This is one I should probably try to clean up in Photoshop. I dig the pose and expression but the focus and light balance aren't so great.

A few months ago, I visited St Mary, Brook here in Kent, and found that the north wall had the remains of a squint which used to enable the intern in an anchorite cell to see inside.

 

THe most famous anchorite was St Julian, a woman of 14th century Norwich, whose real name we do not know, but was given the name of the church where she was an anchorite.

 

Looking at the history of the church, I see that the original building was destroyed by bombs in the war, and what we see now is completely post-war, and the remains of the cell I had been hoping to see is now marked by a small chapel on the south wall. Whereas the cell would have been found on the north wall.

 

Many people come now to St JUlian on pilgrimage, and there is an attached centre which offers resource.

 

I arrived here at half eight on a Saturday morning, when the city was yet to wake, and I had the church to myself.

 

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This small church has an international reputation, as it was here that Dame Julian of Norwich lived in the later 14th century.

 

The building as it now stands dates almost entirely from 1953, when it was rebuilt after suffering a direct hit from a bomb in 1942. The church was also reconsecrated in 1953.

 

There is good reason to believe that a church has stood here since Anglo-Saxon times, although whether the destroyed building was of Saxon date, or Saxon workmanship but post-1066, is difficult to decide.

 

The north wall of the nave is original, and repairs after the bombing revealed a number of circular windows, (oculi) quite high up – a standard method of lighting Anglo-Saxon churches. One has been reopened, and another was turned into a round-headed window. Similar windows were found in the south wall of the chancel, although these were not reopened.

 

The tower, one of four round towers in Norwich, took the hit, and collapsed across the body of the church. It was partly rebuilt, and further heightened by about four feet in 198., to provide a housing for the bell.

 

Almost everything in the church dates from the rebuild of 1953. Three things pre-date it. First, the font, which is c1420, and stood originally in All Saints’ church; it was brought here when that church closed in 1977. It has carvings of the twelve apostles round the bowl, and eight other saints round the stem. The reredos survived the bomb, and was placed here in 1931; it was made in Oberammergau. Finally, the door to the Cell, which is a Norman archway. It was in fact the main door to St Michael-at-Thorn, a nearby church which was also destroyed on the same night in 1942, and never rebuilt.

 

The organ loft was built in 1981. The organ on it is by Henry Jones, of 1860.

Some photographs showing the interior before damage are at the back of the church.

 

All except a couple of floor-slabs were destroyed.

 

There are two windows, one between the Cell and the chancel, showing the Lily Crucifix, and Julian; the other, in the opposite wall, shows the seven sacraments. Both are by the firm of King of Norwich.

 

The Cell

 

This was built on what was thought to be site of Julian’s cell, although there is no evidence to support this. It was more likely to have been on the north side, and may have been detached from the church altogether. (The flint ‘foundations’ are more likely to be those of buttresses.)

 

Dame Julian

 

Despite common perceptions, the church is not dedicated to her, not did she necessarily take her name from the church, as ‘Julian’ (a form of Gillian) was a common name for women in the Middle Ages. Falling ill in 1373, she had a series of visions (‘shewings’) dealing with aspects of Christ’s passion. When she recovered, she became an anchoress at this church, and her musings on her shewings were eventually written down (‘The Revelations of Divine Love’). This is the first known book to be written in English by a woman.

 

www.norwich-churches.org/St Julian/home.shtm

 

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Julian (1342-1413) was a 14th century mystic, an anchoress, or female hermit, who lived in a small cell attached to St Julian's church, next to one of the busiest roads in medieval Norwich. Strangely, we do not know her real name; she is only known by her association with the church of St Julian.

 

In truth we do not know much of anything about her, except that she almost certainly was not a nun, but a lay person who chose a life of contemplation. She was also not the first person to use the anchorite cell attached to St Julian's church; it was used before her time and again after her death.

Julian is remembered at Norwich Cathedral with a statue on the west front and a pair of stained glass windows. One of the windows, in the Bauchon Chapel, portrays her as a Benedictine nun, which she was not. She is often called a saint as well, and she's not that either!

 

Anchoresses could not leave their cells; essentially they were walled in, so the decision to become an anchorite or anchoress was a serious one, and required a lifetime of dedication and commitment.

 

Because of that dedication, people often came to anchoresses for counsel, believing them to be wise or holy people. one visitor to 'Julian' was Margery Kempe (c.1373 – c.1438), who later dictated The Book of Margery Kempe, considered the first autobiography in English. This book detailed Kempe's numerous pilgrimages, and it is partly through this that we know so much about St Julian and her life.

 

On 8 May 1373 the anchoress Julian was struck by a severe illness which left her close to death. During the illness she had 16 visions, visions which she was moved to write down after her recovery. These writings took 20 years to complete, and are recorded in two stages. Immediately after her visions Julian wrote down a brief account. One can imagine her quickly scribbling down details of her impressions before she could forget them.

 

Then, after taking time to meditate on the visions, Julian began to write out a much longer, more detailed account, called The Long Text. This was sometime after 1393. Julian's visions became Revelations of Divine Love, the first book written by a woman in English, and a spiritual classic even today.

 

Unlike many religious teachings of her day, Julian did not write of a vengeful or judgemental God, but a God with an all-enveloping love, like a tender mother or father. This message of Divine Love ran counter to many religious teachings both at that time and since, but the simple, clear way she expressed her ideas continue to find an audience today, and her writings have been published in a multitude of languages and remain in print today.

 

ulian's hermitage was torn down at the Reformation, but after the church was hit by a bomb in WWII, the cell was rebuilt along with the very simple nave and chancel of the main church. Excavations uncovered what was thought to be the original foundations of the sanctuary and St Julian's cell.

 

The church was rebuilt using the original materials, so that it is essentially the 'same' medieval church, just reordered. Norwich did not really need another parish church; it has plenty to spare, but the church was rebuilt in part to act as a focus for the shrine of Lady Julian of Norwich. The north wall of the nave is largely original, with several small round windows suggeting a construction date sometime in the late 11th century.

 

Just one footnote to the rebuilding story; there is actually no firm evidence that the foundations discovered on the south side of the church were those of Julian's cell. It would have been much more commmon fore an anchoress cell to be built on the north side of the church.

 

From the nave a Romanesque doorway leads down a few steps to the hermitage, where you will find a separate altar and a small shrine against the north wall. This is, as closely as we can tell, where the original cell connected with the church. The best historic features inside the church are a 15th century octagonal font, brought here from All Saints church in the city centre after the original 15th century font was destroyed in the bombing.

 

Another historic feature is the Romanesque doorway, which has very nicely carved capitals, though rather worn with age. But most people don't come here for the architecture, though it is interesting, but for the connection with Julian.

 

www.britainexpress.com/counties/norfolk/norwich/st-julian...

 

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St Julian, although almost forgotten today, was a popular figure in medieval legend. He was a nobleman who, out hunting one day, spared the life of a deer which had admonished him. It then went on to make the rather startling prediction that he would kill his parents. By roundabout means, this accidentally happened; Julian resolved to pay penance by establishing a riverside inn for travellers, and a hospital for the poor. So, he was an entirely appropriate choice of patron for the medieval Priory established here in the medieval suburb of Conesford on the banks of the Wensum.

 

he Priory has long gone. In the 18th and 19th century this north bank area of the city was taken over with factories, warehouses and working class housing. They took the place of small artisans' cottages and workshops, some of which survive. In the late middle ages, much of East Anglia's stained glass and memorial brasses had been made here, but over the following centuries you would have been more likely to find tanneries and slaughterhouses. Only now is this area undergoing a full-scale regeneration that may see it become the city's artists quarter. King Street, the main road that ran through Conesford, is being gentrified, but still the urban decay of centuries clings to the old buildings.

But although this church is a small and rebuilt building, tucked away in what is still the anonymous and run down inner city, St Julian is one of the most famous of Norwich's churches because it is associated with the mystical visions of the Blessed Mother Julian of Norwich. Both church and mystic took their name from the adjacent Priory; in a way, it is a coincidence that they share it.

 

When Dame Julian came here, the church looked much as it did in the early 19th century drawing above. By the time George Plunkett took his 1937 photographs on the right, the Victorians had replaced the chancel, but it was still substantially a medieval church.

Incidentally, Dame Julian did not actually receive her visions at this church; some people are disappointed when they discover this. In fact, we don't know who she really was at all. She was a woman, of course, and probably of noble birth; she fell ill in the 1370s, probably in one of the outbreaks of the Black Death which carried off half Norfolk's population between the late 1340s and the end of the century.

 

In her deathbed delirium, she claimed, she received mystical visions, which she termed Revelations of Divine Love. On her unexpected recovery, she was received into holy orders, taking the name Julian, and became an Anchoress.

 

An Anchoress was a kind of female hermit, walled up in a room on the side of a church with a view of the altar. Meals would be passed to her, ablutions passed out, and she would offer advice to visitors; but her existence was largely a contemplative one. Her male equivalent would have been an Anchorite; there is surviving evidence of Anchorite or Anchoress cells at half a dozen East Anglian churches.

 

here was a great craze for Anchorites and Anchoresses in the late 14th century, mainly as a result of the way in which the Black Death had concentrated our minds and made us serious. Dame Julian devoted her time to prayer and contemplation of her visions, which she wrote down in English.

The manuscripts were scattered to the four winds by the Reformation, and it was really only in the 20th century that the importance of her work in both literary and spiritual terms was recognised. The most striking thing about the Revelations is quite simply that, at a time when an obsession with death, doom and gloom would have been entirely reasonable, they are optimistic and uplifting, an affirmation of our relationship with God. They suggest that our ultimate destiny is intended by God to be beautiful and glorious, and that life is not a test which sends its failures to hell.

 

Roger Clarke, a friend of this site, points out this has always been a rundown and poor part of Norwich, even in medieval days. Because even in the fifteenth century the Conesford area had a certain reputation, Roger writes, I have always felt that this adds to the specialness of the place. Mother Julian's Revelations are highly incarnational and stress the reality of Christ sharing in the messes and confusion of human existence - grace is very much earthed and earthy for her. What better place for the Revelations than a church in a run-down, slightly seedy, decayed, red-light district ? The holy is glimpsed, not in the purity of isolation, but in the ordinary - or, as Mother Julian, would call it "the homely". The Revelations are at the forefront of medieval northern European spiritual writing.

 

Although she has never been officially recognised as a Saint, Mother Julian is often treated as one (Blakeney church has a window of 'St Julian of Norwich') and her patronal day of May 8th is included in the Ordo of both the Church of England and of the Catholic Church in England and Wales.

A 1905 photograph of the interior above shows us that St Julian was a spectacularly high church at the start of the 20th century. The rood beam inscription reads And Incense shall be offered unto My Name and a Pure Offering received. But during the 1942 air raids on Norwich, St Julian was one of five city churches destroyed by the bombing.

 

2005, looking east: the doorway to the cell is on the right

Thanks to the significance of its most famous resident, it was the only one to be rebuilt, and this was done in the 1950s according to its original plan, except that the presumed site of Mother Julian's cell was added as a transept, accessed through a massive Norman doorway brought here from the bombed out church of St Michael at Thorn. The steeply pitched roof gives it an attractively rustic feel, and the Saxon windows exposed by the bombing have been left as features on the north side. The tower was left at a lower level, and is now less-convincingly Norman than it was before the bombing.

 

George Plunkett's 1946 photograph shows St Julian in ruins at the end of the war, and reminds us quite how complete the destruction was - far greater than at St Paul, for example. By the 1950s, work was in progress; the second photograph shows the state of play in 1952; in the foreground is Mother Julian's cell being constructed on the presumed site of its predecessor. On the same day, the north side is shown below, with the completed church being landscaped in 1962 in the fourth photograph.

 

The twelve-storey council block of Normandie tower looms over the church, and in this challenging area it was fitting that a group of Anglican nuns from the Community of All Hallows at Ditchingham on the outskirts of Bungay should have set up a community beside the church in the 1950s. In the reorganisation of Norwich parishes, this was one of two churches in the new Parmentergate parish to survive as a working church - the other is St John Timberhill.

 

We had just arrived inside St Julian to hear whispered voices coming from the south transept, when all of a sudden a nun came flying out through the Norman doorway into the body of the church. Not literally flying, of course, but she was certainly fleet of foot. "Hello sister, is it all right to have a look around?", I said, because it seemed only polite to ask.

 

"Can you wait a few minutes?" she replied, breathlessly, "we're in the middle of a Eucharist." And then she was gone, out of the north door. Well, what would you do? I thought about it, and began to photograph the font. I had just become engrossed in this when the breathless nun fled back in, carrying a large consecration host. She skipped back into the transept, and a few moments later we heard her voice begin to intone the third eucharistic prayer. I am not a member myself, but I love the Church of England and its funny little ways.

 

The font I was photographing came from All Saints in the city centre, another example of the way in which surviving Norwich churches have been enriched by those that fell to redundancy. It is similar to one that was in St James, but which has now been moved to a church in Norwich's northern suburbs. There is another in the series at Stalham. It was brought here to replace a 15th century font with shields that was destroyed by the bombs - you can see both fonts below, the earlier one photographed in 1937 by George Plunkett.

 

Although I have been fortunate enough to visit this church on a number of occasions, and have usually basked in its peaceful and contemplative atmosphere, we were in a hurry on this particular day, because it was the National Heritage open day 2005, when all of Norwich's medieval churches were open. St Julian is always open daily anyway, but most Norwich churches are not; so we pressed on to St Peter Parmentergate and left St Julian's nuns to their Eucharist. Peter Stephens kindly came to the rescue with the photographs below, which include the cell and the cell itself, which was inaccessible because of that eucharist and its attendant nuns.

 

I do admire Anglican nuns. Over in the Catholic Church there are thousands and thousands of nuns, mostly now in plain clothes, all over the world. They bestride the globe with their sleeves rolled up, teaching, running hospitals, contemplating, suing for peace in war zones, standing up to Bishops; one critic described them as the shock troops of Vatican II. But at least they know they are at the heart of their Church.

 

Not so Anglican nuns. You have to be someone really special to devote your life, quite literally, to a Church where you are in a tiny minority of the clerisy, where half the members of the Church don't even know that you exist, and, worse, some of those who do know about you wish that you didn't. Just imagine; you give up everything, only to watch the worldwide Anglican communion tearing itself apart, and the Church at home preparing to sink the life rafts that kept the Anglo-catholics afloat after the decision to ordain women Priests. Blimey. That'd be a test for your vocation and no mistake.

Perhaps it is a comfort for them to be here, and to sense the echo of Mother Julian's words: All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well...

 

Simon Knott, November 2005

 

www.norfolkchurches.co.uk/norwichjulian/norwichjulian.htm

In the midst of lockdown numero uno in Lahore over the weekend, I decided to head to my village in Radhan, a half an hour or so from Sargodha. Traffic in Lahore was beyond light, almost absent, so we hit the motorway quickly and reached Sargodha earlier than expected. I thought the drive through the city would have been a much desired breeze as well but the residents of the city seemed to be out and about per their normal routine. Clearly the rules set upon the larger cities hadn’t taken effect here yet. But it was the village that was the bubble existing above and beyond everything that seemed to be happening in the world.

 

Unlike the rest of it, or at least the West, Pakistan has taken the approach of slow roll-out in what was likely going to be a long-term lockdown. We had started with 2 days on March 21st, now we are at 15 and everyone assumes that will be extended in the same slots indefinitely. A few stories about the treatment of those who have revealed their state of being positive to the State have been frightening to the point that unless faced by death, I think people will stick it out in their rooms. And some might also prefer to die there.

 

There are articles abound about people in the north testing positive, then running away from the health facilities to God knows where. No one has a real clue what is happening of course and beyond the “We love China” anthem the PM is singing, what we are really hoping for is one of those hospitals our “all-weather friend” built in 8 days, (or was it 18), to pop up in at least one province each. Personally, I would rather the People's Republic ended the internment of a million Muslims but we seem to have already signed off on that being ok.

 

The poor are scared out of their wits because we have extremely high numbers of workers in the larger cities who earn their income on a daily basis and with the shutdown, they don’t have a clue as to how to feed their families. Those of the Sahib e Taufeeq are therefore anxiously and quickly trying to distribute ration for a month to as many families as possible. Meanwhile the Sahib e Maal contingent is interneting themselves to wherever that will lead, which we will soon discover.

 

In Lahore, if one meets someone, all one talks about is the virus. For a while at least. That has been my experience of the under 50 crowd. It’s like the greeting of “salam” changed to “yaar yeh kya cheez aa gayee hai?” which then moves forward into exchanges of updates and readings per each person’s interest and/or fear of death. Since I have been most influenced by my friends and elders who, while taking sensible precautions, believe in the “jiss ko hona hai, uss to hona hai” (whoever’s going to get it is going to get it) school of thought, I have little to offer.

 

While being holed up, I scan Drudge and get the scariest breaking updates of the world on a daily basis. It makes me smile that the US has already ingrained into the public that 18 months are on the horizon for this nightmare and we are going forward in 15 day increments. I guess if the Pakistani Government made a similar announcement of 180 days (plus), people would just be like “screw it” and brazen defiance would follow. The rest of my days are spent humming tunes to come up with melodies for the kalam in my book which I then share with my friend, Ustad Imran and we play with it till its ready for upload on a gorgeous insta page, courtesy of Hiba.

 

Meanwhile, the rumour mills are spewing out new suggestions daily. High on the list is bio-weaponary going out of hand. China-US-Israel are the three villains most frequently named. On the spiritual side a trusted spiritual master says it is the fasid jinns, who, in collusion with fasid humans, are creating this havoc. Like millions, I have all my hopes tied to the return of Imam Mahdi (as) who might appear to save the day.

 

The Saudis closing Umra, cancelling Haj and making the tawaaf practically void is what saddens the believers the most. As one who had intended to perform the Haj this year, it is no doubt tremendously disappointing. But then I had heard from my Mamu many years before he passed that the Haj would stop in the future. I just imagined that it would happen because of war, not a plague. The Naqshbandis were told by their Spiritual Master, Sheikh Nazim (ra), that blight would arise from China and spread into the world and would disappear one day just like it came. In the days through it, he had advised his disciples to give sadqa to express their gratitude for life.

 

But coming back to the story of the village. After having lunch and meeting Pathani, who worked for me for 20 some years and is now retired, I sat with the women who work in the house near their out-door kitchen. I began the conversation in the way I had been taught these past few days in Lahore. Except it was in Punjabi.

 

“Yaar eh ke shay saddey pichay peh gayee hai” (what is this strange thing that has come after us?)

 

The women looked at me but no one said anything. I waited but they seemed to be waiting also, I gathered, for me to continue. When I didn’t, they just went back to what they were doing. I gave it another shot.

 

“So everyone in Lahore is holed up in their houses and living in fear,” I attempted raising the bar from casual conversation to sensationalism. “No one goes anywhere and all the markets are closed.”

 

Again I received nothing.

 

I think one woman said, “Jiya” in a tone which best translates into a flat “I guess” or “Mmm hmmm.”

 

I started smiling. “You guys are really lucky,” changing gears yet again, this time offering praise of good fortune. “You can roam around and it’s so beautiful here. And clean. And the food is good and fresh. And there’s hardly any people.” I racked my brain for more positives. “And it hasn’t turned hot yet so the weather is perfect.”

 

This time instead of one, I got three “Jiyas” and one “Jiya Ji.” It made me give up. I’ll try again tomorrow I thought. I got a charpaaye and spend the rest of the day in the massive garden reading books I had brought with me from Lahore and again, humming the melody of the next tune. It was by Baba Farid Kot Mithan (ra) and I have to say it had an effect on my heart that was superbly softening. Sometimes the words made me smile and sometimes I cried. I love the range of the arc that poetry can make, going from the earth to the sky, from the sun to the moon, from the day to the night and from the heart to the heart.

 

The next day I went for a walk in the kinoo gardens. The fruit has been picked but the orange blossoms were in full bloom and deeply intoxicating. I sat under a tree brimming with the flowers and listened to music on my Ipod. At lunch the women sat nearby, possibly feeling bad for me that I always came all alone. I decided, incorrigibly, to mention the virus again.

 

“So to stay safe you have to wash your hands A LOT. My teacher, Qari Sahib, says to just stay in a state of wudu. Even if you are not going to pray soon.”

 

I looked at each woman one by one, this time awaiting their favoured response.

 

“Jiya,” said one. “This is a good suggestion.”

 

I was dying to ask if they did that or prayed but gained control of myself.

 

Usually the gate to the house is left open for people from the village, essentially women, to come in and say hello to the arrivals from the city. But this time Pathani had given strict instructions to the chawkidaar to not let anyone in.

 

“Not even Ghulam Biwi?” I asked. As I write this I wonder if her name is Ghulam Bibi re-pronounced Biwi in the village or if she was literally named “the wife of Ghulam.” Probably the former. How would anyone know the husband’s name at birth?

 

“No,” she decided. “Best to be safe. She roams around the whole village and God only knows where else all day.”

 

Amma Ghulam Biwi was an old woman in her 70s who was almost deaf. On every visit I had made in the last few years, she had come to see me. She had a lovely voice and knew tons of Punjabi songs, film and spiritual kalam, and would sing to me. She loved Nur Jahan tracks from the 60s and I enjoyed my time with her. The conversations were by sign of course. She loved me and I loved her.

 

She was the reason I had come to understand that the prayers of a poor person, who one is kind to, far exceed in their expression the prayers of even one’s own parents. “Takhtaan te bakhtaan,” is what she always asked for me. Thrones and best of fortunes! I’m pretty sure neither of my parents ever prayed for thrones for me! Plus I often heard her address God as “Takhtaan te bakhtaan aaliya,” which meant she was asking Him to give me of Himself and that which is His. Not to mention the ask of never-ending wealth and telling Allah to give me more and more and more. Again, I don’t think my parents asked for that either! If they did it would have indeed been strange. Then there was “Allah raazi howey iss tun,” the most elevated prayer of all, “God, be pleased with her.”

 

I was a little bummed that I was not going to see her but it seemed like the thing to do. But fortune had other plans. Later in the afternoon I went to the family graveyard, just outside the women’s house and adjacent to the haveli the men occupy. For the second time in my lifetime, I went to the graves inside the mosque where my grandfather, his brother and their father are buried. Usually I just sit in the area outside where the rest of our family, including my mother and sister are, but I had visited the village a month before with my Nani (kind of) who is in her 90s and had gone inside with her.

 

When we had arrived at the graveyard then, just the walk from the car to the graves, only a few feet away, had taken so long and seemed so tiring for her that I had told her to just pray from there and not walk the extra few feet to where her father and brothers were buried. She had waived me away as if I had suggested something beyond ludicrous and said, “Then why am I here?”

 

With her nurse holding her on one side and me on the other, we had gone into the small room where the three graves lay in a line. In the back was a large marble slab and on it was a Surah from the Quran. She had kept insisting she wanted to read it herself but when I asked if she wanted a chair brought in while she did so, she had waived me away again. Apparently it was another absurd idea. I told her I would read it for her and while she sat at the feet of her father, I recited the Surah.

 

It was Al-Mulk and I remember crying the whole way through it. I didn’t understand it all of course but I wept because of the lines addressing the ungrateful who will be asked if a warner came to them and they will say, yes, a warner did come but we rejected him. I cried because I didn’t understand why they rejected him and I hoped I wasn’t one of them because rejection has its own layers. And I sobbed because of those I love deeply who live restless lives in perpetuity but refuse to unhinge themselves from a position that they took for one reason, one incidence or another, that had now taken hold of them, replacing all their happiness with anxiety and paranoia to live a life lifeless.

 

But it was the second line that never left me from that first time I read it for it had triggered a significant part of my understanding of the Quran.

 

"He who created death and life, that He may test which of you is best in deed.

 

And He is the Bestower of Honor and Oft-Forgiving."

 

The revelation had formed a chunk of my address at the book launch: that the verses of deep consequence referencing “deed,” giving it a singular, exalted status repeatedly by God, tie in precisely and inextricably with the multitude of verses on Nabi Kareem (saw) as the one to follow and obey. Making his deed one’s own rendered one “best” indeed.

 

This was going to be the second time I would enter the room inside the mosque. I had heard earlier in the morning, quite randomly, that my mother used to take the Quran to her father’s grave every day after he passed while she was in the village. To read it for him, to send the blessings of her readings to him. I had never done that before even though my family members had died almost 23 years ago. But on this day that I did it I knew it meant the beginning, albeit a late one, of doing it for them in the future.

 

It was on my way back from the graveyard that I saw Amma Ghulam Biwi standing near the gate of the house with her cane and some cloth she was carrying. From a distance she didn’t recognize me even though I waived at her but when I got close, she threw the cane and cloth on the ground, raising her hand up in the air, letting out a cry of joy.

 

Normally she would greet me with her favourite song by Nur Jahan; "Chan mahiya teri rah pai takni aan. Tariyan tu puch le ve chan kolun puch leh, sareian tu puch le, mein sayn nahin sakni aan." The words translated into "Dearest sweetheart, I have been looking for you to come my way for so long. Ask the stars, go ask the moon. Ask them all, I haven't slept a night waiting for you." I always laughed at the intensity of the tone. It made me wonder if she was a Scorpio like me.

 

When I got close to her I tried to yell that it’s best we don’t meet like we normally do but of course she didn’t understand a word. Next thing I knew she had thrown her arms around me, pulled me towards her and planted a wet kiss on my cheek. I burst out laughing while I heard the gate-keeper doing his best to scream out that that was not the way to meet in these times. She walked at a snail’s pace so it took us a while to reach the house from the gate and someone brought a chair for her to sit on and some kinoo juice to drink.

 

She had once told me she would say prayers and breathe them on water, something we call “pani dumm karna,” meaning making a water have the capacity to heal through the effect of verse from the Quran. I had a half finished bottle of water with me so I handed it to her and gestured for her to make me one. But before that I played the part of a mime and explained that the whole world was under attack by a disease and people were sick and dying. That required a decent amount of touching my forehead and sticking my tongue out as if fatigued beyond belief. And it worked! “Bimari aa gayee ae?” she said. And I nodded in the affirmative vigourously, holding my palms up in the air, signaling for her to pray for all of us.

 

I listened as she spoke the prayers out one by one for the water. The prayers have to be recited in a specific number, usually 11 but she went over a few times so she must have different system. I recognized the prayers and each time I thought she was done and got up to take the bottle from her, she waived me away as if annoyed by my impatience. The wave of dismissal must be a thing of older women from Radhan. The prayer that struck me was “Qulna ya naaro, kuni bardan wa salaman ala Ibrahim (as).” “We (God) said, ‘Fire, be cool and safe for Ibrahim (as).’”

 

The verse was in my book in the chapter on Trust. Also I was studying deeply each mention of the Prophet Ibrahim (as) in the Quran these days with Qari Sahib. Each incidence was extraordinary for he was Khalil Allah, the Friend of God. His asks, his bestowings, every action, was spell-binding through the tafseer of Ghaus Pak (ra). I know he is the only one who gives the exegesis of the word Ibrahim in specific verses to be the soul. That itself changed everything entirely as suddenly it was about me. And everyone else!

 

Before Amma Ghulam Biwi left, she looked at me with deep anguish and said her heart ached that I kept bending over. I had been doing my stretches while she sat in the chair and was touching my toes over and over, holding the position and counting to eight. I wanted to tell her that I was fine so I tried giving her a thumbs up but she just looked extremely bewildered so I decided to leave it alone. We said our goodbyes. My info on the disease devouring the world had left no impact on her so she hugged and kissed me again, then shuffled out of the house.

 

On my last day at breakfast, one of the women who brought me my meal asked, “So what is the news from Lahore?”

 

I was thrilled that I had managed to pique enough interest that she had gotten some information on her own about it which she wanted to relay to me.

 

“You heard about the extension of the lockdown?” I asked expectantly.

 

She looked blasé.

 

“No. I’m just asking what is going on there?” As in “What’s up in Lahore?”

 

“Oh,” I said. “Nothing much,” I responded, taking on her indifference and expressing my capitulation. “It’s more of the same. Who knows what will happen?”

 

She smiled at me and left to go back to the kitchen.

 

The village! The simplicity of life is apparent always. In the scenery and the quietness, the apparel and the taste of the food cooked without any overwhelming flavours or colour of individual ingredients, yet incomparably delicious. But the glaring cut-off from the world is from lack of technology interceding in life, as relates specifically to the internet. And this applies of course to those of my age, 50 and above. Maybe even just the women since I don’t interact with any men at all while there.

 

My three days spent there left me happy and smiling as I gathered my stuff to return to a city that I also deeply love. I felt grateful that in these times of extreme gravity and not having a clue as to who will live another day, life can still have a lightness to it. Recently I saw a beautiful painting the famed British artist, David Hockney, made to life the spirits of the world in this time of gloom. “Do remember, they can’t cancel spring,” is what he said. In that vein, my motivation to make music set to words written by poets extraordinaire and spiritual masters had accelerated. I also wanted to alleviate the sadness of the world. Because I already knew the effect of sound on the soul. It was a major part of my new writing:

 

"In Risala Qusheria I had read page after page of what was said about the effect of sound on the heart. Imam Ali (ratu) and others like him attest to the fact that every single thing in the Universe is in a state of zikr, remembrance, of Allah As-Sami’, The Hearer of All. And most surprising of all, it wasn’t just elements of nature, the birds, the bees, water and wind. It was instruments when played without a voice, it was the wheel of the potter, it was the rope that pulled water from a well. Hazrat Abu Suleman Durani (ra) said, ''A beautiful voice does not insert anything into a heart. It only resonates with and makes alive that which lies in it already.'"

 

Who knows what lies inside hearts except those who occupy them but one line rings true for all of us and it comes most beautifully worded in Punjabi by my Pir Mehr Ali Shah Sahib (ra.) For the ask from God of those who know Him, as opposed to those who merely worship Him, focuses on what can be bestowed, as opposed to what can be withdrawn.

 

Sha Allah wat aawin uwa ghariaan

May those moments come back again.

 

www.youtube.com/watch?v=W0x2U1fWwS8&feature=youtu.be

 

kalam by Ustad Imran Jafri on insta @the.softest.heart

 

www.youtube.com/watch?v=fx-51G3fQig&feature=youtu.be

St Helen is probably my favourite Kent church. At least from the outside. Alternating bands of flints and local stone give it a Christmas Cake effect, but in bright sunshine it looks stunning.

 

Inside, its no less impressive. Part of the wall paintings survive, as do geometric patterns on some of the supporting columns.

 

And it is huge, with a fine wooden roof, a replacement after a fire, but still works well, and the fabric of the church seems good.

 

Everywhere there are fabulous things to find; Aumbries, memorials, and so much more.

 

And I reeived a warm welcome from the warden who was waiting for visitors. Last time I was here, there was a display of how the estuary airport-cum-Boris Johnson vanity project seemed a real possibility. Now he is back insulting foreigners, and the airport is dead. But a new Thames crossing is being mooted, and it might run across Grain, which would be a shame to have the peace and quiet shattered.

 

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An absolute knockout of a church. From the first glimpse of the exterior, with its zebra-like stripes of flint and stone, you know that here is a church of great interest. In plan it consists of an aisled nave, transepts, chancel and west tower - all built on a prodigious scale. Although the church was heavily restored on two occasions in the nineteenth century there is still a great deal of interest and a visit here should not be rushed. The pillars of the nave have distinctive 'V' paintings contemporary with their fourteenth-century construction. The pulpit is of 1636 and shows some excellent carved arcading. Attached to it is a contemporary hourglass stand. The north transept has wall paintings depicting the martyrdom of St Edmund, but these were over-touched-up by Professor Tristram in 1932. Further paintings exist in the south transept and probably show the martyrdom of St Margaret. The base of the rood screen is fifteenth century while the rather insubstantial traceried top is an early twentieth-century addition. There is an elaborate tie-beam high in the roof with little quatrefoil piercings in the spandrels, but this could not have supported the rood as the remains of the rood loft staircase may be seen in its usual position. Outside the north chancel wall can be found a piscina and holy water stoup - all that remains of a medieval chantry chapel or anchorite's cell which has been demolished. The blocked-up doorway that originally gave access to it may be seen both inside and out. On the inside south wall of the chancel is one of the finest sedilia in Kent which together with its double piscina dates from the early years of the fourteenth century.

 

www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Cliffe

 

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THE Church at Cliffe is dedicated to St. Helen and bears the distinction of being the only church in Kent dedicated to that Saint. It stands in a prominent position at the edge of the Hoo peninsula overlooking the extensive marshes which at this point stretch some two miles to the Thames.

The village seems at one time to have been of greater importance than it is to-day. Lambarde describes it as a large town in his day in spite of a disastrous fire which had destroyed many of the houses about 1520, a fire from the effects of which it appears never to have recovered.

The Manor of Cliffe belonged from very early times to the Prior and Convent of Christ Church, Canterbury, who were also the owners of the advowson, and thus became concerned with the upkeep of the church. At the Dissolution the Manor passed to George Brooke, Lord Cobham, though the Archbishop of Canterbury is still the patron of the living. Among the Rectors of Cliffe were several men of distinction, some of whom probably never visited the parish. From an early date there seems to have been a perpetual vicarage attached to the church, but when it became merged in the Rectory is uncertain.

Of the first church at Cliffe there is no definite record. It is sometimes said to have been founded by Offa, king of Mercia, in the latter part of the eighth century, though the only evidence for this appears to be the presumed identification of the place with the Cloveshoo of the Saxon Chronicle, where various synods of the Saxon Church were held in the eighth and ninth centuries. Without attempting to suggest a solution of this very debatable point, it can only be said that the evidence in favour of Cliffe appears to rest on at least as good authority as that of the rival claimants—Abingdon in Berkshire, and Clifton Hoo in Bedfordshire. There is moreover good reason to think that Cliffe was less inaccessible than might be supposed in mediaeval times. There still remain traces of a causeway across Higham Marsh, which must at one time have led to a ferry, thus affording an easy means of approach from Essex and the Midlands.

