Huguenots of Spitalfields

February 2016 Newsletter - Issue 10

Welcome to the first Newsletter of 2016 and a special welcome if you joined during Huguenot Summer 2015.

 

More than 8,000 people took part in the 135 events and over 28,500 people participated in the three festivals.

 

Thank you so much for your support. We have more treats in store for you in 2016.

 

Huguenot Footsteps: Huguenots in Greenwich, Saturday 16th April 11am

It is intriguing to wonder why Huguenots settled in Greenwich. Wealthy Huguenots moved to there in order to settle around the highly influential Marquis de Ruvigny. Our guide, Kate Boyle, will captivate you with facts about the Greenwich Huguenots - the people, places and their stories. 
Fan Museum

We will visit St. Alfege Church and the Fan Museum. Jacob Moss, curator, says the Huguenot fan painters left Paris and moved there in order to live around Soho. Fans were not signed and so it is impossible to know their exact provenance but the Fan Museum has many 17th and 18th century examples, most likely to be the work of Huguenots fan painters.

 

Huguenot Footsteps: Huguenots in Clerkenwell, Wednesday 4th May 10.15am

Clerkenwell was another location where many outstanding Huguenot craftsmen settled. We will hear about the skills of the clock and watchmakers, engravers, and silversmiths. 

We meet our guide, David Evans, outside Farringdon Station at 10.15am and our first stop is to pay a special visit to the Goldsmiths’ Centre for a behind the scenes tour and to visit Elliot Fitzpatrick, polishers, Clive Burr, silversmiths and goldsmiths and Mandos Jewellery. (Limited spaces so book early) A walk around Clerkenwell will follow this when David will reveal some surprising sights, including the original Clerk’s Well.

For details about both visits and a visit to Norwich in July: costs, meeting places and timings etc. please email bookings@huguenotsofspitalfields.org

 

The Huguenot Footsteps walks in Spitalfields start from outside Christ Church on Tuesday 3rd May at 2pm and take place the first Tuesday in the month until October.

 

Spitalfields Gardens

Many of you will have enjoyed visiting the Spitalfields gardens last year as part of the National Garden Scheme initiative to raise money for cancer charities. These gardens will be featured in the BBC Land of Hope and Glory – British Country Life on 4th March at 9pm There is another chance to see the Spitalfields gardens this year on Saturday June 11th. Visit: www.ngs.org.uk

 

Events in Spitalfields – 19th to 29th June

A number of events are planned to take place in June - many during Refugee Week. If Huguenot silk weavers fascinate you, you won’t want to miss Mary Schoeser’s talk ‘From Spitalfields to East Anglia’. Mary is currently researching Spitalfields' sample books of c1800-1860 and is Honorary President of the Textile Society; Kathy Chater will discuss Huguenot ancestry; Dan Cruickshank ‘The Other Migrant Communities in Spitalfields’ and Dr. Dan DeHanas ‘Second Generation Immigrants’. 
Mary Schoeser

Philip Mansel, the distinguished historian, has also confirmed he will participate – his talk will take place on Thursday 22nd June at 6.30pm at Europe House, Smith Square SW1 (headquarters of the European Commission Representation in the UK) in London. 
Philip Mansel

The month ends with the 4th Huguenot Lecture at the V&A with Dr. Tessa Murdoch telling us about ‘Huguenot Silver: New Discoveries at the V&A’ on Wednesday 29th June and a Gallery Tour at the British Museum on 30th June. All unmissable!

 

Details of these events in June, together with others which will highlight the contribution made by the different immigrant groups that have settled in Spitalfields, will be on the website shortly. Contact bookings@huguenotsofspitalfields.org

 

The Mulberry Tree
Morus Alba

Dan Cruickshank mentioned there was an embryonic silk industry here in Spitalfields in the late 16th century and it is recorded there were over a hundred Mulberry trees growing in Whitechapel. The silk was woven into narrow ribbons (panes)– that was the limit of the weavers’ skills in those days – worn on top of wealthy gentlemen’s padded hose.

The popularity of the mulberry stemmed from the possibility of providing a UK-based silk industry. Although there are black, white and red mulberries, only the white mulberry, the Morus Alba, was the most suitable as a silk moth host - the leaves are the most attractive to the caterpillar, but all three varieties produce fruit.There are many famous mulberry trees in London - the largest and most complete collection can be found in the gardens of Buckingham Palace. 
James I, England

Incidentally, one of the earliest black mulberry trees is at Charlton House, Greenwich, planted between 1606 and 1610 by James I. This tree, with others of the same period, was planted in error as it was thought that they could be the foundation of a British silk industry. In 2006 Will Sibley, then Master of the Worshipful Company of Fruiterers, planted the white mulberry to correct the mistake. Contact Will at www.terracefruits.com if you would like to buy your own mulberry tree. To read more about mulberries, see the Gentle Author’s Spitalfields Life blog at http://spitalfieldslife.com/2015/08/27/the-oldest-tree-in-bethnal-green/

 

The Huguenot Society of Great Britain and Ireland

If you would like to know more about the Huguenots why not join the Huguenot Society? You will receive some excellent publications, access to superb speakers and the immense resources of the Huguenot Library.

 

For details of membership visit www.huguenotsociety.org.uk

Have you visited the Huguenot Museum in Rochester yet?

We hear excellent reports of this museum, which tells the story of Britain’s first refugees. It is the first and only museum in this country dedicated to the Huguenots.

