Story Category: Legacy

This is a legacy story from an earlier version of our website. It may contain some formatting issues and broken links.

A highpoint of my time working as the Adult Learning Officer for Royal Pavilion & Museums Adult Event Programme came in 2014 when the centenary of the start of the First World War bought an opportunity to open the archives and uncover the story of how the people of Brighton faced a time of unprecedented international crisis.

This picture shows a page from a letter written by Private R. Yates and illustrated by cartoons sent to Ellen Thomas-Stanford of Preston Manor on 10 November 1914.

The letter caught my attention because the cartoon made me smile and had me wondering. What’s a Jack Johnson?

Private Yates was a superb cartoonist. Here he sketches himself at the moment of explosion, his cap blown clear off his head. I love his expression of surprise and the way he has captured the sheer force, noise and mayhem of war with a few strokes of his pen.

A thank you letter from hospital

Private Yates wrote the letter from his bed at the Royal Navy Hospital Plymouth where he was being treated for wounds. He thanked Ellen Thomas-Stanford for the gifts she sent to him and the other wounded men. He did not know her personally. Mrs Thomas-Stanford was an unknown but much-appreciated lady benefactor doing her bit for the war effort by making charitable donations of cigarettes and chocolates.

Ellen Thomas-Stanford was 66 years old when war broke out and like many wealthy women, she sought ways she could put her resources to use and help those caught up in war. Britain in 1914 had no National Health Service. In effect, health-care was private. You paid for medical treatment and if you couldn’t pay, you sought help through charities. The nation’s health-care provision was therefore stretched both medically and financially by the constant flow of tens of thousands of men returning wounded from the battlefield.

During the 1914-18 war Ellen and her friends stepped-up their work raising funds for medical charities. Huge sums were raised for The Red Cross and the many military hospitals that sprung up all along Britain’s south coast, some in private homes given over to the wounded. Grand ladies preferred their seaside homes to be used as convalescent hospitals for officers. Lower ranked men like Private Yates would find themselves in more basic surroundings.

A battle story

The Royal Naval Hospital, Plymouth was 150 years old by the time Private Yates was admitted. Treatment would have been the best possible in this old naval hospital but comforts like cigarettes and chocolate were rare luxuries. We can’t know if Private Yates wrote of his own accord or if the wounded men were instructed by their superiors to send letters of thanks. I picture this battle-worn soldier sitting in bed scratching his head wondering what on earth he can write to a well-heeled dignitary in Brighton after he’d expressed his thanks for her gifts.

He describes his path from war to hospital, a vivid account in few words

‘we were at Ypres trying to capture a machine gun which some snipers had in a farmhouse, which they were very fond of hiding in. We were beating back as the enemy were too strong for us’

Then a Jack Johnson exploded

A boxing champ

I guessed a Jack Johnson was military slang and looked for its origin, which I soon discovered. Jack Johnson was a famous American boxer who became the first African-American world heavyweight boxing champion (1908-1915). Johnson was front page news all over the world for his skills in the boxing ring and for the incidents in his private life that came with fame, money and tensions around race in the US at that time. The sporting pages of newspapers, read avidly by soldiers on the Front, were filled with tales of Jack Johnson whose name was on everyone’s lips. British troops in the trenches borrowed his famous name to describe the powerful black-coloured German 150mm heavy artillery shells that exploded with devastating force.

Private Yates ends his short letter by writing ‘I think this is it at present, from Yours Truly, Pte, R. Yates’

And so, that letter from 1914 with its cartoons and message of thanks lay hidden for a century. Reading its message afresh in 2014 I knew I was looking at something extraordinarily special. Here was one man’s brush with death encapsulated in brief words and swiftly-penned drawings folded into a tiny blue envelope stamped ‘Passed by Censor’ and delivered into history.

At the peak of war 12 million letters and parcels a week were sent from Britain to men fighting overseas. Millions of letters also circulated on the home-front, as disposable as today’s electronic digital communications.

Ellen must have cherished this particular letter because she selected it from the thousands of letters from friends, family and person’s unknown to her, that she received in the 1914-1918 period and had preserved in five large leather-bound volumes now kept at Preston Manor.

Paula Wrightson, Venue Officer Preston Manor

This is a legacy story from an earlier version of our website. It may contain some formatting issues and broken links.

There’s no shortage of talented cooks and cookery writers to have come from Sussex.  Perhaps the one who has had the most influence on how we eat today is Polegate born Elizabeth David, CBE, (1913 – 1992)

Perhaps fitting for someone who was going to change a nation’s eating habits, David was a rebel.  Although a grand-daughter of a viscount with a wealthy upbringing at Wootton Manor in Folkington (her father was Conservative MP for Eastbourne, Rupert Sackville Wynne) she pushed back against convention, traveled, and dabbled in several careers.  Studying art in Paris, experimenting with acting in London, and even spending a brief time as a shop assistant at Worth fashion house, adventure seemed to follow her.  Running away on a boat with a married actor, she was detained in Italy as a suspected spy, trapped in Greece at the start of the Second World War, and eventually found herself in Cairo in the Second World War where she worked in a library for the British government.

Biography cover of Elizabeth David, by Lisa Chaney, pub. Pan Macmillan, 2010

In 1946 she returned to an England that was very different to the one she had left. Scarred by the war and a series of hard winters, the country was still under the heavy yoke of austerity and food rationing.  With butter, cheese, margarine, cooking fats and meat still to be rationed until 1954 and such delights as tinned apricots cooked in bacon fat, fake marzipan made from beans mashed with almond essence passing as the delicacies of the day, David was appalled by the contrast to the simple, healthy vegetable based diet she had encountered during her years in the Mediterranean.  Friends suggested she take out her frustration by writing about it.