The earliest undisputed documentary reference to a church at Cliffe is in the Domesday Survey. It was evidently a building of more than usual importance for it is expressly stated that two ministers were in charge. Of this building, however, not a vestige remains, though there can be little doubt that from it the present plan has, on more or less recognised lines, been developed.

The plan as it exists to-day is complete, and consists of a nave with wide aisles, north and south transepts, chancel, western tower and south porch. The church is one of the largest in Kent, and is a striking example of a parish church whose size and splendour could have borne but little relation to the actual needs of the locality. It was the product of an age whose zeal for church building was limited only by the funds available. The total internal length from east to west is 182 feet, while the width across the transept is 82 feet. The exterior has been the subject of somewhat extensive restoration, which has robbed it of much of its ancient appearance. The south aisle differs from that on the north in having an embattled parapet, similar to that of the porch. The walls of the tower and transepts are faced with flint rubble with little attempt at regular coursing. The later work of the nave and chancel, though extensively refaced, is composed of alternate courses of dressed flints and stone ; the latter, a soft ragstone from the lower green sand formation which, quarried probably from the outcrop a few miles to the south, has weathered badly in many places. A variety of other materials is noticeable, some of which appear to have been reused from the earlier church. A block of Caen stone in the east wall of the chancel, and several pieces in the north wall, have obviously been reused, while a single piece of calcareous tufa can be seen in the north wall of the transept; Reigate stone is also fairly abundant.

 

It is not till one enters the church, that its size is fully realised. The absence of pews over a large part of the nave, with the fact that the nave arcade is carried past the crossing without a break, and the absence of a chancel arch, all combine to emphasise its spaciousness. The impression

gathered from a superficial survey of the interior is that of a thirteenth century church with considerable additions in the fourteenth century, but a more careful inspection shows at least one trace of an earlier building. The arch from the north aisle into the transept, which has been partially cut away when the thirteenth century nave arcade was constructed, is certainly of late twelfth century date and must therefore have survived from an earlier church. Before, however, considering the development of the ground plan, it is necessary to refer briefly to the chief features of architectural interest which call for notice.

The porch is of a fairly common type, with an upper room, approached by a stair turret from the south aisle. It measures internally 11 feet 5 inches from east to west by 16 feet from north to south, and is apparently of late fifteenth century date. On the right of the inner doorway are the remains of a holy water stoup. The room above has been considerably modernised, and there is nothing to indicate its original use. Occasionally an altar is found in the porch chamber, which, however, in this case would seem more likely to have been used for storing the church goods.

 

The north and south aisles of the nave are 19 feet 10 inches and 18 feet wide respectively, and are thus considerably wider than the nave itself. They contain a fine series of Decorated windows, those at the end of either aisle being particularly interesting examples of three lights. The church as a whole is very rich in windows of this period, which form in themselves an interesting study in design. The south aisle has a stone bench running along its south and west walls.

The tower is entered from the nave by a plain thirteenth century arch, and measures approximately 15 feet 6 inches from east to west by 17 feet 6 inches from north to south (interior measurements). The lower stage, which is shut off from the church by a screen, and is now used as a vestry, is lit by three narrow lancets, one in each of the disengaged walls. The roof is a simple quadripartite vault, without any boss at the intersection of the ribs, which are carried on shafts supported on corbels set in the four angles. The lower part of the tower is apparently thirteenth century work, and somewhat earlier than the transepts. The flat, clasping buttresses appear to be original, though now entirely re-faced, and might in themselves suggest a transitional date for the base of the tower. The upper part has been rebuilt at a much later date, and contains a Perpendicular window. Like most towers of the period, it is probable that there was originally no structural stairway leading to the upper stages, access to which had to be obtained by means of a ladder, though the existing doorway to the modern stair turret appears to be of fairly early date.

 

The transepts deserve special consideration on account of the very interesting work which they contain. Their date cannot be later than about 1260 and there are some grounds for thinking that the south transept may be slightly the earlier of the two. The east wall of the south transept is

divided into two bays by blind arches, supported on slender banded shafts, with a narrow lancet window in the centre of each arch. A somewhat similar arrangement exists on the east wall of the north transept, though in this case the central shaft is not carried to the ground, but rests midway on a moulded bracket, below which is a piscina with a trefoil head of the same date. The treatment of the west wall of the north transept is very similar to that of the east, but the arches are much narrower, and the arrangement has been somewhat interfered with by a later widening of the nave aisle. In the south transept the arcading on the west wall is somewhat plainer, and the banded shafts have been dispensed with. Although similar in general design, certain details point to the south transept being slightly the earlier. The string course below the windows, which is continued round the shafts of the mural arcading, is a plain scroll moulding, while in the north transept a fillet is substituted, and the central bands on the shafts of the arcading are of a more elaborate character. The triple lancet windows at the ends of either transept are modern, and replaced two large fifteenth-century windows, which are shown in several early views.

The north transept was formerly shut off from the rest of the church by a screen, and used for holding the Rector's Court. In mediaeval times, and down to 1845, the Rector of Cliffe had a peculiar jurisdiction within his parish. He was exempt from all ecclesiastical authority other than personal visitation from the Archbishop of Canterbury. The wills of parishioners were proved in the local court, and the official seal of the Peculiar is still preserved in the Rochester Museum.

The chancel, which appears to have been rebuilt entirely in the middle of the fourteenth century, is complete, save for the insertion of a modern east window, which replaced an extraordinarily ugly eighteenth-century aperture of brick. The remaining windows are all fine examples of Decorated work, the tracery of which shows a distinctly Flamboyant tendency. The eastern pair affords interesting examples of Kentish tracery. All have good hood-mouldings with

grotesques at the ends. Beneath the windows is a stringcourse, which terminates at the altar rails with a grotesque head on either side. That on the north has been renewed, but the southern one represents the battered head of a monk.

The chief interest in the chancel, however, is its fittings. In the south wall is a series of three very beautiful fourteenth century sedilia, with a piscina of uniform character, recessed in the wall and ascending eastward. They are divided by slender buttressed shafts, supporting elaborately carved ogee canopies, and surmounted by crockets and finials. Beneath the canopies are trefoiled arches, and behind these the roof is carved in imitation of sexpartite vaulting.

Opposite in the north wall is a fine late-fourteenth century tomb of early Perpendicular character, which is often referred to as an Easter sepulchre, for which purpose it may well have been used. The wide cinquefoil arch is surmounted by an elaborate embattled cornice, supported on narrow

buttressed shafts, and terminating with a carved head at either end ; circles with internal cuspings fill the spandrils of the arch.

 

Immediately west of this tomb is a blocked doorway which led to an adjoining building, now demolished. The exterior wall at this point is of a different character from the rest of the chancel walls, and apparently of earlier date. It is composed of a variety of material, including pieces of Caen stone, which probably came from the earlier church, and suggests that this section of wall and the chapel, of which it formed part, survived the re-building of the chancel in the fourteenth century. The two adjoining buttresses have been constructed out of sections of the eastern and western walls of the chapel, and serve to indicate its approximate size. The position of its low roof is clearly shown by the stone corbels which remain at a height of 7 feet 8 inches from the ground. The floor must have been somewhat lower than the present ground level, as the small piscina in the exterior of the chancel wall is now only two feet from the ground. In the base of the westernmost of the two buttresses is a niche, now scarcely eighteen inches from the ground, which may originally have been used as a holy water stoup, since it was close to the entrance to the chapel. This small building probably served the joint purpose of a Sacristy and Chapel. That it contained an altar there can be no doubt from the piscina already noted.

It may possibly be referred to in the will of Richard Elys, who in 1468 left 12 pence to the light of the Blessed Mary in the chapel and 4 pence to the light of the Blessed Mary near the pulpit, though one of the transepts may of course have been here intended. Such evidence as there is on the other hand seems to point to the chapel having been pulled down at the time of the rebuilding of the chancel or soon afterwards. The blocked doorway in the chancel wall was originally carried down to the present ground level on the exterior, so that there must have been some steps in the thickness of the wall leading down into the chapel. The date of this doorway, which was probably contemporary with the building to which, it led, is uncertain. It is certainly earlier than the adjoining late-fourteenth-century tomb, as parts have been cut away when the latter was inserted, and the use of somewhat small stones points to an earlier rather than a later date. Its details on the other hand include the wave moulding which is usually taken to be characteristic of the Decorated period, or one might otherwise be inclined to think that it formed part of the thirteenth century chancel. The filling on the exterior is certainly not modern, and the fact that a plinth has been inserted when the doorway was blocked up, to match that round the rest of the chancel evidently with the intention, which was never carried out, of continuing it along the section of earlier walling where the chapel stood, seems to suggest that this work was undertaken about the same time as the rebuilding of the chancel.

 

We are now in a position to consider the probable development of the ground plan, which, though somewhat conjectural for the earlier period, has left some interesting and unmistakable traces of its later history. In the entire absence of remains of the early Norman church, one is forced to rely for the identification of its position on analogy with other buildings of similar type. The first church of which we have any record in all probability consisted of a simple nave and square- ended chancel. The three easternmost bays of the existing nave arcade would preserve the line of

the north and south walls of the church, while the chancel would occupy the interior of the present crossing. There is nothing to show the position of the west wall, but it would have been approximately in a line with the present north and south doors. Towards the close of the twelfth century north and south aisles, about half the width of the present ones, were probably added by piercing the original walls with arches, and about the same time a small chapel or aisle appears to have been built to the north of the original chancel, and the existing arch constructed so as to give access into it. This arch, which cannot be later than about 1200, is obviously much earlier than the present transept and must therefore have communicated with an earlier building on its site. Some evidence in support of this came to light during the restoration of the north transept in 1864. The foundations of an early wall four feet thick were found beneath the present floor running parallel and close to its eastern wall. At a distance of 15 feet from the chancel wall it appears to have been met by another wall at right angles to it. Unfortunately no further record was made of this discovery, but it establishes beyond doubt the existence of a building in this position, to which the arch in question opened. It is possible that this was the chancel arch of a late twelfth century church, and that the foundations were those of the former chancel, though such a theory would be more difficult to reconcile with the later development of the plan. Moreover on the assumption that there already existed a building on the north of the original chancel when the thirteenth-century builders decided to remodel the church, it is possible to account for the hitherto unexplained fact that the north transept is wider than the south by some three feet. The normal development of the thirteenth century produced a cruciform church. A new and longer chancel, and north and south transepts, were built around the small twelfth century chancel, while the nave and aisles were lengthened by the removal of the west wall some 20 feet further west, and a tower erected to the west of this. These extensive works could not of course have been simultaneous.

The tower appears to be somewhat earlier than the transepts, so that presumably the lengthening of the west end was undertaken first, and at the same time an Early English arcade, extending an additional bay westward, was inserted in place of the twelfth century arches. Contrary to what was frequently the case in churches of this type, there was clearly never any intention to erect a central tower over the crossing, since the abutments are far too weak to have supported the weight. This weakness would account for the presence of the strainer arch of oak, which must

have been inserted sometime in the fifteenth century.

With the completion of this work the early builders grew more ambitious. Almost immediately the work on the new chancel and transepts must have begun. A temporary hoarding was probably erected, shutting off the nave and the altar, transferred there until the new works were finished. The chancel and the south transept were probably first erected, as the sites were free of buildings ; the width of the latter being determined by the size of the former chancel and the chapel on the north. When the work was completed attention was directed towards the north transept, which, according to the usual practice, would have been rebuilt round the earlier building, the foundations of which were discovered in 1864, thus accounting for its slight extra width. Probably towards the end of the century the small chapel, the remains of which have already been mentioned, was built on the north of the new chancel.

Considerable alterations were undertaken in the fourteenth century, the principal of which were the rebuilding of the thirteenth century chancel, and the widening of the nave aisles. The latter was a very frequent form of improvement at this period, and was usually occasioned by the desire

for extra space to set up additional altars so as to meet the enormous increase in the popularity of Chantry bequests. At Cliffe the effect of this widening is clearly shown on the already completed design of the transepts. In the north transept one of the lancets was cut away, and a short pointed arch springing from shafts, which do not reach the ground, inserted in its place. The apex of the original lancet still remains in the wall above. In the south transept a similar alteration in plan is treated somewhat differently. A segmental arch, here reaching to the ground, and opening into the extended aisle, was inserted within the earlier bund arch in the west wall of the transept. This also necessitated the removal of an original lancet, the head of which can be seen occupying the space between the original arch and the later insertion. The windows in the nave all appear to be of this date. Probably contemporary with this extension of the aisles, was the heightening of the nave to allow for the clerestory with its row of single splayed lancets. The junction of this work with the old can be clearly seen immediately above the arcading. The thirteenth century roof of the nave was about on a level with those of the aisles, as the small window in the east face of the tower, which now looks into the church, must originally have looked out over the roof. The line of the fourteenth roof, which was erected at the time that the clerestory was added, can be seen on the wall of the tower, passing across the window opening. Below this the position of the third roof, erected 1732, can also be seen. This roof, which was almost flat, was replaced by the present one about forty years ago.

The rebuilding of the chancel would appear to have been undertaken at the same time as extension of the aisles, to judge from the similarity of the external stonework. This would again have necessitated the use of the nave for services, and it is probable that either at this time, or during the earlier work on the interior of the transepts, the round headed arch, which can be seen on the exterior of the north wall of the north transept, was constructed for the convenience of the masons while the ordinary entrances were not available. That this arch or doorway, which has sometimes been said to be of Norman origin, was really of a much later date, and of a purely temporary character, seems to be shown by a close inspection of its construction. The position is not in the centre of the wall while the arch itself is made up of a variety of material including large flints, pieces of Beigate stone and a single block of calcareous tufa, the latter doubtless coming from the early church. Further, the fact that the filling of the arch' seems to be of much the same character as the adjoining walls points to it only having been used for a comparatively short time. Everything in fact indicates that it was a purely temporary arrangement used during the construction of the transepts, or the later chancel, and filled up as soon as the work was completed. A somewhat similar, though smaller, arch in the exterior of the south wall of the tower was probably of a similar nature, though its purpose is conjectural, and it may have had some connection with original stairs to the upper floors. By the end of the fourteenth century the church was practically complete. The porch was added early in the following century, and the large Perpendicular windows, which formerly existed at the ends of the transepts, inserted. At the same time the upper part of the west tower was rebuilt. Certain work also seems to have been in progress about this time in the chancel, for in the will of the Rector in 1413 a sum of money was left towards that object. Exactly what resulted from the bequest one cannot say.

The subsequent additions were chiefly in the nature of modern insertions. The eighteenth century saw many acts of destruction which are duly entered in the parish registers. In 1730, during the Rectorship of George Green, the old high-gabled roofs were taken down, the lead recast, and an

almost flat roof substituted. Two years later the east window was demolished and a hideous brick opening substituted, and at the same time the old timber roof of the chancel, which, since it bore his arms, had probably been erected during the time of Archbishop Arundel, who occupied the See from 1396 to 1414, was pulled down, and both the nave and chancel ceiled. During this period also the two enormous brick buttresses, which are shown in some early views, were erected on the north and south sides of the tower. The church was in this condition when Sir Stephen Glynne visited it in 1857. Subsequent restorations have been extensive, though for the most part necessary. The brick buttresses to the Tower were removed shortly after Sir Stephen Glynne's visit, and the present circular stair turret erected in the place of the southern one. The chancel was restored in 1875, when traces of the original reredos were discovered, and the jambs of the original east window, which were of Reigate stone and about 15 feet apart, were found in situ. The present window was erected in place of the eighteenth century one in 1884, and at the same time the flat lead roofs of the nave and chancel were removed, and the present high-pitched tiled roofs substituted. Finally a small building, without any communication with the church, has been erected in recent years to the east of the north transept. During these successive restorations much of the external walls has been refaced from time to time, and the whole of the upper part of the east wall of the chancel which was pulled down in 1732, was rebuilt when the present window was inserted.

It is somewhat difficult now to picture the appearance of the interior of the church in mediaeval times. A brilliant colour scheme evidently played an important part in the general effect. Many of the piers of the nave arcades, which are apparently constructed of hard chalk, still show traces of a bold chevron pattern in red and yellow, and, together with the extensive wall paintings, slight traces of which still remain in the transepts, and the brilliance of the mediaeval glass, must have combined to give a very rich effect to the interior. Of the ancient glass very little remains. Dr.

Grayling mentions some fourteenth century borders in the chancel windows, which seem to have disappeared. In the central window of the north aisle is a small piece of ancient glass representing a ship with fish in the water beneath, which is said to have been found many years ago in a shed in the churchyard. In the top of the adjoining window is a fifteenth century figure of the Virgin and Child. A coat of arms in another window is mentioned by Thorpe, but this also seems to have disappeared. The wall paintings, though now very indistinct, were evidently much clearer until

comparatively recent times. On the east wall of the north transept, in the space between the southernmost of the two lancets and the arch in which it is placed, is one of these paintings, divided into five panels, depicting the Martyrdom of St. Edmund. Very little of it can now be made out, though the whole of this transept showed traces of colour at the time of the restoration of 1864. Some remains of a painting in a similar position in the south transept can still be seen, and are said to represent the Last Judgment.

Several bequests for the provision and upkeep of lights before the various altars add a little to our knowledge of the interior in mediaeval times. Of the various saints to whom lights were dedicated in the church Our Lady was of course the most popular. We have already seen that two altars

were dedicated to her. One of these is again mentioned in 1483, when Robert Qwikerell left 20 pence "to the Parish Church of Cleue and to the ligth of Our Lady besyde the pulpett there" and also a similar amount to the lights of St. Laurence and St. George. Richard Elys in 1469 also

mentions lights of St. Christopher, St. John and St. James, while in 1509 Steven Tudor bequeathed to the high altar of St. Elyn 20 pence, and to the light of St. Elyn 12 pence.

Of the position of these various lights one cannot speak with any certainty. That to St. Christopher would have been near the main entrance to the church, while the light of the patron saint, St. Helen, would have been in the Chancel, probably over the high altar. Remains of a piscina in four other places in the church prove the former existence of altars in these positions. That in the Sacristy has already been mentioned. At least one altar stood in each of the transepts, while a small piscina, apparently constructed of broken window tracery at the east end of the south aisle, testifies to another. An altar probably stood in a corresponding position in the north aisle. This disposition would exactly account for the number of lights mentioned in early wills. Besides the lights burning before the altars, there would also be a light before the great Rood over the entrance to the chancel. Some of the lower panels of the original rood screen survive. Above, and partly supported by, the screen was the rood loft, which was already in existence as early as 1413, when it is mentioned in conjunction with the great rood itself and its attendant figures in the will of Nicholas de Ryssheton, Canon of Sarum and Rector of Cliffe. The small fifteenth century doorway with a fourcentred arch, which gave access to it, can still be seen high up in the north wall just east of the entrance of the chancel, and the original stairs remain in good condition, though the entrance from the church has been blocked up and covered over with plaster.

The furniture in the church has suffered much from “restoration" and other causes. Six of the ancient stalls remain, three on each side of the chancel, though panelling at the backs and all the seats except two are modern. The sides terminate in carved heads, some of which have been

renewed, while the two original miserecords are carved with grotesques. The Communion rails are Jacobean, though somewhat repaired. They are of the fairly common baluster type with a central bulge. The pulpit is a very fine piece of Renaissance carving, and retains the original stand for the hour glass, though the glass itself is modern; on it is the date 1636.

Besides the fragments of the original rood screen there is another screen shutting off the vestry under the tower.

The font, which has been moved from its original position, is 3 feet 4£ inches in height, and apparently of late-fourteenth century date. The perfectly plain octagonal bowl has concave sides, around the lower edge of which is a hollow chamfer. The bowl is supported by an octagonal, buttressed stem on a plain base. On the westernmost pillar of the south arcade can still be seen the bracket and chain by which the font cover was raised, indicating its original position.

The monuments in the church are few, and call for little comment. In the floor at the west end of the north aisle are two flat coffin-shaped stones with early fourteenth century French inscriptions in Lombardic capitals. The one on the north is probably the earlier, judging from the very rough

characters which are now scarcely legible. It commemorated Eleanor de Olive, of whom nothing is known. The other stone shows traces of brass, and is inscribed in memory of Joan, wife of John Earn. These stones are described in the Gentleman's Magazine, and old rubbings of them exist among the collection of the Society of Antiquaries. There are three brasses of seventeenth century date, one of which is thought to have been engraved locally.

Two wills are of interest in connection with early burials in the church. In 1376 Robert de Walton, Rector of Cliffe, desired to be buried in the church of Olyve at the entrance to the quire. Some years later, in 1387, Thomas de Lynton, a subsequent rector, directed that he should be buried in the chancel near the entrance, and between the entrance to the quire and the tomb of Master Robert Walton, late Rector, and he ordered that a handsome marble monument should be placed over his body at the discretion of his executors. It seems not unlikely however that his executors favoured a brass monument. In the chancel is the stone matrix of what must once have been a very fine brass of about this period, representing a priest under a canopy. Another smaller matrix of an ecclesiastic is close to the pulpit.

Of the church plate the most important piece is a very beautiful paten of silver gilt of the early part of the sixteenth century. In the centre, worked in coloured enamels, is a seated figure of God the Father holding before Him a figure of the crucifixion. The extreme rarity of pre-reformation

plate is not generally recognised, and the example at Cliffe is one of the finest English patens in existence. At some period or other the paten at Cliffe served as a chalice cover, and it is even said to have been used as an alms dish, which would account for its numerous signs of wear. The other plate is of seventeenth century and later date, and of no particular interest.

It remains for me to acknowledge my indebtedness to Mr. F. O. Blliston Erwood for several suggestions and for the photographs which illustrate this paper. The present account is intended to supplement, but not to supplant altogether, an article on Cliffe Church, by the Rev. I. Gr. Lloyd, a former Rector, which appeared in Vol. XI. of Arch. Cant., where reference should be made for further particulars.

 

www.cliffehistory.co.uk/martin.html

 

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CLIFFE (St. Helen), a parish, in the union of North Aylesford, hundred of Shamwell, lathe of Aylesford, W. division of Kent, 5 miles (N. by W.) from Rochester; containing 842 inhabitants. The parish is bounded on the north by the Thames, and comprises 5660 acres, whereof 180 are woodland, about 2000 arable, and the remainder pasture, including a considerable portion of marshy land. The village, which is supposed to take its name from the cliff or rock on which it stands, was formerly of much greater extent, a great part of it having been destroyed by fire in 1520: it was the scene of several provincial councils. A pleasurefair is held on September 28th. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £50; net income, £1297; patron, the Archbishop of Canterbury: the glebe contains 20 acres. The church is considered one of the finest in the county, being a large handsome cruciform structure in the early English style, with an embattled central tower, and containing several curious monuments and remains of antiquity, together with six stalls that belonged to a dean and five prebendaries, it having been formerly collegiate.

 

www.british-history.ac.uk/topographical-dict/england/pp63...

....but let's not get carried away. ~ Sumo exhibition before the real tournament began ~ good fun ~ Los Angeles Sports Arena ~ June, 2008

I’ve been wanting to take a city break in summer, rather than in the cold months for a while, so rather than heading for the Lake District for a week of toil on the fells when Jayne could get a week off, we took off from Liverpool for Paris. Flight times were nice and sociable but it meant we were on the M62 car park at a busy time in both directions – it’s a shambles! I’ve stopped over in Paris a dozen times – on my way to cycling in the Etape du Tour in the Alps or Pyrenees – and had a few nights out there. Come to think about it and we’ve spent the day on the Champs Elysees watching the final day of the Tour de France with Mark Cavendish winning. We hadn’t been for a holiday there though and it was a bit of a spur of the moment decision. Six nights gave us five and a half days to explore Paris on foot. I had a good selection of (heavy) kit with me, not wanting to make the usual mistake of leaving something behind and regretting it. In the end I carried the kit in my backpack – an ordinary rucksack – to keep the weight down, for 103 miles, all recorded on the cycling Garmin – and took 3500 photos. The little Garmin is light and will do about 15 hours, it expired towards the end of a couple of 16 hour days but I had the info I wanted by then. This also keeps the phone battery free for research and route finding – I managed to flatten that once though.

 

What can I say – Paris was fantastic! The weather varied from OK to fantastic, windy for a few days, the dreaded grey white dullness for a while but I couldn’t complain really. We were out around 8.30 in shorts and tee shirt, which I would swap for a vest when it warmed up, hitting 30 degrees at times, we stayed out until around midnight most nights. It was a pretty full on trip. The security at some destinations could have been a problem as there is a bag size limit to save room in the lifts etc. I found the French to be very pragmatic about it, a bag search was a cursory glance, accepting that I was lugging camera gear, not bombs around, and they weren’t going to stop a paying customer from passing because his bag was a bit over size.

 

We didn’t have a plan, as usual we made it up as we went along, a loose itinerary for the day would always end up changing owing to discoveries along the way. Many times we would visit something a few times, weighing the crowds and light etc. up and deciding to come back later. I waited patiently to go up the Eiffel Tower, we arrived on Tuesday and finally went up on Friday evening. It was a late decision but the weather was good, the light was good and importantly I reckoned that we would get a sunset. Previous evenings the sun had just slid behind distant westerly clouds without any golden glory. It was a good choice. We went up the steps at 7.30 pm, short queue and cheaper – and just to say that we had. The steps are at an easy angle and were nowhere near as bad as expected, even with the heavy pack. We stayed up there, on a mad and busy Friday night, until 11.30, the light changed a lot and once we had stayed a couple of hours we decided to wait for the lights to come on. This was a downside to travelling at this time of year, to do any night photography we had to stay out late as it was light until 10.30. The Eiffel Tower is incredible and very well run, they are quite efficient at moving people around it from level to level. It was still buzzing at midnight with thousands of people around. The sunset on Saturday was probably better but we spent the evening around the base of the Tower, watching the light change, people watching and soaking the party atmosphere up.

 

Some days our first destination was five miles away, this is a lot of road junctions in a city, the roads in Paris are wide so you generally have to wait for the green man to cross. This made progress steady but when you are on holiday it doesn’t matter too much. Needless to say we walked through some dodgy places, with graffiti on anything that stays still long enough. We were ultra-cautious with our belongings having heard the pickpocket horror stories. At every Café/bar stop the bags were clipped to the table leg out of sight and never left alone. I carried the camera in my hand all day and everywhere I went, I only popped it in my bag to eat. I would guess that there were easier people to rob than us, some people were openly careless with phones and wallets.

 

We didn’t enter the big attractions, it was too nice to be in a museum or church and quite a few have a photography ban. These bans make me laugh, they are totally ignored by many ( Japanese particularly) people. Having travelled around the world to see something, no one is going to stop them getting their selfies. Selfies? Everywhere people pointed their cameras at their own face, walking around videoing – their self! I do like to have a few photos of us for posterity but these people are self-obsessed.

 

Paris has obviously got a problem with homeless (mostly) migrants. Walk a distance along the River Seine and you will find tented villages, there is a powerful smell of urine in every corner, with the no alcohol restrictions ignored, empty cans and bottles stacked around the bins as evidence. There are families, woman living on mattresses with as many as four small children, on the main boulevards. They beg by day and at midnight they are all huddled asleep on the pavement. The men in the tents seem to be selling plastic Eiffel Tower models to the tourists or bottled water – even bottles of wine. Love locks and selfy sticks were also top sellers. There must be millions of locks fastened to railings around the city, mostly brass, so removing them will be self-funding as brass is £2.20 a kilo.

 

As for the sights we saw, well if it was on the map we tried to walk to it. We crossed the Periphique ring road to get to the outer reaches of Paris. La Defense – the financial area with dozens of modern office blocks – was impressive, and still expanding. The Bois de Boulogne park, with the horse racing track and the Louis Vuitton Centre was part of a 20 mile loop that day. Another day saw us in the north east. We had the dome of the Sacre Couer to ourselves, with thousands of tourists wandering below us oblivious of the entrance and ticket office under the church. Again the light was fantastic for us. We read that Pere Lachaise Cemetery or Cimitiere du Pere Lachaise was one of the most visited destinations, a five mile walk but we went. It is massive, you need a map, but for me one massive tomb is much the same as another, it does have highlights but we didn’t stay long. Fortunately we were now closer to the Canal St Martin which would lead us to Parc de la Villette. This was a Sunday and everywhere was both buzzing and chilled at the same time. Where ever we went people were sat watching the world go by, socializing and picnicking, soaking the sun up. As ever I wanted to go up on the roof of anything I could as I love taking cityscapes. Most of these were expensive compared with many places we’ve been to before but up we went. The Tour Montparnasse, a single tower block with 59 floors, 690 foot high and extremely fast lifts has incredible views although it was a touch hazy on our ascent. The Arc de Triomphe was just up the road from our hotel, we went up it within hours of arriving, well worth the visit.

 

At the time of writing I have no idea how many images will make the cut but it will be a lot. If I have ten subtly different shots of something, I find it hard to consign nine to the dark depths of my hard drive never to be seen again – and I’m not very good at ruthless selection – so if the photo is OK it will get uploaded. My view is that it’s my photostream, I like to be able to browse my own work at my leisure at a later date, it’s more or less free and stats tell me these images will get looked at. I’m not aiming for single stunning shots, more of a comprehensive overview of an interesting place, presented to the best of my current capabilities. I am my own biggest critic, another reason for looking at my older stuff is to critique it and look to improve on previous mistakes. I do get regular requests from both individuals and organisations to use images and I’m obliging unless someone is taking the piss. I’m not bothered about work being published (with my permission) but it is reassuringly nice to be asked. The manipulation of Flickr favourites and views through adding thousands of contacts doesn’t interest me and I do sometimes question the whole point of the Flickr exercise. I do like having access to my own back catalogue though and it gives family and friends the chance to read about the trip and view the photos at their leisure so for the time being I’m sticking with it. I do have over 15 million views at the moment which is a far cry from showing a few people an album, let’s face it, there’s an oversupply of images, many of them superb but all being devalued by the sheer quantity available.

 

Don’t think that it was all walking and photography, we had a great break and spent plenty of time in pavement bistros having a glass of wine and people watching. I can certainly understand why Paris is top of the travellers list of destinations.

 

There are three Ashfords, really. The modern newtown, Swindonesque newbuilds stretching into the countryside; the Victorian railway town, all neat rows of brick buit houses and the station, and then there is the old town, timber-framed houses along narrow lanes, with St Mary standing towering above all but the modern office blocks.

 

The west end church was given over to a Christmas Fayre, but is also used now as a concert venue, while under the tower westwards is still in use as a church, with many of its ancient features left alone by the Victorians.

 

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A stately church in a good position set away from the hustle and bustle of this cosmopolitan town. The very narrow tower of 1475 is not visually satisfactory when viewed from a distance but its odd proportions are hardly noticed when standing at its base. The church is very much the product of the families who have been associated with it over the centuries and who are commemorated by monuments within. They include the Fogges and the Smythes. The former is supposed to have wanted to create a college of priests here, but by the late fifteenth century such foundations were going out of fashion and the remodelling of the church undertaken by Sir John Fogge may have just been a philanthropic cause. Unusually, when the church was restored in 1860 the architect Ewan Christian kept the galleries (he usually swept them away), but Christ Church had yet to be built and the population of this growing town would have needed all the accommodation it could get. Even in 1851 1000 people had attended the church in a single sitting. The pulpit, designed by Pearson, was made in 1897.

 

www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Ashford+1

 

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THE TOWN AND PARISH OF ASHFORD

LIES the next adjoining to Hothfield eastward. It is called in Domesday both Estefort and Essetesford, and in other antient records, Eshetisford, taking its name from the river, which runs close to it, which, Lambarde says, ought not to be called the Stour, till it has passed this town, but Eshe or Eschet, a name which has been for a great length of time wholly forgotten; this river being known, even from its first rise at Lenham hither, by the name of the Stour only.

 

A small part only of this parish, on the east, south and west sides of it, containing the borough of Henwood, alias Hewit, lying on the eastern or further side of the river from the town, part of which extends into the parish of Wilsborough, and the whole of it within the liberty of the manor of Wye, and the borough of Rudlow, which adjoins to Kingsnoth and Great Chart, are in this hundred of Chart and Longbridge; such part of the borough of Rudlow as lies adjoining to Kingsnoth, is said to lie in in jugo de Beavor, or the yoke of Beavor, and is divided from the town and liberty by the river, near a place called Pollbay; in which yoke there is both a hamlet and a green or common, of the name of Beavor; the remainder of the parish having been long separated from it, and made a distinct liberty, or jurisdiction of itself, having a constable of its own, and distinguished by the name of the liberty of the town of Ashford.

 

ASHFORD, at the time of taking the general survey of Domesday, was part of the possessions of Hugo de Montfort, who had accompanied the Conqueror hither, and was afterwards rewarded with this estate, among many others in different counties; in which record it is thus entered, under the general title of his lands:

 

¶Maigno holds of Hugo (de Montfort) Estefort. Turgisus held it of earl Godwin, and it is taxed at one suling. The arable land is half a carucate. There is nevertheless in demesne one carucate, and two villeins having one carucate. There are two servants, and eight acres of meadow. In the time of king Edward the Confessor, it was worth twenty five shillings; when he received it, twenty shillings; now thirty shilling.

 

The same Hugo holds Essela. Three tenants held it of king Edward, and could go whither they would with their lands. It was taxed at three yokes. The arable land is one carucate and an half. There are now four villeins, with two borderers having one carucate, and six acres of meadow. The whole, in the reign of king Edward the Confessor, was worth twenty shillings, and afterwards fifteen shillings, now twenty shillings.

