Hours of Le Mans

In the week before the race, there’s plenty to see. Practice and qualifying sessions take place on the track (so note that there are public road closures).

One of the most popular non-race events is the Driver’s Parade which takes place on the Friday before the race in the centre of Le Mans. The carnival atmosphere, complete with music and dancing, is a fantastic way to kick off a weekend of racing.

On the morning of the race, Le Mans Legend is the chance to see cars previously competing. Different eras are chosen each year; drivers are both amateurs and former professionals.

You can watch the race either live or on one of the 11 giant screens in the race area, grandstands, and village.

If you want to drive part of the circuit (though not from the week before the event to the day after), take the main road south of the city towards Tours. This follows the famous speedy 5.7 kms Mulsanne.

Porsche Experience Center

Now this is something I would love to do. One of my stranger ambitions is to drive the safety car in a Formula 1 Race. Going to the Porsche Experience is probably the closest I will get to the same feeling.

It’s a day’s tuition on two routes: Maison Blanche and Bugatti. And naturally it’s fiercely expensive. Driving a Porsche from the Center it’s €1195. If you have your own Porsche it’s €730.

But there’s much more on offer than just driving a Porsche. The website will tell you more (in English).

General Guide to Le Mans with hotels, restaurants and more attractions.

How to Get to Le Mans

By Car: If you’re coming from the UK, take a DFDS ferry from Newhaven to Dieppe. The drive from Dieppe to Le Mans takes around 3 hours and is 270 kms/168 miles.

Or take Brittany Ferries overnight from Portsmouth to Caen. The drive from Caen to Le Mans takes around 2 hours and is 160 kms/100 miles.

More information on travel from the UK to France.

More to See and Do in and around Le Mans

If you can, take time to look at medieval Le Mans. It’s an extraordinarily well-preserved medieval city within the city, partially enclosed by the original Roman Walls.

The Loir Valley

We also explored the nearby Loir (without an ‘e’) Valley. It was delightful, unexpected, and full of treasures. Its fortunes were intricately tied up with the Hundred Years War and the Plantagenets.

Tour the Secret Loir Valley
Visit the Château du Lude and its fabulous gardens
Glorious Medieval Baugé with its château and apothecary
Step into the world of the privately and family owned Château de Bazouges

Also Check Out

Sarthe Tourism

Pays de la Loire

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The Bayeux Tapestry is one of the world’s great art works, never failing to impress however many times you see it. Almost 1,000 years old, it’s an astonishing visual narrative of the events around the Battle of Hastings in 1066. Remarkably it’s domestic as well as heroic, showing everyday life in the Middle Ages as well as one of history’s great battles.

The Bayeux Tapestry is housed in the Centre Guillaume le Conquérant in a 17^th-century building in the center of Bayeux. It was included in UNESCO’s Memory of the World Register in 2007.

What the Bayeux Tapestry shows

The Tapestry gives a wonderful and detailed account in 58 different scenes of the momentous events of 1066.

25 of the scenes are set in France and 33 are in England of which 10 take up the Battle of Hastings itself. It’s a tale of double-dealing by the English King Harold, of warfare and conquest, and most importantly of all, of William the Conqueror defeating Harold at the Battle of Hastings. It was the start of a new, Norman, golden age for England.

The tapestry starts with the years before 1066. The events that led to William invading England are all portrayed and the main characters: Edward the Confessor, Harold, Earl of Wessex and William, all appear at the beginning of the tale.

The scene above shows Edward the Confessor, King of England, talking to his brother-in-law Harold, Earl of Wessex in 1064. Two years later Edward died, on Jan 6, 1066 and the play for the throne of England began.

Here’s Harold swearing his oath to support William’s claim to the English throne. He is touching two altars as William looks on.

It was September 1066, when the ships set sail from St Valery-sur-Somme with 7,000 men and around 2,000 horses on board. What followed was to change the face of English history forever, setting William on the path to becoming one of the most powerful monarchs in Western Europe.

The Battle

It wasn’t until October 14 that the battle took place. What the tapestry doesn’t include is the Battle of Stamford Bridge which the English army fought against the Norwegian King Harald Hardrada on September 25. The weakened English then had to march down to Hastings in Sussex to face the Normans. But why let the facts get in the way of a cracking good story?

The Bayeux Tapestry shows the battle in wonderful detail. The facts are fairly straightforward: the Normans attack and are decisive, Harold is hit in the eye by an arrow and dies and the English retreat.

But the depiction is something you have to see to appreciate. The figures may seem a little wooden, but somehow they come to life, full of energy and movement. Everyone looking at it gets immersed in the story.

The dramatic story unfolds

It’s easy to follow using the excellent audio guide which relates the events and the background to them as you walk slowly past the tapestry stretched out in a horseshoe-shaped display.

The characters are easily recognizable: the English have moustaches and long hair; the Normans hair is cut typically short; the clergy are distinguished by their tonsures and the women (only 3 of them) by their flowing dresses and veiled heads.

There are three panels and the main story takes place in the central one.

The smaller upper and lower panels are just as absorbing. They provide a window into the Middle Ages.

