View allAll Photos Tagged enemy
The Postcard
A postally unused carte postale bearing no publisher's name. The card has a divided back.
Cambrai
Cambrai is a commune in the Nord département in the Hauts-de-France region of France on the Scheldt River.
Cambrai was the Duke of Wellington's headquarters for the British Army of Occupation, from 1815 to 1818.
Occupied and partly destroyed by the German army during the Great War, Cambrai saw unfold in its vicinity the Battle of Cambrai (20th. November 1917 – 3rd. December 1917) where tanks were massively and successfully used for the first time.
A second Battle of Cambrai took place between the 8th. and 10th. October 1918 as part of the Hundred Days Offensive.
The Reconstruction of Cambrai After the Great War
When the Germans retreated from Cambrai in October 1918, all they left their Canadian successors was a ghost town with a burned-out centre.
The architect Pierre Leprince-Ringuet was given the job of rebuilding the town. He gave Cambrai new squares and streets, and concentrated the administrative buildings and shops into specific areas.
He also designed a brand new town hall. Today the architecture in Cambrai’s centre is a mixture of traditional regional styles and more modern Art Deco buildings.
A Poem About the First Major Tank Attack
'A Vickers Light Gun on my shoulder,
Two machine-gun belts on my back.
Was ever man could be bolder,
A pawn in the first tank attack!
Other details that I carried,
Field-dressing, gas mask, and a pack,
By every impediment harried,
Iron rations, steel helmet alack!
There lumbering over Bosche lines,
Steel monsters use enfilade fire,
Dazed Germans surrend’ring betimes
Cry Kam’rad, as others expire!
Bombers now blast out each dug-out,
As tanks attack the next system.
Capture each strong-point and redoubt,
Prisoners galore! We arrest ‘em!
What of these steel cruising monsters,
Some temporarily halted.
Others still mobile giant ogres.
To Germans, surprised, so assaulted!
How are the Infantry fairing,
Following in the wake of the tanks?
Here we shall need all our daring,
The enemy’s thinning our ranks!
Their third trench system resisting,
The enemy holds our attack.
Fierce fire from machine-gunners raking,
Many tanks made immobile, alack!
Our loved Colonel shot in the leg,
Falls in a near shallow crater.
Too late now, more cover to beg.
Shot through the head seconds later.
At this stage the missiles increase,
Zip! Round my tense body spraying.
I pray for a safe quick release,
Rejecting the idea of dying!
A thump on my right arm, terrific!
Down drops the Light Vickers Gun.
A deep crater shields me, it’s magic!
Comes one of my mates on the run.
Quickly retrieving the weapon,
He hails me with ‘You lucky sod!’
Grabbing the gun’s ammunition,
Vanished, not bothering to nod!
Lying deep down in my crater,
I poured iodine on my wound.
Waiting for our lads to capture,
Finish the machine-gunning hound.
Saddened to lose Colonel Benson,
Comparing our separate state.
The depth of the crater, the reason
For each, and our ultimate fate!
Protecting the wound with a bandage
Secured around the wrist and the thumb.
Consid’ring the size of the damage,
That bullet, no doubt, a dum-dum!
No further resistance from ‘Gerry’,
Quick or you’ll run into a barrage.
From tanks and battlefield hurry.
Now home to ‘Blighty’ you’ll manage'.
Louis Blériot
Louis Charles Joseph Blériot, who was born on the 1st. July 1872, was a French aviator, inventor, and engineer.
He developed the first practical headlamp for cars, and established a profitable business manufacturing them, using much of the money he made to finance his attempts to build a successful aircraft.
Blériot was the first to use the combination of hand-operated joystick and foot-operated rudder control, a system used to the present day to operate the aircraft control surfaces.
Blériot was also the first to make a working, powered, piloted monoplane. In 1909 he became world-famous for making the first airplane flight across the English Channel, winning the prize of £1,000 offered by the Daily Mail newspaper.
Louis was the founder of Blériot Aéronautique, a successful aircraft manufacturing company.
Louis Blériot - The Early Years
Born at no. 17, Rue de l'Arbre à Poires in Cambrai, Louis was the first of five children born to Clemencia and Charles Blériot. In 1882, aged 10, Blériot was sent as a boarder to the Institut Notre Dame in Cambrai, where he frequently won class prizes, including one for engineering drawing.
When he was 15, Louis moved on to the Lycée at Amiens, where he lived with an aunt. After passing the exams for his baccalaureate in science and German, he determined to try to enter the prestigious École Centrale in Paris.
Entrance was by a demanding exam for which special tuition was necessary, and Blériot spent a year at the Collège Sainte-Barbe in Paris. He passed the exam, placing 74th. among the 243 successful candidates, and doing especially well in the tests of engineering drawing ability.
After three years of demanding study at the École Centrale, Blériot graduated 113th. of 203 in his class. He then embarked upon a term of compulsory military service, and spent a year in the 24th. Artillery Regiment, stationed in Tarbes in the Pyrénées.
Louis Blériot's Early Career and Marriage
Louis later got a job with Baguès, an electrical engineering company in Paris. He left the company after developing the world's first practical headlamp for automobiles, using a compact integral acetylene generator.
In 1897, Blériot opened a showroom for headlamps at 41 Rue de Richelieu in Paris. The business was successful, and soon he was supplying his lamps to both Renault and Panhead-Levassor, two of the foremost automobile manufacturers of the day.
In October 1900 Blériot was lunching in his usual restaurant near his showroom when his eye was caught by a young woman dining with her parents. That evening, he told his mother:
"I saw a young woman today.
I will marry her, or I will marry
no one."
A bribe to a waiter secured details of her identity; she was Alice Védères, the daughter of a retired army officer. Blériot set about courting her with the same determination that he later brought to his aviation experiments, and on the 21st. February 1901 the couple were married.
Louis Blériot's Early Aviation Experiments
Blériot first became interested in aviation while at the École Centrale, but his serious experimentation was probably sparked by seeing Clément Ader's Avion III at the 1900 Exposition Universelle.
By then Louis' headlamp business was doing well enough for Blériot to be able to devote both time and money to experimentation. His first experiments were with a series of ornithopters, which were unsuccessful. In April 1905, Blériot met Gabriel Voisin, who was then employed by Ernest Archdeacon to assist with his experimental gliders.
Blériot was a spectator at Voisin's first trials of the floatplane glider he had built on the 8th. June 1905. Cine photography was among Blériot's hobbies, and the film footage of this flight was shot by him.
The success of these trials prompted him to commission a similar machine from Voisin, the Blériot II glider. On the 18th. July 1905 an attempt to fly this aircraft was made, ending in a crash in which Voisin nearly drowned, but this did not deter Blériot. Indeed, he suggested that Voisin should stop working for Archdeacon and enter into partnership with him.
Voisin accepted the proposal, and the two men established the Ateliers d'Aviation Edouard Surcouf, Blériot et Voisin. Active between 1905 and 1906, the company built two unsuccessful powered aircraft, the Blériot III and the Blériot IV, which was largely a rebuild of its predecessor.
Both these aircraft were powered with the lightweight Antoinette engines being developed by Léon Levavasseur. Blériot became a shareholder in the company, and in May 1906, joined the board of directors.
The Blériot IV was damaged in a taxiing accident at Bagatelle on the 12th. November 1906. The disappointment of the failure of his aircraft was compounded by watching Alberto Santos Dumont later that day flying his 14-Bis a distance of 220 m (720 ft), winning the Aéro Club de France prize for the first flight of over 100 metres.
The partnership with Voisin was dissolved, and Blériot established his own business, Recherches Aéronautiques Louis Blériot, where he started creating his own aircraft, experimenting with various configurations, and eventually creating the world's first successful powered monoplane.
The first of these, the canard configuration Blériot V, was first tried on the 21st. March 1907, when Blériot limited his experiments to ground runs, which resulted in damage to the undercarriage. Two further ground trials, also damaging the aircraft, were undertaken, followed by another attempt on the 5th. April 1907. The flight was only of around 6 m (20 ft), after which he cut his engine and landed, slightly damaging the undercarriage.
More trials followed, the last on the 19th. April when, travelling at a speed of around 50 km/h (30 mph), the aircraft left the ground, Blériot over-responded when the nose began to rise, and the machine hit the ground nose-first, and somersaulted. The aircraft was largely destroyed, but Blériot was, by great good fortune, unhurt. The engine of the aircraft was immediately behind his seat, and he was very lucky not to have been crushed by it.
This was followed by the Blériot VI, a tandem wing design, first tested on the 7th. July 1907, when the aircraft failed to lift off. Blériot then enlarged the wings slightly, and on the 11th. July a short successful flight of around 25–30 metres (84–100 ft) was made, reaching an altitude of around 2 m (7 ft). This was Blériot's first truly successful flight.