 

Maigno held another Essetisford of the same Hugo. Wirelm held it of king Edward. It was taxed at one suling. The arable land is four carucates. In demesne there are two, and two villeins, with fifteen borderers having three carucates. There is a church, and a priest, and three servants, and two mills of ten shillings and two pence. In the time of king Edward the Confessor it was worth seventy shillings, and afterwards sixty shillings, now one hundred shillings.

 

Robert de Montfort, grandson of Hugh abovementioned, favouring the title of Robert Curthose, in opposition to king Henry I. to avoid being called in question upon that account, obtained leave to go on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, leaving his possessions to the king; by which means this manor came into the hands of the crown. Soon after which it seems to have come into the possession of a family, who took their name from it. William de Asshetesford appears by the register of Horton priory to have been lord of it, and to have been succeeded by another of the same name. After which the family of Criol became owners of it, by whom it was held by knight's service of the king, in capite, by ward to Dover castle, and the repair of a tower in that castle, called the Ashford tower. (fn. 1) Simon de Criol, in the 27th and 28th year of Henry III. obtained a charter of free warren for this manor, whose son William de Criol passed it away to Roger de Leyborne, for Stocton, in Huntingdonshire, and Rumford, in Essex. William de Leyborne his son, in the 7th year of king Edward I. claimed and was allowed the privilege of a market here, before the justices itinerant. He died possessed of this manor in the 3d year of Edward II. leaving his grand-daughter Juliana, daughter of Thomas de Leyborne, who died in his father's life-time, heir both to her grandfather and father's possessions, from the greatness of which she was stiled the Infanta of Kent, (fn. 2) though thrice married, yet she died s. p. by either of her husbands, all of whom she survived, and died in the 41st year of Edward III. Upon which this manor, among the rest of her estates, escheated to the crown, and continued there till king Richard II. vested it, among others, in feoffees, for the performance of certain religious bequests by the will of king Edward III. then lately deceased; and they, in compliance with it, soon afterwards, with the king's licence, purchased this manor, with those of Wall, and Esture, of the crown, towards the endowment of St. Stephen's chapel, in the king's palace of Westminster, all which was confirmed by king Henry IV. and VI. and by king Edward IV. in their first years; the latter of whom, in his 7th year, granted to them a fair in this town yearly, on the feast of St. John Port Latin, together with all liberties, and to have a steward to hold the court of it, &c. In which situation they continued till the 1st year of Edward VI. when this collegiate chapel was, with all its possessions, surrendered into the king's hands, where these manors did not continue long; for that king, in his 3d year, granted the manor of Esshetford, with that of Wall, and the manor of Esture, to Sir Anthony Aucher, of Otterden, to hold in capite; and he, in the 2d and 3d of Philip and Mary, sold them to Sir Andrew Judde, of London, whose daughter and at length heir Alice, afterwards carried them in marriage to Thomas Smith, esq. of Westenhanger, commonly called the Customer, who died possessed of them in 1591, and lies buried in the south cross of this church, having had several sons and daughters, of, whom Sir John Smythe, of Ostenhanger, the eldest, succeeded him here, and was sheriff anno 42 Elizabeth. Sir Thomas Smith, the second son, was of Bidborough and Sutton at Hone, and ambassador to Russia, of whom and his descendants, notice has been taken in the former volumes of this history; (fn. 3) and Henry, the third son, was of Corsham, in Wiltshire, whence this family originally descended, and Sir Richard Smith, the fourth, was of Leeds castle. Sir John Smythe, above-mentioned, died in 1609, and lies buried in the same vault as his father in this church, leaving one son Sir Thomas Smythe, of Westenhanger, K. B. who was in 1628 created Viscount Strangford, of Ireland, whose grandson Philip, viscount Strangford, dying about 1709, Henry Roper, lord Teynham, who had married Catherine his eldest daughter, by his will, became possessed of the manors of Ashford, Wall, and Esture. By her, who died in 1711, he had two sons, Philip and Henry, successively lords Teynham; notwithstanding which, having the uncontrolled power in these manors vested in him, he, on his marriage with Anne, second daughter and coheir of Thomas Lennard, earl of Sussex, and widow of Richard Barrett Lennard, esq. afterwards baroness Dacre, settled them on her and her issue by him in tail male. He died in 1623, and left her surviving, and possessed of these manors for her life. She afterwards married the hon. Robert Moore, and died in 1755. She had by lord Teynham two sons, Charles and Richard-Henry, (fn. 4) Charles Roper, the eldest son, died in 1754 intestate, leaving two sons, Trevor-Charles and Henry, who on their mother's death became entitled to these manors, as coheirs in gavelkind, a recovery having been suffered of them, limiting them after her death to Charles Roper their father, in tail male; but being infants, and there being many incumbrances on these estates, a bill was exhibited in chancery, and an act procured anno 29 George II. for the sale of them; and accordingly these manors were sold, under the direction of that court, in 1765, to the Rev. Francis Hender Foote, of Bishopsborne, who in 1768 parted with the manor of Wall, alias Court at Wall, to John Toke, esq. of Great Chart, whose son Nicholas Roundell Toke, is the present possessor of it; but he died possessed of the manors of Ashford and Esture in 1773, and was succeeded in them by his eldest son John Foote, esq. now of Bishopsborne, the present owner of them. There are several copyhold lands held of the manor of Ashford. A court leet and court baron is regularly held for it.

 

THE TOWN OF ASHFORD stands most pleasant and healthy, on the knoll of a hill, of a gentle ascent on every side, the high road from Hythe to Maidstone passing through it, from which, in the middle of the town, the high road branches off through a pleasant country towards Canterbury. The houses are mostly modern and well-built, and the high-street, which has been lately new paved, is of considerable width. The markethouse stands in the centre of it, and the church and school on the south side of it, the beautiful tower of the former being a conspicuous object to the adjoining country. It is a small, but neat and chearful town, and many of the inhabitants of a genteel rank in life. Near the market place, is the house of the late Dr. Isaac Rutton, a physician of long and extensive practice in these parts, being the eldest son of Matthias Rutton, gent of this town, by Sarah his wife, daughter of Sir N. Toke, of Godinton. He died in 1792, bearing for his arms, Parted per fess, azure, and or, three unicorns heads, couped at the neck, counterchanged; since which, his eldest son, Isaac Rutton, esq. now of Ospringeplace, has sold this house to Mr. John Basil Duckworth, in whom it is now vested. In the midst of it is a large handsome house, built in 1759, by John Mascall, gent. who resided in it, and died possessed of it in 1769, and was buried in Boughton Aluph church, bearing for his arms, Barry of two, or, and azure, three inescutcheons, ermine; and his only son, Robert Mascall, esq. now of Ashford, who married the daughter of Jeremiah Curteis, esq. is the present owner, and resides in it. At the east end of the town is a seat, called Brooke-place, formerly possessed by the family of Woodward, who were always stiled, in antient deeds, gentlemen, and bore for their arms, Argent, a chevron, sable, between three grasshoppers, or; the last of them, Mr. John Woodward, gent. rebuilt this seat, and died possessed of it in 1757; of whose heirs it was purchased by Martha, widow of Moyle Breton, esq. of Kennington, whose two sons, the Rev. Moyle Breton, and Mr. Whitfield Breton, gent. alienated it to Josias Pattenson, esq. the second son of Mr. Josias Pattenson, of Biddenden, by Elizabeth, daughter and coheir of Felix Kadwell, esq. of Rolvenden; he married Mary, daughter of Mr. Henry Dering, gent. of this parish, and widow of Mr. John Mascall above-mentioned, by whom he has no issue, and he is the present owner of this seat, and resides in it. There have been barracks erected lately here, which at present contain 4000 soldiers. The market is held on a Saturday weekly, for the sale of corn, which is now but little used; and a market for the sale of all sorts of fat and lean stock on the first and third Tuesday in every month, which has been of great use to prevent monopolies. Two fairs are annually held now, by the alteration of the stile, on May 17, and Sept. 9, and another on Oct. 24; besides which, there is an annual fair for wool on August 2, not many years since instituted and encouraged by the principal gentry and landholders, which promises to prove of the greatest utility and benefit to the fair sale of it. That branch of the river Stour which rises at Lenham, runs along the southern part of this parish, and having turned a corn mill belonging to the lord of this manor, continues its course close at the east end of the town, where there is a stone bridge of four arches, repaired at the expence of the county, and so on northwards towards Wye and Canterbury. On the south side of the river in this parish, next to Kingsnoth, within the borough of Rudlow, is the yoke of Beavor, with the hamlet and farm of that name, possessed in very early times, as appears by the register of Horton priory, by a family of that name, one of whom, John Beavor, was possessed of it in the reign of Henry II. and was descended from one of the same furname, who attended the Conqueror in his expedition hither. The parish contains about 2000 acres of land, and three hundred and twenty houses, the whole rental of it being 4000l. per annum; the inhabitants are 2000, of which about one hundred are diffenters. The highways throughout it, which not many years ago were exceeding bad, have been by the unanimity of the inhabitants, which has shewn itself remarkable in all their public improvements, a rare instance in parochial undertakings, and by the great attention to the repairs of them, especially in such parts as were near their own houses, are now excellent. The lands round it are much upon a gravelly soil, though towards the east and south there are some rich fertile pastures, intermixed with arable land, and several plantations of hops; but toward the west, the soil is in general sand, having much quarrystone mixed with it, where there is a great deal of coppice wood, quite to Potter's corner, at the boundary of this parish.

 

The church, which is dedicated to St. Mary, is a large handsome building, consisting of three isles, with a transept, and three chancels, with the tower in the middle, which is losty and well proportioned, having four pinnacles at the top of it. There are eight bells in it, a set of chimes, and a clock. In the high chancel, on the north side, is the college John Fogge, the founder of the college here, who died in 1490, and his two wives, the brasses of their figures gone; but part of the inscription remains. And formerly, in Weever's time, there hung up in this chancel six atchievements, of those of this family whose burials had been attended by the heralds at arms, and with other ceremonies suitable to their degrees. Underneath the chancel is a large vault, full of the remains of the family. On the pavement in the middle, is a very antient curious gravestone, having on it the figure in brass of a woman, holding in her left hand a banner, with the arms of Ferrers, Six masctes, three and three, in pale; which, with a small part of the inscription round the edge, is all that is remaining; but there was formerly in brass, in her right hand, another banner, with the arms of Valoyns; over her head those of France and England quarterly; and under her feet a shield, being a cross, impaling three chevronels, the whole within a bordure, guttee de sang, and round the edge this inscription, Ici gift Elizabeth Comite D' athels la file sign de Ferrers . . . dieu asoil, qe morust le 22 jour d'octob. can de grace MCCCLXXV. Weever says, she was wife to David de Strabolgie, the fourth of that name, earl of Athol, in Scotland, and daughter of Henry, lord Ferrers, of Groby; and being secondly married to John Malmayns, of this county, died here in this town. Though by a pedigree of the family of Brograve, she is said to marry T. Fogge, esq. of Ashford; if so, he might perhaps have been her third husband. Near her is a memorial for William Whitfield, gent. obt. 1739. The north chancel belonged to Repton manor. In the vault underneath lay three of the family of Tuston, sometime since removed to Rainham, and it has been granted to the Husseys; Thomas Hussey, esq. of this town, died in 1779, and was buried in it. In the south chancel are memorials for the Pattensons, Whitfields, and Apsleys, of this place; and one for Henry Dering, gent. of Shelve, obt. 1752, and Hester his wife; arms, A saltier, a crescent for difference, impaling, on a chevron, between three persons, three crosses, formee; and another memorial for Thomasine, wife of John Handfield, obt. 1704. In the north cross are several antient stones, their brasses all gone, excepting a shield, with the arms of Fogge on one. At the end is a monument for John Norwood, gent. and Mary his wife, of this town, who lie with their children in the vault underneath. The south cross is parted off lengthways, for the family of Smith, lords of Ashford manor, who lie in a vault underneath. In it are three superb monuments, which, not many years since, were beautified and restored to their original state, by the late chief baron Smythe, a descendant of this family. One is for Thomas Smith, esq. of Westenhanger, in 1591; the second for Sir John Smythe, of Ostenhanger, his son, and Elizabeth his wife; and the third for Sir Richard Smyth, of Leeds castle, in 1628: all which have been already mentioned before. Their figures, at full length and proportion, are lying on, each of them, with their several coats of arms and quarterings blazoned. In the other part of this cross, is a memorial for Baptist Pigott, A. M. son of Baptist Pigott, of Dartford, and schoolmaster here, obt. 1657, and at the end of it, is the archbishop's consistory court. In the south isle is a memorial for Thomas Curteis, gent. obt. 1718, and Elizabeth his wife; arms, Curteis impaling Carter. Under the tower is one for Samuel Warren, vicar here forty-eight years, obt. 1720. The three isles were new pewed and handsomely paved in 1745. There are five galleries, and an handsome branch for candles in the middled isle; the whole kept in an excellent state of repair and neatness. There was formerly much curtious painted glass in the windows, particularly the figures of one of the family of Valoyns, his two wives and children, with their arms. In the south window of the cross isle, and in other windows, the figures, kneeling, of king Edward III. the black prince, Richard, duke of Gloucester, the lord Hastings. Sir William Haute, the lord Scales, Richard, earl Rivers, and the dutchess of Bedford his wife, Sir John Fogge, Sir John Peche, Richard Horne, Roger Manstone, and—Guildford, most of which were in the great west window, each habited in their surcoats of arms, not the least traces of which, or of any other coloured glass, are remaining throughout this church. Sir John Goldstone, parson of Ivechurch, as appears by his will in 1503, was buried in the choir of this church, and gave several costly ornaments and vestments for the use of it.

 

www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-kent/vol7/pp526-545

  

Today is our 10th Wedding anniversary. We are both working but will be going out for a slap up meal this evening...

 

-------------------------------------------

 

We woke at dawn to find the chaos from the barbeque all around. Seagulls had feasted long on discarded flavour of ribs and the suchlike. Quite where to start. So, bin bags were filled, washing up done and all other tasks that needed to be done.

 

There was just time for a shower; Julie went in as a calm woman, the same I had known for the past two years, but came out ‘with a panic head on.’

 

One of the jobs that needed to be done was going to the tailor to change the top hat. Somehow the wrong size one had been put in the box, and the hat sat on top of my head in a very humorous way, but not at all becoming. Julie also had to go and have her nails done; a first for her, and she had been growing them for weeks, making typing ever more difficult. Dropping her off in the centre of town, I headed to the main car park nearest the tailor.

 

Hughes is an old fashioned shop; full of suits, but served with manners from days gone by. The door would be opened, and all the other such things that are vanishing from the modern world. With minimum fuss a replacement hat was found, this one a perfect fit, and I was on my way back home.

 

I got a call from the planner asking about ice, and a mild form of panic formed in my head; and upon Julie’s return we checked with Jen and realised there was going to be no ice to keep the drinks cold. So, against all our plans we found ourselves having to go to Tesco’s on a Saturday morning, mixing it with families and the confused to get bags of ice. We filled the trolley with bags, checking that we could use the express checkout and have 10 items or less.

 

The cashier looked at us strange after looking at our purchases, ‘do you have some kind of ice fetish,’ she asked. ‘Wedding; drink; no ice; panic!’ I replied. She seemed happy at this. She had been passing the time of day with an old friend as we waited to pay, and as the minutes dragged by I could see the minute hand on a clock in my hand sweep round like the blade of a fan. We then had to get to the other side of town, mixing it with traffic heading to the port as the tunnel was still closed. Thankfully, we did not get held up, and we arrived at the barn as the planner did and at least it was open.

 

As we stood there, the florist arrived, dropping off the table arrangements before heading to Julie’s Dads to deposit the bouquet and buttonholes. The caterer was there, already preparing our wedding breakfast, and seeing everything come together was reassuring, but also creating an even greater sense of panic as we realised it was now less than three hours to the beginning of the ceremony, and we had to get home, then Julie to her Dad’s, my best man arrive, get ready.

 

Aaaaarrrgggghhhhh.

 

Thankfully there is a back way into Dover and right to our street, and so we were back home and only mildly worried within a few minutes. Julie had all her stuff in a bag, and so grabbed that and headed up to her dad’s, leaving me to shower and get ready, and wait for Mike, Julie’s brother and my best man, to arrive.

 

Unbeknown to me; Mike had decided to walk up from his house, and therefore be fashionably late and causing the panic level to rise still further. Causing me more worry was the discovery that there were no cufflinks in with the suits and shirts. My fault for not checking, for sure, but this meant I had to call Tony, Julie’s father to see if he had any; no dice. The only thing to do was to call Hughes and ask them; apparently the cufflinks were in the inside pocket of the jacket; I failed to see that there were two inside pockets and so checked just the one.

 

Another panic over, Mike arrived and it really started to come together. Thankfully the suits fitted, and somehow I had managed not to cut myself shaving, and it was time to head out to the pub down the road for some Dutch courage and to wait for the limo to take me to the barn. Whilst walking down I received a call from the limo driver, he was coming into town from a different direction and the directions to the pub did not work. I say I received a call, I had a voice mail asking me to ring him back and guide him to the Five Cups.

 

I did not have his mobile number; the only thing to do was to call Julie, and she call him back as she had the number. I really did not want to worry her right at that moment, but I had no other choice.

 

So, with that sorted there was just time to have a pint of Australia’s finest amber nectar before the Mercedes pulled up outside.

 

Our arrival at the barn was seen by no one, and walking into the barn itself we met just the photographer who was checking light levels and other such things. He set up a few shots of Mike and I outside, and it was during this that the registrar arrived; as did the first guests.

I have to admit that seeing that there was no one at all in the barn was a shock, but with 30 minutes to go before kick off I thought it a little early to worry too much. I had a short chat with the registrar, just confirming details I had given before, and then I was all ready to be wed.

More and more people started to arrive; I went round and thanked them for coming; then as two o’clock approached Julie arrived and I waited, back turned, for her appearance in the barn.

To be honest I was nervous, more than I thought I was going to be. The ceremony went by quite quickly; I slipped up on one part forgetting what I was supposed to say. It was a civil ceremony, nothing religious, no readings to be done, but instead there were passages about love and commitment; it was all rather wonderful, and I will try to post about that when I get home(I am writing this in Tuscany right now, more about that another time).

 

And after many nice words it was time to put the ring on her finger and for me to kiss Julie; and we were declared husband and wife. Everyone applauded, and we walked up the aisle outside to the marquee were we could meet each of our friends and welcome them as a married couple.

Second through was Julie’s father, but he could not stop and speak as he was choking back the tears. I gave him a look and went over and hugged him; he sobbed some more and patted me on the back.

 

Then it was time for the photos; with my Mother and Julie’s Nan sitting on chairs we arranged ourselves in ever bigger groups, as Colin snapped away. We then moved down to the Georgian townhouse that also stands there to take up places on the steps leading to the main door for some more pictures. The late afternoon sun beat down on us; the birds sang in the trees and all was right with the world.

 

We went back into the marquee where elderflower pressé was being served in champagne flutes. Seeing so many friends around was a real joy, and Jools and I circulated talking to as many friends as we could.

 

Then it was time to eat; we were seated at four round tables; Julie and I next to each other with each family next to us. This meant I was next to Mother dearest, but this was ok. We had steak, salmon, buttered potatoes, with salads of various kinds; followed by a choice of three desserts. The hobbits amongst the guest had two or even all three.

 

Then there were the speeches; Mike did not really know me, so there were not the usual embarrassing stories about the groom. I spoke only really to thank both Julie’s Father and my Mother for helping towards the cost, and to thank everyone for coming and making it such a joyful occasion.

 

Then the free bar opened.

 

We both mingled more; we watched the sun go down and the trees change colour. The DJ arrived and I said to play the usual cheese that gets played at weddings as I don’t think anyone would have liked Blister in The Sun, Wave of Mutilation or Train in Vain instead of Lambada, The Birdie Song or Agadoo.

 

The evening guests arrived from seven, and some of the older people began to leave. From that point on events get a little sketchy. One thing I do remember is that on of my friends of the matchdoctor site was there, and I forgot all about her until Julie mentioned her. How terrible I felt, all I could do was to blame the day and my mind being all messed up. But once I went over to say ‘hello’ to her, it was so good to meet someone for the first time that I felt had been friends for many years.

 

I think it would be fair to say I had had enough, but there were those who had much, much more. Glasses were dropped; people did fall around on the ground and I am sure people felt very silly in the morning.

 

It was left to Julie and I to get people into taxis and order plenty more, before it was time for us to climb into one of our own to get us back to the flat, and crash out for just three hours before it was time to get up, this time to get to the airport for the flight to Italy.

Dangerous Liaisons

by Choderlos de Laclos

An article by Valerie Mamicheva

 

Choderlos de Laclos, an eighteenth-century French novelist, is best remembered for Les liaisons dangereuses, or Dangerous Liaisons. This epistolary novel tells of the unscrupulous libertinism practiced by the central characters, Valmont and Merteuil. Together they plot for pleasure and power, but their scheme turns against them.

 

Laclos was a reasonably successful army general in his time. Although at one stage he was imprisoned for his work on Les liaisons dangereuses, the novel was an enormous success (and a veritable scandal).

 

And, obviously, the main characters of "Dangerous liaisons" are vicomte de Valmont and madam de Merteuil. Exactly they braid all intrigues together and spoil the lives of so many people. That is what we see on the example of Cecile de Volanges and madam de Tourvel. The famous director Milos Foreman in his filming of "Dangerous Liaisons" remarked, that the main theme and idea of the novel is opening of the image and the goal of of the deeds of unamendabled lover Valmont, his growing up under influence of madam de Tourvel's love? That's why Milos Foreman renamed his film from "Dangerous Liaisons" to simply "Valmont". Exactly, in Valmont Choderlos de Laclos wanted to show vices of his century, Valmont is its reflection. But madam de Merteuil hasn't gone too far from Valmont. In the novel we are watching their correspondence. Why Choderlos de Laclos chose epistolary genre? Because only in a letter we can clearly consider and perceive some thoughts and feelings of a man. Even a style of writing a letter can can tell us much about him. For example, let us take madam de Merteuil – she writes in a exquisite and dainty style, using many epithets and specific words, in her "speech" we see utterances of the famous philosophers of her time, her own dictums. And more, this dainty schemer owns a flexible and sharp wit, sense of humour, and she is well educated and interested in all latest news about theatre and music. She is an interesting person to deal with. Madam de Merteuil can stand for herself, she can get every man she wants, she can be charming and attractive, virtuous and modest (remember her relationships with madam de Volanges). She early understood that a woman can conquer a man, subordinate him, if she wants so. But this woman is ought not only to be able to talk about a fashion and to have good manners – wise marquise consulted with philosophers, writers, moralists. She knows how to behave herself with men and she knows what she wants. She enjoys this "game of love" and a sharp intrigue she twisted between the lovers -- chevalier Danceny and Cecile de Volanges. It gives her pleasure and joy. Cecile is too young and naive to understand a cunning plan of de Merteuil. But Danceny revealed her bad nature at the end. Her accomplice is skilful in love vicomte de Valmont.

 

Valmont is a face of his age. It is worth of thinking, was Valmont the only representative of such "tending to love" in all Paris? Off course, no. But, maybe, Valmont isn't so insidious lecher as it seemed at first. Maybe, the matter is in marquise de Merteuil, who supplies this poisonous source in his soul and culls her vanity in it. That is what Valmont couldn't understand, he was only a toy in the hands of the cunning marquise, who calculated everything. Yet, marquise realized that Valmont's new love (madam de Tourvel) began to ennoble him and change him. And she insisted on his brake with madam de Tourvel because she is afraid to lose him. The intrigue with de Tourvel went too far, she considers. Not realizing – that, Valmont fights for his love he suggests an alternative to marquise, she chooses a war. And he loses, he dies, he has a talk with Danceny, to whom he opened what he understood quite recently – now he knows all essence of this maleficent woman. He died, but morally towered over her. He died free from burden of his sins.

 

And what do Valmont and de Merteil have common and and different? Both of them – mean souls, capable to fraud and treason, connoisseurs of a sharp intrigue and they are interested in its flexible uncoupling. To use surrounding people in your own purposes is the greatest pleasure. An intrigue for them is a whole art, ability to stay alive and to get wishing. Hundreds, or even thousands of people got victims of this art. They are accomplices in their sins, the plans they invent together. That is what united them. But their lives in society ended differently. For madam de berteuil – it was a great disgrace, departure in big hurry from France, she got ravaged and ashamed. Valmont – he dies in a duel with Danceny, but he dies with realization of his terrible way of life, he understands that he spoiled a lot of women's reputations, and he is sorry for that. He apologizes to Madam de Tourvel, his soul is saved from marquise's poison. His did exalted him.

 

One more heroine of "Dangerous liaisons" is Cecile de Volanges. She has just arrived from the monastery, she is young and inexperienced, trustful and lightheaded. She fell in love with Danceny. Having fallen into the trap made by Valmont and marquise de Mereuil she let them use herself how do they like. She is defenseless before their cunning and dainty cruelty. And the love to Danceny made her absolutely simple victim. De Merteuil wants to revenge her last lover and Cecile de Volanges is only one section in a chain of cunningly braided intrigues. They shamed her before the all society, before her own mother. Poor Cecile, at the end, went to a monastery. Her pure and noble soul couldn't solve this riddle. Her mother didn't find out the all truth about what had happened.

 

One more noble heart and virtuous soul is madam de Tourvel. For Valmont to spoil a woman with a high moral principles and pure soul is a real victory. But for madam de Tourvel it was a real pure and beautiful love which happens only once in a life. Valmont's letters she read for hundreds times and knew them by heart. But for him it is only a fine game, light amusement. Madam de Tourvel couldn't betray her moral principles, her husband and a religion. Valmont made her do it. Gradually, Valmont didn't mention himself to fall in love with madam de Tourvel. He didn't notice that his feelings began to change from shameful and dirty into gentle and romantic. He wanted to donate his love in the name of his reputation of the "first reprobate in Paris". The result of his mistake was madam de Tourvel's death. Though he was in time to analyze his mistake and not only this one, but others either. At the end, we can say, that "Dangerous Liaisons's goal was not only the reflection of the atmosphere of dainty libertinism and lie hidden with virtue but to suppress these vices and others on the example of Valmont and madam de Merteuil.

 

"Dangerous liaisons" is very moral, special philosophical-moral-ethical creation.

 

— Valerie Mamicheva

 

Haven't been out shooting, but I found this image which was taken back in February, that I never got around to posting.... I know it is a little bit confusing at first, so here's a guide...this is a juvenile anhinga being fed by it's father...the chick has his head down his dad's throat so far that you can not see it's own head, but you can see the food he is seeking (fish's tail) sticking out of the side of dad's mouth. This went on for some time, the juvenile aggressively pursuing his meal, pushing his dad into an almost upside down position... dad hung on to his branch very tightly and patiently, tho, and the juvenile finally finished his fishing.

This image and the one below are cropped only, but the second one below has been heavily retouched so that you can better see the position that the father eventually ended up in... hope you enjoy these old shots. Thank you for looking,

But a lot od detail work done

7/8

feeling limited not by imagination but technical ability tonight. pounding surf brought to light by a night crew shoring up the sea wall. not sure this truly captures it, but it was wicked cool.

 

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Wasn't going to upload these for a couple days, but had a slightly disturbing conversation with my Father tonight about a previous neighbors immanent demise, and I realized that I may not live forever, so here you go.

  

Last day of the first month of 2021. Got out to the depot/yard at 10AM. Beautiful weather. The night before I'd invited my Nephew to come out benching with me. He'd never been out and I'm sure didn't know what to expect.

 

Well, I brought him to the yard because I thought it would at the minimum be interesting to him watching the crane operators loading the containers on the cars. Well, when I got there the nearest tracks were loaded with freights blocking most of the view, and half of the cranes weren't operating anyway. Didn't really bother me because as an active bencher I'm used to waiting for something interesting to happen.

 

I apologized and assured him that "Any minute" a freight could roll through with some amazing pieces on it. And 3 or 4 did while he was there. I shot my flicks and talked to him about what he saw. Said he saw some really cool pieces and even mentioned some hand re-painted numbers on the cars. Somehow he already knew that the writers shouldn't be covering the numbers. He knows zero about graff, and understood this. How is it that so many writers don't understand this?? I'm not sure the Nephews' a fan of graff. I really haven't talked to him about it much. He did ask me how people didn't get caught, or in trouble for doing it. I tried to explain layups, people sneaking into yards etc. And to his credit, he never sounded judgmental. He just had questions.

 

Anyway.. Had a fun time, and shot some nice pieces. I used the same 7.5mm lens I've used there before but used a Lightroom lens correction to flatten the images so they don't have the fisheye effect. Not sure which I like better, flat or fisheye. Both have their appeal.. The furthest I can stand from a freight on the first rail is about 15ft. so the ultra wide angle is necessary. I can get a whole autorack in one shot. It's actually pretty cool.

 

As always, thanks to all of the writers!

 

For freight graffiti slideshows hit up my YouTube channel here: www.youtube.com/SilenceSeven

Ciertamente adoro las labores del hogar

Fez tannery | Morocco

 

Sony Alpha | Minolta Beercan

Emonite - August 2017

They meet at the Barrie Masonic Temple, Barrie, 0ntario, Canada.

 

Unfortunately this photo was hung upside down. The white point should point down.

 

Members of the Order are aged 18 and older; men must be Master Masons and women must have specific relationships with Masons. Originally, a woman would have to be the daughter, widow, wife, sister, or mother of a master Mason, but the Order now allows other relatives[2] as well as allowing Job's Daughters, Rainbow Girls, Members of the Organization of Triangles (NY only) and members of the Constellation of Junior Stars (NY only) to become members when of age.

 

The Order was created by Rob Morris in 1850 when he was teaching at the Eureka Masonic College in Richland, Mississippi. While confined by illness, he set down the principles of the order in his Rosary of the Eastern Star. By 1855, he had organized a "Supreme Constellation" in New York, which chartered chapters throughout the United States.

 

In 1866, Dr. Morris started working with Robert Macoy, and handed the Order over to him while Morris was traveling in the Holy Land. Macoy organized the current system of Chapters, and modified Dr. Morris' Rosary into a Ritual.

 

On December 1, 1874, Queen Esther Chapter No. 1 became the first Prince Hall Affiliatechapter of the Order of the Eastern Star when it was established in Washington, D.C. by Thornton Andrew Jackson.[3]

 

The "General Grand Chapter" was formed in Indianapolis, Indiana on November 6, 1876. Committees formed at that time created the Ritual of the Order of the Eastern Star in more or less its current form.[4]

 

The emblem of the Order is a five-pointed star with the white ray of the star pointing downwards towards the manger. In the Chapter room, the downward-pointing white ray points to the West. The character-building lessons taught in the Order are stories inspired by Biblical figures:

 

Adah (Jephthah's daughter, from the Book of Judges)

Ruth, the widow from the Book of Ruth

Esther, the wife from the Book of Esther

Martha, sister of Mary and Lazarus, from the Gospel of Luke and the Gospel of John

Electa (the "elect lady" from II John), the mother

 

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Order of the Eastern Star

 

General Grand Chapter logo

The Order of the Eastern Star is a Freemasonicappendant body open to both men and women. It was established in 1850 by lawyer and educator Rob Morris, a noted Freemason. The order is based on teachings from the Bible,[1] but is open to people of all religious beliefs. It has approximately 10,000 chapters in twenty countries and approximately 500,000 members under its General Grand Chapter.

 

Members of the Order are aged 18 and older; men must be Master Masons and women must have specific relationships with Masons. Originally, a woman would have to be the daughter, widow, wife, sister, or mother of a master Mason, but the Order now allows other relatives[2] as well as allowing Job's Daughters, Rainbow Girls, Members of the Organization of Triangles (NY only) and members of the Constellation of Junior Stars (NY only) to become members when of age.

 

Contents

HistoryEdit

The Order was created by Rob Morris in 1850 when he was teaching at the Eureka Masonic College in Richland, Mississippi. While confined by illness, he set down the principles of the order in his Rosary of the Eastern Star. By 1855, he had organized a "Supreme Constellation" in New York, which chartered chapters throughout the United States.

 

In 1866, Dr. Morris started working with Robert Macoy, and handed the Order over to him while Morris was traveling in the Holy Land. Macoy organized the current system of Chapters, and modified Dr. Morris' Rosary into a Ritual.

 

On December 1, 1874, Queen Esther Chapter No. 1 became the first Prince Hall Affiliatechapter of the Order of the Eastern Star when it was established in Washington, D.C. by Thornton Andrew Jackson.[3]

 

The "General Grand Chapter" was formed in Indianapolis, Indiana on November 6, 1876. Committees formed at that time created the Ritual of the Order of the Eastern Star in more or less its current form.[4]

 

Emblem and heroinesEdit

The emblem of the Order is a five-pointed star with the white ray of the star pointing downwards towards the manger. In the Chapter room, the downward-pointing white ray points to the West. The character-building lessons taught in the Order are stories inspired by Biblical figures:

 

Adah (Jephthah's daughter, from the Book of Judges)

Ruth, the widow from the Book of Ruth

Esther, the wife from the Book of Esther

Martha, sister of Mary and Lazarus, from the Gospel of Luke and the Gospel of John

Electa (the "elect lady" from II John), the mother

OfficersEdit

 

Officers representing the heroines of the order sit around the altar in the center of the chapter room.

 

Eastern Star meeting room

There are 18 main officers in a full chapter:

 

Worthy Matron – presiding officer

Worthy Patron – a Master Mason who provides general supervision

Associate Matron – assumes the duties of the Worthy Matron in the absence of that officer

Associate Patron – assumes the duties of the Worthy Patron in the absence of that officer

Secretary – takes care of all correspondence and minutes

Treasurer – takes care of monies of the Chapter

Conductress – Leads visitors and initiations.

