Category: Stuarts

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Feast Day Of King Lucius – First Christian King Of Britain? December 3rd

King Lucius York Minster Window

The Venerable Bede tells us that King Lucius converted to Christianity in around 180AD. He says that the King asked Pope Eleutherius to send teachers to instruct him. The Venerable Bede (died 735 AD) got this from the Liber Pontificalis of c 590. There is also a tradition that St Peter’s Cornhill in London was set up by King Lucius, and that St Peter’s is the oldest Church in London.

13th Pope Eleutherius

What to make of this? Bede is considered to be a reliable historian and got his information, in this case, from the Vatican. Pope Eleutherius is held to be a real Pope. He reigned at the right time, from perhaps as early as c. 171, and to his death which may be as late as AD 193. (Wikipedia). But the tradition of Lucius has been written off as a legend.

But to my mind there are questions that need asking. Not the least of the questions to ask about the veracity of this legend is: ‘What does it mean to be called the King of Britain in the middle of the Roman occupation?’

St Peters Church First Cathedral in Britain?

As to the early origin of St Peters Church, archaeologists dismissed the tradition of a Roman St Peters Church because it is built over the Roman Forum. So how can it have been the site of a Christian Church?

St. Peter’s seen from Cornhill in a rarely seen view as there is normally a building in the way. (Photo K Flude)

But the balance of possibilities, arguably, changed in the 1980s, when archaeologists led by Gustav Milne showed that the Basilica of the Forum was pulled down in about 300AD. So from being practically an impossibility, there is now a possibility that this subsequently became the site of a Roman Church. It doesn’t make it true but it makes it more of a possibility.

We know London sent at least one Bishop to Constantine the Great’s Council of Arles in AD 314. So a Christian community in London must have predated this time. There must have been Churches, here. And a site at the prestigious centre of the Capital of Londinium, makes a lot of sense. There are, in fact, three Churches on the site of the Roman Forum: St Peters, St Michael and St Edmund the Martyr.

Constantine the Great

In AD 306, Constantine was acclaimed Emperor on the death of his Father, Constantius Chlorus. Constantius’s wife was Helena, a Christian. He and his mother were in York when his father died. He was recognised as Caesar, (but not Augustus) by Emperor Galerius and ruled the province for a while. Then he moved to Trier, then moved on Rome, where he accepted the Christian God’s help to win the Battle of Milvian Bridge. This led him to supreme power in the Roman Empire. And might give a context for the demolished Basilica to be replaced by a Church.

There is, however, no archaeological evidence for St Peters being Roman in origin apart from the demolition of the Basilica and the legends. And there is certainly no evidence of the Basilica being turned into a Church as early as the 2nd Century.

Early Christianity in Britain

Where does that leave King Lucius? There are well attested Christian traditions that Britain was an early convert to Christianity. (The following quotes are from my book ‘In Their Own Words – A Literary Companion To The Origins Of London‘ D A Horizons, 2009 by Kevin Flude and available here.)

‘In Their Own Words – A Literary Companion To The Origins Of London‘ D A Horizons, 2009

So, an early date for an active Christian community is likely. A Church, replacing the Basilica, is plausible, particularly, after Constantine the Great probably passed through London on his way to seize the Roman Empire. So an early date for St Peters in possible. But there is no evidence for its origin as early as the late 2nd Century, the time of King Lucius.

A King of Britain in the Roman Era?

And could anyone, claim to be the ‘King of Britain’ at this date? We do know that King Togidubnus was called Great King of Britain in a Roman Temple inscription in Chichester in the First Century.

Altar Dedication, Chichester

To Neptune and Minerva, for the welfare of the Divine House by the authority of Tiberius Claudius Togidubnus, Great King of Britain, the Guild of Smiths and those therein gave this Temple from their resources, Pudens, son of Pudentinus, presenting the site.

https://romaninscriptionsofbritain.org/inscriptions/91

Togidubnos seems to have been placed in control of a large part of Southern England, centred around Chichester, after the invasion of 43AD. He is thought to have been the successor to Verica, who was exiled and called on the Romans to restore his throne. Tactitus says that Togidubnos remained loyal down ‘to our own times’ that is to the 70s AD. So he presumably held the line for the Romans against the Boudiccan revolt in 60AD.

The Romans had used Verica’s fall as their excuse for invasion, and so an honorific of Great King to him and his successors makes sense. It is assumed that after Togidubnos’s death after 80AD, the title lapsed. But it might have stayed with the family as an empty honour? Furthermore, we know that Britain had a plethora of Kings and Queens before the Roman period. Also, the Romans never conquered the whole of Britain. There were, therefore, many British Kings all the way through the period of Roman control, not least beyond Hadrian’s Wall.

So, it is possible there was someone in Britain who had, or made, a claim to be ‘King’. Whether he was ‘a’ or ‘the’ or merely descended from a King of Britain, we don’t know. And that that someone, perhaps converted to Christianity, possibly in the time of Pope Eleutherius. He may have taken the Roman name Lucius. Who knows? Its possible.

Confusing Luci?

