English Heritage Members' Magazine

Tales of 1066

OCTOBER 2018

Life on the re-enactment front line at Battle Abbey

ANCIENT

Discover the objects helping us to explore prehistory at Stonehenge’s new exhibition

PLUS GREAT WAR STORIES: THE ROLE OF OUR SITES IN WWI

THE PROJECT TO PROTECT RICHMOND CASTLE’S GRAFFITI

A HISTORY OF HEALING AT OUR MEDIEVAL MONASTERIES

Get in touch

Welcome

W www.english-heritage.org.uk/members E membersmagazine@immediate.co.uk (for magazine queries only) or members@english-heritage.org.uk (for membership queries) T 0370 333 1181 PO Box 569, Swindon, SN2 2YP For English Heritage Luke Whitcomb, Johanna Lovesey, Jeremy Ashbee, Tom Dennis, Tersia Boorer, Tony Dike, Rebecca Thompson, Peter D’Ambrosio For Immediate Media Co. Group editor Matt Havercroft Group production editor Oliver Hurley Senior art editor Sam Freeman Art editor Elaine Knight-Roberts Account director Helen Johnston Account manager Joanne Robinson Senior account executive Georgina Luton Director Julie Williams Editorial director Dan Linstead Design director Will Slater Consultant editor Dave Musgrove Senior brand sales executive Harriet Dann Advertising enquiries 0117 300 8515; harriet.dann@immediate.co.uk Contributors Rachel Hudson, Megan Leyland, Allison Goudie, Michael Carter, Howard Spencer, Eleanor Matthews, Roy Porter, Andrew Hann, Mark Douglas, Heather Sebire, Jeremy Ashbee, Phoebe Smith, Emily Sewell, Richard Nevell English Heritage Members’ Magazine is published on behalf of English Heritage by Immediate Media Co, Tower House, Fairfax Street, Bristol, BS1 3BN, UK T +44 (0)117 927 9009 W www.immediate.co.uk

Support us

Our work depends increasingly on the income generated through membership and donations, and we are incredibly grateful to those who already support us. This support helps in so many ways: from opening our historic places for all to visit, to conserving the objects and buildings in our care, to involving others in our work through volunteering and community opportunities. To discover more about what your support helps us to achieve, make a donation or find out how to leave a gift to English Heritage in your will, please visit www.englishheritage.org.uk/support-us or call the fundraising team on 020 7973 3797.

English Heritage cares for more than 400 historic monuments, buildings and places – from worldfamous prehistoric sites to grand medieval castles, and from Roman forts on the edges of the empire to Cold War bunkers. Through these we bring the Story of England to life for more than 10 million visitors each year.

January to December 2017: 411,524 Registered charity no. 1140351 (England) Registered company no. 07447221 (England) Product code: 200450

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t’s hard to imagine English Heritage without Stonehenge but, if it hadn’t been for the generosity of Cecil and Mary Chubb, it might have never become a national treasure. One hundred years after that gift was made, life in prehistoric Britain will be explored in a new exhibition, in collaboration with the British Museum. For a preview, turn to page 16. Over on page 42, we’re also celebrating the centenary of the end of the First World War, with a look at the role our sites played in the war.

There’s plenty happening at our properties over the coming months, including our Halloween and Enchanted events. See your Events Guide with this issue for details. Many of our sites will be open over the winter – check our website to start planning your days out. Finally, thank you for all your support this year. Without you, the work we do wouldn’t be possible. If you’d like to donate to our Castles appeal, there’s still time – turn to page 9 to find out how. Enjoy your autumn and winter visits!

Kate Mavor Chief Executive

Contributors

Megan Leyland Senior properties historian

Michael Carter Senior properties historian

On page 22 Megan reveals the project to conserve graffiti etched into the walls of the cells at Richmond Castle by conscientious objectors during World War I

As the National Health Service celebrates its 70th anniversary, Michael reveals how our monasteries were the original healthcare providers on page 30

Allison Goudie Curator of collections On the 90th anniversary of the the Iveagh Bequest at Kenwood, Allison reveals the story of the collection and its most celebrated paintings

by Reynolds and Rembrandt on page 34 www.english-heritage.org.uk

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Contents October 2018

36 ‘IN ONE HOUR I LEARNED HOW TO HOLD A SPEAR, DEFEND MYSELF AND SOME PRETTY FANCY FOOTWORK’

F E AT U R E S

14

Meet the expert

27

Christmas gifts

36

Behind the scenes

Education visits officer Rachel Hudson on what’s on offer for the new school year

Pick the perfect present for a history-loving relative from our range

Phoebe Smith experiences a day on the re-enactment front line at Battle Abbey

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30

42

New this season

We take a preview of Stonehenge’s new exhibition exploring prehistory

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Expert care

We reveal the project to conserve Richmond Castle’s unique graffiti

Stories of England

Discover the role of our medieval monasteries in the history of healthcare

34

Close-up: The Iveagh Bequest

We reveal the story of two masterpieces gifted to Kenwood 90 years ago

Multi-site: WWI connections

We reveal the role of our sites in the Great War on the centennial Armistice Day

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Past lives: Nye Bevan

Howard Spencer on the founder of the NHS 70 years ago, and his blue plaque

REGULARS

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The big picture

Prepare to have a hair-raising Halloween at our Fright Nights event at Bolsover Castle in Derbyshire

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Then & Now

Front cover: Jadeitite axe, c5500–3700BC

The latest English Heritage news, including events and activities to celebrate Stonehenge 100

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Tales of 1066

OCTOBER 2018

Life on the re-enactment front line at Battle Abbey

ANCIENT

Discover the objects helping us to explore prehistory at Stonehenge’s new exhibition

THE PROJECT TO PROTECT RICHMOND CASTLE’S GRAFFITI

A HISTORY OF HEALING AT OUR MEDIEVAL MONASTERIES

© Trustees of the British Museum. Additional image manipulation: Mark Vice and Chris Stocker

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Members’ Rewards

Make big savings on treats for yourself or others with our new rewards scheme for English Heritage Members

06

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PLUS GREAT WAR STORIES: THE ROLE OF OUR SITES IN WWI

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20 questions

Put your knowledge of Stonehenge to the test with our just-for-fun quiz

How does Blippar work?

Discover a whole new world through your phone’s camera by Blipping this issue of your Members’ Magazine.

Y O U R E N G L I S H H E R I TA G E

51

My experience

We meet Jess Sashaw and her fiancé Shawn Hoult, who got engaged during a day trip to Dover Castle in Kent

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1 Visit the app store and download Blippar to your device

2 Look for this symbol on pages that have Blippable content

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Over to you

Your letters and views on the magazine and all things English Heritage 3 Launch Blippar and fill the screen with the page you wish to Blip

4 The page comes to life, giving you access to additional content

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Ask the experts

Your questions answered by our team of experts across English Heritage

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Members’ events

We reveal the top five Memberexclusive events to put in your diary for the autumn and winter ahead

THE BIG PICTURE

Fright Nights at Bolsover Castle Have you got what it takes to brave the castle after dark? From Friday 26 to Wednesday 31 October, discover deadly deeds and freaky fun around every corner as residents past and present invite you into the night-time world of Bolsover Castle in Derbyshire.

Bring your own torches as you explore the site – we’re dying to hear you scream!

Recommended for children 12 and over. All children to be accompanied by an adult. www.english-heritage.org.uk/bolsover

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english-heritage.org.uk www.english-heritage.org.uk

Scan this page with Blippar or go to www. english-heritage.org. uk/magazine to watch a video on how to carve a traditional turnip lantern (see page 5 for details)

www.english-heritage.org.uk

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Then&Now Keep up to date with the latest news, sites and developments

Scan this page with Blippar to watch our Stonehenge 100 video (see page 5 for details)

EVENTS

n 26 October, it will be 100 years to the day since Stonehenge came into public ownership, when Cecil and Mary Chubb offered it to Sir Alfred Mond, first commissioner of works, as a gift for the nation. And a host of activities will be taking place to celebrate the centenary. A weekend of special events will take place from Friday 26 to Sunday 28 October, during which we’ll be working with Turner prizewinning artist Jeremy Deller on the celebrations.

Other events marking the centenary include the latest in a special lecture series in which a range of experts shed new light on Stonehenge, including recent research, new excavations and

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www.english-heritage.org.uk

Who was Cecil Chubb?

Chubb amassed a fortune as a barrister but was from humble beginnings – his father was a saddler in Shrewton, a village near Stonehenge. He bought Stonehenge at auction in 1915 ‘on a whim’.

the latest theories about life in the Neolithic period. These include a lecture on 24 October

by Heather Sebire, senior properties curator for Stonehenge, on securing a safe future for the world landmark. Meanwhile, on 14 November, Martyn Barber – a senior investigator at Historic England – will discuss Stonehenge’s connection to the First World War. Turn to page 16 to find out about a new exhibition of objects on loan from the British Museum that is launching at the site in October, and visit our website for more details on centenary events taking place at Stonehenge. www.english-heritage.org.uk/stonehenge100

ALAMY

Celebrate as Stonehenge marks 100 years of being gifted to the nation

NEWS

YO U R S AY

MEMBERS’ APPEALS

Members help to conserve our castles

Members reveal their favourite properties for a brisk winter walk

I like to walk around the grounds of Battle Abbey in winter as it evokes a real sense of history. I can imagine ice being taken from the ponds to fill the ice house.