The panels depict everyday scenes from farming to hunting, from people making bows and arrows to others fishing. You see how the ships were constructed and the tools used. You see real animals as well as mythological creatures: manticores (a Greek beast with the head of a man, the body of a lion and the tail of a scorpion), female centaurs, winged horses, dragons and more. Mythical beasts have as much of a presence on land in the tapestry as weird and wonderful sea creatures do on the maps of the time.

It’s an excellent exhibition for children who are fascinated by the simplicity of the scenes and the story. The Bayeux Tapestry has been called the world’s first comic strip; watch children working out what’s happening and the comparison becomes very real.

Tapestry or Embroidery?

The Tapestry is not technically a tapestry which is woven, but a band of linen embroidered with ten different colored threads. Produced in the 1070s, the scale is impressive. It’s huge: about 68.3 metres/224 ft long and 70cms/20 inches wide. What’s also extraordinary are the colours which are faded but not badly. After nearly a century that’s quite something.

Where did the Bayeux Tapestry come from?

In the 18th century the tapestry was attributed to Queen Matilda, William’s wife, but it is now believed to have been commissioned by Odo, Bishop of Bayeux and William’s half brother just after the Battle of Hastings. It was probably embroidered at Canterbury in Kent.

Much of the evidence points to Bistop Odo being the person who commissioned the tapestry. Three of the bishop’s followers mentioned in the Domesday Book make appearances and it was found in Bayeux Cathedral which Odo built in the 1070s. It’s likely he commissioned the tapestry at the same time as the building so that both would be completed at the same time. On July 14, 1077, the cathedral was consecrated in the presence of William the Conqueror and his wife Mathilde. Hanging the tapestry in the new cathedral would cement William’s victory for all to see (and emphasise Bishop Odo’s importance).

Bishop Odo appears in the tapestry, seemingly encouraging the troops from the rear, though he is wielding a club. Church and state and therefore warfare were inextricably mixed, making a few problems for the church.

The dichotomy was best summed up by American historian and writer William Stearns Davis: “Bishop Odo of Bayeux fought at Hastings before any such authorized champions of the church existed…That bishops shall restrain from warfare is really a pious wish not easily in this sinful world to be granted.”

The Bayeux Tapestry is a magnificent piece of propaganda as well as a jewel of Romanesque art; you come out incensed with the apparent treachery of Harold. He had taken the throne on the death of the saintly King, Edward the Confessor who died childless. Harold had sworn to hand the throne over to William but…

There’s more to see at the Bayeux Tapestry Museum

On the first floor the exhibition gives more information on the Bayeux Tapestry itself as well as placing it in the Middle Ages with models of ships, scenes from everyday life and the Norman influence in buildings like the Tower of London and Winchester Cathedral.

The film on the second floor shows a re-enactment of the Battle of Hastings.

PLEASE NOTE: If you’re visiting in 2021 please check the website before you go. The Covid-19 crisis means that opening times might vary.

Tip: Don’t be pushed along by the crowds in the main exhibition; this really is a piece of art to linger over. Buy the William the Conqueror Activity Booklet in English for children (aimed at 7 to 12 year olds). It’s 3 euros at the excellent shop, and in other tourist attractions in the area. (It’s a very good short introduction for adults as well!) It gets crowded during the peak summer season, so get there as early as you can.

Latest Bayeux Tapestry Innovation

In a remarkable move, the Bayeux Tapestry has gone online in a big way. The Tapestry has been digitalized and it’s freely available on the website. Now you can see each stitch and the weave; click on the ‘Text’ button to one side of the site and you get transcriptions and translations in English and French of the Latin inscriptions.

In 2017 it was decided to make a three-year study of the Tapestry to see what might be needed to ensure its continuation. It’s going to be a complex project, starting with removing the current backing. The next step is to remove the 18th century liner and a band fixed on the lower part in the 19th century.

It is scheduled to take place from 2024 as the Museum will then close for a massive refurbishment.

So try to get to see this beautiful and significant witness to our history when the museum opens again, hopefully soon as the Covid-19 crisis lessens.

See the Bayeux Tapestry online here.

More to discover in Normandy

Normandy D-Day Landing Beaches from Utah to Sword
Here are suggestions of places to stay near the Normandy Landing Beaches.
Also check out the budget hotel chains in France for more suggestions on where to stay.

How to get to Bayeux in Normandy

If you’re coming from the UK by car, then take Brittany Ferries. The overnight sailing to Caen gets you there early in the morning.
More Information from Brittany Ferries route here.

The post The Bayeux Tapestry Story appeared first on Mary Anne's France.

French Tapestry has a long and visible history that stretches from the Middle Ages to today’s surprising art works. Large museums, and little unexpected ones displaying French tapestry offer an insight into this most sophisticated of textile arts. And don’t forget all the châteaux and castles whose walls are lined with these glorious, and practical, masterpieces.

Most people know about the Bayeux Tapestry (which strictly speaking isn’t a tapestry). But what about the Tapestry of the Apocalypse, the creations of Dom Robert, and the weaving of 14 remarkable Tolkien tapestries in Aubusson?

