The Cerne Abbas Giant

Cerne Abbas Giant

The origin and age of the figure are unclear. It is often thought of as an ancient construction, though the earliest mention of it dates to the late 17th century. Early antiquarians associated it, on little evidence, with a Saxon deity, while other scholars sought to identify it with a Celtic British figure of the Roman Hercules or some syncretization of the two. Archaeological evidence that parts of the drawing have been lost over time strengthen the Hercules identification. The lack of earlier descriptions leads modern scholars to conclude that it may date from the 17th century, and perhaps originated as political satire.

Regardless of its age, the Cerne Abbas Giant has become an important part of local culture and folklore, which often associates it with fertility. It is one of England’s best known hill figures and is a visitor attraction in the region.

The Cerne Abbas Giant is located just outside the small village of Cerne Abbas in Dorset, about 48 kilometres (30 mi) west of Bournemouth and 26 kilometres (16 mi) north of Weymouth. The figure depicts a huge naked man, about 55 metres (180 ft) high and 51 metres (167 ft) wide. It is carved into the white chalk rock on the steep west-facing side of a hill known as Giant Hill or Trendle Hill.Atop the hill is another landmark, the Iron Age earthwork known as the «Trendle» or «Frying Pan». The carving is formed by outlines cut into the turf about 0.6 metres (2 ft 0 in) deep, and filled with crushed chalk. In his right hand the giant holds a knobbled club 37 metres (121 ft) in length, and adding 11 metres (36 ft) to the total height of the figure. A line across the waist is considered to be a belt. Writing in 1901 in the Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society, Henry Colley March noted that: «The Cerne Giant presents five characteristics: (1) It is petrographic … It is, therefore, a rock carving … (2) It is colossal … (3) It is nude. … (4) It isithyphallic … (5) The Giant is clavigerous. It bears a weapon in its right hand.»

A 1996 study found that some features have changed over time, concluding that the figure originally held a cloak in its left arm and stood over a disembodied head. The former presence of a cloak was corroborated in 2008 when a team of archaeologists using special equipment determined that part of the carving had been allowed to be obliterated. The cloak may have been a depiction of an animal skin, giving credence to the theory that the giant was a depiction of a hunter, or alternatively, Hercules with the skin of the Nemean lion over his arm. Additionally, reviewing historical depictions of the giant, it has been suggested that the Giant’s current large erection is, in fact, the result of merging a circle representing his navel with a smaller penis during a re-cut. In 1993, the National Trust gave the Giant a «nose job» after years of erosion had worn it away.

The Giant sports an erection, including its testicles, some 11 metres (36 feet) long, and nearly the length of its head. It has been called «Britain’s most famous phallus». One commentator noted that postcards of the Giant were the only indecent photographs that could be sent through the English Post Office.

The carving is most commonly known as the Cerne Abbas Giant. The National Trust and others call it the «Cerne Giant», while English Heritage and Dorset County Council call it simply «The Giant». The carving has also been referred to as the «Old Man», and more recently it has been referred to as the «Rude Man» of Cerne.

Although the best view of the Giant is from the air, most tourist guides recommend a ground view from the «Giant’s View» lay-by and car park off the A352. This area was developed in 1979 in a joint project between the Dorset County Planning Department, the National Trust, Nature Conservancy Council (now called English Nature), the Dorset Naturalists Trusts, the Department of the Environment, and local land-owners. The information panel there was devised by the National Trust and Dorset County Council.

Whatever its origin, the giant has become an important part of the culture and folklore of Dorset. Some folk stories indicate that the image is an outline of the corpse of a real giant. One story says the giant came from Denmark leading an invasion of the coast, and was beheaded by the people of Cerne Abbas while he slept on the hillside.

Other folklore, first recorded in the Victorian era, associates the figure with fertility. In the past locals would erect a maypole on the earthwork, around which childless couples would dance to promote fertility. According to folk belief, a woman who sleeps on the figure will be blessed with fecundity, and infertility may be cured through sexual intercourse on top of the figure, especially the phallus. In 1808, Dorset poet William Holloway published his poem «The Giant of Trendle Hill», in which the Giant is killed by the locals by piercing its heart.

 

 

Loch Ness Monster

 

Loch Ness Monster

In folklore, the Loch Ness Monster is an aquatic being which reputedly inhabits Loch Ness in the Scottish Highlands. It is similar to other supposed lake monsters in Scotland and elsewhere, although its description varies; it is described by most as large. Popular interest and belief in the creature has varied since it was brought to worldwide attention in 1933. Evidence of its existence is anecdotal, with few, disputed photographs and sonar readings.

 

The creature commonly appears in Western media where it manifests in a variety of ways. For example, a fraction of believers propose that the creature represents a line of long-surviving, dinosaurs (including adherents of cryptozoology, a pseudoscience). However, the scientific community regards the Loch Ness Monster as a being from folklore without biological basis, explaining sightings as misidentifications of mundane objects, hoaxes, and wishful thinking.