It has been suggested that King Lucius of Britain was confused with King Lucius of Edessa, but this is considered unsatisfactory. Also, the link to London and St Peters, need not be a contemporary one. It might be two traditions that are linked together at a later period. But, of course, there is a faint possibility that the Basilica shrine room, above which St Peter’s is built, was converted for Christian use at the earlier time necessary to make sense of the King Lucius story.

King Lucius may not be a proper saint, but he has a feast day. This is because of his connections to Chur in Switzerland. There is a tradition that Lucius was martyred here. This got him an entry in the Roman Martyrology. David Knight proposes that the Chur connection comes from the transplanting of rebellious Brigantes to the Raetia frontier in the 2nd Century AD. He suggests that the Brigantes brought the story of Lucius to Chur. At the end of the King’s life, is it possible he travelled to join his people in exile in Switzerland. Here he met his unknown end. If true, this would base the story of Lucius in the North rather than London. For further reading, see ‘King Lucius of Britain’ by David J Knight.

Early Bishops of London

John Stow in the 16th Century records the tradition of King Lucius, which comes with a list of early British Bishops of London. These he finds are recorded in Jocelin of Furness’s ‘Book of British Bishops’. This book is discussed by Helen Birkett ‘Plausible Fictions: John Stow, Jocelin of Furness and the Book of British Bishops’. In Downham C (ed) /Medieval Furness: Texts and Contexts/, Stamford: Paul Watkins, 2013.

Her analysis concludes that the book is a ’12th-century confection in support of moving the archbishopric from Canterbury ‘back’ to its proper place in London. (This information was included in a comment to the original post by John Clark, Emeritus Curator of the Museum of London.)

To sum up. We can’t bring King Lucius out of legend, nor find any credible source linking him him with St Peters Cornhill. But the site of St Peters is a plausible, though unproven, location for a Roman Church from the 4th Century onwards. It also makes sense of the choice of the Saxons, to name their Church St Pauls. St Peter is more common as a dedication for important Churches and perhaps they chose St Paul as they knew of the ruins of St Peters the old Cathedral.

Any other early Cathedrals?

Archaeologists have also tentatively identified a masonry building in Pepys Street on Tower Hill as the Episcopal Church of late Roman London. The foundations suggest a large aisled building. Its identification as a Cathedral springs from multiplying the found foundations symmetrically by a factor of four and comparing the result to Santa Tecla in Milan. The discovery of Marble and window glass doesn’t sit so well with the alternative suggestion that it is a granary. But, to my mind, it’s not very convincing, although Dominic Perring in his recent book ”London in the Roman World’ makes the most of the case for it being a Cathedral.

And Finally?

Roman Forum
Site of Roman Forum Google Maps

If you look at the two maps above. The one on the left shows the Forum, the white lines are the Roman Road system. You might just be able to see the modern road system super-imposed. What this shows is that the Forum is on a different axis than the modern day road system. Cornhill cuts right across the North Western corner of the Forum. Where the letter L is, and to the left is under the modern road. So, that shows that this part of the Forum must have been knocked down before Cornhill was built. On the right hand side you can see the dark grey east-west road which is Cornhill. To the South of it you can see a dark area (above the green of St Peter’s Churchyard). This grey area is St Peters. What the Google map shows clearly, is that the orientation of St Peters, is clearly on a different orientation to that of the modern road of Cornhill. And that orientation is closer to the orientation of the Roman Forum. This makes it more likely that the axis upon which St Peters was originally built (assuming Wren followed the original axis when he rebuilt it after the Great Fire) conformed to the Roman grid pattern. This is by no means proof, and can only be proved by excavation. But, its interesting.

On This Day

1660 – Margaret Hughes became the first woman (we know about) to act on the English Stage. She played Desdemona in Shakespeare’s Othello. It was staged in a converted tennis court called the Vere Street Theatre, which was in Lincoln’s Inn Fields. In 1660 Charles II was restored to the throne, and had got used to watching female actors perform while he was in exile in France. So when he returned, he licensed two theatre managers, Thomas Killigrew and Sir William Davenant to run theatre. Davenant claimed to be the natural son of William Shakespeare, suggesting that Shakespeare stayed in his parents’ Inn, the Crown, in Cornmarket, Oxford on his way home to Stratford-upon-Avon.

First Published on December 3rd, 2022. Revised in December, 2023, 2024 and 2025

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The Shakespeares’ Wedding November 28th 1582

Droeshout Portrait of Shakespeare from the First Folio
Droeshout Portrait of Shakespeare from the First Folio

Shakespeare was married at 18 years old. This was unusually young for the age. Young men generally entered into a 7-year apprenticeship followed by several years of wage labour as a journey man (from the french, jour, to denote being paid by the day.) At 18, he would have been unusual if he could afford a wife and household at this tender age. His wife was 26-year-old Anne Hathaway. This is slightly late for a woman to be married in the 16th Century, 22-23 would be more usual. Susanna, their daughter was baptised 26 May 1583, 6 months later. Twins, Hamnet and Judith, were baptised 2 February 1585.

