The Battle Conference on Anglo-Norman Studies is an annual conference devoted to English and Norman medieval history and culture. It focuses primarily, but not exclusively, on the eleventh and twelfth centuries. Its purpose, as formulated by its founder R. Allen Brown in 1978, is 'to discuss and forward knowledge on all aspects of Anglo-Norman history, with particular reference to the Anglo-Norman realm, but also to be concerned with the Old English and Scandinavian contribution to the Anglo-Norman achievement in Italy, Sicily, Spain and the Crusades'.

The Proceedings of the Conference, now entitled Anglo-Norman Studies, have been published annually since 1978. All papers delivered to the Conference are given at the invitation of the Conference director and editor of Anglo-Norman Studies, at present David Bates.

With the conference’s traditional venue at Pyke House (on the field of the Battle of Hastings) no longer available, the conference has become peripatetic. Having been held in Norwich in 2010, it was held at York in 2011, and in 2012 will be held at Bayeux in the l’Espace Saint-Patrice (1 Place Saint-Patrice, 14400 Bayeux). It has been organised in collaboration with town of Bayeux and with the museum in which the Bayeux Tapestry is displayed. As ever, it seeks to include established and younger scholars working on every aspect of the subject area. By having no more than four c.50 minute papers a day, the Conference ensures that there is plenty of time for discussion, both fairly formal and very informal.

Battle Abbey, entrance

The conference centre in the Place Saint-Patrice is within easy walking distance of the Musée de la Tapisserie, the cathedral, and the town centre. Formal registration for the conference will be done through the University of East Anglia (battle@uea.ac.uk). Because of the variety of accommodation that has been made available to us in Bayeux, the registration fee payable will depend on which accommodation is chosen with the various levels of fee are set out on the accompanying booking-form (for which click on Programme). The registration fee covers the cost of lunches, dinners, tea/coffee breaks, the excursion on Monday 30 July, and whichever type of accommodation from the list is selected. The closing date for registration is 30 April 2012; we have had to set this to meet the requirements of the hotels with whom we have negotiated special rates (Bayeux is a small town and will of course at the end of July be full of tourists), and because the enquiries we have already received indicate that the conference will again be popular. All queries about the conference should be addressed to the Conference Director David Bates (David.Bates@uea.ac.uk).

In 1987 (the Conference's tenth year and the 900th anniversary of the death of William the Bastard/Conqueror) the Conference met in Caen, and it has now established a tradition of travelling in every fifth year - in 1992 to Palermo, in 1997 to Dublin, in 2002 to Glasgow, and in 2007 to Gregynog, Montgomeryshire'. The 2012 conference continues this tradition by being held in Bayeux.

This year, as always, the conference meets over the last weekend in July, but, because it is being held abroad in a site of exceptional interest, it will last for one day longer than usual. The Allen Brown Memorial Lecture is being given by Professor Véronique Gazeau of the Université de Caen Basse-Normandie and will be followed by a reception hosted by the Mayor of Bayeux. The conference will finish at lunch-time on Tuesday. As always, there will be visits to sites of interest in and around Bayeux, including special visits to the Tapestry and the Cathedral.

Details of the programme are now available. To be put on the mailing list or for further information about the conference please contact the director, David Bates, at David.Bates@uea.ac.uk. Please note that there is no 'call for papers' for the Battle Conference and that all papers are read at the director's invitation. Suggestions for suitable speakers are, however, welcome at any time. For further information about any other aspect of the conference please contact David Bates, at David.Bates@uea.ac.uk.

The R Allen Brown Trust has some limited funds and likes to use them to assist postgraduates to meet costs of attending the conference. Details of how to apply for bursaries will be posted soon.