England-msg - 4/9/05
Medieval points of interest in England.
NOTE: See also the files: London-msg, France-msg, Scotland-msg, Ireland-msg, Wales-msg.
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From: Garick Chamberlin <Garick at vonkopke.demon.co.uk>
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: Med/Ren stores in England
Date: Fri, 14 Jul 95 22:51:56 GMT
Organization: Drachenwald
elbert at robles.callutheran.edu "Faedrah" writes:
> I'm spending some time in England. Can anyone out there tell me
> where, besides the store Past Times, in the areas around Cambridge,
Anyone who goes to Cambridge should stop off at Granta Antiquities and load
up on *real* artifacts. I now have a mace head, damascus steel eating knife,
2 cloak clasps, a barrel tap, and a gilded copper strap end, all of which are
authentic medieval thingies. Oh yea, I've also been buying keys to give as
presents to seneschales from time to time. England has been very, very, good
to me.
--
Viscount Sir Garick von Kopke
Honor Virtus Est
From: gileshill at aol.com (Gileshill)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Bath's Museum of Costume (was 15th C. Venetian Clothes)
Date: 15 Jan 1996 02:09:55 -0500
Gealac lan wrote:
>... I took a costuming class in College that mentioned a Costuming
Museum, if I >remember correctly, in Bath, England. Would anybody have
any info on it. I wanted >to visit while on vacation there, but it's not
in the Fodor's.
The Museum of Costume, located in the Assembly Rooms in Bath (which are
famous as the site of the dances and Assemblies supervised by John Nash
during the Regency) are the site of one of the most famous collections of
historic costumes in the United Kingdom. The clothes are displayed on
dummies, in well lit cases, in chronological order. Although there is
much that will be of interest to the Society costumer, the earliest suits
are Restoration. (There is, happily, a bodice of polychrome stumpwork, c
1610, and an extraordinarily well preserved blackworked linen shirt, c
1600.)
The Book Shop is well stocked with a variety of evil treasures, and they
do, much to my banker's delight, accept plastic.
The Museum is open all year, but you may want to call ahead to be sure
that they will be open on the day(s) you are in Bath: 0225-61111 x425, or
write to
The Keeper of Costume
4 The Circus
Bath, Avon BA1 2EW
ENGLAND
You will also want to make time to visit the Roman Baths, which are just
down the hill from The Circus, and Sally Lund's Bath Buns Shop, which has
been in business since the Regency, baking the most delicious sweetrolls
around. You can descend the stairs below the shop into the basement and
subbasement, and touch the Roman foundations of the building, from the
time the city was Acquae Sulis.
Giles
(For my shilling, though, the Museum of Costume in Nottingham is much more
interesting, and far less crowded...and there's a superb collection of
blackwork that is unequaled anywhere in the UK, and that includes the
V&A!)
From: liversen at physiology.medsch.ucla.edu (Lori Iversen)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: Bath's Museum of Costume (was 15th C. Venetian Clothes)
Date: 15 Jan 1996 19:20:07 GMT
Organization: UCLA
gileshill at aol.com (Gileshill) says:
[A bunch of useful stuff for those visiting Bath]...
...all of which I second, with this addendum: if you are at all keen
on adding to your store of useless/ful "Jeopardy!"-style trivia, you
must track down the famous "Hanging Toilets of Bath," which are as
their name suggests: little turrets tacked on to the upper floors of
buildings, added when indoor plumbing became all the rage but
the homeowners weren't too keen on re-piping their entire houses.
True, this has nothing to do with period costume sources in Bath, but it
*is* one of those things that make you go "What the...?"
-- Alexis,
soon to be someone else entirely.
From: Kevin of Thornbury <kevin at maxson.com>
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: SCA suggestions for trip to UK?
Date: Wed, 15 May 1996 17:02:06 -0400
Organization: Barony of Ponte Alto, Kingdom of Atlantia
Talis87346 wrote:
> My lord and I are traveling to England, Scotland, and Dublin in the fall,
> and we were wondering if anyone who has visited there has suggestions
> about places of especial interest to Scadians.
