Where is it? #12
November 25, 2011
The latest in the series in which we ask you to identify where in London this picture was taken and what it’s of. If you reckon you know the answer, leave a comment below. We’ll reveal the answer early next week. Good luck!
And the answer is…this is part of the decorative facade of the Middlesex Guildhall which stands opposite the Houses of Parliament in Parliament Square. The building, which dates from 1912-13 and stands on the former site of the Westminster Abbey Sanctuary Tower and Old Belfry (where fugitives from the law could seek sanctuary), is now home to the Supreme Court and the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council.
Designed by architect James Gibson, it is the latest in a series of buildings which stood on the site which have served as courthouses and the headquarters of the Middlesex County Council (the first Middlesex Guildhall was built here in 1889). Described by Nikolaus Pevsner as “art nouveau Gothic”, it features a series of medieval-looking decorative friezes and sculptures by Henry Charles Fehr.
The image pictured above shows one of the friezes – this one of the Duke of Northumberland offering the ill-fated Lady Jane Grey the Crown (known as the “Nine Days Queen”, she was later imprisoned and eventually executed on 12th February, 1554). Others show King John handing the Magna Carta to the English barons and the granting of the charter of Westminster Abbey.
It was refurbished for use of the Supreme Court in 2007 and the court has occupied it since its creation in 2009.
Interestingly, according to Ed Glinert of The London Compendium, it was here that courts martial were held of those suspected of giving aid to the enemy during World War I.
Like this:
The Royal Parks – 8. Bushy Park
November 16, 2011
And so we come to the final entry in our special series on Royal Parks – Bushy Park (Royal Parks also look after Brompton Cemetery, but given it’s not strictly a park, we’ll deal with that in an upcoming post).
Lying off the beaten track near Hampton Court in south-west London, Bushy Park’s location means it’s perhaps the least glamourous of the Royal Parks we have looked at. Yet, like the other parks, its connection with royalty goes back a long way – in this case to the time of King Henry VIII.
The park was included as part of the Hampton Court estate given to the king by Cardinal Wolsey. Henry immediately transformed what had been farmland (complete with artifical medieval rabbit warrens, the remains of which can still be seen) into a deer chase and enclosed the park with a brick wall (a section of the original wall lies on the north side of Hampton Court Road).
The character of the park was altered again in 1610 when King Charles I ordered the creation of the Longford River, a 12 mile ornamental canal designed to bring water from the River Colne in Hertfordshire to the park’s water features.
Christopher Wren had a hand in the park’s design in 1699 when he designed Chestnut Avenue – a mile long formal roadway which runs through the centre of the park. He also added the round pond at its end and placed a fountain topped with a statue in its midst.
Known as the Diana Fountain after the Roman goddess of hunting, the statue (pictured above with Chestnut Avenue behind) actually represents one of Diana’s nymphs Arethusa. It was commissioned by King Charles I for his wife, Queen Henrietta Maria, and originally stood at Somerset House before Oliver Cromwell moved it to the Privy Garden at Hampton Court and Wren then moved it to its current location.
The 17th and 18th century also saw the appearance of houses at the park to be used as hunting lodges (and the ranger’s home), and gardens were added.
Worth noting here is the story of shoemaker Timothy Bennet. A resident of nearby Hampton Wick, in 1752, when an old man, he successfully fought to ensure a public right-of-way through the park after the then ranger, Lord Halifax, ordered it closed to the public. There’s a monument to him outside Hampton Wick Gate and a walking path which runs across the park at perpendicular to Chestnut Avenue is still known as Cobbler’s Walk.
More gardens were added in the 20th century including the Waterhouse and Pheasantry Plantations. Other areas include the tranquil Woodland Gardens and the Water Gardens which are comprised of a Baroque-style collection of pools, cascades, basins and the canal. There are also a series of ponds – including a pond for model boats – to the east of Chestnut Avenue.
The park saw service in both World Wars. During the first, Canadian troops were stationed there (there’s a totem pole in the Woodland Garden marking this) and other areas within the park were used for growing produce as part of the “Dig for Victory” campaign.
During the second, it was used again for food production and in 1942 became a US base and later Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Forces – the location where General Dwight Eisenhower planned Operation Overland, the reinvasion of Europe which kicked off with the D-Day landings. There are memorials concerning this connection in the park’s north-east corner.