Kim Haviland, East Sussex

The views from Beeston Castle are wonderful, even when the sky is grey, and the woodland walk is so peaceful.

Bennett Foster, Merseyside

Thanks to you, we have had incredible support for our #LOVECASTLES campaign (see the July 2018 issue). Since its launch in July, we have raised over £50,000, which will go towards the urgent conservation work that many of our castles need. Many of you also returned your ‘I love castles’ bunting with your donations.

We took them to Carisbrooke Castle on the Isle of Wight, where they made an impressive display for everyone to see (pictured left).

On top of that, you have raised £8,000 towards the restoration of our cannons. Both of these appeals are still open, and you can support them at: www.english-heritage.org.uk/support-us/our-appeals

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The age in years of the organ at Brinkburn Priory in Northumberland. It retains all of its original features, including a pipe that is 4.9 metres tall. www.english-heritage.org.uk/ brinkburnpriory

IN NUMBERS

6.5

The thickness in metres of the walls in some places in the great tower at Dover Castle, after it was built by Henry II in the 1180s. www.english-heritage. org.uk/dover

700

The number of years since the Scots first unsuccessfully besieged Norham Castle.They eventually took it in 1327 but it was restored to the Bishop of Durham in 1328. www.englishheritage.org.uk/norham

I NTE RV I E W

D I S C OV E RY

Historic properties director Andrea Selley reveals what’s happening at Whitby Abbey while it’s closed this winter

Charles I’s cryptic Carisbrooke message

The abbey shuts for the winter from 5 November. What’s happening then?

We are investing almost £1.6 million in improving facilities, including a complete development of the museum, improving the entrance areas and extending the visitor centre.

How will the new facilities improve the experience of visiting the site?

The entrances will provide a warm welcome and the change in the retail and ticket space will help alleviate the queues that we’ve seen during busy times. The planting of herbs and adding in

seating in the courtyard means that visitors can enjoy the smells of herbs that would have been used in a medieval infirmary.

How have you decided what to do?

We needed to do our research. We’ve had focus groups with families telling us what would make a great day out for them and we’ve worked with their suggestions.

What aspect of the improvements are you most excited about?

The new and exciting objects that we will be housing in the museum, which will be focusing on the entire history of the site, from as far back as the Bronze Age. We can’t go into too much detail now but watch this space! www.english-heritage.org.uk/whitbyabbey

A cryptic message written by Charles I shortly before his execution has been discovered in a book he read while imprisoned at Carisbrooke Castle on the Isle of Wight. A copy of the epic poem The Faerie Queene, published in 1611, contains the inscription ‘Dum spiro Spero’, which is Latin for ‘While I breathe I hope’, followed by the initials ‘CR’. The book – which belonged to Thomas Herbert, who acted as the king’s attendant while he was imprisoned on the Isle of Wight from 1647–48 – recently sold at Sotheby’s in London for £106,250. www.english-heritage.org.uk/carisbrooke www.english-heritage.org.uk

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IN MY VIEW Catherine Miller-Gough National Members’ Events & event project manager

A N N I V E R S A RY

NEWS IN BRIEF

New projects commemorate centenary of the First World War armistice Holidays for history lovers

We have created a collection of historic breaks offering the opportunity to visit historic houses, castles and gardens.

Just Go! Holidays will donate £25 to us every time you travel.

For details, call 0333 234 2010 or visit www.justgoholidays. com/eh.

Following the success of our Enchanted events last year, we are very excited to invite you to see some of our properties illuminated once again this December.

We’ve added more interactive areas, including the chance to make some music at Belsay Hall with the unique instrument the Illumaphonium. When I visited Brodsworth Hall last year with my children we enjoyed looking for the fairies in the Privy Garden and we’re hoping to find some more this year too. You can also look out for fairies at Audley End House, as well as talking trees! Over at Witley Court, you’ll be able to explore its magical woodland trail as part of its first Enchanted, while at Eltham Palace there will be a dazzling light maze to navigate. We are expecting tickets to sell out quickly – head to our website for more details. www.english-heritage.org.uk/ enchanted

Can you help us to identify the nurses featured in photographs taken at Wrest Park in Bedfordshire (pictured above) when it was used as a convalescent home and auxiliary hospital during the First World War? This is what we’re hoping to find out as part of a new project in which we are colourising images that were taken from 1914–16 at the country estate. To view the photos, go to www.englishheritage.org.uk/wrest-nurses.

Meanwhile, other events are taking place at sites around the country to mark the centenary of the end of the First World War. These include

BLUE PLAQUES

Let us know what you think about your Members’ Magazine.

Turn to page 52 to find out how you can join our readers’ panel.

Latest news from our blue plaques scheme

a ceremony at the statue of Admiral Sir Bertram Ramsay at Dover Castle in Kent, which takes place on 11 November and will commence with the firing of the castle’s WWI antiaircraft gun. And a scheme at Osborne on the Isle of Wight, Battlefields to Butterflies, demonstrates the way in which natural regeneration reclaimed the war’s battlefields. Three trees will also be planted at Osborne in November to commemorate two lost servicemen from the Isle of Wight and a warhorse, Warrior.

To find out more about the role our properties played during the Great War, turn to page 42.

Christmas gift range at Boots

Look out for our new licensed range of gift items at www.boots.com and over 280 Boots stores around the country, inspired by textiles and wallpapers at our sites. The selection includes a thermos flask, teapot, hot water bottle, and hot chocolate set.

Four new blue plaques have gone up across London in recent months. Three pioneers of modern design are now celebrated at the Isokon, Lawn Road, Hampstead. Walter Gropius, Marcel Breuer and László Moholy-Nagy all lived in flats at this Grade I-listed building in the mid-1930s. World championship-winning racing cars were built at the former Cooper Car garage in Hollyfield Road, Surbiton in the 1950s.

In Purley, another plaque marks the youthful home of the actor Peter Cushing (pictured right) at 32 St James’ Road. Harry Mallin won two Olympic gold medals for amateur boxing in the 1920s, and is commemorated at the former police section house at 105 Regency Street, Pimlico, where he both lived and worked at his day job.

BLUE PLAQUES WORDS: HOWARD SPENCER. IMAGES: GETTY; CHRIS RADCLIFFE

Why I’m excited about the return of our Enchanted events

NEWS

COMPETITION

THREE TO SEE

Win stationery inspired by our historic wallpaper and textiles

Don’t miss these three intriguing objects now on display at our historic properties

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WIN!

A new selection of stationery inspired by our properties has just been launched – and we have 10 sets to give away, worth £49 each. The range consists of four items: a boxed ‘thank you’ notecard set and a guest book (both inspired by the fabric and wallpaper at Brodsworth Hall and Gardens in South Yorkshire), a ‘fold & post’ set (inspired by floral prints from Belsay Hall, Castle and Gardens in Northumberland), and a notebook (inspired by chintz at Osborne on the Isle of Wight). To find out more about the range and to be in with a chance of winning a set, go to your Members’ Area at: www.english-heritage.org.uk/rewards

Column capital, 2nd/3rd century

Following conservation work, this capital is now on display at Corbridge Roman Town in Northumberland after spending 30 years in storage.

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Urn, 2nd century

Memento mori pendant, c1500

This cremation urn was excavated in 2009 and has just been put on display for the first time at Birdoswald Roman Fort. It contains the remains of a woman who was aged 20–40.

One side of this ivory pendant shows a woman in the prime of her life; the other reveals the full horror of her fate.

See it at Ranger’s House, London.

EXPLAINED

I N S TA N T E X P E R T

What parch marks tell us about our sites

How does Gift Aid help us to generate extra income?

As an English Heritage Member, you are already supporting our work in looking after historic places.

But did you know that you can increase your contribution by agreeing to Gift Aid your Membership?

If every Member signed up to Gift Aid, it would give us almost an additional £2 million to look after the properties in our care – and it won’t cost you anything.

Gift Aid allows us to claim 25p from HMRC for every £1 received from membership subscriptions, and we can backdate this request by up to four years, making your contribution even more valuable. www.english-heritage.org.uk/giftaid

So, what are parch marks?

Parch marks are formed as the result of prolonged periods of dry weather, and show the buried remains of archaeological features.

Have any become visible recently?

They have. Thanks to the hot weather we experienced over the summer months, parch marks were seen at a number of our properties.

Such as?

Well, there’s Portchester Castle 12

www.english-heritage.org.uk

(above), where you can see the lines of a Tudor storehouse; Victorian barracks at Richmond Castle; the outlines of a kitchen block at Stokesay Castle; and even Roman roads at Silchester Roman Town Walls and Amphitheatre.

How often does this occur?

Not often at all – the parch marks at Portchester Castle haven’t been seen this clearly since 1938. www.english-heritage.org.uk/portchester

M E E T TH E E X PE RT

Rachel Hudson Education visits officer, Kent

INTERVIEW MAT T HAVERCROF T PHOTOGR APHS JOBY SESSIONS

As education visits officer, I’m responsible for the education programme at five wonderful sites in Kent. My role involves building relationships with schools, developing the education offer and the management of our fantastic Discovery Visit programme. I work at castles, abbeys and Roman forts, so there is never a dull day.

I have always been interested in heritage education and the benefits outdoor learning has. We have some breathtaking places in our care and I have frequently had comments from students saying that their trip was ‘the best day of their life’, which is always such a highlight for me and shows how important our sites are as a learning resource.

