Looking towards Westminster Cathedral from Cathedral Walk.
LondonLife – Standing tall…
Westminster
This Week in London – Women of the RNLI; ‘Tropical Modernism’ at the V&A; and, a new memorial to Sir Ernest Shackleton unveiled at Westminster Abbey…
• The role of women in the Royal National Lifeboat Institution is being celebrated in a new exhibition at the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich. Women of the RNLI, which marks the bicentenary of the organisation, features a series of 42 photographs depicting women volunteers and the lifeboat stations’ slipways where they work. The images by photographer Jack Lowe are part of his ongoing ‘Lifeboat Station Project’, an attempt to photograph all 238 operational RNLI lifeboat stations and their crews.. Lowe uses a 12×10 inch (30×25cm) Thornton-Pickard field camera from about 1905 and develops the photos using a process called ‘wet collodion’, a technique invented in the mid-19th century. The display also features oral histories from some of the sitters. The display can be seen from Saturday until 1st December. For more, see www.rmg.co.uk.
• A new exhibition exploring the architectural style of Tropical Modernism in West Africa and India opens at the V&A on Saturday. Tropical Modernism: Architecture and Independence centres on the work of British architects Jane Drew and Maxwell Fry who developed Tropical Modernism in the 1940s, working primarily in Ghana and India. The style, which valued function over ornamentation, became a symbol of a post-colonial future. The exhibition includes models, drawings, letters, photographs, and archival ephemera as it documents the key figures and moments of the Tropical Modernist movement. There is also a half hour film installation displayed on three screens. Runs until 22nd September. Admission charge applies. For more, see vam.ac.uk.
• A new memorial stone dedicated to Antarctic explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton has been unveiled at Westminster Abbey. The triangular-shaped memorial, which can be found on a wall in the south cloister, was unveiled at a service earlier this month attended by Princess Anne and members of Shackleton’s family. Located close to tributes to pioneering sailors Captain James Cook, Sir Francis Chichester and Sir Francis Drake, it was designed and made by sculptor Will Davies and its shape reflects Shackleton’s preference to be at the apex of a triangle in group photographs. The memorial incorporates stones including Connemara marble and Kilkenny limestone in reflection of Shackleton’s Irish heritage, and the names of his expedition ships, Nimrod and Endurance, are inscribed upon it, along with the lifeboat The James Caird, and his family motto, ‘FORTITUDINE VINCIMUS’ (‘By Endurance We Conquer’). For more, see www.westminster-abbey.org.
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LondonLife – Westminster traffic…
This Week in London – Notre Dame de Paris celebrated at the Abbey; remembering “great escapes” of World War II; and, ‘Wildlife Photographer of the Year’…
• An immersive exhibition on the cathedral of Notre Dame de Paris, currently being restored following a devastating 2019 fire, opened at Westminster Abbey this week. Notre Dame de Paris, The Augmented Exhibition tells the story of the Gothic masterpiece from the 12th century to today and features a digital recreation of the cathedral by digital heritage specialists, Histovery, in collaboration with Rebuilding Notre-Dame de Paris. The exhibition is being held in the 13th century chapter house of the abbey with visitors, thanks to digital technology, able to witness firsthand the lavish wedding of King Henri IV, the coronation of Napoleon Bonaparte, and the 19th century construction of Notre-Dame’s iconic spire of Viollet-le-Duc. Runs until 1st June. Admission charge applies. For more, head here. The exhibition is part of a season of events at the abbey celebrating the bonds between the UK and France.
• An new exhibition focused on the hundreds of thousands of people held captive during World War II has opened at the National Archives in Kew. Great Escapes: Remarkable Second World War Captives, tells the story of famous escape attempts such as the escape from Stalag Luft III known as “the Great Escape” (made famous in the film of the same name) and British officer Airey Neave’s escape from Colditz Castle dressed as a German soldiers well as stories of individuals seeking escape through art, music and finding love while being held. The exhibition is divided into three parts. The first explores the legal framework for the 1929 Geneva Convention governing prisoners and tells the story of MI9, a highly secret British Government agency established in 1939 to help military personnel evade and escape capture. Part two explores the stories from individual prisoners and internees under British, German, and Japanese authority during World War II while part three examines how prisoners were dealt with at the end of the war as well as how the experience of the conflict led to the Geneva Convention being rewritten in 1949. Runs until 21st July. Admission is free. For more, see www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/great-escapes/.
