As the Kell Hall is not available, this time the talk will be held at The Quaker Meeting Hall, 1A Ordnance Road.  This is situated one block north of the Kell Hall.

Also note that the meeting is held on a TUESDAY this time and starts at 7.30 pm

Anglo-Saxon life in the C9th was deeply threatened and affected by Viking attacks. The trading significance of Hamwic (Anglo-Saxon Southampton) must have helped make it a target for Viking raiders. That was just the first taste, though, of how the Vikings would impact Southampton, the country and the culture between then and now. The main story recollected by Britons about King Cnut (also known as Canute, and of Viking descent) happened on Southampton’s shore if it happened anywhere. The Normans were themselves descendants of Vikings.

Dr Nigel Paterson (EdD) has known the city for many decades, including having worked for the University of Southampton for some years and gained two higher degrees there. He is a regular presenter as part of his work among high-flying international visitors coming to study Business English in Hampshire. He is an author and is a member of the City of Southampton Society.

Following discussions at the AGM, there will be a talk at the Kell Hall on July 7th, starting 7:30pm. Nigel has kindly provided the details below.

It is striking that perhaps the most iconic image of Southampton is a gateway. This talk will explore the way that Southampton has been a gateway town since at least Roman times. Even now it has a greater throughput of visitors than many other cities in the country. All this has important implications for how Southampton residents can see their own city. That includes most especially its schools, its media and its planning and policy decisions.

Dr Nigel Paterson (EdD) has known the city for many decades, including having worked for the University of Southampton for some years and gained two higher degrees there. He is a regular presenter as part of his work among high-flying international visitors coming to study Business English in Hampshire. He is an author and is a member of the City of Southampton Society.

Please note the new date for the society's AGM

This will now be on 25th March at 7.00 pm

at the Kell Hall, Bellevue Road, SO15 2AY

Full details to follow in due course

Our Open Meeting Talk 7.00 pm Monday 22th January2024 is at the Edmund Kell Hall, Bellevue Road, SO15 2AY

NB. The Hall door will be closed at 7.05 pm for security purposes and no further admittance will be possible.

Our talks are free to Members but we ask for a donation of £5.00 from Visitors please

Most Sotonians have driven along Thomas Lewis Way but how many of them know about the man for whom it was named and his lifelong service to his native town? Come along and hear about the political journey of a boy from St Mary's who left school at the age of eleven but nevertheless made it to the House of Commons. He even played a small part in the story of the Titanic. Thomas ‘Tommy’ Lewis [1873-1962] was born inSt Mary’s, the son of a dock workerfrom Jersey.At the age of eleven he became an apprentice watchmaker. He stood as a parliamentary candidate for Southampton in successive elections in the early 20th century, before being elected in 1929. He lost his seat in 1931 but was elected once more in the Labourlandslide of 1945 at the age of 72. He retired from national politics in 1950

Andy's talk will explore the history of Southampton through the lens of health, disease and salubrity. It charts some of the highs [and various lows] of public health in Southampton, including ancient remedies, the Black Death, urban water systems and the covid pandemic. Face coverings are not included...

Andy holds a BA in History from the University of Southampton and an MA in Museum Studies from the University of Leicester.  A popular local figure, Andy has worked with Southampton City Council Cultural Services since 2012 and spends most of his time helping to deliver learning programmest at the Sea City and Tudor House and Garden museums.

Nigel is a member of our society who often gives talks on historical and cultural subjects.  He teaches English for Business to internationals in the United Kingdom and Germany.  He is a graduate of the Universities of Cambridge and Southampton and is a qualified teacher.  He regularly shows international students around Winchester and Southampton.

King Alfred is one of the most important kings in this country's history.  His qualities and vision produced a turning point for this country, which has responded by honouring him with the very rear title of 'the Great'.  This talk will cover some key aspects of Alfred's life, reign and lasting significance.  It will also show the relevance of Hamwic, the Anglo-Saxon settlement on the River Itchen.

Holly Scott leads on the Mayflower Theatre’s heritage programme, which includes delivering historical and backstage theatre tours as well as working with volunteers to organise the theatre’s valued archive. Here is your opportunity to learn about the Mayflower Theatre’s rich and exciting history from the Empire Theatre of 1928, through the iconic rock and roll years at the Gaumont and so on to the Mayflower Theatre as it’s known today. Holly has stories and anecdotes from the past and will explore the Theatre’s challenges and celebrate its triumphs. She will share insights into how the theatre runs, from the orchestra pit to the fly floor.

Remember - The Hall door will close at 7.05 pm for security purposes and no further admittance will be possible.

