Events in 2008
Churchyard Headstones
A small number of our history group have made a start on recording details of all the graves in the village churchyard for future reference. This involved the photographing of the gravestones with a view to recording the details of them all on CD. Some clearance of vegetation was necessary as a preliminary and also detailed deciphering in some instances.
We receive enquiries from many parts of the country, and some from as far afield as Australia, owing to the recent popularity of genealogy.
A few brave villagers have also made a start on the demanding task of clearing dense brambles and ivy from some of the oldest and more obscure graves to the east of the church.
Our sincere thanks to all concerned!
Annual Group Outing
May 15th was the start of our 4 day outing to Chichester. On the outward leg we called at Hever castle, the former home of Anne Boleyn, with a wonderful display of Tudor portraits and a lifesize waxwork group of King Henry and his six wives. It is a 13th century moated castle which had later extensive restoration undertaken by a former owner, William Waldorf Astor, in the 1900s.
The gardens were a delight with topiary, rose garden, ponds, and cascading water. The Italian Gardens featured many classical sculptures, some dating back 2000 years.
Our hotel was the Avisford Park near Chichester: extremely well appointed with pleasant gardens and many spectacular azaleas in a variety of colours. (The food was first class too.) Even this hotel had an interesting history having formerly housed a private school until 1974. The names of previous prominent pupils are still to be seen painted in gold on oak panelling in the dining room.
The guided tour of Chichester on Friday began at the beautiful Cathedral, said to be one of the largest in the country and begun in 1075 in what was originally an important Roman city. The streets in this (very small) city were on the typical Roman grid system and the walls are still in evidence around the place.
The Saturday visit included Fishbourne Roman Palace with its amazing variety of tessellated pavings. A large part of the former Roman habitation is now almost surrounded by a modern housing development and it was because of this that the remains were discovered. In the 1960s a large mechanical digger ripped through the ground and uncovered the beautiful mosaic flooring, but not before irreparable damage had been done. This largest domestic building found in Britain was possibly the residence of King Togidubnus. A prominent archeaologist bought the land and this enabled the site to be opened to the public in 1968. Lottery funding has helped with later developments.
The afternoon was spent in Brighton or at Arundel Castle, according to the choice of individuals. The castle is owned by the Duke of Norfolk and is enormous in size.
The Great Hall has a hammer beam roof which again was spectacular as were the displays of “armour through the ages” and portraits by Van Dyk and Mytens.
Following this we walked around the new “Collector Earls” garden which was opened by Prince Charles the previous week. Again, this was a most unusual project which is apparently a tribute to Inigo Jones and Thomas Howard, the 14th Duke of Arundel.
Instead of stone, the temples, portals, inscriptions, obelisks and urns are made of green oak. The garden is a mixture of ideas, with tropical plants and a “Mother of Pearl” grotto inside of which is a golden coronet rising magically above a jet of water.
On the homeward journey our final call was to Chartwell, the former home of Sir Winston Churchill which he purchased in 1922 and is now owned by the National Trust. Apart from the 6 years of the war it was his family home until his death in 1965. Rooms in the house reflect the ‘20s and ‘30s and are furnished with fresh flowers daily grown in his garden. The house has magnificent views over the Weald of Kent and his Art studio displays many of his paintings.
We had a memorable 4 days and our sincere thanks are to Tony and June Suter for their efforts in organising it all.
Events 2009
On Saturday May 30th 47 members and friends went to Whitby.
After a scenic ride over the Yorkshire Moors we had a guided tour of the town, followed by free time to explore. The weather was glorious and a few of us used the open-top bus which took in the abbey en route, so saving a climb of the 199 steps . This included lots more interesting commentary- all for £3.
Many thanks to Tony and June Suter for their efforts in organisation.
Four days in Llanberis is planned for October - watch this space.
AH