• An image of a young polar bear drifting to sleep on a bed carved into an iceberg has won the Wildlife Photographer of the Year People’s Choice Award. Nima Sarikhani’s Ice Bed, and the four finalist ‘Highly Commended’ images were selected from a shortlist of 25 images chosen by the Natural History Museum and an international judging panel from almost 50,000 images entered in the 59th Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition. The other finalists include Tzahi Finkelstein’s The Happy Turtle – a meeting between Balkan pond turtle and a northern banded groundling dragonfly, Daniel Dencescu’s Starling Murmuration - which captured the moment a starling murmuration formed the shape of a bird, Mark Boyd’s Shared Parenting in which two lionesses groom a cub in Kenya’s Maasai Mara, and, Audun Rikardsen’s Aurora Jellies which shows two moon jellyfish illuminated by the aurora borealis in a fjord in Norway. The five images can be seen both online and in the accompanying exhibition at the Natural History Museum until 30th June. Admission charge applies. For more, see www.nhm.ac.uk/wpy/peoples-choice.
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10 London locations related to Sir Christopher Wren…9. St James’s Street, Piccadilly…
As noted at the outset of this series, in his latter years Sir Christopher Wren retired to the property on Hampton Court Palace Green, a property he was granted after he was appointed Surveyor-General to King Charles II in 1669.
But he also still spent time in London and, no longer having access to Scotland Yard, he lodged at his son Christopher’s house in St James’s Street, off Piccadilly. In fact, it was in this property that Wren, having suffered a chill, died while sitting in a chair at the age of 91 on 25th February, 1723.
It’s been suggested that the house in which Wren died was on the west side of the street. There’s an apocryphal story that suggests Wren came to London to check up on his greatest work, St Paul’s Cathedral.
Where’s London’s oldest… (continuously cultivated) garden?
Not to be confused with London’s oldest botanic garden (The Chelsea Physic Garden), the College Garden at Westminster Abbey is believed to be the oldest garden in England under continuous cultivation.
In monastic times, the garden, as well as providing eye-pleasing flower displays, was used to grow vegetables and medicinal herbs for the abbey’s resident monks and it also included an orchard, as well as fishponds and beehives. The first herbarium dates from at least 1306 although the infirmary garden was originally established in the 11th century..
The garden was under the overall supervision of the abbey’s Infirmer – responsible for caring for the sick or infirm – and was tended to by a head gardener and two under-gardeners (all of whom were monks).
The oldest surviving feature of the garden today is a high stone wall which dates from 1376. Today the garden features London plane trees planted in the 1850s and a broad expanse of lawn.
There is also a small rose garden which marks Queen Elizabeth II’s accession to the throne and a herb garden planted to commemorate the lives of the monks and the founding of the Westminster School.
A 1993 bronze sculpture depicting the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ, by Enzo Plazzotta, sits out the south end of the garden. A single jet fountain was added in 2002.
The west side of the garden is bordered by the 18th century dormitory for the Westminster School. Two late Victorian houses, originally used for clergy, stand at the north end.
The garden is accessed from the south-east corner of the abbey cloister.
10 London locations related to Sir Christopher Wren…6. Westminster Abbey…
Think of Sir ChristopherWren and chances are it’s St Paul’s Cathedral – perhaps the most famous building he designed – which comes to mind. Certainly not Westminster Abbey, which he did not.
Yet, aside from his time at the Westminster School as a child, Wren did have a long relationship with the royal church at Westminster. In March, 1698, he was appointed the Surveyor of the Fabric at Westminster Abbey, a post he held until his death (when he was succeeded by Sir Nicholas Hawksmoor).
Wren did some work on the building. Prior to being appointed surveyor he had undertaken some work on schoolmaster Dr Richard Busby’s house (Wren had been one of his students) in the Little Cloister in 1683 (the house was destroyed during the Blitz in World War II).
