March Meeting

ALFRED THE GREAT
Alfred the Great - His name rings down through history as one of our greatest kings.
He was born in 849 at the royal estate of Wantage to his father King Aethelwulf and mother Osburh. The king already had 4 sons and a daughter by his previous wife.
Within months of Alfred’s arrival a great Danish army of some 350 long ships entered the mouth of the Thames, stormed Canterbury, put to flight Beorhtwulf, King of Mercia and his levies, and then went south into Surrey where they were halted and defeated in battle by Alfred’s father.
Alfred came to the throne in 871 after his 4 elder brothers, and by then he was a seasoned warrior, and it seemed at that time that fighting battles was the usual thing.
In 878, after a great defeat Alfred and a small group of loyal supporters were forced to hide at Athelney on the Somerset Levels. He was lucky because their fortified hideout- although visible to the Vikings from distant hills - was surrounded by water and so they were safe whilst carrying out guerrilla attacks on the Vikings. It was here that Alfred drew on his strength and resolve to carry on to win back Wessex.
In May of that year, he came out from the levels, gathered a mighty Saxon army and defeated Guthrun and his Viking army at Edington.
A treaty was made, the Vikings withdrew to beyond a line from the Thames, River Lea and then across to Chester. This gave Alfred time to reorganise, fortify and start to win back Wessex.
He went on to rule till his death in 899, and his son Edward carried on his important work.
Some of Alfred’s greatest achievements were the reform of the Saxon army so that there were always men available to fight; encouraging his nobles to learn to read to read and write so that they would be better rulers; building a series of fortified towns to defend Wessex from the Vikings; inventing the candle clock; starting the writing of the Anglo -Saxon Chronicle.

Mike Granger mentioned that, that he had heard that the foundations of Alfred’s statute in Winchester are made of sugar! anyone for a cuppa !
The next meeting will be on Monday 20th April, when the subject will be “Celts and the Iron Age”. …

Michael Page.

History Group - February Meeting.

At this meeting members picked a famous event in history at which they would like to have been.
Several members had researched the Great Exhibition of 1851, organised by Prince Albert and opened by Queen Victoria. The Iron and Glass Crystal Palace contained exhibits from around the world including sculptures, Swiss watches, sewing machines, typewriters, steam ploughs and so much more. Stalls were selling all sorts of food including Soda water, Lemonade, Ginger Beer, savoury cakes, pies, potted meats and the latest thing ‘Jelly’. Also there were Public Toilets where you could “spend a penny” to use them,( but the men’s urinals were free!)
Phyllis talked about the tank from WW2 on Slapton Sands in Devon, which is a monument to all the servicemen who lost their lives there whilst practising for D-Day (German E-boats got among the landing craft).A local called Ken Small discovered this tank under the sea near the beach and had it dragged out, but he then spent 40 years battling with the Ministry of Defence to get it officially recognised as a WW2 memorial.
John talked about when the River Thames froze over and people could walk all over it without fear of falling through. People had stalls on it selling all manner of things- fairs were held- and ,believe it or not, people could light fires on the ice!
Pat said how wonderful it would have been to be in Holland in 1593 when the first tulip bulbs arrived from Turkey. The were highly prized and bought and sold for very large sums of money. Prices reached their highest in 1657, but in 1739 the market crashed and many people were ruined.
Joan talked about Mary Allen who was a leading figure in the Suffragette movement, and in the First World War persuaded the Senior figures in the Police Force (all men) to allow women constables, although their roles were limited.
Rona said she would have liked to have been in Israel on 14/5/48 when the State of Israel was declared, as the U.N. had decided in 1947 that this should be the Jewish homeland. What joy there must have been as people danced, sang and celebrated this wonderful event- made very special because of all the hardships, misery and persecution Jews had endured over the years.
Mike said how exciting it would have been to see Dr.Roger Banister do the mile in just under 4 minutes. It took place in Oxford in 1954 at a local track and just a few people present to witness it. When you think that runners, equipment and track conditions were not what they are now, this truly was an historic event.
The next meeting will be on Monday 16th March at Kim House, when the topic will be “Alfred the Great and the Anglo Saxons”.

Michael Page.