When I began researching French tapestry, I got caught up in the history of the art. I know not everyone shares this, so if you want to skip the history bit, scroll down to Where to See Tapestry in France. If not…

Let’s start with: What is a Tapestry?

Tapestry is a form of textile art produced by hand or more commonly on a loom. It’s created by weaving coloured weft threads through plain warp threads which are stretched on the loom. The warp threads act as the basic grid which weavers use to create a pattern using different coloured weft thread.

Unlike other forms of weaving, the weft threads don’t run all the way across the warp. The weft runs back and forth creating a small block of colour. It’s called a discontinuous weft and these blocks create a pattern or picture.

One other feature which distinguishes tapestry weaving is that the weft threads are beaten down so they hide the warp. It means that the design can be seen on both the front and the back. Older tapestries may today be more intensely colored on the back, as that side has been hidden from light.

Tapestry Materials

Wool is the most common material used. It can easily be dyed and in the past was widely available in all European countries. It’s strong and flexible so can be used as both warp and weft thread.

The very rich commissioned tapestries using silk thread in the weft. Metal thread was also used but this was hugely expensive so you’ll find it mostly in small items like purses and bible covers. If it’s woven into those glorious hangings that covered whole walls you’re looking at a very rich owner.

History of French Tapestry

One of the oldest forms of woven textiles, the golden age of tapestry throughout Europe ran from the 1350s to the end of the 18^th century.

Tapestries were large, practical and beautiful. They kept out the cold air, particularly in those draughty medieval castles, and provided a form of entertainment.

As the light from a flaming fire and candles lit up the rooms, the onlookers could follow the stories depicted in lifelike detail. Stories came from the Bible, from mythology or the classics. The better educated you were, the more familiar you would be with the stories.

Biblical Tapestries

Biblical tapestries were often frightening. They imitated the carvings over church doorways depicting the horrors of hell, like the entrance to the Abbey of Ste-Foy in Conques. But unlike the stone images, tapestries were fragile and few of those with biblical themes have survived which makes the Tapestry of the Apocalypse (see below) even more remarkable.

Tapestries on the Move

Most importantly tapestries were transportable. They were, as Le Corbusier described them, ‘nomadic murals’.

In a time of very little communication, travel was vital to maintain law and order. Monarchs in particular travelled throughout their countries, showing off their power and wealth to their subjects, particularly to the knights and aristocrats who were no doubt plotting to take the throne.

Before setting off, the tapestries were rolled up for the journey to the next castle or palace where they were to be hung on the walls. In the 1540s the French King Francis I commissioned a set of tapestries based on the decoration that covered the walls of his Great Gallery at Fontainebleau Palace. He carried them around France on his journeys in case he felt a longing for his newly renovated palace near Paris.

14^th-century Beginnings & 15th-Century Expansion

The early 14^th century was a time of peace and prosperity after the uncertainties of medieval Europe. Fortunes were there to be made…and spent. Tapestries were an obvious way to show off your wealth and power to your peers and peasants.

In France the major tapestry manufacturers set up, naturally, in Paris. A century later, demand was growing and manufacturers set up outside Paris.

Arras, North France

Arras in north France was already a thriving textile town, specialising in fine wool tapestries that were exported to the rest of Europe. One of the most important markets was in England where landowners made rich from the wool trade were demanding luxury items.

Arras produced masterpieces like the Offrande du Coeur made in the Arras workshops between 1400 and 1410. Depicting a young man offering his heart to his love, it’s in the Cluny Museum in Paris.

‘Behind the arras…’

In England, the word arras came to be used for tapestry in the 15th century. By Shakespeare’s time it was in common use and the playwright used it in Hamlet:

“You and I will hide behind the arras and watch what happens. If it turns out that Hamlet’s not in love after all, and hasn’t gone mad from love, then you can fire me from my court job and I’ll go work on a farm.”

The English word tapestry was first used in England in 1467, coming from the old French word tapisser, which translates as covering with heavy fabric or to carpet.

Aubusson, Creuse

Aubusson, a small town in the Creuse in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, dates its first tapestry production to 1457. In the 16^th century it became known for its tapestries ‘with cabbage leaves’. More romantic than the phrase suggests, Aubusson produced astonishing wild landscapes with mythical animals and strange foliage.

French Tapestry in the 16^th Century

The French King Henry IV (1553-1610) wanted luxury goods to become part of the nation’s growing economy. What could be more luxurious than tapestries?

The King did two things which were to cement the importance of French tapestry in Europe. He set up a special royal tapestry works in the Louvre. At the same time, he brought in two Flemish master weavers to establish their own workshop in the old Gobelins family dyeworks on what was then the outskirts of Paris.

The 17^th Century and the Height of Luxury

In 1662 the royal factory prospered under that master of ostentatious living, the Sun King Louis XIV. He ordered his finance minister Jean-Baptiste Colbert to buy the Gobelins business from the Flemish. It was expanded to include every artisan skill, from tapestry weaver to cabinetmaker and goldsmiths producing furnishing for the royal residences, especially Versailles.