Following his appointment, Wren did undertake a major restoration of the decayed stonework and roof of the church. He also approved designs by his deputy, William Dickinson, for the north front and an altarpiece which Wren had originally designed for the royal chapel at the Palace of Whitehall was given to the minster by Queen Anne (it was removed in the 19th century).
In 1713, Wren had also created designs for a series of works at the abbey which included the addition of a central tower and spire at the abbey and the completion of the west front which were never realised and which were shelved after his death (the wooden model for the tower and spire is located in Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Galleries, along with a pair of wooden obelisks he designed for the entrance to the Quire).
While there’s no memorial to him in the Abbey, Wren’s image can be seen in the lower right section of a memorial window in the north choir aisle dedicated to 19th century engineer Robert Stephenson while his coat of arms is shown along with numerous others in some post-war glass windows in the Chapter House.
WHERE: Westminster Abbey (nearest Tube stations are Westminster and St James’s Park); WHEN: Times vary – see the website for details; COST: £29 adults/£26 concession/£13 children (family rates available); WEBSITE: www.westminster-abbey.org.
Famous Londoners – William Camden…
Famed 16th century historian and writer William Camden is celebrated not only for the influence he and his career had on writers including the likes of Ben Jonson and Edmund Spenser, but also for his work in helping to transform the idea of historical inquiry.
Camden was born in London on 2nd May, 1551, the son of Sampson, a painter-stainer originally from Lichfield, and his wife Elizabeth (Curwen).
He attended a school at Christ’s Hospital and then St Paul’s School before going on to study at the University of Oxford., graduating with a BA in 1573.
He had returned to London a couple of years earlier and in 1575 was appointed the second master of Westminster School (Jonson was one of his pupils; according to tradition, Camden sponsored his position).
It was during this period that, when not attending his duties at Westminster, he travelled the country, collecting material for what would be the first topographical survey of England. Titled Britannia and written in Latin, it was published in 1586.
Camden was made head master in 1593 and in 1595 published a Greek grammar which became seen as standard work.
In 1597, he was made Clarenceux king-of-arms (one of the three principal heralds at the College of Arms) which allowed him more time for writing (in 1589, he had been granted the prebend of Ilfracombe at Salisbury Cathedral).
Camden, who had established the Society of Antiquities with friends in about 1585 (it helped lay the foundations for the school of 17th century historians), published several history-related works between 1600 and 1607 including the first guide to Westminster Abbey’s monuments.
He was, from the end of that period, also working on his Annales Rerum Anglicarum et Hibernicarum Regnante Elizabetha (Annals of the Affairs of England and Ireland During the Reign of Elizabeth), the first volume of which was published in 1615 (a second volume was completed in 1617 but not published until after Camden’s death).
In 1618, in poor health, Camden retired two Chislehurst in Kent and while there founded the first chair of history at the University of Oxford (in fact the first such chair at any English university). He died, having never married, at Chislehurst on 9th November, 1623.,
Camden was buried in Poet’s Corner, in the south transept, of Westminster Abbey and has a monument which features his bust.
This Week in London – English Heritage unveils 1000th Blue Plaque; Chris Ofili’s ‘Requiem’ at Tate Britain; and, Astronomy Photographer of the Year…
• English Heritage has unveiled its 1000th Blue Plaque in London. The plaque – located on a three storey building at number 1, Robert Street in Westminster – marks the former London headquarters of the suffragist organisation, the Women’s Freedom League. The league, which was formed in 1907, worked out of the building between 1908 and 1915 – its most active period. The blue plaques scheme has been running for more than 150 years and honours everyone from John Keats and Charles Dickens to Ada Lovelace and Alan Turing. For more, see www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/blue-plaques/.
© Chris Ofili. Courtesy the artist. PICTURE: Thierry Bal
• A major new work by Chris Ofili commemorating fellow artist Khadija Saye and the tragedy of the Grenfell Tower fire in which Saye died, has gone on display at the Tate Britain in Millbank. Requiem, a site-specific work which is shown across three walls, is described as a “journey through an imagined landscape of giant skies with vast horizons and flowing water” which unfolds in three chapters. Ofili says that when making the work, he recalled the feelings he had when creating No Woman, No Cry in 1998 as a tribute to murdered Black teenager Stephen Lawrence and his mother Doreen. “That feeling of injustice has returned,” he said. “I wanted to make a work in tribute to Khadija Saye. Remembering the Grenfell Tower fire, I hope that the mural will continue to speak across time to our collective sadness.” For more, see tate.org.uk/visit/tate-britain.