Discovery Visits are hands-on sessions that allow students to find out more about our sites in a cross-curricular and engaging way. Our Discovery Visits cover multiple topics and are tailored to support different learning styles in a variety of ways, from role play and guided tours to object handling and codebreaking. There is no better way to learn than to stand in the spot where history really happened.

All of our sites are unique, so our education offer is as well. We run Discovery Visits at select properties across the country and they are all tailored to tell the stories of the sites as well as being linked to the curriculum. Taking part in a Discovery Visit at one of our sites is something that definitely can’t be replicated in the classroom.

Dover Castle definitely has my favourite Discovery Visits. The history of the site is so rich, from the Romans to the Second World War, so we are able to offer such diverse learning to school groups. Our Knights, Feasts and Garderobes Discovery Visit focuses on daily life in a castle.

The topic of toilets always seems to be of the most interest! The other is Secret Codes and Ciphers, where students become top secret, codebreaking agents in the Wartime Tunnels.

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www.english-heritage.org.uk

This page, clockwise from top left Rachel takes charge of a Discovery Visit at her favourite site, Dover Castle; playing games in Henry II’s recreated chambers in Dover Castle’s Great Tower; pupils are invited to step into a medieval palace during our Knights, Feasts and Garderobes Discovery Visit Facing page Rachel and the pupils of a visiting school at Dover Castle in Kent

When new large-scale projects are brought to sites, exploring the education offer is always included within the plans. We have been able to create some fantastic new opportunities for local schools over the past few years and I am really looking forward to seeing this grow even further.

In Kent, we have a very exciting project happening at Walmer Castle, which includes the building of a new learning centre. This will give us the opportunity to develop a brand new education offer with a focus on gardens and natural play. I can’t wait to bring its history to life for visiting schools.

DISCOVER MORE For more information or to find a Discovery Visit, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/learn/school-visits

DISCOVER OUR TOP SITES FOR EDUCATION VISITS www.english-heritage. org.uk/magazine

‘Taking part in a Discovery Visit at one of our sites is something that can’t be replicated in the classroom’

MAKING

Introducing Stonehenge’s latest exhibition, which paints a picture of prehistoric life through objects

CONNECTIONS WORDS NEIL WILKIN AND SUSAN GRE ANE Y PHOTOGR APHS OLIVER EDWARDS

The stories of Stonehenge and the British Museum are interwoven. The antiquarian William Stukeley (1687–1765), who undertook pioneering survey work at Stonehenge, was a close friend of Sir Hans Sloane (1660–1753). Upon his death, Stukeley acted as a trustee of Sloane’s will, which left a collection of 71,000 objects to the British nation and triggered the foundation of the British Museum at Montagu House in Bloomsbury, London.

Stonehenge has formed an important part of the displays at the British Museum. Indeed, during the Second World War, when many objects were evacuated from the galleries, images and scale models of the monument formed part of the collection left on public display. Even today, an image of Stonehenge covers the wall of Gallery 51 and provides 6 million visitors a year with a context in which to place the Neolithic and Bronze Age objects on display.

It is a dream come true to display objects from the age of Stonehenge so close to the monument in the new exhibition Making Connections: Stonehenge in Its Prehistoric World.

It places Stonehenge in its wider context, highlighting the connections between the monument and ancient Britain and Europe. Thanks to loans from Wiltshire and Salisbury Museums, it’s also been possible to highlight the incredible depth of their collections for telling both local and international stories. As a curator at the British Museum, it’s been a privilege and an education to be able to work with colleagues at English Heritage, tracing ancient and modern connections between people and places through beautiful objects that we hope will stimulate and enchant. NW

Turn over to see a small selection of the prehistoric objects about to go on display at Stonehenge

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www.english-heritage.org.uk

NEW THIS SEASON

British Museum curator Neil Wilkin studies a beaker found in East Yorkshire that dates from around 2200BC, now in the British Museum collection

www.english-heritage.org.uk

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Chalk plaques

Found in Amesbury, Wiltshire Date from c2900–2600BC at this time. The pit also contained grooved ware pottery decorated with similar designs, as well as animal bones – perhaps the remains of a feast. The plaques were put in the ground between 2900 and 2600BC, when people were burying their cremated dead at Stonehenge. The decoration connects the people who made and buried these chalk plaques with other communities across the British Isles, who had shared styles of art, shared ways of building monuments and probably shared religious beliefs. SG

ON LOAN FROM THE SALISBURY MUSEUM. ADDITIONAL PHOTO MANIPULATION: CHRIS STOCKER

These two chalk plaques, now in the Salisbury Museum collection, were found in a pit not far from Stonehenge in the 1970s. Decorated and shaped chalk objects are quite frequently found buried in pits, postholes and henge ditches dating from the Neolithic period, but these are some of the most finely decorated examples. The tabular blocks were incised with geometric lozenges and chevrons, a type of decoration that is found on pottery, stone and other objects all across Britain and Ireland

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www.english-heritage.org.uk

NEW THIS SEASON

Langdale axe

Found in South Marston, Wiltshire Dates from c3800–3500BC

Above Side view of the Langdale axe, now in the Wiltshire Museum collection, which was created using volcanic tuff quarried from Cumbria’s Langdale Pikes

www.english-heritage.org.uk

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ON LOAN FROM WILTSHIRE MUSEUM

This stone axe is made from volcanic tuff, which outcrops on some of the highest of the Cumbrian mountains, the Langdale Pikes. The axe was polished over many hundreds of hours to create a beautiful sheen and was then passed from hand to hand, from community to community, to its final resting place more than 200 miles away in Wiltshire. When originally made, the axe would have been a darker greengrey but years buried in the chalk have made it lighter in colour. It is a relatively small example and may have been broken and repolished later.

The most inaccessible and dangerous outcrops at the top of the Langdale Pikes were favoured for quarrying stone for axes between about 3800 and 3500BC, in the early Neolithic period. This may have been regarded as a sacred place, with only certain people allowed to travel up to the peaks to obtain the stone.

Although this axe may have been used for tasks such as felling trees, it was probably regarded as special or powerful because of its origin in an inaccessible place. The Langdale axe demonstrates that, from the earliest Neolithic period, objects were being transported and exchanged all over the British Isles, connecting communities, people and places. SG

NEW THIS SEASON

Driffield beaker and grave goods

Found in Driffield, East Yorkshire Dates from c2200BC This group of grave goods, now in the British Museum collection, was placed with the body of an adult man in a grave around 4,200 years ago. The vessel is known as a beaker, a distinctive type of pottery found across Europe during this period: the first age of metal. The assemblage also includes a skilfully worked greenish-grey stone object called a wristguard, used to protect archers’ wrists from the snap of the bow string. The use of stone – in this case capped with gold – is unusual, and the object probably reflected the status and identity of its wearer, rather than serving as a functional object.

The Beaker people introduced metalworking to Britain from northwest Europe, and their new technology is represented in the Driffield grave assemblage by a small but highly valued knife or dagger. The copper used to make it may have come from Ireland. Another connection is represented by two amber buttons or beads, which may have come from the Baltic region. The grave goods reflect an impressive network of places, sources and materials from across Britain, Ireland and north-west Europe. NW

© TRUSTEES OF THE BRITISH MUSEUM

VISIT THE EXHIBITION To plan your trip to Stonehenge, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/stonehenge

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www.english-heritage.org.uk

E XPERT C ARE

Clockwise from top left Inside the cells, where 2,300 graffiti have been catalogued so far; visitors take in the views from the top of Richmond Castle keep; portrait of a loved one; the cell block stands alongside the castle keep

Silent voices

A project at Richmond Castle in North Yorkshire has been uncovering the stories behind the graffiti on the walls of its 19thcentury cell block, revealing the thoughts of the prisoners held here

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WORDS MEGAN LE YL AND PHOTOGR APHS GARE TH IWAN JONES

overing the lime-washed walls of the cell block at Richmond Castle in North Yorkshire is a remarkable record. Scratched and scribbled into its walls are thousands of graffiti drawn during the 19th and 20th centuries. These sometimes detailed, sometimes hastily scratched inscriptions chronicle the personal experiences and thoughts of hundreds of people.

With the support of the Heritage Lottery Fund, we are working to conserve this remarkable record and tell the stories behind it.

The cell block stands alongside the castle’s towering 12th-century keep and straddles the main entrance to its courtyard. This unassuming building is an important surviving remnant of the castle’s renewed importance from the mid-19th century. Having been abandoned for centuries, the castle was leased by the Duke of Richmond to the County of the North Riding in 1854 and became the headquarters and stores for the North York Militia, a part-time volunteer force organised by county.

Along with the construction of the cell block, an imposing castellated barrack block (since demolished) was erected along the west curtain wall and the keep repaired to serve as a guard room, armoury and clothing room. The castle was later used as the headquarters of the Northumbrian division of the Territorial Army, as a base for the northern companies of the Non-Combatant Corps during the First World War, and as a daylight

air-raid shelter and watch station for enemy activity, among other uses, in the Second World War. The dimly lit corridor of the cell block is entered through an inconspicuous wooden door in the castle entrance passage. It is dense with graffiti. Scrawled names, regimental numbers and tallies for games jostle with carefully illustrated characters and detailed sketches of boats, planes and cityscapes. Inscriptions also cover the four cells of the ground floor and four cells of the first floor.