As a response to this very popular talk, the society is planning a visit/tour of The Mayflower Theatre in Spring 2025 for our members.  More details to follow.

Talk ‘The History of Mayflower Theatre’ by Holly Scott. 25 September 2023

Holly Scott leads on the Mayflower Theatre’s heritage programme, which includes delivering historical and backstage theatre tours as well as working with volunteers to organise the theatre’s archive.

Holly’s Talk

The ‘Mayflower’ originally called the ‘Empire Theatre’ was part of the Moss Empire theatre group and opened with the Rudolf Friml show ‘Winona’ with a cast of over 100 on 22 December 1928. Friml is better known for the show ‘Rose Marie’.

In 1933 the arrival of cinema led to the installation of a projector and a screen which could be raised and lowered at the front of the stage.

In 1950 the theatre became part of the Rank Organisation and was re-named as the ‘Gaumont Theatre’ hosting concerts by many famous rock and roll bands, including Bill Hayley, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix and Cat Stevens while continuing to act as a cinema between concerts. Programmes continued until the end of the 1980s, when performances began to require larger concert halls and arenas for their shows.

In 1982, the Rank Organisation submitted a ‘Change of Use’ planning application to the City Council to convert the building into a Dance Hall or Ten Pin Bowling Alley or for Bingo. This was refused. The City Council instead offered to buy the building and did so for £650,000 and the £3 million cost of refurbishment. This led to the setting up of a charitable trust and a lease with a peppercorn rent. In the meanwhile1983 saw the building awarded grade II listed status.

The theatre closed for the work in January 1986, and re-opened as ‘The Mayflower’ [following a public re-naming competition] on 24 February 1987, with a production of ‘Peter Pan’ starring Bonnie Langford.

Musicals made up a big part of the turnaround of the theatre. 1990 brought a full-scale version of ‘42nd Street’ followed by ‘Evita’ These proved huge successes and along with the pantomimes, ensured the continued success of the theatre, 1994's ‘Dick Whittington’, starring Lesley Joseph and John Nettles attracted 126,256 theatregoers, a record.

‘Cats’ also arrived in 1994, bringing an audience of 125,000. This was followed by many other shows, including ‘The Phantom of the Opera’

In 2003, the theatre closed for refurbishment again, the main purpose being the change from a raked to a flat stage for the benefit of dance. The theatre reopened, with the large-scale production of ‘Miss Saigon’.

In 2009 there was a major change to the backstage areas, including a new scenery dock, at the same time the stalls and the circle bar were refurbished.

After a 4-week run of ‘War Horse’ in September 2018 all of the seats in the stalls and circle were replaced by 1,659 brand-new wider ones and the auditorium was redecorated in its new and current royal red and gold colour scheme.

Holly’s enthusiasm for the theatre’s history shone through to engage with her audience some of whom had worked in front-of-house and behind-the-scenes, so leading to a spirited question and answer session to close the meeting.

In addition to his career as an artist and illustrator or speaker, Colin van Geffen, has been presenting illustrated talks since 1988.  He is a noted local historian and aviation enthusiast.  His talk "Flying Boats of Southampton" recalls the Golden Years of the commercial flying boat era, when Southampton and its Empire flying boats led the world.  From the beginning in 1913 to the swansong in the 50s and later.

The Spitfire -  by Steve Alcock, the Manager of Solent Sky Museum. 

Steve described development of the Spitfire aircraft over some 30 years from 1919 beginning with the origin of the aircraft’s engine. At the outbreak of the first World War the London car company D. Napier & Son had been contracted to build aircraft engines to other manufacturers’ designs. When these proved unreliable the Company decided to design its own engine as a private venture, that is without any formal government contract. The Firm’s Chief Designer, Arthur Rowledge produced a 12-cylinder vee-shaped design. This the ‘Lion Engine’ was to claim numerous speed records not only in the air but also on land and at sea and was a considerable economic success.

In 1912 the French financier Jacques Schneider had instigated an international race competition for seaplanes, the aircraft were to be flown in timed trials over a triangular course. The race was held twelve times between 1913 and 1931 each time attracting a great deal of international political
support. The winner on each occasion was to provide the venue for any succeeding race.

Between 1913 and 1927 the winning aircraft were mostly of Italian construction but the 1927 Venice race was won by the British entry the Supermarine S5 designed.by Reginald Mitchell at the Woolston Supermarine factory using the latest version of the Napier Lion engines. The next competition was in
1929 at Calshot Spit and was won by the British entry the all-metal construction Supermarine S6designed by Mitchell.