• The Astronomy Photographer of the Year display has opened at the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich featuring the competition’s winning image, Andromeda. The picture, the work of Marcel Drechsler, Xavier Strottner and Yann Sainty, depicts a huge plasma arc next to the Andromeda Galaxy. Other winners include two 14-year-old boys from China – Runwei Xu and Binyu Wang – who won the Young Astronomy Photographer of the Year award for The Running Chicken Nebula as well as Argentinian Eduardo Schaberger Poupeau who won the ‘Our Sun’ category for A Sun Question which captures a huge filament in the shape of a question mark, China’s Angel An, who won the ‘Skyscapes’ category for Grand Cosmic Fireworks – a photograph of the extremely rare phenomenon of atmospheric luminescence, and the UK’s John White who won the Annie Maunder Prize for Image Innovation for Black Echo which used audio source material from NASA’s Chandra Sonification Project, to visually capture the sound of the black hole at the centre of the Perseus Galaxy. For more, see www.rmg.co.uk/astrophoto.
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LondonLife – Wall of windows…
London pub signs…The Red Lion, Westminster…
There has been a pub on this storied Whitehall location, located between conveniently for politicians between the Houses of Parliament and Downing Street, since at least the 15th century.
Then named Hopping Hall, a pub is recorded on this site at 48 Parliament Street (on the corner with Derby Gate) as early as 1434. It passed into the hands of the Crown by 1531 and by the early 19th century it had taken on the name of the Red Lion (at the time, it was visited by Charles Dickens as a young man). The current, now Grade II-listed, building was erected on the site in 1890.
The pub’s name – one of the most common in England (there’s several more in London alone) – apparently originated at the ascension of the Scottish King James I to the throne in 1603. The King ordered that all significant buildings display the red heraldic lion of Scotland and that included pubs. Hence the Red Lion.
The four storey pub has been popular among politicians (and journalists interviewing politicians) including Prime Ministers – indeed, it’s claimed to have served every PM up until Edward Heath in the 1970s (as such it’s one of the many pubs in London which features division bells, although the function of these has apparently been replaced by an app).
For more, see www.redlionwestminster.co.uk.
LondonLife – Coronation moments…
Some more images from the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla on the weekend…
This Week in London – It’s Coronation weekend!…
• It’s Coronation weekend in London, so first up it’s a look at the Coronation Procession. The 1.42 mile route from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Abbey, which opens for viewers at 6am on Saturday, will see the procession – with King Charles III and Queen Camilla travelling in the Diamond Jubilee State Coach – leave Buckingham Palace at 10:20am. Known as The King’s Procession, the coach, which will be accompanied by The Sovereign’s Escort of the Household Cavalry, will travel down The Mall, through Admiralty Arch and past Trafalgar Square, before turning down Whitehall. The procession will then make its way down to the Houses of Parliament and around the east and south sides of Parliament Square to Broad Sanctuary and Westminster Abbey.
• The ceremony is scheduled to begin at 11am and is expected to run for two hours. There is, of course, no access to the abbey for uninvited guests but the ceremony will be broadcast live by the BBC and big screens are being set up to watch in St James’s Park, Green Park and Hyde Park as well as Holland Park, Valence Park in Dagenham and Walpole Park in Ealing.
• At 1pm, the King and Queen will return from Westminster Abbey to Buckingham Palace in The Coronation Procession. They will be riding in the 260-year-old Gold State Coach that has been used in every coronation since that of William IV and accompanied by almost 4,000 members of the armed forces in what’s been called the largest ceremonial military operation in recent decades. Representatives of Commonwealth nations and British Overseas Territories will also take part in the return procession. The route will be the reverse of the outgoing route and see the procession travel back through Parliament Square (lined with an honour guard of 100 members of the Royal British Legion) and up Whitehall to Trafalgar Square, turning left to travel through Admiralty Arch and back down The Mall. Reaching Buckingham Palace, the King and Queen will receive a Royal Salute from the armed forces who have been escorting them followed by three cheers.