Graffiti in the cells include powerful political and religious statements, biblical verse, hymns and calendars recording days spent there. They offer tantalising glimpses of the lives of those held in the cells or who otherwise accessed the building throughout its history.

Conscientious objectors

Perhaps the most significant and well-known graffiti was drawn by conscientious objectors to the First World War – those who refused to participate in the war effort due to their religious, political or personal beliefs. Drawn between about May and August 1916, these inscriptions were created by men enlisted in the northern Non-Combatant Corps (NCC), who were based at the castle. This was a military unit formed in March 1916, which supported the war effort in roles that did not involve fighting or the use of arms. Some men willingly enlisted to the unit and others forcibly enlisted because any role in the war (combatant or not) went against their beliefs. After refusing to recognise www.english-heritage.org.uk

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their enlistment or disobeying orders, these men could end up in the cell block, guardroom in the keep or confined to barracks.

The story of one particular group of conscientious objectors has dominated the history of the cell block. The Richmond Sixteen were detained in the cells and keep before being sent to France. Once there they were court martialled and sentenced to death – commuted to 10 years’ hard labour – for refusing to follow orders.

However, with 2,300 graffiti catalogued so far, which collectively span something in the region of 100 years, the marks left by conscientious objectors are only one small part of the cell block’s story.

Flaking of the uppermost layers of lime wash has revealed what are perhaps the earliest layers of inscriptions, possibly from the mid or late 19th century. The greatest proportion of the graffiti dates from 1916 and 1939–40. However, entries were still being added in the late 1970s.

Realising the potential

With the help of research volunteers, we are now learning more about the graffiti record as a whole.

Until this project, the true potential of the graffiti to tell us about individual lives, local and national events and social, political and cultural change over time has never been truly realised. This remarkable record is incredibly important but also very fragile.

With the help of a team of conservation specialists, the Richmond Castle Cell Block project has undertaken extensive work to protect the graffiti for the future. Drawn on to the delicate lime-washed walls of a 19th-century building never designed to house such a fragile record, the graffiti’s survival is dependent on creating a stable environment within the building.

Salts in the lime wash and wall plaster of the cell block react to changes in moisture levels in the air and the building’s walls. As the moisture levels increase and decrease these salts liquefy and crystallise. This can cause the lime wash to break away from the walls, causing flaking of the wall surfaces and damage or loss of the graffiti. Since 2014 our conservation scientists have been monitoring the cell block. They have recorded moisture levels in the air and walls and the temperature within the building to understand the effect of the climate and people entering the cell block on the graffiti – even someone’s breath can change the conditions.

Conservation works have also made sure the building is watertight. Previously, rainwater has seeped into the building fabric through cracks in the roof and walls. A self-adhesive liquid membrane has now been applied to the roof and new drainage channels created to carry away surface water. This and the repointing of the exterior walls have all ensured water can no longer get in, so the moisture levels in the building can be reduced and stabilised.

As the building starts to dry out specialist conservators are keeping an eye on the condition of 24

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‘Until now, the potential of the graffiti to tell us about social change has never been realised’

History hunters

Some of the surprising stories behind the graffiti

We have been working with a team of volunteer researchers to discover the stories behind the graffiti. Starting with only a name, date or image, our volunteers have uncovered surprising and often moving stories. On the ground floor corridor is a complex battle scene that inspired volunteer Colin Grant to find out more about the named ships, including the Royal Navy destroyer HMS Badger. In October 1914 it was the first naval vessel to attack a German U-boat off the coast

of Holland. Research by Emma Hogarth on an illustration of a beer bottle has uncovered a story of the temperance movement’s opposition to the Brewers’ Society’s 1930s marketing campaign. And among inscriptions researched by Marcia Howard is that of James William Green, a First World War conscientious objector.

Marcia discovered that James was a tram conductor in Leicester and has even been able to read letters by his wife describing his wartime experience.

E XPERT C ARE

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IN NUMBERS

Conscientious objectors from Richmond Castle sent to France, sentenced to death, reduced to 10 years’ hard labour

511

Names or initials found etched on the walls

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Years’ (approximately) worth of graffiti

2,300 1977 Individual pieces of graffiti catalogued

the graffiti. Where necessary, they are undertaking painstaking emergency conservation work to gently re-adhere lime wash to the wall surfaces using a lime solution. All these works are ensuring we save as much graffiti as possible.

The physical works to the cell block were completed in March 2017. Since then the cell block has been carefully monitored to see how the building and graffiti respond to the conservation works. So far it is looking positive. The building is steadily drying out. The environmental conditions are going to be observed over coming years, to see if the conservation work has been successful.

For over two decades, due to its fragile condition, we have been unable to provide general public access to the cell block. However, if the environmental conditions can be stabilised, it may

Megan Leyland Megan is a senior properties historian, specialising in social and gender history

Last dated inscription

be possible to offer public access for the first time.

In the meantime, we have been sharing the stories behind the graffiti with members of the public.

The Richmond Castle Cell Block project has been bringing the stories behind the graffiti to life.

Volunteers, schools, local interest groups and the wider community have been responding to and sharing the history of the cell block and getting hands-on with conservation science.

Young people have creatively responded to the stories of conscientious objectors detained at the castle. Students from the Creative and Media Studio School in Huddersfield have interpreted the stories through the media of music and film, and students at Richmond School have written a piece of theatre, which they performed open-air at the castle. The project is also working with the local Georgian Theatre Royal as well as the charity Rural Arts, which is using art as a way to respond to the graffiti.

The stories behind the graffiti and conservation works are also being told in our travelling exhibition, so far hosted by venues such as the Peace Museum in Bradford and Eden Camp in Malton.

In this exhibition visitors can discover the history behind the cell block and graffiti, learn about the pioneering conservation works, leave their mark on the graffiti wall, and even walk through the cells in a bespoke digital model. Visitors to the castle can also explore the digital model in the museum.

As well as talks, events and workshops, the project has launched a new castle tour. Our tour guide volunteers have been taking visitors on a stroll through Richmond Castle’s history, from the castle’s establishment through to the castle’s lesser-known 19th and 20th-century history.

DISCOVER MORE To plan a visit, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/ richmond. For volunteering opportunities, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/support-us/volunteer www.english-heritage.org.uk

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CHRISTMAS GIFTS

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Large Gallos snow globe, £18; Roman coin necklace, £40; Farrah’s Olde English butter fudge (under necklace), £5.50; 12 Days of Christmas all butter biscuit assortment, £8.75; St George wooden shield and sword, £10; spicy tomato and onion chutney, £7.50; Christmas pickle, £3.50; Castles Monopoly, £30; Brave Knight Operation game, £20; grey fishbone throw, £55; sloe wine, £10.50; elderflower sparkling wine, £20; damson gin, £16 english-heritage.org.uk 27

Spiritual healing As the NHS celebrates its 70th anniversary, we reveal the role of our medieval monasteries as healthcare providers WORDS MICHAEL CARTER ILLUSTR ATIONS BOB VENABLES

‘B

efore and above all things, care must be taken of the sick, that they be served in very truth as Christ is served,’ says Chapter 43 of the Rule of St Benedict, the set of regulations that governed life in many monasteries in medieval England.

Life within the cloister was thought to provide an opportunity to live an angelic life on earth, elevating spiritual concerns above those of the body. But, in reality, the austerities demanded by the monastic rule could lead to illnesses that prevented monks and nuns from fulfilling their spiritual obligations. Long hours were spent praying in cold, draughty churches. In the 13th and 14th centuries, this caused monks at several English monasteries to receive special permission from the Pope in Rome to wear woolly hats in chilly churches because of their ‘rheumy’ noses.

Our daily bread

The monastic diet – based on coarse bread and vegetables – could also lead to health problems.

A biography of St Aelred, abbot of Rievaulx Abbey, Yorkshire, from 1147–67, was written by Walter Daniel, a fellow monk at the monastery.

It includes moving descriptions of the saint’s many illnesses, which included passing stones.

An abbot of Battle is known to have suffered from such severe flatulence that he sought permission to sleep in his own chamber, lest the sounds and smells emanating from him disturbed his brethren. Gastric complaints appear to have been 30

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Michael Carter Michael is a senior properties historian, specialising in medieval monasteries

an ever-present concern for monks. Medicines for their treatment can be found jotted into late medieval prayer books from Muchelney Abbey and Battle Abbey. These consisted of hot poultices, the ingredients of which included ale, rose water and wormwood. The finished product was applied to the source of the pain for two nights. It is open to question whether it brought the hoped-for relief.

Careful provision was made to look after the physical and spiritual well-being of ill and elderly monks and nuns, to either nurse the individual back to health or to prepare their soul for its final journey to the next world.

The Benedictine rule states that sick monks should be cared for in a special room called an infirmary. This was typically in a quiet and secluded location, usually to the east of the main complex of monastic buildings. Ruins of infirmaries can be seen at several of our sites, including Furness, Rievaulx and Roche Abbeys.

STORIES OF ENGL AND

The infirmary consisted of a large stone-built hall, with beds arranged along the sides at right angles to the wall. A senior monk or nun called the infirmarian was responsible for the care of individuals (usually called inmates) admitted to the infirmary, where the normal austerities of the monastic life were relaxed.