By now Arthur Rowledge had resigned from the Napier Company to become Chief Assistant to Mr Royce at Rolls Royce. The engines he designed for the company took the names of hawks; Condor, Kestrel, Buzzard

The following Schneider Trophy race was In 1931 and held at Calshot Spit, as before, however British Government financial support wavered and the British entry required a private donation of £100,000 from the wealthy and ultra-patriotic Lady Houston, a former chorus girl, to proceed. The Rolls Royce
Buzzard engine was refined and renamed RR Racing and was fitted to the Supermarine type S6B. The S6B went on to win the 1931 race and the Schneider Trophy outright.

Experience from the Schneider Trophy races led Reginald Mitchell to design a land-based fighter aircraft, the Supermarine Type 224 now considered to be the earliest version of Spitfire. However, the type failed to meet Air Ministry specifications and the company proceeded with a re-design by Mitchell
as a private venture. This aircraft, the Type 300, first flew at Eastleigh on 5 th March 1936 powered by the RR Merlin engine piloted by Jeffrey Quill.

When Reginald Mitchell died in 1937 the further development of Spitfire was taken over by his assistant Joe Smith. Steve now went on to describe the many Marks and their variants produced by Joe Smith and his team and how they were deployed throughout the 2 nd World War and subsequently.
Types were developed for high altitude photo-reconnaissance and for naval use. There was a change of engine from the Merlin to the Griffon and of changes in armament and wing design. Some 20,300 plus were produced until production ended in 1947.

We thank Steve for the story of this iconic Southampton designed aircraft.

Report compiled by Brian Sefton

Jasmine Noble-Shelley will give a talk on the work of the Maritime Archaeological Trust.  The Trust investigate shipwrecks, intertidal structures, drowned settlements and submerged prehistoric landscapes and has helped with research in projects across north-west Europe, in the Mediterranean Sea, the Arabian Gulf and the Red Sea.

The ‘Maritime Archaeological Trust‘ by Jasmine Noble-Shelley

Jasmine has kindly uploaded copies of the slides and videos used to illustrate her fascinating talk. They can be found through the following link; Secrets of the Solent.ppsx  [opens in a web browser, so you do not need PowerPoint to view it]. Members should note that it is helpful to the Trust’s funding to get feedback on their talks. To do so you are invited to use the following link to take a short survey: https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/MATtalk

Notes by Brian Sefton;

Jasmine described the formation of The Solent over time and went on to describe the distribution of the many ship-wrecked vessels and their protection by the Protection of Wrecks Act. She then gave an account of the loss of several named vessels to illustrate the diving activities and historical research by the Maritime Archaeological Trust.

The first, HMS Hazardous, captured from the French Navy in 1703 was lost after being driven onto shallows near Selsey in 1706. Guns from the wreck have been recovered from time to time since 1966. As with many sites the sea-bed is in constant change so exposing parts of the vessel to decay. Accordingly the site is frequently monitored.    

Next was HMS Invincible, captured from the French Navy in 1747, the ship was wrecked in 1758 on the notoriously shifting Horsetail Sands. It was rediscovered by a snagged fishing net in 1979 and many items have been recovered for conservation by Historic England.

Some research was required to identify a wreck discovered in 2003 lying on Horsetail Sands. By 2009 sufficient material – timber samples, metal fastenings, copper bolts and sheathing together with the ship’s dimensions made it possible to name the vessel from the list of some 300 as yet unknown as the ‘Flower of Ugie’. The ship en route from Sunderland to Cartagena with a cargo of coal had been damaged in a storm off Portland and had attempted shelter in The Solent but broke up in the continuing blast. Having identified ‘Flower of Ugie’ it became possible to link her extensive trading history with the material remains.

At The Needles other wrecks include HMS Pomone. She had been returning from the Mediterranean with our Ambassador to Persia on board together with several Arab horses, a gift for George lll also a great quantity of gold coin. A navigation error caused the ship to founder on The Needles; however all, including the horses, were saved by local seamen. Of the 55,000 in gold only 4,000 dollars was lost [or strayed]. With HMS Pomoneare the remains of HMS Assurance lost in 1753 and perhaps parts of a Roman galley.

We next learnt of the on-going investigation of two as yet unidentified wrecks found on the Shingles Bank;

NW 96 is thought to date to the late 15th or 16th century and to be the remains of an armed merchant ship that was carrying a cargo of lead ingots as well as stone cannonballs. 

NW 68 includes a number of cannons cast in Amsterdam between 1621 and 1661 that has helped date the site. The vessel could have been involved in the Battle of Portland in 1653 during the First Anglo-Dutch war.