Further successful flights took place that month, and by the 25th. July he had managed a flight of 150 m (490 ft). On the 6th. August he reached an altitude of 12 m (39 ft), but one of the blades of the propeller worked loose, resulting in a heavy landing which damaged the aircraft.
Louis then fitted a 50 hp (37 kW) V-16 Antoinette engine. Tests on the 17th. September 1907 showed a startling improvement in performance: the aircraft quickly reached an altitude of 25 m (82 ft), when the engine suddenly cut out and the aircraft went into a spiralling nosedive.
In desperation Blériot climbed out of his seat and threw himself towards the tail. The aircraft partially pulled out of the dive, and came to earth in a more or less horizontal attitude. Louis' only injuries were some minor cuts on his face, caused by fragments of glass from his broken goggles. After this crash Blériot abandoned the aircraft, concentrating on his next machine.
This, the Blériot VII, was a monoplane with tail surfaces arranged in what has become, apart from its use of differential elevators movement for lateral control, the modern conventional layout. This aircraft, which first flew on the 16th. November 1907, has been recognised as the first successful monoplane.
On the 6th. December Blériot managed two flights of over 500 metres, including a successful U-turn. This was the most impressive achievement to date of any of the French pioneer aviators. This caused Patrick Alexander to write to Major Baden Baden-Powell, president of the Royal Aeronautical Society:
"I got back from Paris last night.
I think Blériot with his new machine
is leading the way".
Two more successful flights were made on the 18th. December, but the undercarriage collapsed after the second flight; the aircraft overturned and was wrecked.
Blériot's next aircraft, the Blériot VIII was shown to the press in February 1908. Although it was the first to use a combination of hand-operated joystick and foot-operated rudder control, it was a failure in its initial format.
After modifications, it proved successful, and on the 31st. October 1908 he succeeded in making a cross-country flight, making a round trip from Toury to Arteny and back, a total distance of 28 km (17 mi). This was not the first cross-country flight, since Henri Farman had flown from Bouy to Reims the preceding day. Four days later, the aircraft was destroyed in a taxiing accident. (Taxiing seems to have been a hazardous business in those days).
Three of Louis' aircraft were displayed at the first Paris Aero Salon, held at the end of December: the Blériot IX monoplane; the Blériot X, a three-seat pusher biplane; and the Blériot XI, which went on to be his most successful model.
The first two of the designs, which used Antoinette engines, never flew, possibly because at this time, Blériot severed his connection with the Antoinette company because the company had begun to design and construct aircraft as well as engines, presenting Blériot with a conflict of interests.
The Type XI was initially powered by a REP engine and was first flown on the 18th. January 1909, but although the aircraft flew well, after a very short time in the air, the engine began to overheat. The led Blériot to contact Alessandro Anzani, who had developed a successful motorcycle engine and had subsequently entered the aero-engine market.
Anzani was associated with Lucien Chauvière, who had designed a laminated walnut propeller. The combination of a reliable engine and an efficient propeller contributed greatly to the success of the Type XI.
This was shortly followed by the Blériot XII, a high-wing two-seater monoplane first flown on the 21st. May 1909, and for a while Blériot concentrated on flying this machine. He flew it with a passenger on the 2nd. July, and on the 12th. July 1909 Louis made the world's first flight with two passengers, one of whom was Santos Dumont.
At the end of July Louis took part in an aviation meet at Douai where he made a flight lasting over 47 minutes in the Type XII; the following day he flew the Type XI for 50 minutes at another meet at Juvisy, and subsequently made a cross-country flight of 41 km (25 mi) from Étampes to Orléans.
Blériot's determination is shown by the fact that during the flight at Douai, part of the asbestos insulation worked loose from the exhaust pipe after 15 minutes in the air. After half an hour, one of his shoes had been burnt through and he was in considerable pain, but nevertheless continued his flight until engine failure ended the flight. Blériot suffered third-degree burns, and his injuries took over two months to heal.
Events Leading up to the 1909 Channel Crossing
The English Channel had first been crossed by balloon by Jean-Pierre Blanchard and John Jeffries in 1785.
In October 1908, the Daily Mail announced a prize of £500 for a flight made before the end of the year in a heavier-than-air aircraft.
When 1908 passed with no serious attempt being made, the offer was renewed for the year of 1909, with the prize money doubled to £1,000. It was widely seen as nothing more than a way to gain cheap publicity for the paper: the Paris newspaper Le Matin commenting that there was no chance of the prize being won.
On the 19th. July 1909, Louis informed the Daily Mail that he intended to attempt to win the thousand-pound prize offered by the paper for a successful crossing of the English Channel.
Blériot, who intended to fly across the Channel in his Type XI monoplane, had three rivals for the prize, the most serious being Hubert Latham, a French national of English extraction flying an Antoinette IV monoplane. He was favoured by both the United Kingdom and France to win.
The others were Charles de Lambert, a Russian aristocrat with French ancestry, and one of Wilbur Wright's pupils, and Arthur Seymour, an Englishman who owned a Voisin biplane. De Lambert established a base at Wissant, near Calais, but Seymour did nothing beyond submitting his entry to the Daily Mail.
Lord Northcliffe, who had befriended Wilbur Wright during his sensational 1908 public demonstrations in France, had offered the prize hoping that Wilbur would win. Wilbur wanted to make an attempt, and cabled his brother Orville in the USA.
Orville, at the time recuperating from serious injuries sustained in a crash, replied telling him not to make the Channel attempt until he could come to France and assist. Also Wilbur had already amassed a fortune in prize money for altitude and duration flights, and had secured sales contracts for the Wright Flyer with the French, Italians, British and Germans; his tour in Europe was essentially complete by the summer of 1909.
Both brothers saw the Channel reward of only a thousand pounds as insignificant considering the dangers of the flight.
Latham arrived in Calais in early July, and set up his base at Sangatte in the semi-derelict buildings which had been constructed for a 1881 attempt to dig a tunnel under the Channel. The event was the subject of great public interest; it was reported that there were 10,000 visitors at Calais and a similar crowd at Dover.
The Marconi Company set up a special radio link for the occasion, with one station on Cap Blanc Nez at Sangatte and the other on the roof of the Lord Warden Hotel in Dover. The crowds were in for a wait: the weather was windy, and Latham did not make an attempt until the 19th. July.
However 6 miles (9.7 km) from his destination, Latham's aircraft developed engine trouble, and was forced to make the world's first landing of an aircraft on the sea. Latham was rescued by the French destroyer Harpon and taken back to France, where he was met by the news that Blériot had entered the competition.
Blériot, accompanied by two mechanics and his friend Alfred Leblanc, arrived in Calais on Wednesday the 21st. July and set up their base at a farm near the beach at Les Baraques, between Calais and Sangatte.
The following day a replacement aircraft for Latham was delivered from the Antoinette factory. The wind was too strong for an attempted crossing on Friday and Saturday, but on Saturday evening it began to drop, raising hopes in both camps.
Leblanc went to bed at around midnight but was too keyed up to sleep well; at two o'clock, he was up, and judging that the weather was ideal woke Blériot who, unusually, was pessimistic and had to be persuaded to eat breakfast.
His spirits revived, however, and by half past three, his wife Alice had been put on board the destroyer Escopette, which was to escort the flight.
Blériot's Channel Crossing
At 4:15 am on the 25th. July 1909, watched by an excited crowd, Blériot made a short trial flight in his Type XI, and then, on a signal that the sun had risen (the competition rules required a flight between sunrise and sunset), he took off at 4:41 to attempt the crossing.
Flying at approximately 45 mph (72 km/h) and at an altitude of about 250 ft (76 m), he set off across the Channel. Not having a compass, Blériot took his course from the Escopette, which was heading for Dover, but he soon overtook the ship. The visibility deteriorated, and he later said:
"For more than 10 minutes I was alone,
isolated, lost in the midst of the immense
sea, and I did not see anything on the
horizon or a single ship".
The grey line of the English coast, however, came into sight on his left; the wind had increased, and had blown him to the east of his intended course. Altering course, he followed the line of the coast about a mile offshore until he spotted Charles Fontaine, the correspondent from Le Matin waving a large Tricolour as a signal.
Unlike Latham, Blériot had not visited Dover to find a suitable spot to land, and the choice had been made by Fontaine, who had selected a patch of gently sloping land called Northfall Meadow, close to Dover Castle, where there was a low point in the cliffs.
Once over land, Blériot circled twice to lose height, and cut his engine at an altitude of about 20 m (66 ft), making a heavy "pancake" landing due to the gusty wind conditions; the undercarriage was damaged and one blade of the propeller was shattered, but Blériot was unhurt. The flight had taken 36 minutes and 30 seconds.