>
> Our SCA interests include: Vikings, castles, Scotch, illumination, armor,
> and music.
I'd be remiss in my persona if I didn't say:
Visit and spend a night at Thornbury Castle!
It's in Thornbury, England near Bristol. It's the only Tudor
castle that serves as a hotel. Not cheap, but well worth it!
If you can't afford to stay there, at least have dinner there!
Other castles in England worth note are Warwick Castle, Windsor
Castle, and if you can get in, Buckingham Palace.
Hampton Court Palace and Leeds Castle are beautiful as well!
_____
|+^+| Kevin of Thornbury
|/+\| (mka Kevin Maxson)
\_/ kevin at maxson.com http://sca.maxson.com
From: nisbet at sable.ox.ac.uk (Gideon Nisbet)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: SCA suggestions for trip to UK?
Date: 15 May 1996 23:36:38 GMT
Organization: Oxford University, England
Talis87346 <talis87346 at aol.com> wrote:
>My lord and I are traveling to England, Scotland, and Dublin in the fall,
>and we were wondering if anyone who has visited there has suggestions
>about places of especial interest to Scadians.
Some of us residents have ideas on the subject too :-).
>Our SCA interests include: Vikings,
AHA! Vikings! Yes, we can do you Vikings. _The Vikings_ is one of the biggest
UK reenactment societies; we do a bunch of shows over the Summer and Autumn.
There's a Website with up-to-date programme out there somewhere...I forget the
URL but you'll find a link from my pages at http://users.ox.ac.uk/~nisbet
See you at Stamford Bridge? :-) (I'll be one of the filthy Saxons.)
Oh, btw, we fight with steel and fall down when we die (ie we fight battles
rather than tourney), so you have a fresh perspective to look forward to.
> castles, Scotch, illumination, armor,
>and music.
Well, strong spirits are consumed wherever reenactors gather. For details on
all the best castles, try contacting English Heritage (they also host several
of our major shows over the scrapping season each year). They should be only
too happy to send you attractively photographed leaflets.
For mouthwatering displays of illuminated books, you could do a lot worse than
the public rooms of the British Library (the original one, at the British
Museum, not the ghastly new thing). As regards arms, the new Royal Arsenal
museum in Leeds is allegedly very good indeed.
>Thanks in advance!
You're very welcome. I hope you enjoy our islands!
Gideon Nisbet
From: djheydt at uclink.berkeley.edu (Dorothy J Heydt)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: SCA suggestions for trip to UK?
Date: 16 May 1996 00:27:36 GMT
Organization: University of California at Berkeley
Talis87346 <talis87346 at aol.com> wrote:
>My lord and I are traveling ....
>
>Our SCA interests include: Vikings,
Ah, then you have to take in Jorvik. Go to York; go to Coppergate--
once the Street of the Coopers, now a trendy little shopping mall--
look for a sign saying _Jorvik Viking Centre_, pay some money (don't
know how much it is nowadays, but not too unreasonable) and go down an
escalator.
When they were building the Coopergate mall, y'see, they found
the Viking-age Coopers' Street as it was when it burned down in
1067. They reconstructed *half* of it. You ride a little cart
through both halves. Then you get into the museum. *Then* you
get into the gift shop. Bring money--or maybe I should say,
don't bring very much.
I could go into much more detail but I don't want to spoil it for
you. (Dammit, I wish I were going back.)
Dorothea of Caer-Myrddin Dorothy J. Heydt
Mists/Mists/West UC Berkeley
Argent, a cross forme'e sable djheydt at uclink.berkeley.edu
PRO DEO ET REGE
From: eherring at mindspring.com (Evan L. Herring)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: SCA suggestions for trip to UK?