Various magazine articles duly followed and in 1948 she was invited to write a cookery column for Harper’s Bazaar, in which she extolled the virtues of such then exotic foodstuffs as basil, aubergines, and garlic.  This led, in 1950, to David’s first book, simply called A Book of Mediterranean Food.  With a striking cover by artist John Minton that evoked the bright colours of a sunny sky and the sea with a table set out in the sun, the book presented dishes such as moules mariniere, bouillabaisse, and moussaka, all healthy, colourful and promoting sociable eating, to blast away the pale spectre of suet pudding and cabbage from the British table.  At her publisher’s recommendation, David interspersed her well researched recipes with snippets of travel writing, advice on street markets in Italian towns, snapshots of French picnics en famille, descriptions of the smells of fresh herbs growing in sunny gardens.  For today’s reader, bombarded with restaurants, take-aways and TV programmes showcasing food from every corner of the world, it’s hard to understand just how novel and exciting David’s Mediterranean recipes must have seemed to a 1950s readership in need of escapism.  If most people couldn’t travel to the French Riviera or have dinner in a Greek taverna, thanks to A Book of Mediterranean Food they could at least now create a little of that atmosphere – and joie de vivre – in their own homes.

David produced seven more books, notably French Country Cooking (1951), Italian Food (1954), and French Provincial Cooking (1960).  These, plus the several cookery columns and articles for magazines and newspapers she wrote, were to introduce the ordinary British amateur cook (and diner) to delights such as risotto, lasagne, ragu, and dauphinois potatoes and usher in an era where garlic, courgettes, dates, and apricots would become a staple of our supermarket shelves.  Now classics, David’s books didn’t only make Mediterranean food mainstream, they also introduced the British to the idea that food could be a pleasure rather than a chore.  Although detractors claimed David’s recipes were too intimidating for the novice cook, her popularity has been enduring and many cooks today, such as Rick Stein, Jamie Oliver, Nigel Slater, and Prue Leith have acknowledged her as an influence, many appreciating her no nonsense tones and refusal to patronise the reader.

In 1965 David opened a shop in Pimlico, London, where people could buy authentic French pans and other pieces of equipment which were then hard to obtain.

Elizabeth David received many awards in her life, including two honorary doctorates and Fellowship of the Royal Society of Literature for her skills as a writer.  In 1986 she was made a CBE.

She died on 22^nd May 1992 and is buried at St Peter ad Vincula church, Folkington, East Sussex.

In 2012, to mark the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, David was chosen by BBC Radio 4 as one of the 60 Britons who have been most influential during the 60 years of the Queen’s reign.

Written by social historian, Louise Peskett

This is a legacy story from an earlier version of our website. It may contain some formatting issues and broken links.

Before the days of social media Facebook mutual aid groups and neighbourhood Whatsapp teams, a young woman called Violet ‘Betty’ Baxter, became known as the ‘Silver Lady’, for her support and work with those facing homelessness and destitution.

The Silver Lady Fund, administered from Bexhill, is a charity that aims to bring about positive change in the lives of the world’s poorest and most vulnerable both in the UK and internationally.  Some of the projects it supports alongside other donors and partners, are providing homeless shelters, outreach workers and counsellors, and building and repairing schools and wells in rural communities where the impacts of climate change are devastating local livelihoods.

Violet serving tea, by kind permission of The Silver Lady Fund

It began as a modest enterprise to provide food and clothing to impoverished people and accommodation to stranded women in 1880 and was the idea of Reverend Michael Paget Baxter, proprietor of the Christian Herald Newspaper, and his wife Lizzie Baxter, an evangelist who, unusually for a woman of her time, had preached in Germany.  The pair’s granddaughter, Violet ‘Betty’ Baxter (1901 – 1972), who lived between London and Western Esplanade on the Hove Seafront, dramatically developed the scope of the organisation

As a young girl, Betty Baxter was keenly aware of the plights of those born in less favourable circumstances than herself.  Growing up, she supported and was involved with her grandparents’ charitable works and, by age eighteen, was already working at the Hostel for Stranded Girls in London’s East End.

Violet Baxter, the Silver Lady Travelling cafe, by kind permission of the Silver Lady Fund

In the early 1920s, Baxter found herself increasingly shocked at the ever growing number of people living rough on the London streets.  As poverty bit harder after the expense of the First World War, more and more people faced destitution and homelessness.  Whenever she could, Baxter would stop and offer people the price of a cup of tea and a sixpence out of her own purse.  Soon dubbed ‘The Silver Lady’ (silver being the colour of sixpences then), it didn’t take her long to have the idea of setting up a mobile cafe that could travel the streets of London, dispensing hot drinks and food.  She procured a blue and white van and, from 1929, the ‘Silver Lady All Night Travelling Cafe’ started to make its nightly rounds.  Operating every night, including Sundays, around midnight, the cafe would give out hundreds of pots of tea and coffee and snacks including bread and dripping sandwiches and sausages.  Appeals went out, including a twice weekly advert in The Times for donations, money, clothing and shoes.  As the Great Depression squeezed more and more Londoners dry, Baxter’s blue and white van would have been a welcome sight and the difference between staying alive and starvation to London’s teeming population of unemployed.   One grateful ‘customer’ of the Silver Lady All Night Travelling Cafe wrote to a local newspaper to say,  ‘I have been at times on the verge of ending it all, but the kind words and smiles from those at the Coffee Stall have helped to put new life and hope in me to carry on.’  In one year alone, over 60,000 free meals were handed out.

Violet Baxter serving at the silver lady travelling cafe, by kind permission of the Silver Lady Fund

Thanks to Baxter and a team of hard working volunteers, the All Night Silver Lady Travelling Cafe became well-known and donations were generous.  Baxter was also able to put on Christmas dinners and entertainment for Londoners living rough at the coldest time of year.

