An Unassuming Little Place with a Huge and Hidden History

An Unassuming Little Place with a Huge and Hidden History

At the top of this rise, there once stood a castle. It was called Fotheringhay castle. It fell into disrepair during the later part of the Elizabethan period and was being broken down and plundered for stone by 1627. Its destruction date is assumed to be at this time. By 1635 it was declared to be in a total ruinous state and was completely demolished soon afterwards.

By 1603, the Scottish Stewart King James VI was on the throne of England as King James I and by 1635 the second Stewart King Charles I was reigning over the land. This would be a place that neither kings of the Scottish dynasty would favour.

The last English Tudor Queen Elizabeth I had ordered the execution of Queen Mary Stewart of Scotland. The imprisoned Scottish queen spent her last month’s here and was executed on this very hill, where I am standing waving my arms in the above photo. She was the Mother and Grandmother of both Stewart Kings respectively. The place would be of little favour to such monarchs. Therefore no effort was made to preserve the old castle.

There had been a grand hall within the walls and it was in this place that Mary Stewart met her dreadful end. The famous Queen of Scotland was arguably, via Roman Catholic law, still secretly claiming to be England’s queen too and had been constantly trying to form rebellions to win her freedom.

After another plot to depose England’s Queen Elizabeth I, the final straw had come after many years of imprisonment. The Scottish queen had to be removed permanently. It was on the top of this mound that Queen Mary met her demise on a winter’s day of 8^th February 1587.

Also, over one hundred and thirty-five years prior to this, King Richard III – the last Plantagenet king of England was born on this very mound (Where the castle stood) on October 2^nd, 1452.

Now the mound looks like any other mound amid the English meadows and by a small picturesque English village that has a population of around one hundred people. A distant memory of regal ghosts lost in the splendour and panoramic view of the wonderful Nene valley. As unassuming as the Stewarts were to this historical place; so the historical place is unimpressed by the kings. The pleasant splendour rural English village lives on while the ghosts of past monarchs are barely noticeable unless one is informed.

I Wanted a Claymore and to Fight Redcoats After My Visit to the Kiltmakers. (And I'm a Sacanach!)

I thought that trying on my Prince Charlie formal suit would be a good idea and it was time to remove the thread that was holding the pleats together. This allows the kilt to swing better when turning. In the end, I decided to put on the entire suit and walk about to see how it looked.

I wanted to get a claymore and go out and fight Redcoats. That's coming from me; a regular Sasanach in a County Waterford tartan from Ireland. Still, I do love this suit and can't wait to wear it when on my holiday cruise during the formal dinner evenings.

My Visit to the Kiltmakers in Peterborough

By coincidence, it was my birthday on the day that the House of Tartan Kiltmakers (One based in Peterborough) finished making my Prince Charlie formal suit for the cruise functions my wife and I like to attend when we go on holiday.

So many people like to wear the family colours for their formal evenings during the cruises and the outfits look great, in my opinion. I spoke to a few of the people who attended the formal dinner nights aboard ship and I spoke of my desire to acquire such splendid evening wear. I was informed that the vast majority of British people have ancestral lines plus there are a variety of tartans one can wear. 

Therefore, with great aplomb, I went along my family line and saw a number of tartans I could wear. There was Price-Powell, Howell-Powell, Davidson and along the female line from my Mother's side, there was the County Waterford Irish tartan line. I decided to look up the various kiltmakers and to my delight and surprise, there is The House of Tartan Kiltmakers based close to my Fenland home. They are located in the city of Peterborough. I was thrilled that a place was so close.

I found the website of Stan and Pat Wallace Pope at www.houseoftartans.co.uk  The whole experience of our visit to the kiltmakers was wonderful. I met a Scottish lady called Pat Wallace-Pope and her kiltmakers store was like an Aladin's cave of wonderful Scottish Highland things. She was a true professional and has been involved in kiltmaking since she was a young girl of four. No doubt watching her family elders and learning the trade as she grew.

We were shown books of various tartans and Pat Wallace-Pope knew all of the Irish ones too. I got the complete Highland Outfit in the Prince Charlie style. I was measured up with all of the various other things thrown in like Musquash Sporran, Sgian Dubhs, Ghillie Dubhs, Flashes, Buckles and Belts etc.

After a few weeks, over the Christmas period, I got a phone call to say my Formal Highland Outfit with County Waterford kilt was ready. My fitting date was my 56th birthday and I was looking forward to this with some excitement. My wife joked that I would be me leaving the place with my birthday suit. 

Pat Wallace-Pope also gave my wife a complimentary tartan sash of County Waterford tartan to go with her evening dress. We are hoping to be show stoppers on our next cruise. 

If you are into cruising and would like a formal Highland Outfit then I would like to recommend: 

House of Tartans Kiltmakers 

www.houseoftartans.co.uk

enquires@houseoftatanskiltmakers.co.uk

Stan and Pat Wallace-Pope 01733 310628

Scotland and England Relationship.

A YouTube video of Scotty. 

I don't always agree with Scotty on historical things but he makes a lot of entertaining and thought provoking clips. I get all passionate when England play Scotland in football or Rugby. The thought of losing against them and suffering a year of bragging rites is horrendous.

When they (Scotland) play other national teams, I don't like seeing them defeated, but don't get too bothered about it if they do lose. I find many Scots to be argumentative and find them generally disagreeable in their views. Perhaps its me? I just find Scots to be often cynical about lots of issues. They see glory over grabbing defeat from the jaws of victory and sing songs about a bold prince that run away after such a dire undertaking.

