Tag: history
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Did Richard I Spend Christmas in Southampton?
Richard the Lionheart. His name is synonymous with gallantry, chivalry and the Third Crusade. What an epithet for a medieval king! It’s much better than some of the other nicknames given for kings (for example, Aethelred the Unready ‘poorly-advised’ or William Rufus ‘red’ spring to mind). And yet, he had a peculiar relationship with England…
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94 High Street Vault and the Second World War: Unravelling the Mysteries
The onslaught of the Second World War on Southampton had a momentous impact on the town. During the war there were 57 occurrences of air raids, over 30,000 bombs were dropped on the town, and 631 people are known to have paid the ultimate price. The worst nights of bombings, sometimes known as the ‘Southampton…
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The Secret of Tudor House Cannon?
I recently had the privilege of being invited to speak about Southampton and D-Day at the Southampton Archaeology Society’s annual study day – the other speakers were brilliant and it was was an eclectic mix of topics, from the wreck of the Klein Hollandia, to Mesolithic landscapes in the Solent, to Henry V’s navy. One…
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The Hoglands Park Raid
On the edge of one of Southampton’s green spaces, Hoglands Park, is a small plaque recording an event that took place over 80 years ago. An air-raid shelter located in the park took a direct hit. Over the decades, this tale has become one of the most well-known in Southampton’s wartime story, but parts of…
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HMHS St George
One of my ancestors, Albert Dartnell, served during in the Royal Army Medical Corps during the Great War. By a strange strange twist of fate, he spent a considerable amount of time in Southampton. Incredibly his war diaries survive, offering a glimpse into life as a medical orderly in the brutal war. Albert saw varied…
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The ‘Cannonball’ Wall
Southampton’s history is full of mysteries. One that has puzzled generations of people relates to a sloping wall, situated near the Mayflower Memorial at Town Quay. Set into the wall are a number of large stones that look like cannonballs. What are they, and how did they get there? Are they natural, or man-made? About…
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Who Were The Friars Minor?
Today I had the pleasure of leading my first walking tour of the year – ‘In The Footsteps of the Friars’. It’s a walk that takes us on a three mile route from Southampton’s medieval friary all the way up to Conduit Head, the birth point of Southampton’s medieval water supply. As is often the…
Andy V Skinner 