The fact that Shakespeare was younger than Anne Hathaway, and that the baby was premature, has led many Shakespeare scholars to believe Shakespeare may have left Stratford to escape an unhappy marriage. This is often expressed in misogynist terms. But, there is an unstated assumption that Mrs Shakespeare stayed in Stratford while Shakespeare spent most of his life in London.

However, a new interpretation of a 1978 fragment has, for the first time, revealed evidence that, Mrs Shakespeare stayed with her husband in London. The piece is a request to Mrs Shakespeare in Trinity Lane (Little Trinity Lane today see map below) to pay the money her husband was holding on behalf of a young apprentice. Why Shakespeare was unable or unwilling to pay we have no idea. But perhaps the fact that it reveals that his wife was in London and seems to have independent means is more important.

How do we know this anything to do with our William Shakespeare? The answer is that the fragment was found in Hereford Cathedral’s Library as part of a binding of a book published by Richard Field. Field was from Stratford on Avon, and it was he who published Shakespeare’s ‘Venus and Adonis’ and ‘the Rape of Lucrece’. It seems unlikely it is about another couple of Shakespeares.

So, it really does change the view of the relationship. Little Trinity Lane is shown on the map below. It is near Southwark Bridge, and Mansion House Underground Station.

Map of the part of the City of London, Little Trinity Lane is in the ventre with an orange boomerang shape below it. Southwark and the Millenium Bridges can be seen at the bottom, and St Pauls top left corner.

I would recommend you read the original article, which discusses in detail all the evidence pertaining to these fragments. Here it is online for you to peruse.

On This Day

2003 My first edit on Wikipedia. As Director of the Old Operating Theatre Museum, I set about making sure the pages associated with the Museum, St Thomas Hospital and Guy’s Hospital were up to date. This is the latest version of the page I first updated. I updated the history of the Hospital. The earliest recovered wikipedia page was on January 15th 2001.

First Published on November 28th, 2025

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Thanksgiving Day in the USA (4th Thursday in November)

Plate 1 of The Birds of America by John James Audubon, depicting a wild turkey (Wikipedia) eaten for Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is a festival given over to celebrating God’s Bounty. There are unanswerable debates about which was the ‘First’ Thanksgiving, but the date of the 4th Thursday in November was set by Abraham Lincoln. It is basically a harvest festival, but was adopted by Lincoln as one method to unite a divided nation during the Civil War.

Thanksgiving today is mostly roast turkey with stuffing, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie. But there are many variants and additions such as a first course of soup, and vegetables like Brussels sprouts and broccoli. Very like an English Christmas dinner, but replacing the Christmas Pudding with pumpkin pie.

Food eaten on the first Thanksgiving.

As to what the first Pilgrims would have eaten is not known, but their chronicler Edward Winslow noted:

“Our harvest being gotten in, our governor sent four men on fowling, that so we might after a special manner rejoice together, after we had gathered the fruits of our labours; they four in one day killed as much fowl, as with a little help beside, served the Company almost a week.”

https://www.history.com/topics/thanksgiving/first-thanksgiving-meal

So the birds shot by 4 marksmen would have been wild turkey but also other birds such as ducks, geese, and swans. Seafood; Mussels, lobster, and eel were also available.

As to ‘gathering the fruits of our labors’. This might have included onions, beans, lettuce, spinach, cabbage, carrots, and peas. Stuffing might be seasoned with sage, thyme, parsley, marjoram, fennel, anise or dill, The Pilgrims had plenty of Corn from their first harvest which would have been turned into cornmeal, and eaten as a mush if savoury or sweetened with molasses as a porridge, or made into cornbread, or for stuffing. Perhaps not so different to Frumenty. (see my post on Wife selling and Frumenty.

Native Americans & Thanksgiving

Indigenous Wampanoag Americans might have been present, but only to investigate the shooting of canons in celebration by the Pilgrims. Relationships were tense between the native Americans and the immigrants. Some Indigenous Americans consider it a day of mourning; others use it as a day of gathering for the family, but generally, consider images of the Pilgrims and Indigenous Americans sitting down peacefully celebrating together to be ‘a lie’. (Native Americans and the First Thanksgiving.)

First Published on 24th November 2022, Republished on 23rd November 2023, 27th November 2025

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St Clements Day, the Blacksmith’s Holiday, the Early Church, Lydia and Wickham November 23rd

Clemens I, the Pope of Rome. Mosaic from St. Sophia of Kyiv, 11th c. In places of loss (lower part of the composition) — oil painting of the 18th c. (Wikipedia) for St Clements Day

St Clement was a very early Bishop of Rome, shortly after St Peter. Although thought to be a historical and therefore a very important peron in the history of Christianity, his mode of martyrdom is a matter of legend. He is supposed to have been tied to an anchor and thrown in the Black Sea in around AD 99. He is, therefore, particularly venerated by Blacksmiths and Sailors. Some believe he is earlier than AD99 and place his letter as early as AD60.