Gobelins was on a truly epic scale and was named the Manufacture Royale des Meubles de la Couronne (Royal Factory of Furnishings to the Crown).  In charge of it all was the court painter, Charles Le Brun. He was one of the trio of artists who dominated French taste at the time, with the  architect Louis Le Vau and the gardener/architect André Le Nôtre.

State-subsidised French tapestry booms outside Paris

Beauvais began its tapestry manufacturing in 1664. Privately owned but licensed and founded by Louis XIV, Beauvais produced delicate silk and wool tapestries for the nobility and the rich bourgeoisie of the region. Like the other centres, it became known for producing particular themes.

Beauvais specialised in architectural themes and also tapestries known as the Grotesques, a word which at the time referred to the strange, mysterious, magnificent rather than the modern meaning of ugly or unpleasant.

Aubusson was recognised by the monarch and the workshops became a Royal Manufacture of Tapestries in 1665. The styles changed, more in tune with the fashions coming from Paris, particularly the chinoiseries, scenes set in China. Aubusson used a different system of producing tapestries. Instead of one huge manufacturing plant, it was scattered among small independent workshops. It’s a tradition that continues to today.

The French Revolution and beyond

Napoleon was as much in love with luxury as the monarchs and nobles who he sent to the guillotine.

The Gobelins survived the French Revolution and flourished when Napoleon ordered a set of tapestries devoted to him and events of his reign.

He began in 1808 with a woven copy of his favourite portrait, one by François Gérard in 1805. It shows Napoleon in the Throne Room of the Tuileries Palace, the seat of the empire. 8 weavers worked for three years to make it and was presented on March 7, 1811.

19^th– and 20^th-Century French Tapestry

Tapestry survived in the 19^th century but not as a significant commercial form.  By this time, as with lace making in centres like Calais, technology that could reproduce tapestry-like furnishings had taken over from the old hand weaving looms. Cost was the final factor.  

But it wasn’t the death knell for the art. France has a well deserved reputation for keeping its traditions alive. In the mid 20^th century, several significant artists took up the art.

International Acclaim

In the 1960s the Aubusson works were commissioned to create the tapestry Christ in Glory in the Tetramorph.

Designed by Graham Sutherland, the tapestry was commissioned to commemorate the bombing of Coventry Cathedral in World War II and was unveiled in March 1962, shortly before the May consecration of the cathedral..

Christ in Glory in the Tetramorph is an astonishing work. At 23 x 12 metres (75ft × 39ft), this is the biggest tapestry in the world made in one single piece. It weighs more than a ton and took four years to make. It uses around 900 colors, is roughly 144 stitches per square inch and was woven by 13 weavers on a loom made from 2 huge tree trunks.

In 2009 UNESCO included Aubusson tapestry craftsmanship in its list of intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity category. It was joined in 2010 by that other great French contribution to the world’s treasures: the food of France.

Where to see Tapestry in France

Gobelins in Paris

The Manufacture Nationale des Gobelins in Paris is still producing tapestries. It’s now part of the French Ministry of Culture and is housed in a large complex of four 17^th-century buildings and an early 20^th-century building in the 13^th arrondissement in Paris, south of the Seine. You can visit either on a guided tour or individually to watch tapestries being made.

The Galerie des Gobelins puts on temporary exhibitions of tapestries and objects from the Mobilier National (the state furniture collection).

Musée de Cluny

The museum is famous for its tapestries and medieval fabric collection. The star of the museum is the huge 15^th-century tapestry, La Dame et la Licorne (The Lady and the Unicorn), a spectacular work attributed to Flanders weavers and inspired by a medieval German legend.

NB: Unfortunately the Museum is closed for its final renovation work until early 2022. But put it on your list; when it opens it will be one of the biggest must see sights in Paris.

Tapestry Museums and Sites outside Paris

Cité International de la Tapisserie, Aubusson

It was the addition of the Aubusson tapestry craftsmanship to UNESCO’s list of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity sites that led to the building in Aubusson of the Cité international de la tapisserie museum which opened in 2016. It’s an ambitious project, preserving the tradition with its training, and it shows permanent and temporary exhibitions.

There are three exhibition spaces including the history of Aubusson tapestry and Tapestries of the world.

The Tolkien Project

The museum is also nearing the end of a project to create thirteen tapestries and one carpet based on original graphic works by J. R. R. Tolkien (1892-1973) and created in conjunction with the Tolkien estate.

The project, called Aubusson weaves Tolkein, started in 2017. It’s the first narrative hanging connected to a great literary work since the heyday of such works in the 18th century.

Beauvais, Oise

The historic Manufacture de Beauvais in Oise in the Hauts-de-France region of north France is housed in the former town abattoirs.

Again, you can see the craftspeople at work here. The artists’ sketches are placed on the reverse of the tapestry, and the weavers monitor their work using mirrors. Today it’s only France’s major institutions which commission works from Beauvais.

Musée Dom Robert

In an out-of-the-way location in the Tarn, you’ll come across a surprise. The Musée Dom Robert is housed in the Abbaye-école de Sorèze.

