Archive for March, 2009
Thursday, March 26th, 2009
In England around 12 eight-sailers, more than 50 six- and 50 five-sailers were built in the late 18th and 19th centuries, half of them in Lincolnshire. Of the eight sailed mills only Pocklington’s Mill in Heckington survived in fully functional state. A few of the other ones exist as four-sailed mills (Old Buckenham), as residences (Diss Button’s Mill), as ruins (Leach’s Windmill, Wisbech), or have been dismantled (Holbeach Mill; Skirbeck Mill, Boston). In Lincolnshire some of the six-sailed (Sibsey Trader Mill, Waltham Windmill) and five-sailed (Dobson’s Mill in Burgh le Marsh, Maud Foster Windmill in Boston, Hoyle’s Mill in Alford) slender (mostly tarred) tower mills with their white onion-shaped cap and a huge fantail are still there and working today. Other former five- and six-sailed Lincolnshire and Yorkshire tower mills now without sails and partly without cap are LeTall’s Mill in Lincoln, Holgate Windmill in Holgate, York 
(momentarily undergoing a restoration programme), Black, Cliff, or Whiting’s Mill (a seven-storeyed chalk mill) in Hessle and (with originally six sails) Barton-upon-Humber Tower mill, Brunswick Mill in Long Sutton, Lincolnshire, Metheringham Windmill, Penny Hill Windmill in Holbeach, Wragby Mill (built by E. Ingledew in 1831, millwright of Heckington Mill in 1830), and Wellingore Tower Mill. Another fine six-sailer can be found in Derbyshire - England’s only sandstone towered windmill at Heage of 1791.
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Thursday, March 26th, 2009
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is a charity that saves lives at sea around the coasts of the British Isles, as well as inshore. It was founded on 4 March 1824 as the National Institution for the Preservation of Life from Shipwreck, adopting the present name in 1854. The RNLI operates over 230 lifeboat stations around the coasts of Great Britain and Ireland. Since 1980, lifeboat rescues have doubled; the RNLI rescues an average of 22 people each day.
The charity also employs lifeguards on beaches in southwest England, south Wales and Norfolk. In 2008, this service was expanded to cover over 100 beaches. The RNLI is funded entirely by voluntary donations and legacies (together with tax reclaims), and has an annual budget of £130 million.
Sir William Hillary came to live on the Isle of Man in 1808. Being aware of the treacherous nature of the Irish Sea, with many ships being wrecked around the Manx coast, he drew up plans for a national lifeboat service manned by trained crews. Initially he received little response from the Admiralty but on appealing to the more philanthropic members of London society, the plans were adopted with the help of two members of parliament - Thomas Wilson and George Hibbert - the National Institution for the Preservation of Life from Shipwreck was founded in 1824.
Thirty years later the title changed to the Royal National Lifeboat Institution and the first of the new lifeboats to be built was stationed at Douglas in recognition of the work of Sir William.
At the age of 60 Sir William took part in the rescue, in 1830, of the packet St George, which had foundered on Conister Rock at the entrance to Douglas harbour. He commanded the lifeboat and was washed overboard with others of the lifeboat crew, yet finally everyone aboard the St George was rescued with no loss of life. It was this incident which prompted Sir William to set up a scheme to build The Tower of Refuge on Conister Rock - a project completed in 1832 which stands to this day at the entrance to Douglas Harbour.
In its first year, the RNLI added 12 boats to the existing 39 independent lifeboats.[3] By 1908 there were 280 RNLI lifeboats and 17 independents.
The headquarters of the RNLI are in Poole, Dorset. The RNLI site is located adjacent to the Holes Bay in Poole Harbour. It includes RNLI HQ, lifeboat maintenance and repair facilities, the Lifeboat Support Centre and the National Training Centre, the Lifeboat College. The support centre and college were opened by Queen Elizabeth II in 2004.[6] Specialist training facilities include a wave and capsize pool, a fire simulator, a bridge simulator and a live engineering workshop.
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Thursday, March 26th, 2009
The London tradition of the Pearly Kings and Queens was begun in 1875, by a small boy named Henry Croft. Henry was born in 1862 and raised in an orphanage in Somers Town, London NW1. At the age of 13 he left the orphanage to become a Municipal Road Sweeper and Rat Catcher in the market of Somers Town.