In 1930 Baxter went on to to found a hostel for homeless women, the Elizabeth Baxter Hostel for Distressed Women and Girls on Lambeth Road.  Learning how easy it was for homeless women to turn to the sex trade, she commissioned a film, ‘The Night Patrol’.  When it was disallowed a license by the board of censors on the grounds that it might discourage young people from coming to London to work as domestic servants, she asked the playright George Bernard Shaw to step in and help.  Even his support couldn’t change their minds, however, and the film, sadly, remained largely unseen. Read his letter to The Times here.

During the Second World War, Baxter moved her operations closer to home, running Silver Lady canteens on the South Coast.  The Hove Home Guard canteen was open every day for the serving of hot meals to the Home Guard and troops billeted in the district.

Article about the Silver Lady travelling cafe, by kind permission of the Silver Lady Fund

Her life dedicated to charitable works, Baxter took over the Christian Herald group of charities after her father died and she became chairman and managing director of the group.

violet Baxter the Silver Lady Travelling Cafe.jpg

At the time of her death, Baxter was living in Hove.  On March 16^th the Times newspaper proclaimed ‘The Silver Lady is dead’.  The ‘champion of down and outs’ as they called her had provided cheer and sustenance for thousands.  In setting up her hostel, she had also shown an understanding of the issues facing vulnerable homeless women and had worked hard to provide a safe haven for many.

The Elizabeth Baxter Hostel for Distressed Women and Girls later moved to Peckham, with the Lambeth Road premises then housing the Elizabeth Baxter Centre, a walk-in medical centre for the homeless.  The Silver Lady Fund is still going strong and keeps alive the ceaseless energy and compassion of Violet ‘Betty’ Baxter, saying on their website: ‘Miss Baxter’s indomitable spirit is something the charity aims to preserve to this day.’

With grateful thanks to Keith McPherson, Trustee, the Silver Lady Fund.

Written by social historian, Louise Peskett

This is a legacy story from an earlier version of our website. It may contain some formatting issues and broken links.

Any fan of early cinema will be familiar with Hove’s pioneering history of early film-making and film makers.  They may have even heard of George Albert Smith, the showman and early film maker who bought the town’s St Ann’s Well Gardens and turned its pump house into a film studio where he made films that introduced such innovative techniques as close-ups and wipes to signify scene changes. Not so many people have heard of his wife, however, or know of the significant contribution she made to early film and Smith’s success. 

Pantomine programme featuring Laura Bayley

Ramsgate born Laura Bayley (1862 – 1938) was already a successful actress before she met Smith.  Alongside her three sisters, with whom she often performed in Brighton, she specialised in light entertainment, particularly revues, burlesques and pantomimes.  Programmes for the Aquarium Theatre near Brighton’s Palace Pier  show her filling leading roles in many shows. The programme for ‘Little Bo Peep’, the ‘grand Christmas pantomime’ of 1893, for example, has her at the top of the bill as ‘Boy Blue’. In 1894 her Robin Hood in ‘Babes in the Wood’ was described by the Brighton Herald as ‘distinctly comely and cheery’.

It’s not clear how Laura met Smith, although, as he often trod the boards as a stage hypnotist and illusionist, they must have moved in the same circles.  The couple married in 1888 and lived in Hove just before Smith took over the lease for St Ann’s Well Gardens, which he ran as a pleasure garden as well as using for his experiments in early film.  Laura took on the lead role in a great many of Smith’s first short productions, such as ‘Hanging Out the Clothes’ (1897), ‘Santa Claus’ (1898), ‘Cinderella’ (1898) and ‘Let Me Dream Again’ (1900).  Although today, Smith carries the acclaim for these pioneering films, as today’s viewers would agree, it’s doubtful that they would have made such an impact without Laura’s formidable talent and her knack, honed from her long stage career, of knowing exactly what an audience wants.

The Kiss in the Tunnel, G.A. Smith, 1899. Courtesy of Screen Archive South East and the BFI National Archive.

In ‘The Kiss in the Tunnel’ (1899), a one minute, three seconds long short of a couple on a train grabbing a kiss as it goes through a tunnel, it’s Laura’s slightly exaggerated body language and sense of mischief that has the viewer hooked.

The Kiss in the Tunnel, G.A. Smith, 1899. Courtesy of Screen Archive South East and the BFI National Archive.

The Kiss in the Tunnel, G.A. Smith, 1899. Courtesy of Screen Archive South East and the BFI National Archive.

In ‘Mary Jane’s Mishap’ (1903), a gripping and darkly comic four minute tale of a maid who (spoiler alert) lights the stove with paraffin to disastrous consequences, Laura’s unselfconscious performance, boot polish smeared on her face and hair messed up, delves into slapstick and manages single-handedly to rein the story in before it becomes out and out tragedy. Her charisma, energy, and comic timing are the stuff of the best stand-up comedy routine.

Would it be far fetched to say that Hove’s Laura Bayley could be described as Britain’s first female screen comedian?

Not only did Laura help to cement her husband’s name in the history of early cinema by making them cackle into life as his films’ leading actress but it’s acknowledged today that she’s more than likely a major player herself.  Who better to advise Smith on visual comedy and audience expectation?  Today, she’s also thought to have helped Smith on technical issues too, taking an uncredited directing role on many of his works and supervising some of his comic shorts.  She’s also known to have taken a leading role in making short films on the ‘Biokam’, an early home camera and projector, which she sold.   Today many people still debate whether women can truly be funny.  As early as the turn of the twentieth century Laura Bayley was giving early proof that they certainly can, while flying the flag for women’s activity in film both in front of and behind the camera.

Written by Louise Peskett

More information

• Close Look at Darling ‘Special Effects’ cine-camera used by George Albert Smith

This is a legacy story from an earlier version of our website. It may contain some formatting issues and broken links.

Let’s not forget about the insect life inside your homes. While you may be enjoying spending time outdoors and spotting creepy-crawlies, you may not be able to go out at all, or you may feel limited by your one trip out a day.