Associate Conductress – Prepares candidates for initiation, assists the conductress with introductions and handles the ballot box.

Chaplain – leads the Chapter in prayer

Marshal – presents the Flag and leads in all ceremonies

Organist – provides music for the meetings

Adah – Shares the lesson of Duty of Obedience to the will of God

Ruth – Shares the lesson of Honor and Justice

Esther – Shares the lesson of Loyalty to Family and Friends

Martha – Shares the lesson of Faith and Trust in God and Everlasting Life

Electa – Shares the lesson of Charity and Hospitality

Warder – Sits next to the door inside the meeting room, to make sure those that enter the chapter room are members of the Order.

Sentinel – Sits next to the door outside the chapter room, to make sure those that wish to enter are members of the Order.

Traditionally, a woman who is elected Associate Conductress will be elected to Conductress the following year, then the next year Associate Matron, and then next year as Worthy Matron. A man elected Associate Patron will usually be elected Worthy Patron the following year. Usually the woman who is elected to become Associate Matron will let it be known who she wishes to be her Associate Patron, so the next year they will both go to the East together as Worthy Matron and Worthy Patron. There is no male counterpart to the Conductress and Associate Conductress. Only women are allowed to be Matrons, Conductresses, and the Star Points (Adah, Ruth, etc.) and only men can be Patrons.

 

Once a member has served a term as Worthy Matron or Worthy Patron, they may use the post-nominal letters, PM or PP respectively.

 

HeadquartersEdit

 

The International Temple in Washington, D.C.

Main article: International Temple

The General Grand Chapter headquarters, the International Temple, is located in the Dupont Circleneighborhood of Washington, D.C., in the former Perry Belmont Mansion. The mansion was built in 1909 for the purpose of entertaining the guests of Perry Belmont. This included Britain's Prince of Wales in 1919. General Grand Chapter purchased the building in 1935. The secretary of General Grand Chapter lives there while serving his or her term of office. The mansion features works of art from around the world, most of which were given as gifts from various international Eastern Star chapters.

 

CharitiesEdit

The Order has a charitable foundation[5] and from 1986-2001 contributed $513,147 to Alzheimer's disease research, juvenile diabetes research, and juvenile asthma research. It also provides bursaries to students of theology and religious music, as well as other scholarships that differ by jurisdiction. In 2000 over $83,000 was donated. Many jurisdictions support a Masonic and/or Eastern Star retirement center or nursing home for older members; some homes are also open to the public. The Elizabeth Bentley OES Scholarship Fund was started in 1947.[6][7]

  

Eureka Masonic College, also known as The Little Red Schoolhouse, birthplace of the Order of the Eastern Star

 

Signage at the Order of the Eastern Star birthplace, the Little Red Schoolhouse

Notable membersEdit

Clara Barton[8]

J. Howell Flournoy[9]

Eva McGown[10]

James Peyton Smith[11]

Lee Emmett Thomas[12]

Laura Ingalls Wilder[13]

H. L. Willis[14]

See alsoEdit

Achoth

Omega Epsilon Sigma

ReferencesEdit

^ "Installation Ceremony". Ritual of the Order of the Eastern Star. Washington, DC: General Grand Chapter, Order of the Eastern Star. 1995 [1889]. pp. 120–121.

^ "Eastern Star Membership". General Grand Chapter. Retrieved 2010-06-03. These affiliations include: * Affiliated Master Masons in good standing, * the wives * daughters * legally adopted daughters * mothers * widows * sisters * half sisters * granddaughters * stepmothers * stepdaughters * stepsisters * daughters-in-law * grandmothers * great granddaughters * nieces * great nieces * mothers-in-law * sisters-in-law and daughters of sisters or brothers of affiliated Master Masons in good standing, or if deceased were in good standing at the time of their death

^ Ayers, Jessie Mae (1992). "Origin and History of the Adoptive Rite Among Black Women". Prince Hall Masonic Directory. Conference of Grand Masters, Prince Hall Masons. Retrieved 2007-10-25.

^ "Rob Morris". Grand Chapter of California. Archived from the original on 2007-09-28. Retrieved 2007-10-01.

^ "OES Charities". Retrieved 2016-04-15.

^ "Elizabeth Bentley Order Of The Eastern Star Scholarship Award". Yukon, Canada. Retrieved 2009-11-05.

^ "Eastern Star has enjoyed long history". Black Press. Retrieved 2009-11-05. The Eastern Star Bursary, later named the Elizabeth Bentley OES Scholarship Fund, was started in 1947.[dead link]

^ Clara Barton, U.S. Nurse Masonic First Day Cover

^ "Sheriff 26 Years – J. H. Flournoy Dies," Shreveport Journal, December 14, 1966, p. 1

^ by Helen L. Atkinson at ALASKA INTERNET PUBLISHERS, INC

^ "James P. Smith". The Bernice Banner, Bernice, Louisiana. Retrieved September 13,2013.

^ "Thomas, Lee Emmett". Louisiana Historical Association, A Directory of Louisiana Biography (lahistory.org). Retrieved December 29, 2010.

^ Big Muddy online publications

^ "Horace Luther Willis". The Alexandria Daily Town Talk on findagrave.com. Retrieved July 25, 2015.

External linksEdit

Official website

Eastern Star Organizations at DMOZ

Pride of the North Chapter Number 61, Order of the Eastern Star Archival Collection, located at Shorefront Legacy Center, Evanston, Illinois

 

Usually there's not this much water in the Amargosa River, but it had just rained the day before.

 

This photo appeared in the following ideotrope albums:

 

Biking the Mojave Fall 2007 - Introduction

I biked through Death Valley in October 1996. It was 109°F at Furnace Creek. The area is beautiful, but it was way too hot at that time of year. I knew I wanted to come back on my bicycle when it was cooler. This year it worked out to take about 3 weeks after Thanksgiving. I ended up spending 18 days to cycle from Palm Springs to Las Vegas. I spent about half of that time in Death Valley NP. In Baker I met a group of cyclists on racing bikes with a support vehicle. They were cycling from Palm Springs to Las Vegas in 2 days. I saw a lot more desert than they did.

Coachella Valley and Joshua Tree National Park

I crossed the Coachella Valley on Ramon Rd. It was over 70°F, probably the warmest day of the trip. It wasn't 'til I turned onto Thousand Palms Rd. that I felt like I was heading out into the desert on my own. The San Andreas Fault system runs along the northern end of the Coachella Valley. The faults allow groundwater to rise to the surface resulting in a number of California fan palm oases. It's wonderful to see oases in the desert.

It was a 1300m climb on Berdoo Canyon Rd. to the Coachella Valley-Pleasant Valley saddle in Joshua Tree NP. I didn't see a single person or vehicle in Berdoo Canyon. Climbing out of Pleasant Valley I saw the first person, a fellow adventurer. Patrick was walking solo across Joshua Tree NP from west to east. That's a heck of a trek. That park is huge and has only one known spring. Patrick had set up two water caches before his trip.

Amboy Road and Mojave National Preserve

I bought enough food in 29 Palms to last 4 days to Baker. Heading east on the Amboy Rd. I met the only other touring cyclist of the trip. He had come down from Bishop through Death Valley NP, Baker, Kelso, Amboy - much the same route I was planning to take. When I met him, he had run out of food. I shared some almonds with him but didn't have much sympathy with his plight. The reason he didn't buy food in Baker was because there wasn't a health food store! Well, I told him there was a grocery store in 29 Palms, but it might not be up to his standard.

One of the things I was looking forward to on this trip was experiencing the transition zone between the Sonoran Desert (lower, farther south) and the Mojave Desert (higher, farther north). Creosote bushes grow in both, but most other flora is limited to one ecosystem or the other. In the transition zones you can see a mix of vegetation. What I saw ended up being less dramatic than Washington County, Utah where the Colorado Plateau, the Basin and Range country, and the Mojave Desert all come together. Joshua Trees were the main ecosystem indicator for me. I knew I was climbing high when I started to see them.

I was surprised how much traffic there was on the Amboy Rd. It wasn't much, but a lot of the paved roads that I was on during the trip would have one car every 10-30 minutes and perhaps none all night. The only truly busy roads were the road north out of Baker (on a Saturday morning) and the Pahrump-Las Vegas superhighway which has a wonderful bicycle lane.

I climbed Sheep Hole Pass to get into the Amboy Valley. It was in the Amboy Valley where I became accustomed two aspects important to cyclists in the Mojave:

Distances are deceiving. You can see really far. It takes much longer to cross these valleys that it appears that it would.

The slight inclines up alluvial fans or other fill climb a lot more than they appear to. In Colorado I'm not accustomed to seeing the whole climb since there are usually canyon climbs here. Leaving Amboy, for example, I climbed over 3000 ft. on a slowly rising alluvial plane. It took hours.

I enjoyed time off the bike to walk out to and up Amboy Crater. The following day I climbed to the top of the Kelso Dunes. And one day later I climbed one of the cinder cones east of Baker. I enjoyed having a diversion each day. Each of those areas is beautiful in its own way. The creosote bushes in the Amboy Valley are particularly green because of the shallow water table. Kelso Dunes are simply fantastic, and the cinder cone area with over 30 cinder cones and not another person felt like another planet.

In Baker I bought enough food to last 10 days and ate at the Mad Greek at my brother's recommendation. I had taken a rest day the previous day because of rain, and Baker was a bit flooded. Folks were out pushing water around with brooms. At the store the locals were telling each other how much their roofs leaked.

Death Valley National Park

Heading north of Baker the saddle that separates the Silurian Valley from Death Valley is only about a 50' climb. From there I left the pavement and stopped at Saratoga Springs to see the incredible wetlands in the desert. I had planned on climbing the Ibex Dunes, but wind was blowing sand off the top of the dunes and everything was still a bit wet from the rain. The following day I reached the pavement, took it for 5 miles and then headed west up Warm Springs Canyon.

The 1400m climb up Warm Springs Canyon was not the longest of the trip, but it was the toughest. The climb started out hard from below sea level in Death Valley and continued to be hard all the way to the saddle leading into Butte Valley. I struggled in my easiest gear (which is really low) the whole way. Surprisingly I walked very little. It always seemed to be just slightly easier to pedal than to walk.

Butte Valley felt remote. The views to the east were phenomenal giving Greater View Spring its name. I could see range after range. I stopped at Stella Anderson's place and cut some chicken wire to repair my glasses. The rattling had loosened a screw which I couldn't find. It was important to get a good fix since I wore those glasses a lot riding in the early morning and late afternoon. I found I had about 10 hours of light to ride in with perhaps 45 minutes of twilight on either end to mess around in camp. The sun was theoretically up for 8 or 9 hours, but it was often a lot less than that in the canyons. My repair job worked well, and I didn't even strip the threads so the glasses are good as new again :)

Mengel Pass is rough and keeps too many people from taking this route between Death Valley and Panamint Valley. Down in Goler Wash I met Rock(y), one of two residents of Ballarat. His father is the other. Rocky was poking around Goler Wash with his girlfriend who was visiting from LA. He had worked with various mining operations in the area, and I enjoyed his stories. It was also fun to talk with his Isreali girlfriend. We compared this desert with the eastern Mediterranean desert where I have also cycled.

In Ballarat the following day I talked with Rocky some more, but the girlfriend had already returned to LA. There are a surprising number of springs on the west side of the Panamints (due to faults, I'm sure) and a surprising number of fighter jets playing overhead. I scared a coyote into some bushes near a spring and then was scared myself by the jet passing just overhead. Once the quiet returned I could hear the coyotes, packs of them, howling and yipping in the bushes. The yipping made it sound like there were a lot of youngsters. Fun to hear the bushes make such unusual noises.

Hunter Mountain to Racetrack Playa

I was pretty tired this day and finally made it to Panamint Springs where I had planned to get water. There's a store as well, but they really only have candy bars. The restaurant, however, was able to sell me some bread and cheese. I bought a veggie burger for lunch as well. That rejuvenated me enough to climb about half of the 1100m paved climb that afternoon.

I was lucky that the following day was stunningly warm since I climbed to over 7000 ft. The 1100m paved climb was followed by 600m of climbing on a dirt road. I'm sure it ended up being more than that since there were a number of descents thrown in as well. To give an idea of the terrain the only two flat places I went through that day were named: Lee Flat and Ulida Flat! Lee Flat was filled with the most Joshua trees I've ever seen in one place. I camped in Ulida Flat next to one of the only Joshua trees out there.

I made it over Hunter Mountain, through Hidden Valley, down Lost Burro Gap, and arrived at Teakettle Junction with enough water to be able to make the ~16 mile detour to Racetrack Playa. Of course I'd seen photos of the moving rocks at Racetrack Playa, but I was absolutely blown away being at the site in person. It's not simply the amazement of seeing the evidence of the moving rocks and all the different directions and shapes of the tracks, but also how well preserved the area is. It wouldn't take too many people moving rocks from the tracks, driving on the playa, or walking out there when the surface is wet to really ruin the magic of the place. Additionally Racetrack Playa is so big and so flat. The flat playa blends in in the distance with the hills miles away. I loved this place. I was lucky enough to be there when I was. The rain from 5 days earlier had completely dried out, and it rained some more just 10 hours after I was there.

I recovered my stashed gear and water at Teakettle Junction and headed uphill into a cold, stiff wind climbing out of Racetrack Valley. By this point in the trip I had started to associate Joshua trees with cold weather. At the saddle in the twilight I made it my goal to descend far enough down to get away from the Joshua trees and perhaps into warmer weather. It was practically dark by the time I got off my bike, but I succeeded! It sprinkled off and on all night, but I was dry and fairly warm.

Through the bottom of Death Valley

The downhill continued all the way to the pavement at Ubehebe Crater, but I had to push the bike a bit once I got to the lava/cinder area. The black sand of the roadbed was much finer and deeper than the surface of most of the descent. Getting to Ubehebe concluded what I had planned for this trip. The only thing left was to get to Las Vegas. Berdoo Canyon, Mengel Pass, and Hunter Mountain had all been hard excursions, but each took about a day less than I had (conservatively) expected. I had time to make it a pleasant, easy ride to Vegas. I hiked around Ubehebe Crater and relaxed in the wind at the parking lot. Only two cars plus a ranger came by during the ~3 hours I was there. Each car stopped, the occupants got out, took a couple photos, and were driving away less than 2 minutes later. Incredible! This place is the middle of nowhere. I couldn't understand why anyone would drive so far and spend so little time. It turns out though that Ubehebe is only a 10 mile detour from the Scotty's Castle road.

I didn't make much distance this day even though it was flat and I had a tailwind after Ubehebe. I camped illegally near the paved road but was careful to avoid washes since I could tell it was going to storm. Storm it did. The wind bent my tent sideways, and rain poured down for hours. Death Valley received about a third of their annual average rainfall in this ~6 hour period. It was December 7, and it rained almost as much as it had from January 1 to December 6. The nice flat sandy spot I had chosen for my tent was just a bit lower than the surrounding area. The whole area was really quite flat, but the soil there can't absorb water very quickly. In the middle of the night I found my tent sitting in an inch or so of water. Only my thermarest was above it. I moved the tent in the pouring rain, but it was too late. Most of my stuff was pretty wet. Both pairs of socks and the bottom of my down bag were soaked. I wrapped my feet in a wool scarf like a Ace bandage and tried to get some sleep.

I was up early in the morning. I had managed to keep my down coat fairly dry so I put that over my damp clothes to ride away in the morning. Tons of rocks up to the size of softballs had poured across the 2-lane paved highway out of washes that were only a foot or two wide. It had snowed down to 4000'. In every direction were snow-covered peaks. I was so lucky to be down low, near pavement. The dirt roads that I had spent much of the last week on were probably impassable that morning. Ulida Flat where I had camped two nights earlier was probably covered in snow. I was able to keep warm biking in my down coat, but I was down at sea level, the warmest place around!

The sun came out. Everything warmed up. The views were phenomenal. In spite of the damp clothes it was a fantastic day to be cycling. At Furnace Creek I was directed to the sunny employee picnic area where I pulled everything out of my bags and dried everything out while enjoying lunch and wine from the grocery store. I hung out there for 2-3 hours before anyone else showed up. It was Herb, the night maintenance man. Enthralled with the bike he asked lots of questions about touring and the LHT specifically. He kept getting calls on his radio but continued to talk with me. Herb plans to live on his bike for a while and had been researching bicycles. I enthusiastically encouraged him since I know from experience that a lot of folks discourage that kind of crazy plan. Before he left to finally answer one of his calls, he asked me, "did you find the free showers?" I hadn't. Hohoho, that shower felt wonderful.

I spent a rest day at Furnace Creek and talked to Herb to 2 or 3 more times. I also met Mary and Paul from Rogue River, Oregon, who invited me to dinner at their campsite. I didn't carry a stove on this trip. The hot meal that Mary put together was the best meal of the trip. She had dried tomatoes and zucchini from their garden, a hot sauce with peppers that they grew, a jalepeno artichoke dip as an appetizer, and plenty of red wine. Was I ever a happy camper!

And on to Las Vegas

Back on the bike I rode south with a tailwind past Badwater all the way to the 5 miles of paved road that I had ridden between Saratoga Springs and Warm Springs Canyon over a week earlier. Instead of heading south to Baker I climbed Jubilee Pass. The following day I climbed Salsberry Pass on the coldest day of the trip. I simply couldn't warm up since I couldn't get away from the wind. And then I came to Tecopa Hot Springs! That cut the chill even though the wind was so fierce that I was dry within minutes of getting out of the pool. Around the corner I stopped at a RV park to get some water and ended up spending an hour talking with the 75-year-old man who runs the place with his wife. He ran an ultra-marathon when he was 55, had biked from Las Vegas to Sedona, had run a bunch of marathons. In the summer they leave Tecopa Hot Springs and explore the country in their 35' motorhome.

Later that afternoon I came upon Victor. Stopped at the side of the road, he handed me a Guinness and two granola bars. We chatted for a while using his car as a windbreak. He's taking a break from his 'round the world bicycle trip on a crazy rig that he built himself.

The following morning the only indication that I entered Nevada was a sign reading "Inyo County Line". Lower down on the same post was a smaller sign at an angle because it was falling off. That sign said "leaving". About 3 cars passed me in an hour, and then a car stopped. It was the couple from RV park in Tecopa Hot Springs. She had baked muffins that morning, put together a package of them for me, and handed them to me! They were still warm! Oh, I was cycling with a big smile yet again! I was on a gradual climb that continued all the way to Mountain Springs Pass. To get an idea of how long the climb was, consider that the couple drove all the way to Las Vegas, went to the dentist, drove back, and passed me just one minute before I crested the pass. They honked, smiled, and waved as did I. The first 2000' of descent was fast and cold, but I was warm and happy in my down coat.

My last excursion before Las Vegas was to ride through the scenic Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area. The cliffs and cemented sand dunes in that area reminded me much more of the Colorado Plateau than anything I'd seen on my journey through the Mojave Desert. In the morning I rolled into Vegas, found a bike shop, boxed my stuff, and took a taxi to the downtown Greyhound station. In Denver a day later I rebuilt my bike at the Greyhound station for the short ride to Market St. Station. I took the bus to Boulder and rode through the snow to get home.

  

I thought I had visited St Mary years ago. And indeed I had, or stood on the green in front of it, but didn't set foot inside.

 

This I didn't realise until Saturday when I was standing outside it looking at the row of cottages leading to the lych gate, I knew the scene was new to me.

 

The drizzle was still falling, so I could not linger in the churchyard, and scampered along the south side of the building, looking for the porch, but there wasn't one. Instead a simple door near to the chancel gave way when I turned the handle, after stepping over the void that acts as a drain for rainwater falling from the roof.

 

I tried hard to find the lightswitches, as in the gloom of the early afternoon, it was almost dark inside. Even when I found the switches in the south chapel, there seemed to be no power to them, so the church remained in half darkness.

 

What I did see, and was dazzled by, were tiles used to line the lower part of the chancel walls, like a mosaic, creating fantastic patterns.

 

-----------------------------------------

 

A mainly thirteenth century church restored by Sir George Gilbert Scott. There is a high window which originally shed light onto the Rood figures (see also Capel le Ferne). Some medieval glass survives in the heads of the windows in the chancel showing angels holding crowns. The west window was designed by Morris and Co in 1874 to commemorate a former Rector, whilst the south chapel has a set of continental glass brought here by the Beckingham family from their house in Essex. Above the nave arcade is a good set of murals including a figure of St Nicholas. The famous Elizabethan theologian Richard Hooker is commemorated in the chancel.

 

www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Bishopsbourne

 

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Bishopsbourne is another example of a parish church belonging to the church (the archbishop, in this case), which was totally rebuilt on a large(r) scale in the 13th century (cf. Chartham). The chancel, as rebuilt, was as wide as the nave, and there is no chancel arch (and probably never has been).

The nave and chancel both show at least two phases of work of about the mid to later 13th century, so it seems likely that a rebuilding programme was being carried on in stages during the 2nd half of the 13th century (no sign exists, above-ground, of the earlier church).

Perhaps the earliest visible work are the two pairs of two-light windows on either side of the chancel. They have geometrical tracery and all sit on an internal moulded string course (there is medieval glass at the top of all these windows). This string course rises up in the east wall, and has on it the five-light east window, within trefoiled lancets, which is perhaps slightly later in date. There is also a late 13th century piscina at the east end of the south wall (though with a 19th century back wall). Externally the N.E. and S.E. corners of the chancel have angle buttresses, but these are heavily restored. It is also just possible that there were further geometrical windows further west in the chancel, which were covered/removed when the 15th century additions were made.

In the nave, as John Newman has pointed out, the two slender arcades have slight differences (N. capitals more complex than the S. ones). Also that the nave abaci are undercut, while the chancel string course is not. Originally the south arcade was at least three bays long (ie. longer than the present nave), but on the north this is not so clear. The aisles themselves are very narrow, with shed roofs continuing the slope of the main nave roof (though this shape may only be 15th century when the aisles were remodelled). The only surviving feature of the 13th century in the outer aisle walls (again heavily restored externally in the 19th century) is the north doorway with its niche (called a stoup by some writers, but not necessarily one) immediately to the east. This doorway has slightly projecting pilasters on either side, and the whole was covered by a porch until 1837.

The second main phase of work took place in the later 15th century. First, the whole of the west end of the church was demolished and a new tower was constructed with diagonal buttresses. The tower is of three main stages with the top stage rendered. The whole of the south face is mostly rendered. As this was being built, short walls were erected from the eastern diagonal buttresses to the 13th century arcade (ie. leaving the western ends of the aisles outside). (This is perhaps due to a population decrease in the parish). New west walls (containing two light perpendicular square headed windows) to the shortened aisles were also built, and four new 2-light perpendicular windows were inserted into the outer aisle walls. Along the top of the inside of the aisles walls a new moulded timber stringcourse was made (the roofs were perhaps also remade, but they are hidden beneath plaster in the aisles, and the main nave roof was replaced in 1871). At the west end of the nave the new short north and south walls contain five 3-light windows with perpendicular tracery under a 2-centred arch in their heads. On the upper nave walls, above the arcade, are remains of some fine painted figures on a painted 'ashlar' background. These were perhaps painted after the 15th century rebuilding (a date of around 1462 for the rebuilding is perhaps suggested by the will of William Harte (see below). At the extreme west end of the nave are two areas (N. and S.) of in situ medieval floor tiles. It is just possible that they predate the tower building work. (They must continue eastwards under the pews). There is also a 15th cent. octagonal font bowl (on a 1975 base). The southern chapel (the Bourne Pew after the Reformation) with its diagonal buttresses and 3-light east window is also 15th century but it was very heavily restored in c. 1853 (date over new S. door). It has a separate roof (and plaster ceiling). The rectangular N. addition with a plinth is also 15th century and was perhaps built as a vestry. It had an external door and only a small door into the chancel until the rebuilding of 1865, when a massive new arch was put in to accommodate a new organ (earlier the organ was under the tower arch). At this time also a totally new pitched roof was built over the vestry, perhaps replacing a low pitched 15th century roof. There is a high up window on the north side above the pulpit, with some old glass in it.

A new boiler house was dug under the western half of the vestry (in the 1880s - date on radiator), and its N.W. corner was rebuilt, incorporating a fireplace and chimney. The cut through N. chancel wall (and foundation) can be seen in the boiler room below.

The door into the Rood loft is in the S.E. corner of the nave.

In 1871-2 a major restoration took place under Scott, when the boarded wagon roofs were put in (nave and chancel) and new pews were installed (and choir stalls). The c. 18th century pulpit was remodelled and has its larger tester removed. The west window contains 1874 Morris & Co glass with figures by Burne Jones. There is also much c. 1877 mosaic work on the lower chancel walls and a large Reredos. The chancel floor was also raised.

 

BUILDING MATERIALS (Incl. old plaster, paintings, glass, tiles, etc.):

The main building materials are flintwork with Rag and Caenstone quoins/jambs, etc. However much of this has been removed externally by the heavy 19th century restoration. The nave arcades are of Reigate stone. The 15th century tower has fine large quoins of Kent Rag (Hythe/Folkestone stone with boring mollusc holes), and a few reused pieces of Caen, Reigate and Roman brick.

The south chapel was "partly of brick" in 1846 (Glynne) but this has now gone in the Restoration. There is also some fine early post-medieval glass in the east window of this chapel.

 

(For medieval glass, wall paintings and floor tiles ,see above).

 

(Also 15th century choir stalls, see below). There are also the arms and Cardinals Cap of Cardinal Morton (hence 1494-1500) in the S.W. chancel window.

 

There are now 4 bells (2 J Hatch of 1618; Christopher Hodson 1685 and Robert Mot 1597). The later from St. Mary, Bredman, Canterbury was installed in 1975 (a cracked bell was 'discarded').

 

A late medieval brass (of John and Elizabeth Colwell) lies under the organ - another of 1617 (John Gibon) is under the choir stalls.

 

EXCEPTIONAL MONUMENTS IN CHURCH To Richard Hooker (1633) - originally on N chancel wall and moved to S chancel will c. 1865.

 

Also John Cockman (+1734) - also on N. chancel wall and moved to E. wall of N. aisle c. 1865 (when the organ was put under new vestry arch).

 

Also a fine Purbeck marble (14th century) grave slab under the N.E. corner of the tower.

 

There are also two fine 15th century (c. 1462) stall fronts in the chancel with carved panels and ends (and 'poppy heads'). The added Victorian choir stalls copy them.

 

CHURCHYARD AND ENVIRONS:

Shape: Rectangular

 

Condition: Good

 

Earthworks:

enclosing: drop on N. and W. sides (?Ha-Ha) into Bourne Park adjacent:

 

Building in churchyard or on boundary: Lychgate of 1911

 

HISTORICAL RECORD (where known):

Earliest ref. to church: Domesday Book

 

Evidence of pre-Norman status (DB, DM, TR etc.):

 

Late med. status: Rectory

 

Patron: The Archbishop

 

Other documentary sources: Test. Cant. (E. Kent 1907) 23 mentions 'one piece of that stone on which the Archangel Gabriel descended when he saluted the 'BVM' to the Image of the BVM of the church of Bourne. Towards the work of the Church of Bourne, of the stalls and other reparations, 4 marcs. Wm. Haute (1462). Also 'Beam, now before altar of B. Mary in the church' (1477) and Lights of St. Mary, St. Katherine and St. Nicholas (1484) and light of Holy Cross (1462) and 'The altar of St. Mary and St. Nicholas in the nave' (1476).

 

SURVIVAL OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL DEPOSITS:

Inside present church: Good - main nave and chancel floor raised in 19th century (earlier levels should be intact beneath (except where burials, etc.).

 

Outside present church: Drainage trench cut round outside of church.

 

Quinquennial inspection (date\architect): October 1987 David Martin

 

ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND HISTORICAL ASSESSMENT:

The church and churchyard: A fine 13th and 15th century church, with an impressive collection of medieval wall paintings, stained glass, floor tiles and pew fronts inside. The 13th century architectural details of the chancel windows and nave arcade are very good. There are, no doubt, the remains of the earlier church beneath.

 

The wider context: One of a group of fine later 13th century rebuildings (cf. Hythe, Chartham, Adisham, etc.)

REFERENCES: Notes by FC Elliston Erwood, Arch. Cant. 62 (1949), 101-3 (+ plan) + S. R. Glynne Notes on the Churches of Kent (1877), 130-1 (He visited in 1846); Hasted IX (1800), 335-7; Newman BOE (N.E. and E Kent) (3rd ed. 1983) 144-5.

 

Guide book: by Miss Alice Castle (1931, rev. 1961, 1969, 1980) - no plan.

 

Plans & drawings: Early 19th century engraving of interior looking W. NW (before restoration).

 

DATES VISITED: 25th November 1991 REPORT BY: Tim Tatton-Brown

 

www.kentarchaeology.org.uk/01/03/BIS.htm

 

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BISHOPSBORNE

LIES the next parish eastward from Bridge, described before, in the hundred of that name. It is called in Domesday, Burnes, that is, borne, from the bourn or stream which rises in it, being the head of the river, called the Lesser Stour; and it had the name of Bishopsborne from its belonging to the archbishop, and to distinguish it from the several other parishes of the same name in this neighbourhood. There is but one borough in this parish, namely, that of Bourne.

 

THIS PARISH lies about five miles eastward from Canterbury, just beyond Bridge, about half a mile from the Dover road, and the entrance of Barham downs in the valley on the left hand, where the church and village, the parsonage, the mansion and grounds of Bourne place, and the seat of Charlton at the opposite boundary, with the high hills behind them, topped with woods, from a most pleasing and luxuriant prospect indeed. In this beautiful valley, in which the Lesser Stour rises, and through which the Nailbourne at times runs, is the village of Bourne-street, consisting of about fifteen houses, and near it the small seat of Ofwalds, belonging to Mr. Beckingham, and now inhabited by his brother the Rev. Mr. Beckingham, and near it the church and court-lodge. On the rise of the hill is the parsonage, an antient building modernized, and much improved by the present rector Dr. Fowell, and from its whiteness a conspicuous object to the road and Barham downs. About a mile distant eastward, in the vale, close to the foot of the hills, is Charlton, in a low and damp situation, especially when the nailbourne runs. On the opposite side of the church westward, stands the ornament of this parish, the noble mansion of Bourne-place, (for several years inhabited by Sir Horace Mann, bart. but now by William Harrison, esq.) with its paddocks, grounds, and plantations, reaching up to the downs, having the bourn, which is the source of the Lesser Stour, which rises here in the front of it, directing its course from hence to Bridge, and so on by Littleborne, Ickham and Wickham, till it joins the Greater Stour river. This valley from this source of the bourn upwards, is dry, except after great rains, or thaws of snow, when the springs of the Nailbourn occasionally over flow at Liminge and Elham, and directing their course through this parish descend into the head of the bourn, and blend their waters with it. From this valley southward the opposite hills rise pretty high to the woodland, called Gosley wood, belonging to Mr. Beckingham, of large extent, and over a poor, barren and stony country, with rough healthy ground interspersed among it, to the valley at the southern boundary of the parish, adjoining to Hardres; near which is the house of Bursted, in a lonely unfrequented situations, hardly known to any one.

 

THE MANOR OF BOURNE, otherwise Bishopsborne, was given by one Aldhun, a man of some eminence in Canterbury, from his office of præfect, or bailiff of that city, (qui in hac regali villa bujus civitatis prafectus suit), (fn. 1) to the monks of Christ-church there, towards the support of their refectory. After which, anno 811, the monks exchanged it, among other estates, with archbishop Wlfred, for the manor of Eastry, and it continued part of the possessions of the see of Canterbury, at the time of taking the survey of Domesday, in which it is thus entered, under the title of the archbishop's lands:

 

In Berham hundred, the archbishop himself holds Burnes in demesne. It was taxed for six sulings. The arable land is fifty carucates. In demesne there are five carucates, and sixty-four villeins, with fifty-three borderers having thirty carucates and an half. There is a church, and two mills of eight shillings and six pence, and twenty acres of meadow. Wood for the pannage of fifteen hogs. Of herbage twenty-seven pence. In its whole value, in the time of king Edward the Confessor, and afterwards, it was worth twenty pounds, now thirty pounds.

 

The manor of Bishopsborne appears by the above entry to have been at that time in the archbishop's own hands, and it probably continued so as long as it remained part of his revenues, which was till the 35th year of king Henry VIII. when archbishop Cranmer, by an act specially passed for the purpose, exchanged this manor with the park, grounds and soil of the archbishop in this parish, called Langham park, with Thomas Colepeper, sen. esq. of Bedgbury, who that year alienated it to Sir Anthony Aucher, of Otterden, who gave this manor, with the rest of his possessions in this parish, to his second son Edward. Since which it has continued in the same line of ownership as Bourne-place, as will be more particularly mentioned hereafter, down to Stephen Beckingham, esq. the present owner of it. A court leet and court baron is held for this manor.