Jasmine went on to discuss some new techniques in marine archaeology and her particular interest in photogrammetry. She explained that photogrammetry is concerned with making precise measurements and in generating three-dimensional objects and surface features from many two-dimensional photographs.

We were held engrossed by Jasimine’s obvious enthusiasm for her topic and thank her for her talk. Please assist the work of the Maritime Archaeological Trust by taking part in their survey;  https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/MATtalk

City of Southampton Society

Caring for our City

magazine REVIEW

review4coss@btinternet.com

City of Southampton Society AGM - 27 February 2023

Our President, the Right Worshipful Lord Mayor of Southampton, Councillor Jacqui Rayment will preside.

Look out in coming Newsletters and emails for:

- The Agenda for the AGM

- Minutes of the 2022 AGM

- The 2022 Accounts

- Nominations for the Society's Executive Committee

- Updates to the Society's Constitution

- Proposed subscription rates for 2024

and more

Residents and visitors to Bevois Mount - The streets betwee The Avenue and Bevois Valley - may have noticed a growing number of blue plaques dotted around the area. They record many different aspects of local history, the oldest being the placque on Reach Gym (formerly Jojo's) which gives information about Bevois Mount House, which stood just behind, from 1723 to 1940.  The first plaque was put up in Alma Road on the house where Tommy Lewis, the local councillor and Labour MP, spent the last eleven years of his life. Thomas Lewis Way is named after him.

Ally Hayes and Wendy Stokes have researched how local artists have given different interpretations of the town/city.

Ally Hayes, a tour guide, and Wendy Stokes are members of Bevois Mount History.

Ordnance Survey is our national mapping agency.The agency's name indicates its original military purpose that was to map Scotland in the wake of the Jacobite rising of 1745. There was also a more general and nationwide need in light of the potential threat of invasion during the Napoleonic Wars.

John Dancy is a Fellow of the British Cartographic Society and a former Cartographic Production Development Manager at the OS. Now retired he was responsible for the creation of many OS products but was mainly involved with product specification, quality and production. John was on the recent panel of judges for the “Stanfords Award for Printed Mapping” and the “Avenza Award for Electronic Mapping”.

Your Autumn copy of the REVIEW will be available to collect at Monday's meeting

Over £6 million is being invested in the repair and conservation of monuments in Southampton.  This includes the work on the Town Walls, the Weigh House and two of the Medieval Vaults (with plans to reopen more once repair work has made them safe to enter).  Jo Bailey, the city's Monuments and Memorils officer, explains the challenges of making good these medieval structures.

A brief history of the French Raid on Southampton in 1338, what led up to it and how it affected the town for the next 100 years ... and still does today.

Simon stood in at short notice on 26th September as our speaker was indisposed; He told 'A Brief History of the French Raid on Southampton in 1338’

In his talk Simon first described the growth of the town from the Roman military establishment in Bitterne through its early and mediaeval periods to the prosperity of the 14th C wine and wool trade in what is now the Old Town part of the city.Simon explained the royalrelationships of the years leading up to the raid and the dispute overtheEnglish territories held in France and of Edward lll being unprepared to recognise King Charles’ claim to the French crown.

As a result the English Channel saw many raids by both the French and English affecting coastal ports and the Channel Islands. Southampton at the time had a population of perhaps 2,500, there were five parish churches and a friary. The generally held view is that on Sunday October 4th when most of the town’s population was at church a fleet of about fifty galleys French and Genoese sailed up Southampton Water to land at the town’s unprotected western quayside. The inhabitants appeared to have been taken completely by surprise. About 630 inhabitants perhaps a third of the population were killed. The town was sacked and many of its wooden buildings burned. Wool, wine together with gold and silver plate from St. Michaels church were carried off, as was the mayor’s seal and the weigh-beam from the Weigh House in French Street. Many of the town’s people escaped to the surrounding countryside where they regrouped and returned to the town on the following day to drive the invaders back to their vessels.

The consequences of the raid were for the town wall defences to be enhanced, in places by adding stone walling to front existing merchant’s property.

The participating Genoese mercenaries led by Charles Grimaldi used their portion of the spoils to found the Principality of Monaco. Simon noted that the shipping firm of the same name that uses the Port of Southampton to this day rejects any connection with the Grimaldi’s of the 1338 raid. Simon mentioned the Chapelle de la Sainte Croix in Eze, now in France, as the building and village high in the mountains overlooking Monaco would have been familiar to generations of the de Grimaldi family now the Rainier royal family of Monaco.