Facilities today include the Pheasantry Welcome Centre, which opened in 2009, and includes a cafe, toilets and information. There are also sporting facilities, a small cafe near the carpark and a children’s playground.
WHERE: The park lies north of Hampton Court Palace, just west of Kingston and Hampton Wick and south of Teddington (nearest train station is Hampton Wick or Hampton Court). WHEN: 24 hours except in September and November when it’s open between 8am and 10.30pm; COST: Free; WEBSITE: www.royalparks.gov.uk/Bushy-Park.aspx
In a special Favorite Places to mark Remembrance Day, Mike Paterson, director of London Historians, talks about his favorite war memorials…
At this time of year, the focus is inevitably on Lutyens’ Cenotaph in Whitehall. Version 1, in wood and plaster, was hurredly constructed in just two weeks in time for the 1919 victory parade. The version we know today was unveiled on 11th November the following year and is a plain, austere and fitting tribute to all our lost service personnel, the centre of the nation’s attention every Remembrance Sunday.
It is estimated there are over 70,000 war memorials in Britain. As a nation we have, let’s face it, a bellicose history, and London in particular has been intimately involved in both World Wars. No surprise then, that as you walk the streets, you happen upon something referencing conflict around every corner. In addition to memorials themselves, we have dozens of now largely forgotten field marshals, generals and other martial leaders.
But the best, I believe, are the ones celebrating the common soldier. I have some favourites. The City of London Regiment infantryman atop a tall plinth in Holborn by Albert Toft (1922), dramatically standing tall, his rifle by his side, bayonet fixed. In Borough High Street there is a fine statue by P Lindsay Clark (1922), remembering the men from St Saviour’s (pictured, right). It is of a soldier, rifle slung, purposefully leaning forward as he trudges through the mud. A very recent statue unveiled by the Queen in 2000 is of a five-man tank crew, in Whitehall Place very near Embankment Station. By Vivien Mallock, it gives a very strong feeling of cameraderie and I always find it uplifting when walking by.
But of all the memorials to the rank and file soldier, by far the most outstanding is, for me, the Royal Artillery monument on Hyde Park Corner, unveiled in 1925. It commemorates the 49,000 artillerymen who lost their lives in the Great War.
The piece comprises a massive Portland stone plinth mounted by a 9.2 inch howitzer gun, augmented on all sizes by statues in bronze of gunners in various poses. One of these men – controversial at the time – is dead, covered by his great coat; you can see his hand and part of the side of his face.
The memorial (pictured, right) was designed by Charles Sargeant Jagger (1885 – 1934). Lionel Pearson constructed the stone parts while Jagger himself sculpted the soldiers. Informally posed, they are all exquisite examples of the sculpor’s art.
The most striking is that of the artillery driver, leaning back onto the plinth and resting his outstretched arms on it. His cape – stretched from wrist to wrist – hangs down limply. In fact, the man rather resembles a crucified figure without the cross. I was delighted some months ago to discover a maquette (small working model) of this figure at the Honourable Artillery Company HQ in the City.
Jagger – a First World War veteran himself – was an outstanding memorial sculptor. If you’re waiting for a train at Paddington and have a little time on your hands, do check out his memorial to the fallen soldiers of the Great Western Railway. It’s a deeply poignant depiction of a squaddie – his coat draped over his shoulders and wearing a long, home-made scarf – reading a letter from home. You can find it on Platform 1, and I defy you not to be deeply moved.
PICTURES: Mike Paterson
PICTURE: Bunting in Regent Street ahead of the Royal Wedding tomorrow.
Ahead of the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton tomorrow, here’s a look at some of the more curious and interesting facts related to London’s Royal Wedding past…
• The first public Royal Wedding in modern times was that of Prince Albert, Duke of York (later King George VI), and Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon (later Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother) which took place on 26th April, 1923. Instead of being held at a royal chapel as was more usual, they were married at Westminster Abbey in a public display which was apparently staged to lift the national spirit in the aftermath of World War I.
• Lady Diana Spencer (later Diana, Princess of Wales) memorably said Prince Charles’ name in the wrong order during their wedding ceremony at St Paul’s Cathedral on 29th July, 1981. Lady Diana accidentally called him Philip Charles Arthur George instead of the correct Charles Philip Arthur George.