St Clements and the Early Church

A letter of St Clements survives and is addressed to the Christians of Corinth. This letter is of fundamental importance, as it appears to have been written when the martyrdoms of St Peter and St Paul were relatively recent memories. The letter is also important as a counterargument to the Protestant view that there is no evidence that Peter was ‘Pope’. In this letter, St Clement is giving advice to the Church of Corinth as a Pope would. This can be used as early proof of Papal supervision of the early Church.

The letter is therefore worth reading, and you can read a version of it here. . I have chosen two extracts from a long letter. The first illustrates how close to the deaths of Peter and Paul it was. The second extract gives a great insight into an early Christian World view. I think there is also very little here that a Pagan would object to? The main message of the letter is to follow the example of Jesus and adopt humility.

Chapter 5. No Less Evils Have Arisen from the Same Source in the Most Recent Times. The Martyrdom of Peter and Paul.

But not to dwell upon ancient examples, let us come to the most recent spiritual heroes. Let us take the noble examples furnished in our own generation. Through envy and jealousy the greatest and most righteous pillars [of the church] have been persecuted and put to death. Let us set before our eyes the illustrious apostles. Peter, through unrighteous envy, endured not one or two, but numerous labours; and when he had at length suffered martyrdom, departed to the place of glory due to him. Owing to envy, Paul also obtained the reward of patient endurance, after being seven times thrown into captivity, compelled to flee, and stoned. After preaching both in the east and west, he gained the illustrious reputation due to his faith, having taught righteousness to the whole world, and come to the extreme limit of the west, and suffered martyrdom under the prefects. Thus was he removed from the world, and went into the holy place, having proved himself a striking example of patience.

Chapter 20. The Peace and Harmony of the Universe.

The heavens, revolving under His government, are subject to Him in peace. Day and night run the course appointed by Him, in no wise hindering each other. The sun and moon, with the companies of the stars, roll on in harmony according to His command, within their prescribed limits, and without any deviation. The fruitful earth, according to His will, brings forth food in abundance, at the proper seasons, for man and beast and all the living beings upon it, never hesitating, nor changing any of the ordinances which He has fixed. The unsearchable places of abysses, and the indescribable arrangements of the lower world, are restrained by the same laws. The vast unmeasurable sea, gathered together by His working into various basins, never passes beyond the bounds placed around it, but does as He has commanded. For He said, Thus far shall you come, and your waves shall be broken within you. Job 38:11 The ocean, impassable to man and the worlds beyond it, are regulated by the same enactments of the Lord. The seasons of spring, summer, autumn, and winter, peacefully give place to one another. The winds in their several quarters fulfil, at the proper time, their service without hindrance. The ever-flowing fountains, formed both for enjoyment and health, furnish without fail their breasts for the life of men. The very smallest of living beings meet together in peace and concord. All these the great Creator and Lord of all has appointed to exist in peace and harmony; while He does good to all, but most abundantly to us who have fled for refuge to His compassions through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom be glory and majesty for ever and ever. Amen.

https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/1010.htm (Translated by John Keith. From Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol. 9. Edited by Allan Menzies. Revised and edited for New Advent by Kevin Knight. )

Towards the bottom of this post you will find out more about St Clements place in Christian History, but first, lets find out his associations with London.

London & St Clements

Trinity House. Designed by Samuel Wyatt (1737-1807) Engraving 1834

The maritime connection may explain the three St Clements connections in London. Trinity House On Tower Hill has been working to keep shipping safe since being founded in Deptford in the 16th Century as:

‘The Master, Wardens and Assistants of the Guild Fraternity or Brotherhood of the most glorious and undivided Trinity and of St Clement in the Parish of Deptford Strond in the County of Kent.

They look after light ships, lighthouses, navigation buoys and licence Deep Sea Pilots. The HQ moved to Tower Hill in 1796.

St Clements Danes (left) St Clements Eastcheap (right) from Agas Map (1561)

London has two churches dedicated to St Clements. Both are by early London waterfronts and rebuilt by Christopher Wren and his team.

St Clement’s Eastcheap is on the terrace above the Roman port of London, near London Bridge (which leads to Wikipedia speculation that it might have been an early Roman foundation). And St Clements Danes is where the Strand meets Fleet Street on the terrace above the Lundenwic Saxon waterfront.

Lydia and Wickham get married

St Clements is where Lydia and Wickham finally get married in Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. But which of the two St Clements? Wickham had lodgings in the East Cheap area. The Gardiners, Lydia’sUncle and Aunt were the only people at the wedding except Darcy. They lived in nearby Gracechurch Street. But perhaps St Clements Dane was more fashionable and might be more the raffish Mr Wickham’s cup of tea? (Jane Austen bought her family’s tea from Twinings, just off Fleet Street, where you can still buy it today )

Slide from my ‘Jane Austen’s 1809 Virtual Tour of London’

Oranges & Lemons

St Clements appears in the nursery rhyme/game Oranges and Lemons and both churches claim it refers to them, but as both are by the waterfront, either will do.

Oranges and lemons,
Say the bells of St. Clement’s.

You owe me five farthings,
Say the bells of St. Martin’s.

When will you pay me?
Say the bells at Old Bailey.

When I grow rich,
Say the bells at Shoreditch.