News of his departure had been sent by radio to Dover, but it was generally expected that he would attempt to land on the beach to the west of the town. The Daily Mail correspondent, realising that Blériot had landed near the castle, set off at speed in a motor car and took Blériot to the harbour, where he was reunited with his wife. The couple, surrounded by a cheering crowd and photographers, were then taken to the Lord Warden Hotel at the foot of the Admiralty Pier; Blériot had become a celebrity.
The British Blériot Memorial, the outline of the aircraft laid out in granite setts in the turf (funded by oil manufacturer Alexander Duckham), marks Louis' landing spot above the cliffs near Dover Castle.
The aircraft which was used in the crossing is now preserved in the Musée des Arts et Métiers in Paris.
Louis Blériot - The Later Years
Blériot's success brought about an immediate transformation of the status of Recherches Aéronautiques Louis Blériot. By the time of the Channel flight, he had spent at least 780,000 francs on his aviation experiments. (To put this figure into context, one of Blériot's skilled mechanics was paid 250 francs a month.)
Now this investment began to pay off: orders for copies of the Type XI quickly came, and by the end of the year, orders for over 100 aircraft had been received, each selling for 10,000 francs.
At the end of August 1909, Blériot was one of the flyers at the Grande Semaine d'Aviation held at Reims, where he was narrowly beaten by Glenn Curtiss for the first Gordon Bennett Trophy. Blériot did, however, succeed in winning the prize for the fastest lap of the circuit, establishing a new world speed record for aircraft.
Blériot followed his flights at Reims with appearances at other aviation meetings in Brescia, Budapest, Bucharest in 1909 (making the first airplane flights in both Hungary and Romania).
Up to this time Louis had had great good luck in walking away from accidents that had destroyed the aircraft, but his luck deserted him in December 1909 at an aviation meeting in Istanbul. Flying in gusty conditions to placate an impatient and restive crowd, he crashed on top of a house, breaking several ribs and suffering internal injuries: he was hospitalized for three weeks.
Between 1909 and the outbreak of the Great War in 1914, Blériot produced about 900 aircraft, most of them variations of the Type XI model. Blériot monoplanes and Voisin-type biplanes dominated the pre-war aviation market.
There were concerns about the safety of monoplanes in general, both in France and the UK. The French government grounded all monoplanes in the French Army from February 1912 after accidents to four Blériots, but lifted it after trials in May supported Blériot's analysis of the problem and led to a strengthening of the landing wires.
Along with five other European aircraft builders, from 1910, Blériot was involved in a five-year legal struggle with the Wright Brothers over the latter's wing warping patents. The Wrights' claim was dismissed in the French and the German courts.
Before the Great War, Blériot had opened British flying schools at Brooklands, in Surrey and at Hendon Aerodrome. Realising that a British company would have more chance of selling his models to the British government, in 1915 he set up the Blériot Manufacturing Aircraft Company Ltd. However the hoped-for orders did not follow, as the Blériot design was seen as outdated.
Following an unresolved conflict over control of the company, it was wound up on the 24th. July 1916. However even before the closure of this company Blériot was planning a new venture in the UK. Based in Addlestone, it became the Air Navigation and Engineering Company (ANEC) in May 1918. ANEC survived in a difficult aviation climate until late 1926, producing Blériot-Whippet cars, the Blériot 500cc motorcycle,and several light aircraft.
In 1927, Blériot, long retired from flying, was present to welcome Charles Lindbergh when he landed at Le Bourget field after completing his transatlantic flight. The two men, separated in age by 30 years, had each made history by crossing significant bodies of water, and shared a photo opportunity in Paris.
In 1934, Blériot visited Newark Airport in New Jersey, and predicted commercial overseas flights by 1938.
The Death and Legacy of Louis Blériot
Louis Blériot remained active in the aviation business until his death at the age of 64 on the 1st. August 1936 in Paris due to a heart attack. After a funeral with full military honours at Les Invalides he was buried in the Cimetière des Gonards in Versailles.
In 1930, Blériot had instituted the Blériot Trophy, a one-time award which would be awarded to the first aircrew to sustain an average speed of over 2,000 kilometers per hour (1,242.742 miles per hour) over one half of an hour, an extremely ambitious and prophetic target in an era when the fastest aircraft were just breaking the 200 mph mark.
The award was finally presented slightly more than three decades later by Alice Védères Blériot, widow of Louis Blériot, in Paris on the 27th. May 1961 to the crew of the United States Air Force Convair B-58A jet bomber Firefly, crewed by Aircraft Commander Major Elmer E. Murphy. On the 10th. May 1961, the aircraft had sustained an average speed of 2,095 kmph (1,302.07 mph) over 30 minutes and 43 seconds, covering a ground track of 1,077.3 kilometers (669.4 miles).
This same crew and aircraft went on to set a number of other speed records before being lost in an accident shortly after takeoff from Paris, not long after winning the Harmon Trophy for a record-setting flight between New York City and Paris. This flight was 3,626.46 miles in 3 hours, 19 minutes, 58 seconds, at an average of 1,089.36 mph.
The Blériot Trophy winning crew took over the aircraft for the return flight, but were all killed when the pilot lost control shortly after takeoff from the Paris Air Show during some attempted impromptu aerobatics.
The Blériot Trophy is a statuette in classical style sculpted of polished white and black marble stone, depicting a nude male figure of black marble emerging from stylized white marble clouds resembling female forms. It is now on permanent display at the McDermott Library of the United States Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA.
In 1936 the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale established the "Louis Blériot Medal" in his honor. The medal may be awarded up to three times a year to record setters in speed, altitude and distance categories in light aircraft, and is still being awarded.
In 1967 Blériot was inducted into the International Air & Space Hall of Fame.
On the 25th. July 2009, the centenary of the original Channel crossing, Frenchman Edmond Salis took off from Blériot Beach in a replica of Bleriot's aircraft. He landed successfully in Kent at the Duke of York's Royal Military School.
Louis Blériot In Popular Culture
-- In 2002, British train company Virgin CrossCountry named Class 221 221101 Louis Blériot.
-- In 2006 Rivendell Bicycle Works introduced a bicycle model named the "Blériot 650B" as a tribute to Blériot. It features his portrait on the seat tube.
-- A propeller moonlet in the rings of Saturn was nicknamed Blériot by imaging scientists.
-- The pianist and composer Giuseppe Sanalitro paid homage to Louis Blériot with the concept album for solo piano Au-delà (2021).
-- In the Academy Award-Winning 1933 movie Cavalcade, Edward Marryot and Edith Harris, while on the beach proclaiming their love for each other, witness the historic flight by Louis Blériot over the English Channel.
-- In the ITV series Mr Selfridge, Louis Blériot makes a personal appearance as a promotion for Selfridge's department store along with the plane he used to make the historic English Channel flight.
Site internet : www.tooga.fr
Deviantart : tooga.deviantart.com/
Pinterest : www.pinterest.com/toogatine/
Facebook : www.facebook.com/Toogaphotographies
Tumblr : lea-fery.tumblr.com/
At 21:47 GMT, the equinox happened, and so from then on, light is destined to win over darkness. Which meant, of course, that the day before then was the shortest "day", or amount of daylight.
This is the end of the year, the build up and excitement before Christmas, and at the same time, looking back at the year, and what has happened in the previous 50 or so weeks. So, a time of mixed emotions, good and bad, happy and sad.
But I was on vacation, or not going to work.
I am not up to date, but I did all the tasks I was supposed to do, threw a few electronic grenades over the walls, and was now happy not to think of that shit for two whole weeks.
For Jools, however, there was half a day to do, and then her employers paid for all those employed at the factory to go to a fancy place in Folkestone for lunch, drinks at the bar and a bottle of wine between four folks.
It was, in short, a time for celebration. Something I realise has not happened in my job since I left operational quality, to be happy and give thanks to those we work with. And be recognised for the good job we do.
So, I was to take Jools to work, and have the car for the day.
Jools was conscious that my plan for the day involved driving to the far west of Kent, so realised I needed an early start, and not dropping her off in Hythe at seven.
We left after coffee just after six, driving through Dover and Folkestone on the main road and motorway before turning over the downs into Hythe. I dropped her off in the town, so she could get some walking in. She always didn't walk, as waves of showers swept over the town, and me as I drove back home for breakfast and do all the chores before leaving on a mini-churchcrawl.
So, back home for breakfast, more coffee, wash up, do the bird feeders and with postcodes, set out for points in the extreme west. Now, Kent is not a big county, not say, Texas big, but it takes some time to get to some parts of the west of the county. Main roads run mainly from London to the coast, so going cross-country or cross-county would take time.