A fire was kept burning to provide warmth. The consumption of meat – normally forbidden – was allowed and infirmaries had their own kitchens for its preparation. At Bury St Edmunds Abbey, soothing music was played to the infirmary to speed patients’ recovery. Some conversation was also permitted, although the playing of chess or dice was forbidden in case it caused excitement.

Infirmary inmates were excused from attending the eight daily church services that punctuated the monastic day. However, the spiritual care of monks and nuns in the infirmary was arguably considered to be more important than their physical care. All

infirmaries were provided with a chapel, which was positioned so that the services celebrated there were visible and audible to the inmates.

Walking the wards

The abbot or prior was supposed to visit the infirmary daily to check on the welfare of the inmates. St Aelred of Rievaulx took this responsibility seriously. Before his appointment as abbot of Rievaulx, he briefly served as abbot of Revesby Abbey, Lincolnshire. During a visit to the infirmary there, he miraculously healed the ailing sub-prior who was on the point of death. Other abbots were not so diligent. In 1270, the abbot of Hailes had to be reminded of his responsibilities in this respect and in 1442 the poor quality of the food in Hailes’ infirmary was censured.

The libraries of medieval monasteries included books on medicine. Copies of a work by the 7th-century author Theophilus of Byzantium www.english-heritage.org.uk

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STORIES OF ENGL AND

St Aelred’s miracles

Life in the Middle Ages could be brutish and short. So it was useful to have a saint to call upon in case medicine didn’t do the trick…

The interaction between the medical and the miraculous in the medieval monastery is vividly brought to life by a number of astonishing cures attributed to St Aelred of Rievaulx. In the Middle Ages, broken bones could result in permanent disability, even death. A lay brother of Revesby Abbey had an arm so badly broken that it resembled a ram’s horn. One day, the brother entered the church at Revesby and noticed Aelred’s crosier (the staff carried by an abbot). Employing his good hand, he used the crosier to make the sign of the cross over the afflicted limb. His arm immediately shot back to its normal length, full mobility returned to his hand and the pain disappeared. A separate miracle involved a monk suffering from a stomach complaint. So severe was the

illness that the monk had lost the power of speech. Aelred placed his forefinger on the monk’s mouth, commanding him to speak in the name of the Lord. Speech was restored to the monk and his pains disappeared. Another of the miracles is especially interesting because it shows that Aelred had some basic medical knowledge. The saint encountered a young man with a frightfully distended stomach and monstrously swollen head.

The cause? The man had swallowed a tadpole. This had supposedly grown into a frog in his stomach, eating away at his entrails. The saint knew enough about anatomy to stick his fingers down the man’s throat to induce vomiting. The frog, accompanied by ‘pus horrible beyond measure’ was vomited forth, enabling the man to make a speedy recovery.

on the analysis of urine survive from St Augustine’s Abbey in Canterbury and Bury St Edmunds Abbey.

Visual inspection of urine was an important diagnostic technique in the Middle Ages.

For the most part, the principles of medical care within monasteries were based on the writings of classical authors such as Hippocrates (c460– c370BC) and Galen (circa AD130–c210), who was widely credited with developing the theory of the four humours – blood, yellow bile, black bile and phlegm. Good health was dependent on keeping these in balance. Regular bloodletting was therefore an important part of the monastic routine. This usually took place in the warming room – the only place where a fire was allowed to burn during the winter months – and was followed by a period of rest and recovery in the infirmary.

Healing herbs

Medicines were also available for the treatment of some ailments. Many monastic infirmaries had their own cloisters, the central space sometimes serving as a garden for the cultivation of medicinal plants or herbs. A manuscript from c1100 survives from Bury St Edmunds Abbey, with illustrations of herbs and descriptions of their curative properties.

Attention was also given to the mental health of monks and nuns. It was accepted that the demands of life within the cloister could cause weariness and depression, and it was recognised that recreation could prevent this condition. In 1442, the monks of Hailes Abbey were permitted to take exercise in fields near the monastery, although they were specifically told not to visit local ale houses. Holidays were even allowed and the grange of Rievaulx Abbey, in Skiplam, was used by its monks for summer vacations.

Monasteries such as those at Battle, Furness, Hailes and Rievaulx would have given limited medical care to the laity as part of their responsibility to provide charity. However, medieval hospitals were also established specifically for the general population. An example of this is the Royal Garrison Church in Portsmouth.

Its origins go back to about 1212 when Bishop Peter des Roches of Winchester founded a hospital to look after pilgrims, the sick and elderly.

Arguably the most famous medieval hospital of all is St Bartholomew’s in London. This was both hospital and monastery, run by an order called the Augustinian Canons. Although the monastery at St Bartholomew’s was dissolved

by Henry VIII in 1539, the hospital, minus the canons, was refounded in 1547 and to this day looks after the health of Londoners.

LEARN MORE To discover more about life at our monasteries or to plan a visit, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/ learn/histories/monasteries-and-abbeys

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CLOSE U P

Rembrandt and Reynolds at Kenwood WORDS ALLISON GOUDIE PHOTOGR APH GARE TH IWAN JONES

So famous is Rembrandt’s self-portrait, so frequently reproduced, that many visitors to Kenwood don’t believe it’s real. Its curly gilt frame is very different from the sober one that would have surrounded the picture in Rembrandt’s time but, typical of 18th-century French taste, it hints at the important collection it belonged to a century later.

Look upwards and you’ll see another self-portrait, by the great 18th-century English painter Sir Joshua Reynolds. No doubt Reynolds would have been flattered to share a wall with Rembrandt, whose work he admired. This thought was not lost on the paintings’ 20th-century owner, Edward Cecil Guinness, 1st Earl of Iveagh, who hung them in close proximity in his townhouse, before bequeathing them, along with 61 other exquisite paintings and Kenwood itself, to the nation. This year we’re celebrating the 90th anniversary of that most generous bequest and what better reason to come and see its masterpieces?

DISCOVER THE IVEAGH BEQUEST To plan a visit to see Kenwood and its collection, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/kenwood

SEE OUR INSIDER’S GUIDE TO THE IVEAGH BEQUEST www.english-heritage.org. uk/magazine

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Saxon As the team at 1066 Battle of Hastings, Abbey and Battlefield start preparations for this year’s epic re-enactment event, we sent journalist Phoebe Smith to get a flavour of life on the Saxon front line WORDS PHOEBE SMITH PHOTOGR APHS MIKE HARRINGTON

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BEHIND THE SCENES

for a day www.english-heritage.org.uk

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BEHIND THE SCENES

S

tanding on Britain’s most famous battlefield, swathed in heavy chain mail and clutching a wooden shield – behind which I was defending myself against repeated blows from an axe the height of a small human – I couldn’t help wondering how on earth I got here. As a travel journalist, I like to think I’m pretty accustomed to being wrenched out of my comfort zone but this, I pondered as I fended off another vicious swipe, was definitely a first.

The previous evening, I had arrived in Battle, full of anticipation at what I should expect from my inaugural taste of life as a Saxon, courtesy of local re-enactment group the Spears of Andred.

This merry band of re-enactors are just some of the 800 who travel to Battle Abbey every year to take part in the epic Battle of Hastings re-enactment, where William the Conqueror’s victory over Saxon king Harold is played out for the entertainment of the crowds on the very spot where it happened in 1066. This weekend, however, they had come to the same battlefield to give me a flavour of what both the public and performers get to experience.

The day started in the serene surrounds of a Saxon living history encampment (which visitors will be able to experience as part of this year’s re-enactment event). Here, among a cluster of tents manned by re-enactors, I was introduced to a Saxon lady called Ida (real name Jane), whose face was framed by the folds of a pink headscarf, while her red tunic reached down to the grass at our feet.

I was encouraged to have a go and opted to try my hand at making a bracelet. First, my teacher Saegifue showed me the long, arduous process of combing wool with giant paddles, before spinning on a drop spindle to make yarn. After attempting it for at least 30 minutes, I resigned myself to never being a spinner. ‘We’ll find something that works for you,’ said camp dweller Bill. ‘Crafts, foraging, astronomy – there’s something for everyone.’

I found making fire – with nothing more than a piece of metal and flint – suited me well, the payoff coming fast. But as time went on, I became

‘When you put on your costume, you’re living life as someone else’

Recreating history

I asked her how she got into re-enacting and if there is a particular type of person it appeals to.

‘If I’m honest, we’re all social misfits,’ she replied, laughing. To our right were two young boys wearing linen tunics and busily making a fire, to our left another Saxon lady weaving with foraged wool, while, behind us, a man they called Atli was carving a wooden table by hand. If anyone in this scene was the odd one out, it was certainly me.

For those of us who have never considered the potential pleasures of recreating history, it might seem like an excuse to sit with friends around a campfire in funny costumes. But I soon learned the emphasis placed on historical accuracy is to ensure people learn about the past too. ‘We have an authenticity officer to ensure that nothing in the camp is from later than 1066,’ explained Ida, as she led me around to where a family were busy making flatbread and homemade cheese in a linen sack.

‘The Saxons would have made bread exactly this way using whey left over from the cheese mixed with spelt flour,’ said Kirsten, the cook. Next to her I watched a bead-maker carve quartzite into rounded baubles, using a simple wooden contraption powered by his foot, which created friction strong enough to polish the stone.

