St Gabriel’s Day March 24th

Today, is St Gabriel’s Day, or rather it was. Because the Church amalgamated the Archangel’s Celebration onto St. Michael’s Day, or Michaelmas on October 11th. It is now St Michael and the Archangels Day. You can read all about this in my post here.

Angels and Archangels are a complex and disputed subject. Angels appear in many religions in some guise or other. But they sit in a difficult place in a modern monotheistic religion. Does an omnipotent God need whole levels of messengers and intermediaries? And Angels and their heavenly host are they semi-divine demigods? For more about Archangels read my post here.

St Gabriel’s Day, is the eve of the Annunciation. The day he announces to the Virgin Mary that she is pregnant with the Son of God. The most important news the world has had, if you believe in the story. But more about that tomorrow. Tomorrow, March 25th is, from a Christian perspective, the most important day in the history of the Universe (if you are a Christian). It is:

The Beginning of the Universe, The Birthdays of Adam, Lilith, & Eve, The day of the Conception of the Son of God, The first day of the Year until 1752. These links will take you to what is now my post popular post, and will be revised tomorrow. It has taken over from the Skimmity Ride, and Queen Elizabeth I’s Nicknames.

St Gabriel’s Day, the National Gallery, the Courtauld, Italian Food and Mrs Malaprop

My interest in St Gabriel began when I was Course Director for the Road Scholar programme ‘London in Depth’. What I love about working for Road Scholar is the opportunity it gave me to spread my didactic wings. So, I could order a specialist to guide my group in the National Gallery or do it myself. I chose the vainglorious choice. But I loved standing in front of a painting in the Sainsbury Wing talking about the renaissance development of perspective with a Giotto behind me, a Masaccio on the horizon and Duccio’s Annunciation in front of me. I created the narrative myself but what a thrill to speak about a painting with such, perhaps unjustified, confidence? I was a mere Archaeologist after all.

Egregious Malapropisms

The tour went on via Michelangelo, Leonardo, Titian, Holbein and wound up with a Canaletto of two. I did it for maybe 10 years, and loved it. On one tour, I finished, went for lunch with a nagging worry in my head. I mulled it over. Had I really stood in front of a precise work of architectural perspective, and enjoined my group to look at the simple way Cannelloni had rendered the water in the Grand Canal?

Yes, I had manifested Mrs Malaprop. I’m not sure what Canaletto would have thought of it! The practice is named after a character in the Rivals by Sheridan. Defined by Wikiepedia as:

‘a malaprop, acyrologia or Dogberryism) is the incorrect use of a word in place of a word with a similar sound, either unintentionally or for comedic effect, resulting in a nonsensical, often humorous utterance.‘

Anyone for a Panini?

Shamed, but the worst of it is that there are so many Italian Painters (and footballers for that matter) who sound like food. And the fear of repeating that faux pas, lives with me. Whenever I go with a group to any Stately Home, not only will there be a Canaletto or two, but also there is bound to be several Paninis. When I tell my group ‘Look at the Panini’ I feel a momentary shudder of fear: can he really be called Panini?

Courtauld Gallery

So, On March 24th 2025 I was in the Courtauld, enjoying the pictures, the old rooms of the Royal Academy and photographing paintings. Looking for something for St Gabriel’s Day or anything else that might be useful for the Almanac of the Past? Out of the corner of my eye, in a Renaissance room, I spotted a painting that seemed out of place. A stunning painting but the woman looked modern or at least 19th Century, and the colour palette very subdued and certainly not like most Great Masters. I looked at the label ‘Virgin and Child’. Parmigianino. Whose real name turns out to be Mazzola. I rest my case.

It’s a great gallery! Do visit.

On This Day

1603 – Queen Elizabeth I died in the small hours of the morning of March 24th. Sir Robert Carey immediately set off on his horse to be the first to tell James VI of Scotland he was now King James I of England.

He left around 9.30 got to Doncaster by night time. Next night he got to his own house in Witherington in the Borders Country, Next day he left for Edinburgh but fell off his horse. So didn’t get to Edinburgh until James was about to go to bed. He was carried to the King’s Chamber and knelt, saluted him by his new title King of “England, Scotland, France and Ireland”.

1944 – 76 out of 200 potential escapees, escape from the German Prisoner of War camp Stalag Luft III. The camp was especially built to hold persistent escapees. Three tunnels were built, Tom, Dick and Harry. Tom was discovered. Dick was abandoned. But on March 24th. 200 prisoners were ready to escape through Tunnel Harry. But the attempt was discovered when the 77th person came out of it. Of the 76 who escaped, only 2 got out of occupied Europe. One got to Sweden the other to Spain. Hitler wanted to execute the 74 who were recaptured but was persuaded against it. Instead, 50 recaptured prisoners were deliberately shot ‘while trying to escape’. The Great Escape film (1963) is based on the escape. To read more, see the BBC report here. Or for those who love detail here.

Source: ‘Chambers Book of Days’

First published on March 24th, 2025, Revised 2026