At first it was as per normal up the A20 then onto the motorway to Ashford then to Maidstone until the junction before the M26 starts. One of the reasons for going later was to avoid rush hours in and around Maidstone, Tonbridge and Tunbridge Wells.
As it was, after turning down the A road, things were fine until I got to Mereworth, but from there the road began to twist and turn until it lead me into Tonbridge. Once upon a time, this was a sleepy village or small town. The the railways came and it became a major junction. The road to Penshurt took me though the one way system, then down the wide High Street, over the river Medway and up the hill the other side.
Two more turns took me to my target, through what were once called stockbroker mansions, then down a hill, with the village laid out before me just visible through the trees.
The village was built around the outskirts of Penshurst Place, home to the Sidney family since Tudor times. Just about everything is named the Leicester something, the village having its own Leicester Square, though with no cinemas, and all timber framed houses and painfully picturesque.
The church lays behind the houses, the tower in golden sandstone topped with four spirelets.
I parked the car, and armed with two cameras, several lenses and a photographer's eye, walked to the church.
The reason for coming was I can only remember a little about my previous visit, but the Leicester name thing triggered in my head the thought the memorials and tombs might be worth a revisit.
So there I was.
Gilbert Scott was very busy here, so there is little of anything prior to the 19th century, but the memorials are there. Including one which features the heads of the children of Robert Sidney (d1702) in a cloud. Including the eldest son who died, apparently, so young he wasn't named, and is recorded as being the first born.
This is in the Sidney Chapel where the great and good are buried and remembered, it has a colourful roof, or roof beams, and heraldic shields. It has a 15th century font, which, sadly, has been brightly painted so is gaudy in the extreme.
I go around getting my shots, leave a fiver for the church. Go back to the car and program Speldhurst into the sat nav.
Its just a ten minute drive, but there is no place to park anywhere near the church. I could see from my slow drive-by the porch doors closed, and I convinced myself they were locked and not worth checking out.
I went on to Groombridge, where there is a small chapel with fabulous glass. I had been here before too, but wanted to redo my shots.
It was by now pouring with rain, and as dark as twilight, I missed the church on first pass, went to the mini-roundabout only to discover that it and the other church in the village were in Sussex. I turned round, the church looked dark and was almost certainly locked. I told myself.
I didn't stop here either, so instead of going to the final village church, I went straigh to Tunbridge Wells where there was another church to revisit.
I drove into the town, over the man road and to the car park with no waiting in traffic, how odd, I thought.
It was hard to find a parking space, but high up in the parking house there were finally spaced. I parked near the stairs down, grabbed my cameras and went down.
I guess I could have parked nearer the church, but once done it would be easier to leave the town as the road back home went past the exit.
I ambled down the hill leading to the station, over the bridge and down the narrow streets, all lined with shops. I think its fair to say that it is a richer town than Dover because on one street there were three stores offering beposke designer kitchens.
The church is across the road from the Georgian square known at The Pantiles, but it was the church I was here to visit.
I go in, and there is a service underway. I decide to sit at the back and observe.
And pray.
I did not take communion, though. The only one there who didn't.
About eight elderly parishioners did, though.
I was here to photograph the ceiling, and then the other details I failed to record when we were last here over a decade ago.
I was quizzed strongly by a warden as to why I was doing this. I had no answer other than I enjoyed it, and for me that is enough.
After getting my shots, I leave and begin the slog back up to the car, but on the way keeping my promise to a young man selling the Big Issue that I would come back and buy a copy. I did better than that in that I gave him a fiver and didn't take a copy.
He nearly burst into tears. I said, there is kindness in the world, and some of us do keep our promises.
By the time I got to the car park, it was raining hard again. I had two and a half hours to get to Folkestone to pick up Jools after her meal.
Traffic into Tunbridge Wells from this was was crazy, miles and miles of queues, so I was more than happy going the other way.
I get back to the M20, cruise down to Ashford, stopping at Stop 24 services for a coffee and something to eat. I had 90 minutes to kill, so eat, drink and scroll Twitter as I had posted yet more stuff that morning. In other news: nothing changed, sadly.
At quarter past four I went to pick up Jools, stopping outside the restaurant. When she got in she declared she had been drinking piña coladas. Just two, but she was bubby and jabbering away all the way home.
With Jools having eaten out, and with snacks I had, no dinner was needed, so when suppertime came round, we dined on cheese and crackers, followed by a large slice of Christmas cake.
She was now done for Christmas too.
----------------------------------------------------
A large sandstone church of nave, aisles, chancel and chapels that was restored by Sir George Gilbert Scott in 1864. It stands in an excellent position set back from the street in a large well-kept churchyard. The tower is of three stages with four pinnacles strangely set well back from the corners. Inside it is obvious that there have been many rebuildings and repairs, leaving a general character of the Victorian period. The good chancel screen is by Bodley and Garner and dates from 1897. Whilst it is well carved the florid design is more suited to a West Country church than to the Garden of England. The fifteenth-century font has been painted in bold colours in a way that can never have been imagined when it was new! Nearby is the Becket window designed by Lawrence Lee in 1970. It is quite unlike any other window in Kent and has an emphasis on heraldry - the figure of Becket and three knights are almost lost in the patchwork effect. Under the tower is the famous Albigensian Cross, a portion of thirteenth-century coffin lid with the effigy of a woman at prayer. The south chapel, which belongs to Penshurst Place, was rebuilt by Rebecca in 1820 and has a lovely painted ceiling. It contains some fine monuments including Sir Stephen de Pencester, a damaged thirteenth-century knight. Nearby is the large standing monument to the 4th Earl of Leicester (d. 1704) designed by William Stanton. It is a large urn flanked by two angels, above which are the heads of the earls children's floating in the clouds!
www.kentchurches.info/church.asp?p=Penshurst
-------------------------------------------
PENSHURST.
THE next parish eastward from Chidingstone is Penhurst, called in the Textus Roffenfis, Pennesherst. It takes its name from the old British word Pen, the height or top of any thing, and byrst, a wood. (fn. 1) It is called in some antient records, Pen cestre, and more vulgarly, Penchester, from some sortified camp or fortress antiently situated here.
There is a district in this parish, called Hallborough, which is within the lowy of Tunbridge, the manerial rights of which belong to Thomas Streatfeild, esq. and there is another part of it, comprehending the estate of Chafford, which is within the jurisdiction of the duchy court of Lancaster.
THIS PARISH lies in the Weald, about four miles Southward from the foot of the sand hills, and the same distance from Tunbridge town, and the high London road from Sevenoke. The face of the country is much the same as in those parishes last described, as is the soil, for the most part a stiff clay, being well adapted to the large growth of timber for which this parish is remarkable; one of these trees, as an instance of it, having been cut down here, about twenty years ago, in the park, called, from its spreading branches, Broad Oak, had twenty-one ton, or eight hundred and forty feet of timber in it. The parish is watered by the river Eden, which runs through the centre of it, and here taking a circular course, and having separated into two smaller streams, joins the river Medway, which flows by the southern part of the park towards Tunbridge. At a small distance northward stands the noble mansion of Penshurst-place, at the south west corner of the park, which, till within these few years, was of much larger extent, the further part of it, called North, alias Lyghe, and South parks, having been alienated from it, on the grounds of the latter of which the late Mr. Alnutt built his seat of that name, from whence the ground rises northward towards the parish of Lyghe. Close to the north west corner of Penshurst-park is the seat of Redleaf, and at the south west corner of it, very near to the Place, is the village of Penshurst, with the church and parsonage. At a small distance, on the other side the river, southward, is Ford-place, and here the country becomes more low, and being watered by the several streams, becomes wet, the roads miry and bad, and the grounds much covered with coppice wood; whence, about a mile southward from the river, is New House, and the boroughs of Frendings and Kingsborough; half a mile southward from which is the river Medway; and on the further side of it the estate of Chafford, a little beyond which it joins the parish of Ashurst, at Stone cross. In a deep hole, in the Medway, near the lower end of Penshurst-park, called Tapner's-hole, there arises a spring, which produces a visible and strong ebullition on the surface of the river; and above Well-place, which is a farm house, near the south-east corner of the park, there is a fine spring, called Kidder's-well, which, having been chemically analized, is found to be a stronger chalybeate than those called Tunbridge-wells; there is a stone bason for the spring to rise in, and run to waste, which was placed here by one of the earls of Leicester many years ago. This parish, as well as the neighbouring ones, abounds with iron ore, and most of the springs in them are more or less chalybeate. In the losty beeches, near the keeper's lodge, in Penshurst-park, is a noted beronry; which, since the destruction of that in lord Dacre's park, at Aveley, in Effex, is, I believe, the only one in this part of England. A fair is held here on July I, for pedlary, &c.
