For D-Day, I wanted to feature this embroidered work commemorating D-Day, as it has come to my attention that not many people seem to be aware of it.
The Overlord Embroidery, echoing the Bayeux Tapestry created 900 years before to commemorate the reverse invasion of England from Normandy, is a narrative embroidery that depicts the story of the D-Day Landings of 6 June 1944 and the subsequent Battle of Normandy. The story is told across 34 hand stitched panels running in total to 83 metres in length.
The embroidery was created between 1968 and 1974, and is now on permanent display at The D-Day Story, Southsea, Portsmouth.
The embroidery tells the story of Operation Overlord, which was the code name for the Allied invasion of Normandy in June 1944. The narrative begins well before the invasion, with war-time production and The Blitz. It continues through the entry of the United States into the war, and the planning and preparation of the invasion. The majority of the work covers the crossing of the English Channel by the invasion fleet and the combat once the troops landed on the French coast. The embroidery ends with a scene of British infantry advancing as German troops retreat across the Seine.
Here is a You Tube video which is not very good quality. Someone filmed it on their phone to give an idea what it is like.
It is not possible for me to do justice to this huge work on my blog, so if you are ever in the Portsmouth area of southern England, try to get to see it for yourself.
beetleypete 