Henry worked hard in the market and soon made many friends. He was particularly drawn to the Coster Mongers, a tough breed of market trader. The Coster Mongers wore ‘Flash Boy Outfits’ to distinguish themselves from the other market traders. This involved decorating their trousers and waistcoats with a row of pearl buttons down the seams. Their distinctive costumes are said to have sprung from the arrival of a large cargo of pearl-buttons from Japan in the 1860’s.
The Costers looked after one another and often, if another coster was in need, they would have a ‘whip 
round’ (collection) for him. Traditionally, costers elected ‘Kings’ to lead them against bullies seeking to drive them from their pitches. Henry was fascinated by this way of life and decided he would like to help the unfortunates and aswell as the children back at the orphanage. He decided that in order to raise substantial amounts of money he needed to draw attention to himself. He decided to take the concept of the Coster Monger’s outfits one step further, totally covering his suit with pearl buttons. He spent many long nights preparing this suit and eventually emerged, at a local carnival, sporting a suit covered in tiny pearly buttons.
Henry became an instant attraction and was approached by many hospitals and churches to help raise funds for the poor, deaf, dumb and blind. Henry worked very hard for these charities but found himself eager to do more. He asked his friends, and the Coster Mongers, for help. Eventually there was Pearly Family for every London Borough and thus the Pearly monarchy began. It is estimated that when he died in 1930 (aged 68), he had collected over £5000. This roughly equates to £200,000 in todays money.
His funeral was so spectacular it was filmed by Pathe News. All of the Pearlies attended (roughly 400) and followed the coffin to Finchley Cemetery where Henry was buried. A statue was erected over the grave by the many charities he helped, showing Henry wearing his famous buttoned suit.
Today’s Pearlies are dedicated charity workers who are continually assisting with fund raising activities for a multitude of different organisations. The Pearly motto is “One Never Knows”. The Pearly tradition has survived for over 130 years. There are still approximately 40 active families working today across the London boroughs, collecting for a multitude of different charities.
Several of the Pearly families can be traced back to the original generation. Henry Croft’s family for example,continues the tradition with his great-granddaughter wearing the title of` ‘Somers Town’. Sadly the two world wars of the early twentieth century took a heavy toll and many of the original families were lost. In order to survive, the Pearlies needed to recruit new members.
This was achieved by enlisting people who had helped the Pearlies over the years with their charity work. The main succession today of a Pearly is by inheritance. In 1975 the Original Pearly Kings and Queens Association was reformed and now meets every month in the crypt in St. Martins in the Field, Trafalgar Square.
The Pearlies are dedicated to helping the Church of St. Martins and all attend the Harvest Festival Service held on the first Sunday in October. They also hold a Memorial Service for past pearlies on the third Sunday in May. (They choose this date as it is the nearest to Henrys Croft’s birthday, May 24th)
The magnificent suits, hats and dresses, handed down together with hereditary titles, are sewn with mystic symbols, stars, moons, suns, flowers, diamonds, Trees of Life, Eyes of God and fertility designs. Each outfit can have as many as 30,000 buttons on it and can weigh as much as 30 kilograms.
Pearlies continue to work hard raising money for charities and can often be seen around London participating in various Parades and Carnivals.
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Wednesday, March 4th, 2009
York Minster is the largest medieval cathedral in England and the seat of the Archbishop of York.
The first church on the site was a wooden structure built in a hurry in 627 to provide a place to baptise Edwin, King of Northumbria. It wasn’t until 1220 that the construction of the Minster that we know today began.
York Minster is particularly of interest to art-lovers, especially those of stained glass, the Great East Window being the biggest medieval example of its kind in the world (the size of a tennis court). The cathedral also boasts the widest nave in England, a 10.8-tonne bell called Great Peter, several regimental chapels and the incomparable Chapter House.
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Wednesday, March 4th, 2009
Every May Day, outside the village pubs of England, strangely clad people can be seen leaping into the air, waving handkerchiefs and sticks, with bells jingling from their clothing. This traditional ritual to welcome the return of spring is called Morris dancing, and it goes back at least to the 15th century.
Despite its early origins, Morris dancing is a reinvented tradition, part of the great British folk revival of the late 19th century. At the time, it had died out in all but a few villages, but was revived by folk music researcher Cecil Sharp.
Today, Morris deancing can be found not just across Britain, but in the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong.
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