 

The earliest report of a monster in the vicinity of Loch Ness appears in the Life of St. Columba by Adomnán, written in the seventh century AD. According to Adomnán, writing about a century after the events described, Irish monk Saint Columba was staying in the land of the Picts with his companions when he encountered local residents burying a man by the River Ness. They explained that the man was swimming in the river when he was attacked by a «water beast» which mauled him and dragged him underwater. Although they tried to rescue him in a boat, he was dead. Columba sent a follower, Luigne moccu Min, to swim across the river. The beast approached him, but Columba made the sign of the cross and said: «Go no further. Do not touch the man. Go back at once.» The creature stopped as if it had been «pulled back with ropes» and fled, and Columba’s men and the Picts gave thanks for what they perceived as a miracle.

 

Believers in the monster point to this story, set in the River Ness rather than the loch itself, as evidence for the creature’s existence as early as the sixth century. Sceptics question the narrative’s reliability, noting that water-beast stories were extremely common in medieval hagiographies and Adomnán’s tale probably recycles a common motif attached to a local landmark. According to sceptics, Adomnán’s story may be independent of the modern Loch Ness Monster legend and became attached to it by believers seeking to bolster their claims. According to R. Binns, this account is the most credible of the early sightings of the monster; all other claims before 1933 are dubious and do not prove a tradition of sightings before that date.

 

The «surgeon’s photograph» is reportedly the first photo of the creature’s head and neck. Supposedly taken by Robert Kenneth Wilson, a London gynaecologist, it was published in the Daily Mail on 21 April 1934. Wilson’s refusal to have his name associated with it led to it being known as the «surgeon’s photograph». According to Wilson, he was looking at the loch when he saw the monster, grabbed his camera and snapped four photos. Only two exposures came out clearly; the first reportedly shows a small head and back, and the second shows a similar head in a diving position. The first photo became well-known, and the second attracted little publicity because of its blurriness.

 

Although for a number of years the photo was considered evidence of the monster, sceptics dismissed it as driftwood, an elephant, an otter, or a bird. The photo’s scale was controversial; it is often shown cropped (making the creature seem large and the ripples like waves), while the uncropped shot shows the other end of the loch and the monster in the centre. The ripples in the photo were found to fit the size and pattern of small ripples, unlike large waves photographed up close. Analysis of the original image fostered further doubt. In 1993, the makers of the Discovery Communications documentary Loch Ness Discovered analysed the uncropped image and found a white object visible in every version of the photo (implying that it was on the negative). It was believed to be the cause of the ripples, as if the object was being towed, although the possibility of a blemish on the negative could not be ruled out. An analysis of the full photograph indicated that the object was small, about 60 to 90 cm (2 to 3 ft) long.

 

Since 1994, most agree that the photo was an elaborate hoax. It had been accused of being a fake in a 7 December 1975 Sunday Telegraph article which fell into obscurity. Details of how the photo was taken were published in the 1999 book, Nessie – the Surgeon’s Photograph Exposed, which contains a facsimile of the 1975 Sunday Telegrapharticle. The creature was reportedly a toy submarine built by Christian Spurling, the son-in-law of Marmaduke Wetherell. Wetherell had been publicly ridiculed by his employer, the Daily Mail, after he found «Nessie footprints» which turned out to be a hoax. To get revenge on the Mail, Wetherell perpetrated his hoax with co-conspirators Spurling (sculpture specialist), Ian Wetherell (his son, who bought the material for the fake), and Maurice Chambers (an insurance agent). The toy submarine was bought from F. W. Woolworths, and its head and neck were made from wood putty. After testing it in a local pond the group went to Loch Ness, where Ian Wetherell took the photos near the Altsaigh Tea House. When they heard a water bailiff approaching, Duke Wetherell sank the model with his foot and it is «presumably still somewhere in Loch Ness». Chambers gave the photographic plates to Wilson, a friend of his who enjoyed «a good practical joke». Wilson brought the plates to Ogston’s, an Inverness chemist, and gave them to George Morrison for development. He sold the first photo to the Daily Mail, who then announced that the monster had been photographed.

 

Little is known of the second photo; it is often ignored by researchers, who believe its quality too poor and its differences from the first photo too great to warrant analysis. It shows a head similar to the first photo, with a more turbulent wave pattern and possibly taken at a different time and location in the loch. Some believe it to be an earlier, cruder attempt at a hoax, and others (including Roy Mackal and Maurice Burton) consider it a picture of a diving bird or otter which Wilson mistook for the monster. According to Morrison, when the plates were developed Wilson was uninterested in the second photo; he allowed Morrison to keep the negative, and the second photo was rediscovered years later. When asked about the second photo by the Ness Information Service Newsletter, Spurling » … was vague, thought it might have been a piece of wood they were trying out as a monster, but [was] not sure.»

The hoax story is disputed by Henry Bauer, who claims that the debunking is evidence of bias and asks why the perpetrators did not reveal their plot earlier to embarrass the newspaper. According to Alastair Boyd, a researcher who uncovered the hoax, the Loch Ness Monster is real; the surgeon’s photo hoax does not mean that other photos, eyewitness reports, and footage of the creature are also, and he claims to have seen it.

