Broken?

I had heard the other day that the Buttercross had been damaged. I went down there myself and couldn't see anything, but I think I was looking at the wrong side. (Excuse photo quality it was taken on my phone)

She's back

I'm a bit slow off the mark, the statue of Queen Victoria has been back in The Great Hall since May, after being away up to London and the Royal Acadamy of Arts.

War memorial

The poppy wreaths were still in place at the war memorial in front of the cathedral, looking very bright on the misty morning that I was there

Baron Seaton

At the entrance to Peninsula Square is this statue of Baron Seaton. I hadn't heard of him before, but a quick google lead me to discover what an amazing life he must have had...

He was born in Hampshire, and educated at Winchester College. He joined the military and served in Egypt (1801) and Sicily (1806), participated (1808–14) in the Peninsular War, and helped to defeat Napoleon at Waterloo. He was appointed lieutenant governor of Guernsey (1825) and lieutenant governor of Upper Canada (1828). In 1835 he was made commander in chief of Canadian forces, governor in chief of British North America in 1839, the year he was made a baron. After he left Canada he served as lord high commissioner of the Ionian Islands (1843–49) and commanded the forces in Ireland (1855–60). He was made a field marshal in 1860 and was appointed honorary colonel of the Rifle Brigade (95th) in February 1862 (the Peninsula Barracks here in Winchester becoming the home of the Rifle Brigade in 1858.) Quite a life he must have lead with so many experiences..

Memorial

Within the cathedral there a numerous memorials. This one is for Frederic Iremonger who was prebendary of the cathedral and died in 1820. A prebendary is a type of canon or cleric who has a role in the administration of the cathedral.

O is for Obelisk

Just around the corner from the Westgate is a monument erected in 1759 commemorating the plague of 1666.

During the plague it became the custom for country folk from outside of the city to bring their produce to this point outside the Westgate and leave them there. They would then retire to a distance while the citizens of Winchester came out to collect the produce, leaving their money in payment in a large bowl of vinegar in order to disinfect it. When they had gone back into the city through the Westgate the farmers and countrymen would come back and fish out the coins with pincers avoiding any possible infection.

For more 'O' related posts see ABC Wednesday

How far?

On the wall of the Guildhall are the distances from Winchester to a number of cities. Many people commute by train from Winchester to London and for 1 and a half years I commuted myself before my job moved down this way - 135 miles round trip by car each day! I now work closer to Southampton which you can see is a civilised 12 miles away. Both Southampton and Portsmouth are port cities, Southampton being more for container ships and cruise liners whereas Portsmouth is the Navy (for now..) and a few ferries, both cities were damaged quite extensively during WW2 although there are a few old buildings still remaining. Salisbury in Wiltshire is another beautiful cathedral city, not too dissimilar from Winchester.

Francis

In the Cathedral there are numerous memorials in the walls and floors to various people connected to Winchester. I am not into fishing myself but here is a memorial to angler Francis Francis who died in 1886. He was angling editor to The Field, and his most famous work was "A Book on Angling" published 1867. He also played an important part in introducing English trout to the rivers of Tasmania and New Zealand. He apparently used to regularly frequent the Royal Winchester Hotel with other fly fishers of the River Itchen.

A Sum of £67 2s 6d was raised in 1887 by his close angling friends and a memorial plaque was erected in the Cathedral where it remains in place to remind the fishing fraternity of his contribution to their sport.

H is for Horse trough

In Jewry Street there is a trough which is a memorial to all the horses killed in the South African War 1899-1902. It was presented to the City of Winchester by Mrs Isabella Clowes who lived here for 69 years. It's believed around six hundred thousand horses died during the Boer War. It was originally a working water trough, but now is full of plants. I don't think I have ever seen a horse in Winchester, although outside of the city, particularly to the south, there are lots of stables and riding centres.

For more 'H' related posts see ABC Wednesday

Queen Anne

This is a statue of Queen Anne who reigned from 1702 to 1714 which now sits on top of a bank in the High Street. It was put here after her visit to Winchester in 1705 accompanied by her husband and consort Prince George of Denmark. The Latin inscription near the statue means Queen Anne in the Year of Peace 1713 referring to the signing of the Peace of Utrecht.

The 3 previous monarchs James II, William and Mary had ignored Winchester completely and Charles II's proposed palace at the top of the hill was languishing in an unfinished state. Much to the people's joy Queen Anne decided that she would go ahead with Charles II's palace and present it to Prince George for his future dwelling. At last Winchester seemed to have a royal future again! Unfortunately by 1714 Queen Anne had died and Prince George died even earlier so this statue is a sad farewell to hopes that Winchester might regain its former glory. With the passing of Anne no monarch ever showed an interest in Charles' great scheme and Charles's Palace later became Peninsula Barracks.

World War 1 Soldier

King Alfred



The statue of King Alfred in Broadway Winchester was erected in 1901. King Alfred the Great was an Anglo-Saxon king of the kingdom of Wessex from 871–899. He was one of the outstanding figures of English history, as much for his social and educational reforms as for his military successes against the Danes. He is the only English monarch known as 'the Great'. Alfred, his wife and son are reputedly buried in Winchester.

Quiz on King Alfred

The Buttercross

This was built in the 15th Century and was used in the 19th century to sell

dairy produce from, hence the name Butter Cross. Now used for sitting on and

eating pasties, sausage rolls and cakes from the bakers behind!

Jacobean Monument - Hyde

I have to start by saying photography is not my strongest subject, but hopefully through these 'snaps' I'll begin to learn what is a good picture and what's not!

There are so many interesting things to photograph in Winchester where to start... how about outside my front door...

Winchester has a number of areas, my favourite being Hyde to the north of the city centre. This suburb still manages to retain a tranquil air despite being only minutes from the centre. There are a number of interesting buildings and streets in Hyde - here's one in Victoria Road built into the walls of the former garden of Hyde Abbey House is this Jacobean monument. The original wall may be of Tudor origin.

Jacobean Monument