The GREATEST PART of this parish is within the jurisdiction of the honour of Otford, a subordinate limb to which is the MANOR of PENSHURST HALIMOTE, alias OTFORD WEALD, extending likewise over parts of the adjoining parishes of Chidingstone, Hever, and Cowden. As a limb of that of honour, it was formerly part of the possessions of the see of Canterbury, and was held for a long time in lease of the archbishops, by the successive owners of Penhurst manor, till the death of the duke of Buckingham, in the 13th year of king Henry VIII. in the 29th year of which reign, Thomas Cranmer, archbishop of Canterbury, exchanging Otford with the crown, this, as an appendage, passed with it, and it remained in the hands of the crown till the death of king Charles I. 1648; after which the powers then in being, having seised on the royal estates, passed an ordinance to vest them in trustees, to be sold, to supply the necessities of the state; when, on a survey made of this manor, in 1650, it appeared that the quit-rents due to the lord, from the freeholders in free socage tenure, were 16l. 18s. 3½d. and that they paid a heriot of the best living thing, or in want thereof, 3s. 4d. in money. That there were copyholders holding of it, within this parish, by rent and fine certain; that there was a common fine due from the township or borough of Halebury, and a like from the township of Penshurst, a like from the townships or boroughts of Chidingstone, Standford, and Cowden; and that there was a court baron and a court leet. The total rents, profits, &c. of all which amounted to 23l. and upwards. (fn. 2) After this the manor was sold by the state to colonel Robert Gibbon, with whom it remained till the restoration of king Charles II. when the possession and inheritance of it returned to the crown, where it remains, as well as the honour of Otford, at this time, his grace the duke of Dorset being high steward of both; but the see farm rents of it, with those of other manors belonging to the above mentioned honour, were alienated from the crown in king Charles II.'s reign, and afterwards became the property of Sir James Dashwood, bart. in whose family they still continue.
SOON AFTER the reign of William the Conqueror Penshurst was become the residence of a family, who took their name from it, and were possessed of the manor then called the manor of Peneshurste; and it appears by a deed in the Registrum Roffense, that Sir John Belemeyns, canon of St. Paul, London, was in possession of this manor, as uncle and trustee, in the latter part of king Henry III.'s reign, to Stephen de Peneshurste or Penchester, who possessed it in the beginning of the reign of king Edward I. He had been knighted, and made constable of Dover castle and warden of the cinque ports by Henry III. in which posts he continued after the accession of king Edward I. (fn. 3) He died without issue male, and was buried in the south chancel of this church, under an altar tomb, on which lay his figure in armour, reclining on a cushion. He left Margery, his second wife, surviving, who held this manor at her death, in the 2d year of king Edward II. and two daughters and coheirs; Joane, married to Henry de Cobham of Rundale, second son of John de Cobham, of Cobham, in this county, by his first wife, daughter of Warine Fitz Benedict; (fn. 4) and Alice to John de Columbers, as appears by an inquisition, taken in the 3d year of king Edward II. His arms, being Sable, a bend or, a label of three points argent, still remain on the roof of the cloisters of Canterbury cathedral. Alice, above mentioned, had this manor, with that of Lyghe adjoining, assigned to her for her proportion of their inheritance; soon after which these manors were conveyed to Sir John de Pulteney, son of Adam de Pulteney of Misterton, in Leicestershire, by Maud his wife. In the 15th year of that reign he had licence to embattle his mansion houses of Penshurst, Chenle in Cambridgeshire, and in London. (fn. 5) In the 11th year of king Edward III. Thomas, son of Sir John de Columbers of Somersetshire, released to him all his right to this manor and the advowson of the chapel of Penshurst; (fn. 6) and the year following Stephen de Columbers, clerk, brother of Sir Philip, released to him likewise all his right in that manor and Yenesfeld, (fn. 7) and that same year he obtained a grant for free warren within his demesne lands within the former. He was a person greatly esteemed by that king, in whose reign he was four times lord mayor of London, and is noticed by our historians for his piety, wisdom, large possessions, and magnificent housekeeping. In his life time he performed several acts of public charity and munificence; and among others he founded a college in the church of St. Laurence, since from him named Poultney, in London. He built the church of Little Allhallows, in Thamesstreet, and the Carmelites church, and the gate to their monastery, in Coventry; and a chapel or chantry in St. Paul's, London. Besides which, by his will, he left many charitable legacies, and directed to be buried in the church of St. Laurence above mentioned. He bore for his arms, Argent a fess dancette gules, in chief three leopards heads sable.
By the inquisition taken after his death, it appears, that he died in the 23d year of that reign, being then possessed of this manor, with the advowson of the chapel, Lyghe, South-park, and Orbiston woods, with lands in Lyghe and Tappenash, and others in this county. He left Margaret his wife surviving, who married, secondly, Sir Nicholas Lovaine; and he, in her right, became possessed of a life estate in this manor and the others above mentioned, in which they seem afterwards jointly to have had the see; for Sir William Pulteney, her son, in his life time, vested his interest in these manors and estates in trustees, and died without issue in the 40th year of the same reign, when Robert de Pulteney was found to be his kinsman and next heir, who was ancestor to the late earl of Bath. The trustees afterwards, in the 48th year of it, conveyed them, together with all the other estates of which Sir John Pulteney died possessed, to Sir Nicholas Lovaine and Margaret his wife, and their heirs for ever. Sir Nicholas Lovaine above mentioned was a descendant of the noble family of Lovaine, a younger branch of the duke of Lorraine. Godfrey de Lovaine, having that surname from the place of his birth, possessed lands in England in right of his mother, grand daughter of king Stephen, of whose descendants this Nicholas was a younger branch. He bore for his arms, Gules, a fess argent between fourteen billets or; which arms were quartered by Bourchier earl of Bath, and Devereux earl of Essex. (fn. 8) He died possessed of this manor, leaving one son, Nicholas, who having married Margaret, eldest daughter of John de Vere, earl of Oxford, widow of Henry lord Beaumont, died without issue, and a daughter Margaret, who at length became her brother's heir.
Margaret, the widow of Nicholas the son, on his death, possessed this manor for her life, and was afterwards re-married to Sir John Devereux, who in her right held it. He was descended from a family which had their surname from Eureux, a town of note in Normandy, and there were several generations of them in England before they were peers of this realm, the first of them summoned to parliament being this Sir John Devereux, who being bred a soldier, was much employed in the wars both of king Edward III. and king Richard II. and had many important trusts conferred on him. In the 11th year of the latter reign, being then a knight banneret, he was made constable of Dover castle and warden of the cinque ports. In the 16th year of that reign, he had licence to fortify and embattle his mansion house at Penshurst, the year after which he died, leaving Margaret his wife, surviving, who had an assignation of this manor as part of her dower. She died possessed of it, with Yensfield, and other lands, about the 10th year of king Henry IV. and was succeeded in them by Margaret, sister and heir of her husband, Nicholas Lovaine, who was twice married, first to Rich. Chamberlayn, esq. of Sherburn, in Oxfordshire; and secondly to Sir Philip St. Clere, of Aldham, St. Clere, in Ightham. (fn. 9) Both of these, in right of their wife, seem to have possessed this manor, which descended to John St. Clere, son of the latter, who conveyed it by sale to John duke of Bedford, third son of king Henry IV. by Mary his wife, daughter and coheir of Humphry de Bohun, earl of Hereford, Essex, and Northampton.
The duke of Bedford was the great support and glory of this kingdom in the beginning of the reign of his infant nephew, king Henry VI. his courage was unequalled, and was followed by such rapid success in his wars in France, where he was regent, and commanded the English army in person, that he struck the greatest terror into his enemies. The victories he acquired so humbled the French, that he crowned king Henry VI. at Paris, in which city he died greatly lamented, in the 14th year of that reign, (fn. 10) and was buried in the cathedral church of Roan. He was twice married, but left issue by neither of his wives. He died possessed of the manors of Penshurst, Havenden-court, and Yensfield, as was then found by inquisition; in which he was succeeded by his next brother, Humphry duke of Gloucester, fourth son of king Henry IV. by Mary his wife, daughter and coheir of Humphry de Bohun, earl of Hereford, &c. who in the 4th year of king Henry V. had had the offices of constable of Dover castle and warden of the cinque ports, granted to him for the term of his life; and in the 1st year of king Henry VI. was, by parliament, made protector of England, during the king's minority; and the same year he was constituted chamberlain of England, at the coronation of that prince was appointed high steward of England.