 

Tim Dinsdale disputes the claim that the photograph is a hoax in his book, Loch Ness Monster, after reportedly extensively studying the photograph from a number of angles: «Upon really close examination, there are certain rather obscure features in the picture which have a profound significance.» Two are a solid object breaking the surface to the right of the neck and a mark to the left and behind the neck. According to Dinsdale, the objects are either a subtle fake or part of the monster. Others are vague, small ripples behind the neck, apparently after the neck broke the surface.

 

On 3 August 2012, skipper George Edwards published what he claimed to be «the most convincing Nessie photograph ever», which he said he took on 2 November 2011. Edwards’ photograph shows a hump above the water which, he said, remained there for five to ten minutes. According to Edwards, the photograph was independently verified by a Nessie sighting specialist and a group of US military monster experts. Edwards reportedly spent 60 hours per week on the loch aboard his boat, Nessie Hunter IV, on which he takes tourists for rides on the lake and claimed to have searched for the monster for 26 years. Edwards said, «In my opinion, it probably looks kind of like a manatee, but not a mammal. When people see three humps, they’re probably just seeing three separate monsters.»

 

Other researchers have questioned the photograph’s authenticity, and Loch Ness researcher Steve Feltham suggested that the object in the water is a fibreglass hump used in aNational Geographic Channel documentary in which Edwards had participated. Researcher Dick Raynor has questioned Edwards’ claim of discovering a deeper bottom of Loch Ness, which Raynor calls «Edwards Deep». He found inconsistencies between Edwards’ claims for the location and conditions of the photograph and the actual location and weather conditions that day. According to Raynor, Edwards told him he had faked a photograph in 1986 which he claimed was genuine in the Nat Geo documentary. Although Edwards admitted in October 2013 that his 2011 photograph was a hoax, he insisted that the 1986 photograph was genuine.

Brief history of the Olympic Games

 

Brief history of the Olympic Games

 

The Ancient Olympic Games were religious and athletic festivals held every four years at the sanctuary of Zeus in Olympia, Greece. Competition was among representatives of several city-states and kingdoms of Ancient Greece. These Games featured mainly athletic but also combat sports such as wrestling and the pankration, horse and chariot racing events. It has been widely written that during the Games, all conflicts among the participating city-states were postponed until the Games were finished. This cessation of hostilities was known as the Olympic peace or truce. This idea is a modern myth because the Greeks never suspended their wars. The truce did allow those religious pilgrims who were traveling to Olympia to pass through warring territories unmolested because they were protected by Zeus. The origin of the Olympics is shrouded in mystery and legend; one of the most popular myths identifies Heracles and his father Zeus as the progenitors of the Games. According to legend, it was Heracles who first called the Games «Olympic» and established the custom of holding them every four years. The myth continues that after Heracles completed his twelve labors, he built the Olympic Stadium as an honor to Zeus. Following its completion, he walked in a straight line for 200 steps and called this distance a «stadion», which later became a unit of distance. The most widely accepted inception date for the Ancient Olympics is 776 BC; this is based on inscriptions, found at Olympia, listing the winners of a footrace held every four years starting in 776 BC. The Ancient Games featured running events, a pentathlon (consisting of a jumping event, discus and javelin throws, a foot race, and wrestling), boxing, wrestling, pankration, and equestrian events. Tradition has it that Coroebus, a cook from the city of Elis, was the first Olympic champion.

The Olympics were of fundamental religious importance, featuring sporting events alongside ritual sacrifices honoring both Zeus (whose famous statue by Phidias stood in his temple at Olympia) and Pelops, divine hero and mythical king of Olympia. Pelops was famous for his chariot race with King Oenomaus of Pisatis. The winners of the events were admired and immortalized in poems and statues. The Games were held every four years, and this period, known as an Olympiad, was used by Greeks as one of their units of time measurement. The Games were part of a cycle known as the Panhellenic Games, which included the Pythian Games, the Nemean Games, and the Isthmian Games.

The Olympic Games reached their zenith in the 6th and 5th centuries BC, but then gradually declined in importance as the Romans gained power and influence in Greece. While there is no scholarly consensus as to when the Games officially ended, the most commonly held date is 393 AD, when the emperor Theodosius I decreed that all pagan cults and practices be eliminated. Another date commonly cited is 426 AD, when his successor, Theodosius II, ordered the destruction of all Greek temples.

Greek interest in reviving the Olympic Games began with the Greek War of Independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1821. It was first proposed by poet and newspaper editor Panagiotis Soutsos in his poem «Dialogue of the Dead», published in 1833. Evangelos Zappas, a wealthy Greek-Romanian philanthropist, first wrote to King Otto of Greece, in 1856, offering to fund a permanent revival of the Olympic Games. Zappas sponsored the first Olympic Games in 1859, which was held in an Athens city square. Athletes participated from Greece and the Ottoman Empire. Zappas funded the restoration of the ancient Panathenaic Stadium so that it could host all future Olympic Games.

