The Warrior

A Roman Warrior, an historic church, and a modern glass tower, only in London would all this sit side by side.  The site occupied by Southwark Cathedral has always been a place of worship, prior to the earliest Christian church in the seventh century, there is evidence to show Roman pagan worship took place here.

Now there is a monument in honour of the religion of money, the towering Shard with its exclusive hotel and expensive viewing platform has taken over from the Bishops who managed the brothels along the waterfront in the middle ages.

The Measure of Success

You are visiting London and want me to show you the sites.  I just know you wouldn't be interested in a 150 year old pub with a history and tales to tell.  I just know you would rather this corner was a glass tower with a Starbucks at ground level and loads of offices and apartments above it, that's why you've travelled half way around the world, right?  I know you'd be impressed with how much money the developer has made in the past couple of years right?  Isn't that the measure of success?

The Pub sells Pieminister pies (a successful company based in Bristol that uses locally produced ingredients), they are proud of their selection of real ales, craft beers, lagers, single malts and selection of wines. It's a live music venue with an in-house-label for regulars with their CD's on sale at the bar.  Locals, both the hipster type, and the regular oldies rub shoulders here over their preferred tipple.  (Charles Dickens lodged just up the road as a child).  The owner of the building is a company registered in an off-shore tax haven - isn't that a measure of success?

Locals want to keep their pub just as it is.  They won the battle to prevent the demolition of the pub.  However now the pub has been advised of the new rent increase that takes effect in October, it will mean the pub has to close.  That's OK though as the landlord will get more rent from the new tenant.  Isn't that a measure of success?

Oscar Wilde said "people know the price of everything and the value of nothing".

This Saturday supporters will do a pub crawl around other threatened pubs and end up here at the Gladstone pub.  Why don't you join them.

Let me tell you a story (or two)

Hitler attacks a baby, dad looks after the opium, and hundreds of ship horns are booming ... and that's just for starters!  Good grief where am I taking you today?

It all began a couple of months ago when I took you on a journey to the old Millennium Mills in Silvertown, that trip was all about the building and the plans for its future.


I have been back on another adventure. This time it was all about the local people and their histories.

I took a trip in a wee boat called the Silver Queen, and like everything on this day it has a story.  She is one of the many small boats that crossed the channel to Dunkirk in WWII to ferry the soldiers back to the homeland.  Over 8 days at the end of May 1940, 800 small boats ferried more than 300,000 men across the channel back to England.



Today's trip was not so hazardous, neither was it in the dark of night.  A lovely day and a chance to get a view of the old mills from the river side.

Prior to our boat trip we met many of the older locals who grew up during the time when the Docklands was a busy working area.  Their stories of working on the docks and dodging the bombs during the war were fascinating, funny, and scary all at the same time.

The forgotten stories of the locals are being recorded as part of a heritage project instigated by the developers of Silvertown.

Although my natural instinct is to be sceptical about anything developers do, so far everything the Silvertown developers have told and shown us is different, and that they really do seem to want to put their ethical ideal34 into practice.  However, I won't be the only one holding them to their promises - would you mess with this lot!!

Most importantly do listen to their forgotten stories and hear how it really was as experienced by those who lived it.

Notorious Hairdresser

In 1888 the streets around here were the stomping ground of the notorious Jack the Ripper.  Hundreds of theories as to his identity still perplex people.  If you enjoy being scared you can take tours that will give you a sense of being unsafe on a dark foggy London street and even get your hair cut!

Churchill's Funeral Re-enactment

Fifty years ago this very same boat carried the coffin of Sir Winston Churchill from St Paul's Cathedral  to his final resting place in Oxfordshire.

As a tribute to Britain's war time leader much of the ceremony was re-enacted yesterday.  The same boat travelled along the Thames with all the pomp and ceremony of the original.  Back then a million people lined the streets to watch.  Yesterday many were unaware  of the small boat and its significance, while bemused tourists looking on were simply curious. 

Who is He?

Who is R. Cicest?  The bust appears on the exterior wall of the chapel at Lincoln's Inn Fields.  The Bishops of Chichester leased this land from 1228, acquiring the freehold from 1580.  The chapel was erected in 1623.

Any historians out there that can enlighten me as to who this is and what was significant about this year?