Aside from the unwanted insects, like case-bearing moths – a pest in both homes and museums – you may encounter many other invertebrates that wander in. Rare visitors may include larger moths, beetles and hoverflies, as well as many more flying and crawling invertebrates. If you’re really keen you can leave your window open at night and see what is attracted in by the light.

A moth photographed inside a house (taken with Olympus TG5 point and shoot camera on macro setting) © Lee Ismail.

During the winter, you may have found certain butterflies inside your house. Species such as the peacock and small tortoiseshell can sometimes be found hibernating indoors. Sheds are much more suitable for this, as there’s less chance of them being disturbed and it’s the right temperature.

Peacock butterfly feeding on blossom during spring (taken with a DSLR camera) © Lee Ismail.

As spring is progressing, more butterfly species are emerging. Due to their larger size, most butterflies are can be seen out of the window. Using a careful aim of the binoculars, I was able to identify a red admiral when it settled on a sunny external windowsill.

Get Involved

Identifying butterflies is one of the easiest places to start as they are relatively large and have striking colours and patterns. There are many useful books and plenty of online guides (see below). Of course, if you can get outside, now is an excellent time to see them in woodlands, parks and gardens. The speckled wood is very reliably seen in patches of sunlight in a shady woodland.

Whether it’s inside or outside, if you manage to take a picture but can’t identify an insect (or any other organism) upload it to iSpot so that someone can identify it for you. There’s also a chance this year to get involved in the City Nature Challenge to spot and upload your nature sightings.

Insects are perfect for macro photography, there are some impressive cameras and lenses out there. But even your smartphone can take surprisingly high-quality pictures. Why not share yours on social media?

Lime hawkmoth caterpillar (Mimas tiliae) (taken with a smartphone) © Lee Ismail.

Jumping spider (taken with Olympus TG5 point and shoot camera on macro setting) © Lee Ismail.

Of course, paying attention to anything closely means you’ll not only see the animal you’re looking at but, the vegetation too. Keep an eye out for the next series of posts about plants.

The Field Studies Council (FSC) has excellent guides for insects, which are often very easy to use

The Woodland Trust produce handy swatches too:

Minibeasts swatch

Invertebrates 

Other insects

Butterfly Conservation has Identify a Butterfly

The Natural History Museum has Spiders in your Home

Discover More

Read other posts in the Nature at Home series

Kerrie Curzon, Collections Assistant

This is a legacy story from an earlier version of our website. It may contain some formatting issues and broken links.

This Sunday was to be the penultimate match of the season for Brighton & Hove Albion Women’s Team. Postponed due to current events, it seemed like a good opportunity to celebrate the current manager of the team, Hope Powell, as part of our 100 Pioneering Women of Sussex blog series.

On a scorching July evening the atmosphere was palpable inside Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium. Inside the 25,000 crowd started proceedings singing the National Anthem with Great Britain Women’s Olympic Football Team. The first event of the 2012 London Olympics resulted in a 1–0 GB victory over New Zealand. The team went on to win their group without conceding a goal. At Wembley 70,584 spectators witnessed a memorable 1–0 win over Brazil. The team were knocked out in the quarterfinals by 2–0 by Canada but they had furthered the ascendency of women’s football in this country.

Hope Powell, part of the series 100 First Women Portraits by Anita Corbin

The team was led by coach Hope Powell, who is recognised for her achievements in Anita Corbin’s 100 First Women Portraits exhibition.

Born in 1966 in Lewisham, London, Hope was brought up on a council estate with her mother, brother, stepfather, two stepbrothers and a stepsister. She started playing football at age six and by seven was the only girl hanging around a bunch of football-mad boys. At school Hope and another girl were the only females playing football with a team of boys.

Speaking recently to Sussex Life about school, football and home life, Hope said; “The West Indian Culture didn’t consider football a female sport …when I had a match or training, I had to sneak out of the house, I was like the Bend it Like Beckham girl.”

At this time, the FA banned girls over 11 from playing in mixed teams. Ever resilient, Hope discovered women’s club Millwall Lionesses under coach Alan May. Aged 16 she was discovered by scouts, resulting in her first cap for England in 1983. As an attacking midfielder, Hope received 66 international caps and played in the 1995 FIFA Women’s World Cup.

Hope Powell, manager of Brighton & Hove Albion Women’s team, BHAFC/Paul Hazlewood

Despite the appalling lack of funding for women’s football in the 1980s and 1990s, undeterred like many of her peers, Hope had part-time jobs and held fundraisers for fees and equipment. By 31, Hope was the youngest-ever coach of a national first team, but also the first women and first non-white manager. During her record 15 years tenure as England Lionesses’ coach, many consider her greatest achievement with the team as reaching the final of the Euros 2009 (losing to Germany).

By 2013, such glory led to reproach when Hope was sacked as England’s coach after a disappointing Euro 2013 where the team ended bottom of their group.

Hope Powell, manager of Brighton & Hove Albion Women’s team, BHAFC/Paul Hazlewood

The Guardian did praise Hope for modernising women’s football in this country, as heroic, awe-inspiring and revolutionary. She raised the bar, inspired the FA to demand better standards, but pointed out ‘in a cruel twist of fate that is exactly what the FA has done in sacking her.’

In 100 First Women Portraits, Hope is celebrated for being the first woman to achieve the UEFA Pro License in 2003. This is the highest coaching certificate required to permanently manage a football club in a European nation’s top-tier league system. After her dismissal from the national team, Hope traveled around the world working for UEFA and FIFA but missed working with a team.

In an interview in 2019, Hope discussed how she wasn’t sure if she could face management again, but the opportunity with Brighton & Hove Albion Women felt right.  She said; “I knew Brighton was a progressive, ambitious club. They understand where they are and where they want to be but within reason. That really appealed to me.” Brighton are making steady progress in the FA’s newly revamped Women’s Super League playing against such illustrious teams such as Chelsea, Man City and Arsenal.