The stadium hosted Olympics in 1870 and 1875. Thirty thousand spectators attended that Games in 1870, though no official attendance records are available for the 1875 Games. In 1890, after attending the Olympian Games of the Wenlock Olympian Society, Baron Pierre de Coubertin was inspired to found the International Olympic Committee (IOC). Coubertin built on the ideas and work of Brookes and Zappas with the aim of establishing internationally rotating Olympic Games that would occur every four years. He presented these ideas during the first Olympic Congress of the newly created International Olympic Committee. This meeting was held from 16 to 23 June 1894, at the University of Paris. On the last day of the Congress, it was decided that the first Olympic Games to come under the auspices of the IOC would take place in Athens in 1896. The IOC elected the Greek writer Demetrius Vikelas as its first president

The first Games held under the auspices of the IOC was hosted in the Panathenaic Stadium in Athens in 1896. The Games brought together 14 nations and 241 athletes who competed in 43 events. Zappas and his cousin Konstantinos Zappas had left the Greek government a trust to fund future Olympic Games. This trust was used to help finance the 1896 Games. George Averoff contributed generously for the refurbishment of the stadium in preparation for the Games. The Greek government also provided funding, which was expected to be recouped through the sale of tickets and from the sale of the first Olympic commemorative stamp set.

Greek officials and the public were enthusiastic about the experience of hosting an Olympic Games. This feeling was shared by many of the athletes, who even demanded that Athens be the permanent Olympic host city. The IOC intended for subsequent Games to be rotated to various host cities around the world. The second Olympics was held in Paris.

The myth of East Barnet

 

 

At first encounter, East Barnet, a leafy North London suburb, appears calm, comfortable, and conventional. But beneath the superficial lies the supernatural. For this is an area that seems to have attracted and retained more than its fair share of myths and legends over the thousand or so years of its recorded history.

 

 

The ghost of a medieval knight who has appeared in full armour on horse-back galloping across East Barnet’s Oak Hill Park, and an ancient oak tree that burst into flames on a clear summer’s day early in the 20th century are just two of dozens of legends about the area that persist to the present day.

 

In the time of William the First, the Norman king who conquered England following the battle of Hastings in 1066, East Barnet was a heavily wooded area that included much of what is now known as Chipping or High Barnet – where the Battle of Barnet, a deciding factor in the War of the Roses (1455-1485) took place – Monken Hadley, Hadley Woods, Friern Barnet and even as far out as South Mimms, now on the M25 motorway box around London. Much of this land belonged to the Abbot of St Albans, but in return for resisting William, the southern section was taken from him and passed to the Bishop of London.

 

Among the knights who fought alongside William at Hastings was a Norman landowner Geoffrey de Mandeville. He was rewarded with the grant of large stretches of land in Essex, Middlesex, and adjoining counties. By the time his grandson, also named Geoffrey, inherited the title of Earl of Essex, much of the land that went with it had been lost through the mistakes of his father, William. But the young Sir Geoffrey was not deterred and set out to recover the family’s fortunes by whatever means were available to him.

 

His harsh methods and political manoeuvering brought results and by 1141 Sir Geoffrey had become the premier baron of England. But his ruthlessness also created powerful enemies and in 1143 he was excommunicated for his ill-treatment of religious groups. When, accused of treason by the King, Stephen, he died a bloody death the following year, a Christian burial was denied him. It is this lack of a Christian burial which is said to cause his ghost to haunt what remains of the woods at East Barnet and Hadley.

 

The legend of the ghost of Sir Geoffrey de Mandeville has been sufficiently substantiated to be recorded on the official Pymmes Brook Trail information board alongside the brook, which flows through Oak Hill Park and is believed by some to be a conduit for the reported psychic forces and manifestations in this area.

Seventy years ago, an eminent Justice of the Peace described Church Hill Road, which edges Oak Hill Park, as the «The Ghosts’ Promenade», such were the volume of spectral sightings associated with it. And as the local newspaper, the Barnet Press, put it, «Headless hounds, decapitated bodies, spectres in the trees – the list of ghostly experiences at Oak Hill Park in East Barnet seems to go on and on.»

 

 

In the early 1930s an ancient oak tree within the Park and alongside Church Hill Road burst into flames on a clear summer day. When no apparent cause could be found for the conflagration, the mysterious phenomena of spontaneous combustion was suggested. But speculation developed rapidly and has never been resolved, particularly when it was noted that this tree was not just one of many. It had a special distinction.

This was the actual oak tree under which the famous 18th century religious visionary and prophetess Joanna Southcott, used to sit during her many visits to friends in East Barnet. It was here that she was said to have received the inspiration that she was the woman described in Chapter 12 of The Bible’s Book of Revelation, leading to her many predictions and secrets supposedly contained after her death in the infamous Joanna Southcott’s box about which controversy has never totally subsided.

