Cartmel Fell

There are some truly wonderful secrets in the English Lake District. A particularly magical spot is the isolated church of St Anthony on Cartmel Fell. I took a new found friend there on Saturday - she wanted to visit a 'special place'! Great to meet an enthusiast!



Standing in the woods above the Winster valley the church was built in 1504 as a chapel of ease within the greater parish of Cartmel Priory. It has some wonderful fragments of 15th century glass, taken from the priory at the time of the dissolution, and two private pews, the older probably constructed from a Rood Screen originally either here or at the Priory. The wooden panels retain traces of paint from what were probably paintings of saints, scraped off by iconoclasts around the time of the Commonwealth.

I am almost as fascinated by surviving pre-reformation church furniture and decoration as I am by war memorials!

At the entrance to the church the visitor passes through a lych gate into the churchyard. Just beyond this is a large standing stone on a base constructed of local slate. The base may be older, I'm not sure. Both lych gate and stone comprise the parish war memorial.

They were designed by Curwen, an architect of Kendal & Heversham.

The names on the memorial include those of Joseph Holt and William Higgin Birkett both of whose names appear on Winster's memorial and both of whom have imposing plaques in that delightful little church.


There are eleven names from the Great War, including three by the name of Willan, and two guys from the second war. Firstly Flt Lt (Pilot) Richard Arthur Branson, RAFVR, of Kents Bank; died August 31 1945, aged 27 and buried in Thorpe Cemetery, Melton Mowbray. Secondly Guardsman James Albert Brocklebank of Windermere; 6th Bn Grenadier Guards, KIA North Africa, May Day 1943 aged 22 and buried at Enfidaville, Tunisia.

Sgt Thomas Gardner, Urswick.

My February 2008 posting about a memorial at Urswick has prompted a reply. It appears that Sgt Thomas Gardner was indeed a veteran of the 1st Life Guards at Waterloo. Born in Ulverston in 1789 he served in the army from 1808 until 1818 during which time he must have partaken in the action at Salamanca, in the Iberian Peninsula, and in the camapaigns of 'The Hundred Days' leading up to Waterloo.

The pic shows a Lifeguard at the time of the Battle.

Conchies

I was recently talking to a Quaker lady at Swarthmoor Hall who, being aware of my obsession, asked me if I knew about an unusual inscription on a craggy outcrop of rock on Green Moor, Woodland, nr Broughton in Furness. I didn't, but what a remarkable discovery.

It consists of a series of initials, 6 in all and the name(?) A BOOSEY. The initials are HS - WRS - TS - CH - MC (G?) - RH.

What is most interesting is the short inscription which accompanies them,
CON OBJECTORS 1916

Who were these people, clearly conscientious objectors, and what were they doing in Woodland in 1916? On the 1901 census there is only one Boosey, Leslie A, who might fit the bill for the name. He is a 13 year old, born at Bromley in Kent, and a pupil at Hildersham House School, St Peter Intra, on the Isle of Thanet. His father, Arthur, was a publisher.

More research needed here.

The rock is some hundred yards or so above the lane at OS Ref 25758945. A better picture would be much appreciated.


Some of these guys were probably Quakers whose ethos is one of pacifism. During the Great War many joined The Friends Ambulance, allowing them to 'do their bit' for King & Country without compromising their faith. Others refused to have any part in the conflict.

Which brings me nicely to Swarthmoor Hall, the birthplace of the Quakers. As I write this, at the end of a beautiful sunny day, the meadow at the back of the house is ablaze with tens of thousands of crocus. An amazing sight.


They are ancient, as is the hoary old pear tree at the bottom of the field, probably a remnant of what would have once been a huge orchard providing fruit for Margaret Fell and her family in the 1650s. Visitors are welcome to the gardens at no cost.

Memorials as graves

Just given two talks this week - they seem to have been well received! However, it is always apparent that there is so much to say - memorialisation is so complex, drawing on many different ideas to create the whole.

One issue is around the design of memorials or more properly their form.

This below is a pretty standard and, because of its imposing size, relatively high status grave marker; in this instance in Ulverston cemetery. The Victorians were obsessed with death and status and it was not unknown for families to virtually bankrupt themselves when acquiring a tombsone or grave marker.



Making a clear statement about its - late - owners status, wealth and social aspirations, even in death, forms such as these draw on popular neo-classical style reaching heavenwards to touch eternity. The association with antiquity implies sophistication and taste.



The employment of a similar form can be seen here below at Gosforth.

The reasons for choosing such a form of memorial would be both practical and esoteric!