Hope Powell, manager of Brighton & Hove Albion Women’s team

Speaking to The Telegraph on 30 March 2020 during the lockdown, Hope said;”It’s about people first and football second.” She conducts daily staff meetings and team video calls online from her kitchen. It evokes a softer image of the coach rarely revealed in the past. Anita Corbin’s photograph captures a relaxed Hope, her glasses slightly lowered from her face, head tilted, bearing an open mouth smile. Hope herself has said that she has learnt to be more patient with players at club level. With a hint at self-deprecation, she likened herself to a Sergeant Major, but said; “I don’t mind having a good time but remember; this is your job. There are rules. Stick to them. Otherwise, what’s the point?”

Written by Lisa Hinkins, MA Student, Museum Gallery Explainer. Lifelong Brighton & Hove Albion supporter and of the Women’s game.

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We often talk about the life of George IV who built the Royal Pavilion but seldom mention his father. Clare Hartfield looks at the life of George III and why his nickname of ‘Farmer George’ marks such a contrast with his son.

When George III died in 1820 he had been king for almost sixty years. Only Queen Victoria and our current Queen Elizabeth II have reigned in the UK for longer.

George III by Joshua Reynolds, c1765

George III was the third reigning monarch of the house of Hanover, but even though this was a German royal family, George was born in Britain, spoke English as his first language and never visited Hanover. Unlike his predecessors, he was very much viewed as a British king through and through.

How did the public feel about George III, his subsequent illness and his passing?

Early years and marriage

George III was only 12 years old when his father Fredrick died in 1751 leaving him as heir to the throne. As his parents had a terribly bitter relationship with the king, his mother Augusta of Saxe-Gotha and his mentor Lord Bute encouraged him to deny the offer of his own residence at St James’ Palace and stay with them. They instilled a sense of strict morality and helped to prepare him for the responsibility of the crown.

George III ascended to the throne following the death of his grandfather in 1760. He married Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz on 8 September 1761and on September 22 of the same year, they were both crowned at Westminster Abbey. In comparison to his predecessors and his sons, George III never took a mistress and seemed to have a good marriage. They had 15 children – nine sons and six daughters.

George and Charlotte’s happy marriage and many children became an ideal in the eyes of the public. Their predecessors had not shown such a happy example. George III’s great grandfather, George I, locked his wife up for the rest of her life for adultery while his mistress bore him three children.

It was George III who established the royal marriages act of 1772. It followed the marriage of his brother Henry Duke of Cumberland to Anne Horton, a lady of a lower social class than George would have chosen for him. It was this same 1772 Act that would invalidate George IV’s marriage to Maria Fitzherbert.

George was viewed by the public as a moral and respectable king. He gained the nickname ‘Farmer George’ thanks to his agricultural interests. Satirists mocked his interest in mundane topics such as agriculture, industry and science rather than art. Later this name would be used to portray his relative frugality in comparison to the wreckless spending of his son, the Prince of Wales.

A cure for the king?

George III had his first serious bout of illness in the summer of 1788 and there has been much research over the years to discover what the illness really was.

He began to suffer from severe stomach pains and became increasingly confused. Symptoms included speaking for many hours without pause, which led to foaming at the mouth. He would repeat himself and write sentences with up to 400 words at a time. Doctors were at a loss to explain this condition and by December he was unable to rule effectively.

In 1788, Doctor Francis Willis was recommended to Queen Charlotte by the wife of an equerry. There was the usual blood letting and blistering of the skin, but also the use of a straitjacket and restraints. These upsetting events happened in the White House at Kew Palace and his wife Queen Charlotte was kept separated from him at this time.

In February 1789, the Regency Bill, authorised the Prince of Wales to act as regent, a role which appoints a person to administer the state because the monarch is a minor or is absent or incapacitated. The bill was introduced and passed in the House of Commons but George III recovered before the House of Lords could pass it.

Dr Willis was celebrated for his achievements in ‘curing’ the king, but it would only prove temporary. Twelve years later in 1801 he suffered a relapse and all his symptoms retured. He was treated again by the two sons of Dr Willis but suffered a third and final relapse in 1810.

So what caused his illness? The long standing theory of porphyria, a disease that can affect the nervous system, has recently been challenged. In 2013 a study was made by Dr Peter Garrard and Dr Vassiliki Rentoumi by analysing his use of language.

According to this new research, there is strong evidence to suggest that the original diagnosis of a mania of some kind was actually correct. The features of repetition, more colourful and creative language, and talking non-stop until foam ran from the mouth, are the same features recognised in the speech and writing of patients who are in the manic phase of psychiatric illnesses like bipolar disorder.

Even his tell-tale blue urine may have been down to the medicinal use of gentian, a blue flowering plant.

Garrard suggests that the explanations we come up with for patients in the past reflect our own current attitudes and opinions on illness. A hereditary blood disease caused by a ‘pure’ bloodline was seemingly more palatable than a mental heath issue.

Their work is interesting as it goes back to the doctors’ original diagnosis at the time, attributing it to mania or another form of mental illness. There was even talk at the time that it was the behaviour of the Prince of Wales particularly his acute debt and perceived lack of morality which pushed his father over the edge.

A grand and imposing spectacle

When King George III died on 29 January 1820, the country was already mourning the loss of his son Edward, Duke of Kent, only six days earlier.

To announce his death, the great bell of St Paul’s Cathedral rang at midnight. The proclamation of George IV’s accession was delayed for a day to avoid January 30th –  the anniversary of the execution of King Charles I.

The ceremony of Lying in State took place in the Royal apartments at Windsor Castle on the morning of 15 February, with his funeral and interment taking place at St George’s Chapel the following evening.