Date: Wed, 15 May 1996 23:26:17 -0400
York is a definite must see, by all accounts. You can walk nearly the entire
circuit of the 12th century city wall. Middleham Castle, home of Warwick the
Kingmaker and Richard III of Wars of the Roses fame is near York; it's ruins
are only partial, but nonetheless impressive. In the Midlands, as someone else
has suggested, Warwick is excellent, as is the good old Tower of London in the
city, If you tour the Somerset coast in the south, Corfe Castle is a good one,
and Dover Castle in Kent. Spend as much time as possible in London at the
British Museum (Lindesfarne Gospels!), and the Public Records Office, where
period manuscripts can be seen (the Domesday Book is periodically
displayed!). It would be wise to phone the British Consulate in Atlanta or LA
or New York or Chicago or the embassy in Washington, or the Heritage Trust in
the UK for a catalogue of Trust-owned or operated castles available for public
viewing. Edinburgh is a goldmine of neat stuff to see in many of your favorite
categories. And don't forget Sutton Hoo and its early period burial mounds
(Lots of neat stuff!).
Martin.
From: SBOR4267 at uriacc.uri.edu (Tina Bordwell)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: SCA suggestions for trip to UK?
Date: Fri, 17 May 96 13:13:50 EDT
Organization: University of Rhode Island
I went to England and Scotland a few years ago...make sure you go to
Westminster Abbey and do brass rubbings :) they make _awesome_ wall hangings
and don't cost very much (they usually charge a few pounds for the paper and
'crayons', and then a few more for using their 'rubbing brasses' (the plates))
going to little churches all over and looking for brass rubbing plates is a
fun activety, too...my family, the Bordwells, have a small town called
Bardwell named after(before?) them. there is a stained glass window of
Sir William De Bardwell that Cromwell decided didn't need to be destroyed
because it wasn't religious in origin...:) makes me happy :) anyhow,
little churches like that have some of the coolest architecture, statues,
brass rubbing plates, etc. that you can find...Westminster is a very heavy
traffic place...but it's still very neat to go to...especially to sit and
listen to Evensong... :) the boys' choir is _awesome_ :)
let's see...there was a viking museum in...oh, lord, it must have been York...
I can't remember very well where that was...no, it wasn't York...but it was
between Edinburgh and London...(en route, that is) *sigh* I'm sorry. I can't
remember where it is...but it's very interesting :)
in Edinburgh, do the Royal Mile...I suggest starting with the castle at the
top and working your way down the hill...it's very steep :)
you _must_ go to a tea house somewhere and have tea with clotted cream. it's
divine. :) (oh, and go to a grocery store and buy yourselves some HobNobs.
they are oatmeal or 'digestive biscuits' (cookies) dipped in chocolate :)
another piece of advice when in the UK, eat food that is foreign to the UK.
the local food sucks. I'm sure you'd be able to find a pub that serves good
food _somewhere_, but I wouldn't know where that would be...(well, ok, so
Beef Wellington and Yorkshire puddings are worth getting...very good. :)
above all, talk to the locals. ask them what is worth going to see. they
are usually _very_ friendly and will give good advice. especially if you
go to a small town/village and ask a store clerk and the like :)
very nice people. :) (we went to church in Bardwell, and got invited by 2
people to have tea :)
remember to bring warm clothes. it's rather chilly there, and they don't heat
their buildings like we do. _if_ they heat the buildings, they heat only the
room they are in at the time. even though you are going in the summer (we went
at Christmas time, fools that we are ;) I would still bring warm clothes.
it gets cold at night. (yes, there _was_ a reason they wore so much fabric in
the Middle Ages...it's cause they lived in the UK and lived in buildings that
were _really_ hard to heat!) oh, yeah. make sure you bring woolen socks...
and well-insulated shoes...at least the soles have to be insulate...standing
around for an hour on a cold stone floor tends to make your ankles and knees
ache...
have fun, and bring your ATM card...you won't be able to look at your bank
balance, but you can withdraw funds...and yes, it will come out as pounds :)
Gwyndolyn of Trollhaven (until I get myself a proper last name)
(aka, Tina Bordwell SBOR4267 at uriacc.uri.edu)
From: SBOR4267 at uriacc.uri.edu (Tina Bordwell)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: SCA suggestions for trip to UK?
Date: Fri, 17 May 96 13:50:07 EDT
Organization: University of Rhode Island
>>My lord and I are traveling ....