Legend of Richmond Castle

Legend of Richmond Castle

 

High on a cliff above the River Swale in North Yorkshire sits Richmond Castle. Built by Alan the Red after the Norman Conquest in the late 11th century, the castle is one of the finest Norman castles in Britain. Indeed, there are only two other stone built castles in England that are as old as Richmond: those at Colchester and Durham.

 

Maintained by English Heritage, Richmond Castle is a popular destination for tourists. There are glorious views over Richmond and the Yorkshire Dales from the top of the 12th century keep which was built over the original 11th century gate house. Scolland’s Hall, named after a Constable of the Castle, is a fine example of a Norman great hall.

 

Richmond Castle is also one of the places associated with King Arthur and his knights. According to legend, the castle is built over a cave where King Arthur and his knights are sleeping in their tombs, waiting to rise from their slumber to defend England in her hour of need.

 

It is said that whilst out for a walk, a local potter called Peter Thompson found his way by chance into this cave. There he saw King Arthur’s horn and his sword Excalibur lying on top of one of the richly carved tombs. Intrigued, Peter picked up the sword. Immediately he was deafened by a thundering clatter of armour all around him and slowly the tombs began to open. Terrified, he promptly replaced the sword and instantly the noise stopped and all was still.

 

As he fled from the cave, half crazed with terror, Peter heard a voice say:

 

“Potter Thompson, Potter Thompson

Hadst thou blown the Horn

Thou hadst been the greatest man

That ever was born.”

 

He stopped only to block the entrance so that no-one else would stumble upon the sleeping knights.

 

Richmond Castle is maintained by English Heritage

 

 

 

The English Oak

The English Oak

 

The mighty English oak* is woven into the history and folklore of England.

 

Druids would worship in oak groves, couples would marry under their spreading branches and the Yule Log, decorated for Christmas with holly and mistletoe, was traditionally cut from oak. Acorns, the fruit of the oak, were carried by folk as charms to bring good luck and good health.

 

The timber, prized for its strength and durability, is still used in the construction of houses, furniture making and of course, shipbuilding. The English oak has always enjoyed a close association with the Royal Navy, whose ships were constructed from oak timbers until the middle of the 19th century, earning the Senior Service the nickname ‘the Wooden Walls of Old England’. Since the Restoration of the Monarchy in 1660 there have been eight warships called HMS Royal Oak, and ‘Heart of Oak’ is the official march of the Royal Navy.

 

Over the centuries, oak has been used to make barrels to store wines and spirits, and its bark is also used in the leather tanning process.  Until the early twentieth century, the large round growths found on the trunks of oak trees, known as called oak galls, were used in the production of ink.

 

More recently, the image of an oak tree has appeared on the reverse of the pound coin and the National Trust uses a sprig of oak leaves and acorns as its emblem. ‘The Royal Oak’ is also one of the most popular names for pubs in Britain!

 

The oak even plays a part in weather prediction:

If the oak before the ash,

Then we’ll only have a splash.

If the ash before the oak,

Then we’ll surely have a soak!

 

There are more oaks in England than any other woodland tree. Their distinctive shape makes them easy to spot in the English landscape. Because of their size (they can grow to over 30 metres) and the fact they can live for over 1,000 years, much of the folklore surrounding these mighty trees concerns individual oaks.

 

Perhaps the most famous of these is the Royal Oak, in which the future King Charles II is said to have hidden from the Roundheads at Boscobel House following the Battle of Worcester in 1651 during the English Civil War. The king’s own account, dictated some years later to Samuel Pepys, records how he hid in a great oak tree whilst Parliamentarian soldiers searched below. After the Restoration in 1660, Charles inaugurated 29th May as Royal Oak Day (or Oak Apple Day) to celebrate his escape.

 

Another ancient oak is to be found in Greenwich Park, London. It is believed that Queen Elizabeth’s Oak  dates back to the 12th century; according to legend, King Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn once danced around it and Queen Elizabeth I picnicked under it. Unfortunately this illustrious tree was brought down in a heavy storm in 1991 but it remains, slowly decaying, in the park with a young oak planted beside it.

 

In Leicestershire, ancient pollarded oaks can be found in Bradgate Park. These trees were allegedly ‘decapitated’ in 1554 by foresters as a sign of respect, following the beheading of Lady Jane Grey who was born at nearby Bradgate Hall.

 

At the foot of Glastonbury Tor in Somerset stand two very ancient oaks, reputedly over 2000 years old and known as Gog and Magog. It is thought they may be the last remnants of an avenue of oaks leading up to the Tor, itself steeped in myth and legend.

 

Today the Major Oak is reputed to be the UK’s largest oak tree. It stands in the heart of Sherwood Forest and according to legend, Robin Hood and his Merry Men would camp under its canopy. A popular tourist attraction, the veteran tree is thought to be around 800 to 1000 years old.

Wimbledon

Wimbledon

The Championships, Wimbledon, or just Wimbledon as it is more commonly referred to, is the oldest tennis tournament in the world and arguably the most famous. Since the first tournament 125 years ago in 1877, The Championships have been hosted by the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, London and take place over two weeks in late June – early July.