19th January 2009

Our discussion on Monday 19th January 2009 -postponed from November 2008- was about Disease.
We talked about many of the major diseases, such as Malaria, Yellow Fever, Plague and Smallpox.It is thought that the oldest disease known to man is Malaria, as we are descended from apes and monkeys who are known to have had this disease. So it must be assumed that we aquired the malaria parasite from our ape ancestors.
All other epidemic diseases are thought to be late-comers to the bodies of people, and are usually the result of certain critical numbers of people coming together. So it is usually claimed that while man was a widely scattered hunter-gatherer, he was free of most of the major communicable diseases other than malaria,but when he settled down in groups to live and farm the land he became prey to these infectious diseases.In the past when doctors did not know what these diseases were, or came from, they would blame such factors as God's punishment for a terrible act. In 16th C Italy they called one such disease "Influenza" which means "attributed to the influence of the stars".
Since early times, in wars, victories often turned to defeat as diseases spread through the ranks killing many thousands, and sometimes before a battle had even been fought.
A final thought on this topic, and one which cannot be answered, is why sometimes a virus suddenly strikes, runs its course and then goes just as quickly without any apparent reason. We also dicussed changes in treatment and prevention of disease over the centuries.

The next meeting will be on Monday 9th February and the topic will be "Wish I had been there!".
N.B. This is the 2nd Monday in the month to avoid half-term. We will return to 3rd Monday in March as usual.

Michael Page

January Meeting

Next meeting which is on Monday 19th Jan. The subject is "Disease".

Before the Potato.

At our October meeting we talked about Agriculture in the Middle Ages - Before the Potato.

As our discussion progressed, it became evident that a wide range of foods was available, such as barley, wheat, rye, oats, bread, pottage (oats, peas, beans), onions, leeks, garlic, cabbage, apples, pears, cider, ale, wild fruits, fish (river and sea) and eggs.

A lot of people were able to keep a cow, sheep, poultry or pig from which came eggs, butter, cheese and meat. Of course, not necessarily everyone was able to enjoy all these, as it depended on their yearly harvest, weather, money and the amount of land they were able to cultivate.

At the start of this period, they laboured on the Lord's land, as rent for their strip of land and a place to live, but as time went on, it evolved to working their own land and paying their Lord a rent in either cash or produce.

We all know of the term Peasant to cover a large portion of the population, but this included Serfs, Villeins, Free Tenants, Cottars, Cultores, Labourers, Husbandmen and Yeomen. In addition many wage earners and craftsmen could be included because they gained a substantial part of their living from a holding of land.

The next meeting will be on Monday 17th November, when we will be talking about Disease!

Michael Page

September meeting

At our September meeting we talked about "The Wars of the Roses" or the "Cousins' War", as it was sometimes called.
Edward III left 4 sons and some daughters, and the resulting struggle for power and a weak king --- Henry VI , who had a strong French wife --- resulted in this civil war. Another reason for the starting of hostilities was the end of the 100 years war in 1453, when the English armies returned and many ex soldiers were just roaming around the country causing trouble.
The first main battle was St Albans in 1455 and the final decisive one was, of course, Bosworth in 1485. In between this were another 12 battles, and at Towton it was reported that the slaughter was so great that the battle had to be stopped , so that the bodies of the fallen could be moved away and they could then carry on with the battle.
During this time there was a succession of monarchs, starting with Henry VI, then Edward IV, Henry VI again, Edward IV, Edward V, Richard III and then of couse Henry VII and the start of the Tudors.
Although it is called " The Wars of the Roses", the white rose was only adopted during the second decade of the war and the red rose once it was all over. The first recorded reference to " The Wars of the Roses" was as late as 1762.
The next meeting will be on Monday 20th October when we will be talking about "Agriculture in the Middle Ages-before the potato".

Michael Page

July meeting

"We all enjoyed our interesting walk round the Southampton City walls in June.

We discussed the history of Southampton from its beginnings, thousands of years ago when it was just a series of isolated settlements on the banks of the Test and Itchen.
The Romans had a settlement at Bitterne called Clausentum, which started as a military fort to subdue the local population.
The Saxons started to arrive in the late 5th Century and founded Hamwic. By the 7th Century this area was part of a Royal Estate called Stanham = modern Stoneham, which took its name from the stones remaining from the Roman Settlement at Bitterne.
Because of the Viking raids , trade disruption and reorganisation of defences under King Alfred, Winchester re-emerged as the centre of Royal control and Hamwic slid into decay.
The 1338 raid by French and Genoese soldiers brought an orgy of destruction bringing to an end nearly 2 Centuries of prosperity. Virtual martial law was installed,the rest of the town walls built and the number of the garrison was increased.
For over half of the 18th Century Southampton became a very popular Spa Town.This began when Frederick, Prince of Wales visited the town and ended when the Napoleanic Wars started.
In Victorian times the coming of the Railways,Iron Ships and the building of the Docks helped expand Southampton to what it is today.

Our next meeting will be on Monday 15th September when we will be discussing "The Wars of the Roses".

Michael Page.

Thursday, June 19, 2008

Southampton City Walls
18 of us met at the Bargate for our Group outing on Monday 16th June - an excellent tour around the Southampton City Walls led by Southampton Tourist Guide, Pamela Boyes.