• The balcony appearance and flypast. The newly crowned King and Queen Consort are scheduled to appear on the famous balcony on Buckingham Palace at 2.30pm accompanied by members of the royal family. They will watch a six minute flypast of military planes, ending with a display by the Red Arrows.
• On Sunday, communities are invited to join in the Coronation Big Lunch (communities will also be holding street parties throughout the weekend). On Sunday night, the BBC will broadcast The Coronation Concert from Windsor Castle. The concert will feature the Coronation Choir as well as ‘Lighting Up The Nation’ in which locations across the UK will take part. For details on where events are being held, head to https://coronation.gov.uk/events/.
• On Monday, people are encouraged to join in The Big Help Out by volunteering time to help out in your local community. To find out where your local events are, head to https://thebighelpout.org.uk.
LondonLife – Coronation preparations…
Four sites related to royal coronations in London – 3. Westminster Abbey…
Westminster Abbey has been centre-stage at coronations since at least the Norman Conquest.
William the Conqueror set the precedent for coronations at the abbey when he decided not to get crowned at Winchester Cathedral (where Edward the Confessor had been crowned) and instead chose to be crowned at the minster built by Edward the Confessor (there is some suggestion King Harold Godwinson, the last Saxon King, was crowned at Westminster Abbey before the Conquest but no documentary evidence exists for this).
William the Conqueror’s coronation was held on Christmas Day, 1066, and since then some 39 coronations have been carried out (King Charles III’s will be the 40th).
Arrangements for the coronation ceremony are the responsibility of the Earl Marshal and the coronation committee but the abbey’s dean acts as a liaison with the sovereign and assists the Archbishop of Canterbury who is usually the bishop who crowns the monarch.
Since the late 14th century, the service has largely followed that laid down in the Liber Regalis (Royal Book), an illuminated manuscript created in around 1390.
Since 1308, the heart of the coronation service has taken place on the Cosmati Pavement, located just before the High Altar, in what is known as the “Coronation Theatre”.
Having processed into the abbey and been acclaimed or “recognised” as sovereign by those present, the monarch then makes promises to God and the people they rule in what is known as the Oath, before being presented with a Bible.
Then, seated in the Coronation Chair, the monarch is anointed with holy oil while a canopy is held over them to shield this most sacred part of the ceremony from the eyes of those gathered.
Still seated, the monarch is then invested with the coronation regalia, including the Sovereign’s Ring, the Sovereign’s Orb, the Sceptre with Cross and the Sceptre with Dove, before St Edward’s Crown is brought from the altar and placed on the monarch’s head (it’s only since that coronation of King James I in 1603 that both the anointing and the crowning are carried out while the monarch is seated on the Coronation Chair – before that, the chair was used for only one aspect of the ceremony).
The monarch then moves to a throne and receives the homage of the royal princes and senior peers. It’s at this point that the coronation of a Queen Consort typically takes place in a simpler form of the ceremony.
The monarch then retires into St Edward’s Chapel where they dress on a purple robe known as the Imperial State Robe or Robe of Estate as well as the Imperial State Crown before processing back out through the abbey.
Other elements of the coronation include music which since the Coronation of King George II has included the George Fredric Handel anthem, Zadok the Priest. The introit I was glad has been sung at every coronation since that of King Charles I in February, 1626.
The abbey is currently closed in preparation for the Coronation of King Charles III. It reopens on Monday, 8th May. The Coronation Theatre will remain in place for visitors to see until 13th May.
WHERE: Westminster Abbey, Westminster (nearest Tube station is Westminster or St James’s Park); WHEN: Open to tourists everyday except Sunday (times vary so check the website); COST: £27 an adult/£24 for seniors (65+)/£12 a child (6-17 years); WEBSITE: www.westminster-abbey.org.