According to The Globe newspaper, the casket was ‘covered with a fine Holland Sheet and a Purple Velvet Pall, adorned with Ten Escocheons of the Imperial Arms, carried by Ten Yeomen of the Guard, under a Canopy of Purple Velvet’. The procession was lined by Grenadiers of the Foot Guards, ‘every fourth man bearing a flambeau‘ to light their way.

‘As the long array consisting of the mourners in their sable costumes, of heralds in their gaudy tabards, and Princes of the Blood in their sad-coloured mantles – moved, by torchlight, from the principal porch of Windsor Castle to St. George’s Chapel, it presented a grand and imposing spectacle. The flourish of trumpets, and the sound of the muffled drums, mingling with the peal of the minute-guns and the tolling of the death-bell, added to the solemnity of the scene.’

The newly ascended George IV was notably absent. His brother Fredrick, always his father’s favourite, was the lead mourner at the funeral. But it was the new king’s own ill health which kept him away and there were fears that another king’s funeral might soon follow.

Even fashion was affected by George III’s death. The following is from the April 1820 edition of the fashion magazine La Belle Assemblee,  published around three months after his death:

‘As we have before observed, Taste and Genius know how to draw aside the sable veil of woe, and to divest it of its cloudy monotony. The change of mourning which took place on Sunday, the 19th of March, aided, also, in a great degree, to lighten the heavy appearance of solemn black, and to give a diversity to the garb of sorrow…

Yet the needy manufacturer, who has been toiling at the loom in vain to impart brilliancy and freshness to the various hues of spring, and has racked invention for the newest patterns, call loudly for our commiseration, and makes us wish for the outward appearance of sorrow to be laid aside, as soon as is consistent with a proper and decorous respect paid to the memory of one of the best of England’s Kings.’

Image credit: Los Angeles County Museum of Art

This fashion plate shows how long official mourning periods were – even by the spring there was still only a tiny amount of white decoration on a fashionable dress of that month.

George IV’s coronation soon cost the country £240,000, equivalent to almost £14 million today. When the public looked back at the much smaller sum of £70,000 spent by his father on his joint coronation with Queen Charlotte, some may have felt even more sorrow that their good king ‘Farmer George’ had met such a sad end.

I feel that George III was probably even more loved and respected after his passing. Perhaps his strong relationship with Queen Charlotte would prove to be a role model for the young Queen Victoria and Prince Albert?

Clare Hartfield, Visitor Services Officer

This is a legacy story from an earlier version of our website. It may contain some formatting issues and broken links.

This time, we’re looking at organisms other than insects, there are plenty of other invertebrates to enjoy.

Most people I’ve talked to don’t like slugs and snails – maybe it’s because I don’t have a garden and they’re not eating my plants – but I find their little faces ever so charming. There are also fascinating reproductive behaviours to behold. And did you know, some slugs even have a tiny shell ? There are plenty of snails to be found in ponds in gardens or public areas.

Slug (taken with Olympus TG5 point and shoot camera on macro setting) © Lee Ismail.

Great pond snail (taken with Olympus TG5 point and shoot camera in underwater mode) © Lee Ismail.

It seems this post is full of the less popular animals. I know not everyone likes spiders, but there are a huge variety of them. If you can bear it, their features are fascinating under magnifiers or macro lenses. Wolf spiders (Lycosidae) can be seen prowling across grass or sunbathing on walls. They are the gardener’s friend, as they help control pest numbers. Females are often seen carrying their egg sacs around with them. Woodlouse spiders (Dysdera crocata) are another distinctive spider, brightly coloured and with a powerful bite for taking on their woodlouse prey. A minibeast that may appear like a spider but actually isn’t, is the harvestman. They are arachnids but lack the segmented body of a spider.

Wolf spider (taken on a smartphone) © Kerrie Curzon.

Woodlouse spider (taken with Olympus TG5 point and shoot camera on macro setting) © Lee Ismail.

Harvestman (taken with Olympus TG5 point and shoot camera) © Lee Ismail.

Another familiar invertebrate are worms. They are popular as food for many animals such as blackbirds, moles and foxes but they also have an important role while they are alive. Worms tidy up lawns and grassy areas for you. They clear away fallen leaves by dragging them into the ground and perform many useful roles that keep soil healthy and enable plants to grow. They’re also easier to photograph as they’re slow-moving and you can really see the slimy, segmented details.

Worms in a composter (taken with a DSLR camera) © Lee Ismail.

Hopefully pausing to consider these other creatures will allow greater appreciation. Perhaps a closer look will confirm why you don’t like them, but if you can overcome the repulsion you may see something you didn’t know about before.

Get Involved

You can add your sightings to the City Nature Challenge (24th – 27th April 2020).

The Field Studies Council (FSC) has excellent guides for insects, which are often very easy to use and UK Safari has a guide to spiders. 

The Woodland Trust produce handy swatches:

Minibeasts swatch

Invertebrates 

Some useful guides to slugs and snails:

Nature Spot Slugs & Snails

Countryfile How to identify common species and protect your plants

Discover More

Read other posts in the Nature at Home series

Kerrie Curzon, Collections Assistant

This is a legacy story from an earlier version of our website. It may contain some formatting issues and broken links.

Today we are celebrating the birthday of Lee Miller, fashion model and Surrealist who became a pioneering photographer and WWII war correspondent for Vogue. Part of our 100 Pioneering Women of Sussex blog series.

Self Portrait, modelling Jean Patou, Paris, France 1930 by Lee Miller

Lee Miller was born in 1907 in Poughkeepsie New York, she lived in Sussex from 1949 until her death in 1977.

Every year thousands of people visit the former home of Lee Miller, Farleys House in Chiddingly, which is now a museum. The majority of visitors know relatively little of her life. Perhaps they have seen glamorous photographs of a young Lee modelling for Vogue in 1920s New York, after she was discovered by Condé Nast. Often, they have heard of her in connection with Man Ray, the American photographer and Surrealist, with whom she developed the photographic technique of ‘Solarisation’. They might be aware of Lee’s career as a photographer and her role as a WWII war correspondent for Vogue. Most are surprised to learn that she was an acclaimed Cordon Bleu chef in later life. As visitors are guided around the home she shared with her husband Roland Penrose and son Antony and they hear of her life in more depth, few fail to be profoundly moved by her story and awed by the legacy she left behind.

