The Major Oak: capturing the imagination for centuries

May 29, 2015February 5, 2019 Caroline13 Comments

Oak trees loom large in English history. From the sacred oak groves of pre-Roman Britons and the oak wands used by Druids to the oak tree that sheltered the future King Charles II as he escaped from the forces of Oliver Cromwell and the countless oaks used to construct England’s proud navies and merchant ships, this tree – perhaps more than any other – is seen as the national tree of England. Many individual oaks up and down the country are revered and protected for their age, their size and shape or the stories attached to them. The oak we’re looking at today is famous not just for its huge size and distinctive shape, but also for its link to that most famous of English legends, Robin Hood.

Continue reading “The Major Oak: capturing the imagination for centuries” →

19th Century · 20th Century · Stepney

The little mortuary at St George in the East and its reincarnation as a museum

May 22, 2015February 5, 2019 Caroline28 Comments

St George’s Gardens, the park on the site of the former churchyard of St George in the East in Stepney, is a neat, peaceful place – when I visited, the play area was full of children, and other people were relaxing on benches or looking at the old monuments near the church. In the midst of all of this is a derelict building that looks terribly sad and out of place. However, this forlorn little building has a fascinating history that includes that most infamous of East End criminals, Jack the Ripper, and later became a pioneering centre for the education of local children.

Continue reading “The little mortuary at St George in the East and its reincarnation as a museum” →

19th Century · 20th Century · Kensal Green

A walk among the stone saints and angels: St Mary’s Cemetery, Kensal Green

May 15, 2015March 17, 2021 Caroline13 Comments

Next door to the well-known Kensal Green, one of London’s “Magnificent Seven” cemeteries, is another vast necropolis. The two cemeteries are separated only by a tall brick wall, and although they are similar in age, and include many similar memorials, there are differences between the two cemeteries – some subtle, others less so. St Mary’s Cemetery at Kensal Green is one of only two burial grounds in London that caters exclusively for Roman Catholics, and around the cemetery the visitor can see many symbols that reflect the faith of those buried there.

Continue reading “A walk among the stone saints and angels: St Mary’s Cemetery, Kensal Green” →

20th Century · Clerkenwell

Airships over London – in war and peace

May 8, 2015February 5, 2019 Caroline12 Comments

Many people walking past the wall of St Bartholomew’s Hospital on West Smithfield, close to the memorial to William Wallace, stop to look at a series of craters and marks on the wall that look as though they were caused by an explosion of some sort. These scars are from a devastating V2 rocket attack on the area during the Second World War, but this wasn’t the first aerial attack to bring death and destruction to this part of London. Bartholomew Close, not far from the scarred walls, was hit during one of the very first air raids on London, a terrifying Zeppelin raid in 1915.

Continue reading “Airships over London – in war and peace” →