When will that be?
Say the bells of Stepney.

I do not know,
Says the great bell at Bow.

Here comes a candle to light you to bed,
And here comes a chopper to chop off your head!
  Chip chop chip chop the last man is dead

I remember playing this as a child. Two children form an arch with their hands. The other children go through the arch reciting the rhyme until the chopper comes down when the hands forming the arch traps one of the children. The trapped child then whispers which side they want to be join, and they leave the procession to stand behind one or other of the arch-makers. I seem to remember we ended it off by having a tug of war between the two teams.

Alternatively, the trapped/chopped children make an additional arch and the remaining kids have to rush through a large space, fearing the chop.

On this day:

1963 the first episode of Dr Who was broadcast on the BBC, starring William Hartnell and his assistants played by William Russell;Jacqueline Hill; and Carole Ann Ford. The ‘An Unearthly Child’ episode may be responsible for me becoming an archaeologist. It begins in London and the Tardis is transported 100,000 years into the past where stone-age humans are fighting over lost fire-lighting skills. I don’t remember hiding behind a sofa but I do remember being gripped by it. This is now 62 years of Doctor Who.

Originally published Nov 23rd, 2022. Revised & Rewritten on Nov 23rd 2023, 2024 and 2025

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Sagittarius, Martinmas Old Style and Pack-Rag Day November 22nd

November 22nd is the dawning of Sagittarius.

According to the Kalendar of Shepherds 1604, women born on this day should marry at age 13, shall have many sons and live to 72 years old. Men born on November 22nd will be merciful, far-travelled, prosperous after early dangers and live to 72 years and 8 months. Can’t help feeling that prophecy this precise is heading for a fall. (see my post sliding-ducks-and-the-equivocation-of-prophecy/).

Martinmas Old Style and Pack-Rag Day

Pack-Rag Day, hiring of farm workers

Martinmas was the Festival of Winter’s Beginning and is celebrated on November 11. It was one of the most famous medieval festivals. In 1752, the calendar was transformed when Britain transferred from the Julian to the Gregorian Calendar, 11 days were lost from the Calendar, so the original date of the festival would be what we know as November 22nd. So this is Martinmas Old Style.

In the East Riding of Yorkshire, hiring fairs were held around this time. It was also called Pack-Rag Day as servants carried their clothes to their new place of work.

A hiring fair is how Gabriel Oak is hired by Batheseba Everdene in ‘Far From the Madding Crowd’ by Thomas Hardy. They were often also held at Michaelmas, and in Warwickshire are called Mops. See my post on the Mop here.

On this Day

The original Book of Days 1878 title page
Chambers Book of Days
The 2004 Chambers Book of Days

As you may have noticed, I have been adding a section called ‘On this Day’ which highlights some notable events that have happened on this day in history. In my quest to create an almanac of the past with a reasonable post for every day, my loyal subscribers will be getting a post they read last year. So, I am trying to add extra content to make it worthwhile. Hence, this ‘new’ section (one year old today).

So, I will either republish a previously published post. It should be better proofread (although I’m perfectly capable of adding extra embarrassing typos). The content should be improved or expanded. Or with an added ‘On this Day’ section. Therefore, if you find you have read the post before, just scroll down to the new content at the bottom.

One of my sources for the ‘On this Day’ section is Chambers’ ‘Book of Days A Miscellany of Popular Antiquities’in connection with the Calendar’. The original was published, in 1864, by Robert Chambers one of the original founders of Chambers Publishing. The new one takes is inspiration from the original. I found out about it from Sir Roy Strong and Julia Trevelyan Oman’s ‘The English Year, which is itself a personal selection from the Chambers Book of Days. Sir Roy was my boss when I was an Assistant Keeper at the V&A.

1963 President Kennedy and Governor John Connally were shot while part of a motorcade in Dallas.

1968 The Beatles White Album was released

1990 British Prime Minister Mrs Thatcher resigned.

Originally published as two separated posts on 22nd November 2022, republished on 22nd November 2023, merged 2024, and expanded 2025

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Night Fowling November 19th

Gervase Markham Hungers Prevention: or, the Whole Art of Fowling by Water and Land. (Printed, London: for Francis Grove, 1655).

This was the period of the year for ‘Night-fowling’. Gervase Markham wrote a whole book about it in the 17th Century. It was called Hungers Prevention: or, the Whole Art of Fowling by Water and Land. (Printed London: for Francis Grove, 1655).

In it, he tells the reader to go to ‘a stubble field in November when the air is mild and the moon not shining. There take a dolorous low bell, and net. Spread the net over the stubble where there may be fowl, ring the bell, light fires of dry straw, and the fowl will fly and become entangled in the net.‘

Title illustration from Gervase Markham Hungers Prevention: or, the Whole Art of Fowling by Water and Land. (Printed London: for Francis Grove, 1655).

In Britain today, the Wild fowling season is from 1 September – to 20th February and largely takes place on the marshes and foreshore.