• Queen Victoria’s extravagant wedding cake was the first to feature a model of the bride and groom on its summit (with a figure of Britannia looming over them). The two tier cake measured nine foot across and weighed 300 lbs.
• While white wedding dresses had been worn for some time, it was apparently after Queen Victoria wore a white dress at her 1840 wedding that the idea spread to the masses. (Interestingly, the first documented princess to wear a white wedding dress is said to have been Philippa of England, the daughter of King Henry IV, in 1406).
• The first televised Royal Wedding was that of Princess Margaret, younger sister of Queen Elizabeth II, to Antony Armstrong-Jones (Lord Snowdon) on 6th May, 1960. It attracted some 300 million viewers worldwide.
• The tradition of a royal bride leaving her bouquet on the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior in Westminster Abbey was started by Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother. She apparently did so in tribute to her brother Fergus who had died during World War I. Princess Mary, daughter of King George V, made a similar gesture at her wedding in 1922 – she left her bouquet at the Cenotaph in Whitehall after her wedding.
• One of the most scandalous Royal Weddings was that of George, Prince of Wales (later King George IV) to Princess Caroline of Brunswick on 8th April, 1795 at the Chapel Royal in St James’s Palace. Described as being “far from a love match” on the Historic Royal Palaces’ website, Prince George was said to have been drunk during the wedding and at one stage apparently even attempted to escape from the ceremony.
• If the rain stays away, the newly married prince and his bride will be returning to Buckingham Palace in the 1902 State Landau. The open-topped carriage was constructed for King Edward VII’s coronation and apparently made roomy to accommodation him. The carriage was used by Prince Charles and Lady Diana when they left St Paul’s Cathedral after their 1981 wedding. If the weather it poor, it’s expected that the 1881 Glass Coach, bought for the coronation of King George V in 1911, will be used instead.
For more fascinating facts on Royal Weddings, see the BBC website (www.bbc.co.uk/history/royal_weddings), or Historic Royal Palaces’ blog, The ‘other’ royal weddings (http://blog.hrp.org.uk). For more on the current Royal Wedding, see the official website (www.officialroyalwedding2011.org).
Curious London Memorials – 8. Edith Cavell Memorial
March 2, 2011
Prominently located on Charing Cross Road near Trafalgar Square, this memorial is a war memorial with a difference. Rather than commemorating armies or great war leaders, its subject is Edith Cavell, a British nurse who was executed by a German firing squad during World War I.
Cavell, originally from Norfolk, was working at a medical institute in Brussels when the German army invaded in 1914. The institute become a Red Cross hospital and Cavell continued caring for injured soldiers regardless of their nationality until, on 5th August, 1915, she was arrested on charges of treason for helping as many as 200 British and French soldiers escape to neutral Holland.
Held for a time in solitary confinement, she was tried at a court martial after signing a confession. Cavell was sentenced to death, and on, 12th October, was shot dead at the age of 49 – an event that sparked worldwide headlines and prompted an international outcry. She subsequently featured prominently in propaganda designed to boost British recruitment.
The 1920 memorial, designed by Sir George Frampton, features comments Cavell made to an English Anglican chaplain with her on the night before her death: “Patriotism is not enough. I must have no hatred or bitterness for anyone”.
Cavell was buried next to the prison where she had been held before her body was later exhumed before being reburied in Norwich Cathedral.
• The Imperial War Museum has unveiled plans for a major rebuilding project at its Lambeth headquarters to culminate with the 100th anniversary of the start of World War I in 2014. Under a £71 million proposal, the size of the existing World War I galleries will be doubled and a new atrium will be created with further works – including a new sunken entrance – to be completed by 2019. The museum moved to its Lambeth location, formerly the Bethlem Royal Hospital, in 1936. Prince William is fronting the first £29 million appeal for funds. Meanwhile plans have reportedly been mooted to have the decommissioned aircraft carrier, the HMS Ark Royal, brought to London where it would be permanently moored in the Thames as a tourist attraction akin to the HMS Belfast.