Moments in London’s history – Five (more) unusual facts about royal coronations past…
Following last week’s unusual facts, here’s five more…
• The coronation of King William I (aka William the Conqueror) was marred by riots. The new King had chosen to be crowned in Westminster Abbey on Christmas Day, 1066, in a display of power (kings had in the past been crowned in Winchester). But when shouts of support for the new king were mistakenly thought to be an assassination attempt, Norman soldiers outside the abbey began setting fire to nearby houses, causing the abbey to fill with smoke and the congregation to flee while outside people rioted. William nonetheless ensured the service was completed.
• Henry, the eldest son of King Henry II, had a coronation service at Westminster Abbey while his father was still monarch – the only instance of this occurring. While crowning the heir during the lifetime of the monarch was a more common practice in France, it was not so in England. But in an effort to settle the succession, King Henry II had Henry crowned on 14th June, 1170. Sadly Henry, known as Henry the Young King, did not live to succeed his father but died at just the age of 28 in 1183 after contracting dysentery while campaigning with his younger brother Richard (later King Richard I) against their father. King Henry II died on 6th July, 1189, and was succeeded by Richard.
• There has only been one coronation in the abbey in which two monarchs were crowned at the same time. After King James II was deposed, William of Orange and his wife Mary were jointly invited to rule in what was known as the Glorious Revolution. They were crowned together at Westminster Abbey on 11th April, 1689. King William III sat in the Coronation Chair while another chair was specifically made for Queen Mary II, and, while the king was crowned using the traditional regalia, a special set of regalia was made for Mary.
• Only two of King Henry VIII’s six wives had coronations. Catherine of Aragon was crowned alongside the King on 24th June, 1509 (she sat on a lower chair). Anne Boleyn, meanwhile, was crowned on 1st June, 1533. Interestingly, she was crowned with St Edward’s Crown which had up until then only been used to crown the monarch. Jane Seymour died before she could be crowned (there had been plague in London at the time she married Henry), while his marriage with Anne of Cleves was annulled before she could be crowned and Catherine Howard was executed before any coronation took place. By the time the king married Catherine Parr, he was ageing and ill and a coronation was unlikely to be high on his agenda.
• King Henry VI is the youngest monarch to have been crowned at Westminster Abbey. He was aged just eight-years-old when he was crowned on 6th November, 1429, having become king at the age of just eight-months-old when his father, King Henry V, died on 31st August, 1422 (other children to have been crowned in the abbey include King Edward VI, who was just nine at his coronation). King Charles III – whose coronation will take place on 6th May – will be the oldest monarch to have been crowned at the abbey.
Correction: We’ve corrected the position of the two Catherines after the names were accidentally transposed.
Moments in London’s history – Five unusual facts about royal coronations past…
Ahead of the coronation of King Charles III, here’s five unusual facts about coronations of bygone eras…
1. Queen Mary I did not use the Coronation Chair during her coronation on 1st October, 1553. An ardent Catholic, the Queen apparently believed the ancient seat had been tainted by her half-brother Edward VI’s Protestantism and so was crowned in a different chair. The chair is said to have been sent to her by the Pope but what became of it remains something of a mystery. The Queen also had a new, special supply of coronation oil for the anointing part of the ceremony made and sent to her by the Bishop of Arras for the same reason – that Edward had “polluted” the previous oil.
2. So many things went wrong at Queen Victoria’s coronation that a group of historians was established to examine the history of coronations and create a more structured ceremony. The mishaps during the five hour ceremony included the Queen having the Coronation Ring painfully forced into the wrong finger, the Bishop of Bath and Wells prematurely announcing that the ceremony had ended, and the elderly Lord John Rolle falling down a flight of steps when making his homage to the Queen (the Queen then graciously went down to him rather than have him attempt the steps again).
3. Two (or possibly three) English monarchs never had coronations. They include King Edward V – one of the “Princes in the Tower” who became king following the death of his father, Edward IV, on 9th April, 1483, but who then disappeared with his brother Richard after last being seen in the Tower of London (King Richard III was subsequently crowned King instead). They also include King Edward VIII who, having became king on 20th January, 1936, abdicated in December that year before his coronation was held (King George VI was subsequently crowned on the date set for Edward’s coronation – 12th May, 1937). And, depending on whether you accept her monarchy, Lady Jane Grey, who reigned for only nine days before she was executed.