It’s dedicated to the works of Guy de Chaunac Lanzac (1907-1977). Born into an aristocratic family, he became a Benedictine monk in 1930 at the age of 23 and took the name of Dom Robert. Influenced by Jean Lurçat who he met in 1941, the talented artist monk became a tapestry cartoon designer.

Immensely successful, he designed 150 cartoons, most of them woven in Aubusson. In a quirk of fate, he also spent ten years at Buckfast Abbey in Devon to escape fame and fortune.

His tapestries were woven in Aubusson at an atelier owned by Suzanne Goubely. On her death she left money to found the Musée Dom Robert which opened in April 2015.

The museum holds a remarkable and large collection of his works, both cartoons and finished work. It also shows some of the techniques involved in tapestry weaving.

The other half of the complex shows the history and day-to-day life of a military school. It’s linked to the artist Toulouse-Lautrec through members of his family who studied here.

The World’s Greatest Tapestries

Bayeux Tapestry in Normandy

Strictly speaking, this is not a tapestry. It’s an embroidered cloth nearly 70 metres/230 ft long. It was woven in the 1070s to tell the story of the Norman conquest of England, and probably in England not in Bayeux.

One of the world’s most stunning pieces of art, and a great historical work, the Bayeux Tapestry never fails to impress. It’s housed in the Centre Guillaume le Conquérant in an 18^th century building in the center of Bayeux.

For more information on the Bayeux Tapestry and on the centre here’s my story.

The Apocalypse Tapestry in Angers

“And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with 10 horns and seven heads, with 10 diadems upon its horns and a blasphemous name upon its heads.”

Woven in Paris between 1373 and 1382, the Apocalypse Tapestry was commissioned by King Louis I of Anjou. Today it’s housed in the formidable château in Angers which is located in the rather appropriately named End of the World road. It’s in a darkened, silent, vast and echoing room. It sent shivers down my spine as I walked around, taking in the scenes.

This is the most impressive tapestry I have ever seen. Based on the Book of Revelations – which is dramatic stuff, this extraordinary tapestry follows the story in frightening detail.

The Song of the World Tapestry and Musée Jean- Lurçat

One of the most famous and important revivers of the art of tapestry making was the artist Jean Lurçat (1892-1966). He began designing and weaving tapestries in 1917 and by the 1930s had become an international name. In 1937 he saw the Apocalypse Tapestry which was to him a revelation in tapestry design. In 1939 he moved to Aubusson to help revive the art of tapestry making in the city.

His best known work is the Song of the World (Le Chant du Monde), housed in the medieval Hospital of St-Jean in Angers, just a short walk from the château and the Apocalypse Tapestry.

It’s a powerful work, 80 metres long, taking the threat of war (particularly the nuclear threat), destruction and chaos as the first four themes, then renewal, hope and joy in the following six tapestries.  It was designed and woven between 1957 and 1966 during the Cold War.

And More Spectacular Tapestries…

At Fontainebleau, just outside Paris. The magnificent château that is interwoven into the history of France and its monarchs has a superb collection.

…The Louvre museum in Paris also has a magnificent collection, including the Offrande du Coeur woven in Arras.

…And many châteaux in France from massive and imposing Chambord to my favorite, Azay-le-Rideau…and…I could go on.

You’ll find tapestries everywhere in France. If you’re thinking of a vacation in 2021, consider cycling along the Loire à Vélo route and exploring those châteaux in the French monarchy’s playground.

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The Musée de l’Hospice Comtesse by guest writer Mary Johns.

The Musée de l’Hospice Comtesse has over the centuries been a place which took both the body and the soul to its heart.  Set in Lille on the banks of the former riverbed of the old port, the Hospice Comtesse was established as a religious community to care for the sick and the poor in the 13^th century. It continued its work until 1939.

Buildings of the Musée de l’Hospice Comtesse

The Hospice Comtesse was founded in 1237 by the powerful Countess Jeanne of Flanders and is one of the few reminders of the legacy of the Counts of Flanders. Built within the walls of the Comtesse’s palace, it stands in a beautiful courtyard, testament to seven remarkable centuries. The series of rooms which you can wander through tell a story of caring for the needy in an atmosphere of austerity and peace.

Countesse Jeanne of Flanders

The Countess Jeanne was an extraordinary woman, the powerful ruler of the prosperous kingdom of Flanders and a deeply humane character. In many ways typical of her time, she helped develop the Mendicant orders, the Beguines, the Victorines and hospital communities. Many of these were run by women, enhancing their role and status in society and the church.

The order at the Hospice Comtesse was a branch of the Augustinians who followed the Rule of Saint Augustine. It was written around 400 AD by Augustine of Hippo, theologian, philosopher, and a bishop in Roman north Africa. His Rule became one of the most important elements in the development of Western Christianity.

The brothers and sisters who formed the new community placed themselves under the protection of the Virgin Mary. Their mission? To look after the sick and to care for distressed souls. The salvation of the soul was of paramount importance but the needs of the body were also met, with great attention given to hygiene and diet.

The Hospice Community

Over the years the Hospice was regularly extended. At the head of the community were the master and the prioress, who had a duty to protect the inmates and ensure that the monastic rules were observed. 