However, I also know of lines of Highlanders standing in squares at Waterloo and this Scottish King that came down to London in 1603 with a grand idea of forming Great Britain. We English were not too enthusiastic about it. We did not like the Union Jack because the cross of Saint Andrew was of equal importance to the Cross of Saint George. How very wrong we English were and how far sighted the Scottish King James VI was when he became King James I of England.

The thought of Scotland leaving the UK is extremely sad and something I would genuinely hate to see. I find Scots very trying most of the time, but I still vote for the best Briton in elections. Being English, Scottish or Welsh does not come into it when I think of the UK. I'm English and a Brit. As a Brit, I'm proud of all Brits, including the founders of the Union.

Pardon Ostracised Irish Soldiers that joined British Army in WWII.

An estimated 10% of Irish soldiers from the Republic of Ireland, deserted to join the British Army during WWII. Some of these soldiers (around 5,000) helped liberate small nations under National Socialism. Some were present when the British Army liberated Belsen Death Camp and others fought against Japan in the far East. This was only twenty years after Ireland won Independence from the UK during the Tan War and the following Civil War. These events left strong anti-British feeling and caused much suffering for Ireland's people.

However, I hope these men, who were caught in a dilemma of conscience, will be pardoned by the Irish government as they remained proud Irishmen and returned to Ireland, after the war, to be ostracised by their country. Other deserters who turned to crime were not put on such a terrible check list, banning all government industries from employing them. In some cases, children were taken from these people and put into state care because they could not be kept by fathers with no income. Did Ireland fight a war against doing this sort of thing? Surely there can be some pardon for the Irish soldiers? Such things have come about in other nations of Europe.

If it was not for the help of many people from other nations; Britain could have been over run and then Ireland would have been too, for I do not believe that her neutrality would have been respected once fortress Britain fell. These Irish soldiers did great service for the UK and, in the long run, Ireland. 

Please, to the government of Ireland, pardon these men who left to follow their conscience. They did not betray Ireland and I'm sure they never would. They helped stop the spread of National Socialism and the attempted genocide of a whole race of people.

10% of Ireland's Neutral Army joined the British Army in WWII

To the good Government of Ireland, please pardon the 'much appreciated' 10% - the very brave men who joined the British Army in WWII.

Saint Columba of Iona - Hibernian Mission - Dark Ages



Saint Columba

Saint Columba was born in today’s county Donegal, Ireland during the year of AD 521. He is a very important figure because he founded the monastery on the western Scottish island of Iona. In time, the missions from this small sanctuary would have far leading consequences for Christianity throughout the British Isles and into mainland Europe’s Frankish Empire. Among the Picts of Caledonia (Scotland) and later the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms; (Today’s North and South Eastern England) the Hibernian missionaries spread Christianity across the Isles. Iona would become a mini Rome for Celtic and Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of Britain. Many of the Western areas of today’s England were Celtic Kingdoms too, along with Wales.

Hibernian is another name for Irish and Scots. The Scots/Irish colonised and integrated with Caledonia's Picts. Often the Romans referred to Ireland as Hibernia and the Anglo-Saxons (English) called Irish and Scots Hibernian Missionaries.

Saint Columba was of a high distinguished bloodline from Cenel Conaill in Gartan. Here and throughout Ireland, the spread of Christianity had brought about the collapse of druidism. Monasteries were built and the teaching of Christianity and Latin flourished. Young Columba entered into the monastic teaching at Clonard Abby and was tutored by one of Ireland’s founders of Irish monasticism. There were over three thousand students under instruction at Clonard Abby and from Saint Finian’s teaching came twelve Apostles of Ireland – Columba was one of them. He left Clonard as a monk and was then ordained as a priest. He went on to found other monasteries of fame in Ireland. 
  

However, before this, Columba had copied a psalter from a scriptorium at the Movilla Abby. This must have been a feat that required a lot of concentration as the books were also elaborately decorated and the binding was a skilled undertaking also. St Finian got into a quarrel with Columba because he wanted the copied Psalter to be kept in another Abby, reasoning that it was the property of the monastic order, while Columba wanted this book to keep with him, where ever he went – an accessory for psalms and other things he might need – something to hand at all times. After all, he had put in a lot of work to acquire this. Perhaps Saint Finian regarded this as self-indulgent and priests could not be permitted such luxuries.

In AD 549 Saint Finian died, but the argument concerning the psalter must have been championed by other followers of Saint Finian because it all came to a dreadful confrontation about eleven to twelve years later (Around AD 560.) Some historians quote an argument about it in AD 560 and Saint Finian being involved.  However, if Saint Finian died in AD 549; it was either another Saint Finian or people of his cause?

This argument of the copied psalter from Movilla Abby’s scriptorium eventually caused a pitched battle of Cul Dreimhne in which many men were killed. Columba was called to account for this and faced being stripped of his robe (Priest status). Instead, he was banished to Caledonia (Scotland). He landed on the west coast with his followers and began to travel north, teaching Christian doctrines. He was given authority over an area of land on the island of Iona on the west coast. From here, he was charged with creating a new monastery and evangelising the Picts. With his group of devoted followers, he managed to Christianise the Pictish kingdoms and then sent more Hibernian missions, from Iona, far and wide. He gained the respect of many Pict realms and became very influential in the overall governing of Caledonia (Scotland)

He died in AD 597 at the age of seventy-five.  He left a lasting legacy of spreading Christianity across much of Europe after the fall of the Roman Empire. He was a man of many letters, hymns and some three hundred books. His devotion to Christian doctrines was colossal at a time when civilisation was adjusting in the Dark Ages and looking for a collective way forward.