Crucifix Lane

Druid St and Crucifix Lane?  The imagination runs wild.  Kate Mosse has written a book titled Crucifix Lane that is set here, but in the future.  What happened here in the past?
British History on-line only mentions the lane briefly as you walk through the area - "under the railway arches, by way of Crucifix Lane, a name which savours of "the olden time," "

Museum Visit - Sewing Machine

Big ones, little ones, royal ones, decorated, industrial, the list goes on and on.  I never knew so many sewing machines existed and how incredibly enthralling their stories could be.

Want to know how machines work, see Queen Victoria's embroidery sewing machine, know how the most delicate lingerie was sewn, or how shoes and belts were created on the industrial machines? Maybe just a walk down memory lane to see one your gran or the local tailor owned, or maybe it was one of the children's models that will excite you. This is the museum for you all.


Then again maybe just the incredible story behind the museum.  It began after the war when Thomas Albert Rushton started collecting, repairing and selling second hand sewing machines.  It was difficult work as Singer the largest producer of sewing machines hired a team of thugs to smash up old machines.  They did not want a second-hand market.

Thomas's son Ray was just twelve years old when he started helping his father in the business.  This grew into the obsession that became this museum.  It is possibly the biggest and most varied collection of sewing machines in the world.  It includes gems like the Kimball and Morton machine that has the head of a lion and sits on a rosewood box.

His machines have been used in movies and he sends them to collectors all over the world.  Those machines that decorate the clothing stores "All Saints", you guessed it, they all came from Ray.

As I left I spotted the enormous work shop downstairs.  Here you can buy any machine part or accessory for any sewing machine you care to name.  Even the store is a step back into a previous era, nearly as big a treat as the museum itself.

To Visit the London Sewing Machine Museum
nearest tube: Tooting Bec

Address:
308-312 Balham High Rd, London SW17 7AA

Phone:020 8767 0036

The Georgians

Bet you didn't expect this as a view of London. Well I guess it would be pretty odd to find a scene like this in London in the 21st century, but this is what we possibly would have seen around 400 years ago.  This is part of the Georgian exhibition at the British Library at present. (this is the free bit) but the paid bit is really worth the fee.  Made me wonder about the  next  Georgian period. (our new heir to the throne).  I guess by the time he is King it will be close to the next century.  

Clapton Pond

A small tranquil spot I discovered at the end of the number 43 bus route.  What is the history of Clapton Pond?  Let'a start with the name.  It means farm on the hill.  In old English "clop" means lump or hill and "ton" means farm.

Many centuries ago this (then) rural farming area was owned by the Bishops and was very posh.  Tenant farmers grew hay and food for the city of London.  During the 18th century it became a very desirable area for rich merchants to build their country houses.

Industrialisation and the railway with a new stop at Clapton saw a boom in housing and new suburbs sprang up all around.

By the early 20th century, war and a downturn in the economy changed the area completely.  It looks as if some of the 18th century houses are getting a bit of a makeover at present.  And with it a new history for the area begins. 

Home to the Prestigious Army

The honourable artillery company were incorporated in 1537 by King Henry VIII, to defend the realm with the use of longbows, crossbows and habdgonnes.

From 1638 they acquired this property on 6 acres of land which as London grew has become part of central London.
The elite regiment work in intelligence and alongside the City of London police force. Possibly the majority of their duties these days is ceremonial, where we'll see them in full regalia at the lord Mayors Parade or State visits.  

Goodwin's Court

A street straight out of Harry Potter, however unlike Diagon Alley you don't need magical powers to visit.  Goodwin's Court runs of St Martin's Lane, not far from Leicester Square Tube.  The street dates back to 1690 and appears very little has changed. 
The quaint shop fronts with small window panes that you can peer through and the low doors with brass knockers in the centre.  One door had a small but chunky wooden above it that read "Nell Gwynne House".  Another plaque on the wall tells us that the street used to be named "Fishers Alley", maybe this was the route the fishermen took their wares from the Thames to the market at Covent Garden?
Even more charm oozes from this wee lane at night when the gas lamps are burning.  They must surely be the last ones still working in London.

Sutton's Hospital

On the other side of Charterhouse Square (shown in yesterday's post) is the entrance to Suttons Hospital.  From 1371 the site was the Monastery of monks from the area of Chartreuse in France until the order was dissolved by King Henry VIII

From the early 17th century it became a place where men from the professional classes could be cared for for the rest of their lives.