The duke was, for his virtuous endowments, surnamed the Good, and for his justice was esteemed the father of his country, notwithstanding which, after he had, under king Henry VI. his nephew, governed this kingdom twenty-five years, with great applause, he was, by the means of Margaret of Aujou, his nephew's queen, who envied his power, arrested at the parliament held at St. Edmundsbury, by John lord Beaumont, then high constable of England, accompanied by the duke of Buckingham and others; and the night following, being the last of February, anno 25 king Henry VI. he was found dead in his bed, it being the general opinion that he was strangled; though his body was shewn to the lords and commons, with an account of his having died of an apoplexy or imposthume; after which he was buried in the abbey of St. Alban, near the shrine of that proto-martyr, and a stately monument was erected to his memory.
This duke married two wives; first Jaqueline, daughter and heir of William duke of Bavaria, to whom belonged the earldoms of Holand, Zeland, and Henault, and many other rich seignories in the Netherlands; after which he used these titles, Humphrey, by the grace of God, son, brother, and uncle to kings; duke of Gloucester; earl of Henault, Holand, Zeland, and Pembroke; lord of Friesland; great chamberlain of the kingdom of England; and protector and defender of the kingdom and church of England. But she having already been married to John duke of Brabant, and a suit of divorce being still depending between them, and the Pope having pronounced her marriage with the duke of Brabant lawful, the duke of Gloucester resigned his right to her, and forthwith, after this, married Eleanor Cobham, daughter of Reginald, lord Cobham of Sterborough, who had formerly been his concubine. A few years before the duke's death she was accused of witchcrast, and of conspiring the king's death; for which she was condemned to solemn pennance in London, for three several days, and afterwards committed to perpetual imprisonment in the isle of Man. He built the divinity schools at Oxford, and laid the foundation of that famous library over them, since increased by Sir Thomas Bodley, enriching it with a choice collection of manuscripts out of France and Italy. He bore for his arms, Quarterly, France and England, a berdure argent. (fn. 11)
By the inquisition, taken after his death, it appears, that he died possessed of the manors of Penshurst, Havenden-court, and Yensfield, in this county, and that dying, without issue, king Henry VI. was his cousin and next heir.
¶The manor of Penshurst thus coming into the hands of the crown, was granted that year to Humphrey Stafford, who, in consideration of his near alliance in blood to king Henry VI. being the son of Edmund earl of Stafford, by Anne, eldest daughter of Thomas of Woodstock, duke of Gloucester, sixth and youngest son of king Edward III. Mary, the other daughter and coheir, having married Henry of Bullingbroke, afterwards king Henry IV. and grandfather of king Henry VI. (fn. 12) as well as for his eminent services to his country, had been, in the 23d year of that reign, created duke of Buckingham. He was afterwards slain in the battle of Northampton, sighting valiantly there on the king's part. By the inquisition, taken after his death, it appears that he died in the 38th year of that reign possessed of this manor of Penshurst, among others in this county and elsewhere; which afterwards descended down to his great grandson, Edward duke of Buckingham, but in the 13th year of Henry VIII. this duke being accused of conspiring the king's death, he was brought to his trial, and being found guilty, was beheaded on Tower-hill that year. In the par liament begun April 15, next year, this duke, though there passed an act for his attainder, yet there was one likewise for the restitution in blood of Henry his eldest son, but not to his honors or lands, so that this manor, among his other estates, became forseited to the crown, after which the king seems to have kept it in his own hands, for in his 36th year, he purchased different parcels of land to enlarge his park here, among which was Well-place, and one hundred and seventy acres of land, belonging to it, then the estate of John and William Fry, all which he inclosed within the pale of it, though the purchase of the latter was not completed till the 1st year of king Edward VI. (fn. 13) who seems to have granted the park of Penshurst to John, earl of Warwick, for that earl, in the 4th year of that reign, granted this park to that king again in exchange for other premises. In which year the king granted the manor of Penshurst, with its members and appurtenances, late parcel of the possessions of the duke of Buckingham, to Sir Ralph Fane, to hold in capite by knight's service, being the grandson of Henry Vane, alias Fane, of Hilsden Tunbridge, esq. but in the 6th year of that reign, having zealously espoused the interests of the duke of Somersee, he was accused of being an accomplice with him, and being found guilty, was hanged on Tower-hill that year.
PENSHURST is within the ECCLESIASTICAL JURISDICTION of the diocese of Rochester, and being a peculiar of the archbishop of Canterbury, is as such within the deanry of Shoreham.
The church, which is a large handsome building, is dedicated to St. John Baptist. It consists of three isles, a cross isle, and three chancels, having a tower steeple at the west end.
Among other monuments and inscriptions in this church are the following:—In the middle isle, a grave-stone, with the figure of a man and his two wives, now torn off, but the inscription remains in black letter, for Watur Draynowtt, and Johanna and Anne his wives, obt. 1507; beneath are the figures of four boys and three girls, at top, arms, two lions passant, impaling or, on a chief, two lions heads erased; a memorial for Oliver Combridge, and Elizabeth his wife, obt. 1698. In the chancel, memorials on brass for Bulman and Paire; within the rails of the altar a gravestone for William Egerton, LL. D. grandon of John, earl of Bridgwater, rector of Penshurst and Allhallows, Lombard-street, chancellor and prebendary of Hereford, and prebendary of Can terbury, he left two daughters and one son, by Anne, daughter of Sir Francis Head, obt. Feb. 26, 1737; on the south side of the altar, a memorial in brass for John Bust, God's painful minister in this place for twenty-one years; on the north side a mural monument for Gilbert Spencer, esq. of Redleafe-house, obt. 1709, arms, Spencer, an escutcheon of pretence for Combridge; underneath is another stone, with a brass plate, and inscription for William Darkenol, parson of this parish, obt. July 12, 1596; on grave-stones are these shields in brass, the figures and inscriptions on which are lost, parted per fess, in chief two lions passant guardant in base, two wolves heads erased; on another, the same arms, impaling a chevron between three padlocks; another, a lion rampant, charged on the shoulder with an annulet, and another, three lions passant impaling parted per chevron, the rest defaced. In the south chancel, on a stone, the figures of a man and woman in brass, and inscription in black letter, for Pawle Yden, gent. and Agnes his wife, son of Thomas Yden, esq. obt. 1564, beneath is the figure of a girl, arms, four shields at the corner of the stone, the first, Yden, a fess between three helmets; two others, with inscriptions on brass for infant children of the Sidney family; a small grave-stone, on which is a cross gradated in brass, and inscription in black letter, for Thomas Bullayen, son of Sir Thomas Bullayen; here was lately a monument for lady Mary . . . . . . eldest daughter of the famous John, duke of Northumberland, and sister to Ambrose, earl of Warwick, Robert, earl of Leicester, and Catharine, countess of Huntingdon, wife of the right hon. Sir Henry Sidney, knight of the garter, &c. at the west end of the chancel, a mural monument for Sir William Coventry, youngest son of Thomas, lord Coventry, he died at Tunbridge-wells, 1686; on the south side a fine old monument of stone, under which is an altar tomb, and on the wall above it a brass plate, with inscription in black letter, for Sir William Sidney, knightbanneret, chamberlain and steward to king Edward VI. and the first of the name, lord of the manor, of Penshurst, obt. 1553; on the front are these names, Sir William Dormer, and Mary Sidney, Sir William Fitzwilliam, Sir James Haninngton, Anne Sidney, and Lucy Sidney; on the south side a handsome monument, with the arms and quarterings of the Sidney family, and inscription for lord Philip Sidney, fifth earl of Leicester, &c. obt. 1705, and was succeeded by John, his brother and heir; for John, sixth earl of Leicester, cosin and heir of Henry Sidney, earl of Romney, &c. obt. 1737, his heirs Mary and Elizabeth Sidney, daughters and heirs of his brother the hon. Thomas Sidney, third surviving son of Robert, earl of Leicester, became his joint heirs, for Josceline, seventh earl of Leicester, youngest brother and heir male of earl John, died s. p. in 1743, with whom the title of earl of Leicester expired; the aforesaid Mary and Elizabeth, his nieces, being his heirs, of whom the former married Sir Brownlow Sherard, bart. and Elizabeth, William Perry, esq. on the monument is an account of the several personages of this noble family, their descent, marriages and issue, too long by far to insert here; on the north side is a fine monument for several of the infant children of this family, and beneath is an urn and inscriptions for Frances Sidney, fourth daughter, obt. 1692, æt. 6; for Robert Sidney, earl of Leicester, &c. fourth earl of this family, who married lady Elizabeth Egerton, by whom he had fifteen children, of whom nine died young, whose figures, as cherubims, are placed above, obt. 1702; Robert, the eldest son, obt. 1680, æt. 6; Elizabeth, countess of Leicester, obt. 1709, and buried here in the same vault with her lord. In the same chancel is a very antient figure in stone of a knight in armour, being for Sir Stephen de Penchester, lord warden and constable of Dover-castle in the reign of king Edward I. It was formerly laid on an altar tomb in the chancel, but is now placed erect against the door on the south side, with these words painted on the wall above it, SIR STEPHEN DE PENCHESTER. In the fourth window of the north isle, are these arms, very antient, within the garter argent a fess gules in chief, three roundels of the second, being those of Sir John Devereux, K. G. lord warden and constable, and steward of the king's house in king Richard II's reign; near the former was another coat, nothing of which now remains but the garter. In the same windows are the arms of Sidney; in the second window is this crest, a griffin rampant or. In the east window of the great chancel are the arms of England. In the east window of the south chancel are the arms of the Sidney family, with all the quarterings; there were also, though now destroyed, the arms of Sir Thomas Ratcliff, earl of Sussex, and lady Frances Sidney.