 

Of the four major annual tennis tournaments known as the ‘Grand Slams’, Wimbledon is the only one to still be played on grass, which is where the name lawn tennis originated. Grass is also the surface which provides the fastest game of tennis. Of the other three, the Australian Open and the US Open are both played on hard courts and the French Open is played on clay.

 

In stark contrast to today’s sporting extravaganza, the first year of the Championships took place with very little fanfare. The All England Club had originally been called the All England Croquet Club when it opened in 1869, but as the new game of lawn tennis – an offshoot of the original indoor racquet sport known by traditionalists as ‘real tennis’ – began to grow in popularity at the end of the nineteenth century, the club decided to provide tennis courts for their visitors. On 14 April 1877 the Club introduced the first of a number of name changes to become the All England Croquet and Lawn Tennis Club.

 

Unlike today’s tournament, which involves four junior and four invitation competitions alongside the five main contests – the men’s single and double matches, the women’s single and double matches and the mixed doubles – the first Wimbledon championships had one event, the Gentleman’s Singles. As it was not permissible for women to enter the tournament in 1877, the first Wimbledon champion from a group of twenty-two male competitors was twenty seven year old Spencer William Gore. In front of a crowd of 200, who had paid a shilling apiece to attend, Gore beat his opponent William Marshall in a decisive 6-1, 6-2, 6-4 defeat lasting only forty-eight minutes. As would also be the tradition for many Wimbledon tournaments to follow until a retractable roof was installed over centre court in 2009, the final was postponed due to rain. When it was eventually played three days later the weather conditions had not greatly improved.

 

The game of lawn tennis was still in its infancy at this stage, with players using basic handmade equipment and imprecise strokes, unlike the slick powerful serves and top of the range rackets we see today. However, modern day Wimbledon spectators would be sure to recognise many of the rules of the game which were first introduced by the All England Club’s Committee in 1877 as an adaptation of those put in place by the Marylebone Cricket Club, perversely the then controlling body of ‘real’ tennis.

 

Whilst no tournaments were held at Wimbledon during 1915-1918 and 1940-1945 because of the First and Second World Wars, the game continued to grow in popularity. In 1884 the men’s doubles competition was introduced and the same year women were also invited to join the tournament. In the fifties the club moved from its original rented site on Worple Road to the larger, present day Church Road site and in 1967 the tournament made history when the event became the first broadcast to ever be televised in colour.

 

Wimbledon Fashion

The accepted outfit of choice for Wimbledon players in the nineteenth century was plain white long-sleeved shirts and trousers for men and full-length corseted white dresses and hats for women. It was not until the 1920s and 1930s that the players, and particularly the female players, began to experiment with their clothing. Shorter skirts, shorts and sleeveless tops were all introduced, some more daringly than others, to provide ease of movement and a sense of individual personality.

 

As far back as the nineteen thirties the French grand slam winner René Lacoste promoted his own eponymous label by wearing his crocodile emblazoned shirts whilst on court. However, today Wimbledon is besieged with the current sports logos of choice as tennis outfits seem to be less about comfort or individuality and more often than not, a result of the multi-million pound sponsorship deals with sportswear giants. Indeed even the ball boys and girls have left behind the traditional Wimbledon colours of green and purple and have sported navy and cream uniforms created by the American fashion designer Ralph Lauren since 2006.

 

Wimbledon traditions

Although much has changed since the Wimbledon Championships were first introduced in 1887, today when we think of Wimbledon fortnight there are a number of traditional images that still spring to mind. The obligatory strawberries and cream (of which it is estimated that 28,000 kilos of English strawberries and 7000 litres of cream are consumed each year!), the white or almost all white dress code which is still a requirement, or the strong ties with the Royal family to name but a few. All of which combined continue to preserve Wimbledon’s place both in British heritage and at the forefront of the tennis world.

 

Kings and Queens of England and Britain IX

Kings and Queens of England and Britain IX

There have been 66 monarchs of England and Britain spread over a period of 1500 years. In today´s post we are going to finish talking about The Restoration and start with the Hanovarians.

JAMES II and VII of Scotland 1685 – 1688

The second surviving son of Charles I and younger brother of Charles II. James had been exiled following the Civil War and served in both the French and Spanish Army. Although James converted to Catholicism in 1670, his two daughters were raised as Protestants. James became very unpopular because of his persecution of the Protestant clergy and was generally hated by the people. Following the Monmouth uprising (Monmouth was an illegitimate son of Charles II and a Protestant) and the Bloody Assizes of Judge Jeffries, Parliament asked the Dutch prince, William of Orange to take the throne.

William was married to Mary, James II’s Protestant daughter. William landed in England and James fled to France where he died in exile in 1701.