The prioress held court in the parlour with its 17^th-century panelling. Visitors can see the eight ex-votos (offerings in thanks and fulfilling the vow made). Such objects are found throughout Christendom, offerings to the Virgin Mary in gratitude for healing or the recovery of a child. Adjoining the parlour was a small sitting room, a cloakroom and an oratory.

The Hospice Kitchen

The kitchen, so easy to visualise in its early state with pots steaming on the fire, is covered in glazed cobalt blue-and-white earthenware tiles inspired by 17^th- and 18^th-century Dutch models. They’re arranged in themes illustrating shepherds and shepherdesses, sea monsters and games played in the past.

The nuns, cooks and lay sisters prepared the meals, considered to be of prime importance in the treatment of the sick. It was a remarkable instance of forward thinking.

The Hospice Refectory

The nuns took their meals in the refectory in silence. One of the sisters stood at the lectern and read out a passage from the Bible as the nuns ate. From the furniture and other objects found there you realise that religion was a serious business.

There is a commissioned work called Faith by A. De Vuez, the hospice’s official painter, and a statue of St Augustine which underlines the doctrines so important to the community. The furniture is decorated with carved garlands of fruit, cornucopia and human figures.

The Hospital Ward

The patients at the Hospice were cared for in the hospital ward, a vast, single-nave rectangular room where each patient was allotted a bed and a wooden shelf set into the wall. The beds were fitted with curtains to keep out the cold and bedding consisted of a pillow, sheets and a blanket on which the coat of arms of Flanders was embroidered.

The bleak but practical ward has a panelled vault and there are a number of devotional paintings on the walls. 

Making Medicines

During their stay the patients were served by the apothecary, basically a pharmaceutical laboratory. The nuns used plants grown in their own gardens or purchased in the city and prepared remedies which were stored in the apothecary jars on display. The medicinal garden at the Hospice is small, but during the centuries it has grown the plants that soothed and healed.

You’ll come across apothecaries throughout France but the best preserved is the Apothecary in the Chateau de Baugé in Anjou.

All these rooms, plus the richly embellished Chapel and the linen room, can be seen on the tour of the Hospice. They bring to life a past age when the care of the soul was seen to be as important as the care of the body. 

The Applied Art collections help explain the environmental, political and social climate of Lille from the 16^th century through to the Revolution. 

There are excellent temporary exhibitions each year that focusing on history and contemporary art.

After the French Revolution the Hospice became a home for old men and orphans until 1939 when it became a general store. Thankfully it was transformed into this remarkable and evocative museum where you feel as if you are stepping back into Flemish history.

How to get to the Hospice

By car: Take the Ferry to France from the UK.
The drive from Calais to Lille is 110 kms/68 miles and takes around 1hr 15 mins.

By train: 15 minutes by foot from the SNCF Lille-Flandres and Lille-Europe stations
Métro: Gare Lille-Flandres (lines 1 et 2) or station Rihour (line 1)
Bus: No 9 stopping at Palais de justice
Free shuttle bus: Vieux-Lille (stops on demand)

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The revamped Battle of Agincourt Museum (officially the 1415 Azincourt Center) aims to tell the true story of the great 15^th-century battle and it does a great job.

We who were brought up on Shakespeare’s heroic play Henry V still think the English were virtuous and the French dastardly. The famous battle between the English and the French was elevated into an ultimate battle against the odds. It was portrayed as a glorious victory for the vastly outnumbered English. And who would not be stirred by sentiments and words that have echoed down the centuries such as these?

Henry spurs on his troops with:

‘Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more;
Or close the wall up with our English dead’

And how about: ‘Old men forget’

Or the even more famous ‘We few, we happy few, we band of brothers’ which continues: 

‘For he today that sheds his blood with me
Shall be my brother; be he ne’er so vile,
This day shall gentle his condition;
And gentlemen in England now a-bed
Shall think themselves accursed they were not here,
And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks
That fought with us upon Saint Crispin’s day.’

The Plain Facts

The battle of Agincourt took place on October 25, 1415. The English army, led by King Henry V and numbering just under 9,000 men, faced a French army of around 12,000 men. The French were led not by their king, Charles the Mad, but by the Constable of France (lieutenant-general) Charles d’Albret and the Marshal Jean II le Meingre (called Boucicaut).

The battle probably lasted only three hours or possibly even less and was a decisive English victory. It was tactically astute but won largely thanks to the longbow archers. Their arrows were as deadly in the middle ages as machine gun bullets were in the 20^th century.

The Agincourt victory sealed the young and as yet untried Henry’s rocky hold on his kingship in England. Importantly, it paved the way for the 1430 Treaty of Troyes which named Henry as heir to the French throne.

The Museum

The museum is so arranged that you can take a quick visit (one hour) or a longer one of two to three hours – both of which you navigate yourself. However long the visit, it takes in the major events from Henry’s landing at Harfleur in Normandy to the great battle itself. The longer visit goes into more detail about daily and military life and the background of the Hundred Years’ War (1337–1453).