First our guide gave us a short history of the Bargate itself, including the lead lions and the statue of George III dressed as Emperor Hadrian.

We then proceeded along the western side where most of the wall remains are,learning the history of each area,including Arundel Tower, Catchcold Tower, 40 steps, the Castle, the Arcades, Tudor Merchants' Hall and the Maritime Museum. We were also shown around two of the many vaults in the city.

Our next meeting will be on Monday 14th July at Kim House, when we will be talking about our trip and the history of Southampton.

Please note that this is the second Monday of the month (not the usual 3rd Monday).

Michael Page


# posted by Mike @ 5:07 PM 0 comments
Saturday, May 24, 2008

Influential Women in the 19th and 20th Century.
This proved very interesting as we spanned the years, talking about women who have made their contribution to society and life in so many different ways.
There were such names as Mrs Beaton, Mrs Thatcher, Mrs Pankhurst, Margaret Mead
plus Forence Nightingale and Mary Secole of Crimea War fame. Women have also played their part in the field of invention, with a variety of products from the bra to windscreen wiper blades.

Disparaging remarks about women were soon quashed -the men are in a minority in this group!!!!And luckily they know their place!!!!

Everyone enjoyed the discussion so much that we are going to put this subject in our programme again next year.

Our next gathering will be on Monday 16th June, when we will be having a guided tour around the Southampton City walls, starting from the Bargate at 11 am.

Michael Page.


# posted by Mike @ 10:55 AM 0 comments
Thursday, May 01, 2008

Jacobites
Fourteen of us enjoyed our April meeting ,when we talked about the Jacobites. These are the Stuarts - James II and his descendants and followers - who were in exile on the continent after the Glorious Revolution of 1688.

In 1689 James II landed in Ireland with French troops and money, but was defeated at the Battle of the Boyne and fled back to the continent where he died in 1701.

James Edward Stuart- son of James II - was called the Old Pretender until the death of his father, when he was proclaimed King James III of England and James VIII of Scotland. He unsuccessfully tried to invade Scotland in 1708 and again landed in Scotland in 1715 after his followers had won a victory for him at the Battle of Sheriffmuir, but by February 1716 he was forced to flee. He settled in Italy, remaining there during the 1745 uprising of his son Charles Edward Stuart.He was buried in St Peters Basilica,Rome.

Charles Edward Stuart landed in Scotland in 1745 and gathered around him Clans that were loyal to him. They took all before them on their way South, but at Derby they were forced to turn back and were defeated at the Battle of Culloden Moor. He fled to France after 6 months hiding in the Western Isles, and finally died a drunkard's death in Rome.

And so the Jacobite cause ended in failure and with the resulting Highland clearances and mass emigration, it became just a distant memory.

Our next meeting will be on Monday 19th May when we will be discussing Influential Women in 19th and 20th Century. Judging by the suggestions being banded about at the end of the last meeting, this should be a lively session!!

Michael Page.


# posted by Mike @ 8:19 PM 0 comments
Tuesday, March 25, 2008

WHAT IF ?
For our April meeting the topic was "What if?"

What if events at a certain point in history had gone differently, how would things have turned out:-

Here was a chance for our members to use their imagination!!!And they did!!

Just some of the many interesting topics were as follows:-

1). In about 7000 BC, our land connection with the continent- Isle of Wight to Newcastle- was flooded. If this had not happened, would we be part of another country and what language might we be speaking?.....

2)If the Vikings had not been given the piece of land in France that we call Normandy, would we still have been invaded and conquered by another country?

3)If Richard III had won the Battle of Bosworth, there would probably have been no Tudor monarchs, and maybe no Stuarts......

4)If Henry VIII's daughter, Mary had been a boy, would we still be a Catholic nation, and where would Henry have got his money from if he had not closed the Monastries?

5)If the Arch-Duke had not been assassinated in Sarajevo in 1914, would WWI still have taken place?.....

6)If Mrs Simpson had not met Edward VIII, would we still have been involved in WWII, bearing in mind his friendliness with Hitler?

7)If Prince Charles had been allowed to marry Camilla instead of Diana, how would their lives and those of the Royal Family have turned out?


The next meeting will be on Monday 21st April, starting at 10 am, and the topic will be "The Jacobites".


# posted by Mike @ 3:58 PM 0 comments
Sunday, February 24, 2008

PILGRIM FATHERS
At our February meeting, we had a lively talk about the Pilgrim Fathers who boldly sailed across the Atlantic to make a new life and founded the colony of Plymouth in Massachusetts. This sounds very romantic, but the reality was that they were escaping Religious persecution, and as English Calvinists, did not want to transform the Church of England, but had left it to form their own church. This sect appears to have started towards the end of Elizabeth 1's reign and the early years of James 1's reign.