Shortly after her death in 1977, her family discovered several cardboard boxes in the attic at Farleys, which had remained untouched since Lee and Roland had first moved there in 1949. At that time Lee was suffering badly from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, resulting from witnessing the horrors of war. She had packed away everything pertaining to her work as a war correspondent and her previous life, hiding it all in the attic. Opening the boxes, they couldn’t believe their eyes; inside were all of Lee’s wartime reports, her equipment, personal papers and thousands of photographs and negatives. It was an emotional time for Antony, who knew little of his mother’s life as he was growing up. Here was proof that she had not only been an accredited war correspondent, but a combat photojournalist reporting under fire from the frontline, most notably from the Siege of St Malo, where she was the only reporter for miles around.

‘Bridge of Sighs’, Lowndes Street, London, England 1940 by Lee Miller [GG0016]

Lee became an accredited war correspondent for Vogue in 1942. Her first assignment was to travel around Britain photographing women working for the war effort: Land girls, Wrens, ATS, nurses, aviators and others. As a woman she had access to their bases, capturing them going about their daily lives. Lee could have had little idea how important her pictures would be to future generations as an historical account of the often undervalued contribution of women during WWII.

Women of the Auxiliary Territorial Army operate a searchlight battery at South Mimms, which at times put them at great risk. After this picture had been taken by Lee Miller assisted by David E. Scherman, raiders came over and raked the battery with machine fire.

Lee then followed the US Allies as they made their way through Europe, never staying in the safe zone with other members of the press, but preferring to be with the GIs and as near to the action as possible. She wasn’t just tagging along for pictures; fluent in French, she was often called upon to translate, or help with civilian women and refugees. A fierce believer in freedom and justice, Lee was passionate about showing the world exactly what was going on, from the bloody operating theatres on the Normandy coast, to the newly liberated concentration camps. The images she took at Dachau and Buchenwald are some of the most horrific images to have come out of WWII. Few were able to do it. Lee was determined to expose the horror, so that this could never happen again. Vogue printed Lee’s pictures and words under her title, ‘Believe it’.

Lee’s vast legacy needed to be catalogued and cared for and so the Lee Miller Archives began. As more pictures were printed from her negatives, her contribution to twentieth century photography became apparent.

Lee had run her own successful studios in Paris and New York in the 1930s, exhibited her own Surrealist work and throughout her career shot fashion for Vogue. She had also photographed celebrities, artists and key figures of the Twentieth Century, many of whom were friends and regular guests at Farleys.

Eileen Agar and ‘Golden Tooth’ sculpture, London, England 1937 by Lee Miller [NC0126]

Today, the photographs Lee hid away are exhibited all over the world and a growing fascination with her life makes her the frequent subject of publications, documentaries and films.

 ‘As her significant contribution is slowly rediscovered by the world, we enjoy watching how she continues to be relevant to new generations, inspiring equality, strength in the face of adversity and the creative world.’ Ami Bouhassane granddaughter of Lee Miller, extract from ‘Lee Miller’ Modern Women Artists 05 Eiderdown Books 2019

Today, on Lee Miller’s birthday, April 23, her son, Antony will be hosting a Q&A on Instagram @farleyshg

Grim Glory: Lee Miller’s Britain at war by Ami Bouhassane coming out soon and available at www.leemiller.co.uk

To find out more about Lee Miller and view her picture library visit www.leemiller.co.uk

For information on visiting Farleys House and Gallery please visit farleyshouseandgallery.co.uk

Instagram: @farleyshg @leemillerarchives

Twitter: @farleysHG

Facebook: @farleysHG 

Researched and written by Jane Parsons, tour guide at Farleys House and Gallery, Print Room Administrator for the Lee Miller Archives and Museum Assistant at the Royal Pavilion & Museums, Brighton & Hove

This is a legacy story from an earlier version of our website. It may contain some formatting issues and broken links.

In 2012 I was the Adult Learning Officer for the Adult Event Programme creating and running public events across Royal Pavilion & Museums. This was one of 46 events that were programmed in 2012.

This picture shows the team of costumed staff members and museum volunteers who took part in a living history day at Preston Manor on the subject of the Edwardian ‘At Home.’

Lady Ellen Day 7 April 2012

This event was set on 7 April 1912 and re-enacted a fictional day in the life of Ellen Thomas-Stanford who lived at Preston Manor at the time. For the purposes of the event history was tweaked a little because in 1912 Ellen was not yet Lady Ellen, a title that came to her in 1929 when her husband, Charles was made a baronet in the New Year’s Honours in recognition for his years of public service.

What is an ‘At Home’?

An ‘At Home’ was a social day in which the lady of the house would be at home to receive invited guests. It was a semi-formal social occasion which could be on a grand or small homely scale.

Lady’s World Magazine (1909) gives readers the following advice

“It is, of course, tacitly understood that a visiting card stating when ‘At Home’ conveys an invitation to be used at the recipient’s convenience or pleasure. And the preparations of the day set apart in well-ordered households involve no serious derangement of the daily routine – although flowers may be more abundant and arranged with greater care, and a few dainties added to the tea table. But an ‘At Home’ is a thing apart; a special function to which a crowd is invited; not necessarily involving great expense, but which may give a deal of trouble, the house more often than not turned upside-down in the process”

1912 in History

In preparation for the event I prepared an information pack for everyone taking part so they could familiarise themselves with the year in which they were to live for a day.

For a historic house living history event to be authentic you cannot have characters from history using modern language.