This church was of the antient patronage of the see of Canterbury, and continued so till the 3d year of queen Elizabeth, when Matthew, archbishop of Canterbury, granted it to that queen in exchange for the parsonage of Earde, alias Crayford; and though in the queen's letters patent dated that year, confirming this exchange, there is no value expressed, yet in a roll in the queen's office, it is there set down, the tenth deducted, at the clear yearly value of 32l. 1s. 9d. (fn. 24)
¶Soon after which the queen granted the church of Penshurst to Sir Henry Sidney, whose descendants, earls of Leicester, afterwards possessed it; from whom it passed, in like manner as Penshurst manor and place, to William Perry, esq. who died possessed of it in 1757, leaving Elizabeth his wife surviving, who continued proprietor of the advowson of this church at the time of her death in 1783; she by her last will devised it to trustees for the use of her eldest grandson, John Shelley, esq who has since taken the name of Sidney, and is the present owner of it.
In the 15th year of king Edward I. this church was valued at thirty marcs. By virtue of the commission of enquiry into the value of ecclesiastical livings, taken in 1650, issuing out of chancery, it was returned that the tithes belonging to the parsonage of Penshurst were one hundred and ten pounds per annum, and the parsonage house and glebe lands about fifty pounds per annum, the earl of Leicester being patron, and master Mawdell, minister, who received the profits for his salary. (fn. 25)
The annual value of it is now esteemed to be four hundred pounds and upwards. The rectory of Penshurst is valued in the king's books at 30l. 6s. 0½d. and the yearly tenths at 3l. 0s. 7½d. (fn. 26)
John Acton, rector of this parish, in 1429, granted a lease for ninety-nine years, of a parcel of his glebe land, lying in Berecroft, opposite the gate of the rectory, containing one acre one rood and twelve perches, to Thomas Berkley, clerk, Richard Hammond, and Richard Crundewell, of Penshurst, for the purpose of building on, at the yearly rent of two shillings, and upon deaths and alienations, one shilling to be paid for an heriot, which lease was confirmed by the archbishop and by the dean and chapter of Canterbury. (fn. 27)
Arch Enemy in concerto al Graspop Metal Meeting 2023 di Dessel foto di Andrea Ripamonti per www.rockon.it
Public Enemies, Public Enemies Fragman izle, Public Enemies izle, Public Enemies indir, Public Enemies download, Public Enemies divx, Johnny Depp, Christian Bale, Marion Cotillard, Emilie de Ravin, Channing Tatum, David Wenham, Giovanni Ribisi, Stephen Dorff, Leelee Sobieski, Lili Taylor, Rory Cochrane, Billy Crudup, James Russo, John Ortiz, Matt Craven, Rebecca Spence, Stephen Graham, Stephen Lang, Michael Mann, Elliot Goldenthal, Robert De Niro, Michael Mann, Kevin De La Noy, Kevin Misher, Michael Mann, Bryan Burrough, Ann Biderman, Ronan Bennett, Dante Spinotti
Giant Skeleton (Spirit)
Blistered Giant Crow
Giant Skeletal Slime
Blistered Stray
Blistered Putrid Corpse
Albinauric
Albinauric(Red)
PE (Public Enemy)
ATP Iceland 2015
Atlantic Studios (Asbru)
Keflavik, Island
July 2015
© 2015 LEROE24FOTOS.COM
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
THIS MATERIAL MAY NOT BE PUBLISHED,
BROADCAST, REWRITTEN OR REDISTRIBUTED.
.... Many people take part in this unique and lively pantomime, there are pastors by mule or donkey, which give the people some pieces of bread, wine and sausages, there are ladies with sweet looks that have beautiful smiles, there are horsemen riding on colts, throwing sweets on bystanders, there are horrific figures like Fofori, who kidnap the rich by forcing them to pay a symbolic offering, there are the Wizards, who finally found the treasure (a chamber pot full of macaroni, drinking wine from a container of urine), there is the Genral Garibaldi supported by his soldiers, there are their enemies the Turks, there is 'U Remitu (the hermit) ... there are the bomb squad .. .and much others figures....! ( Here a Saracen ...) .......
.... i personaggi che animano questa particolare e vivacissima pantomima sono tantissimi, ci sono i pastori a dorso di mulo o di asino, che donano alla popolazione pane, vino e salsicce, ci sono dame dagli sguardi dolcissimi che regalano sorrisi incantevoli, ci sono Cavalieri a cavallo di focosi puledri, che lanciano confetti sugli astanti come se piovesse, ci sono figure orrifiche come i Fofori, che rapiscono i ricchi costringendoli a pagare un simbolico obolo, ci sono i Maghi, che finalmente trovano il tesoro (un pitale pieno di maccheroni, bevendo vino da un "pappagallo"), c'è Garibaldi sostenuto dai suoi Garibaldini, ci sono i loro nemici, ovvero i Turchi, c'è 'U Remitu (l'eremita) ...ci sono gli artificieri...i chi più ne ha più ne metta....! ( qui un Saraceno ... ) .......
-----------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mezzojuso was built by the Albanians, Arbëreshëc, mostly military people established near an uninhabited house, during the migration of Albanians in Italy; on1501 they came from Albania and they had brought with them their language, customs and the Orthodox rite. From 2 to 4 August 1862 Mezzojuso welcomes Garibaldi: this is to reconnect this long and short at the same time my report, to some passages of this feast: the characteristic carnival of Mezzojuso. The "Master of Field" is the name of this carnival representation and it take the name from the principal character: this is a love story, albeit in key easygoing, which contains the re-enactment of the assault the Count of Modica made to the Castle to capture the White Queen of Navarra. The representation begins with the arrival of the royal procession, made up of the King, the Queen, by the dignitaries of the Court, from the Dame, the Secretary, by guards and by the Moors, and the "Master of Home" soul procession . Performed a dance in the square, the group go up on a stage (which is the castle); after inside the "castle" begins a dance party; therefore appear masks tied to tradition, u Rimitu, the Wizards, the gardener; comes the Master of Field, wearing a red wax mask with a hooked nose and prominent lower lip, a white shirt full of colored ribbons, pants and red coat, he squirms and shake, with his left arm to the side and in the right arm he brings a short wooden sword. Appear numerous characters, the Drummer, the Ambassador, Garibaldi and his Boys, the Captain of Artillery, the Baron and Baroness on two donkeys, followed by their men on horses and mules loaded with firewood, trunks, various paraphernalia for manufacturing cheese, so the gardener, with laurel wreaths, then the Cavalry, formed by a dozen knights who throw sweets over the spectators.The "Foforio" kidnap the wealthy and releases them after paying a small ransom (in return will be able to eat and drink at will). There are Magicians who go in search of "Treasure" and they finally found it: a bedpan full of macaroni and sausage, shouting "forio forio maccarrunario" eat them with their hands. The war rages, with Garibaldi and his Boys clashes against the Saracens (with imaginative alienation of historical periods); The Master of Field goes up on the scale that leads to the castle, meets with the King that hurts him on the head, and he falls backward (from a good height ...) to be taken from the boys that in the meantime they were prepared under the stairs; But the Master of Field is not dead and he healed his wounds, he with army of Garibaldi climb stealthily for "fake scale" and, taking advantage of the moment of confusion, they surrounding the Court and bind the King: the Field of Master removes the mask, finally embracing the Queen, managing to crown their secret dream of love, and so ends the great feast of Mezzojuso, with the procession that will march in the streets the country and ... the king in chains....