WILLIAM III 1689 – 1702 and MARY II 1689 – 1694

On the 5 November 1688, William of Orange sailed his fleet of over 450 ships, unopposed by the Royal Navy, into Torbay harbour and landed his troops in Devon. Gathering local support, he marched his army, now 20,000 strong, on to London in The Glorious Revolution. Many of James II’s army had defected to support William, as well as James’s other daughter Anne. William and Mary were to reign jointly, and William was to have the Crown for life after Mary died in 1694. James plotted to regain the throne and in 1689 landed in Ireland. William defeated James at the Battle of the Boyne and James fled again to France, as guest of Louis XIV.

ANNE 1702 – 1714

Anne was the second daughter of James II. She had 17 pregnancies but only one child survived – William, who died of smallpox aged just 11. A staunch, high church Protestant, Anne was 37 years old when she succeeded to the throne. Anne was a close friend of Sarah Churchill, the Duchess of Marlborough. Sarah’s husband the Duke of Marlborough commanded the English Army in the War of Spanish Succession, winning a series of major battles with the French and gaining the country an influence never before attained in Europe. It was during Anne’s reign that the United Kingdom of Great Britain was created by the Union of England and Scotland.

After Anne’s death the succession went to the nearest Protestant relative of the Stuart line. This was Sophia, daughter of Elizabeth of Bohemia, James I ‘s only daughter, but she died a few weeks before Anne and so the throne succeeded to her son George.

The Hanovarians

GEORGE I 1714 -1727

Son of Sophia and the Elector of Hanover, great-grandson of James I. The 54 year old George arrived in England able to speak only a few words of English with his 18 cooks and 2 mistresses in tow. George never learned English, so the conduct of national policy was left to the government of the time with Sir Robert Walpole becomingBritain’s first Prime Minister. In 1715 the Jacobites (followers of James Stuart, son of James II) attempted to supplant George, but the attempt failed. George spent little time in England – he preferred his beloved Hanover, although he was implicated in the South Sea Bubble financial scandal of 1720.

GEORGE II 1727-1760

Only son of George I. He was more English than his father, but still relied on Sir Robert Walpole to run the country. George was the last English king to lead his army into battle at Dettingen in 1743. In 1745 the Jacobites tried once again to restore a Stuart to the throne. Prince Charles Edward Stuart, ‘Bonnie Prince Charlie’. landed in Scotland. He was routed at Culloden Moor by the army under the Duke of Cumberland, known as ‘Butcher’ Cumberland. Bonnie Prince Charlie escaped to France with the help of Flora MacDonald, and finally died a drunkard’s death in Rome

Kings and Queens of England and Britain vol VIII

Kings and Queens of England and Britain VIII

There have been 66 monarchs of England and Britain spread over a period of 1500 years. In today´s post we are going to talk about some importants monarchs of England, Wales and Ireland.

ELIZABETH I 1558-1603
The daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn, Elizabeth was a remarkable woman, noted for her learning and wisdom. From first to last she was popular with the people and had a genius for the selection of capable advisors. Drake, Raleigh, Hawkins, the Cecils, Essex and many many more made England respected and feared. The Spanish Armada was decisively defeated in 1588 and Raleigh’s first Virginian colony was founded. The execution of Mary Queen of Scots marred what was a glorious time in English history. Shakespeare was also at the height of his popularity. Elizabeth never married.

British Monarchs

THE STUARTS
JAMES I and VI of Scotland 1603 -1625
James was the son of Mary Queen of Scots and Lord Darnley. He was the first king to rule over Scotland and England. James was more of a scholar than a man of action. In 1605 the Gunpowder Plot was hatched: Guy Fawkes and his Catholic friends tried to blow up the Houses of Parliament, but were captured before they could do so. James’s reign saw the publication of the Authorised Version of the Bible, though this caused problems with the Puritans and their attitude towards the established church. In 1620 the Pilgrim Fathers sailed for America in their ship The Mayflower.

CHARLES 1 1625 – 1649 English Civil War
The son of James I and Anne of Denmark, Charles believed that he ruled by Divine Right. He encountered difficulties with Parliament from the beginning, and this led to the outbreak of the English Civil War in 1642. The war lasted four years and following the defeat of Charles’s Royalist forces by the New Model Army, led by Oliver Cromwell, Charles was captured and imprisoned. The House of Commons tried Charles for treason against England and when found guilty he was condemned to death. His death warrant states that he was beheaded on Tuesday 30 January 1649. Following this the British monarchy was abolished and a republic called the Commonwealth of England was declared.

THE COMMONWEALTH
OLIVER CROMWELL, Lord Protector 1653 – 1658
Cromwell was born at Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire in 1599, the son of a small landowner. He entered Parliament in 1629 and became active in events leading to the Civil War. A leading Puritan figure, he raised cavalry forces and organised the New Model Army, which he led to victory over the Royalists at the Battle of Naseby in 1645. Failing to gain agreement on constitutional change in government with Charles I, Cromwell was a member of a ‘Special Commission’ that tried and condemned the king to death in 1649. Cromwell declared Britain a republic ‘The Commonwealth’ and he went on to become its Lord Protector.
Cromwell went on to crush the Irish clans and the Scots loyal to Charles II between 1649 and 1651. In 1653 he finally expelled the corrupt English parliament and with the agreement of army leaders became Lord Protector (King in all but name)

RICHARD CROMWELL, Lord Protector 1658 – 1659
Richard was the third son of Oliver Cromwell, he was appointed the second ruling Lord Protector of England, Scotland and Ireland, serving for just nine months. Unlike his father, Richard lacked military experience and as such failed to gain respect or support from his New Model Army. Richard was eventually ‘persuaded’ to resign from his position as Lord Protector and exiled himself to France until 1680, when he returned to England.