It’s an intriguing museum, designed by Christophe Gillot, Director of the Centre and Anne Curry, Emeritus Professor of Medieval History at Southampton University. It’s full of interactive screens to play with (clearly delighting both children and adults), models, videos and some very funny touches – listen to the Hundred Years’ War explained in 100 seconds. You’ll have to concentrate to get the whole picture, but don’t worry, there’s a timeline and explanation as well. Everything is in French and English and the museum is quite small so you can double back and make your own way around as you want to.

What you see

The museum gives a lot of information in an easy and digestible way. Try games like Sovereigns of the Hundred Years’ War; what soldiers ate, and words from the Middle Ages. You see details of daily life, the clothes of the period, the illnesses, the treating of wounds.

The section devoted to armor shows how different ranks were protected (it, naturally, went according to how rich and powerful you were). A video demonstrates how a knight put on his armor (not an easy task), and you get a chance to feel the weight of a helmet, a sword and a breastplate. And you can test how long it takes to reload a crossbow – far longer than a longbow.

Agincourt lies in the 7 Valleys, a glorious area of small rivers and streams, valleys and forests. It’s one of France’s relatively unknown gems. Here the once prosperous town of Hesdin on the banks of the Canche river is brought to life; the relationship between town and country is revealed and you see daily life in Agincourt village.

There are extracts from two of the films of Shakespeare’s play, one made in 1944 starring Laurence Olivier, and a later version with Kenneth Branagh made in 1989. Of all the exhibits, the famous scene from the start of the battle in the 1944 film dominates on a huge screen and totally silent. The sight of the arrows arching into the air is mesmerizing and terrifying.

The Hundred Years’ War

In a slightly larger nutshell, here are the main events. Relations between the French and the English – pretty straightforward when William the Conqueror successfully invaded England in 1066 – became infinitely more complex through the next few hundred years. Much of the aristocracy in England were Anglo-French and the legal language was still French.

What was later called The Hundred Years’ War lasted from 1337 to 1453. Battles and skirmishes waxed and waned through the period over the legitimate succession to the French crown and ownership of a chunk of France. It began when King Edward III of England claimed the title King of France over the French Philip VI and invaded Flanders.

To the English, the great battles that kept England’s ownership of vast parts of the country from Gascony to Calais, were Crécy in 1346 and Poitiers ten years later.

Henry V came to the throne in 1413 but with a politically volatile aristocracy and a pretty lawless country his position was far from secure.

France wasn’t much better with the mad King on the throne. It wasn’t helped by the infighting between two branches of the royal family, the Armagnacs who supported the mad King, and the rebel Burgundians. They’d been fighting on and off since 1407.

In what was a huge gamble, the young, ambitious Lancastrian King Henry decided to ditch the negotiations on his claim – negotiations that had been going on for a year. The French had conceded to many of his demands but as is the way with an English side that ignores much of what the other offers, negotiations had broken down. And war, as monarchs and leaders have found throughout history, is a great way to distract the population.

The Journey to War

Clear, easy-to-follow maps, illustrative panels and models in the museum show Henry’s physical progress. He landed at Harfleur in Normandy in August 1415 with around 12,000 men. But Harfleur was heavily defended and the six week-siege cost Henry time and men. Some were casualties; others deserted; most succumbed to illness. ‘Dysentery carried off more of our men than the sword, and had so direly afflicted and disabled many of the rest that they could not journey on with him further‘, wrote a contemporary chronicler.  

On October 8, Henry left a garrison to defend Harfleur and set off with a considerably smaller army on the 320 km/200-mile journey towards English-held Calais. With the campaign season drawing to an end and winter approaching, Henry’s aim was to establish himself in Calais and hope to goad the French into war from his stronghold.

The French had other ideas.

Henry reached the Somme but didn’t cross at the obvious point as he expected the French to be waiting for him on the other side. Henry marched south and crossed the river near Péronne and found himself faced with French heralds summoning him to battle at Azincourt. Henry had around 9,000 soldiers; the French around 12,000.

The Strategy

The French initially called the shots. They had chosen the battlefield and had the larger army. But the make-up of the armies was vital. The English army of around 9,000 men was predominantly made up of those invaluable archers whose longbows had an effective range of 250 yards/229 metres (around 7,000 archers). The French had around 12,000 men, 75% of whom were knights and men-at-arms. The crossbow archers in the French army (Genovese mercenaries) may have had a weapon that went further and pierced harder but it took a long time to reload and there were far fewer of them. The French were relying on their heavy cavalry as shock troops.

Ever since the Battle of Crécy the English had found the longbow by far the most effective weapon. The archers lined up their arrows in front of them in the soil, making it an easy and rapid move to pick up and reload. It’s estimated that they fired an astonishing 1,000 arrows a second.

The museum has created an animation illustrating what it must have been like for the French knights at the receiving end of waves of arrows. Click here to see the museum’s video which comes from the website MechTraveller.

The sight of the arrows arching into the air is mesmerizing and terrifying.

The Battle of Agincourt

It was October 25, the feast day of St Crispin. The two armies are seen on screens in the museum preparing to fight. It’s an effective presentation; you feel the tension as dawn breaks and the two sides ready themselves.