>>Our SCA interests include: Vikings,
>Ah, then you have to take in Jorvik. Go to York; go to Coppergate--
>once the Street of the Coopers, now a trendy little shopping mall--
>look for a sign saying _Jorvik Viking Centre_, pay some money (don't
ah, thank you :) I _thought_ it was in York. :) I couldn't remember, though :)
>When they were building the Coopergate mall, y'see, they found
>the Viking-age Coopers' Street as it was when it burned down in
>1067. They reconstructed *half* of it. You ride a little cart
I'm sure you'll want to do the 'coin making' activety...you buy an aluminum
disc and you put it into the mould and strike with a hammer...and the imprint
comes out on the coin :) very neat (and portable) souvenier :)
>Dorothea of Caer-Myrddin Dorothy J. Heydt
>Mists/Mists/West UC Berkeley
>Argent, a cross forme'e sable djheydt at uclink.berkeley.edu
>PRO DEO ET REGE
thanks again for the location information :)
Gwyndolyn of Trollhaven (until I get a proper last name)
(aka Tina Bordwell SBOR4267 at uriacc.uri.edu)
From: sclark at chass.utoronto.ca (Susan Carroll-Clark)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: SCA suggestions for trip to UK?
Date: 18 May 1996 22:45:07 -0400
Organization: University of Toronto -- EPAS
Warwick Castle has already been mentioned (fabulous display of 15th century
life there, meticulously researched). If you're in the area, go see the
ruins of Kenilworth Castle, too (about a mile down the road). Cheaper
by about 4 pounds, and _very_ evocative.
In London, the British Museum and Library and the Tower have been mentioned.
Go to the Victoria and Albert museum (WOW!) for embroidery, furniture,
ceramics, and virtually any sort of decorative or functional art. Westminster
Abbey is also a must-see--tons of royal tombs, and the Shrine of
Edward the Confessor. Canterbury is from all accounts wonderful, too (didn't
make it there myself).
So much stuff, so little time....
Cheers!
Nicolaa de Bracton
sclark at chass.utoronto.ca
From: "Donna S. Mann" <saffron at citynet.net>
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: SCA suggestions for trip to UK?
Date: 18 May 1996 21:29:26 GMT
I found many of the museums in London and Bath. Very interesting.
Especially the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. If you are
interested in clothing, there are some wonderful pieces on display.
They have a medieval section in many areas of interest. There is also the
British Museum. And for armor go to Tower of London and if you can before
you leave write the tower of London about the Ceremony of the Keys. This
ceremony has been done for over 800 years. Leeds castle is very nice and
can be done on a day-trip. Hatfield House is nice. Basically there are
many, many areas that could peak a SCAians interest. Maybe you might want
to narrow your request to what your interests lie.
I could go on and on and on. I have made 3 trips so far. And each time I
return I want to go back as soon as possible.
From: ddfr at best.com (David Friedman)
Newsgroups: rec.org.sca
Subject: Re: SCA suggestions for trip to UK?
Date: 19 May 1996 23:06:31 GMT
A few suggestions, some of which others may have made:
1. The Museum of London. This is a smaller museum than the BM or V&A, and
devoted more to daily living and less to very fancy things. It also has
the cCheapside Hoard, which is a large and interesting collection of
jewelery, c. 1600.
2. The British Museum Anglo-Saxon jewelery. This is the world's best
collection of the world's best jewelery.
3. The various British weekly antique fairs.
4. Edinburgh has at least two museums. The big, fancy one, laid out as a
series of inside balconies, is not very interesting. But there is a
smaller one with a very good collection of medieval, Norse, and Irish
jewellery.
5. If you are travelling by car, get the Ordinance Survey Atlas, which is
a very detailed atlas. When driving from point A to point B, look for
castles on the way. There are a lot of not very famous castles, and it is
fun to wonder around one trying to make sense of it. Bring a geologist
along, to figure out that the reason that stretch of wall doesn't have
towers is that when it was built the stream that is currently a couple of
hundred yards away was running along it.
6. Hadrian's wall. Bring a geologist along to comment on how surprising it
is that something practically brand new is in such poor condition.
7. Hutton's non-conformity. If you don't have a geologist along you won't
be interested, so don't worry about it.