Jessica Malay on ‘Justifications of a Jacobean Heiress:Anne Clifford’s Great Books of Record’ in the Friends' Meeting House, Kendal on 10th December 2011

 

Over 40 members and guests attended a lively and fascinating talk by Jessica Malay on ‘Justifications of a Jacobean Heiress:Anne Clifford’s Great Books of Record’ in the Friends' Meeting House, Kendal on 10th December 2011.  Jessica,  a lecturer at the University of Huddersfield, has been working on Lady Anne Clifford's three volume 'Great Book' which is preserved in Kendal Archive Centre.  Her research has been funded by the Leverhulme Trust.

Anne Clifford produced her Great Books of Record, a massive three volume powerful narrative of the key role of female heirs within the 500 year history of the Clifford dynasty. Through this Anne Clifford attempts to justify her own behaviour that many had, for over four decades, been defined as perverse, unnatural, and even lunatic.  This reflected her lifelong struggle to claim her rightful inheritance.  In 1605 Anne Clifford’s father George Clifford the Earl of Cumberland left his vast northern estates to his brother, Francis, rather than his only child, Anne Clifford.  Thus began a legal and domestic conflict that lasted for almost 40 years during which Anne defied her father’s death bed plea, her first husband, Robert Sackville who wished to settle for a cash payment rather than the lands, and perhaps most courageously King James I who recognized Francis Clifford, fourth Earl of Cumberland as the undisputed heir. After finally inheriting her father’s estates in 1643, through death rather than legal means.

This was a fascinating talk.

Members' Day and AGM, Carlisle Archives Centre, 15 October 2011

 

Over 40 members were treated to three lectures and and an excellent lunch. In the morning, Professor Peter Roebuck explained the origins and nature of the enormous business that was 'Cattle Droving through Cumbria c.1600-c.1850' The tens of thousands Scottish and Irish cattle driven south each year brought wealth and prosperity to many settlements involved in the trade and spawned a range of  industries such as tanning.  Only with the coming of the railway in the mid-19th century did it finally decline.  

Carlisle archivist, David Bowcock, then introduced us to a ‘Jewell from the Archives’.  His choice was a series of letters home from the front during World War One written by a man from Carlilse to his parents which were in a solicitor's collection of papers.  The letters not only captured personal details of life at the time, but provided insights into both the war and Cumbrian emigration, since the man concerned was actually serving with the New Zealand forces.  He died just before the armistice. 

After lunch and the AGM Professor Michael Mullett narrated the life of  'Haydock the Priest: George Leo Haydock (1774-1849).  George was descended from a recusant Catholic family on the Fylde who had long provided recruits for the priesthood.  His edition of the Catholic Douay translation of the bible, published by his brother Thomas, appeared between 1811 and 1814 and rapidly became the most popular English Catholic Bible of the 19th century.  In later life George served the small Catholic community at Penrith where he was responsible for building the church and took an active part in local affairs.  Images of George and examples of his bible can be viewed on a Wikipedia entry.  

Visit to Keswick Museum: Robert Southey Archive Wednesday 8 June 2011

We were privileged to be given a special lecture by Assistant Curator, Adrienne Wallman and a private viewing of Robert Southey's archive of correspondence, poems and manuscripts at Keswick Museum before it closed for refurbishment.  This is a collection which has attracted international interest from scholars. Southey was not only a famous Romantic poet of the period, resident in the Lakes and Poet Laureate before William Wordsworth, but a man with strong political views who corresponded with many of the leading politicians of his age.

Visit to Jerwood Centre and Dove Cottage Grasmere Saturday 2 April 2011

This was an opportunity to find out more about the archive and to view the exhibition, Savage
Grandeur. Mark Ward was our guide to Dove Cottage, peppering his tour with anecdotes of Wordsworth family and then the curator, Jeff Cowton MBE told us about the trust and its collections and how they were managed before we were given a tour behind the scenes to view its computer controlled engine room.  A wonderful afternoon enjoyed by all.

Visit to Shap and Keld Saturday 4 September 2010

We were welcomed by Shap Local History Society at their excellent Shap Local History Centre where coffee was provided. FOCAS member Professor Michael Mullett then gave a short introduction to the Premonstratensian Order, the order of monks at Shap Abbey.  The party first visited Keld Chapel, where another FOCAS member and researcher, Harry Hawkins, was our guide. After lunch at the Greyhoud we moved on Shap Abbey where Harry was again our guide.

All in all, a very enjoyable and informative day.

Some 40 members enjoyed a privileged preview of the new facilities at Carlisle, including a 'behind the scenes' tour of the state-of-the-art storage and conservation areas and suites of rooms in the restored Lady Gillford's House. 

After a very enjoyable lunch, we were treated to a talk by Paul Newman of Cheshire Archive Service on their project to digitise tithe maps and apportionments for the county and the resulting, and truly amazing, fully searchable website, Emapping Victorian Cheshire: Cheshire's Tithe Maps Online.  We encourage all members who have not explored this site to do so to see what can be achieved by well-planned digitisation.  Over 80 volunteers worldwide were involved in transcribing the tithe apportionments.  Click to access the site.

. We were also able to view plans and photographs of progress on the building of the new Record Office. After lunch in the ‘Prior’s Kitchen’, situated in the under-croft of the fratry, members assembled in the fratry which now houses the Cathedral Library where Canon David Weston, the former Canon Librarian of Carlisle Cathed

Members' Day and AGM Saturday 25 October 2008

Once again members enjoyed their day at the Penrith Methodist Church; despite the inclement weather there was a good attendance.  After tea/coffee and biscuits, FOCAS committee member Ian Jones gave a comprehensive, beautifully illustrated talk on the history of "Holehird", Windermere which described its owners, the building and its important gardens.  Ian has written an excellent book on the subject: The House of Hird: the story of a Windermere Mansion and the people who lived there (2002).  For further details and ordering information, please use the general contact form on this website.

 

The chair's report to the AGM referred to the progress being made in the establishment of an organisation for the Victoria County History project and on the success of the visit to Cockermouth Castle.  The secretary gave an update on progress in the new Carlisle Record Office and the valuable work being done by volunteers in preparation for the move of the archive material to the new premises in due course. 

The audited accounts were presented and explained by the treasurer who drew attention to a report on the success of the "History in Schools" project for which FOCAS provides some funding.  He also commented on the success of the website which had been in operation since October last year and is attract ing over 200 hits a month.

Mary Wane OBE, Vice President, took the chair of the election of officers of the committee for 2009.  Susan Dench stepped down from the committee after 2009.  Susan Dench stepped down from the committee after completing her three years as a member in accordance with the rules and Dr Mike Winstanley and Mary Wane joined the committee. 

After an excellent lunch, the final treat of the day was an erudite lecture by Professor Michael Mullet, recently retired from the History Department at Lancaster University. His extemsive knowledge and delivery of his presentation held the attention of the audience with no difficulty at all.  

Both speakers were congratulated on their presentations which were thoroughly enjoyed by all those attending. Before departing members coffee, tea and biscuits were provided to sustain members for their journey home on a particularly inclement Saturday evening.