Duck, Geese, waders and other birds are the quarry. Species involved include:
Gadwall goose, Canada goose, Common snipe, Coot, Goldeneye duck, Greylag goose, Golden plover, Moorhen, Mallard, Pink-footed goose, Jack snipe, Pintail, European Woodcock, white-fronted goose, Pochard, Scaup1, Shoveler, Teal, Tufted duck, Wigeon

(from https://basc.org.uk/wildfowling/advice/wildfowling-code-of-practice/)

For more Gervase Markham books see my post here:

On this Day

On this day, in 1660, Charles I was born.

In 1863. President Abraham Lincoln gave the Gettysburg Address.

World Toilet Day

Today is the United Nations’s World Toilet Day. It is ‘Sustainable Development Goal 6 Safe toilets for all by 2030’. It is astonishing that we, as a species, have:

‘3.5 billion people (who) still live without safely managed sanitation, including 419 million who practise open defecation.’

That is a third of the world’s population if my figures are correct. It also impacts particularly badly on women in those areas where decent hygiene cannot be guaranteed.

These are the ‘Key messages you should know on World Toilet Day’

  1. Toilets are a place for peace. This essential space, at the centre of our lives, should be safe and secure. But for billions of people, sanitation is under threat from conflict, climate change, disasters and neglect.
  2. Toilets are a place for protection. By creating a barrier between us and our waste, sanitation services are essential for public and environmental health. But when toilet systems are inadequate, damaged or broken, pollution spreads and deadly diseases get unleashed.
  3. Toilets are a place for progress. Sanitation is a human right. It protects everyone’s dignity, and especially transforms the lives of women and girls. More investment and better governance of sanitation are critical for a fairer, more peaceful world.

First published Nov 19th 2022. Republished Nov 19th 2023, 2024, 2025

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Exercise to keep you warm and fit for the ordeal of winter – November 15th

Medieval drawing of an archer
Medieval drawing of an archer. Good resistance exercise to get the muscle/fat ratio on the healthy side?

‘Leaping is an exercise very commendable and healthful for the body.’

The Compleat Gentleman 1634

Thomas Fuller in his book published in 1642 says:

Running, Leaping, and Dancing, the descants on the plain song of walking, are all excellent exercises. And yet those are the best recreations which besides refreshing enable, at least dispose, men to some other good ends. Bowling teaches mens hands and eyes Mathematicks, and the rules of Proportion: Swimming hath sav’d many a mans life, when himself hath been both the wares, and the ship: Tilting and Fencing is warre without anger; and manly sports are the Grammer of Military performance. But above all Shooting is a noble recreation…..

‘The Holy State’ by Thomas Fuller B.D. and Prebendarie of Sarum

Published St Pauls Churchyard 1642

The Holy State is a fascinating book – it provides instruction on how to be the Good Wife; the Good Advocate; the Good King; Bishop etc. etc.; has general rules of behaviour; some case studies of good lives to emulate and discussion of profane states not to emulate.

It can be read online here:

On This Day

15th of November 1712 A Famous Duel between Lord Mohun and the Duke of Hamilton

‘In short, they fought at seven this morning. The dog Mohun was killed on the spot; and while the Duke was over him, Mohun shortening his sword, stabbed him in at the shoulder to the heart. The Duke was helped towards the Cake House by the Ring in Hyde Park (where they fought) and died on the grass, before he could reach the house; and was brought home in his coach by eight, while the poor Duchess was asleep.‘

Jonathan Swift ‘The Journal to Stella’ 1712

Lord Mohun seemed to be the villian, not only making the initial affront, but also issuing the challenge and stabbing his rival in such an underhand way! After the Duel there was fighting between the servants of the men, and the seconds had to flee to avoid arrest. Duels were illegal but remained a part of upperclass society into the 19th Century. Pehaps, Thomas Fuller’s advocacy of fencing as a good keep fit exercise is not such a great idea!

Text taken from ‘A London Year’ Compiled by Travis Elborough and Nick Rennison

To read my post on Jonathan Swift and Chelsea Buns see my post here.

First published November 2023, republished 2025

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Lay in stocks of fire wood against the Winter November 14th

Photo by Sergey Lapunin on Unsplash

As the winter comes nearer and the St Martin’s Summer comes to an end – make sure you have good stocks of firewood. Here, is some ancient advice on the burning of wood:

Beechwood fires burn bright and clear
If the logs be kept a year
Oaken Logs if dry and old
Keep away the winter’s cold
Chestnut’s only good they say
If for years ’tis laid away
But ash-wood green or ash-wood brown
Are fit for a King with a golden Crown
Elm she burns like the churchyard mould
Even the flames are cold
Birch and pine-wood burn too fast
Blaze too bright and do not last
But ash wet or ash dry
A Queen may warm her slippers by.

For more professional modern advice for your wood burning stove, look here, or at this, excellent, although American source. For more on a St Martin’s Summer, see my post here:

IKEA Furniture and Me.

My own very limited experience of firewood is from the very occasional fires I lit during Christmas past. I found a particular joy in burning IKEA furniture which had failed during the year. My kindling of choice was dried Christmas tree, which pops and crackles like a good indoor firework. I suspect burning IKEA furniture, however good for the soul, is appalling for the environment, so please don’t do it! Take a pickaxe to it instead, or even better, upcycle it.