 

BOURNE-PLACE, formerly called the manor of Hautsbourne, is an eminent seat in this parish, for the manor has from unity of possession been for many years merged in the paramount manor of Bishopsborne. It was in very early times possessed by a family who took their name from it. Godric de Burnes is mentioned in the very beginning of the survey of Domesday, as the possessor of lands in it. John de Bourne had a grant of free-warren and other liberties for his lands in Bourne and Higham in the 16th year of king Edward I. He left an only daughter Helen, who carried this estate in marriage to John de Shelving, of Shelvingborne, whose grandson, of the same name, died anno 4 Edward III. at which time this manor had acquired from them the name of Shelvington. He left an only daughter and heir Benedicta, who carried it in marriage to Sir Edmund de Haut, of Petham, whose son Nicholas Haut gave to William, his youngest son, this estate of Bishopsborne, where he afterwards resided, and died in 1462, having been knight of the shire and sheriff of this county. From him it descended down to Sir William Haut, of Hautsborne, sheriff in the 16th and 29th year of king Henry VIII. whose son Edmund dying unmarried in his life-time, his two daughters, Elizabeth, married to Thomas Colepeper, esq. of Bedgbury, and Jane, to Sir Thomas Wyatt, of Allington-castle, became his coheirs, and on the division of their estates, this of Hautsborne was allotted to the former, and her hus band Thomas Colepeper, in her right, became possessed of it, and having acquired the manor of Bishopsborne by exchange from the archbishop, anno 35 Henry VIII. immediately afterwards passed away both that and Hautsborne to Sir Anthony Aucher, of Otterden, whose family derived their origin from Ealcher, or Aucher, the first earl of Kent, who had the title of duke likewise, from his being intrusted with the military power of the county. He is eminent in history for his bravery against the Danes, in the year 853. They first settled at Newenden, where more of the early account of them may be seen. He at his death gave them to his second son Edward, who afterwards resided here at Shelvington, alias Hautsborne, as it was then called, whose great-grandson Sir Anthony Aucher was created a baronet in 1666, and resided here. He left surviving two sons Anthony and Hewitt, and two daughters, Elizabeth, afterwards married to John Corbett, esq. of Salop, LL. D. and Hester, to the Rev. Ralph Blomer, D. D. prebendary of Canterbury. He died in 1692, and was succeeded by his eldest son, who dying under age and unmarried, Hewitt his brother succeeded him in title and estate, but he dying likewise unmarried about the year 1726, the title became extinct, but his estates devolved by his will to his elder sister Elizabeth, who entitled her husband Dr. Corbett afterwards to them, and he died possessed of the manor of Bishopsborne, with this seat, which seems then to have been usually called Bourneplace, in 1736, leaving his five daughters his coheirs, viz. Katherine, afterwards married to Stephen Beckingham, esq. Elizabeth, to the Rev. Thomas Denward; Frances, to Sir William Hardres, bart. Antonina, to Ignat. Geohegan, esq. and Margaret-Hannah-Roberta, to William Hougham, esq. of Canterbury, the four latter of whom, with their respective husbands, in 1752, jointed in the sale of their shares in this estate to Stephen Beckingham, esq. above-men tioned, who then became possessed of the whole of it. He married first the daughter of Mr. Cox, by whom he had the present Stephen beckingham, esq. who married Mary, daughter of the late John Sawbridge, esq. of Ollantigh, deceased, by whom he had an only daughter, who married John-George Montague, esq. eldest son of John, lord viscount Hinchingbrooke, since deceased. By his second wife Catherine, daughter of Dr. John Corbet, he had two daughters, Charlotte and Catherine, both married, one to Mr. Dillon and the other to Mr. Gregory; and a son John Charles, in holy orders, and now rector of Upper Hardres. They bear for their arms, Argent, a sess, crenelle, between three escallop shells, sable. He died in 1756, and his son Stephen Beckingham, esq. above-mentioned, now of Hampton-court, is the present owner of the manor of Bishopsborne, and the mansion of Bourneplace.

 

BURSTED is a manor, in the southern part of this parish, obscurely situated in an unfrequented valley, among the woods, next to Hardres. It is in antient deeds written Burghsted, and was formerly the property of a family of the same name, in which it remained till it was at length sold to one of the family of Denne, of Dennehill, in Kingston, and it continued so till Thomas Denne, esq. of that place, in Henry VIII.'s reign, gave it to his son William, whose grandson William, son of Vincent Denne, LL. D. died possessed of it in 1640, and from him it descended down to Mr. Thomas Denne, gent. of Monkton-court, in the Isle of Thanet, who died not many years since, and his widow Mrs. Elizabeth Denne, of Monktoncourt, is the present possessor of it.

 

CHARLTON is a seat, in the eastern part of this parish, which was formerly the estate of a family named Herring, in which it continued till William Herring, anno 3 James I. conveyed it to John Gibbon, gent. the third son of Thomas Gibbon, of Frid, in Bethers den, descended again from those of Rolvenden, and he resided here, and died possessed of it in 1617, as did his son William in 1632, whose heirs passed it away to Sir Anthony Aucher, bart. whose son Sir Hewitt Aucher, bart. in 1726, gave it by will to his sister Elizabeth, and she afterwards carried it in marriage to John Corbett, LL. D. of Salop, who died possessed of it in 1735, leaving his window surviving, after whose death in 1764 it came to her five daughters and coheirs, who, excepting Frances, married to Sir William Hardres, bart. joined with their husbands in the sale of their respective fifth parts of it in 1765, to Francis Hender Foote, clerk, who resided here. Mr. Foote was first a barrister-at-law, and then took orders. He married Catherine, third daughter of Robert Mann, esq. of Linton, by whom he had three sons, John, mentioned below, who is married and has issue; Robert, rector of Boughton Malherb, and vicar of Linton, who married Anne, daughter of Dobbins Yate, esq. of Gloucestershire, and Edward, in the royal navy; and three daughters, of whom two died unmarried, and Catherine, the second, married first Mr. Ross, and secondly Sir Robert Herries, banker, of London. Mr. Foote died possessed of them in 1773, leaving his wife Catherine surviving, who possessed them at her death in 1776, on which they descended to their eldest son John Foote, esq. of Charlton, who in 1784, purchased of the heirs of lady Hardres, deceased, the remaining fifth part, and so became possessed of the whole of it, of which he is the present owner, but Mr. Turner now resides in it.

 

Charities.

MRS. ELIZABETH CORBETT, window, executrix of Sir Hewit Aucher, bart. deceased, in 1749, made over to trustees, for the use and benefit of the poor, a tenement called Bonnetts, and half an acre of land adjoining, in this parish; now occupied by two poor persons, but if rented, of the annual value of 3l.

 

The poor constantly relieved are about eleven, casually seven.

 

THIS PARISH is within the ECCLESIASTICAL JURISDICTION of the diocese of Canterbury, and deanry of Bridge.

 

¶The church, which is dedicated to St. Mary, is a large building, consisting of three isles and three chancels, having a tower steeple at the west end, in which are four bells. This church is a large handsome building, but it is not kept so comely as it ought to be. In the chancel is a monument for Richard Hooker, rector of this parish, who died in 1600; on it is his bust, in his black gown and square cap. A monument for John Cockman, M. D. of Charlton. His widow lies in the vault by him, obt. 1739; arms, Argent, three cocks, gules, impaling Dyke. Memorial for Petronell, wife of Dr. John Fowell, the present rector, second daughter of William Chilwich, esq. of Devonshire, obt. 1766. She lies buried in a vault under the altar. A large stone, twelve feet long, supposed to be over the remains of Mr. Richard Hooker. A memorial on brass for John Gibbon, gent. of this parish, obt. 1617; arms, Gibbon, a lion rampant-guardant, between three escallops, impaling Hamon, of Acrise, quartering Cossington. Memorials for Mrs. Jane Gibbon, his wife, obt. 1625, and for William Gibbon, gent. obt. 1632. A memorial for William Gresham, obt. 1718. In one of the windows are the arms of the see of Canterbury impaling Warham. In the middle isle, in the south wall, above the capital of the pillar, opposite the pulpit, is a recess, in which once stood the image of the Virgin Mary, the patron saint of this church, to which William Hawte, esq. by will anno 1462, among the rest of his relics, gave a piece of the stone on which the archangel Gabriel descended, when he saluted her, for this image to rest its feet upon. On the pavement near this, seemingly over a vault, is a stone with an inscription in brass, for William, eldest son of Sir William Hawt. A memorial for Farnham Aldersey, gent. of this parish, only son of Farnham Aldersey, gent. of Maidstone, obt. 1733. Memorials for several of the Dennes, of this parish. In a window of the south isle, are the arms of Haut, impaling Argent, a lion rampant-guardant, azure. The south chancel is inclosed and made into a handsome pew for the family of Bourne-place, under which is a vault appropriated to them. The window of it eastward is a very handsome one, mostly of modern painted glass; the middle parts filled up with scripture history, and the surrounding compartments with the arms and different marriages impaled of the family of Beckingham. On each side of this window are two ranges of small octagon tablets of black marble, intended for the family of Aucher, and their marriages, but they were not continued. In the church-yard, on the south side, is a vault for the family of Foote, of Charlton, and a tomb for Mrs. Elizabeth Corbett, obt. 1764; arms, Corbett, which were Or, two ravens, sable, within a bordure, gules, bezantee. At the north-east corner of the church-porch are several tombs for the Dennes.

 

The church of Bishopsborne, with the chapel of Barham annexed, was antiently appendant to the manor, and continued so till the exchange made between the archbishop and Thomas Colepeper, in the 35th year of king Henry VIII. out of which the advowson of this rectory was excepted. Since which it has continued parcel of the possessions of the see of Canterbury to the present time, his grace the archbishop being the present patron of it.

 

This rectory, (including the chapel of Barham annexed to it) is valued in the king's books at 39l. 19s. 2d. and the yearly tenths at 3l. 19s. 11d. In 1588 here were communicants one hundred. In 1640 one hundred and forty-eight, and it was valued, with Barham, at two hundred and fifty pounds per annum.

 

Church of Bishopsborne with the Chapel of Barhan annexed.

 

www.british-history.ac.uk/survey-kent/vol9/pp328-337

 

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Richard Hooker (March 1554 – 3 November 1600) was an English priest in the Church of England and an influential theologian.[2] He was one of the most important English theologians of the sixteenth century.[3] His defence of the role of redeemed reason informed the theology of the seventeenth century Caroline Divines and later provided many members of the Church of England with a theological method which combined the claims of revelation, reason and tradition.[3] Scholars disagree regarding Hooker's relationship with what would later be called "Anglicanism" and the Reformed theological tradition. Traditionally, he has been regarded as the originator of the Anglican via media between Protestantism and Catholicism.[4]:1 However, a growing number of scholars have argued that he should be considered as being in the mainstream Reformed theology of his time and that he only sought to oppose the extremists (Puritans), rather than moving the Church of England away from Protestantism.

 

This sermon from 1585 was one of those that triggered Travers attack and appeal to the Privy Council. Travers accused Hooker of preaching doctrine favourable to the Church of Rome when in fact he had just described their differences emphasising that Rome attributed to works "a power of satisfying God for sin;..." For Hooker, works were a necessary expression of thanksgiving for unmerited justification by a merciful God.[11] Hooker defended his belief in the doctrine of Justification by faith, but argued that even those who did not understand or accept this could be saved by God.

 

Of the Lawes of Ecclesiastical Politie is Hooker's best-known work, with the first four books being published in 1594. The fifth was published in 1597, while the final three were published posthumously,[2] and indeed may not all be his own work. Structurally, the work is a carefully worked out reply to the general principles of Puritanism as found in The Admonition and Thomas Cartwright's follow-up writings, more specifically:

 

Scripture alone is the rule that should govern all human conduct;

Scripture prescribes an unalterable form of Church government;

The English Church is corrupted by Roman Catholic orders, rites, etc.;

The law is corrupt in not allowing lay elders;

'There ought not to be in the Church Bishops'.[12]

Of the Lawes has been characterised as "probably the first great work of philosophy and theology to be written in English."[13] The book is far more than a negative rebuttal of the puritan claims: it is (here McAdoo quotes John S. Marshall) 'a continuous and coherent whole presenting a philosophy and theology congenial to the Anglican Book of Common Prayer and the traditional aspects of the Elizabethan Settlement."[14]

 

Quoting C. S. Lewis,[15] Stephen Neill underlines its positive side in the following terms: Hitherto, in England, "controversy had involved only tactics; Hooker added strategy. Long before the close fighting in Book III begins, the puritan position has been rendered desperate by the great flanking movements in Books I and II. . . . Thus the refutation of the enemy comes in the end to seem a very small thing, a by-product."[16]

 

It is a massive work that deals mainly with the proper governance of the churches ("polity"). The Puritans advocated the demotion of clergy and ecclesiasticism. Hooker attempted to work out which methods of organising churches are best.[2] What was at stake behind the theology was the position of the Queen Elizabeth I as the Supreme Governor of the Church. If doctrine were not to be settled by authorities, and if Martin Luther's argument for the priesthood of all believers were to be followed to its extreme with government by the Elect, then having the monarch as the governor of the church was intolerable. On the other side, if the monarch were appointed by God to be the governor of the church, then local parishes going their own ways on doctrine were similarly intolerable.

 

In political philosophy, Hooker is best remembered for his account of law and the origins of government in Book One of the Politie. Drawing heavily on the legal thought of Thomas Aquinas, Hooker distinguishes seven forms of law: eternal law ("that which God hath eternally purposed himself in all his works to observe"), celestial law (God's law for the angels), nature's law (that part of God's eternal law that governs natural objects), the law of reason (dictates of Right Reason that normatively govern human conduct), human positive law (rules made by human lawmakers for the ordering of a civil society), divine law (rules laid down by God that can only be known by special revelation), and ecclesiastical law (rules for the governance of a church). Like Aristotle, whom he frequently quotes, Hooker believes that humans are naturally inclined to live in society. Governments, he claims, are based on both this natural social instinct and on the express or implied consent of the governed.

 

The Laws is remembered not only for its stature as a monumental work of Anglican thought, but also for its influence in the development of theology, political theory, and English prose.

 

Hooker worked largely from Thomas Aquinas, but he adapted scholastic thought in a latitudinarian manner. He argued that church organisation, like political organisation, is one of the "things indifferent" to God. He wrote that minor doctrinal issues were not issues that damned or saved the soul, but rather frameworks surrounding the moral and religious life of the believer. He contended there were good monarchies and bad ones, good democracies and bad ones, and good church hierarchies and bad ones: what mattered was the piety of the people. At the same time, Hooker argued that authority was commanded by the Bible and by the traditions of the early church, but authority was something that had to be based on piety and reason rather than automatic investiture. This was because authority had to be obeyed even if it were wrong and needed to be remedied by right reason and the Holy Spirit. Notably, Hooker affirmed that the power and propriety of bishops need not be in every case absolute.

 

King James I is quoted by Izaak Walton, Hooker's biographer, as saying, "I observe there is in Mr. Hooker no affected language; but a grave, comprehensive, clear manifestation of reason, and that backed with the authority of the Scriptures, the fathers and schoolmen, and with all law both sacred and civil."[17] Hooker's emphasis on Scripture, reason, and tradition considerably influenced the development of Anglicanism, as well as many political philosophers, including John Locke.[2] Locke quotes Hooker numerous times in the Second Treatise of Civil Government and was greatly influenced by Hooker's natural-law ethics and his staunch defence of human reason. As Frederick Copleston notes, Hooker's moderation and civil style of argument were remarkable in the religious atmosphere of his time.[18] In the Church of England he is celebrated with a Lesser Festival on 3 November and the same day is also observed in the Calendars of other parts of the Anglican Communion.

 

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Hooker

Glasgow Corporation Transport Trolleybus TBS21 BUT RETB1 1958 Burlingham 1966

...but this is the final tale. And it's also the last photo from the "Teatro del Silenzio" series.

 

Finally a view of the whole theatre/lake.

 

This is one of the first shots I took that day. The water was still a little troubled and the reflections are not perfect.

But somehow, I like it!

Venice classical view, From the Rialto

Trani may have been founded by Greek settlers, but the known history starts late. After the fall of the Roman Empire, it was dominated by Lombards, Byzantines, Saracens and again Byzantines. With the conquest of southern Italy by the Normans and after 50 days of siege by Robert Guiscard´s troops, Trani became part of the Norman Empire in 1073.

 

Already under the Byzantines, Trani had become an important port for trade with the Orient. The heyday was in the time of the crusades in the 12th and 13th centuries, when crusaders and merchants mainly went to the Holy Land from Bari and Trani. It became an episcopal see in place of Canosa, destroyed by the Saracens. Frederick II promoted the Teutonic Knights and the Jewish community and built a massive castle. Under his rule, the city reached its highest point of wealth and prosperity.

Castello svevo (svevo = Swabian) was built from 1233 to 1247 during the reign of Emperor Frederick II. The castle was built on a rocky shore in the middle of the bay of Trani. A moat separated the castle from the mainland.

 

On one of the towers, Frederick II had Pietro Tiepolo, the son of the Venetian doge Jacopo Tiepolo. He had been captured as mayor of Milan at the Battle of Cortenova in 1237. Manfred of Sicily, the son of Frederick II, married his second wife here. After the end of the Hohenstaufen rule, which began with Manfred's death in the Battle of Benevento, the victorious House of Anjou rebuilt the castle so that in 1268 the marriage of Charles I of Naples and Margaret of Burgundy could be celebrated here. When the castle came under the rule of the Spanish under Charles V in 1533, it was extensively rebuilt to adapt it to the new defense requirements. The southern façade facing the countryside was reinforced and bastions were built on the corner towers.

  

From 1832 Castello Svevo was again rebuilt to transform it into a central provincial prison, which opened in 1844 and was in operation until 1974.

 

I have already uploaded many photos taken in Trani from previous visits. So I`ll try to cut the number down this time.

 

Many many more are just a click away:

 

www.ipernity.com/doc/323415/album/1333068

We’re granted a lie in, but when my alarm goes off, the extra half hour’s sleep doesn’t seem to have done me much good. I stagger about my bedroom, turning the temperature down on the shower trying to wake myself up into the rootin’-tootin’ health care professional I’m meant to be.

 

I shave and fix my hair and survey the damage…do I look like a highly skilled paramedic?

 

Nope.

 

I look like a pale faced laddie with a hangover from hell.

 

Oops.

 

Breakfast is a delicate operation, I tentatively sip tea and nibble on lightly buttered toast, risking an egg and a slice of bacon only once I’m confident they’ll stay down.

 

We gather in the classroom. Stingray dozes with his head on the desk, Bulk looks ghastly. I’ve resuscitated healthier looking folk.

 

Uzi and Benito stride in, banging the door against its frame. Seven headaches chorus in response.

 

“Owwww…..”

 

This pair excel at keeping a straight face, there are no clues from either of them as to how we’ve done. They’re just as smiley, yet business like as they’ve been through the whole course.

 

There’s a brief chat and we’re sent for early coffee while they arrange the tutorial room.

 

And on our return Uzi starts calling us in.

 

One of us doesn’t make it. They slipped on a practical. As they come back in the room and tell us the bad news it deflates and terrifies us all.

 

I’m third in.

 

Benito and Uzi sit in a tiny wee room across the corridor from our classroom, just yesterday I was dealing with the delivery from hell on this very table.

 

There is no fucking around.

 

Benito beams and shakes my hand. Uzi does similar. They pass me my grades. They’re good, and my midwife examiner has highly complimentary notes written on my exam.

 

I’m frustrated to spot my grade from my paediatric practical, it’s the weakest practical mark I’ve had through the whole course. Seems churlish to gripe about it, since I’ve just passed with praise ringing in my ear, but the irony pisses me off.

 

Not enough to stop me grinning like an idiot and dancing around the classroom when I return, hugging Granny and Midge, bouncing up and down on my heels as nervous elation burns off.

 

Everyone else returns from their tutorials in much the same fashion, bouncy elation and smiles.

 

We gather for a group photo (thanks, Vatican), since Midge and I had spent an enjoyable half hour in the trainers office laughing at old photos of Benito, Vatican and NorthCunt passing out from their paramedic exams. It seems important to have a memento of the people whose pockets you lived in for a month and a half. Immediate friends and colleagues without question.

 

And then…nothing.

 

An anti-climactic hour where we lounge about on sofas, complete paperwork minutiae and drink more coffee. There is no ticker tape parade, no fireworks or dancing girls. We’ve driven ourselves as hard as we can to this point and found that there is nothing but an absence of study.

 

I only really grin when I phone the parents and hear my Mum enthusing down the phone that my news is “Bloody BRILLIANT!”

 

It’s at that point that it hits me.

 

Yeah, you’re right. It is.

 

For all our celebrations, hand shakes and shoulder slappings, there’s nothing left to do but bid farewell to everyone as they slide away in their cars, back to normal life and daily routines. Stingray, Midge and I loiter in the car park, hug and step away. I’ll miss everyone, but I made two really good friends in those two.

 

There’s another month of training waiting for me before I can apply to the HPC for my Paramedic Registration. It’s all based in hospital, with a couple of weeks in operating theatres, a week in coronary care and a week in A&E adding the practical finesse required to do the job well.

 

Until that’s arranged (and it’ll take a long time) I’m on the road with Pally for the foreseeable future, watching, listening and learning.

 

My name’s Kal…I’m 27…and I’m going to be a paramedic.

 

(Photo published with kind permission of all subjects. Back row from left, Sensei, Kal, Bulk, Stingray, Granny Chan. Front row from left, Kappa, Benito, Uzi, Midge.)

  

St Helen is probably my favourite Kent church. At least from the outside. Alternating bands of flints and local stone give it a Christmas Cake effect, but in bright sunshine it looks stunning.

 

Inside, its no less impressive. Part of the wall paintings survive, as do geometric patterns on some of the supporting columns.

 

And it is huge, with a fine wooden roof, a replacement after a fire, but still works well, and the fabric of the church seems good.

 

Everywhere there are fabulous things to find; Aumbries, memorials, and so much more.

 

And I reeived a warm welcome from the warden who was waiting for visitors. Last time I was here, there was a display of how the estuary airport-cum-Boris Johnson vanity project seemed a real possibility. Now he is back insulting foreigners, and the airport is dead. But a new Thames crossing is being mooted, and it might run across Grain, which would be a shame to have the peace and quiet shattered.

 

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An absolute knockout of a church. From the first glimpse of the exterior, with its zebra-like stripes of flint and stone, you know that here is a church of great interest. In plan it consists of an aisled nave, transepts, chancel and west tower - all built on a prodigious scale. Although the church was heavily restored on two occasions in the nineteenth century there is still a great deal of interest and a visit here should not be rushed. The pillars of the nave have distinctive 'V' paintings contemporary with their fourteenth-century construction. The pulpit is of 1636 and shows some excellent carved arcading. Attached to it is a contemporary hourglass stand. The north transept has wall paintings depicting the martyrdom of St Edmund, but these were over-touched-up by Professor Tristram in 1932. Further paintings exist in the south transept and probably show the martyrdom of St Margaret. The base of the rood screen is fifteenth century while the rather insubstantial traceried top is an early twentieth-century addition. There is an elaborate tie-beam high in the roof with little quatrefoil piercings in the spandrels, but this could not have supported the rood as the remains of the rood loft staircase may be seen in its usual position. Outside the north chancel wall can be found a piscina and holy water stoup - all that remains of a medieval chantry chapel or anchorite's cell which has been demolished. The blocked-up doorway that originally gave access to it may be seen both inside and out. On the inside south wall of the chancel is one of the finest sedilia in Kent which together with its double piscina dates from the early years of the fourteenth century.

 

www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Cliffe

 

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THE Church at Cliffe is dedicated to St. Helen and bears the distinction of being the only church in Kent dedicated to that Saint. It stands in a prominent position at the edge of the Hoo peninsula overlooking the extensive marshes which at this point stretch some two miles to the Thames.

The village seems at one time to have been of greater importance than it is to-day. Lambarde describes it as a large town in his day in spite of a disastrous fire which had destroyed many of the houses about 1520, a fire from the effects of which it appears never to have recovered.

The Manor of Cliffe belonged from very early times to the Prior and Convent of Christ Church, Canterbury, who were also the owners of the advowson, and thus became concerned with the upkeep of the church. At the Dissolution the Manor passed to George Brooke, Lord Cobham, though the Archbishop of Canterbury is still the patron of the living. Among the Rectors of Cliffe were several men of distinction, some of whom probably never visited the parish. From an early date there seems to have been a perpetual vicarage attached to the church, but when it became merged in the Rectory is uncertain.

Of the first church at Cliffe there is no definite record. It is sometimes said to have been founded by Offa, king of Mercia, in the latter part of the eighth century, though the only evidence for this appears to be the presumed identification of the place with the Cloveshoo of the Saxon Chronicle, where various synods of the Saxon Church were held in the eighth and ninth centuries. Without attempting to suggest a solution of this very debatable point, it can only be said that the evidence in favour of Cliffe appears to rest on at least as good authority as that of the rival claimants—Abingdon in Berkshire, and Clifton Hoo in Bedfordshire. There is moreover good reason to think that Cliffe was less inaccessible than might be supposed in mediaeval times. There still remain traces of a causeway across Higham Marsh, which must at one time have led to a ferry, thus affording an easy means of approach from Essex and the Midlands.

The earliest undisputed documentary reference to a church at Cliffe is in the Domesday Survey. It was evidently a building of more than usual importance for it is expressly stated that two ministers were in charge. Of this building, however, not a vestige remains, though there can be little doubt that from it the present plan has, on more or less recognised lines, been developed.

The plan as it exists to-day is complete, and consists of a nave with wide aisles, north and south transepts, chancel, western tower and south porch. The church is one of the largest in Kent, and is a striking example of a parish church whose size and splendour could have borne but little relation to the actual needs of the locality. It was the product of an age whose zeal for church building was limited only by the funds available. The total internal length from east to west is 182 feet, while the width across the transept is 82 feet. The exterior has been the subject of somewhat extensive restoration, which has robbed it of much of its ancient appearance. The south aisle differs from that on the north in having an embattled parapet, similar to that of the porch. The walls of the tower and transepts are faced with flint rubble with little attempt at regular coursing. The later work of the nave and chancel, though extensively refaced, is composed of alternate courses of dressed flints and stone ; the latter, a soft ragstone from the lower green sand formation which, quarried probably from the outcrop a few miles to the south, has weathered badly in many places. A variety of other materials is noticeable, some of which appear to have been reused from the earlier church. A block of Caen stone in the east wall of the chancel, and several pieces in the north wall, have obviously been reused, while a single piece of calcareous tufa can be seen in the north wall of the transept; Reigate stone is also fairly abundant.

 

It is not till one enters the church, that its size is fully realised. The absence of pews over a large part of the nave, with the fact that the nave arcade is carried past the crossing without a break, and the absence of a chancel arch, all combine to emphasise its spaciousness. The impression

gathered from a superficial survey of the interior is that of a thirteenth century church with considerable additions in the fourteenth century, but a more careful inspection shows at least one trace of an earlier building. The arch from the north aisle into the transept, which has been partially cut away when the thirteenth century nave arcade was constructed, is certainly of late twelfth century date and must therefore have survived from an earlier church. Before, however, considering the development of the ground plan, it is necessary to refer briefly to the chief features of architectural interest which call for notice.

The porch is of a fairly common type, with an upper room, approached by a stair turret from the south aisle. It measures internally 11 feet 5 inches from east to west by 16 feet from north to south, and is apparently of late fifteenth century date. On the right of the inner doorway are the remains of a holy water stoup. The room above has been considerably modernised, and there is nothing to indicate its original use. Occasionally an altar is found in the porch chamber, which, however, in this case would seem more likely to have been used for storing the church goods.

 

The north and south aisles of the nave are 19 feet 10 inches and 18 feet wide respectively, and are thus considerably wider than the nave itself. They contain a fine series of Decorated windows, those at the end of either aisle being particularly interesting examples of three lights. The church as a whole is very rich in windows of this period, which form in themselves an interesting study in design. The south aisle has a stone bench running along its south and west walls.

The tower is entered from the nave by a plain thirteenth century arch, and measures approximately 15 feet 6 inches from east to west by 17 feet 6 inches from north to south (interior measurements). The lower stage, which is shut off from the church by a screen, and is now used as a vestry, is lit by three narrow lancets, one in each of the disengaged walls. The roof is a simple quadripartite vault, without any boss at the intersection of the ribs, which are carried on shafts supported on corbels set in the four angles. The lower part of the tower is apparently thirteenth century work, and somewhat earlier than the transepts. The flat, clasping buttresses appear to be original, though now entirely re-faced, and might in themselves suggest a transitional date for the base of the tower. The upper part has been rebuilt at a much later date, and contains a Perpendicular window. Like most towers of the period, it is probable that there was originally no structural stairway leading to the upper stages, access to which had to be obtained by means of a ladder, though the existing doorway to the modern stair turret appears to be of fairly early date.

 

The transepts deserve special consideration on account of the very interesting work which they contain. Their date cannot be later than about 1260 and there are some grounds for thinking that the south transept may be slightly the earlier of the two. The east wall of the south transept is

divided into two bays by blind arches, supported on slender banded shafts, with a narrow lancet window in the centre of each arch. A somewhat similar arrangement exists on the east wall of the north transept, though in this case the central shaft is not carried to the ground, but rests midway on a moulded bracket, below which is a piscina with a trefoil head of the same date. The treatment of the west wall of the north transept is very similar to that of the east, but the arches are much narrower, and the arrangement has been somewhat interfered with by a later widening of the nave aisle. In the south transept the arcading on the west wall is somewhat plainer, and the banded shafts have been dispensed with. Although similar in general design, certain details point to the south transept being slightly the earlier. The string course below the windows, which is continued round the shafts of the mural arcading, is a plain scroll moulding, while in the north transept a fillet is substituted, and the central bands on the shafts of the arcading are of a more elaborate character. The triple lancet windows at the ends of either transept are modern, and replaced two large fifteenth-century windows, which are shown in several early views.

The north transept was formerly shut off from the rest of the church by a screen, and used for holding the Rector's Court. In mediaeval times, and down to 1845, the Rector of Cliffe had a peculiar jurisdiction within his parish. He was exempt from all ecclesiastical authority other than personal visitation from the Archbishop of Canterbury. The wills of parishioners were proved in the local court, and the official seal of the Peculiar is still preserved in the Rochester Museum.

The chancel, which appears to have been rebuilt entirely in the middle of the fourteenth century, is complete, save for the insertion of a modern east window, which replaced an extraordinarily ugly eighteenth-century aperture of brick. The remaining windows are all fine examples of Decorated work, the tracery of which shows a distinctly Flamboyant tendency. The eastern pair affords interesting examples of Kentish tracery. All have good hood-mouldings with

grotesques at the ends. Beneath the windows is a stringcourse, which terminates at the altar rails with a grotesque head on either side. That on the north has been renewed, but the southern one represents the battered head of a monk.

The chief interest in the chancel, however, is its fittings. In the south wall is a series of three very beautiful fourteenth century sedilia, with a piscina of uniform character, recessed in the wall and ascending eastward. They are divided by slender buttressed shafts, supporting elaborately carved ogee canopies, and surmounted by crockets and finials. Beneath the canopies are trefoiled arches, and behind these the roof is carved in imitation of sexpartite vaulting.

Opposite in the north wall is a fine late-fourteenth century tomb of early Perpendicular character, which is often referred to as an Easter sepulchre, for which purpose it may well have been used. The wide cinquefoil arch is surmounted by an elaborate embattled cornice, supported on narrow

buttressed shafts, and terminating with a carved head at either end ; circles with internal cuspings fill the spandrils of the arch.

 

Immediately west of this tomb is a blocked doorway which led to an adjoining building, now demolished. The exterior wall at this point is of a different character from the rest of the chancel walls, and apparently of earlier date. It is composed of a variety of material, including pieces of Caen stone, which probably came from the earlier church, and suggests that this section of wall and the chapel, of which it formed part, survived the re-building of the chancel in the fourteenth century. The two adjoining buttresses have been constructed out of sections of the eastern and western walls of the chapel, and serve to indicate its approximate size. The position of its low roof is clearly shown by the stone corbels which remain at a height of 7 feet 8 inches from the ground. The floor must have been somewhat lower than the present ground level, as the small piscina in the exterior of the chancel wall is now only two feet from the ground. In the base of the westernmost of the two buttresses is a niche, now scarcely eighteen inches from the ground, which may originally have been used as a holy water stoup, since it was close to the entrance to the chapel. This small building probably served the joint purpose of a Sacristy and Chapel. That it contained an altar there can be no doubt from the piscina already noted.

It may possibly be referred to in the will of Richard Elys, who in 1468 left 12 pence to the light of the Blessed Mary in the chapel and 4 pence to the light of the Blessed Mary near the pulpit, though one of the transepts may of course have been here intended. Such evidence as there is on the other hand seems to point to the chapel having been pulled down at the time of the rebuilding of the chancel or soon afterwards. The blocked doorway in the chancel wall was originally carried down to the present ground level on the exterior, so that there must have been some steps in the thickness of the wall leading down into the chapel. The date of this doorway, which was probably contemporary with the building to which, it led, is uncertain. It is certainly earlier than the adjoining late-fourteenth-century tomb, as parts have been cut away when the latter was inserted, and the use of somewhat small stones points to an earlier rather than a later date. Its details on the other hand include the wave moulding which is usually taken to be characteristic of the Decorated period, or one might otherwise be inclined to think that it formed part of the thirteenth century chancel. The filling on the exterior is certainly not modern, and the fact that a plinth has been inserted when the doorway was blocked up, to match that round the rest of the chancel evidently with the intention, which was never carried out, of continuing it along the section of earlier walling where the chapel stood, seems to suggest that this work was undertaken about the same time as the rebuilding of the chancel.