-----------------------------------------
Mezzojuso fu costruito dagli albanesi, gli arbëreshë, principalmente militari stabilitisi nelle vicinanze di un casale disabitato, durante la migrazione degli albanesi in Italia; essi provenivano dall'Albania e avevano portato con se lingua, usi e il rito ortodosso, nel 1501 stabilizzarono la loro posizione nella zona. Dal 2 al 4 agosto 1862 Mezzojuso accoglie Garibaldi: questo per ricollegare questo breve incipt su alcuni passaggi di questo report, lungo e breve al tempo stesso, sul caratteristico carnevale di Mezzojuso, unico nel suo genere. Il "Mastro di Campo", questo il nome della rappresentazione carnascialesca, è il personaggio dal quale prende il nome questa storia d'amore, seppur in chiave scanzonata, che racchiude in sè la rievocazione dell'assalto che il Conte di Modica fece al Castello per conquistare la regina Bianca di Navarra. La rappresentazione inizia con l'arrivo del corteo reale, composto dal Re, dalla Regina, dai Dignitari di Corte, dalle Dame, dal Segretario, dall’Artificiere, da alcune guardie e dai Mori, mentre Il "Mastru ri Casa" anima il corteo. Eseguita una danza nella piazza, il gruppo sale su un palco che ne rappresenta il castello, e subito dopo sul "castello" ha inizio una festa danzante; appaiono quindi le maschere legate alla tradizione, u Rimitu, i Maghi, le Giardiniere; arriva il Mastro di Campo a cavallo, che indossa una maschera di cera rossa con il naso adunco ed il labbro inferiore prominente, una camicia bianca piena di nastri colorati, pantaloni e mantello rosso: egli si dimena, si agita, con la testa ben alta, il braccio sinistro al fianco e nel destro una piccola spada di legno. Compaiono numerosi personaggi, il Tammurinaru, l’Ambasciatore, Garibaldi con i Garibaldini, il Capitano d’Artiglieria, il Barone e la Baronessa su due asini, seguiti dai loro uomini sopra cavalli e muli carichi di legna, bauli, armamentari vari per la produzione del formaggio, quindi le Giardiniere, con le corone di alloro, infine la Cavalleria, formata da una decina di cavalieri che lanciano sopra gli spettatori confetti a più non posso, mentre nella piazza l'artiglieria spara "colpi di cannone". Il Foforio sequestra i più abbienti e li rilascia dietro il pagamento di un piccolo riscatto (in cambio potranno mangiare e bere a volontà). Ci sono i Maghi che vanno in cerca della "truvatura", scavano ed ecco finalmente la trovano: un cantaru pieno di maccheroni e salsiccia che, al grido di “forio forio maccarrunario”, mangiano con le mani. La guerra impazza, Garibaldi coi Garibaldini si scontra contro i Saraceni (con fantasiosa alienazione dei periodi storici); il Mastro di Campo sale sulla scala che conduce al castello, si scontra con il Re e rimane ferito in fronte, ed ecco che braccia allargate cade all'indietro (da una buona altezza...) per essere preso dai figuranti che nel frattempo si erano preparati sotto la scala; però Il Mastro di Campo non è morto e, guarito dalle ferite, si riporta in piazza con il suo esercito di Garibaldini, quindi salgono furtivamente per la "scala fausa"(un'ingrsso posteriore e nascosto)e, approfittando dell’attimo di confusione, circondano la Corte e incatenano il Re: il Mastro di Campo, tolta la maschera, finalmente abbraccia la Regina, riuscendo a coronare il loro segreto sogno d'amore, e termina così la grande festa di Mezzojuso, col corteo che sfilerà per le strade del paese ed...il re in catene.
“The greatest challenge for me is to keep improving every aspect of the compositions and arrangements,” says ARCH ENEMY founder/guitarist Michael Amott about new album, War Eternal. “I’m always searching for ‘the perfect ARCH ENEMY song.’ When I started the band in 1995 I had the idea to create the most heavy melodic band of all time.”
And he did. Over the course of 19 years, ARCH ENEMY, under Amott’s guidance, crafted 10 acclaimed full-lengths, dominated sales charts, and toured the globe. If Amott were a smart man, he’d retire now to some tropical island with his favorite Michael Schenker records in tow and the setting sun on his face. But neither he nor ARCH ENEMY are done. Not by a long shot.
With vocalist Alissa White-Gluz replacing long-time frontwoman Angela Gossow in 2014 respectively, War Eternal is ARCH ENEMY reborn. “Changes in the band lineup are hardly ever looked upon favorably by the fans,” Amott acknowledges, “which I completely understand. Nonetheless, it does happen and the changes that have been made in the ARCH ENEMY camp were necessary in order for the band to survive and keep going. I love the energy of working with new people and Alissa has certainly brought a lot of talent and enthusiasm to the band!”
When Amott recruited Angela Gossow to front ARCH ENEMY for the Wages of Sin effort, he changed extreme metal forever. With White-Gluz, he has a new weapon. She’s a veritable firebrand on War Eternal, her unrelenting roar, cruel rasp and unique looks are the mark of a woman ready to conquer the world. “My goal is to keep ARCH ENEMY alive and thriving!” White-Gluz exclaims. “I want to open a whole new chapter for ARCH ENEMY, powerful and diverse, all the while respecting the legions of fans that love traditional ARCH ENEMY. Fans can expect loads of pure fucking metal.”
At 13 tracks, War Eternal is the quintessential ARCH ENEMY album. It’s both a nostalgic nod to the band’s past (“Never Forgive, Never Forget”, “No More Regrets”) and stunning example of what’s possible in the future (“Down to Nothing”, “Time is Black”). But if there’s a standout track—a spearhead—it’s the title song. Unveiled to the world on Youtube, “War Eternal” marches defiantly against the mundane, two raised fists to the constraints of society and the cage it desperately tries to put on us all. In it, White-Gluz proves she’s the next generation of great, while Amott and the rest of ARCH ENEMY play as if ”War Eternal” is their last song. That ”War Eternal” amassed an astonishing 1.5 million views the first 10 days is telling of its conviction and power. “There are a lot of details in this album that excite me as a songwriter and guitarist,” Amott grins. “Personally, I’ve pushed myself harder as player on War Eternal and feel I’ve gone to another level this time, which is very rewarding. I actually think the whole band has kicked everything up a notch or two.”
Produced by the band and mixed and mastered by Jens Bogren (Opeth, Paradise Lost) at Fascination Street Studio, the Swedes’ 10th full-length is unrelentingly brutal yet remarkably polished. “We could afford any big name producer at this stage in the game,” says Amott. “Having the band produce the album was a natural and logical way of working for us at this point. It was critical that we bring out the true ARCH ENEMY sound, the essence of the band on this record and who knows that better than us? Jens Bogren did an outstanding mixing and mastering the album. It was my first time working with him and I am more than impressed with his talent.”
The album was hailed as “Album Of The Month” in Terrorizer (UK), Powerplay (UK), Metal Hammer (Germany), Rock Hard (France), Metallian (France), Scream (Norway), Sweden Rock (Sweden) and got more than positive reviews all over the world; additionally, War Eternal achieved career-best chart positions for the band in the USA (#44), Germany (#9), Finland (#5), France (#56), and The Netherlands (#36), plus the best UK chart entry (#85) since Doomsday Machine (#81). ARCH ENEMY were also honored to appear on the front covers of Revolver (USA), Legacy (Germany), Rock Hard (France), Inferno (Finland), Up (Netherlands), Aardschok (Netherlands), Metal Maniac (Italy),Pro Rock (Bulgaria), Into The Pit (Thailand) and many more magazines.
Right after the release of War Eternal, the band kicked off their eternal touring with sublime festival shows at Wacken, Sweden Rock and many more, followed by a world tour with Kreator (with whom they released a split 7” single later in October 2014).
During the USA headline tour with Kreator, the band decided to part ways with guitarist Nick Cordle.
Christopher Amott (the brother of ARCH ENEMY founder/bandleader Michael Amott) joined the band for the remainder of their American headlining tour and Jeff Loomis (ex-Nevermore) stepped in for the following European dates with Kreator. Jeff will continue for another busy year in 2015 and beyond.
Jeff Loomis states: "I'm very excited to be playing with ARCH ENEMY. Michael Amott and I have stayed in contact over the years since we toured together when I was playing in Nevermore. Not only do I admire his guitar playing and songwriting, but I also consider him a close friend. To be able to share the stage with Michael, Sharlee, Daniel and Alissa is something I'm really looking forward to. 2015 is going to be a great year... See you all on tour!"
Michael Amott (guitars) comments: "The prospect of working with Jeff Loomis moving forward is truly awesome! Jeff Loomis is one of the best guitar players in the metal world in my opinion, as well as being a long time friend. I look forward to tearing it up on stages around the world together as we continue on the ‘War Eternal' touring cycle throughout all next year and beyond!"
There is no doubt that ARCH ENEMY are stronger than ever before. And the war is not over yet.