The nightmare that is a flatpack!

A postscript on IKEA. To appreciate the joy this gave me, you have to understand my dislike of shopping in IKEA. And my even greater frustration at putting together the flatpack items. I have a form of flatpraxia which begins with an inability to spot key construction information cryptically hidden in those little drawings. Magically, as you survey the slightly wonky creation in front of you at ‘completion’, my mind finally resolves the importance of tiny details on those little diagrams. Understanding comes with the realisation that I have put it all together in the wrong sequence. This added with a ham-fisted DIY disability means, my IKEA is full of quirks such as drawers that are not the smooth sliders you dream of. So, when an alternative piece of furniture comes to my attention, with more character and, crucially, already put together, the IKEA is ready for its joyous ritual disappearance from my house.

First Published 14th November 2022, revised 14th November 2023, 2024 and 2025

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Remember, Remember, the 5th of November

Old print showing the plotters for the Gunpowder plot
The Gunpowder Plotters, culminating on the 5th of November

Soon, after the discovery of the Gunpowder Plot, Parliament legislated for an annual commemoration of the Catholic Plot. The date they chose was the anniversary of finding Guy Fawkes with a lantern next to piles of barrels of Gunpowder underneath Parliament. This was the occasion of the State Opening of Parliament, 5th November 1605. The King, his Queen, the King’s children. The Lords from the House of Lords & MPs from the House of C would all have been blown up.

The Ashmolean Lantern

Guy Fawkes Lantern at the Ashmolean Museum

This was the one held by Fawkes. It was given the Museum by Robert Heywood in 1641. He got it from his brother, Peter, who was a Westminster Magistrate among the party who arrested Guy Fawkes in the cellar. Peter Heywood, took the lantern from Guy Fawkes to stop him setting fire to the pile of gunpowder barrels. Or at least that is the story Robert Heywood told.

A commemoration of fireworks and bonfires was clearly appropriate given that it has been estimated that the amount of gunpowder in the barrels would have killed the king, the Royal Family, the House of Lords and the House of Commons and devastated a huge area around Westminster. But some suggest that the nature of the commemoration draws some elements from Halloween – use of bonfires and dressing up. Halloween was frowned upon by puritans, but they supported Guy Fawkes Day as it was anti-catholic.

Banner in Lewes

The anti-catholic nature of the celebration is a fact, but it really isn’t something we think about today. There is little anti-Catholic prejudice in Britain (except in one or two very specific places). Irish friends are amazed we still celebrate it, but for the vast majority of people in Britain it is really just Fireworks night, nothing to do with anti-catholic sentiment.

The Lewes Bonfire

Traces of the original anti-catholic nature of it do continue in places like Lewes, which is one of the most traditional Fireworks Nights. This consists of clubs who organise a parade through the town. Then it ends with the burning of an effigy of the Pope and, more recently, other unpopular figures on the contemporary scene. Click here for more on Lewes.

Procession in Lewes

Tar Barrel Rolling

Ottery St Mary continues the tradition of using Tar Barrels. These are wooden barrels in which tar and tinder are set on fire. The Barrels are either rolled through the Town, or down a hill. But in Ottery they are carried on the shoulders of volunteers (see video below). This has a pedigree which goes back before 1605 as there are references to tar barrels and displays in Protestant processions to celebrate the accession to the throne of Edward VI and Elizabeth 1.

Tar Barrels in Ottery St Mary
Stephen and Claire – 2 Zany Brits on YouTube

Discovering the Plot

King James 1 took credit for discovering the plot as he is said to have deciphered the warning given in a letter, written to William Parker, 13th Baron Morley, 4th Baron Monteagle. Monteagle wrote the letter at his house in Hoxton, London (commemorated by a plaque in Hoxton Street near where I live) which warned against turning up at Parliament but was not explicit as to the nature of the threat.

Letter Lord Monteagle passed on to King James 1

My lord, out of the love I beare to some of youere frends, I have a care of youre preservacion, therefore I would aduyse you as you tender your life to devise some excuse to shift youer attendance at this parliament, for God and man hath concurred to punishe the wickedness of this tyme, and thinke not slightly of this advertisement, but retire yourself into your country, where you may expect the event in safety, for though there be no apparance of anni stir, yet I saye they shall receive a terrible blow this parliament and yet they shall not seie who hurts them this cowncel is not to be contemned because it may do yowe good and can do yowe no harme for the dangere is passed as soon as yowe have burnt the letter and i hope God will give yowe the grace to mak good use of it to whose holy proteccion i comend yowe.

National Archives

James realised this sentence: ‘they shall receive a terrible blow this parliament and yet they shall not seie who hurts them ‘ implied an explosion. His father, Lord Darnley, was killed in a Gunpowder Plot in Edinburgh, so perhaps he was particularly attuned to the threat. On the other hand, there is a possibility that the King’s Secret Service were aware of the plot and arranged matters, so the King could receive the credit for its discovery.