 

We are now in a position to consider the probable development of the ground plan, which, though somewhat conjectural for the earlier period, has left some interesting and unmistakable traces of its later history. In the entire absence of remains of the early Norman church, one is forced to rely for the identification of its position on analogy with other buildings of similar type. The first church of which we have any record in all probability consisted of a simple nave and square- ended chancel. The three easternmost bays of the existing nave arcade would preserve the line of

the north and south walls of the church, while the chancel would occupy the interior of the present crossing. There is nothing to show the position of the west wall, but it would have been approximately in a line with the present north and south doors. Towards the close of the twelfth century north and south aisles, about half the width of the present ones, were probably added by piercing the original walls with arches, and about the same time a small chapel or aisle appears to have been built to the north of the original chancel, and the existing arch constructed so as to give access into it. This arch, which cannot be later than about 1200, is obviously much earlier than the present transept and must therefore have communicated with an earlier building on its site. Some evidence in support of this came to light during the restoration of the north transept in 1864. The foundations of an early wall four feet thick were found beneath the present floor running parallel and close to its eastern wall. At a distance of 15 feet from the chancel wall it appears to have been met by another wall at right angles to it. Unfortunately no further record was made of this discovery, but it establishes beyond doubt the existence of a building in this position, to which the arch in question opened. It is possible that this was the chancel arch of a late twelfth century church, and that the foundations were those of the former chancel, though such a theory would be more difficult to reconcile with the later development of the plan. Moreover on the assumption that there already existed a building on the north of the original chancel when the thirteenth-century builders decided to remodel the church, it is possible to account for the hitherto unexplained fact that the north transept is wider than the south by some three feet. The normal development of the thirteenth century produced a cruciform church. A new and longer chancel, and north and south transepts, were built around the small twelfth century chancel, while the nave and aisles were lengthened by the removal of the west wall some 20 feet further west, and a tower erected to the west of this. These extensive works could not of course have been simultaneous.

The tower appears to be somewhat earlier than the transepts, so that presumably the lengthening of the west end was undertaken first, and at the same time an Early English arcade, extending an additional bay westward, was inserted in place of the twelfth century arches. Contrary to what was frequently the case in churches of this type, there was clearly never any intention to erect a central tower over the crossing, since the abutments are far too weak to have supported the weight. This weakness would account for the presence of the strainer arch of oak, which must

have been inserted sometime in the fifteenth century.

With the completion of this work the early builders grew more ambitious. Almost immediately the work on the new chancel and transepts must have begun. A temporary hoarding was probably erected, shutting off the nave and the altar, transferred there until the new works were finished. The chancel and the south transept were probably first erected, as the sites were free of buildings ; the width of the latter being determined by the size of the former chancel and the chapel on the north. When the work was completed attention was directed towards the north transept, which, according to the usual practice, would have been rebuilt round the earlier building, the foundations of which were discovered in 1864, thus accounting for its slight extra width. Probably towards the end of the century the small chapel, the remains of which have already been mentioned, was built on the north of the new chancel.

Considerable alterations were undertaken in the fourteenth century, the principal of which were the rebuilding of the thirteenth century chancel, and the widening of the nave aisles. The latter was a very frequent form of improvement at this period, and was usually occasioned by the desire

for extra space to set up additional altars so as to meet the enormous increase in the popularity of Chantry bequests. At Cliffe the effect of this widening is clearly shown on the already completed design of the transepts. In the north transept one of the lancets was cut away, and a short pointed arch springing from shafts, which do not reach the ground, inserted in its place. The apex of the original lancet still remains in the wall above. In the south transept a similar alteration in plan is treated somewhat differently. A segmental arch, here reaching to the ground, and opening into the extended aisle, was inserted within the earlier bund arch in the west wall of the transept. This also necessitated the removal of an original lancet, the head of which can be seen occupying the space between the original arch and the later insertion. The windows in the nave all appear to be of this date. Probably contemporary with this extension of the aisles, was the heightening of the nave to allow for the clerestory with its row of single splayed lancets. The junction of this work with the old can be clearly seen immediately above the arcading. The thirteenth century roof of the nave was about on a level with those of the aisles, as the small window in the east face of the tower, which now looks into the church, must originally have looked out over the roof. The line of the fourteenth roof, which was erected at the time that the clerestory was added, can be seen on the wall of the tower, passing across the window opening. Below this the position of the third roof, erected 1732, can also be seen. This roof, which was almost flat, was replaced by the present one about forty years ago.

The rebuilding of the chancel would appear to have been undertaken at the same time as extension of the aisles, to judge from the similarity of the external stonework. This would again have necessitated the use of the nave for services, and it is probable that either at this time, or during the earlier work on the interior of the transepts, the round headed arch, which can be seen on the exterior of the north wall of the north transept, was constructed for the convenience of the masons while the ordinary entrances were not available. That this arch or doorway, which has sometimes been said to be of Norman origin, was really of a much later date, and of a purely temporary character, seems to be shown by a close inspection of its construction. The position is not in the centre of the wall while the arch itself is made up of a variety of material including large flints, pieces of Beigate stone and a single block of calcareous tufa, the latter doubtless coming from the early church. Further, the fact that the filling of the arch' seems to be of much the same character as the adjoining walls points to it only having been used for a comparatively short time. Everything in fact indicates that it was a purely temporary arrangement used during the construction of the transepts, or the later chancel, and filled up as soon as the work was completed. A somewhat similar, though smaller, arch in the exterior of the south wall of the tower was probably of a similar nature, though its purpose is conjectural, and it may have had some connection with original stairs to the upper floors. By the end of the fourteenth century the church was practically complete. The porch was added early in the following century, and the large Perpendicular windows, which formerly existed at the ends of the transepts, inserted. At the same time the upper part of the west tower was rebuilt. Certain work also seems to have been in progress about this time in the chancel, for in the will of the Rector in 1413 a sum of money was left towards that object. Exactly what resulted from the bequest one cannot say.

The subsequent additions were chiefly in the nature of modern insertions. The eighteenth century saw many acts of destruction which are duly entered in the parish registers. In 1730, during the Rectorship of George Green, the old high-gabled roofs were taken down, the lead recast, and an

almost flat roof substituted. Two years later the east window was demolished and a hideous brick opening substituted, and at the same time the old timber roof of the chancel, which, since it bore his arms, had probably been erected during the time of Archbishop Arundel, who occupied the See from 1396 to 1414, was pulled down, and both the nave and chancel ceiled. During this period also the two enormous brick buttresses, which are shown in some early views, were erected on the north and south sides of the tower. The church was in this condition when Sir Stephen Glynne visited it in 1857. Subsequent restorations have been extensive, though for the most part necessary. The brick buttresses to the Tower were removed shortly after Sir Stephen Glynne's visit, and the present circular stair turret erected in the place of the southern one. The chancel was restored in 1875, when traces of the original reredos were discovered, and the jambs of the original east window, which were of Reigate stone and about 15 feet apart, were found in situ. The present window was erected in place of the eighteenth century one in 1884, and at the same time the flat lead roofs of the nave and chancel were removed, and the present high-pitched tiled roofs substituted. Finally a small building, without any communication with the church, has been erected in recent years to the east of the north transept. During these successive restorations much of the external walls has been refaced from time to time, and the whole of the upper part of the east wall of the chancel which was pulled down in 1732, was rebuilt when the present window was inserted.

It is somewhat difficult now to picture the appearance of the interior of the church in mediaeval times. A brilliant colour scheme evidently played an important part in the general effect. Many of the piers of the nave arcades, which are apparently constructed of hard chalk, still show traces of a bold chevron pattern in red and yellow, and, together with the extensive wall paintings, slight traces of which still remain in the transepts, and the brilliance of the mediaeval glass, must have combined to give a very rich effect to the interior. Of the ancient glass very little remains. Dr.

Grayling mentions some fourteenth century borders in the chancel windows, which seem to have disappeared. In the central window of the north aisle is a small piece of ancient glass representing a ship with fish in the water beneath, which is said to have been found many years ago in a shed in the churchyard. In the top of the adjoining window is a fifteenth century figure of the Virgin and Child. A coat of arms in another window is mentioned by Thorpe, but this also seems to have disappeared. The wall paintings, though now very indistinct, were evidently much clearer until

comparatively recent times. On the east wall of the north transept, in the space between the southernmost of the two lancets and the arch in which it is placed, is one of these paintings, divided into five panels, depicting the Martyrdom of St. Edmund. Very little of it can now be made out, though the whole of this transept showed traces of colour at the time of the restoration of 1864. Some remains of a painting in a similar position in the south transept can still be seen, and are said to represent the Last Judgment.

Several bequests for the provision and upkeep of lights before the various altars add a little to our knowledge of the interior in mediaeval times. Of the various saints to whom lights were dedicated in the church Our Lady was of course the most popular. We have already seen that two altars

were dedicated to her. One of these is again mentioned in 1483, when Robert Qwikerell left 20 pence "to the Parish Church of Cleue and to the ligth of Our Lady besyde the pulpett there" and also a similar amount to the lights of St. Laurence and St. George. Richard Elys in 1469 also

mentions lights of St. Christopher, St. John and St. James, while in 1509 Steven Tudor bequeathed to the high altar of St. Elyn 20 pence, and to the light of St. Elyn 12 pence.

Of the position of these various lights one cannot speak with any certainty. That to St. Christopher would have been near the main entrance to the church, while the light of the patron saint, St. Helen, would have been in the Chancel, probably over the high altar. Remains of a piscina in four other places in the church prove the former existence of altars in these positions. That in the Sacristy has already been mentioned. At least one altar stood in each of the transepts, while a small piscina, apparently constructed of broken window tracery at the east end of the south aisle, testifies to another. An altar probably stood in a corresponding position in the north aisle. This disposition would exactly account for the number of lights mentioned in early wills. Besides the lights burning before the altars, there would also be a light before the great Rood over the entrance to the chancel. Some of the lower panels of the original rood screen survive. Above, and partly supported by, the screen was the rood loft, which was already in existence as early as 1413, when it is mentioned in conjunction with the great rood itself and its attendant figures in the will of Nicholas de Ryssheton, Canon of Sarum and Rector of Cliffe. The small fifteenth century doorway with a fourcentred arch, which gave access to it, can still be seen high up in the north wall just east of the entrance of the chancel, and the original stairs remain in good condition, though the entrance from the church has been blocked up and covered over with plaster.

The furniture in the church has suffered much from “restoration" and other causes. Six of the ancient stalls remain, three on each side of the chancel, though panelling at the backs and all the seats except two are modern. The sides terminate in carved heads, some of which have been

renewed, while the two original miserecords are carved with grotesques. The Communion rails are Jacobean, though somewhat repaired. They are of the fairly common baluster type with a central bulge. The pulpit is a very fine piece of Renaissance carving, and retains the original stand for the hour glass, though the glass itself is modern; on it is the date 1636.

Besides the fragments of the original rood screen there is another screen shutting off the vestry under the tower.

The font, which has been moved from its original position, is 3 feet 4£ inches in height, and apparently of late-fourteenth century date. The perfectly plain octagonal bowl has concave sides, around the lower edge of which is a hollow chamfer. The bowl is supported by an octagonal, buttressed stem on a plain base. On the westernmost pillar of the south arcade can still be seen the bracket and chain by which the font cover was raised, indicating its original position.

The monuments in the church are few, and call for little comment. In the floor at the west end of the north aisle are two flat coffin-shaped stones with early fourteenth century French inscriptions in Lombardic capitals. The one on the north is probably the earlier, judging from the very rough

characters which are now scarcely legible. It commemorated Eleanor de Olive, of whom nothing is known. The other stone shows traces of brass, and is inscribed in memory of Joan, wife of John Earn. These stones are described in the Gentleman's Magazine, and old rubbings of them exist among the collection of the Society of Antiquaries. There are three brasses of seventeenth century date, one of which is thought to have been engraved locally.

Two wills are of interest in connection with early burials in the church. In 1376 Robert de Walton, Rector of Cliffe, desired to be buried in the church of Olyve at the entrance to the quire. Some years later, in 1387, Thomas de Lynton, a subsequent rector, directed that he should be buried in the chancel near the entrance, and between the entrance to the quire and the tomb of Master Robert Walton, late Rector, and he ordered that a handsome marble monument should be placed over his body at the discretion of his executors. It seems not unlikely however that his executors favoured a brass monument. In the chancel is the stone matrix of what must once have been a very fine brass of about this period, representing a priest under a canopy. Another smaller matrix of an ecclesiastic is close to the pulpit.

Of the church plate the most important piece is a very beautiful paten of silver gilt of the early part of the sixteenth century. In the centre, worked in coloured enamels, is a seated figure of God the Father holding before Him a figure of the crucifixion. The extreme rarity of pre-reformation

plate is not generally recognised, and the example at Cliffe is one of the finest English patens in existence. At some period or other the paten at Cliffe served as a chalice cover, and it is even said to have been used as an alms dish, which would account for its numerous signs of wear. The other plate is of seventeenth century and later date, and of no particular interest.

It remains for me to acknowledge my indebtedness to Mr. F. O. Blliston Erwood for several suggestions and for the photographs which illustrate this paper. The present account is intended to supplement, but not to supplant altogether, an article on Cliffe Church, by the Rev. I. Gr. Lloyd, a former Rector, which appeared in Vol. XI. of Arch. Cant., where reference should be made for further particulars.

 

www.cliffehistory.co.uk/martin.html

 

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CLIFFE (St. Helen), a parish, in the union of North Aylesford, hundred of Shamwell, lathe of Aylesford, W. division of Kent, 5 miles (N. by W.) from Rochester; containing 842 inhabitants. The parish is bounded on the north by the Thames, and comprises 5660 acres, whereof 180 are woodland, about 2000 arable, and the remainder pasture, including a considerable portion of marshy land. The village, which is supposed to take its name from the cliff or rock on which it stands, was formerly of much greater extent, a great part of it having been destroyed by fire in 1520: it was the scene of several provincial councils. A pleasurefair is held on September 28th. The living is a rectory, valued in the king's books at £50; net income, £1297; patron, the Archbishop of Canterbury: the glebe contains 20 acres. The church is considered one of the finest in the county, being a large handsome cruciform structure in the early English style, with an embattled central tower, and containing several curious monuments and remains of antiquity, together with six stalls that belonged to a dean and five prebendaries, it having been formerly collegiate.

 

www.british-history.ac.uk/topographical-dict/england/pp63...

St Giles Church, Whittington

 

"Same composition as one i took last year but a little better in my opinion"

Cute, but aggressive dog. He was being restrained from making a small dog his afternoon snack. He's still a puppy, but he is huge!

We have only missed one Open House in six years. With that in mind we did mean to make a good deal of it. But, what with work, travel and all the other stuff, I was planning the day mainly on Friday evening, looking at what was available in the guide. I had intended on a few of the Livery Houses, as well as some City Churches. Then there was the usual favourite of Admiralty House which we have failed to make it round to over the last few years, and as it turned out would again this year.

 

Should we have set the alarm for crack of dawn, or even before? Maybe we should have done, but then there was always Mulder to ensure we didn't sleep too long. IN the end it was nearly half six by the time we gave in and got up, fed the cats and made breakfast. It was a dull, grey morning but that could be a good thing, right? Not so hot on old London town, or so we hoped. I checked on the train times only to find that there were no trains from down the hill at Martin Mill, so that meant going into Dover, which meant either stumping up the cost of parking or find somewhere free.

 

We find a place along Priory Gate Road, whilst I try to park, Jools goes to buy tickets, as we have only a few minutes before we leave, and we have yet to have breakfast! I think we could have got something from the station buffet, but decide against it, and instead climb aboard the train and take a place around one of the tables in the front coach, ready to leave.

 

You know the trip by now, so I won't go into details. I look out the windows, always finding something new to look at, whilst JOols does some crocheting on the squares for the blanket she is making. And in this way we go through Kent, into Essex and into the tunnel to Stratford.

 

We get out, and go up to the concourse and have breakfast where I normally stop when I'm on my way to Denmark. We have coffee and baguette melt things, which is mighty fine indeed, and sets us up. To get to Stratford regional station, we walk through the shopping centre, and it really is horrific to see such a cathedral to commercialism. I mean I have no problem with shops and shopping, I like shopping. But three laevels of glittering and shiny emporiums, all selling pretty much what could be described as designer gear, and all of it pretty much looking very uncomfortable. Maybe its what makes people happy. Maybe not. And it goes on for ages until we get to the broken automatic doors and onto the bridge over the Great Eastern Main Line; but any thought of looking at the trains going back and forth were dashes as every glass panel had been covered up with advertising for Citroen cars. Do we really need all this? Is this public or private space? I know the shopping centre is private, but this is just silly now.

 

On the Jubilee Line we get a carriage to ourselves, at least for a while, and wait for it to leave. The line runs beside the DLR line, at least to Canning Town, then it dives underground, and in the non-air conditioned carriages, its pretty warm.

 

We get off at London Bridge, with the hope of seeing the new concourse beneath the Southeastern platofrms, but we can only find our way to the Southern terminal platforms, and for a change, there was no strikes so all seemed to be working well. Saying that, we could find no signs for toilets, and so set out towards the bridge itself, to cross into the City, where there were some public conveniences near to the Monument. It seems that the modern world means less public conveniences, who says this should be? Phillip K. Dick didn't see that one coming.

 

Once in The City, the plan went out the window as usual, and I began the usual trudge round the City churches that are usually closed. Just the other side of Lloyds and in the shadow of the Gherkin, sits St Andrew Undershaft, not a small church, but dwarfed by the modern buildings that have risen around it. It is also partially hidden by the queues waiting to go into The Gherkin, usually the most popular building in Open House, and for which most people waiting will not get in to. We tried the first year and gave up when we found we were going to have to wait at least six hours and with no guarantee we would get in.

 

But we ask if we could get through the line, and find the door to the church open, and so we walk in. What greets us is an ancient church, but done with a modern makeover; ancient walls, and new wooden floor and seating. We were given a warm welcome, but for a moment I was just stunned to be inside, this being the first time I had even found the church open. Regular tours are taking place, but I decline one to go around myself and see if I can see the history of the old building.

 

I am met by one of the guides, who has already spoken to Jools, and asks me about why I am here. I can't really answer, even when put into the context of the Kent Church Project, because, why do I do that? What will I do with the thousands of images? I have to say, I am not sure. But I have a desire to see history, and to see inside something built by a name we all know, Sir Christopher Wren, a link to him and the Great Fire.

 

We are all looking for meaning in life, I am, and those who came before me are. I may have a modern scientific outlook, but still, why have I spent the last eight years of my life visiting 300 or so Kent churches, why do I re-visit the same places every year looking for orchids? Well, I enjoy it, and maybe that's enough.

 

I decry the enforced closure of St Peter Upon Cornhill to all those that its custodians allow inside; why should that be? It is a place of historic importance to London and England, why not allow all to see? I tell her of The Friends of City Churches, whose volunteers enable many churches to be opened at least one day a week, and could that not be extended to St Peter? She agrees that it should.

 

I take my shots, as usual, and we leave.

 

Up Cornhill we come to another church, not one I expected to see, but clearly is open; so we go inside. St Mary Cree is a delight, empty apart from us and the volunteer quietly reading near the door. It is a triumph to be honest, and unlike At Andrew, I can go round, seeing all what I want to see. Another understated City church, and a haven of gold, peace and light among the ugliness of the modern City outside.

 

I had been told in St Andrew that St Helen's in Bishopgate would be open. It was just a short walk, according to the map. IN fact, I didn't realise how close, and from St Andrew you could almost touch St Heneln's, but through narrow streets and lanes, we reach St Helen's, and indeed the door was open.

 

We go inside, and are greeted with the most extraodinary interior; a double nave, and also a church that survived both the Great Fire and the Blitz did not fare so well at the hands of the IRA who managed to bomb it twice at the beginning of the 1990s. So it has been restored, but the people who run it, St Andrews and St Peter Uopn Cornhill had had it done to meet their needs. Not to say it isn't a fine and unusual church, it is, but it has something of a sports hall about it, even with those 13th century walls. And it was wildly popular, with hundreds of people being taken round in tours, and over the state of the art system, a description of the church, and how it varies from the traditional Anglican churches. I run round getting shots, inbetween tours passing by.

 

So, three new City churches in one day. Won't be able to say that again I think!

 

We walk back to Bank station and catch a train to Chancery Lane to where there is a Tudor hall, part of a college, and is open. We follow the signs from the station, only to find them disappear once we get onto street level. We stop at a juice bar for some squeezed fruit and to consult a map. I am sure the college is just along the steet, and indeed this is the case.

 

We walk through a gateway, and soon have left the modern world behind. Apart from the hall, the ancient buildings have been lost, but Gresham College is still a place of learning, and offers free lectures to all, and they are all available online. We attend an intoroduction in the hall, and marvel at the surroundings. The college goes back to the 14th century, and its founder came from Norfolk. See, not such a bad place after all!

 

Where should we go now? Well, I consult the list, and a considerable journey away is a Gothic masterpiece. In order to get there and be able to see other buildings beyond that, we take a cab. We flag a taxi down, and despite telling his where we wanted to go, he latched onto the station at Warwich Avenue, and being the site of a driver's rest, he knew that, and would take no answer on the offer of the postcode for the church.

 

He drops us off outside the tube station, and after some orientation we find our way on the A to Z, and make our way over the canal at Little Venice.

 

After a short walk we realise we are hungry, and see a pub-cum-theatre on the other side of the road. We go in, and despite sloe service we order lunch and a drink. I have fish and chips whilst Jools had burger with cheese and yet more meat. It comes and is good, for London.

 

Once we had eaten, we walk farther along the road, at the edge of a 60s housing estate, then down a dip and over a playing field was St Mary Magdalene. A mighty Gothic pile, some child's nightmare maybe. Inside it was all that and more, a higher than high church, lit with candles and incense sticks. On the walls there were the stations of the cross. Everywhere were altars and icons, making this the most Catholic of CofE church I have seen. And yet there was one further glory to see: in the crypt, a chapel, covered in gold and idols, as Catholic as it is possible to get. I am not Christian or religious, but this plethora of sects is bewildering, high, low, Baptist, strict, non-conformist and so on. Its the same God, no? Be good, you yourself and others and be saved, is that not the message of Jesus?

 

We could have gone on. Admiralty Building was next, but I was done, and so we walked back to Warwick Avenue; we did not see Duffy, we flag a cab down and he takes us back to St Pancras, arriving ten minutes before the departure to Dover. We go upstairs to the platofrm, and find a seat. Phew, going home.

 

The tript o Ashford was quiet and usual enough. But there a group of four, two couples, gets on, with carry outs and drink quickly and are loud. Who am I to judge how people spend their spare time, but do anyway. I listen to their loud conversation as one can of vodka/red bull is downed, and other started. There are going to Folkestone for a night of more drinking, apparently. They are looking forward to a concert by UB40 in a few eeks time, and all seem to live for drunken fun. But who am I to judge?

 

They get off at Folkestone Central, and silence returns to the train. We get off at Dover, walk to the car and drive home. The football had ended, Norwich had won in Nottingham, whichw as good news and spared me all the stress of following the game via the radio and twitter.

 

We have cheese and crackers for supper, I watch the football on TV, and the just gone full moon rises, partially hidden behind light cloud.

 

Another fine day comes to an end.

I woke up not well.

 

Maybe, not ill. But not right.

 

During the night I had got so hot I couldn't sleep with any covers on, so had a broken night's sleep/snoozing.

 

I took a COVID test which was negative, and apart from feeling tired I didn't feel that ill, to be honest. I should have my temperature taken. We looked for one, and couldn't find the one we though we had.

 

No worries, we were going to Tesco.

 

And after seven, we left for the store with the added item to the list. Now, you would think thermometer would be in the medicine aisle near the chemists counter? Well, I did, and searched and searched.

 

No thermometer.

 

So, waited to eight when the dispensary opened, asked the lady, who told me that thermometers are kept in the "baby" aisle.

 

Of course?

 

THere was the choice of one. So, bought that for £14, and once home found that it was more of a cooking thermometer, we tried to use it on ourselves, with me being 36 degrees, and Jools being one degree cooler.

 

I didn't want breakfast, so after a second coffee we went out.

 

We should have gone to Rye last week, but I arranged something else instead. So, we went yesterday.

 

Rye means crossing the vast expanse of the Romney Marsh and then crossing at Checkpoint Charlie into East Sussex.

 

We were last here in November 2020, in the middle of COVID where I think we obeyed regulations in place at the time. That time we had the picturesque cobbled streets and half-timbered houses to ourselves, no one else about, and so few folks about, grass grew from between the cobbles.

 

So, no need to take those shots again, but I realised when Jools suggested to go, I hadn't photographed the town church, so with Jools saying she was going to do some window shopping, I would visit St Mary the Virgin.

 

We parked down beside the playing field, so had a walk up the hill emerging on the High Street near the Landgate, then turning towards the centre of town, past restaurants and small shops until I turned up towards the church.

 

I did a resonable job, taking 355 shots inside it, with many being of the fine windows.

 

Jools arrived revealing a bag containing £41.00 of cheese, including a sizeable chunk of Stiking Bishop.

 

I finish the shots, so we go to the pie shop outside the church, Simon the Pieman, where we were going to have a drink. Then added a cake, which turned into a full cream tea.

 

A cream tea is: 2 x scones (each), pats of butter, strawberry jam, clotted cream, a pot of tea, pot of hot water to add to the por after the first cupper is drawn and a china cup and saucer for the tea.

 

Its not as an ancient ceremony as the Japanese or Chinese tea ceremony, but we Brits take it very seriously.

 

Just as serious is whether you put the cream or jam on the sclied scones first. Jam first is the "Devon" way, and cream first is the "Cornish" way. I was taught the Devon way, jam first, so that's what I had yesterday too.

 

The town was beginning to fill up with other visitors, to the point that the pavements were full, so we walked as quick as we could back to the car, back down the hill and over the main road to the car.

 

Back home via New Romney, Dymchurch and Hythe before heading to the motorway and to home.

 

Back home I had a shower and then settled down to listen to the football on the sofa with Scully, who is now very demanding in wanting a partner to lay with during the day and evenings.

 

But there was one last thing to do: Jools's colleague Sean and his wife, Angela, were coming for dinner. They had hear stories about the steaks I cook, and wanted some of that action. On Friday I had made a baked vanilla cheesecake too, so we had dessert too.

 

Steam was defrosted, seasons and rubbed with oil and left for the afternoon to come to room temperature and infuse the flavours.

 

They arrived at five, wine was cracked opn, and bit by bit I prepared, then cooked the meal. Potatoes zapped, mushrooms cliced and seasoned, steak cut into portions, then griddled, while the potatoes were sliced and fried, mushrooms cooked, the all dished up.

 

And all items were done to perfection, served on warm plates and with glasses of wine or cider.

 

We wash up, then I make coffees and serve the cheesecake with cream and fresh mushrooms. A fine end to a meal.

 

More wine was drunk.

 

Much more talking done.

 

-----------------------------------------------------

 

For more than 900 years the Parish Church of Rye, dedicated to St Mary the Virgin, has dominated the hill on which the old town stands.

 

When the building of the present church was started, early in the 12th century, the town itself and much of the surrounding area was still held, under a Royal deed of gift, by the Abbey of Fecamp in Normandy. It is because of this link with Fecamp and the fact that it had become an important member of the Cinque Ports Confederation that Rye has such a magnificent church, which has sometimes been called 'the Cathedral of East Sussex'.

 

The worst disaster in the church's history 1377 when the town was looted and set on fire by French invaders and the church was extensively damaged. The roof fell in and the church bells were carried off to France.They were recovered the next year when men from Rye and Winchelsea sailed to Normandy, set fire to two towns and recovered much of the loot, including the church bells - one of which was subsequently hung in Watchbell Street, to give warning of any future attack. It was not returned to the church until early in the 16th century.

 

The 'new' clock was installed in about 1561-2 and was made by the Huguenot Lewys Billiard. It isone of the church clockoldest church turret clocks in the country still functioning. The pendulum, a much later addition, swings in the body of the church. The present exterior clockface and the original 'Quarter Boys' (so called because they strike the quarters but not the hours) were added in 1760. Today, if you wish, you can climb the church tower where you will see the 8 bells now hanging there. These are not the same bells that were stolen in 1377 as they were re-cast in 1775 and new bells added. The total weight of the 8 bells and clappers is almost 5 tons.

 

St Mary's is open to View South West from the Towervisitors every day of the year, except for Christmas Day, from 9.15am - 5.15pm in summer and 9.15am - 4.15pm in winter. The Visitor Centre stocks a good range of postcards, Christian greetings cards, prayer cards, books, gifts and Christian jewellery. The Tower, which is open every day (weather permitting) for a charge, has become a popular place for marriage proposals!

 

www.ryeparishchurch.org.uk/history.htm

  

There is still Fall Color :)

 

Actually this is Alvins creation of a Chritmas Wreath. He has got the circle going on with the Green and Red Christmas Colors. I think he is asleep right now so we won't knock on the door and wake him up :)

 

Remembering the Chipmunk Song 1958

youtu.be/b3p7tZw6Mps

 

Have a Holy Joly Christmas :)

Remembering Burl Ives R.I.P.

youtu.be/f8Em2Ixvefo

youtu.be/CLr1AYRBS0A

 

Here is Alvin

www.flickr.com/photos/tripod_treker/38782718761/in/datepo...

 

In Search of Winter Beauty's in the Woods of Virginia.

No snow yet :)

 

PC25002

Assembling the dollhouse. Steps 41-42 - Stairs to Second Floor - Assembled But Loose

 

I don't really have room for this huge Frozen Snowflake Mansion dollhouse, by Kidkraft. But I bought it anyway, and am now in the process of assembling it. It was $169.90, from Costco (now sold out online and in stores). I decided to photograph each assembly step, following the detailed instructions in the 20+ page manual.

 

It comes in a very large box, which is 50'' L x 18'' W x 7'' D, and weighs 60 pounds! Fully assembled, it is 57'' H x 49'' W x 16'' D. It consists of 9 rooms in three stories, and accommodates 12'' dolls, such as the Classic Elsa and Anna dolls. It also includes 20 pieces of furniture, three of which light up (batteries included) and three of which contain foam padding to make them more realistic. As I expected from a Kidkraft product, the items are well made and very sturdy. One disappointing feature is that the bed for Elsa is about an inch too small for her, so she has to bend her knees to fit into it. But it has a real foam mattress and pillow, and is decorated very nicely with snowflakes, so Elsa forgives the shortness of the bed.

 

Classic Elsa is very happy with her new home, and so is Anna! It took a total of 12 hours to assemble (with various breaks). I was slowed down because I took photos as I went along. Also because I was assembling them in a cramped area, I couldn't lay out all the pieces before I started, so I pretty much left everything in the box (except the screws), and searched for individual pieces as I needed them. I also had to undo and redo several steps, because I assembled some things the wrong way. Finally some of the items were hard to assemble, especially the balcony railing.

 

I am very impressed with the construction of the house, and it is very beautiful. It is about 4 feet wide and high, a foot deep. Because the base is totally flat, it is also easy to slide along the floor (mine is carpeted) to move it if needed. I loved the fact that several of the furniture pieces had actual foam padding - the bed, the sofa and the throne. In general, the furniture is actually a bit too small for 1/6 scale dolls, as I already mentioned with the bed. That is the same problem with my other 1/6 scale doll house (the Disney Store's Disney Princess Enchanted Palace Play Set). The lamp's battery was dead, so it had to be replaced (fortunately I already had the required LR44 batteries), the vanity lights worked perfectly. I like that all three light-up items have auto shut-off mechanisms.

 

I have begun adding other dolls and accessories to fill the dollhouse some more, and will post more photos as I do so.

Between 2014 and 2018 Australia will commemorate the Anzac Centenary, marking 100 years since our nation's involvement in the First World War.

These photos are almost 10 years old to the day (7 days away) as it will soon be Anzac day 2015.

 

I have attended quite a few dawn services but none quite as sobering as being a foreigner, walking fields where Australian soldiers died during wartime, and were burried.

 

I thought it was time to post my photos from Kranji.

I got up at 4 am along with many other of my Australian Microsoft and MVP friends. Bleary eyed, fighting the fog, we found our way to the bus.

We were in a daze as we were bumped about making our way to the killing fields of Kranji.

 

Kranji is a suburb in northwestern Singapore, located about 22 kilometres (14 mi) from the city centre.

The Kranji War Memorial in Singapore honours the men and women from the Commonwealth who died in the line of duty during World War II.

 

A very appropropriate and solem place for Anzac Day 2005.

 

Back then I was not interested in Photography and my cameras were not that great. Still, that is not the reason for the photos. I did want to try for a perfect shot. I just wanted memories.

It was humid, dark and very quiet as the service started. Bagpipes from overhead and marching in front.

 

Deep within this quiet neighbourhood, lies the Kranji War Memorial, a hillside cemetery that is quite beautiful in its serenity once you get there.

Every year, a memorial service is held to pay tribute to those who gave their lives.

The memorial honours the men and women from Britain, Australia, Canada, Sri Lanka, India, Malaya, the Netherlands and New Zealand who died in the line of duty during World War II.

 

Here, we see more than 4,400 white gravestones lined up in rows on the cemetery’s gentle slope. Many graves hold unknown soldiers.

The Chinese Memorial in plot 44 marks a mass grave for 69 Chinese servicemen who were killed by the Japanese when Singapore fell in February 1942.

 

Next to the Kranji War Memorial are the Kranji Military Cemetery and the Singapore State Cemetery, where Singapore’s first and second presidents are buried.

As we walked the short flight of steps to the hilltop terrace, we saw four memorials.

 

The largest is the Singapore Memorial, with its huge star-topped central pylon that rises to a height of 24 metres.

This memorial bears the names of more than 24,346 Allied soldiers and airmen killed in Southeast Asia who have no known grave. You can find the register, kept by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, at the entrance.

 

Every year, on the Sunday closest to Remembrance Day on 11 November, a memorial service is held to pay tribute to those who gave their lives.

 

Next to the Kranji War Memorial is the Kranji Military Cemetery, a non-world war site of more than 1,400 burials, as well as the Singapore State Cemetery, where the country’s first and second presidents, Encik Yusof Ishak and Dr Benjamin Henry

 

Sheares, are buried.

 

The Battle of Kranji was the second stage of the Empire of Japan's plan for the invasion of Singapore during the Second World War. On 9 February 1942 the Imperial Japanese Army assaulted the north-western front of the British colony of

 

Singapore. Their primary objective was to secure a second beachhead after their successful assault at Sarimbun Beach on 8 February, in order to breach the Jurong-Kranji defence line as part of their southward thrust towards the heart of

 

Singapore City. Defending the shoreline between the Kranji River and the Johor–Singapore Causeway was the Australian 27th Brigade, led by Brigadier Duncan Maxwell, and one irregular company.