A lively question and answer session followed. Thank you, Simon for standing in at short notice to give your talk. It was a most comprehensive account of the French raid including a diversion to Hainault on the Central Line and the Order of the Garter. We are sorry that you have been unable to tie up your family name with that of the Monegasque princes – a simple spelling mistake surely

Mark is a Director of Hampshire Community Rail Partnership [CRP], the umbrella organisation for the ‘Three Rivers CRP’. The ‘Three Rivers CRP’ is an independent organisation providing a link between the rail industry and local communities, it incorporates stations between Salisbury, Southampton, Bursledon and Winchester and is funded by rail operators, local authorities and any available grants.

Members participate in a range of services from litter picking, gardening and art to publicity production, redundant station building refurbishment, rail bus links and strategic planning. We have around 60 volunteers in various forms and around 200 stakeholders to support our work

Andy says; 'Visitors to Southampton often ask “where’s the water”? Lockdown has provided many of us extra time to explore our city. This talk covers four short linear walks throughSouthampton which follow a stretch of water. The talk presents the route of each walk and a number of photographs, together with suggested improvements which could further enhance their attractiveness

Notes by Linda Pritchard

Liam's interesting illustrated and fact filled talk started with information about the Watercress Line, and his 17 year involvement with it. This has covered all aspects of the preservation, renovation, promotion and possibly best of all, actually driving the full size steam driven locomotive 'Canadian Pacific' owned and run by this important heritage railway line.  The Watercress Line holds special themed events, and regularly runs a popular service from its Alresford base, to the delight of enthusiasts young and old.

He followed this happy advertisement with a description of how women had been working on the railways from its very early days, but with special emphasis on their important contribution during the two world wars.

The first known and recorded railwaywomen were Elizabeth Holman, who was working for 14/- per week for GWR  in 1850, and Mary Walker, in 1860: however, they were recorded and accused because they worked whilst masquerading, dressed as men!

Also mentioned was a crossing keeper in 1840 who probably took over the job after the death of her husband. Mrs Jenkyn was a rare Station Master (?Mistress) for LSWR at Latchley Halt, a fairly remote location. Many women were employed in railways' early years, as Waiting Room attendants,  clerks, carriage interior cleaners, and mainly in catering and hospitality roles in the many hotels owned by the railway companies.  However, more physical roles for women were limited, until the start of WW1.

In 1914, after losing so many men to wartime duties, of necessity large numbers of women took over erstwhile 'male' roles, despite objections by some unions 'concerned' about the mental and physical abilities of 'feeble minded and weak women'.

Nonetheless, their contribution quickly became immense and essential to the war effort.

We were shown a American film made in 1943 during WW2 for US consumption, called 'Bundles for Britain.  It was a morale-boosting informative film, probably propaganda, but certainly factual as well. It showed very clearly that when permitted and trained, British women were completely capable of (cheerfully) and efficiently doing all the tasks previously done by men.

It was clear that this was achieved all the better when the women were able to wear more suitable clothing than the WW1 female employees.   Initially, they had only been permitted to adjust their full length skirts and petticoats to the very daring slightly shorter ankle-revealing levels whilst doing locomotive carriage cleaning and wheel greasing in the loco sheds. By 1916, women were allowed to work in the yards too, and by 1917 many wore trousers and overalls for the dirtier tasks.  (Not supplied by the Management, though! The first uniforms specifically for women had to wait until much later in the 20th century)

Despite being paid as little as half a man's wage, the records and especially the 1943 film, show women doing all types of 'men's work', including many skilled tasks,  such as lathe turning and machining to highly accurate standards, and various other heavy engineering work in the Workshops.

Other laborious, demanding, physical and dirty work was being done outside in the open too, and women were now allowed  (expected) to do full track work, with loco engine cleaning, wheel gauging and greasing, including the climbing of ladders, which had previously been forbidden.

The physical strength of women such as Emma Vine was demonstrated by the photo of her lifting 2 chairs weighing 46lb each, but I am not sure if she was typical!  Humorous wartime posters were printed asking train passengers and commercial customers to be considerate towards the female porters, regarding the size and weight of loads they had to deal with.

By now, women were also police officers, with power of arrest - but not of men!

Women's work in both world wars was essential and invaluable, but by 1919 very many of the 36,000 employed had been dismissed and replaced by returning ex-servicemen,

Much hostility was faced by those wishing to remain doing 'mens work' in WW2 too.

Of the 105,340 female employees during the war, 58,000 were women doing 'mens work'.  By 1947, only a TOTAL of 59,000 women were employed by the railways, in all capacities.  