This was not the first voyage as Walter Raleigh had founded Jamestown in Virginia in 1607 and trade had started, Also English fishermen were already fishing in these waters and had made contact with the native Indians.
They finally set sail from Plymouth in the Mayflower.The other ship ,called the Speedwell, had to be left behind as it was not in a sea worthy condition. There were 102 passengers(part Pilgrim Fathers and others called Strangers) crammed into a ship 30 metres long and 10 metres wide at its maximum point. Icy water leaked in everywhere and as the voyagers had to live on dried meat and biscuits, a number of them suffered from scurvy at the end of the two month voyage.One man fell overboard and could not be saved.

The Pilgrims' constant singing of psalms and praying and their disdainful attitude infuriated the "strangers" and as a result of much conflict between the groups, an agreement was signed in the Captain's cabin. This agreement was called the "Mayflower Compact" which stated that all free men, whether Pilgrims or strangers,would elect a Governor and a civil Body Politic or Assembly(servants and women could not vote as they were chattels and the private property of the freeman). Once elected the Governor would not be responsible to James 1 or the Plymouth Company,who had organised the voyage,but only to those who had elected him.

Even after arrival it took a month of sailing along the coast before a suitable landing was made and the colony founded. However that winter a terrible disease, which the settlers called "General Sickness", struck the community and half the population died. The disease was pneumonia aggravated by scurvy. The dead were buried at night in secret since the settlers knew they were constantly being watched by the native indians.

Despite all their problems,the colony grew.Over time, as more people moved in to colonize the rest of North America, the United States of America was formed.

Our next meeting will be on Monday 17th March and the subject will be "What If?"

Michael Page


# posted by Mike @ 10:07 AM 0 comments
Sunday, January 27, 2008

Victorian Achievements.
The History Group would like to wish all Branch Members a Happy New Year.

For our first meeting of the year, with our group numbering 18, we discussed Victorian Achievements.

It was amazing how much the Victorians achieved, free from World Wars; although there were
many local wars around the world all through the reign.

Achievements included the London sewer system (still in use today), safety matches, an envelope making machine, gas Lighting, electricity, telephones, pneumatic tyres for vehicles, the start of the Underground train service and, of course, there was Brunel who designed ships, tunnels, buildings, railways etc. that helped to make our country great.

It was a very successful and interesting meeting and all members enjoyed themselves and learned a lot! There was enough material for several meetings here, so perhaps we will come back to the Victorians at a later date.

Thanks also to the tea lady !!!!

The next meeting will be on Monday 18th February at 10 am. The topic will be "The Pilgrim Fathers".

Michael.


# posted by Mike @ 3:28 PM 0 comments
Monday, November 19, 2007

The Gunpowder plot
At our November meeting we discussed the causes and consequences of the Gunpowder Plot.

In 1605 ,James I had been on the throne for only 2 years and, in that time, had succeeded in upsetting people of all different faiths because of his very narrow religious views. Henry VIII and Elizabeth had ruled with the consent of Parliament, but James tried to insist that the Members of Parliament were there simply to do as he told them. He believed in the Divine Right of Kings.

So a group of Catholic gentlemen led by Robert Catesby and including Guy (Guido) Fawkes got together and hatched a plan to blow up the Houses of Parliament and everyone in it on the day of the state opening. They rented a building next door and started to dig a tunnel to come up underneath the House of Lords, but it took a long time as they were not used to this sort of work. However, a cellar underneath the House of Lords became available to rent. The cellar was taken and Guy Fawkes installed as servant of the new owner. Guy Fawkes and conspirators smuggled about 2 tons of gunpowder inside ready for the day. However, at the last moment , one of the conspirators-probably Francis Tresham- sent a warning note to his brother-in-law, Lord Mounteagle and he in turn informed the Lord Chancellor.

The plot was discovered and Guy Fawkes arrested. Although he refused to name the others, they were finally captured (Catesby was killed in a gunfight). All were executed, except Francis Tresham who was imprisoned in the tower, and died shortly afterwards. Poison was suspected but never proved.

Since then no cellars under the House of Lords have been let!!!! and to this day a careful search is made of them before the opening of Parliament.

In 1620 - because of James I's narrow religious views - the Pilgrim Fathers sailed to America to found the new colony of Plymouth, Massachusetts. So the United States of America owes its beginnings to the stupidity of a narrow-minded English King.

The next meeting will be held at Kim House on Monday 21st January 2008 and the topic will be "Victorian achievements".

Michael


# posted by Mike @ 9:02 PM 0 comments