4. King Edward VII’s coronation had to be delayed because of an emergency appendectomy operation. The ceremony, which had originally been scheduled for 26th June, 1902, took place some weeks later than planned on 9th August – and was then marred when the Archbishop of Canterbury, Frederick Temple, placed the crown back-to-front on the King’s head.
5. King George IV refused to let his wife Queen Caroline attend his coronation. Such was the acrimonious nature of their relationship that, having already been informed she was not welcome at the event, Caroline found the doors to Westminster Abbey barred to her when she attempted to enter as he was being crowned on 19th July, 1821. After repeated attempts to enter, she was eventuallys forced to leave without having gained entry.
This Week in London – Coronations at Westminster Abbey; tulips at Hampton Court; St Bartholomew at The National Gallery; and, Food Season at the British Library…
• A new exhibition exploring the 1,000-year history of coronations at Westminster Abbey has opened in the abbey’s medieval chapter house. The exhibition, which has opened ahead of the coronation of King Charles III on 6th May, draws on historic illustrations and archive photography to explore the elements of the coronation service including the oath-taking, anointing, investing and crowning and takes a closer look any some of key artefacts present in the ceremony including the Coronation Chair. The exhibition, which is free with admission to the abbey and which runs until the end of September, is part of a season of events celebrating the coronation including themed late evenings, family activities and special afternoon teas at the Cellarium Café. Meanwhile, the abbey has also announced that visitors will be able to view the ‘Coronation Theatre’ – the special area which will be built for the historic occasion, from the Abbey’s North and South Transepts – following the coronation. Tickets for the special viewing – which will include the chance to see key elements from the coronation service including the Coronation Chair still in position on the Cosmati Pavement – can be purchased for timed slots between 8th and 13th May. For more on the abbey’s events surrounding the coronation, see www.westminster-abbey.org/events.
• Hampton Court Palace bursts into colour from Friday with its annual Tulip Festival. More than 110,000 bulbs have been planted to creat dramatic displays in the formal gardens and cobbled courtyards, among them a selection of heirloom bulbs on display in the Lower Orangery Garden which presents visitors with the chance to see tulips as they would have looked during the time of King William III and Queen Mary II, soon after the flowers were first introduced to Britain. Thanks to a special relationship with Netherlands-based Hortus Bulborum, the bulbs on display include Sylvestris (1595) and Rubella Broken (1700) as well as the Orange King (1903) and Queen of the Night (1940). Other highlights of the festival include 3,000 wine-toned tulips, including the merlot variety, flowing down from the steps and parapet of the Wine Fountain, as well as a floral fantasy in the palace’s courtyards in which tulips such as Raspberry Ripple, Apricot Emperor and Purple Prince flow out of wheelbarrows, barrels and a horse cart, and a free-style tulip planting in the Kitchen Garden inspired by Van Gogh’s 1883 painting, Bulb Fields. Runs until 1st May. Admission charge applies. For more, see https://www.hrp.org.uk/hampton-court-palace/whats-on/tulip-festival/.
PICTURE: © The National Gallery, London
• The recently acquired Bernardo Cavallino work, Saint Bartholomew has gone on show at The National Gallery. The painting, which dates from 1640-45 and which was last exhibited at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York in 1993, is being displayed alongside other 17th century works by artists such as Caravaggio, Artemisia and Orazio Gentileschi, Guercino, Reni and Ribera in the Hans and Julia Rausing Room (Room 32). The National Gallery has one other work by Cavallino – Christ driving the Traders from the Temple – but his depiction of Saint Bartholomew is considered one of his most splendid works. Admission is free. For more, see nationalgallery.org.uk.