Post war, some women may have wished to continue their work, with the financial independence it gave them, and more perhaps were relieved to no longer carry out the hard dirty work, with long shifts that they had been doing,  but the list of 'male' jobs women had carried out so well was long and extensive, and should be acknowledged:

  Welders, blacksmiths, wheel tappers, loco cleaners and gaugers and greasers, lorry     and fork lift drivers, porters, capstan lathe operators, machinists, inspectors, painters, crane drivers, drillers, sharpeners, track maintenance, signal box keepers, fog signallers, gas fitters, lamp women, crossing keepers, police women, and many more, with possibly most impressive being loaders of live ammunition onto the trains!

Many traditionally 'female' roles continued, such as ticket selling and collecting, office working in secretarial and clerking positions, tea dollies and other catering   jobs, hospitality and carriage cleaning etc., in the sleeper trains, and housekeeping the many railway hotels, and of course, the envied position of station announcer. There has been some improvement in the equality of women's employment on the railways, but it has been slow - it was not until 1978 that the first woman became a train driver, and even now 90% are men.

Liam was proud to say the Watercress Line has equal opportunities for women, and we thank him for his efforts on behalf of this precious heritage organisation, and for his interesting talk tonight.

Linda Pritchard’s notes 

Andy Milner, together with Christopher Rudd were co-founders of The Jubilees Sailing Trust. In 1978, supported by the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Fund, they were keen to make sailing tall square rigged vessels accessible, at reasonable cost, to people with all sorts of disabilities and handicaps, together on an equal basis with inexperienced able bodied people.

The search for a suitable vessel resulted in the building in 1984 of the STS Lord Nelson. This was built in Wivenhoe in Essex and served world-wide for many years.  Sadly, due to financial difficulties caused largely by important sponsors withdrawing support (Barclays Bank for one) this brave boat is now lying in Bristol, having been decommissioned, stripped and de-sailed in October 2019 - A sad and not popular decision, forced upon the Trust, hoping to ensure its survival, with just 1 ship.

The Trust's second boat SV Tenacious, designed by Tony Castro, started construction in 1996, and incorporated many lessons learned from the adventurous voyages of Lord Nelson.  The initial budget for this unique vessel, the largest wooden boat built in England for 100 years, was £6.25m.  This was exceeded fairly quickly, with an eventual cost of £14.5M.  65% of this was Lottery funded, and the balance was raised by donations, fund-raising, and sponsorship.  

Tenacious incorporated not only traditional ship-building skills and methods, but also used many new techniques and materials. Expensive adjustments and additions were necessary to meet current safety and environmental requirements, as well as making the vessel totally suited for its purpose.  These adjustments added greatly to the costs of completing the project. For instance, to qualify for insurance from Lloyds, the generator within its wooden hull  had to be totally encased in metal, for fire protection,  and metal screws, not nails had to be used throughout, with thousands of epoxy dowels also required.  All materials were vigorously tested for fire resistant/retardant qualities.

Tenacious was built in the Woolston Merlin yard of Vosper Thornycroft, and the enormous Itchen riverside site was renamed Jubilee Yard.  The build benefitted from professional ship building workers. together with the invaluable help from many thousands of volunteers. Some of these were accommodated in converted shipping containers whilst at work. The project also received much generous help from other bodies, such as Southampton's Universities and College, as well as Vospers.

The impressive wooden hull was constructed upside down in the huge shed, of 5 strip laminated Siberian larch, with sapele wood from South Africa for finishing.  The traditional boat building wood, Iroko, was too expensive, and also environmentally unacceptable, being toxic. European larch is susceptible to wood worm, but fortunately Tenacious benefitted from a lucky 'cheap' purchase of surplus-to-requirements Siberian larch, from forests planted by Peter the Great in Russia!  This supply was accessed thanks to Captain Vladimir Martous, of Shtandardt fame.

Andy described the tedious, lengthy process of lamination, and the labour intensive work involved to produce 114 deck beams, 69 half frames, and 54 wooden floors, with 300 hanging and lodging knees (!) all bent in frames, cut and sanded before fitting.   These had to be clamped during laminating, and each clamp needed to be cleaned of the epoxy resin, by hand (mostly by disabled volunteers) each night.  The generous loan of steel rings borrowed from a Barrow in Furness shipyard considerably shortened the length of some of the processing.

The beautiful finished hull of the vessel was launched into the Itchen in February 2000. The equipment and thoughtful adjustments incorporated to enable full participation by disabled and handicapped sailors is impressive. Hundreds have now been enabled to sail worldwide in this unique 3 masted barque.

