Oxford - Magdalene College

This is an excerpt from the tour Oxford’s Noble and Great Ones - Part 1  which explores around the southern part of Oxford.  The full tour is found on   www.obelisktours.co.uk

 Facing the Botanic Gardens is Magdalen College.  The first surprising thing about this college is its spelling.  You would expect it to be pronounced like Mary Magdalene when in fact it is ‘Maudlin’.  Some claim it is just how it was pronounced centuries ago without the ‘g’, but it also seems we have a play on words here.  Mary Magdalene anointed the feet of the Saviour, was present at the Crucifixion and at the tomb and most artistic depictions show her looking sorrowful.   Maudlin is a word meaning tearful or sentimental. So we get both an historical figure and an emotion in one word - two for the price of one.

William of Waynflete (1398-1486), Bishop of Winchester, founded “Seint Marie Maudeleyn Halle” in 1448, but it was not until 1456 that he gained the current location and Magdalen College came to life in 1458.  Magdalen was blessed with benefactors from the start.  One of the earliest gifts came from the estate of John Fastolf (1380-1459), who may be the inspiration for Falstaff featured in William Shakespeare’s plays.

The College has 100 acres of grounds which includes a herd of Fallow Deer.

The Tower greets everyone entering Oxford.  It was built by William Orchard (1468-1504) who also designed the quad behind the tower, the vaults of the Divinity School, and the chancel of Christ Church Cathedral.  It has been a tradition for the college choir to sing from the top of Magdalen tower at 6 am on May Day (May  1).  The event draws large crowds and is followed by dancing and music in the streets below.  

More details about the people, places and events associated with these sites can be found on the tour Oxford’s Noble and Great Ones - Part 1 available on   www.obelisktours.co.uk

London - Whitehall - Ministry of Magic

This is an excerpt from the tour Whitehall  found on   www.obelisktours.co.uk

As you turn right into Scotland Place you are passing near the entrance to the Ministry of Magic!  

In the first Harry Potter movie they added a false telephone box on the corner which serves as the entrance to the Ministry of Magic.  In part one of the Deathly Hallows it is in this garage where Harry, Ron and Hermione knock out some unsuspecting Ministry workers and use polyjuice to steal their identities.  Sadly for our trio the phone box disappeared in this movie and they have to flush their way into the Ministry via some public toilets.   

So proceed with caution… muggles are everywhere.

More details about the people, places and events associated with these sites can be found on the tour London - Whitehall  available on   www.obelisktours.co.uk

Oxford - the Horror of Cricket

This is an excerpt from the tour Oxford’s Noble and Great Ones - Part 1  which explores around the southern part of Oxford.  The full tour is found on   www.obelisktours.co.uk

No sport seems more ‘English’ than cricket, and no cricket ground has a more perfect setting than the one in Merton field alongside the Christ Church meadow.  However, when it was first proposed Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (Lewis Carroll) was horrified that the meadow should be sacrificed for the sake of one sport.  He wrote a poem about this; the first stanza reads:

Amidst thy bowers the tyrant’s hand is seen,

And rude pavilions sadden all your green;

One selfish pastime grasps the whole domain,

And half a faction swallows up the plain;

Adown thy glades, all sacrificed to cricket,

The hollow-sounding bat now guards the wicket.

Sunk are thy mounds in shapeless level all,

Lest aught impede the swiftly rolling ball;

And trembling, shrinking from the fatal blow,

Far, far away thy hapless children go. 

More details about the people, places and events associated with these sites can be found on the tour Oxford’s Noble and Great Ones - Part 1 available on   www.obelisktours.co.uk

London - Whitehall - Civil Service Club

This is an excerpt from the tour Whitehall  found on   www.obelisktours.co.uk

 Set slightly back from the main street line is the Civil Service Club - a private club for all Civil Servants including employees of the Crown or the Police.   They provide accommodation, a bar and dining facilities.  They arrange banquets, outings, discounted tickets, quiz nights, comedy nights, poker, tours and provide an exclusive Westminster location for conferences, meetings, weddings and private dining.   

The site was for the London County Council Fire Station and the indented forecourt allowed room for the horses to be attached to the fire engines without blocking the street.  