The building was damaged during the second world war but restored to its original state by 1951.

It continues to be the home for 80 men, most of whom have served in the armed forces.

Cutty Sark Today

Speed is relevant.  Now days you get impatient when your email takes forever to download.  Imagine what it was like waiting for your tea to arrive from Asia.  The Cutty Sark was the speedy version, a bit like broadband as opposed to dial up in today's language.

King Charles I was the only King of England to be executed. 
The strict religious views that he imposed on his subjects and his battles with parliament didn't make him terribly popular.
The Scots in particular weren't too happy about this, especially when he tried to force a new prayer book on the country. 
It all ended rather badly for Charles when he was executed in 1649 after a reign of twenty four years.

The English civil war society re-enact the period in his memory.  They laid a wreath outside Banqueting House, the spot where King Charles was executed.  This was followed by a sombre march down the Mall. 

Two men  were debating who were the earliest sailors to circumnavigate Africa, The Phoenicians claimed one, no the Indians insisted the other. The man routing for the Phoenicians was so sure he was right he decided to prove it by building a replica ship and re-trace the journey he believed the Phoenicians had sailed in 600 BC.  This extraordinary tale began in 2008 in Syria.  Two years and  20,000 miles at sea he has proven his point. 

The Phoenicia is currently in St Katherine's Docks where you can go on board and take a look around.

You can try your hand at the wooden rudders, unusually there are two of them.  Find out why.  And what do you suppose these clay pots are for? Wine and oil.  Those odd shaped bottoms are to keep them stable in the bow of the ship.  It is a fascinating tale and really worth the trip on board to hear about their adventure.

It is only there until the end of the week and then they are off to America for another adventure.

View their route and find out more about the journey here.

Curious Anatomys

Something very different for you today. On display at the Royal College of Physicians are these very unusual anatomical tables from the 17th century. They are the dissected human remains of the venous, arterial and nervous system of the human body presented on large wooden panels. Incredible skills would have been required to create these panels both in dissection and preservation techniques.
They were donated to the Royal College of Physicians in 1823 by the 10th Earl of Burnley-on-the-Hill.
An interesting short film about the panels can be seen here.
They are on display at the college until 31 December 2012.

Yeoman and Tower of London

We're taking a wee break from the Olympics today to do a bit of sightseeing. Yeoman Warders (like Jim) protect the Tower of London.

Yeoman of the Guard are the personal body guards of the Monarch. Originating from the days of Henry VIII, the Yeoman are not people in fancy dress for tourists, they must have served a minimum of 22 years in the Military to get these jobs. This is a position of honour and prestige that hasn't changed in centuries. Although during her reign, Queen Victoria stipulated they should not just be strong, loyal and honourable they should also be handsome. Seems that still applies.

When you visit the Tower of London you step back hundreds of years, such an incredible tapestry of history, during August and September there are new re-enactment shows- even if you were born and bred in London you really should experience it all over again!!!

Upminster Mill

I clambered around this gem during the weekend. Upminster smock Mill was built in 1803.
A smock mill has six to eight weatherboard sides and a cap on top that rotates the sails.

During the 18th century farmers wore a smock and funny cap and looked like a windmill. This wee treasure is the last of its kind in the UK saved by a group of volunteers who devote their time to its upkeep and on certain days of the year will spend hours showing you around and telling you anything you ever wanted to know about its history.

One of the tales is that of the son who had a successful bakery on the nearby corner but committed suicide when the council forced him to sell for road works. The amount he would have received was not enough for him to start any new venture.
Sound familiar?

America Street

Thank you all for your well wishes yesterday, I feel much better after a day of rest.

Recently on a walk through the borough of Southwark I came across America Street. I felt certain there would be an interesting history associated with it. I can't find anything. The best I can offer is the the nearby Cathedral has close ties with America. John Havard a parishioner lost most of his family members during the Southwark plague, he and his wife then left for Massachusetts in 1637. Unfortunately John died a year later of consumption.

There are also connections with the cathedral of settlers who went to Connecticut and in typical colonist fashion appropriated land from the indigenous tribes.
A petition was presented to Queen Anne who ruled in favour of the indigenous people. this ruling was ignored.
In 1735 a group comprising both indigenous and settlers came to London to petition King George II to restore their lands. Disaster struck and the entire party died of smallpox before meeting the King. The lands remained with the settlers.