• Featuring everything from a celebration of African Caribbean takeaways to a “deep-dive” into the issues surrounding food production and access, Food Season kicks off at the British Library Monday. Highlights include a discussion of the sandwich by food writers Nigella Lawson, Jonathan Nunn and Rebecca May Johnson, a day-long celebration of African Caribbean cuisine featuring chefs and broadcasters Jimi Famurewa, Fatmata Binta and Andi Oliver, and, an exploration of the big challenges in food, land use and food production featuring author Henry Dimbleby alongside Dr Tara Garnett, Nick Saltmarsh, Abby Allen and Dimitri Houtart. Runs until 7th June. Admission charges apply. For the full programme, see www.bl.uk/events/food-season.
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Four sites related to royal coronations in London – 1. The Jewel House…
In the lead-up to the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Consort Camilla on 6th May, we’re taking a look at sites in London which have played an important role in coronations past (and, mostly, in this coronation as well).
First up, it’s the Tower of London’s Jewel House which is linked to the coronation through the role it plays in housing the Crown Jewels and, more specifically, the Coronation Regalia.
The centrepiece of the Crown Jewels is St Edward’s Crown, with which King Charles will be crowned in Westminster Abbey.
The crown, which has already been removed from the Tower of London so it could be resized for the occasion, is made from 22 carat gold and adorned with some 444 precious and semi-precious gems. Named for St Edward the Confessor, it dates from 1661 when it was made for the coronation of King Charles II and replaces an earlier version melted down after Parliament abolished the monarchy in 1649.
The crown was subsequently used in 1689 in the coronation of joint monarchs King William III and Queen Mary II and then not used again until 1911 when as used to crown King George V. It was also used to crown King George VI and Queen Elizabeth II in 1953.
St Edward’s Crown is not the only crown that will be used in the coronation ceremony – the King will also wear the Imperial State Crown at the end of the service.
Made by Garrard and Company for the coronation of King George VI in 1937 (replacing a crown made for Queen Victoria in 1838), it features the Black Prince’s Ruby in the front – said to have been a gift to Edward, the Black Prince, in 1357 from the King of Castile.
Further gems in the crown include the Stuart Sapphire, the Cullinan II Diamond and St Edward’s Sapphire, said to have been worn in a ring by St Edward the Confessor and found in his tomb in 1163.
Among other items which will be used in the coronation are the Sovereign’s Sceptre with Cross, the Sovereign’s Orb, and the Coronation Spoon.
The sceptre was made for King Charles II and now features the world’s largest diamond, the Cullinan Diamond, which was added to it in 1911. The orb was also made for King Charles II’s coronation and is topped with a cross.
The spoon, meanwhile, is one of the oldest items in the Crown Jewels, dating from the 12th century. It is used for anointing the new sovereign with holy oil – which comes from the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem – during the ceremony. It survived the abolition of the monarchy after it was purchased by a member of King Charles I’s wardrobe and later returned to King Charles II after the monarchy. The oil is held in a golden vessel known as an ampulla which is shaped like an eagle.
Other items to be used in the coronation are a series of swords – among them the Sword of State, the Sword of Temporal Justice, the Sword of Spiritual Justice, and the Sword of Mercy (this has its tip blunted to represent the Sovereign’s mercy).
The regalia was housed at Westminster Abbey until 1649. They have been kept at the Tower of London since the Restoration (even surviving a theft attempt by Colonel Thomas Blood and accomplices in 1671).
The Crown Jewels, which are now held under armed guard, have been housed in several different locations during their time at the Tower of London including in the Martin Tower and the Wakefield Tower. They were moved into a subterranean vault in the western end of the Waterloo Block (formerly the Waterloo Barracks), now known as the Jewel House (and not to be confused with The Jewel Tower in Westminster), in 1967.
A new Jewel House was opened by Queen Elizabeth II on the ground floor of the former barracks in 1994. The exhibit was revamped in 2012 and following King Charles III’s coronation, the display is again being transformed with a new exhibition exploring the origins of some of the objects for the first time.
WHERE: The Jewel House, Tower of London (nearest Tube station Tower Hill); WHEN: 9am to 4.30pm (last admission), Tuesday to Saturday, 10am to 4.30pm (last admission) Sunday to Monday; COST: £29.90 adults; £14.90 children 5 to 15; £24 concessions (family tickets available; discounts for online purchases/memberships); WEBSITE: https://www.hrp.org.uk/tower-of-london/whats-on/the-crown-jewels/.
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