On board, there are no motorised windlasses to assist with dealing with the hundreds of ropes needing hauling, with the sole exception of the one for the anchor.  The bosun's chairs up the masts are self - operated with a system of pulleys, to deal with the sails and rigging. The emphasis throughout is on teamwork,  not necessarily on individual effort.  The vessel is fitted with lifts for wheelchair users; Also, there are rising sinks, audio visual and vibrating alarms, talking compasses, sensory hand rails for navigating around the decks, among the many sensitive and careful considerations made ensure all on board are made welcome and fully useful.

This has been proved repeatedly - a fellow with 95% sight loss has safely steered the vessel, and a crew of BLESMA (limbless ex-serviceman) took Tenacious to Jersey.  And back. (Wheelchair evacuation into lifeboats is one of the first drills carried out on each trip - this has to be completed in less than 4 minutes. )

Each voyage has an able-bodied experienced crew from the permanent staff, but each of the 4 watches are manned (womanned too!) with equal numbers of disabled and inexperienced crew, using a buddy system to cope with each others' needs.  

Under this very successful organisation, Tenacious has sailed worldwide, including around Cape Horn, and is a great ambassador for recognising the wide capabilities of the 'disabled'.

Andy also told us some of his own background story, and the meeting ended with the sincere hope that the valuable work done by the Jubilee Sailing Trust, despite difficult times, will continue well into the future. 

Notes by Linda Pritchard

Barbara introduced tonight's subject as being 2 stories, and 1 fib. Her entertaining talk attempted to explain the reason for the subtitle regarding this precious and well-loved part of Romsey's heritage, always referred to as King John's House, or Hunting Lodge.

Charles Moody, a successful gunsmith, bought the property at 13 Church Street in 1875,  and rebuilt the front of the premises as a double fronted shop with accommodation above, and workshop cellar below, by 1918. The income from the dwellings behind the shop, and other property he owned in Romsey made him a wealthy man.

He had 9 children, 4 of whom survived to adulthood - one son and. three daughters, who all lived above the shop.   The son, William Frank, took over the gunsmith and cutlers shop, with a dangerously full window display of guns, knives, swords, cutlasses, flick knives, etc., and this is what we now see as the more gentiel Heritage Centre.  This also houses a display in the recreated Moody shop Museum, and period accommodation in the upper rooms.

She was already intrigued by her inheritance, and when she had full access to all the accumulated documentation, deeds, leases, etc., relating to her properties, she sought further help and advice from a local antiquarian and archaeologist, Walter Andrew.  

The only visible evidence of its age was a very small window from KJH overlooking the cottage, but this was enough to investigate further.  

They took down the ceiling and in the loft found dog tooth moulding around the window, and also revealed the timber roofing.  Especially, they uncovered many graffiti, after removing 5 layers of wall-paper and plaster. The graffiti, of heraldic shields, faces, mottoes, initials, etc.,  are cut into the original lime plaster, and obviously of great age and interest.

The FIB:  The dating of KJH is difficult, but almost certainly King John never used this building. Walter Andrew had found a record of King John having a hunting lodge in the area, but it cannot be proved to be here, and the remaining architectural features are of a later date.  Dendrochronologists have dated the roof timbers, and they were cut in Spring 1256.  King John died in 1216, so the name is undoubtedly a misnomer.

Talk notes by Linda Pritchard edited by Brian Sefton

Margaret explained that her interest in sentimental and mourning jewellery began over 30 years ago. Images illustrating her talk included the Aberdeen Jewel, a delicate pendant in gold, a gift to Mary Queen of Scots, decorated with garnets, rubies, pearls, opals and diamonds, and scandalously, a lock of hair. Portrait rings were popular for many years, but those of King Charles I were worn clandestinely.

A Georgian custom was for sentimental jewellery to contain hair only as acceptance of a proposal of marriage. Most pieces had secret compartments unless they were in memento mori when the hair was usually openly displayed.

When King George IV died sentimental pieces containing tresses from lovers were found among his personal effects. Following Nelson's death, the market for memento mori including his hair boomed. Few genuinely contained his!

Wills provided for rings in memory of the deceased. Lancelot Andrewes of Winchester Cathedral left £300 for 23 to be given to friends.

The London craftsmen Antoni Forrer’s factory catalogue illustrated complex settings for mounting hair. Margaret described the intricacy of the work, how hair was gathered into 80 single strands, to be made into bundles of 16, prior to weaving as in lace making. The long hair required came from convent postulants and from women selling

their hair from financial need. Queen Victoria in extreme mourning set the fashion for black jewellery and Whitby Jet became very popular. Jet, the fossilized remains of monkey-puzzle trees can be carved, polished, engraved, and infilled. The material is only found in a 7 I/2 mile long seam along the cliff at Whitby that crosses the beach and passes under the sea. The industry employed 1,400 of a population of 4,000 in Victorian Whitby.

