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Mediaeval Weaponry #84
Posted by Viv Wilson on 27th September 2024 in Growing Up In a Stately Home | hoar cross hall,hoar cross hall spa hotel,barons eden,History,mediaeval banquets,mediaeval weaponry,swords,halberds,suits of armour,daggars,Tudors,stately homes,downton abbey,aristocracy,middle ages,my dad bought a mansion
When we moved to Hoar Cross Hall in the 1970s, my father owned the largest private collection of arms and armour in the UK at that time! He owned about 20 suits of armour and numerous items of ‘arms’, which is another word for weapons. The word ‘arms’ comes from the Latin ‘arma’ which means ‘tools of war’; this word passed into the English language from the French in 1200.
Mediaeval weapons consisted of halberds, double-edged swords, daggers, battle axes, crossbows and longbows to name but a few, these being the most common. Knives were also used but mainly for eating and repairing, although I’m sure they got to be used as weapons too...
Victorian Courtship - fans #91
Posted by Viv Wilson on 27th February 2025 in Growing Up In Stately Home | hoar cross hall spa hotel,barons eden,History,victorian era,Social history,Fan,Amazon,my dad bought a mansion,Duvelleroy,Queen Victoria,Fanology,Kiss,Marriage,Love,Valentine Day,Tuileries Palace
For the next few months I will be doing a series on Victorian courtship starting in February, the month of love, as we have just celebrated Valentine’s Day on the 14th.
The Victorians used various items for flirting with, namely fans, gloves, parasols and handkerchiefs! I imagine the Meynell family at Hoar Cross Hall held lots of dinner parties and balls back in the Victorian days where most of the young ladies would have had their fans at the ready to signal to a secret beau. But what were these signals and why were they used?
The belief that the fan was used in society to express feelings or commands dates back to at least the early 18th century. I...
Anyone for Tennis? #96
Posted by Viv Wilson on 25th June 2025 in Growing Up In a Stately Home | hoar cross hall spa hotel,barons eden,wimbledon,all england lawn tennis and croquet club,downton abbey,History,Period drama,Meynell,queen mother,tennis court,mediaval,Henry VIII,hampton court,ballroom,balls
With the summer season well and truly upon us and Wimbledon almost here, I thought a blog about tennis might be in order! The game of tennis first started in the Mediaeval days and involved hitting a ball with a bare hand and later with a glove. By the 16th century the glove had become a racquet and the game had moved to an enclosed playing area and the rules had stabilized. This was known as ‘real tennis’. The word tennis came into use in English in the mid-14th century from French, via the Anglo-Norman term Tenez, which can be translated as 'hold', 'receive' or 'take', a call from the server to his opponent indicating that he is about to serve....