More details about the people, places and events associated with these sites can be found on the tour London - Whitehall  available on   www.obelisktours.co.uk

Oxford in Wonderland

This is an excerpt from the tour Oxford’s Noble and Great Ones - Part 1  which explores around the southern part of Oxford.  The full tour is found on   www.obelisktours.co.uk

A famous literary connection with Christ Church is with Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (1832-1898) more commonly known as Lewis Carroll the author of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.  Some of his characters have been put in the Great Hall’s stained glass windows.  If you look carefully you can see characters like Alice, the Dodo, the White Rabbit, the Queen of Hearts, the Knave, the Turtle, Tweedledee and Tweedledum.

Charles Dodgson began his residence here in 1851 and stayed until his death in 1898.  His subject was maths and he delighted in creating mathematical and word puzzles.  He lived to the side of Tom Tower where he also developed his interest in photography.

He compiled the Alice stories while entertaining the three daughters of the College Dean Henry George Liddell – Lorina (6) Alice (4) and Edith (2).   Over the years their friendship grew and the stories began to form. The girls’ names appear a number of times in the story.  At the Mad Hatter’s tea party the dormouse tells a story:

`Once upon a time there were three little sisters and their names were Elsie, Lacie, and Tillie; and they lived at the bottom of a well--'  

Elsie is Lorina Charlotte or LC, Lacie is an anagram of Alice and Tillie was Edith’s nickname. 

The story of Alice came to life on a boating trip with the three girls – an event which is included in the tale and featured everyone present:

“the pool was getting quite crowded with the birds and animals that had fallen into it: there was a Duck and a Dodo, a Lory and an Eaglet, and several other curious creatures.”

Alice was Alice, The Duck was Reverend Robinson Duckworth, The Dodo was Charles Dodgson, Lory (a type of parrot) was Lorrie  and Eaglet was Edith. 

“Curiouser and curiouser!”

Other actual & possible Inspirations for his stories and characters abound including the elongated fire dogs in the Dining Hall for when Alice grew and grew; the hidden Dining Hall door for the White Rabbit’s escape hole; Dean Henry Liddell as the “I’m late, I’m late” white rabbit,  Theophilus Carter - an Oxford cabinetmaker - as the Mad Hatter, opposite Christ Church is a shop on Aldate street which was used for the knitting ‘sheep’ shopkeeper, the Binsey Treacle (healing) Well features in the Dormouse’s story, and Henry VIII’s portrait in the dining hall probably inspired the Queen of Hearts favourite words “Off with their heads”. 

More details about the people, places and events associated with these sites can be found on the tour Oxford’s Noble and Great Ones - Part 1 available on   www.obelisktours.co.uk

London - Whitehall - Scotland Yard

This is an excerpt from the tour Whitehall  found on   www.obelisktours.co.uk

There is no real certainty about how Scotland Yard gets its name.  The main contender is that it derives its name from land and buildings given by the English King Edgar the Peaceful (943-975) to the King of Scotland, Kenneth (954-995).  Kenneth built a house which was enjoyed by him and his posterity until the reign of King Henry II  (1133-1189)  when William the King of Scots (1143-1214) turned against Henry at the Battle of Alnwick (1174).   The land and building were forfeited, but the ‘Scotland’ label stuck. 

In 1829 a police station was established here in Scotland Yard which became the headquarters for the newly formed Metropolitan Police created  by Robert Peel from whom derived the nickname of an English ‘Bobby’.    The name of Scotland Yard is now inseparable with the Police Force – they are one and the same – even though they have moved elsewhere the name has stuck. 

The force was made up of 895 constables, 88 sergeants, 20 inspectors and 8 superintendents.  Their leader  Sir Richard Mayne wrote:

"The primary object of an efficient police is the prevention of crime: the next that of detection and punishment of offenders if crime is committed. To these ends all the efforts of police must be directed.”

In  1890 they relocated down by the river and nearer to Parliament with the name of New Scotland Yard.  We shall see these buildings later in this tour.  (Now called Norman Shaw Buildings.)    The stables retained here are for use of the mounted police - mind your feet as you can often find evidence of the horses in the vicinity.   Above the arch, between the crowns of King George  you can faintly see the words ‘Greater London Recruiting Depot’ which remind us these buildings were established by the War Department to gather recruits.

More details about the people, places and events associated with these sites can be found on the tour London - Whitehall  available on   www.obelisktours.co.uk

Oxford - Botanical Garden

This is an excerpt from the tour Oxford’s Noble and Great Ones - Part 1  which explores around the southern part of Oxford.  The full tour is found on   www.obelisktours.co.uk

The front gate of the University of Oxford Botanic Garden provides us with some clues to its founding.  The Latin inscription above the gateway reads:

“To the Glory of God Almighty and the greatest Honour of King Charles, Henry Earl of Danby gave this garden for the use of the University and the state.  1632.”