Opening times: Wednesday – Saturday 10am – 5pm (open Bank Holiday Mondays). Cost is £4 for adults and £3 for concessions Telephone: 01634 789347 http://huguenotmuseum.org/

 

20th April to 18th June

A Huguenot woven silk dress for Canterbury from Lee Ault’s personal collection will be on show at the Museum together with Alexander McQueen dress from their new collection inspired by the Huguenots.  Alexander’s ancestors were Huguenot weavers in Spitalfields and he chose Christ Church ( then unrenovated) to show his first collection.

Whilst there, you will be able to see a new temporary exhibition  celebrating silk. For all events including children’s activities planned for the May half-term, visit http://huguenotmuseum.org/

 

Spotted in Lincoln

Seen in the Treasury of Lincoln Cathedral and thought, by Gillian Jolly (Keeper of the Treasury), to be the last piece of silverware in existence made by Paul de Lamerie: a chalice and paten made in 1750 (a paten is the cup of the chalice used for holding bread during Communion).

Paul de Lamerie has been described by the V&A as the greatest silversmith working in England in the 18th century. The Lincoln Treasury also houses a flagon made in 1734 by Augustus Courtauld.

 

Seen at the Science Museum

The Leonardo da Vinci exhibition ‘Mechanics of Genius’, includes an automatic weaving loom, based on Leonardo’s drawing. It was the first automatic weaving loom ever designed, developed on the basis of looms observed in Tuscany and Lombardy.

Whilst you are there drop into the 'Making the Modern World' gallery on the ground floor where you will see a Toyoda Type G Automatic Loom, 1924, a Harrison Power Loom from the Great Exhibition, 1851, and a Hand Loom with Jacquard Machine, c.1825. The Jacquard Loom is from c.1825 and was made in Spitalfields.

In the Ada Lovelace exhibition there is a model of a ribbon loom that uses Jacquard principles. The model was designed and made by James Heywood in 1870.

 

Huguenot Traces

Can you help add to our growing list by telling us if you know the location of any Huguenot artefacts? If you email details to info@huguenotsofspitalfields.org they will be included on the website.

 

Spitalfields People

Congratulations to Siân Phillips, resident of Spitalfields, who became a Dame in the New Year’s Honours. Siân spoke at the fundraising visit to the Anna Maria Garthwaite house and the Jean Calvin Lecture as well as several other fundraising events. She is currently rehearsing for the National Theatre production of Les Blancs which opens shortly.
Siân Phillips

It was with great shock and immense sadness that we learned of the death of Rodney Archer of 31 Fournier Street. He was one of the most colourful, engaging and generous-hearted characters in Spitalfields and was an unfailing source of immense moral and practical support for the work of the charity. 
Rodney Archer

Many of you will have enjoyed his readings at Festival events and the hilarious time on the visit to Winchester, Whitchurch Silk Mill and many other places. We are still smiling at the laughter he generated in his talk about Jean Calvin (not an easy task!)

http://spitalfieldslife.com/2015/11/22/so-long-rodney-archer/

 

We were asked

Q. Is there a reason why the March from Les Huguenots is played during the Trooping the Colour?

 

A. Andrew Wallis, curator of the Guards Museum, says there is no specific reason it was selected other than that it is considered a very fine tune. The first time it was played was 2nd June 1869.

 

Contrary to popular belief, other operatic themes have been used for the Slow Troop over the years, but given that the drill for the Massed Bands has been amended to fit with the Les Huguenots March, it is difficult to conceive of the music now being changed.

 

Q. Where can I find out about the Norton Folgate development?

 

A. More information can be found on Facebook, Spitalfields Life and on Twitter

 

Books of interest

Many of you will have read the outstanding books on the Huguenots written by Dr. Robin Gwynn. He has embarked on a massive undertaking and has published the first of three volumes of his trilogy: The Huguenots in Later Stuart Britain, Volume 1: Crisis, Renewal and the Ministers’ Dilemma. It is available from Sussex Academic Press at £95.
Dr Robin Gwynn

Can you help spread the word about a remarkable woman?

Harriet Martineau must be one of the most fascinating Huguenot women we have come across; she was a social reformer, considered to be a founder of sociology, and was the first female journalist. The author Stuart Hobday regards her as a much-neglected historical figure and is writing a book about this remarkable woman. He is looking for crowd funding to take the book to publication. To find out more, and to offer your help, see https://unbound.co.uk/books/encounters-with-harriet-martineau

 

Spitalfields Music Festival 2nd to 26th June In Spitalfields

This summer marks the 40th anniversary of Spitalfields Music. There is one event that we thought might be of particular interest: In Spitalfields. It is a musical tour of four intimate local spaces and the premiering of four site-specific works inspired by these secret spaces by young composers from the Royal Academy of Music. Sounds interesting?

 

In Spitalfields: Sunday 5th June, 4.00-6.00pm, tickets £30Tickets for Spitalfields Music Summer Festival can be booked at www.spitalfieldsmusic.org.uk/season/summer-festival-2016 or by calling the Spitalfields Music box office on 020 7377 1362.

 

Huguenot ancestors

If you have a story to tell about your Huguenot ancestors, send it to info@huguenotsofspitalfields.org for inclusion on the website. No more than 500 words please.

Thank you.

We warmly appreciate all the support and help that you give to the Huguenots of Spitalfields Charity.

The views and opinions expressed in these article are those of the individual authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Huguenots of Spitalfields charity.

Please contact info@huguenotsofspitalfields.org with your comments, views and contributions or requests for previous issues of the Strangers' Newsletter.  The charity is currently led by volunteers so do bear with us if there is a delay in the reply to your message.

Visit the Huguenots of Spitalfields website at https://www.huguenotsofspitalfields.org/
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