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Above Phoebe tries her hand at net making Facing page, clockwise from top left Making authentic paints; re-enactor Matt Reeve demonstrates the art of bead-making; Phoebe at work in the living history encampment; battle training gets underway; Maiken Bagley from the Spears of Andred re-enactment group helps Phoebe to dress as a Saxon warrior

FIND OUT WHAT TO LOOK OUT FOR AT THE RE-ENACTMENT www.english-heritage. org.uk/magazine

intrigued watching the carver Atli (real name Anthony, a former lorry driver) painstakingly tap an elaborate pattern into a table. ‘What is it about such a slow process you enjoy?’ I asked.

‘You can’t cut corners. Things take time and make you think about what you’re doing,’ he explained. ‘What I find is that, showing someone a finished table, they aren’t impressed – it’s when they see it happening that they become interested.’

Seeing it was one thing but, as my morning with the campers drew to an end, I was keen to immerse myself further into their world. I asked for my own outfit and was soon garbed up in linen trousers, a tunic top, and slipper-like leather shoes. ‘Something happens when you put on your costume,’ commented one re-enactor as he passed me. ‘Suddenly you’re living life as someone else.’

As it turns out, for me, that someone else was to be Morrigan, the goddess of battle. With roots in

BEHIND THE SCENES

Celtic mythology (I told them I grew up in Wales), my newly assumed identity meant one thing – I was destined not for crafts but for the battlefield.

I donned my chain mail, strapped on a shiny helmet and walked as forthrightly as I could (it’s supremely heavy) to join my fellow fighters.

In one hour, I learned how to hold and jab a spear in order to do the most damage to my enemy (while simultaneously learning the vital art of not actually hurting my fellow re-enactors), how to defend myself from attack with a shield, and some pretty fancy footwork I needed to employ in order to move efficiently when in battle.

‘Right, you’re now ready to be attacked with the most deadly weapon we have,’ said Maiken, the combat coordinator. I felt my knees wobble as she stood in front of me with a battle-axe nearly as tall as she was. As she swung it to my

BEHIND THE SCENES

Scan this page with Blippar or go to www. english-heritage.org. uk/magazine to see how chain mail is made (see page 5 for details)

‘I felt the blade of the battle-axe cut through the air in front of me’ left, I felt its blade cut through the air in front of me and instinctively stepped out of its way and raised my shield to take its impact. Then she went for a headshot and, with barely a second to think, I slid my right foot around and avoided the blow – even chancing a lunge at my attacker with my spear.

‘Faster now,’ she ordered and we engaged in a slightly terrifying dance to a gathering crowd of onlookers. The clank of metal and thud of wood I’ll never forget.

We then progressed to a shield wall – a technique employed by the Saxons over 950 years ago on this very spot – where we used the combined power of our armour to hold back the invaders. Then I led a war cry as we ran, spears poised and swords drawn, for a truly breathtaking finale.

As I made my way back to the camp, back to my own clothes and back to my ‘normal’ life, I saw the boys once more attempting to light a fire. ‘I love my medieval life,’ said the eldest to his brother. ‘It’s fun because you’re actually finding out what history is really like.’ I couldn’t help but agree.

My day with the re-enactors had given me a newfound appreciation for the hard work, attention to detail, preparation and coordination that must go into holding such a huge event as the Battle of Hastings re-enactment, one that not only teaches people about history but allows them to experience it for themselves.

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From top Phoebe faces her Norman foes; charging into battle after breaking out of the Saxon shield wall

‘It takes months of planning,’ said Battle Abbey operations manager James Witcombe. ‘A busy day in the summer normally sees around 1,000 visitors but, come the re-enactment weekend, we get up to 10,000 people per day.’

In the bathroom, I caught sight of myself in the mirror, with marks on my forehead from the chain mail and dirt on my cheek from a day spent in the camp. A woman came out of the cubicle and looked at me strangely. I realised that once more I was the odd one out, but this time it was in the present that I no longer fitted.

For here in Battle I was Morrigan – a weaver, a warrior and a proud Saxon survivor.

EXPERIENCE IT FOR YOURSELF Don’t miss your chance to experience the Battle of Hastings re-enactment on Saturday 13 and Sunday 14 October. To book, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/battle

On the centenary of the end of the First World War, we reveal the role our sites played during the conflict – and those created to commemorate it ILLUSTR ATION MICHELLE THOMPSON

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The collective call-up Brodsworth Hall and Gardens, South Yorkshire Eleanor Matthews, curator of collections and interiors: Many young men

from the Brodsworth estate enlisted immediately. Gamekeepers, gardeners, farm boys and cowmen all joined up, putting the estate under great strain.

One of the estate clerks, Allan Simpson, served with the 12th York & Lancaster Regiment (the ‘Sheffield Pals’) and was tragically killed with most of its men on the first day of the Battle of the Somme. Charles Thellusson, who inherited Brodsworth in 1903, was aged 54 in 1914 and too old for military service. He and his wife Constance had no children of their own but had made Brodsworth a home for younger relations. Charles Grant-Dalton, nephew of Charles Thellusson and potential heir to the Brodsworth estate, was a keen motorist and volunteered for the Army Service Corps. He left the army at the end of the war as a captain. The ASC welcomed drivers and those with estate management experience, also recruiting Brodsworth’s land agent and at least one estate chauffeur. Uniform and clothing for troops was in very short supply, and the Brodsworth community worked together to support the war effort.

Ladies such as Constance Thellusson organised the making and sending of garments. A remarkable piece of evidence survives at Brodsworth that reflects the involvement of almost the entire estate. A notebook from 1915–16 records over 2,000 items such as socks, shirts and caps being made by 129 people, mostly women, and including all of the hall’s female staff. www.english-heritage.org.uk/brodsworth

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Top This notebook from 1915–16 records the garments that were made at Brodsworth Hall to support the war effort Above Charles Grant-Dalton, who was a potential heir to the Brodsworth estate, volunteered for the Army Service Corps

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The training ground

Carlisle Castle was used as a depot for the Border Regiment

Old Oswestry Hill Fort, Shropshire Jeremy Ashbee, head properties curator:

Old Oswestry Hill Fort is principally celebrated as a classic example of an Iron Age hill fort.

Less well-known is an archaeological feature inside the fort: several lines of infilled trenches, some visible as low earthworks. These were dug at the beginning of the war to simulate the trenches of the Western Front, and were intended to train servicemen for what they would face in combat. The locally born poet Wilfred Owen may have used these trenches to train his men before embarkation. www.english-heritage.org.uk/oldoswestryhillfort

The regiment headquarters Carlisle Castle, Cumbria Jeremy Ashbee, head properties curator: The First World War is evoked

Dover Castle, Kent Roy Porter, senior properties curator:

Dover’s location at the shortest crossing point to mainland Europe meant it played an important role in the First World War. Dover Castle was the garrison headquarters for the defences around the town and harbour. The guns of the coast artillery were coordinated from the Fire Command Post, and the Port War Signal Station controlled the entry of Royal Navy ships into the harbour. Visitors to the castle can also see a recreated anti-aircraft battery, a reminder that Dover was subject to the first German bomb to fall on Britain. www.english-heritage.org.uk/dover

The sculpture Weeping Window commemorates those who lost their lives during the Great War CUMBRIA’S MUSEUM OF MILITARY LIFE, CARLISLE CASTLE

The command post

immediately on entering the gatehouse of Carlisle Castle, because two of the buildings in the outer ward bear the prominent name boards Ypres and Gallipoli. Like other buildings in the complex, these were constructed in the mid-19th century to house a military garrison. In the early 20th century, the castle was serving as a depot for the Border Regiment, and was used particularly for training recruits before service overseas: 23,000 recruits passed through the castle during the conflict.

However, the castle was increasingly being appreciated as a historic site, and it is likely that the regiment’s recruits provided much of the manpower in 1917–19 when the Office of Works undertook the excavation of the Tudor half-moon battery under the eastern part of the parade ground. This battery is still displayed today. From May to July 2018, Carlisle Castle hosted Weeping Window, a commemorative installation of ceramic poppies by the artist Paul Cummins and the designer Tom Piper. This was in part a tribute to the 7,000 men of the Border Regiment who died during the First World War. www.english-heritage.org.uk/carlisle

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The bombing target Scarborough Castle, North Yorkshire Mark Douglas, senior properties curator:

At 8am on 16 December 1914, two German cruisers began a 30-minute bombardment of Scarborough, killing 18 people. The coastguard station and an 18th-century barrack block were completely destroyed. The castle ruins were also damaged. The cruisers then sailed north towards Hartlepool. On their way they passed Whitby and again they opened fire, spending around 10 minutes firing 50 rounds into the town and at the abbey ruins, resulting in the deaths of another three people. www.english-heritage.org.uk/scarborough This image Wrest Park during its time as a convalescent home Bottom left Damage after a fire in September 1916 Bottom right Nan Herbert, who set up the hospital at Wrest Park

The stately hospital Wrest Park, Bedfordshire

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The unlikely airfield Stonehenge, Wiltshire Heather Sebire, property curator:

In 1917 a military airfield was established to the south-west of Stonehenge. The site was chosen because it offered an expanse of open downland with no obstacles, and was close to Larkhill Camp, the base for what became the Royal Flying Corps. By 1918 the airfield was used as a training school for aerial navigation and bomb dropping. A poignant reminder of these brave pioneer flyers can be seen in the visitor centre, where there is an Airman’s Cross memorial dedicated to two very early airmen. www.english-heritage.org.uk/stonehenge