The Fifth of November

    Remember, remember!
    The fifth of November,
    The Gunpowder treason and plot;
    I know of no reason
    Why the Gunpowder treason
    Should ever be forgot!
    Guy Fawkes and his companions
    Did the scheme contrive,
    To blow the King and Parliament
    All up alive.
    Threescore barrels, laid below,
    To prove old England’s overthrow.
    But, by God’s providence, him they catch,
    With a dark lantern, lighting a match!
    A stick and a stake
    For King James’s sake!
    If you won’t give me one,
    I’ll take two,
    The better for me,
    And the worse for you.
    A rope, a rope, to hang the Pope,
    A penn’orth of cheese to choke him,
    A pint of beer to wash it down,
    And a jolly good fire to burn him.
    Holloa, boys! holloa, boys! make the bells ring!
    Holloa, boys! holloa boys! God save the King!
    Hip, hip, hooor-r-r-ray!

English Folk Verse (c.1870)

See my post on preparing for Guys Fawkes day here:

First published 5th November 2021, revised 2024, 2025

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All Souls Day – November 2nd

Picture of window sill with skulls, Chrysanthemums and pictures of remembrance
El Dia de los Muertos – All Souls Day, in Haggerston, London. Photo K Flude.

Today is the Mexican Day of the Dead. In fact, the second day of El Dia de Muertos. Here is a video from Mexico, which you will enjoy for its Latin song and images of the Day of the Dead in Mexico. (It’s on Facebook, so may not work unless you have a login). And here is a YouTube explanation of celebrations in Mexico.

Today is the day to celebrate all those loved ones who have passed away. To keep them in mind, to remind you that you still care about them. It is the third day of the season of Allhallowstide, following All Hallows Evening (Halloween), and All Saint’s Day.

Beata, who comes from Poland, tells me that, November the 1st is the day when relatives visit the cemeteries of the dead. Loved ones bringing chrysanthemums to decorate the graves. It’s a happy day for the dead because they are being remembered and visited. Today, November 2nd, is a more sombre day – a day to stay at home and think of the loved ones. Perhaps looking through albums of photographs?

Souling

In England, it was the time of year in which ‘Souling’ used to take place. Households made soul-cakes. Children or people in need of food come to visit and are given soul cakes in exchange for praying for the dead.

Soul, soul, for a souling cake.
I pray good Missus for a souling cake.
Apple or pear, plum or cherry.
Anything good to make us merry.

Traditional rhyme from Shropshire and Cheshire

Moving on from Purgatory

This is based upon the idea of Purgatory, and the belief that intervention on Earth can influence the amount of time an ancestor spends in purgatory for their sins. John Aubrey (1626 – 1697), antiquarian, collector of folklore and writer, mentions a custom in Hereford which shows a variant of the idea.

John Aubrey (Wikipedia)

In the County of Hereford was an old Custom at Funerals, to hire poor people, who were to take upon them all the Sins of the part deceased. One of them I remember (he was a long, lean, lamentable poor rascal). The manner was that when a Corpse was brought out of the house and laid on the Bier; a Loaf of bread was brought out and delivered to the Sin-eater over the corps, as also a Mazer-bowl full of beer, which he was to drink up, and sixpence in money, in consideration whereof he took upon him all the Sins of the Defunct, and freed him (or her) from Walking after they were dead.

John Aubrey, Remains of Gentilism 1688

This belief in the power of action in the Here and Now to lubricate passage through Purgatory to the Ever After was a major part of fund-raising for Catholic Institutions before the Reformation. For example, in the records of St Thomas Hospital, Southwark, a wealthy widow called Alice (de Bregerake – if I remember the spelling correctly) left her wealth to the hospital in return for an annual Rose rent; lifetime accommodation in the Hospital in Southwark, and for the monks and nuns to pray for her soul and the souls of her ancestors.

Purgatory was not a settled thing in Catholic Theology before the 12th Century or so. However, the idea that prayers for the dead could be useful dates back before the Roman period. Catholics took 2 Maccabees as their biblical authority for Purgatory. But Luther demoted Maccabees to “apocrypha“. And today the Anglicans view it as ‘useful’ but not to be used for ‘doctrine.’

Ludovico Carracci: English: An Angel Frees the Souls of Purgatory (Wikipedia)
Ludovico Carracci: English: An Angel Frees the Souls of Purgatory 1610 (Wikipedia)

All Souls, London

One of London’s most beautiful churches is dedicated to All Souls. It is All Souls, Langham Place. It is just near the BBC HQ and on a wonderful site, as it is on a bend in Regent’s Street. This shows it to great advantage. The architect was John Nash (1824) as part of his transformation of the West End with his boulevard from Regent’s Park south to Westminster. As he could not get all the property owners on the alignment of the road to sell him the land, he disguised this enforced bend with a magnificent Church.

All Souls Langham Place By David Castor (dcastor) – Own work, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6516081
Regent’s Street looking north to All Souls (photo K Flude)

See my posts on Halloween and, and All Hallows Day here

Revised 2nd November 2025, 2024, 2023 and first published 2nd Nov 2021