On one side the English: Henry picked his position carefully with his men-at-arms at the centre, flanked by the archers, protected by woodlands on either side.

Opposing them were the French, their knights on horseback eager for a charge, a quick fight and even quicker victory.

At 11am the French cavalry advanced. The field was muddy; the heavy horses were slowed and then the rain of arrows began. The first French line charged at the English front, into sharpened stakes driven into the ground. Horses fell or were disabled by swords or daggers thrust upwards wielded by the English men-at-arms and at this point by the archers. Knights were dragged off their mounts, their heavy unwieldy armor preventing them from fighting effectively; their helmets stopping them seeing the enemy clearly.

The French advanced a second time, falling once again to the deadly arrow storm, adding to the chaos, and to the growing piles of dead and wounded men and horses in front of the English lines.

Henry V ignores the Rules of Warfare

‘I was not angry since I came to France, until this moment’

The English were taking prisoners when a group of local French led by noblemen attacked the baggage train to steal whatever they could find. In Shakespeare’s play the French kill the young English guards, justifying Henry’s cutting the throats of the French prisoners, even herding one group into a barn which was then set on fire. In fact he had no justification for killing the prisoners, many of whom were among the French aristocracy.

The whole battle lasted just three hours and possibly less. It’s been estimated that the English lost about 400 men. Edward, Duke of York who had saved his nephew, Henry V, from the Duke d’Alencon’s axe blows, and Michael de la Pole, Earl of Suffolk were the two most important English casualties. The French by contrast lost around 6,000 men, many of them the cream of the French nobility.

After the Battle

That night, the English buried their dead. Henry, fearful of a French attack, ordered his soldiers not to collect booty from the dead French but to burn it.

Early on October 26^th, the English left the battlefield with the French prisoners he had. Henry marched to Calais and arrived back in England in November. On November 23^rd he entered London, feted and honored, and now safe on his throne.

The French Dead

With the French army comprehensively beaten, the cream of their knights killed and the dynastic war continuing, France was fatally weak. Unable to fight off the English, Normandy fell to Henry in 1419. The following year, 600 years ago, the Treaty of Troyes betrothed Henry to King Charles VI’s daughter Catherine and named him heir to the French crown.

Surprises at Agincourt

The Gendarmes

Travelling in France you’ll come across the gendarmes in their distinctive blue uniforms looking after the countryside and all French roads (maybe catching you speeding). They aren’t part of the police, but part of the French Army. Originally called the Maréchaussée, they were noble knights, part of the French cavalry and regarded as the elite. They were formed during the Hundred Years’ War to help counter the threat from England.

At Agincourt they were commanded by the 60-year-old Gallois de Fougières, the Prévôt des Maréchaux (Provost of the Marshals). He was born in Berry, went on the Crusade in 1396 and then travelled to Italy in 1410. He’s considered the first gendarme who was killed at Agincourt. He was buried at nearby Auchy-lès-Hesdin along with other knights of the time including the Admiral of France. In 1936 his skeleton was taken to Versailles and buried under the monument to the gendarmerie in Versailles.

One of the oldest national institutions in France, the military unit policed the countryside for centuries. In 1720 they were organized into units and in 1791 the Maréchaussée was renamed the Gendarmerie nationale.

The Soldier-Poet

One of the prisoners Henry took back to England was Charles, Duke of Orléans, discovered alive and well under a pile of dead bodies. The head of the Armagnac faction and in line of succession to the French throne as a Valois, he was far too important to be ransomed and sent back to France.

Charles was a poet, writing a love letter to his wife when in England. He uses the term ‘Valentine’ and it has been taken as the first Valentine poem.

My very gentle Valentine,
Since for me you were born too soon
And I for you was born too late.
God forgives him who has estranged
Me from you for the whole year.
I am already sick of love,
My very gentle Valentine.

Charles spent 24 years in captivity in England, moving between castles throughout the country and writing around 500 extant poems in French and English. He never saw his wife; she died between 1430 and 1435. He returned to France in 1440, married Marie of Cleves in Saint Omer and died at Amboise in 1465. He’s buried in St Denis, Paris.

How to get to Azincourt 1415 by car: If you are coming from Calais, the approximately 78 km/48 mile journey takes around one hour.
Check our Ferries to France

The Agincourt Battlefield

Today there’s little to see, just a stone marker, a small wooden building marking the ploughed fields where the great battle took place. The museum will give you a map to drive around the various viewpoints but it takes a large feat of the imagination to conjure up the scene.

A mass grave lies somewhere near here where thousands of bodies, most of them stripped completely naked by the local peasants in the night after the battle, lie buried. But the museum and the local authorities fear that if the exact location is known, enthusiastic searchers armed with metal detectors will overrun the place. So for now, the dead remain peacefully in the earth.

Related Articles

Read the Intriguing Story of French Food through the ages from the Romans who started it all, through the Kings who encouraged it (at least for the rich) and how the French Revolution kicked off the Restaurant Revolution.

More Medieval Towns and Connections

• Guide to Calais, the city with medieval connections and a great history with the English.

• The Bayeux Tapestry, that great depiction of one of the great battles of all time.

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