Most simply their purpose as memorials to the dead was implicit. Commonly understood symbolism that was associated with such forms, particularly status, would be transferred to the dead soldiers as easily as it had been applied to the person or family in a grave. Many late Victorian funereal monuments such as these employ reliefs of wreaths, crowns and various plant forms and these often reappear on memorials. Such imagery, of victory over death through resurrection of the body, was well understood by Victorians and Edwardians. Similarly the language of flowers.

Not the least consideration in choosing such a form of memorial, however, would be cost. Approaching an established monumental mason, such as Swallow in Windermere or Fairbairn & Hull in Barrow, a War Memorial Committee would simply choose a stock form from a pattern book. Far cheaper than employing an architect.

Capt Forshaw VC - Barrow in Furness

Some time ago friend Howard sent me an email with some interesting info about an alleged memorial at Barrow in Furness. It related to Forshaw Street, supposedly named after a VC winner born in the town.

On the 7th August 1915, 2nd Lt, acting Captain, William Thomas Forshaw of the 1/9 Manchesters was given the task of holding a corner of the position known as 'The Vineyard' at Gallipoli. Over the following few days the trenches here were subjected to repeated attacks by Johnnie Turk. Forshaw's citation for the Victoria Cross describes what followed:

Lieutenant Forshaw not only directed his men but personally threw bombs continuously for over 40 hours. When his detachment was relieved, he volunteered to continue directing the defence. Later, when the Turks captured a portion of the trench, he shot three of them and recaptured it. It was due to his fine example and magnificant courage that his very important position was held.

The problem with the 'memorial street' arises from the fact that there was a Forshaw Street in Barrow in the 1870s. It was the location of some heavy duty riots by a crowd of Irish 'Navvies'. Without street maps to make a comparison it is difficult to be certain that this is not 'an urban myth'. Whatever the truth Forshaw Street is no more - it has been replaced by a multi storey car park & shopping precinct.

What is certain, however, is that the brave officer was given a sword and the freedom of Barrow by the Mayor and council in 1916. Some years ago this sword was being used as a prop for dramatic efforts in a local school in the town. Its importance was realised when a dedicatory inscription was noted on the blade. It subsequently came to take pride of place in the Manchester Rgt museum together with Forshaw's medals and a silver tea service presented by North Manchester High School for Boys in Moston where he taught English before the war.

In 1996 a Blue Plaque was erected at Ladysmith Barracks, Ashton under Lyne.

Forshaw did not have a succesful life. After a short post war career with the Indian Army he established two preparatory schools but both went bust. He died at Bray, Maidenhead, Berkshire in 1943 and was buried in an unmarked grave. A headstone was finally erected in the 1990s

Israel v Palestine - killing kids

The Israeli army killed 40 people today in schools in Gaza, including many children.


After years of looking at war memorials I am sickened by war and its cost. So it is always good to ponder on what creates these objects of remembrance. Almost invariably the actions of politically bankrupt, totally arrogant and inept regimes who believe killing people is a solution to some ludicrous perceived injustice. Then the world gets martyrs or war memorials to assuage the grief - depends where you live - but the tears and the rage are the same.

Crazy what difference a word makes. One of these images shows a Chinese 'hero' the other a Palestinian 'terrorist'.

Bizarre.

Do politicians expect us to believe their lies?


Hope the kid knocked out the Israeli tank.

Ireleth with Askam war memorial

Finally got round to looking in some detail at Askam war memorial, or, more properly, Ireleth with Askam.


The long eleven year struggle to establish this imposing monument commemorating the dead of a small mining village in the Furness peninsula is quite a fascinating tale. In the 78 years since its creation the monument itself has changed little but its environs have, as can be seen from these two images. The large blocks of limestone that originally marked the path in front of the memorial together with those surrounding the central area together with the bench have all gone. There are, however, a number of trees now - some quite mature and others planted more recently.

The long story of this imposing memorial starts soon after the armistice of 1918 when Henry Mellon, mining engineer, formed a committee from the village elite; James Poole Atkinson, Dr Cook and Rev E W Ridley, vicar of the parish. There were probably others. Together they resolved to invite Sam Grundy ARIBA of Ulverston to design a memorial.

Grundy drew up a comprehensive design for a village hall but it soon became apparent that against a backdrop of collapse in the mining and steel industry throughout Furness it was hugely over ambitious. He then suggested a memorial cross, to be erected at the station entrance. But this too was a non starter. In desperation the memorial committee finally ordered a bronze plaque for the local church

More to follow on this over coming weeks