THE RESTORATION
CHARLES II 1660-1685
Son of Charles I, also known as the Merry Monarch. After the collapse of the Protectorate following the death of Oliver Cromwell and the flight of Richard Cromwell to France, the Army and Parliament asked Charles to take the throne. Although very popular he was a weak king and his foreign policy was inept. He had 13 known mistresses, one of whom was Nell Gwyn. He fathered numerous illegitimate children but no heir to the throne. The Great Plague in 1665 and the Great Fire of London in 1666 took place during his reign. Many new buildings were built at this time. St. Paul’s Cathedral was built by Sir Christopher Wren and also many churches still to be seen today

Kings and Queens of England and Britain VII

Kings and Queens of England and Britain VII

There have been 66 monarchs of England and Britain spread over a period of 1500 years. In today´s post we are going to finish talking about the House of York, The Tudors and some monarchs of England, Wales and Ireland.

EDWARD V 1483 – 1483

Edward was actually born in Westminster Abbey, were his mother Elizabeth Woodville had sought sanctuary from Lancastrians during the Wars of the Roses. The eldest son of Edward IV, he succeeded to the throne at the tender age of 13 and reigned for only two months, the shortest-lived monarch in English history. He and his brother Richard were murdered in the Tower of London – it is said on the orders of his uncle Richard Duke of Gloucester. Richard (III) declared The Princes in the Tower illegitimate and named himself rightful heir to the crown.

RICHARD III 1483 – 1485

End of the Wars of the Roses Brother of Edward IV. The ruthless extinction of all those who opposed him and the alleged murders of his nephews made his rule very unpopular. In 1485 Henry Richmond, descendant of John of Gaunt, father of Henry IV, landed in west Wales, gathering forces as he marched into England. At the Battle of Bosworth Field in Leicestershire he defeated and killed Richard in what was to be the last important battle in the Wars of the Roses. Archaeological investigations at a car park in Leicester during 2012 revealed a skeleton which was thought to have been that of Richard III, and this was confirmed on the 4th February 2013. His body is due to be reinterred atLeicester Cathedral in early 2014.

The Tudors

HENRY VII 1485 – 1509

When Richard III fell at the Battle of Bosworth, his crown was picked up and placed on the head of Henry Tudor. He married Elizabeth of York and so united the two warring houses, York and Lancaster. He was a skilful politician but avaricious. The material wealth of the country increased greatly. During Henry’s reign playing cards were invented and the portrait of his wife Elizabeth has appeared eight times on every pack of cards for nearly 500 years.

Monarchs of England, Wales and Ireland

Henry VIII 1509-1547
The best known fact about Henry VIII is that he had six wives! Most school children learn the following rhyme to help them remember the fate of each wife: «Divorced, Beheaded, Died: Divorced, Beheaded, Survived». His first wife was Catherine of Aragon, his brothers widow, whom he later divorced to marry Anne Boleyn. This divorce caused the split from Rome and Henry declared himself the head of the Church Of England. The Dissolution of the Monasteries began in 1536, and the money gained from this helped Henry to bring about an effective Navy. In an effort to have a son, Henry married four further wives, but only one son was born, to Jane Seymour. Henry had two daughters both to become rulers of England – Mary, daughter of Catherine of Aragon, and Elizabeth, daughter of Anne Boleyn.

Edward VI 1547-1553

The son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour, Edward was a sickly boy; it is thought he suffered from tuberculosis. Edward succeeded his father at the age of 9, the government being carried on by a Council of Regency with his uncle, Duke of Somerset, styled Protector. Even though his reign was short, many men made their mark. Cranmer wrote the Book of Common Prayer and the uniformity of worship helped turn England into a Protestant State. After Edward’s death there was a dispute over the succession. As Mary was Catholic, Lady Jane Grey was named as the next in line to the throne. She was proclaimed Queen but Mary entered London with her supporters and Jane was taken to the Tower. She reigned for only 9 days. She was executed in 1554, aged 17.

Mary I (Bloody Mary) 1553–1558

Daughter of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon. A devout Catholic, she married Philip of Spain. Mary attempted to enforce the wholesale conversion of England to Catholicism. She carried this out with the utmost severity. The Protestant bishops, Latimer, Ridley and Archbishop Cranmer were among those burnt at the stake. The place, in Broad Street Oxford, is marked by a bronze cross. The country was plunged into a bitter blood bath, which is why she is remembered as Bloody Mary. She died in 1558 at Lambeth Palace in London.