• St Paul’s Cathedral has announced it will provide live outdoor broadcasts of its three most popular Christmas services for the first time to allow those who can fit in the cathedral to participate. A 25 metre screen will be set up in Paternoster Square, next to the cathedral, where ‘A Celebration of Christmas’ will be screen on 16th December at 6.30pm along with Christmas Carol services on the 23rd and 24th December at 4pm. See www.stpauls.co.uk.
• An historic 18th century mill in East London will undergo restoration after the granting of a £248,000 lottery grant. House Mill, which dates from 1776, is believed to be the largest tidal mill still in existence anywhere in the world. Built across the River Lea, the mill was used for flour-making and for a distillery located next door on Three Mills Island in Bow. The project, which is being managed by the River Lea Tidal Mill Trust, involves the restoration of the mill as well as the adjoining Miller’s House and the creation of a visitor’s centre. The trust says it has also been given the “green light” for a further £2.65 million Heritage Lottery Fund grant. See http://housemill.org.uk.
• A three year project has made documents drawn up for King Henry III in the 13th century available on the internet for the first time. Project partners Canterbury Christ Church University, King’s College London, and the National Archives in Kew have translated and digitised the king’s ‘fine rolls’, written to record money and favours owed to the king. The rolls consist of 56 parchments – one for each year of his reign which started in 1216 and ended in 1272 – and contain as many as 40,000 entries amounting to some two million words. Some of the parchments, the originals of which are held at the National Archives, measure up to three metres in length. See www.finerollshenry3.org.uk.
• On now: Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park. Christmas festivity on a vast scale, Winter Wonderland includes the city’s largest open air ice rink, circus acts, a giant observation wheel, rides and eating places including the igloo-style E:Cube and the Spiegel Saloon. For more information see www.hydeparkwinterwonderland.com.
Around London – New VC gallery at Imperial War Museum; Roman remains unearthed at Syon Park; and, High Society at the Wellcome Collection…
November 18, 2010
• An exhibition containing the world’s largest collection of Victoria Crosses has opened at the Imperial War Museum, housed in what is the museum’s first new major permanent gallery for 10 years. The Extraordinary Heroes exhibition – housed in the Lord Ashcroft Gallery – contains his Lordship’s collection of 162 Victoria Crosses, awarded for parts played in wars stretching from the Crimean to the Falklands, displayed alongside the 48 Victoria Crosses and 31 George Crosses already held by the museum. As well as the awards, the new gallery will display many objects for the first time, including a badly damaged backpack worn by Lance Corporal Matt Croucher when he leapt on a grenade during action in Afghanistan in 2008 to save the lives of his fellow soldiers (he survived as well), and the diving suit worn by Acting Leading Seaman James Magennis who won a VC for his role in placing limpet mines in the Johore Straits in World War II. The gallery was paid for with a £5 million donation from Lord Ashcroft. Admission is free. For more information, see www.iwm.org.uk.
• The remains of a Roman settlement have been unearthed at historic home, Syon Park, in London’s west. Archaeological experts from the Museum of London have already removed around 11,500 pieces of pottery, jewellery and about 100 coins from the site on the Syon Park estate. Syon Park, the home of the Duke of Northumberland, sits on the northern bank of the Thames, opposite Kew Gardens. The site was excavated in 2008 in preparing for the construction of a new luxury hotel there. Some of the artefacts will go on display at the new hotel, the London Syon Park, A Waldorf Astoria Hotel, which will open early next year. The settlement, which includes a Roman road and burials, was discovered only half a metre below ground level. For more information on the property, see www.syonpark.co.uk.
• Now on: From an early morning coffee in European cities to chewing betel nut in Asia, the Wellcome Collection’s major winter exhibition, High Society, traces the role mind-altering drugs have played in history and culture. The display includes more than 200 exhibits, from an 11th century manuscript written by monks in Suffolk detailing poppy remedies, to a 17th century account by Captain Thomas Bowrey describing his crew’s experiments with the cannabis drink bhang, and an account of NASA’s experiments with intoxicated spiders. Admission is free. The exhibition runs until 27th February. For more information, see www.wellcomecollection.org.
Remembrance Day
November 11, 2010
It’s Remembrance Day and all across the UK – and around the world – people are pausing to reflect on those who gave their lives fighting for their country. While the main events related to the day – the laying of wreaths at the Cenotaph and a parade – takes place on Remembrance Sunday, we’re marking the day today with a list of 10 of London’s World War I and II-related war memorials.