Talking the language of 1912

On 7 April 2012 conversation at Preston Manor must, I advised, use as many of these words as possible, especially people dressed as servants. Ellen Thomas-Stanford would not have used the slang-words listed here. It is interesting to consider which of these 1912 words and expressions exist today and which have become extinct in modern speech.

Blotto = drunk

Blue devils = to be sad or depressed, “I’ve got the blue devils”

Brew = tea, also ‘char’ “a nice cuppa char”

Buffer = an old man

Clobber = clothing

Crikey! = an exclamation of surprise

Fast = extravagant or wild, “polo players can be somewhat fast”

Footle = to talk nonsense or waste time, “stop footling and do some work”

Gas = idle talk, “stop gassing and do some work”

Graft = work

Hook it = to escape or run away

Hoyden = a boisterous young girl

Moithered = flustered or agitated

Off his chump = crazy

On the peg = under arrest

On the doss = being a tramp

Rag = to tease, to ‘rag someone’ is to tease them

Slavey or skivvy = a maid-of-all-work (the lowest level in female domestic service)

Tiffin = lunch or a snack

Toe-rag = a vagrant

Tosh = rubbish or nonsense, “you’re talking tosh”

Vapours = a faint (in a woman) “she had a fit of the vapours”

Wizard! = an exclamation of excellence, “that lemonade is wizard!”

Having a conversation 1912 style

An ‘At Home’ was all about polite conversation with the social etiquette advice to avoid certain subjects. Areas to be avoided were politics, religion, relationships, a person’s age, weight or appearance, money and financial matters of all kinds. Complaining, gossiping or grumbling was also forbidden.

What could you talk about?

Acceptable subjects included talk of the weather, your surroundings (admiring the view to the gardens, for example) the well-being of mutual friends and acquaintances (without gossiping) children and pets. You might ask someone “how do you know (the host)?” You will never ask “what do you do?” as this question is too intrusive.

The aim was small-talk, described in Debrett’s guide to Everyday Etiquette as “the fuel that makes social encounters run smoothly. In general, British conversation will run very smoothly if you avoid direct questions, and opt for oblique evasions and general comments. Once you’ve learned to decode small talk, you’ll be surprised how revealing it is”

In 1912 there was much going on in the wider world

I made the following list as subjects for those involved in the event to be aware of

The sinking of Titanic

Suffragettes calling for Votes for Women

The poetry of Rupert Brooke

Fancy dress parties were popular

Industrial unrest & strikes (dockers & railway workers)

Captain Scott reached the South Pole on 12 January 1912

King George V (came to the throne in 1911) crowned Emperor of India in December 1911

Home Rule for Ireland or ‘the Irish Question’ dominated politics

People would be reading books by Thomas Hardy, Rudyard Kipling, Walter de la Mare, Joseph Conrad, Arnold Bennet, EM Forster and HG Wells

The Prime Minister was Herbert Henry Asquith (Liberal)

The monarch (crowned in 1911) was George V (his wife was called Queen Mary)

In 1911 the Mona Lisa was stolen from the Louvre in Paris (it was recovered in 1913)

The Olympic Games were held in Stockholm, Sweden

1912 facts and statistics

Living a day in 1912 required event staff to consider the following:

Every element of your life from birth, education, employment to old age and death depended on your family wealth. There was very little social security support outside family. In 1912 life expectancy was 54 for women 50 for men. Today life expectancy is 78 for men and 82 for women. Only 5% of the population were over 65. Today nearly 20% of the population is over 65.

The richest 1% of the population held 70% of the wealth

Childhood was short, effectively over at age 11 when most poor children left school.

In 1911 a large comfortable family house would cost £600 (the majority of people lived in rented accommodation – much of it slum quality. Only the very wealthy owned property)

As a rule, only women from the lower social scale worked. Middle-class and upper-class women viewed marriage as their career and most never held paid employment.

Social inequality was pronounced in 1912 though it was not a subject you would discuss at an ‘At Home’ unless you were talking about charitable causes you might be involved with (spoken of without boasting)

How long did an ‘At Home’ last?

Lady’s World Magazine (1909) suggested,

“One can never decide beforehand how long it may be expedient to remain; for, nowadays, many afternoon social functions include good music, singing, palmistry and other attractions which serve to pleasantly while away a couple of hours or so. At simple affairs comprising of nothing more than tea and conversation, one is usually guided by circumstance. From a crowded room where the ball is kept briskly moving, guests of no particular interest are scarcely missed and may, if disposed, and have finished tea in time, leave at the end of half-an-hour without giving the impression of being in too great a hurry. But in making plans for the afternoon, it is well that a good hour should be allowed for the visit”

Costumed characters

Everyone involved in the event had a character to play from Lady Ellen and her friends to members of the household staff and a visiting Suffragette. Costume was provided but no script. All speech was improvised. My call-out to volunteer drama students stated, ‘you will have the freedom to improvise your role – to speak or not to speak or be seen silently fulfilling simple domestic tasks in the house (as a maid you might be found dusting a room or carrying a tray of tea). You will be working with fellow students alongside experienced historical interpreters who work at Preston Manor.’

Women were reminded not to wear make-up or nail polish and to remove jewellery, piercings and all must have nothing about their person that was of the present-day.

Saturday 7 April 2012

The day was packed with events at Preston Manor. ‘At Home with Lady Ellen’ was followed by a book launch of The Haunting of Tabitha Grey by Sussex author, Vanessa Curtis, a book aimed at the teen audience and set in a fictional Preston Manor. The launch included dramatised readings from Tabitha Grey and was attended by Councillor Anne Meadows, then Mayor of Brighton and her husband consort Mr Tony Meadows plus Ms Curtis’s literary agent and publishers, the Features Writer from the Evening Argus, the editor of The Ghost Club Magazine, representatives from The Virginia Woolf Society, members of the Paranormal Investigations Group Sussex and many others.

Paula Wrightson, Venue Officer Preston Manor