Margaret showed items from her own collection, many made of Whitby Jet, while other pieces were of plaited and woven hair. Her research into the inscriptions engraved on pieces provided several anecdotes. From a mourning jewel engraved 'Andrew Cazabar obit Bath 5 March 1825' she learned that Andrew, son of a Huguenot Spitalfields Draper took the ‘Grand Tour’.She traced his fine three storey house in Bath, learned of his daughter’s £44,000 dowry and of legacies for the French Protestant Hospital in London and a chapel in Bath.

Other engravings traced by Margaret included Lord Vernon of Sudbury Hall after whom HMS Vernon was named, also of Sir Edmund Lacon, who owned a whaling fleet, became Mayor of Yarmouth, and was knighted for quelling a riot.

The desire for memento mori continues. Whitby jet is still made and jewellery from hair is again being made by a Swedish Co-op.

Margaret is to be thanked for her fascinating talk, and for bringing some of her beautiful collection tonight, and for telling us about the research she has carried out on this interesting subject.

Notes by Linda Prichard

The Victorian cemetery was created to relieve the ghastly situation that existed in the dangerously overcrowded and unsanitary town and city church graveyards.

John explained that Southampton Old Cemetery was a typical example of a Victorian municipal cemetery with some unique features.  The Jewish cemetery, the entrance gates, chapels and historically interesting memorials make it a very special place. Work by Friends of Southampton Old Cemetery helps to safeguard, conserve and preserve the cemetery’s heritage and associated information, they maintain safe access to the monuments, statuary and associated epitaphs. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission supports the Friends' efforts in maintaining access to their war graves, located throughout the 27acre site.

The City’s Titanic connection attracts many researchers and overseas visitors. Although no bodies were returned for burial in the cemetery many of the deceased are commemorated by family memorials and identified by blue markers. Friends' research has produced an extremely useful publication for visitors.  Titanic's high profile has now encouraged the City Council to treat the cemetery as of international interest and not as just a peaceful 'managed' wildlife sanctuary, once criticised for its apparently neglected, overgrown state.

John referred to many notable or unusual graves or monuments in the cemetery, among which is the beautiful and recently conserved Three Graces statue. The sculptor was the famous eccentric, Richard Cockle Lucas, who lived in Chilworth, drove to town in a toga and chariot, and married the Queen of the Fairies. More seriously, we were told the sad story of the SS Douro memorial, to the 17 people who all drowned when they would not get into the lifeboat in front of a woman who refused to jump into it.

The comedian Benny Hill is buried in the post Victorian Hollybrook Cemetery, his tomb interestingly has a Burke and Hare preventative of a solid thick black marble slab over his resting place.

John's illustrations showed a number of contemporary cemeteries including;

Highcliffe, Dorset, the burial place of Mr. Selfridge, who is in a considerably more modest grave than the adjacent elaborate plot of his wife.

Ford Park, Plymouth containing an extremely long grave, for 4 people drowned in a seaplane disaster.

Brookwood, in Surrey, is the largest cemetery in Europe, and had its own platform at Waterloo Station.  Here, the graves were clustered according to trades, and is home to many magnificent monuments and mausoleums.

Brompton Cemetery is uniquely managed by the Royal Parks, with many breathtaking memorials.

Kensal Green, in London was made fashionable by the Duke of Sussex, son of George III. It was also much used by boatmen and bargees, whose coffins arrived by the adjoining canal. Isambard Kingdom Brunel and Charles Babbage are among the many notable people buried here.

We were also shown Ilkeston Cemetery in Derbyshire, and Bath Abbey, which like Southampton's originally proposed cemetery, was designed by John Claudius Loudon.  All these Victorian cemeteries were beautifully laid out, with landscaped trees, paths, chapels and religiously segregated areas.

Victorian cemeteries in other parts of the UK appear to have fared better regarding ground maintenance. However, all have faced the same problems as Southampton. Sadly, we saw photographs of vandalism. Smashed crosses, demolished angels, and toppled broken headstones. Other memorials, including military ones, were daubed with graffiti.  In Highgate Cemetery, Karl Marx's stone head often has 'tributes' added to his memorial. Insensitive action by officials has seen red tape and 'Danger' labels on headstones.  In Edinburgh, 9,000 headstones failed the 'topple test' and were laid flat. Other damage has occurred more naturally through age, frost, or erosion. Also there has been deterioration due to poor quality stone and shallow engraving.

We are grateful that John shared his knowledge with us, especially at such short notice, due to the indisposition of the arranged speaker.