The arrival of the Bayeux Tapestry in London and political events closer to our own time remind us that regime changes have massive impacts on countries’ populations. We hear about the politics, but what was life actually like in England in the lead up to the Battle of Hastings?  We hope to give a flavour of it in this year’s conference, at a new venue which we hope you will enjoy.

The conference will explore the late Anglo-Saxon period from various viewpoints and we have gathered together some of the south’s leading experts to help us:

Professor Ryan Lavelle will expound on the state of the country prior to the Norman invasion

Dr Rob Webley, an expert on medieval metalwork, will use finds from the Portable Antiquities Scheme to illustrate daily life

Professor Emeritus Barbara Yorke will highlight the the importance of the Church in everyday life

Dr Katherine Weikert will enlarge on what it was like to be living in medieval times

Our own Mary Harris will talk about the Tapestry itself and reveal some surprises about its content and construction.

Image: Harold Godwinson and his retinue at Bosham (W Sussex) in 1064.