(Gloriae Dei Opt. Max. Honori Caroli Regis, in usum Acad. et Reipub. Henricus comes Danby DD. MDCXXXII.)

The bust of Henry Danvers 1st Earl of Danby (1573-1643) sits above the inscription.  He gave five acres of land in 1621 to “promote the furtherance of learning to glorify nature “and this gateway was added in 1632 by the famous architect Inigo Jones (1573-1652).  On either side are statues of Charles I and Charles II which make this gateway look similar to Temple Bar in London – also designed by Inigo Jones ”.

Jacob Bobart became the first custodian of the garden (1642), and his son (also Jacob) sent a list of every plant they owned to other botanical gardens with the hopes they could exchange seeds. This is a practise continued by Botanical gardens worldwide. Over the past four centuries various guardians have kept the botanical studies alive and relevant for medicine and science. There are around 5,000 different plant species which are used for teaching, research and conservation. For instance, Bobart planted a yew tree in 1645, which was recently discovered to contain important cancer beating ingredients.   Jacob Bobart Junior is recorded as having “hideous features” and his wife “the ugliest of her sex” – a perfect match. 

    Pencilin                 

Australian Howard Florey (1898-1968) arrived as a Rhodes Scholar (1921?) in Magdalen College (on the opposite side of the road) and returned in 1935 as a professor and Fellow at Lincoln College, Oxford.  Alexander Fleming (1881-1955) had discovered Penicillin in 1927, but it was Howard and his team who demonstrated its effective use on humans.

Penicillin Plaque

 An Oxford policeman was on the verge of death and was saved by them administering the drug.  He died five days later, but only because they ran out of penicillin. Many Allied troops were saved during World War II because of this discovery, and millions have benefited since.  A plaque honouring Florey and his colleagues is in front of the Botanic gardens.

More details about the people, places and events associated with these sites can be found on the tour Oxford’s Noble and Great Ones - Part 1 available on   www.obelisktours.co.uk

London - Whitehall - Old Admiralty

This is an excerpt from the tour Whitehall  found on   www.obelisktours.co.uk

On the other side of the street are Trafalgar Studios and Glyn, Mills & Co – we will learn about those buildings near the end of our tour.  Remaining on this side of the street keep looking across the road until you are facing the Old Admiralty building.  We will walk by this building at the conclusion of this tour, but we get a better vantage point of the buildings from this side of the street.

For nearly 400 years this site has been directly connected with overseeing the Royal Navy.    George Villiers – the Lord High Admiral, first purchased the site in 1622 although the first purpose built building was not erected until 1695.  Within three decades the navy had outgrown this original Navy building and it was replaced (1726) with the one we can see behind the screen.

The screen is decorated with some appropriate nautical carvings including two, well… mutants – a kind of  horse-fish-bird (Pegasus meets Neptune?).  Looking through the screen at the pediment you can see more ‘sea’ carvings of an anchor.

After the Battle of Trafalgar (1805) the body of the Vice Admiral, Horatio Nelson, rested here briefly before his huge funeral procession through the streets of London to his final resting place in St Paul’s Cathedral.   His monument in nearby Trafalgar Square seems to be looking towards this building which was such a big part of his life.   Inside the building is the original model for Nelson’s statue. 

In 1964 the creation of the Ministry of Defence altered the way the armed forces were administered, but the navy still uses these facilities. 

 More details about the people, places and events associated with these sites can be found on the tour London - Whitehall  available on   www.obelisktours.co.uk

Oxford - some of the 'Old Boys'

 This is an excerpt from the tour Oxford’s Noble and Great Ones - Part 1  which explores around the southern part of Oxford.  The full tour is found on   www.obelisktours.co.uk

The alumni of Christ Church, Oxford create an impressive list of Who's Who.  Had these Christ Church students “felt the touch of greatness, and vowed to be great themselves”?   Some of my favourites from the long, long list include:

• ·         Richard Hakluyt (1553-1616) spent hours in Oxford libraries reading every possible document about voyages and discoveries.  He encouraged Queen Elizabeth I to “growe this realm of Englande” in North America which in turn caused her to support Walter Raleigh’s expedition.  When James I came to the throne Richard was instrumental in pushing for the colonisation of Virginia.
• ·         The Scotsman William Murray, 1^st Earl of Mansfield (1705-1793) was entered in the Christ Church records as coming from Bath instead of Perth because the scribe could not understand his Scottish accent.  Murray had a brilliant understanding of the law and became the political powerhouse of his day.  He stripped the British Law courts of their medieval and out-dated traditions and made them fairer and more suitable for our growing manufacturing nation.  In 1772 he set England on the path to abolishing slavery, by confirming it was illegal in England and Wales – thus freeing over 14,000 slaves in England.   It would not be completely abolished in the British Empire until 1834 after the work of men like William Wilberforce. 
• ·         Richard Busby (1606-1695) gained an infamous reputation as the headmaster with the cane.  Among his young pupils to feel his wrath were John Locke, John Dryden, Christopher Wren, Robert Hooke and 16 Bishops.   A more academic legacy were the Greek and Latin grammar studies he created for his scholars which remained in use for centuries. 
• ·         James Bruce, 8^th Earl of Elgin (1811-1863) was Governor of Jamaica (1842-46), Governor of Canada (1847-54) and Viceroy of India (1862-63).   He has numerous towns, mines, and streets named after him in those locations.  His father, the 7^th Earl, was the one who saved the famous Elgin Marbles on display in the British Museum.
• ·         Under the administration of James Broun-Ramsay, 1^st Marquess of Dalhousie (1812-1860) the British colony of India went from a money making venture into a dangerous liability.  The Indian Rebellion of 1857 can be traced to his requiring Indian Sepoys to travel aboard, ignoring their caste system and violating Hindu and Muslim laws. 
• ·         The political philosopher John Locke (1632-1704) influenced a number of American Founding Fathers including Alexander Hamilton, James Madison and Thomas Jefferson. 
• ·         Robert Hooke (1635-1703) was an incredibly versatile individual.  He was an architect, inventor, philosopher, professor, mathematician, surveyor, map-maker, linguist, astronomer and scientist.   Not surprisingly he has been called “England’s Leonardo.”  It was here in Oxford that his passion for science flourished while he worked alongside Robert Boyle and Christopher Wren. He coined the word ‘cell’ for organisms, invented the watch balance spring, and was a key figure in rebuilding the City of London after the Great Fire of 1666.
• ·         John Wesley (1703-1791) arrived in 1720, graduated in 1724 and was ordained a deacon in 1725. A plaque on the Cathedral floor commemorates the ordination of both John and his brother Charles.   We will see more about John when we get to Lincoln College.
• ·         Charles Wesley (1707-1788) followed his brother’s footsteps into Christ Church, set the seeds for the Methodist movement and continued a life dedicated to the Christian faith.   He was a prolific hymn writer creating thousands of hymns including Hark the Herald Angels Sing, Rejoice the Lord is King and Christ the Lord is Risen Today. 
• ·         William Penn (1644-1718) was educated here as a gentleman scholar complete with his own servant.   King Charles II was indebted to Penn’s father and settled the account by giving a large piece of America to Penn to help Quakers leave England.  William went to America and founded Pennsylvania and Philadelphia. 
• ·         Dorothy Sayers (1893-1957) was born at Christ Church!  Her father, Reverend Henry Sayers was the chaplain and headmaster of the Choir School.  Dorothy returned as a young woman to be educated at Somerville College, and was one of the first women to receive a degree from Oxford.    Dorothy was an avid writer, but is best remembered for her murder mysteries featuring the amateur sleuth Lord Peter Wimsey.
• ·         Wystan Hugh Auden (1907-1973), more commonly known as W.H.,  arrived to study biology, but soon switched to English Literature.  A wise move for that is where his future was heading.   With his monocle and cane he wandered Oxford’s streets lapping up the student life, enjoying good food, music, sports and conversation.  He published hundreds of poems, essays and reviews.  Although he eventually settled in America he returned for three weeks each year between 1956-1961 to lecture as Professor of Poetry at Oxford University.
• ·         Richard Curtis (1956-  ) studied English Language and Literature, and his love of words has entertained us ever since.   Richard met Rowan Atkinson in Oxford drama clubs and they created Blackadder and Mr. Bean.  His pen went on to write or adapt numerous films and TV series including  the Vicar of Dibley,  Spitting Image, Four Weddings and a Funeral, Notting Hill, Bridget Jones’s Diary, Love Actually and War Horse.

More details about the people, places and events associated with these sites can be found on the tour Oxford’s Noble and Great Ones - Part 1 available on   www.obelisktours.co.uk