 

On 10 February the Japanese forces suffered their heaviest losses while moving up the Kranji River, which caused them to panic and nearly aborted the operation. However, a series of miscommunications and withdrawals by Allied forces in the

 

ensuing battles allowed the Japanese to swiftly gain strategic footholds, which eventually led to the fall of Singapore on 15 February 1942.

 

The terrain around Kranji was primarily mangrove swamps and tropical forest intersected by streams and inlets. The shoreline between the Kranji River and the Johor–Singapore Causeway, nearly four kilometers long, was defended by the

 

Australian 27th Brigade, led by Australian Brigadier Duncan Maxwell. The 27th Infantry Brigade consisted of three battalions—the 2/30th, 2/29th, and 2/26th and was supported by the 2/10th Field Artillery Regiment, as well as one platoon from the

 

2/4th Machine Gun Battalion.

 

They were supported by one company from Dalforce (named after its commander, Lieutenant-Colonel John Dalley of the Malayan Police Special Branch), a local Chinese militia consisting of Communists, Nationalist supporters, and other

 

volunteers. As the war intensified, the Dalforce volunteers were given only three to four days of training and sent to the war front with elementary weapons. Lacking uniforms, the volunteers improvised by wearing a red triangle on their blue shirts to

 

avoid being mistaken for Japanese by the Australians.

 

The Allied forces at Kranji were to be assaulted by the Imperial Guards Division led by Major General Takuma Nishimura. 400 Imperial Guards had landed and taken Pulau Ubin, an island in the north-east of Singapore, in a feint attack on 7

 

February, where they encountered minimal resistance.

 

On 9 February, two divisions of the Japanese Twenty Fifth Army, led by Lieutenant General Tomoyuki Yamashita, landed on the northwestern coast of Singapore, in the Sarimbun area. Yamashita's headquarters (HQ) was in the Sultan of Johor's

 

palace on Istana Bukit Serene, which offered him and his officers a bird's eye view of virtually every key target in the northern sector of Singapore Island, only 1.6 kilometres (one mile) across the Straits of Johor. Sultan Ibrahim's palace was not fired

 

upon by the British because any damage caused would have extensive repercussions for British-Johor ties.

 

The primary objective of the Japanese at Kranji was to capture Kranji village; this would let them repair the demolished Causeway in order to facilitate easy flow of reinforcements and supplies down the roads of Woodlands and Mandai, and to the

 

rest of the island for their vanguard force. Once the leading wave of Japanese was safely ashore, the massed Japanese artillery switched their fire to the defensive positions at Kranji. Telegraph and telephone communications were destroyed in the

 

bombardment and communications between the front line and command HQ were broken. At 8:30pm that night, the men of the Imperial Guards Division began the crossing from Johor in special armoured landing-crafts, collapsible boats and by

 

swimming.

 

In the early hours of 10 February, Japanese forces suffered their heaviest losses during the Battle of Singapore. While moving up the Kranji River, advance landing parties from the 4th Regiment of the Imperial Guard Division found themselves

 

under heavy fire from Australian machine gunners and mortar teams. They also found themselves surrounded by oil slicks, which had been created by Allied personnel emptying the nearby Woodlands oil depot, to prevent its capture. A scenario

 

feared by Yamashita came to pass by accident; the oil was set alight by Allied small arms fire, causing many Japanese soldiers to be burnt alive. Sustaining heavy losses, Nishimura requested permission to abandon the operation. However,

 

Yamashita denied the request.

 

Maxwell, who had limited communications with his division headquarters, was concerned that his force would be cut off by fierce and chaotic fighting at Sarimbun and Jurong to the south west, involving the Australian 22nd Brigade. Maxwell's

 

force consequently withdrew from the seafront. This allowed the Japanese to land in increasing strength and take control of Kranji village. They also captured Woodlands, and began repairing the causeway, without encountering any Allied attacks.

 

Japanese light tanks, which had good buoyancy, were towed across the straits to Lim Chu Kang Road where they joined the battle at dusk. With reinforced troops and tanks advancing down Choa Chua Kang Road, the Australian troops were no

 

match for the tanks and fled to the hills of Bukit Panjang. The 5th Division (Imperial Japanese Army) captured Bukit Timah village by the evening of 11 February.

 

Lieutenant-General Arthur Percival, General Officer Commanding of HQ Malaya Command, drew a defence perimeter covering Kallang aerodrome, MacRitchie and Peirce reservoirs and the Bukit Timah supply depot area to ensure the integrity

 

of the city's defence. One line of the north-western defence perimeter was the Jurong-Kranji defence line, a narrow ridge connecting the sources of the Jurong and the Kranji Rivers, forming a natural defence line protecting the north-west

 

approach to the Singapore City. (Its counterpart was the Serangoon Line, which was sited between Kallang Airfield and Paya Lebar village on the eastern part of Singapore). The troops were to defend this Line strongly against the invading

 

Japanese force. The Line was defended by the 44th Indian Infantry Brigade which covered milestone 12 on Jurong Road, the 12th Indian Infantry Brigade and the reinforced 22nd Australian Brigade which guarded the northern part of the Line and

 

maintained contact with the 44th Indian Brigade. The 15th Indian Infantry Brigade was re-positioned near Bukit Timah Road to guard the island's vital food and petrol supplies. A secret instruction to protect this area was issued to Percival's

 

generals.

 

Percival's secret orders to withdraw to the last defence line around the city only if necessary were misunderstood by Maxwell, who took this to be an order for an immediate withdrawal to the Line. As a result, the 44th Indian Infantry Brigade, the 12th

 

Indian Infantry Brigade and the 22nd Australian Brigade, reinforced after their withdrawal from Sarimbun beach in the north-west, abandoned the Line on 10 February. Fearing that the large supplies depot would fall into Japanese hands should

 

they make a rush for Bukit Timah too soon, General Archibald Wavell, Allied commander-in-chief of the Far East sent an urgent message to Percival:

 

It is certain that our troops in Singapore Island heavily outnumber any Japanese who have crossed the Straits. We must destroy them. Our whole fighting reputation is at stake and the honour of the British Empire. The Americans have held out in the

 

Bataan Peninsula against a far heavier odds, the Russians are turning back the picked strength of the Germans. The Chinese with an almost lack of modern equipment have held the Japanese for four and a half years. It will be disgraceful if we

 

yield our boasted fortress of Singapore to inferior enemy forces.

 

By 11 February, the Jurong-Kranji Defence Line was left undefended which allowed the Japanese forces to sweep through the Line to attack Bukit Timah. On the same day, Percival finally moved his Combined Operations Headquarters in Sime

 

Road to the underground bunker, The Battle Box at Fort Canning.

 

Despite their fighting spirit, the Dalforce fighters suffered from poor training and the lack of equipment. A further blow was delivered when the 27th Australian Brigade withdrew southwards. As a result, the Japanese established a stronghold in the

 

northern Woodlands area and secured a relatively easy passage into the island. General Wavell left Singapore for Java early on 11 February and sent a cable to British Prime Minister Winston Churchill in London on his assessment of the war front

 

in Singapore:

  

Battle for Singapore is not going well... I ordered Percival to stage counter-attack with all troops possible... Morale of some troops is not good and none is as high as I should like to see... The chief troubles are lack of sufficient training in some

 

reinforcing troops and an inferior complex which bold Japanese tactics and their command of the air have caused. Everything possible is being done to produce more offensive spirit and optimistic outlook. But I cannot pretend that these efforts

 

have been entirely successful up to date. I have given the most categorical orders that there is to be no thought of surrender and that all troops are to continue fighting to the end...

 

By 12 February, the Imperial Guards had captured the reservoirs and Nee Soon village. The defending troops, by this time, were badly shaken. Thousands of exhausted and frightened stragglers left the fighting to seek shelter in large buildings. On

 

the same night, British forces in the east of the island had begun to withdraw towards the city.

 

On 13 February, the Japanese 5th Division continued its advance and reached Adam and Farrer Roads to capture the Sime Road Camp. Yamashita moved his HQ forward to the bomb-damaged Ford Factory in Bukit Timah. Heading southwards,

 

the Japanese 18th Division advanced into Pasir Panjang, where the last major battle of Singapore would be fought with the Malay Regiments at Bukit Chandu.

 

In 1995, the former battle sites of Kranji and the defence line were gazetted by the National Heritage Board as two of the eleven World War II sites of Singapore.

  

2005

 

Knoica Minolta

  

PICT0049

San Francisco. Mid 90's

This day, 2 March. You got your candles on a birthday cake in the form of Mount Ijen's blue flames.

 

Minolta XG1

Kodak Gold 200

 

Mount Ijen, Indonesia

Mar 2016

“I lost my husband in 1994, but I don’t complain because conservation agriculture is doing the work my husband would have done,” says Belita Maleko, of the Mwansambo extension planning area, Nkhotakota zone, central Malawi.

 

Maleko, a small-scale maize and mixed-crop farmer, kept on farming after she was widowed with help from her family. At the invitation of government extension officers and the non-governmental organization Total LandCare (TLC), she began adopting conservation agriculture (CA) practices and sowing plots to demonstrate them to neighboring farmers in 2006. "I’d been hearing about CA from the radio and other people, so I was very interested in trying it. They asked me to host a demo, and I said 'yes' and started applying the practices," she says. "This is my sixth year. Some other farmers visit me for advice; some come to field days to see what I’m doing. Some just pass by and observe."

 

CA practices include eliminating traditional ridge-and-furrow tillage systems, keeping crop residues on the soil, and rotating or intercropping maize with other crops. In addition to labor and cost savings, the improved soil structure resists erosion and increases water infiltration and retention, a huge benefit when drought threatens in places like Malawi, where maize subsists on rain alone.

 

In Malawi draft animals are scarce and traditional cultivation for maize involves as many as 160,000 hoe strokes per hectare. It appeared strange and somehow unjust to neighbors when Maleko stopped hoe plowing and began to leave residues and stems from previous crops on her fields. "Some asked 'How can you do this?'" she says. "Others speculated that I was degrading the soil…some people thought I was mad, but I said 'No, I'm not mad, I know what I'm doing.'"

 

She notes that those local farmers who are using CA have suffered less from this year's erratic rains. She has sown cowpea as an intercrop in one of the CA maize plots; she eats the pods and leaves and it boosts soil fertility. The plants are quite small as she had not been able to sow the cowpea at the same time as the maize—the best practice so they grow up together. “During peak period I was in the hospital nursing my daughter, but with conservation agriculture I was able to manage," she says, referring to the reduced labor requirements of CA.

 

Ongoing support and training from extension workers is crucial as farmers learn new ways of doing things, and how to apply CA most effectively. "I was trained to collect rainfall data; when I see it reaches above 30 millimeters, I sow," says Maleko. "When I have problems, I just go to my extension officer and ask for help. Some people say my husband is the extension worker, but I don’t mind. Some women have stopped talking about me and started to practice conservation agriculture."

 

Maleko sees conservation agriculture as a blessing that has helped pay for school fees and homestead improvements. "I cannot stop practicing conservation agriculture, because I'm getting lots of benefits," she says. "I have enough time to grow other crops. I'm very happy because I've built another house with the proceeds. I don't even complain about being a widow—otherwise, I wouldn't have sent my children to school. Married women come to me and ask for food. I'm a happy woman."

 

Photo credit: T. Samson/CIMMYT.

 

For more, see CIMMYT's 2012 e-news story "Conservation agriculture in Malawi: 'We always have problems with rain here,'" available online at: www.cimmyt.org/en/front-page-tems/aboutmediaresources/130....

Precise numbers are not known but various craftsmen have probably built more Grunau Babies and Baby derivatives than any other sailplane. Thousands were constructed in Western Europe between 1931 and 1945. During World War II, factory records show that 4,104 rolled from workshops in Germany and the occupied countries. After the war, thousands more were built in Czechoslovakia, Spain, Sweden, Great Britain, and Australia. The Grunau Baby also influenced the development of other sailplanes such as the Slingsby Kirby Kite, Slingsby Cambridge 1 and 2, and the Slingsby Type 21 two-seat trainer.

 

Edmund Schneider designed the Grunau Baby and built the first examples at his factory near the village of Grunau, in the Silesia region of eastern Germany. Today, this area is part of western Poland and Grunau is called Jesow. Schneider built the first Baby in 1931. It was a smaller version of the ESG 31 Stanavo, a sailplane designed during the same year for American pilot Jack O'Meara. Schneider used an innovative wing design patterned after the elliptical wings used on the high-performance sailplanes designed by the Academic Flying Group of the Darmstadt Technical University, the Akaflieg Darmstadt. Schneider's wing held a constant chord from the root to the aileron, and then the leading and trailing edges tapered to a rounded wingtip. To maintain control during a stall, Schneider designed the outboard wing and aileron with washout, or twist. On a wing with positive washout, the trailing edge of the wing curves up near the tips when viewed from the rear.

 

The German glider champion, Wolf Hirth, had nothing to do with designing the Grunau Baby. However, he lent his name to the Baby sales campaign and for some time, many thought he was the designer. This was easier to believe because the glider handled well in the air and exhibited good performance. The factory at Grunau began to hum steadily to fill a stream of new orders. The fatal crash of another Schneider sailplane at the 1932 German national soaring contest in Bavaria compelled Schneider to hire a professional aeronautical engineer, Emile Rolle who redesigned the Baby from nose to tail. This new version was called the Grunau Baby II. Among its many improvements, the Baby II had a longer wing, reshaped rear fuselage, and a shorter rudder. On April 3, 1933, Kurt Schmidt soared a Baby II all day, all night, and into the next day without landing. He had remained aloft for 36 hours and 36 minutes, a new world endurance record for motorless airplanes. The news electrified the world and for the next ten years, Grunau Baby II production continued without pause.

 

Schneider continued to refine the airplane and introduced the Baby II A and the definitive II B. The II A introduced a wing of slightly greater span to accommodate spoilers for glidepath control, ailerons with a narrower chord, and for the first time, a canopy and windscreen for the cockpit. When the Baby first appeared, it was accepted wisdom that the pilot should feel as much unimpeded airflow as possible, the better to sense rising and falling currents of air, temperature changes and the like. On the II B, Schneider changed the spoilers to the more powerful Schempp-Hirth, 'parallelogram' configuration and added a wheeled launch dolly that the pilot jettisoned immediately after takeoff. Other versions followed but more Grunau Baby II B gliders were built than all other variants combined.

 

The Baby II B was nearly a perfect club sailplane. It was relatively easy to build from plans, it flew well, and the aircraft was strong enough to handle mild aerobatics and the occasional hard landing. Novice pilots could attempt their first real soaring, flying high and far, using updrafts generated by slopes and mountain ridges, and spiraling columns of warm air called thermals. Many Grunau Baby II B pilots achieved the coveted Silver-C soaring badge introduced in 1930. This required a pilot to remain aloft at least five hours, gain a minimum of 1,000 m (3,280 ft) after takeoff, and cover a horizontal distance of 50 km (31 miles).

 

Fleets of Grunau Baby II B sailplanes served as primary flight trainers operated by the Deutsche Luftsport Verband (German Sport Flying Organization, the DLV) created in 1933. The DLV became the Nationalsozialistiche Fliegerkorps (NSFK) in 1937. The Nazi political machine operated both organizations to train military pilots without appearing to violate the post-World War I Versailles Treaty that outlawed such remilitarization. Many of the Luftwaffe (German Air Force) pilots that flew during World War II first trained in Grunau Babies.

 

May 1, 1949, marks the date when the U. S. Air Force officially transferred the Grunau Baby IIb to the custody of the National Air Museum. Very little is known of the glider's operational history. According to the data plates secured to the bulkhead behind the pilot's seat, technicians built this glider in 1944 at the Petera Hohenelbe l/Rsgb. workshop factory. The airframe serial number is 031.016 and the Stammkenzeichen, or registration code, LZ-NC is painted on both sides of the fuselage. Details about how the U. S. Army Air Forces (AAF) recovered the glider are also unknown. For tracking purposes, the AAF assigned the inventory control number T2-2600. T2 signified the Technical Intelligence branch of the AAF and 2600 refers to the number of this particular item. Beginning in the final months of the war, teams of Technical Intelligence personnel scoured Germany and recovered aircraft and pieces of equipment for study and evaluation.

 

Wingspan: 13.6 m (45 ft)

Length: 5.9 m (20 ft)

Height: 1.5 m (4 ft 11 in)

Weight: Empty, 160 kg (353 lb)

Gross, 250 kg (553 lb)

 

References and Further Reading:

Simons, Martin. "The World's Vintage Sailplanes, 1908-45." Melbourne, Australia: Kookaburra Technical Publications Pty., Ltd.: 1986.

----. "Sling's Sailplanes," "Aeroplane Monthly," December 1992, 25.

Grunau Baby II B-2 curatorial file, Aeronautics Division, NASM.

 

Russell Lee, 9-3-04

 

I have a friend that lives in Mendlesham, and we have talked about visiting St Mary several times. But I decided come what may, this would be the day when I would do it.

 

You can see the tower of St Mary from the A140, two miles off, a shallow valley lies between, meaning as you get closer, St Mary disappears. But then as you enter the village, it is standing on Chapel Street, towering over the timber framed houses of the village.

 

I approached the church, but found the south door locked. The door under the tower was locked too, but the north door, in another porch was open, and inside I could tell I wasn't going to be disappointed, this is a high church on a grand scale, where nothing was done in half measures.

 

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2009: Ten years ago, I set out to visit all the churches of Suffolk, and managed it, on and off, over the next four years. Revisiting them all now, I have found changes, some for the worse but many for the better. At Mendlesham, there had been almost no change at all since my previous visit, which seemed entirely appropriate, and so I reproduce word-for-word what I wrote then.

2003: I often get asked which is my favourite Suffolk church. It is easy to make the case for Thornham Parva and Flowton, both of which are beautiful, and always open. Westhall and Denston are perhaps the most interesting, and it is hard to beat the special atmosphere of Kettlebaston and Blythburgh. For grandness, take me to Southwold or Eye, although there are those who swear by Lavenham, Long Melford and Clare, and for sheer magical presence I’d argue for the haunting Ramsholt and Withersdale. As for architecture, or medieval survivals – well, it is probably best not to get me started.

 

But there is one church that fits into pretty much all these categories, and it is here, not far from the main Ipswich to Norwich road. Not only is St Mary of Mendlesham architecturally and historically fascinating, it is also magical, grand, interesting, beautiful and open. What more could you want in a church? St Mary has a special place in the hearts of one particular strand of the Church of England; for here in this busy little working village among the barley plains is the last surviving thorough-going Anglo-Catholic parish church in all Suffolk. For well over a quarter of a century, Father Philip Gray has kept the flame of the Faith alive here. No Affirming Catholicism pussyfooting for Mendlesham. Here, Mass is still celebrated daily, the sacraments are administered, and the great Feast of the Assumption still kept as the highest Saint’s day of the year, as it once was all over Suffolk.

 

I remember attending the Assumption Day Mass here in the mid-1990s. There were nearly as many Priests concelebrating as there were people in the congregation, but you had to count them quickly before they disappeared in clouds of incense. Nobody can swing a thurible as energetically as an Anglo-Catholic Priest, and Father Philip is more energetic than most. At the time, I was rather more used to the post-Vatican II simplicity of what Anglo-Catholics call the ‘Roman’ Church, so to say that I was impressed is an understatement.

 

As you’ve probably realised if you have travelled extensively around this site, I am utterly fascinated by the Anglo-Catholic movement. I think it quite the most interesting thing about the Church of England. What fascinates me most is the mindset of a movement that was born in the fire of the great 19th century sacramental revival, and is now the last remaining memory of that extraordinary epoch. It is as if, as Larkin says, it finds itself out on the end of an event, having survived it.

 

It is easy to think of the Anglo-Catholic wing of the Anglican Church as a movement besieged. In its Forward in Faith incarnation in particular, it comes in for a great deal of stick, and rarely for theological reasons. It is accused of being misogynist, separatist, and authoritarian.

 

The first of these is because it has not only declined to recognise the orders of ordained female ministers, but also refused to accept the authority of those who ordain them. Indeed, the FiF movement goes as far as to use the concept of ‘taint’ to describe a male priest who has concelebrated with what are dismissively referred to as ‘priestesses’.

 

In its defence, the FiF Anglo-Catholics argue that, if the Church of England is a true part of the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church, as they believe it to be, then a decision to ordain women cannot be taken in isolation from this worldwide Church – that is to say, the Catholic Church. Because of this, they argue that the ordination of women is actually invalid. Several Anglo-Catholics have told me that if the Pope in Rome started ordaining women, they would accept them with open arms at once, although this was obviously said in the safe knowledge that it isn’t going to happen.

The perceived separatism of the movement is a direct by-product of this position. FiF churches are effectively carving out a separate communion within the Anglican Church. By steadfastly defending their altars, accepting the authority of the so-called flying Bishops, and using the concept of taint to keep non-sympathetic male Priests at arms length, they have created a situation where, while accepting the authority of Canterbury, their congregations are no longer in communion with the rest of that church.

 

While this situation appears untenable to many outsiders, FiF claims it has been done to safeguard the handing on of the Faith to future generations. It looks like they are settling in for a long siege. While I find myself more sympathetic to the Anglo-Catholics than to their accusers, I can’t help but be reminded of Sellar and Yeatman’s famous analysis of the English Civil War in 1066 and all that – that the Cavaliers were wrong, but romantic, while the Roundheads were right, but revolting. I think the Anglo-Catholics are the Cavaliers of the Church of England, although I fear that the dull-minded Roundheads will win in the end.

 

But the liturgical character of the church will not be your first impression, or possibly even your second. The main thing that will strike you as you approach it is quite how big it is, and how ornate; an imposing presence, which is partly a result of it being placed flush to the road, where two street signs show that the road against the tower is called Church Street, and the one leading away from it Chapel Street. This must have seemed more symbolic in the 19th century than it does now, and I wondered if the 21st Century might more appropriately demand a DIY Superstore Street, or a Recovering From a Hangover Street, or even a Too Bloody Lazy To Get Up On A Sunday Morning Street. Like a modern Pilgrim’s Progress, perhaps.

 

Next, there’s the porches. Suffolk has some amazing late 15/early 16th century porches – Cautley thought Woolpit’s the best in England – so it is always a pleasure to come across one. Mendlesham has two. The ornate southern one is now blocked off as a chapel, so don’t miss it – you’ll need to go right around the east end of the building to get to it. But the northern porch is the most remarkable.

 

For a start, it is huge. It is crowned with quite the biggest grotesques in the county – even Bramford can’t compete. You’ll spot Suffolk’s finest woodwose; nothing symbolic about him, he looks ready to step down and belt you over the head with his club.

 

If you are used to the ultramontane exotica of London's Anglo-Catholic citadels, it may surprise you to find that Mendlesham is, well, so very English.

 

One of the charges levelled against Anglo-Catholic churches is that they are somehow foreign to English tradition – all those tacky continental statues, pictures of Mary, and even candles burning, are enough to turn the stomach of a thoroughgoing protestant Englishman. While the aesthetic qualities of some statues leave a lot to be desired (not at Mendlesham, I hasten to add) this charge is ridiculous. Before the Reformation, England was considered Our Lady’s Dowry, the most faithfully Catholic country in Europe. The putting down of a sacramental life was a symptom of the Reformation as much as a cause of it. There’s nothing unpatriotic about the Hail Mary. The imposition of Protestantism was the most remarkable sleight of hand on the part of the Tudors, and one from which some parts of the British Isles are still suffering violent consequences. It is just my opinion, but I do not feel that the English are natural protestants.

 

Each age constructs its own sense of Englishness, depending on who is in a position to impose it. For Anglicans, being the state church with the reigning monarch at its head has meant it has been continually buffeted by the winds of change. Even worse, there is the strain of the complex relationship between a spiritual kind of Englishness, which is much to be desired, and the more shady concept of Britishness and the Union. Why Anglican churches persist in displaying the Union flag instead of the English flag of St George is beyond me. I imagine it is a legacy of the First World War. At the time, the Church of England was in the most powerfully strong cultural position, and shamefully sanctified the slaughter. Several Vicars have told me how much they’d like to take the flags down. But they never do.

 

So it was, on a Spring day in 2003, when our brave lads were away bringing death and destruction to a country of which we still appear to have learned nothing, I came to Mendlesham again. I am not an Anglican, but this church feels to me like a touchstone of what it means to be English, and to be a Suffolker, with a sense of a past, present and future.

 

The church was open - it is always open. From the wide graveyard, an old lady passed me on her way into the church - as it turned out, to light a candle. This seemed to me such a beautiful, natural thing to do if you were visiting your dead family. I followed her into the porch.

 

The upper part of the porch contains Mendlesham’s famous armoury, which can be visited by appointment. It is well worth the detour, and if you doubt the wisdom of having a weapons museum in a church, you might be relieved to learn that it is was quite common in the late Tudor and early Stuart periods for church porches and towers to host the Parish armoury. Some of the arms here date back to the 16th century, but more interesting perhaps is the Civil War stuff. Some of this was carried at the famous muster on Mellis Common which resulted in Suffolk’s only two Civil War deaths, when a musket went off by accident. Which just goes to show that ‘friendly fire’ is nothing new.

 

I mention the upper room of the porch before we go inside, because I want nothing to distract us from the impact of St Mary’s interior. A clue that we are about to leave the mundane world behind is in the porch itself; pressed into service as a holy water stoup is one of the loveliest fonts in the county. It came from Rishangles, when the church there was made redundant and sold off by the money-changers. It has had various claims made for its age, Mortlock unaccountably dating it as 1600; but it must surely be late 19th century. Whatever, it is stunning, and a mark that this church has always found a home for orphans of elsewhere, and that some of these orphans are beautiful.

 

So, we step through into the devotional interior. If you were expecting a grimy gloom overlooked by kitschy statues, you are going to be disappointed. St Mary is full of light. And yet, from all corners there are glimpses of flickering candles, the gleam of icons and images.

 

The church had a fairly early restoration, in 1860, at the hands of a major architect, Ewan Christian. You find yourself standing in a large space, much of the west end of the church devoted to the font, the organ, and some fascinating medieval benches. I spotted a cockerel and a wyvern, and a woman at a prayerdesk which might once have been part of an Annunciation scene. Among them are some slightly later benches, probably early 17th century, that came from Rishangles. The font cover is also 17th century, dated 1630, at the height of Laudian piety. It is nice to think that, given this church's modern tradition, it took a similar line back then. It was made locally, but contains Renaissance imagery rarely seen in this country; it would be quite at home at St Eustache in Paris.

 

St Mary has two major brasses; but it didn't. The biggest is up at the east end of the nave (the placing of a nave altar turns this into a crossing) and is to John Knyvet. He died in 1417, and isn't far short of life-size. He's very typical of the period, in his armour, with the dragon head crest behind him. There's no inscription. There is one, however, on the other brass, which is mounted on the wall in the south aisle. This is the one that should really be at Southolt, and is to Margaret Armiger, a typical post-reformation sentiment of the 1580s.

 

It really shouldn't be on the wall. If there was a fire, it would melt; floor-mounted brasses don't melt. It would be nice if it was still at Southolt, where the local people are extraordinarily caring about the little church. Unfortunately, at the time of its redundancy, the church was very badly vandalised, and we have Mendlesham to thank for rescuing this and other priceless art objects. Indeed, at Southolt it was actually mounted on a pew, fuel to the fire if there'd been one. I am sure that the nice people at Southolt today would do their best to look after it if they had it now, but it wouldn't have survived if it had been left there.

 

Also from Southolt are the panels of medieval glass in the north aisle. They were angels and Apostles - you can easily spot fragments of St Andrew, St Bartholomew and St Thomas. The figure of St Thomas has been given the head of a lion. I loved this.

 

St Mary has more altars in use than any other church in Suffolk. There are five of them. I have already mentioned the nave altar, used for Mass. There is a very simple, typically rural high altar, dignified only by the big six candlesticks. At the east end of the south aisle is an extraordinary thing; an altar made of pieces of medieval mensas. A reliquary is set in the front. It is the only one of its kind in an Anglican church anywhere in Suffolk. The Stuart table imposed on the church by the prayer book liturgy has been turned into an altar in the north aisle. This is rather beautiful, with the image of the Mother of God in the central alcove above, and other Marian imagery. It was originally restored as a chapel as a memorial to the First World War. Finally, in the converted south porch, there is a Holy Cross chapel, dating from the 1970s. The wall paintings are quite, quite extraordinary. One of them is of St Helen finding the true cross. In another, as far as I can make out, a group of Celts are watching the raising of Lazarus.

 

Above the chancel arch, a rather restrained rood group reminds us of the glory that once was pre-Reformation Suffolk. Up in the chancel itself, you'll find the shrine to Our Lady of Walsingham. Not on sale in the church, but generally available in Walsingham, is a lovely book by Father Philip, the Rector here, about the churches of Walsingham. I recommend it. There is also a place where you can light a candle for the work of Forward in Faith.

 

If I have one criticism of this splendidly welcoming, interesting and devotional church, it is that there is no guide book.

 

Over the course of the following week, I attended Mass in two Irish churches; one in South Armagh, the other on the Falls Road in Belfast. Neither was as ornate as St Mary of Mendlesham, neither was as filled with a sense of prayer and awe. I am sure that a time-traveller from the 15th century would have recognised Mendlesham as the real Catholic church, not the two Irish ones. Obviously, I believe they’d be wrong to think this, but I could understand it.

 

So is Anglo-Catholicism anything more than a historical re-enactment? Are its churches merely liturgical museums? Is there life in the old movement yet?

 

Come here, and look around. Everything is neat and clean, obviously much loved. This is not just a shrine; it is a living centre of its community. Here, the local people come for their baptisms, weddings and funerals; but they also come for private prayer, for the sacraments of Holy Mother Church as they understand them.

As I said earlier, it always disturbs me seeing the Union Flag in a church; but there is something rather striking about seeing it draped beside an ikon of the Holy Mother of God. Also, there is something moving about a place that encourages candles to be lit, about corners that draw the eye and reveal unrealised paths to God. This is undoubtedly an English Parish Church of the 21st century; and yet, it has recaptured some of the mystery of its past, and is filled with a deep spirituality and sense of the numinous. For this alone, it is one of the most significant of all Suffolk churches, and one of my favourites.

  

Simon Knott, 2003, updated July 2009

 

www.suffolkchurches.co.uk/mendlesham.htm

 

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The magnificent 15th century tower of St Mary's, stands as a beacon for those travelling on the A140 between Ipswich and Norwich.

The church is predominantly Early English and contains a wealth of interest. The unusual and elaborate font cover was carved in 1630 by John Turner, who also carved the pulpit. There is a wonderful collection of mediaeval pews and a 14th Century brass to John Knyvet.

The South Aisle contains the stone altar which was raised from the floor in 1981. It is now the chapel of the Blessed Sacrament.

The church has two porches. The upper floor of the North porch, originally a priest’s room, contains a unique armoury - “the most complete armoury of any English parish church” (Pevsner). As well as the parish collection of armour, assembled at the time of the Armada, it contains part of an Elizabethan longbow, several parish chests, a ‘Vinegar’ Bible and other artefacts. It is open on the afternoon of the first bank holiday in May (Mendlesham Street Fayre day) and by appointment with Fr Philip.

The South Porch is now the Chapel of the Holy Cross, designated especially for prayer for the dead, where candles are lit for the departed and there are to be found two chantry books; one for the parish and the other containing the names of the 190 American servicemen based at Mendlesham airfield who died in action in WW2.

 

www.stmarysmendlesham.org.uk/the-church-building.html

 

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The Suffolk village of Mendlesham is a picturesque place, with timber-framed buildings and that quiet air of timelessness that Suffolk seems to specialise in. At the heart of the village is the 13th century church of St Mary the Virgin, punctuated with a superb 15th century west tower.

 

In the north aisle are 15th century benches that were brought here from Rishangles church. The benches in the nave a re slightly younger, dating to the mid-16th century. The bench ends sport a wonderful array of carved figures, including a dragon biting its own tail.

 

There are fragments of medieval glass in the north aisle windows, including a figure of a lion sticking its tongue out.

 

The Lady Chapel stands at the east end of the north aisle. the altar table is 16th century, and if you look closely you can see that one of the table legs has ben carved the wrong way around. In the north wall of the chapel is 14th century glass from Rishangles church, including a likeness of a horse's head and bridle and a figure of St John holding a cup.

 

There are several very interesting memorials in the chancel including a wall monument to William Cuthbert, who served a a doctor in Mendlesham for over 50 years. The altar rails date to around 1660.

 

The beautifully carved pulpit was installed in 1620 and was carved by a local craftsman named John Turner, who also made the wooden font cover at the same time. Nearby is a memorial brass to John Knyvet (d. 1417), showing him clad in armour. One very odd feature about the Knyvet brass is that he is shown with his beard outside his armour.

 

At the back of the nave are two biers for carrying coffins. One is a rare child bier, a scaled down version of the normal adult bier. Both biers have their original straps.

 

In the south porch is the Chapel of the Holy Cross with vivid modern wall paintings adding a rather odd touch under the beautifully carved 15th century porch roof. In the chapel is a memorial to the American Airmen of the 34th Bomber Group, who were stationed near Mendlesham in WWII. A memorial to American servicemen stands in the churchyard to the south of the church.

 

In the south aisle is a royal coat of arms to George III and a memorial brass to Margaret Arminger. The aisle roof is at least 16th century and one of the beams at the east end has traces of late medieval paintings. The altar stone at the east end of the aisle is late medieval as well, and on the aisle wall is a funeral hatchment. There are medieval glass fragments in the east window.