PRIVATE COLLECTION; IMPERIAL WAR MUSEUM

Andrew Hann, properties historian: Wrest Park served first as a convalescent home then as an auxiliary hospital during the First World War. Fully operational by 7 September 1914, it was almost certainly the first country house to be put to hospital use during the war. The hospital was funded privately by Lord Lucas, with assistance from friends, including the playwright JM Barrie, who provided £1,000 for the purchase of beds and equipment. Lord Lucas’s sister Nan Herbert was responsible for setting up the hospital and later served as matron. Her diary and scrapbooks provide a vivid account of life in the hospital, including the many entertainments laid on for the recuperating soldiers. The hospital wards on the ground and first floors could accommodate up to 200 patients although, officially, Wrest Hospital had 150 beds. Bedrooms on the first floor housed the medical officer, X-ray equipment and operating theatre, while the billiard room was fitted out as a stripping room for delousing. The 24 nurses occupied servants’ rooms in the attic. In all, 1,600 men passed through the hospital’s wards, most staying for only a few weeks before transferring elsewhere to convalesce. Sadly, Wrest’s life as a hospital came to an abrupt end on 14 September 1916 when a fire seriously damaged the upper floor of the house. All the patients were safely evacuated. www.english-heritage.org.uk/wrest

M U LT I S I T E

Rievaulx Abbey was taken into state guardianship after its owner was killed during the war

The commemoration Royal Artillery Memorial, London Jeremy Ashbee, head properties curator:

The national concern

On the western edge of the traffic island at Hyde Park Corner in Westminster stands a group of war memorials, including an undoubted masterpiece of sculpture. The Royal Artillery War Memorial was unveiled in October 1925 to the design of the architect Lionel Pearson, with sculpture by Charles Sargeant Jagger.

What makes this memorial so exceptional is the naturalistic and unsentimental way in which Jagger depicted the operations of the gunners, notably with a stone sculpture of a 9.2in howitzer on the monument’s top.

Its sides bear a frieze of low-relief sculpture showing the gunners in action. The greatest emotional punch, however, comes from four life-sized bronze human figures around the base. These depict a shell carrier, a driver, an officer and, on the north side, an effigy of a dead gunner covered by his overcoat.

At Jagger’s suggestion, this figure lies above an inscription from Shakespeare’s Henry V: ‘Here was a Royal Fellowship of Death.’

The memorial initially caused controversy, one commentator likening the sculpture of the howitzer to ‘a toad squatting’, but members of the regiment strongly endorsed its design and it gained public support. It remains outstanding as an artistic response to the horrors of the war. www.historicengland.org.uk/ra-memorial

Rievaulx Abbey, North Yorkshire Michael Carter, senior properties historian: The preservation of Rievaulx Abbey was an unlikely outcome of the Great War. The abbey was rapidly reduced to ruins after its closure in 1538 during the Suppression of the Monasteries. By the early 20th century, the abbey ruins were in a terrible condition. The magnificent early 13th-century presbytery was on the verge of collapse. Sir Charles Peers, inspector of ancient monuments at the Office of Works, entered into protracted negotiations with the Earl of Feversham, the owner of the site, to take the abbey into state care. Negotiations proceeded at a glacial pace and all the time the condition of the ruins deteriorated. But on 15 September 1916, the earl was killed on the first day of the Battle of Flers-Courcelette, part of the infamous Somme offensive. Events then progressed rapidly. In July 1917, Rievaulx was taken into state guardianship.

Work immediately started to save the ruins from impending disaster. But the war effort meant that the timber needed to shore up the ruins was in short supply. It was eventually sourced from a munitions factory that had exploded in Morecambe. There was also a shortage of labour. Most young men in the locality were away on war service. The armistice in November 1918 freed up resources for the repair and consolidation of the ruins, and returning ex-servicemen used trenching skills learned during the war to clear the abbey of rubble and debris. www.english-heritage.org.uk/rievaulx www.english-heritage.org.uk

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Out&About Over to you Trending Ask the experts Members’ events 20 questions

Jess Sashaw and Shawn Hoult at Dover Castle in Kent

MY EXPERIENCE

‘He couldn’t have chosen a better place’ M

excited to say the least. The tour of the tunnels was excellent but Shawn seemed a bit restless. Next was the main castle, which was filled with actors. We talked to kitchen staff, met the queen and took part in a small play. Shawn was chosen to play a knight who was proposed to by a princess. Little did I know that we would both receive proposals that day! As we explored the castle, Shawn was distracted by trying to find the

perfect place to pop the question. He finally took me to Avranches Tower, a 12th-century lookout on the corner of the grounds. After waiting for the area to clear of other visitors, he dropped to one knee, pulled a ring from his pocket and asked the question. Even without the proposal it would have been a day to remember. He couldn’t have chosen a better place to ask me. PS I said yes. www.english-heritage.org.uk/dover www.english-heritage.org.uk

JOBY SESSIONS

y boyfriend Shawn and I moved to London about a year ago.

I had been wanting to visit a castle since we arrived but we hadn’t found the time to explore much further than the boundaries of the city. We finally had a free weekend, so Shawn looked up Britain’s top castles and found that Dover topped most of the lists. I knew a bit about the history and beautiful location of the castle, so I was

51

OUT & ABOUT

Over to you

www.english-heritage.org.uk/magazine facebook.com/englishheritage

Share your stories and send us your experiences, photos and tips

Stonehenge picnics

Underground shelters

I have just read the article about Stonehenge in the July edition of the Members’ Magazine and thought you would be interested in this photograph (below). It was taken in 1933 and shows, from left to right, Lesley, Harry, Daphne (my mum) and Gladys Biles.

They used to picnic there each year.

Janice Clarke

I was interested to read Edna Leonard’s letter in the May issue. It reminded me of a time many years ago when I was still at school, probably in the 1950s, and went on a school trip to Paris. Overnight we stayed in Clapham deep-level shelter, which was fitted out with what seemed like hundreds of bunk beds in huge rooms that had been converted into dormitories.

I remember climbing down a winding staircase, which seemed to go on forever, until we reached a dark, gloomy series of tunnels and the huge rooms. I wonder if the building is still there?

Christine Holmes

What a fantastic photo. It’s great to see that people’s enjoyment of Stonehenge hasn’t changed over the last 85 years – although today’s visitors have to enjoy a picnic a little further away from the stones! If any other Members or their families have photos or stories to share of visits to Stonehenge from the last 100 years, we’d love to hear from you for a special public digital project that we’re working on.

For more information, go to www.stonehenge100.co.uk.

Clapham South deep-level shelter was built in 1941 and was one of eight air-raid bunkers across London. It still exists today. For anyone interested in exploring secret underground structures, do pay a visit to the secret wartime tunnels at Dover Castle in Kent or York Cold War Bunker, which was designed to monitor fallout in the event of a nuclear attack.

Tintagel bridge I was surprised to read that English Heritage is planning to pave the new bridge connecting the headland and mainland at Tintagel with Cornish slate.

Experience tells me that a major problem with slate is that it becomes extremely slippery when wet. As the Cornish climate

Janice Clarke’s family on a visit to Stonehenge in 1933

TRENDING What’s got you talking on our social media channels?

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Abbey days

The short video in this tweet, showing drone footage shot over Whitby Abbey on a beautiful misty day, has been viewed over 2,600 times. bit.ly/2KJpxJf

www.english-heritage.org.uk

Cannon fodder

Our video showing what happens when you fire a replica of the Civil War mortar Roaring Meg at a caravan has been seen over 107,000 times. bit.ly/2ofMTgz

twitter.com/englishheritage instagram.com/englishheritage

An artist’s impression of the bridge that will connect the mainland and headland at Tintagel

is inclined to be somewhat damp, would it not be more practical and safer to provide a non-slip surface for the bridge?

Claire Simpson Reuben Briggs, senior national project manager, replies: The slate we will use is akin to thin roofing slates packed together and laid on edge. As a consequence, the walking surface will be textured, appearing as a sawtooth pattern when viewed in cross-section.

Readers’ panel We’d love to know what you think about your Members’ Magazine.

To join our readers’ panel, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/magazine.

All readers’ panellists will be entered into a prize draw to win one of 20 Amazon vouchers, each worth £25.

Going for gold

This picture of the glorious golden laburnum arch at Brodsworth Hall and Gardens in South Yorkshire garnered more than 3,100 likes. bit.ly/2MguUFq

Ask the experts

MEMBERS’ AREA

WHAT’S NEW?

The English Heritage team answers your questions

Richard Nevell Properties historian

Jeremy Ashbee

Head properties curator

Carlisle Castle in Cumbria

Julian Bates asks… of your castles could be considered Q Which to be the ‘best’ in terms of successfully withstanding the most attacks?

Richard Nevell replies…

Castle in Cumbria comes out on top, A Carlisle having won four sieges (1173, 1174, 1315 and 1385) and lost two (1216 and 1645). This puts it a nose ahead of Norham Castle in Northumberland, which won four but lost six. However, the castle that held out while under siege for the longest period of time is Kenilworth Castle in Warwickshire. The six-month siege that took place here in 1266 was the longest in English history and, although the castle has changed a lot since, the great tower and outer walls you can see today survived the siege.

Margaret Clifford asks…

Abbey helped to inspire Bram Q Whitby Stoker’s Dracula but which other English Heritage sites have a literary connection?