This list is by no means comprehensive – there are scores of other memorials in London which relate to the two world wars – but we’d welcome your comments of any others you think we should mention. Lest We Forget…
1. The Cenotaph – The most famous of London’s war memorials (pictured right), this simply designed – almost plain – monument stands in the middle of Whitehall and was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens to commemorate the dead of World War I. It is here that the Queen and other dignitaries lay wreaths on Remembrance Sunday in remembrance of the war dead of both world wars.
2. The Monument to the Women of World War II – Located just along from the Cenotaph, this much criticised memorial marks the role more than seven million women played during World War II. Unveiled in 2005, the memorial was designed by John W. Mills and depicts a series of coats worn by women during the war hanging as though on pegs.
3. The Tower Hill Memorial – This memorial, which was originally unveiled in 1928 and then added to after World War II, commemorates the men and women of the merchant navy and fishing fleets who were killed in either world war and have no known grave. It lists more than 36,000 names. For more information, see www.cwgc.org/search/cemetery_details.aspx?cemetery=90002&mode=1.
4. The Battle of Britain Monument – Located on the north bank of the Thames at Victoria Embankment, this monument pays tribute to those who took part in the Battle of Britain during World War II. Sculpted by Paul Day, it features scenes from the battle in high relief bronze with virtually life-sized statues of airmen scrambling to their aircraft at its centre. Unveiled on 18th September, 2005, the 65th anniversary of the battle. For more information, see www.bbm.org.uk
5. The National Firefighters Memorial – Marking the role played by firefighters during the Blitz of London in World War II (as well as the role of firefighters generally), the memorial (pictured right) was designed by John Mills and features the “Blitz” statue – two life-sized firefighters and an officer cast in bronze – standing atop a plinth. First unveiled in by Queen Elizabeth II in 1991, it originally featured the names of 997 men and women who died during the Blitz inscribed upon it but this was extended to include firefighters who have died in peacetime and an additional 1192 names were added prior to a rededication in 2003. Located just south of St Paul’s on the main route to the Millennium Bridge, it is the focus of the annual Firefighters Day of Remembrance held each September. For more information, see www.firefightersmemorial.co.uk.
6. The Animals in War Memorial – Commemorating all the animals that died alongside British, Commonwealth and Allied forces during the wars and conflicts of the 20th century, this unusual monument at Brook Gate in Park Lane was unveiled in 2004. The sculptures include two mules, a horse and a dog all cast in bronze while other animals are depicted in bas-relief on a wall of Portland stone. For more information, see www.animalsinwar.org.uk
7. Canada Memorial - Located in Green Park (just inside Canada Gate), the memorial, designed by Quebec artist Pierre Granche, honors the more than 100,000 Canadians who died in the world wars as well as the more than one million who served. Made of red granite inset with bronze maple leaves, it was designed to create the impression of maple leaves floating down a stream. Unveiled by Queen Elizabeth II in 1994. www.vac-acc.gc.ca/remembers/sub.cfm?source=memorials/ww2mem/green-park-memorial
8. Australian War Memorial – Located close to Wellington Arch at Hyde Park Corner, this monumental wall (pictured right) marks the role Australians played in both World Wars. More than 100,000 Australians died during the conflicts and the names of the 23,844 towns in which they were born are inscribed on the wall over which is superimposed the names of 47 battles in which Australians fought in. Unveiled on the 85th anniversary of Armistice Day, 2003. For more information, see www.awmlondon.gov.au.
9. New Zealand War Memorial – Located at Hyde Park Corner diagonally opposite the Australian War Memorial, this monument was designed by architect John Hardwick-Smith and sculptor Paul Dibble and features 16 bronze cross-shaped ‘standards’ of varying heights set in formation and inscribed with text, patterns and some small sculptures. Dedicated on Armistice Day, 2006, by Queen Elizabeth II.
10. Soviet War Memorial - Found in the Geraldine Mary Harmsworth Park – adjacent to the Imperial War Museum in Southwark, the Soviet War Memorial was unveiled in 1999. Designed by sculptor Sergei Shcherbakov, it commemorates the 27 million people who died in the Soviet Union during World War II. For more information, see www.scrss.org.uk/sovietmemorial.htm.
