Category Archives: History

What Pegman Saw: Of Mud and Trade

Posted on July 15, 2019 by crispina kemp

It formed where the three rivers joined, between the island-guarded northern bank and southern cliffs, at the estuary the Celtic Iceni called “Noisy Mouth” (for the strident gulls that roosted there). The Romans helped. They built a fort on the … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Photos | Tagged , , | 55 Comments

What Pegman Saw: Don’t Listen to Local Talk

Posted on July 8, 2019 by crispina kemp

You say Jean de Gisors founded Portsmouth? On land that he bought off Adam de Port? But that can’t be true. In 1172 Henry Plantagenet exiled Adam de Port for his involvement in the Scottish Lion-king’s invasion of *the Borders*; … Continue reading →

Posted in History | Tagged , , | 43 Comments

Decayed Technology

Posted on July 6, 2019 by crispina kemp

Time was, a windmill was the last word in technology. Every village and town must have at least one. Wind-driven, it could be sited away from the rivers. It wouldn’t get flooded when the winter snows melted. This was, after … Continue reading →

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What Pegman Saw: The Word of Grandfather-God

Posted on July 1, 2019 by crispina kemp

“Your Excellency.” Padre Bartolomé bowed his head and waited, a flick of his hand to the lad behind him, Bori-Damaso. Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar looked up from the papers cluttering his makeshift desk. Padre Bartolomé took that as permission to … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Mostly Micro | Tagged , , | 10 Comments

Sunday Picture Post: Thistly Things

Posted on June 30, 2019 by crispina kemp

This Sunday four photos, two plants. Wrap your eyes around these. But be warned, they’re not flesh-friendly. The Cotton Thistle is native to East Anglia, but a garden escape elsewhere Of course, neither of these photos do justice to this … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Photos | Tagged , , , | 44 Comments

CCC#33: The Bishop and the King’s Bailiff

Posted on June 27, 2019 by crispina kemp

In 1285 King Eddy Longshanks sent an edict: To gather the geld from every hundred. The bailiff of Trowse replied to the same: That the bishop of Norwich had refused him and even threatened excommunication. An inquest was held, the … Continue reading →

Posted in Crimson's Creative Challenge, History | Tagged , , | 20 Comments

Of Oak Apples and Kings

Posted on May 29, 2019 by crispina kemp

A couple of weeks back (11th May), in answer to MariaAntonia’s #picoftheweek challenge, I featured an oak gall (The Very Gall). An oak gall is also known—incorrectly—as an oak apple. These are oak apples. It’s the gall’s immature form—the newly … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Photos | Tagged , , | 34 Comments

Where Shall I Sit?

Posted on May 25, 2019 by crispina kemp

I’m claiming this photo for #2019picoftheweek challenge title: All in a Row which I’m sure you’ll agree qualifies. [For details of #2019picoftheweek challenge see MariaAntonia] But what, you ask, is sedilia? It is what’s otherwise known as the Priests’ Bench or … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Photos | Tagged , , , | 22 Comments

Hethel

Posted on May 18, 2019 by crispina kemp

No, that’s not the name of this gentleman’s wife (it was Mary), but the village where this magnificent marble effigy can be found. Norwich born Myles Branthwaite Esq, died August 1612, aged 55. Dates are not given for his wife. … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Photos | Tagged , , | 18 Comments

What Pegman Saw: Stones for the Dead

Posted on May 13, 2019 by crispina kemp

Wood is for the living; stone for the dead. That’s the old way. Yes, Papa, but if we keep chopping down trees and grubbing them up, there’ll be nothing left but the ancestral stones. My boy, my boy, we honour … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Mostly Micro, Thoughts | Tagged , , , | 33 Comments