What I really wanted to do was to walk along the Kings Road. There are more immediate things that I ought to be doing and streets and buildings with more urgent research needs. But I want the luxury of freedom; to drift and float through the streets, to turn left here and right there withContinue reading “The End of Capital”
Category Archives: Churches
Medieval Graffiti & the Conquest of Bread
One of the many books I’m working on (will they ever be completed?) has a working title of Commuting and the Art of Revolution. Chapter five has the working title of Medieval Graffiti and the Conquest of Bread. The structure of the book is the commuting journey I did for several years and the stationsContinue reading “Medieval Graffiti & the Conquest of Bread”
Sunday Morning, E15
The vote count for the 1892 General Election for the West Ham South constituency was held here (now the Old Town Hall, Stratford). When it was announced that Keir Hardie was the winner he went on to the balcony and addressed a crowd of between 15 – 20,000 people. “On taking his seat on 3Continue reading “Sunday Morning, E15”
Riots, Rebellion and Machine Breaking
It’s widely believed that the Captain Swing riots started in Kent in August 1830 in Lower Hardres a parish and village just south of Canterbury. There had been widespread agrarian rebellion in East Anglia in 1816 and 1822. There were incidents of rick burning and machine breaking throughout the period. Bad harvests made the situationContinue reading “Riots, Rebellion and Machine Breaking”
In search of the Premonstratensians
This was not particularly planned. At the last minute I decided to take the train to Walmer and then, should the day work along with me, I would try and find the remains of Langdon Abbey. It felt a great luxury to be able to do something that felt so spontaneous after months of lock-down.Continue reading “In search of the Premonstratensians”
Monkey on a Goat Carrying a Hare
The church of St Nicholas Barfrestone was built around 1180 – roughly the same time as Dover Castle. It seems to have been commissioned by Adam de Port, a Norman baron who lived in the castle itself. It could be that he was hoping to make money (and influence) from pilgrims traveling to Canterbury. ButContinue reading “Monkey on a Goat Carrying a Hare”
Inland Border Facility
The small village of Guston is the location for an new Inland Border Facility. It will be a customs clearance facility for 1,200 lorries. Work has already started so it is unclear as to the purpose of the ‘community consultation’. Local people have stated they received little notice of these plans and that the projectContinue reading “Inland Border Facility”
Cornucopia City 