 

One unusual feature at Mendlesham church, and one that is not normally on display to visitors, is a rare armoury in the chamber above the north porch. Church armouries are not unique, but it is rare to find one as complete as this. The parvise, or chamber over the porch entrance, has been used as the parish armoury since 1593. The armoury has a collection of Elizabethan armour brought together at the time of the Spanish Armada invasion.

 

There are breastplates, helmets, a crossbow, and one of only 4 original Elizabethan longbows in existence. Another rarity is a 'pauldron', a piece of shoulder armour which is pone of the very few complete specimens in existence. The armoury also holds three parish chests, as well as a copy of the 1717 'Vinegar Bible' and a 17th century book of sermons.

 

The armoury is open only on special church open days or by special appointment with the rector.

 

www.britainexpress.com/counties/suffolk/churches/mendlesh...

Crowned Coral Crab

Oulton Park is a great circuit that has yet to be spoilt with run off areas the size of Brighton Beach and, as such, suits historic motor sport down to the ground. Drivers enjoy it as do spectators, who have the freedom to wander and watch almost at will. But it has to be said, today’s racing was boring. Maybe it’s too early in the year, maybe the grids were too small, or maybe the races, one lasting seventy-five minutes, were just too long.

 

Funnily enough, it was the race with the smallest entry that was the most exciting. Just eight cars started the Old Hall Trophy FF 1600 race but Douglas Crosbie and Samuel Carrington-Yates had a right ding dong battle for second place with neither giving an inch. In the end the two Van Diemans were beaten by the faster Ray GRS09 of Neil Alberico, with Douglas second.

 

The afternoon began with the Clay Hill Trophy 1970s Celebration Race, an easy win for Russell Paterson in the orange Morgan Plus Eight. The two Porsche 911 RSRs of Mark Bates and Paul Howells followed him home some thirty seconds adrift but it was the sideways Escort RS1800 of Mark Wright that provided a modicum of entertainment. Only eight cars finished.

   

The Pre-1966 Touring Car Race was jolly good fun with many battles breaking out during the sixty minutes of close encounters. Henry Mann seemed a might surprised to be given the chequered flag in his red Alan Mann Cortina, beating the similar Lotus of David Hall by seven seconds, while the Mustang of Dowd and Cooke went off song and although setting fasted qualifying time struggled to finish third. Further down in the pack, the Nick Smith Mini stormed home fourth leaving ex-F1 driver Roberto Moreno to die a death and retire. Retro-Speed favourites Andy Harrison and Tony Jardine peddled the red peril home to a well-judged thirteenth.

 

It should have rained for the Knickerbrook Trophy for World Sportscars but it didn’t, so the gaggle of Chevrons fought it out with the lone Lola for overall honours in the dry, depriving the spectators of at least one unpredictable race. That the Minshaws led the field home in their ultra rapid B8 was no big surprise. The same could not be said for the Lyons Lola T70 MK3b that popped and banged its way around the circuit for thirty minutes before eventually finishing well and truly last.

 

At 16:15 ten Pre-1966 GT cars set of on a seventy-five-minute marathon that had everybody falling asleep. The Mike Whitaker TVR Griffith stormed off into the distance and then slowed to a steady cruise after the Schryver/Hadfield Lotus 26R showed it lacked the consistent pace to mount a challenge. Everyone continued circulating, probably feeling ever lonely and unnecessarily burning fuel, until to everyone’s relief and with darkness in the air, the flag fell. The Marcos 1800GT of Tice and Conoly finished third while the pretty dark blue Diva GT of Aylett and Farrell led the Austin Healey 100/4 home at the tail end.

 

I came away feeling the Masters Series was jumping the gun. Like the Mille Miglia it needs glamour and sunshine to attract the crowds, both were missing from Oulton Park. For the organisers of this prestigious series of Championship gatherings, surely the season really begins in Barcelona.

... but too cold for a swim today ~ ha !

but they’re overdue.

I’ve travelled half the world to say,

I belong to you.

 

<<

The story so far when the heroes were hidden from the N.M.D's invasion. Spyro And Cynder found Twilight, Luna, and all the 5 friends of Twilight are in the Labritory X . They rescue them and they greet them as respect, but, then the Darkness Bolts and Dark Spyro found them and try to kill them, but then they escape, and they left out of the Drago United States to another place to hide to fight another day. The N.M.D took all over the Four Tribes of Aron and Dark Nightmare Moon and Dark Twilight we're glad to take over and soon they will take Equestria after Dark Proffeser Yuka made an invention to weaken the elements of God and Harmony and soon magic from Princeses Celeasta, And others too. Meanwhlle the heros we're hiding at the South Serpentine Geren Country with outher South Serpenterins and were scared that what happen. "Whats going on?" " What Happened ?" "Who are these strange beast?" "Help us Lord save us!." They were speaking south serpentine lagnage almost asia lagnage like our world but differint way. Twilight and the outhers don't know what they saying, but Spyro and Cynder knows the langage. "Everyone come down." Said Spyro with the serpentine langage. "Yes come down everyone." Said Cynder. "We can't come down drago's, we in crisess here! "said one of the south serpentine. "Yea." "absolutly." "Uh huh." "And who's those strage beast." Said another south serpritine with the english word." Beast!,Beast! Were are not best we're ponies." said Rarity. "Yea , and who do you think your calling us beast." Said Rainbow Dash. When everybody was started to arguing Fluttershy was silant and left out of the building and when she left, Cynder saw her and started to follow her where she's going. Fluttershy dosen't know Cynder is following her, so she's looking for animals that she miss her home and she's doesn't know where she's going all she sees a lot of damages and broken buildings like a warfare. Then suddenly! She saw strage birds were flying though the atomsphere at the night and the moon was red blood color and even the stares were red too. But the birds fly so strangly and when she saw that someone chasing them, and when she look she saw a pony with wings. The body was yellow but dull in the night, the hair was dark pink just like Fluttershy, and she look closer, she got feard and she hid along the dibries. What she saw was Dark Fluttershy, and she was taking the birds along the dark ravens to the N.M.D, but one bird flew hard as it could and try to defend its self from thr dark ravens. The dark ravens cuaght up with the bird and knoke it down to gound below. Fluttershy saw the horrer including Cynder,she saw what there doing and she was about to stop them. And when she was about to use the sword of shadow a strage dark blue cloud was covering the seine and her. "Ahhh what's going on here? I can't see anything around here. Cynder's mind was talking. Then when she try to slash her way out, the cloud kept going around her. Then she keep walking and still the dark blue cloud is still there with her then she herd her name calling. "Cynder,Cynder come." "Who is this, come with your face or I'll come for you." As she said it the blue cloud came red glowey eyes and started to stare at Cynder. "Ahhh its y-." Then Cynder was hymotise by Dark Nightmare Moon's magic. "Ha that was to easy and you think Cynder was hard huh Dark Cynder. "Well you think it was easy but soon you see she's harder then you think." Said Dark Cynder. "Oh shut up." "Did you got Cynder?" Said Dark Spyro as he saw Cynder her eyes just stare and glowing red eyes. You got her yes. "Yes I got her, now we need to bait Fluttershy and others as well then when we got them all we distroy them for ever." "Good plan." Said Dark Cynder. Correct you are Dark Nightmare Moon. Said Dark Spyro. As Dark Nightmare Moon call Dark Fluttershy with the brace microphone and said. "Is the birds are caught aready Darkfluttershy?" "Absooouly." Said Dark Fluttershy. "And there be right to the dungen so once you come home there ready to be vanish." "Excelent and soon when my proffeser made the ray canon to elemnate elements of harmony and God will dominate this world and Equestria HaHa!" Dark Nightmare Moon howled. Meanwhile when Fluttershy was still hiding from Dark Fluttershy and her hechmens. Dark Fluttershy told her hechmans to go. And when they left someware, Fluttershy saw they left and went to the bird that was hit , she wants to see if the bird was ok. As she move closer the bird was ok but broke its wing that been hit on the ground. "Oh you poor little bird are you aright little one." The bird just nood a little. "Its ok I got you I got you." Said Fluttershy's soft voice as she pad it the bird soft head, the bird tweeted as a soft tone. "Your little brave bird aren't you, you risk your life for your friends." "Twee." The birds sadly low voice tone. "Don't worry will find your friends soon I promise." "Tweet" the birds happy high voice tone." Cynder, Fluttershy were are you. Fluttershy knows that voice and it was Spyro and he's looking for them, but, Fluttershy is still afraid of Spyro and Cynder because there big dragons and she still afraidof big big dragons. So she didn't say a word and kept holding the little bird as a componey. "Cynder, Fluttershy were are you! As Spyro's voice was geting louder and louder, but, still Fluttershy kept silent. "Fluttershy there you are, I've been looking for you every ware, do you here me its not good to go alone here by youself. And where's Cynder have you seen her?" Fluttershy was still slient and still another word for 3mins. "Look Fluttershy don't be afried of me I won't hurt you including Cynder see won't hurt you eather, we're friendly and kind to your friends." Fluttershy was still silent. "Please don't be afraid look I'll walk away a little." But still Fluttershy just peep and started to shake. "Oh Fluttershy I'm sorry." Said Spyro. Then suddenly Spyro herd another voice and it was calling his name. "Cyn-Cynder it that you." As he walk and left fluttershy alone it was getting fogey, he felt bad to leave her alone ,but, she want her fear go away. When Spyro follow her voice he stoped."Cynder!" Cried Spyro "I've been looking all over for you where have you been?" "I was looking for Fluttershy just the same as you." Cynder's words were not her's, it was Dark Nightmare Moon voice as controled Cynder. "Come closer Cynder, so I can see you." Said Spyro. As Spyro said to her she come closer along with Dark Nightmare Moon. "You!" Cried Spyro. "That's right Spyro along with my new pals Dark Cynder." "Hi Spyro." Dark Cynder voice friendly. "And Dark Spyro." "Hello Spyro we meet again, heh,heh." "No what have you done to Cynder!" Cried Spyro. "Who her why she's controled by me and you be next Spyro." As she started to stare at Spyro's eyes with her red sharp glowing eye Spyro jerk and doudge her magic and ran to warned Fluttershy and the outhers that there coming. "Stop him he's getting away." Dark Spyro warnd her. "Then let's follow him Said Dark Nightmare Moon. When they'er chasing Spyro, Spyro yeid and warned to all the town that the N.M.D forces are coming. Then he saw Futtershy still there liying with the bird. "Fluttershy, Fluttershy please leave,leave and get outta here-."POW, WHAM,KA-BAM! Suddenly Spyro got hit on his face and flew the building "Ack!" Spyro felt the pain of his face and he feel a horse just kicked him. "Hahaha. " that was Dark Fluttershy's laugh. "Spyro I'm comeing to get you." "Dh, Enh." Spyro was getting up and started to charge and yell with a battle cry. "YEAAARAHHHH!" when he reach to Dark Fluttershy he was about to use his light sowrd of courage to swing at its might. Then Suddenly a dark magic grab Spyro and he coulden't move. "Noooo, GRAHRAH!, NUGHH!" As Spyro tried to struggle Dark Nightmare Moon came with her friends. "Ha! I got Spyro and now Spyro time to die. But first Dark Fluttershy, attack Fluttershy." Command Dark Nightmare Moon. "Nooooooo!" Cried Spyro. Dark Fluttershy raise her hooves at Fluttershy and Fluttershy was started to weep and cry to prepare her doom. "Nooo! Light wave! "Spyro's Element of God distroyed the dark magic from Dark Nightmare Moon. And he's freed from her curse and he went to protect Fluttershy with his might. As Dark Fluttershy was close to hit Fluttershy, Spyro block the attack and hured at Dark Fluttershy. Spyro pownd Dark Fluttershy with element light with his paws "POW, BAM,WHAMM!" Dark Fluttershy tried to doge the attack, but, he was to fast. Spyro kept puching,slashing and kicking, and when she had enough she screemed with a loud voice. The scream was so strong it rumbled the ground. Spyro cover his ears that can't bare the sceam then Spyro felt the dark magic grip again and when he doge it Dark Fluttershy and Dark Spyro puch at Spyro, and Spyro felt to the gound. "Ha we got him." Said Dark Spyro. Spyro try to get up but Dark Fluttershy kept punch him and he is trap along with fluttershy. "HAHAHA. You guys are weak, you tried to elemanate with yoour light, but you light just ran out." Said Dark Nightmare Moon. "So Spyro you die first with beatting to death to prevent distroying my work of eternal nightmare night with Dark Fluttershy so any last words Spyro." "Go ahed kill me if you must, but I'll die with my honor to the Lord our God and my country and live eternal happiness with God and my friends." "Oh that's touching, now kill him! "Dark Fluttershy kept beating him up and Fluttershy herd the words that friendship is stonger then fear so Fluttershy scream all her might and Dark Fluttershy stop beating him . Dark Spyro,Dark Cynder and Dark Nightmare Moon hurd her ears and left to her home along her hechmans. Cynder was relse from the dark magic curse, including Spyro. When everybody herd her screaming they came to them what was the proplum then when the south serpentins saw what it happens they help them up and take them to the hospital and when they woke up Luna,Twilight,Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Rarity Apple Jack and all the south serprntins came to them "what were am I?" Said Spyro Cynder, and Fluttershy. "Your at the hospital you three said Twilight but the docter said you be fine." But what happen to you? " "Well I was trying to find Cynder and Fluttershy. But Dark Nightmare Moon came along her heachmans." "You mean my evil clone!" Said Luna. "Yep" said Cynder she hymotise me and cuaght Spyro." "And beating him up to death with-with-with Dark F-F-Fluttershy!" Cried Fluttershy. "But you screamed so loud that they left,and I thank you for saving me and Cynder Fluttershy." "Wait where's the bird." Fluttershy said. "All don't worry the bird is still ok and it will fly till tommorow Fluttershy." Said Apple Jack. "And that's was a doosey Fluttershy you scream like an earthquake." Said Pinkie Pie. "Well I do scream maybe a long time. "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA." Everyone luagh. I hope you like the story sorry was long but this is my work to show this comic book I'm working on. But first I'm still working outher comics I'm doing. So any way this is Dark Fluttershy the fourth dark pony created from Dark Proffeser Yuka and she scream very loud as Fluttershy. Dark Fluttershy still loves animals just like Fluttershy but the dark animals of the four tribes of aron. She's bad and evil and she doese kill outers with her dark beasts. Dark Fluttershy is not kindness to outers except her dark animals and darkforces. Dark Fluttershy the dark animal tamer and killer. BY SPYRO91@92©.

   

No Clothes But All Fun

But he, that dares not grasp the thorn should never crave the rose.

Herne, Herne Bay, Herne Green, Hernhill: all very confusing. THe frst three are at least near each other, and Hernhill has no "e".

 

Herne is on the Herne Bay to Canterbury road, which winds its way through the narrow streets of the town, making parking troublesome.

 

We came here not expecting it to be open, but there was a large friendly sign on the pavement, advertising a coffee morning. So, we drove into a nearby housing estate, parked up, and I rushed down, lest it closed before I got there.

 

A small group of people were in the north chapel, drinking coffee and eating slices of cake. One lady was interested in the church project, so we talked about the churches I had visited, and ones I have yet to see. And about Herne.

 

It is a big church, and I had to g round again and again as I spotted more and more details.

 

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A large, impressive and relatively little-known building of fourteenth-century date. Although nineteenth-century restorations have left us with a church that displays little patina it still contains much of interest. The chancel screen dates from 1872 and provides good comparison with the fourteenth-century screen of the north chapel which, unusually, has two east windows. The sedilia in the chancel take the form of a series of three multi-cusped arches descending to the west - although the Victorian floor level makes a nonsense of their height. The nearby piscina is fifteenth century. The east window and theatrical reredos are nineteenth century and form an impressive ensemble. There are some fine misericords incorporated into the Victorian stalls. On the north chancel wall is a good Easter Sepulchre - the memorial of Sir John Fyneux (d. 1525). The north chapel was a chantry foundation with its own priest and is connected to the chancel by a two-bay arcade and hagioscope. The rood loft stairway to the south of the chancel arch indicates that the screen did not run the full width of the church and that each of the chapel screens formed a separate construction.

 

www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Herne

 

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HERNE,

OR Hearne, as it is frequently spelt, lies almost adjoining to Sturry northward, and takes its name from the Saxon word hyrne, or hurne, signifying a nook or corner. (fn. 1) There are five boroughs in it, viz. Stroud, Hawe, Hampton, Beltinge, and Thornden. The borsholders of these boroughs are subordinate to the constable of the upper half hundred of Blengate, who is chosen at the court-leet of Reculver, for two years, from this parish; and the three next succeeding years, one each in turn, from Reculver, Hothe, and Stourmouth.

 

THIS PARISH is situated about six miles northeastward from Canterbury, in a wild and dreary country; there is a great deal of poor land in it, covered with broom, and several wastes or little commons, with cottages interspersed among them. The soil of it is in general a stiff clay, and in some parts mixed with gravel, the water throughout it is very brackish. The southern part of it is mostly coppice woods, a considerable quantity of which belong to the archbishop. and are in his own occupation. There are thirty-seven teams kept in this parish. There are about seventeen acres of hops in it, and not long ago double that number, and these are continually displanting. It also produces much canary-seed, of which it has sometimes had one hundred acres. The rents, according to the land-tax assessment, amount to 1705l. according to the poor-rates, to 3179l. 10s. Herne-street is situated about the middle of the parish, and contains about sixty houses, among which are Stroud-house and the vicarage; also an elegant new house, built on the common, belonging to Mr. Lyddell. The church stands at the south end of it. Northward from it is Underwood farm, and opposite to it the parsonagehouse, formerly the residence of the Milles's. These are within the hamlet of Eddinton, in which, further on upon the road, is a new-built house, belonging to Mr. Edward Reynolds. Hence the road leads through Sea-street to Herne bay, which is very spacious and commodious for shipping. Several colliers frequent this bay from Newcastle and Sunderland, on which account there are two sworn meters here, and the city of Canterbury and the neighbouring country are partly supplied with coals from hence. There are two hoys, of about sixty tons burthen each, which sail alternately each week to and from London, with corn, hops, flour, and shop goods. A handsome mansion, with doors and windows in the gothic taste, has lately been built, and belongs to Mr. Winter. In 1798 barracks were built by government for the reception of troops, who were thought necessary to guard this part of the coast.

 

Leland, in his Itinerary, (fn. 2) says, Heron ys iii good myles fro thens (viz. Whitstaple) wher men take good muscles cawled stake muscles. Yt stondeth dim. 2 myle fro the mayne shore & ther ys good pitching of nettes for mullettes." The coast of the channel bounds this parish on the north side. South-westward from Herne bay is the farm of Norwood, formerly belonging to a collateral branch of the Knowlers, of Stroud house; and Sir William Segar, garter, in 1629, granted to George Knowler, of Norwood, in Hearne, kinsman and son-in-law to Robert Knowler, of Stroud, in that parish, descended collaterally from that family, these arms, Ermine, on a bend, between two cotizes, sable, a lion passant-guardant of the first, crowned, or, langued and armed, gules. From them it came by marriage to Tucker, and is now the property of the Rev. John Tucker, rector of Gravesend and Luddenham. Hence towards Swaycliffe, the country is very poor, wet and swampy, and much covered with rushes. On the opposite side of the parish, at a little distance between the street and Herne common, is the manor of Ridgway, formerly belonging to the Monins's and the Norton's, of Fordwich, from the latter it was sold to lady Mabella Finch, baroness of Fordwich, who gave it by will to her nephew Charles Fotherby, from whom it has come to Charles Dering, esq. late of Barham. On the hill, eastward of Herne street, is a wind-mill, built on the spot where once stood a beacon.

 

Archbishop Islip, in the 25th year of Edward III. obtained the grant of a market, to be held weekly on a Monday, and a fair yearly on the feast of St. Martin and the day afterwards, in this parish of Herne. (fn. 3)

 

The fair is now held on the Monday in Easter-week, at Herne-street; and there is another at Bromfield in it, on Whit-Monday.

 

THE MANOR OF RECULVER claims paramount over part of this parish, and the manor of Sturry over the remainder of it; subordinate to which is

 

THE MANOR OF HAWE, otherwise spelt Haghe, situated within the borough of its own name, which was held in the reign of king Richard II. by Sir William Waleys, whose only daughter and heir Elizabeth carried it in marriage to Peter Halle, esq. of this parish, who had two sons, to the eldest Thomas he gave the manor of Thanington, and to the youngest Peter he gave this manor, from whom it descended to his grandson Matthew Hall, who sold his interest in it to Sir John Fineux, chief justice of the king's bench in king Henry VII. and VIIIth.'s reign, who rebuilt the mansion of it, and afterwards retired to it, on account of its healthy situation. The origin of the family of Fineux may be best given in the words of Leland, who says, that "the name of Finiox thus cam ynto Kent about king Edward the 2 dayes: one Creaulle a man of faire possessions yn Kent, was a prisoner in Boleyne, in Fraunce, and much desiring to be at liberte made his keper to be his frend, promising hym landes yn Kent if he wold help to deliver him. Whereapon they booth toke secrete passage and came to Kent, and Creal performid his promise: so that after his keeper or porter apon the cause was namid Finiox. This name continuid in a certain stey of landes ontylle Finiox chief juge of the kinges bench cam that first had but 40l. land. For he had two bretherne and eche of them had a portion of land and after encresid it into 200 poundes by the yeare. One of the younger brothers of Finiox the juge died and made the other younger brother his heir. So that now be two houses of the Finiox, the heyre of Finiox the juge and the heyre of justice Finiox brother. Olde Finiox buildid his faire house on purchasid ground for the comodite of preserving his helth so that afore the physicians concludid that it was an exceeding helthfull quarter."

 

The judge's two brothers were, William, who was of Hougham, who died s. p. and Richard of Dover, where his descendants remained for many descents afterwards. They bore for their arms, Vert, a chevron between three spread eagles, or. (fn. 4) Sir John Fineux was a great benefactor to the Augustine friars, in Canterbury, and to the abbey of Faversham, and most probably to the priory of Christ-church, as his arms are carved on the roof of the cloysters there, and he chose the church of it for the burial-place of himself and wife. (fn. 5) By his first wife Elizabeth, daughter and coheir of William Apulderfield, he had two daughters and coheirs, Jane, married to Roper, and Mildred, to Diggs; and he had by his second wife an only son William, on whom he settled this manor, on which he afterwards resided, and died in 1557. He was succeeded in it by his eldest son John Fineux, esqof Herne, on whose death in 1592, Elizabeth, his only daughter and heir, entitled her husband Sir John Smythe, of Westenhanger, to the possession of it, whose great-grandson Philip, viscount Strangford, dying in 1709, Henry Roper, lord Teynham, who had married Catherine his eldest daughter, by his will became entitled to it. After which it passed in like manner as the manor of Sturry above described, to his descendants, till it was at length sold with that manor, in 1765, to the Rev. Francis Hender Foote, of Bishopsborne, whose eldest son John Foote, esq. now of Bishopsborne, is the present possessor of it. A court baron is held for this manor.

 

LOTTINGE, formerly written Louting, is a small manor in the north-west part of this parish, which was formerly belonging to the family of Greenshield, who lived at a seat in Whitstaple of their own name, now called Grimgill; from this name it was sold to Crispe, of Quekes, (fn. 6) and then again, after some time, to Monger, of Surry, who sold it in king Charles II.'s reign to Robert Knowler, esq. of Stroud-house, in this parish, in whose descendants it has continued down to Gilbert Knowler, esq. now of Canterbury, the present owner of it.

 

THE MANOR OF UNDERDOWNE, with the mansion of it, situated in Herne-street, within the borough of Stroud, was called, as Philipott writes, in early times Sea's-court, from the family of Atte-Sea, who were the antient possessors of it. John Atte Sea, of Herne, as appears by his will, died possessed of it in the 36th year of Henry VI. in whose descendants, resident here, it continued down to Edw. Sea, esq. who passed away, by sale, his manor, or mansion of Underdowne, to Robert Knowler, gent. of Herne, whose family had been resident in this parish as early as Henry VII.'s reign. He resided at this seat, which seems from thenceforward to have been called STROUD-HOUSE, and died in 1635, bearing for his arms, Argent, on a bend, between two cotizes, sable, a lion passant-guardant, crowned, or; and his descendants continued to reside at it down to Gilbert Knowler, esq. who removed from hence to Canterbury, where he now resides, and is the present owner of it. It is now inhabited by John May, esq. who married the only daughter of James Six, esq. of Canterbury.

 

THE MANOR OF MAKINBROOKE, the very name of which is almost obliterated, was situated in the northwest part of this parish, and was part of the antient possessions of the see of Canterbury, of which it was held by knight's service, by a family who took their name from it, in which it continued till Edward IIId.'s reign, but in the 30th year of it this manor had passed by purchase into the hands of Adam le Eyre, citizen of London, who that year gave it to Thomas Wolton, master or keeper of Eastbridge hospital, and his successors, towards their support. In the year 1528, Robert Atte Sea, of Herne, held this estate in fee, by the payment of a yearly rent (fn. 7) to the hospital. After his death it descended, partly in the male line and partly by two coheirs, to the family of Crayford. After which it came into that of Oxenden, in which it continued down, with the farm called Underdowne farm, situated in the hamlet of Eddington, to Sir George Oxenden, bart. who rebuilt the house, and his son Sir H. Oxenden, bart. now of Brome, is the present owner of this manor, and the farm of Underdowne before-mentioned.

 

Charities.

SIR WILLIAM SELBY, bart. in 1618, gave by will, for the use of the poor, a sum of money, which was laid out in land, vested in trustees, the rent of which has always been received by the parish officers, and is of the annual produce of 10l.

 

A PERSON UNKNOWN gave certain land for the use of the poor, the produce of which is received by the parish officers, and is of the annual produce of 10l. 5s. 8d.

 

THOMAS KNOWLER, gent. by will in 1658, besides other benefactions both to the church and the poor, gave land for the use of the poor, vested in trustees, the survivor unknown, and is of the annual produce of 1l. 10s. 5d. and likewise other land, vested in like manner, for the cloathing of the poor, the annual produce of which is 5l.

 

A PERSON UNKNOWN gave lands, for the use of the poor, vested in trustees, and is of the annual produce of 7s.

 

THOMAS HOALLES gave an annuity, out of land, vested in trustees, which is of the annual produce of 13s. 4d.

 

CHRISTOPHER MILLES, esq. of Herne, by will in 1638, gave to the poor the yearly sum of 3l. to be paid on the last day of August, being his birth-day, and to continue so long as the archbishop and his successors should continue the lease of the parsonage to any of his surname.

 

GEORGE HAWLET, by will in 1624, gave for the use of the poor, an annuity, charged on land, of the annual produce of 3l.

 

The poor constantly maintained are about ninety-five, casually thirty-five.

 

THIS PARISH is within the ECCLESIASTICAL JURISDICTION of the diocese of Canterbury, and deanry or Westbere.

 

The church, which is exempt from the jurisdiction of the archdeacon, and dedicated to St. Martin, is a large handsome building, consisting of three isles and three chancels, having a well-built square tower at the west end, in which are six bells. The whole roof of this church is covered with lead, and embattled. The pillars between the isles are light and beautifully proportioned. The stone font is an octagon, very antient; on each compartment is a shield of arms, first, the see of Canterbury, impaling Arundel; second, obliterated; third, France and England; fourth, three crescents, within a bordure; fifth, three wings, two and one; sixth, three pelicans; seventh, on a chevron, three —; eighth, barry, three escutcheons. At the west end of the middle isle is a new-erected gallery, very neat. In the upper end of it are memorials of the Terreys, and of the Knowlers, of Canterbury, collaterally descended from those of Stroud-house, and of the Legrands, of Canterbury, descended from them. In the high chancel are three stalls, joined together and moveable. On the pavement a memorial, with the figure of a priest in brass, for John Darley, S. T. B. once vicar, and monuments and memorials for several of the families of Milles and Fineux. (fn. 8) A monument, having the effigies of a knight in a praying posture, for Sir William Thornhurst, son and heir of Sir Stephen Thornhurst, of Forde, obt. 1606. Within the altar-rails are memorials for the Fineuxs. A memorial for William Rogers, A. B. vicar, obt. August 28, 1773. Under the north window is an antient tomb, without inscription, having three shields of arms, first, Paston, six fleurs de lis, a chief indented; second, Fineux, a chevron, between three eagles; third, Apulderfield, a cross voided. A monument for Charles Milles, A. M. rector of Harbledowne, &c. obt. 1749, buried in the family vault underneath. A hatchment and inscription for Edward Ewell, gent. who married Elizabeth, sister of bishop Gauden, obt. 1686; arms, Ewell, argent, a rook proper. In the north chancel, which now belongs to the parish, a memorial and figures of a man and woman, with their hands joined, in brass, for Peter Hall, esq. and Elizabeth his wife, daughter of Sir William Waleys. A memorial and figure in brass, for Christian, wife of Matthew Phelp, goldsmith, and once mayor of London, obt. 1740; arms, An orle of cross-croslets, fitchee, a lion rampant, impaling a bend, fusilly. A me morial in brass for Anthony Loverick and Constantia his wife. He died in 1511. A memorial in brass for John Sea, esq. of Underdowne, obt. 1604; for William Foche, gent. of Christ-church, Canterbury, obt. 1713; and for Robert Sethe, obt. 1572. Memorials for Bysmere, Ewell, and others, long since obliterated. In the south chancel, belonging to the Knowlers, of Stroud-house, are several monuments and memorials for that family. Underneath is a vault, in which they lie buried.

 

The church of Herne was antiently accounted as one of the chapels belonging to the church of Reculver, which was parcel of the antient possessions of the see of Canterbury. But the inconveniences arising from the distance of those chapels from the mother church, among many other reasons, induced archbishop Winchelsea, in the year 1296, to institute perpetual vicarages in them. After which he endowed three vicarages; one in the mother church of Reculver, with the adjoining chapel of Hothe; another in the church of St. Nicholas, in Thanet; and a third in this church of Herne. By his instrument for which, dated in 1310, he decreed, that out of the profits of the church of Reculver, and the chapels belonging to it, the said vicars should have competent portions; and in particular, that the vicar of this chapel of Herne, belonging to that church, should have and take in the said chapel all oblations, the tithes of hay, flax, wool, and milk, lambs, gardens, and all other small tithes, which are said to belong to the altarage, with the tenths of sheaves growing in gardens inclosed, and dug with the foot, and in meadows belonging to the church and chapel, in the name of his vicarage; but out of those profits, in token of his perpetual subjection, he should pay yearly, as a perpetual pension, forty shillings, which he the archbishop imposed on him, to the vicar of Reculver for ever. Moreover, that the vicars of the aforesaid churches should have each one fit priest associated with themselves, at their own costs, for the better governing of their cure, and should make canonical obedience to the rector of Reculver, who was in quasi possession as to his parishioners, and exercising ordinary jurisdiction in his parish, and should be obedient to him canonically, as was of right accustomed, in reverence of the mother church, of which he was vicar, and should come to the same once a year, on the morrow of Pentecost, to the pentecostal processions, with their priests, ministers, parishioners, and vicars themselves, to the mass, on the day of the nativity of the virgin. Moreover, to the tenth, the vicar of the chapel of Herne should contribute 9s. 11d. for his portion of it. decreed, that to the aforesaid perpetual vicarages, whenever the same should happen to be vacant, the And further, that the burthens of ministers, books, ornaments, repairing of chancels or building of them anew, and of other ordinary burthens in the chapel of Herne, should belong to the said vicarage. And he decreed, that to the aforesaid perpetual vicarages, whenever the same should happen to be vacant, the rector of Reculver should for ever present to him and his successors, fit persons within the time limited by the canon, with a non obstante to any decrees of his predecessors relating to the same. (fn. 9)

 

Notwithstanding the above decree, it seems the parishioners of these chapelries continued as liable and subject to the repair of the mother church of Reculver, as the peculiar and proper inhabitants of the place, a matter controverted between those of Herne and Reculver; and the contest and dispute on this account, continued between them, until by a decree of archbishop Warham, in king Henry VIII.'s reign, it was settled, by the consent of all parties, that the people of each chapel, viz. Herne and St. Nicholas, should redeem the burthen of repairs with a certain moderate annual stipend or pension in money, payable on a certain set day in the year, but with this proviso, that if they kept not their day of payment, they should then be exposed to the law, and should fall under as full an obligation to the repairs of the mother church, as if the decree had never been. In which state it remains at this time, the churchwardens of Herne paying annually five shillings on this account to those of Reculver. (fn. 10)

 

¶Although the vicarages of Reculver and its chapels, were thus separated and made distinct, yet the rectories or parsonages of them remained in the same state as before, viz. one parsonage of Reculver, extending over that parish and those of Hothe and Herne, and another of St. Nicholas and All Saints, in Thanet, both remaining parcel of the possessions of the see of Canterbury to the present time. Richard Milles, esq. of Nackington, is the present lessee of the former parsonage, in which this of Herne is included. The house of the rectory stands in the hamlet of Eddington, opposite to Underdowne farm. It was once much larger, and consisted of a quadrangle, of which only one side remains. The family of Milles resided at it for several generations; the last of them who resided here was Samuel Milles, esq. whose son Christopher was of Nackington, and father of the present lessee of it.

 

His grace the archbishop continues the patron of this vicarage, which is valued in the king's books at 20l. 16s. 3d. and the yearly tenths at 2l. 1s. 7½d. In 1588 it was valued at eighty pounds, communicants four hundred and ninety. In 1640 it was valued at only sixty pounds, the like number of communicants.

 

There was a chantry founded in this church, in honour of the Virgin Mary, by Thomas Newe, clerk, sometime vicar of Reculver, which was suppressed, among other such foundations, in the 2d year of king Edward VI. the revenues of it being at that time of the clear yearly value of 6l. 5s. 1d. (fn. 11)

 

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