Log in at www.english-heritage. org.uk/magazine

Emily Sewell Head of events

feature Conisbrough Castle and Ashby de la Zouch Castle in Ivanhoe, and Kenilworth Castle in Kenilworth. Thomas Hardy’s Tess of the d’Urbevilles has its climactic scene at Stonehenge, while Jonathan Swift wrote a poem about Marble Hill House in 1727. But one of the strangest cases must be Tintagel Castle in Cornwall, where it was literature (Geoffrey of Monmouth’s tale of King Arthur’s conception) that seems to have inspired the building of the castle in the 1230s, and not the castle that inspired the writing. Find out more about literary links to our sites at www.englishheritage.org.uk/visit/inspire-me/literary-links.

Lynn Kennedy asks… you have any Christmas events this Q Do year in the West Midlands that would help us get into the festive spirit?

Emily Sewell replies… do! I think you’ll really enjoy Christmas A We at the Castle, at Kenilworth Castle and Elizabethan Garden in Warwickshire on 8 and 9 December. It features a Victorian jester, Christmas carols, festive falconry, the chance to meet Father Christmas and more. And our Enchanted event comes to Witley Court and Gardens in Worcestershire for the first time in December.

See your Events Guide with this issue for details.

Guide to the Battle of Hastings

Discover the things to look out for when our Battle of Hastings re-enactment takes place this October

Highlights from the Iveagh Bequest

Discover some of the astonishing old master paintings you can see at Kenwood in Hampstead

Interview with William Cavendish

Two of our young Members meet the 17th-century courtier at the lavish Bolsover Castle

Marble Hill House in London

Jeremy Ashbee replies… sites have inspired lots of historical writing, A Our notably the works of Sir Walter Scott, which SEND US A QUESTION For your chance to have your questions answered by one of our English Heritage experts, email us at membersmagazine@immediate.co.uk

Our spookiest sites

As Halloween approaches, find out about the spine-chilling stories and ghostly goings-on associated with our historic properties – if you dare!

Members’ events

Five of our unmissable Member-exclusive events over the months ahead

1

20 Feb

Afternoon Tea With the Butler

BEST OF THE REST Christmas celebr ations

Events for everyone taking place over the festive season

Audley End House and Gardens, Essex Designed for all the family to enjoy, this is your chance to have an afternoon tea with a difference and to find out more about what life would have been like in a country house. Children will learn how to lay the table and serve afternoon tea, while grown-ups can sit back and relax as their trainee butlers cater to them.

2

12 Mar

Story of the Sieges Carlisle Castle, Cumbria

Delight in jovial entertainers, marvel at the skilful Victorian falconer and create your own toys.

Osborne, 1 & 2 Dec

Lincoln Christmas Market

4

Go medieval this Christmas by browsing these historic market stalls.

Lincoln Medieval Bishops’ Palace, 6–9 Dec

14 & 26 Mar

Stonehenge: Up Close

Christmas at the Castle

Near Amesbury, Wiltshire

For 500 years Carlisle Castle was the principal fortress of England’s north-western border with Scotland.

It was besieged 10 times and you can discover how sieges changed over the years, from undermining the walls in 1216 to the introduction of siege engines in 1315. Plus, find out why the siege of 1461 was one of the bloodiest episodes to take place during the Wars of the Roses.

3

Victorian Christmas

12 Dec

The House That Saved Christmas

Boscobel House and the Royal Oak, Shropshire Enjoy a rare out-of-hours opportunity to see this pretty timber-framed house, once a hiding place for King Charles II. Hear stories from Christmases past come to life and learn how the house’s different inhabitants would have celebrated it.

Gain a fascinating insight into this World Heritage Site with an exclusive tour led by one of our experts. Start with rare early morning access to the stone circle at Stonehenge, before going on to visit key archaeological sites, including Durrington Walls, Woodhenge and The Cursus.

5

For highlights of this season’s exclusive Members’ events see your Events Guide with this issue

14 Feb

A Victorian Valentine’s

Enjoy carol singing and storytelling, and have the chance to meet Father Christmas in his grotto.

Kenilworth Castle, 8 & 9 Dec

A Christmas Carol

Experience this beloved Christmas tale brilliantly retold by Charles Dickens’ great-grandson.

Kenwood, 18 Nov

Osborne, Isle of Wight

Join us this Valentine’s Day in Queen Victoria and Prince Albert’s beloved holiday home, where our expert will take you on an exclusive guided tour. Revel in the house’s fascinating history and enjoy a traditional afternoon tea while overlooking the beautiful grounds, about which Victoria once proclaimed, ‘It is impossible to imagine a prettier spot.’

For more Members’ events, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/members-events

A Victorian Valentine’s, Osborne, Isle of Wight

Carols at Rievaulx

Join us as the Bilsdale Silver Band plays all of your favourite traditional tunes in the abbey church.

Rievaulx Abbey, 2 & 9 Dec www.english-heritage.org. uk/events

OUT & ABOUT

questions 20

Test your knowledge of Stonehenge with our quiz 8 The earliest known major event here was the construction of a circular ditch in about 3000BC. What is its diameter?

53 63 73 83

2 To the nearest 500 years, how long ago was the monument erected?

16 Who devised the numbering system that is used to identify the stones?

17 The first known excavation at Stonehenge was undertaken in the 1620s by the Duke of Buckingham, which was prompted by a visit by which king (pictured)?

9 What is the purpose of this prehistoric object, which was found in Wilsford, near Stonehenge?

10 An earthwork known as the Avenue connects Stonehenge to what?

11 Which of these three images is not of Stonehenge?

3 Stonehenge is made up of two types of stone. Where do archaeologists believe the larger sarsen stones were brought from?

18 In which year were Stonehenge and Avebury inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List?

19 The Stonehenge and Avebury World Heritage Site covers a total of how many acres?

20 This watercolour of Stonehenge was painted in c1827 by which romantic artist?

REPRODUCED BY PERMISSION OF WILTSHIRE HERITAGE MUSEUM; SALISBURY AND SOUTH WILTSHIRE MUSEUM

1 How many stones in the stone circle are visible today?

Log into the Members’ Area at www.english-heritage. org.uk/members to check your answers

4 And where are the smaller bluestones from?

5 Viewed from the centre of the circle, the sun rises by which stone during the summer solstice?

6 There are many examples of graffiti that were carved on the stones in the Georgian and Victorian periods. Who is the carving of a cross followed by ‘WREN’ attributed to?

7 Can you name the local landowner who bought Stonehenge from the Antrobus family in 1915 and subsequently gave it to the nation three years later?

12 In the early Bronze Age, a large number of round barrows were built in the area around Stonehenge.

What were they usually for?

13 Stone 56 is the tallest standing stone on the site. How tall is it?

14 The first guidebook to Stonehenge, published in 1823, claimed that the monument survived which biblical event?

15 How many people visit Stonehenge each year?

Go to www.englishheritage.org.uk/kids for WIN! our kids’ competition, in which a goody bag from our online shop – where you can find a wide range of items – can be won. www.english-heritage.org.uk english-heritage.org.uk

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PA S T L I V E S

Nye Bevan and the NHS

70 years ago, Nye Bevan launched the National Health Service – an act now commemorated with a blue plaque at his former London home WORDS HOWARD SPENCER ILLUSTR ATION SUSAN BURGHART

n 5 July 1948 the National Health Service came into being – launched by its architect Aneurin ‘Nye’ Bevan at what is now Trafford General Hospital in Greater Manchester. As minister of health, and the youngest minister in Clement Attlee’s Labour government, Bevan had spent much of the previous two years cajoling stakeholders (most vitally, the doctors) into participating in his ambitious new national scheme. The aim was to make health care free at the point of delivery as, largely, it remains.

The NHS is surely the most enduring pillar of post-war consensus politics, yet Bevan was no consensus politician. On the eve of the new service’s launch, he made a speech in which, recalling the privations of the 1930s, he described Tory policymakers

O

‘The NHS is surely the most enduring pillar of post-war consensus politics’

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www.english-heritage.org.uk

as ‘lower than vermin’. This infuriated his opponents and the jibe is still much quoted.

If the phrase remains a point of contention, the anger that drove Bevan to utter it was real. Four of his nine siblings did not survive childhood in Tredegar, south Wales. And, during the Depression, Bevan himself – obliged to live on the earnings of a sister – was told to emigrate.

As regards the challenge of starting a universal health service in a warshattered country, Bevan defended his combative approach. ‘You may say a man of my temperament would find it difficult to obtain universal agreement,’ he commented, ‘but I sometimes wonder if whether a less belligerent personality would have started the scheme at all.’

By the time the NHS was born, Bevan’s circumstances had changed. He had been

MP for Ebbw Vale for nearly two decades and had a London home – albeit one that had been bomb-damaged – at 23 Cliveden Place, on the Chelsea and Belgravia borders. It is this house that bears his blue plaque, which went up in 2015, almost 40 years after it was first mooted, owing to difficulties in gaining owner permission – difficulties that may perhaps have been linked to Bevan’s spiky political reputation.

His wife, Jennie Lee, the politician best known for her key role in founding the Open University, is commemorated with him on the plaque.

DISCOVER MORE The English Heritage Guide to London’s Blue Plaques (£16.99) is available to buy at www.english-heritage.org.uk/shop