On This Day in History - 12th December

12th December

1098 - 1st Crusaders capture & plunder Mara Syria

1724 The birth of Admiral Samuel Hood, first Viscount, British naval commander and a skilful tactician. He was known particularly for his service in the American War of Independence and French Revolutionary Wars and he acted as a mentor to Horatio Nelson.

1777 - Reverend Benjamin Russen, executed at Tyburn England for rape

1896 Marconi gave the first public demonstration of radio at Toynbee Hall, London. On the same day, in 1901, Marconi carried out the first transatlantic radio transmission from Poldhu, Cornwall, to St John’s, Newfoundland, a distance of 1800 miles

1915 - Frank Sinatra, American singer/actor born

1939 HMS Duchess sank after a collision with HMS Barham off the coast of Scotland with the loss of 124 men

1948 Britain introduced National Service for all men aged between 18 and 26. It extended the British conscription of World War II into peacetime

1949 - Bill Nighy, English actor born

1955 Christopher Cockerell patented his prototype of the hovercraft. He had tested his theories using a hair-dryer and tin cans and found his work to have potential, but the idea took some years to develop, and he was forced to sell personal possessions in order to finance his research

1968 - Kate Humble, English television presenter

1982 30,000 women formed a 9 mile human chain that encircled Greenham Common air base in Berkshire, in protest against the proposed siting of US Cruise missiles there

1988 Britain’s worst rail crash for 20 years killed 35 and injured 113 people when a packed express train ran into the back of a stationary commuter train near Clapham Junction

2006 - Peugeot produces its last car at the Ryton Plant signalling the end of mass car production in Coventry, formerly a major centre of the British motor industry

On This Day in History - 11th December

11th December

On This Day in History - 11th December 

1282 The death of the last native Prince of Wales - Llewelyn ap Gruffydd, prince of Gwynedd

1620 - 103 Mayflower pilgrims land at Plymouth Rock

1688 James II fled to France, never to return and was forced to abdicate after William of Orange had landed in England on 5th November 

1792 - France's King Louis XVI went on trial, accused of treason

1877 English photographer Eadweard Mubridge won a long standing bet for a millionaire by proving that a horse's four feet are all off the ground simultaneously once every stride. He used multiple cameras around the track, each taking a single frame via a series of trip wires

1914 The Royal Flying Corps, which later became the RAF, adopted the red, white and blue roundel to identify its aircraft more easily during World War I

1914 In the Battle of the Falklands, all British ships survived whilst four German cruisers were sunk

1936 After ruling for less than one year, Edward VIII becomes the first English monarch to voluntarily abdicate the throne. Edward planned to marry divorcee Mrs. Wallis Simpson and, before he left for France, he made a final radio broadcast to the nation. He was succeeded by his brother, George, who became George VI

1952 Derek Bentley, aged 19, and 16 year old Christopher Craig, were found guilty of the murder of a policeman in south London. Because of his age, Craig was sentenced to be detained at Her Majesty’s pleasure, while Bentley, who did not fire the gun, was sentenced to hang. Despite a public outcry, the sentence was carried out on 27th January 1953

1961 - JFK provides US miltary helicopters & crews to South Vietnam

1961 - Marco Pierre White, English chef and restaurateur born

1967 Concorde, the world's first supersonic airliner, was rolled out of its hangar for public viewing for the first time

1971 - Maurice "Mac" McDonald, American fast-food pioneer died

2005 A huge fire continued to burn at Buncefield oil depot near Hemel Hempstead in Hertfordshire. It was the largest of its kind in peacetime Europe and the noise of the explosions could be heard as far away as the Netherlands

2012 - British physicist, Stephen Hawking, wins the $3 million Fundamental Physics Prize, the most lucrative academic prize in the world

On This Day in History - 10th December

On This Day in History - 10th December 

1394 - King James I of Scotland born
1541 Thomas Culpeper and Francis Dereham were executed for having affairs with Catherine Howard, Queen of England and wife of Henry VIII

1582 - France begins use of Gregorian calendar
1684 - Isaac Newton's derivation of Kepler's laws from his theory of gravity, contained in the paper De motu corporum in gyrum, is read to the Royal Society by Edmund Halley

1688 - King James II flees London 
1745 - Bonnie Prince Charlie's army reaches Manchester 
1868 - The first traffic lights are installed outside the Palace of Westminster in London. Resembling railway signals, they use semaphore arms and are illuminated at night by red and green gas lamps

1896 - Alfred Nobel, Swedish Nobel Prize ceremony on this date, dies at 63
1907 - Rudyard Kipling receives Nobel prize for literature
1936 - Britain replaces King Edward VIII stamp series with King George VI
1936 - Edward VIII signs Instrument of Abdication, giving up British throne to marry Wallis Simpson 

1964 - Nobel Peace Prize awarded to Dr Martin Luther King Jr
1967 - Otis Redding, singer (Dock of Bay), dies in plane crash
2005 - Richard Pryor, American comedian and actor died
2006 - Augusto Pinochet, Former Chilean dictator died

The Ghost Coach of Brockley

Legend has it that there is a ghostly carriage that runs through Brockley Combe. There have been three documented cases of the carriage, and it has come to our attention that the parents of our followers had a very similar experience themselves.

The first group of people to experience this coach was a group of Romany Gypsies who were camped in the Combe over night. The witnesses said that the coach resembled a hearse like coach, drawn along by four horses, but the coachman driving the carriage was also headless.

The second documented case of a sighting of the coach was a sceptical man who upon hearing tales about the Combe being haunted, took it upon himself to investigate this on his own. After running into a group of football fans with whom he had had a run in with and a disagreement, he set off in a different direction from them and paused to catch his breathe. It was at this point the coach and horses revealed itself to him, thus making him a sceptic no more!

The third documented case of a phantom coach was that of a road cyclist taking a short cut through the woods when the coach materialised right in front of him and seemingly passed right through him.

And finally, reproduced below is a transcript of our follower at A41, whose parents encountered the coachman.....

"Hi guys... I saw your post about Brockley Coombe, thought I'd drop you a line. I used to hang around there quite a lot when I was younger; haven't had any encounters there myself, BUT my parents from Whitchurch in Bristol did have a strange one there about ten years ago.

About half way in from the Lulsgate side there is an area on the left that you can park up; there is now a fence there (entrance to a mill???), but years ago it was open and you could just pull over and walk on up the hill.

If you head on up the hill you'll come across the remains of an old road, with old brickwork walls on either side of you, that leads through the woods.

My parents headed out there one Sunday morning for a walk with their dog. As they were walking up through, they heard the sound of what they described as a 'horse and cart' coming towards them through the woods. Not wanting to spook the horse with the dog, etc. they put it on a lead and turned around, heading back out the way they had come.

They say that all the way back out, the horse and cart followed them - although they couldn't see it, assuming it was always just around the bend - they eventually reached the top of the hill and the parking area, so they stopped to see the horse and cart come out... when the sound ceased and nothing came out after them.

They told me about it, and although we thought it strange, nothing more was said... until about a year later I purchased a book on local ghost stories, and one of the stories connected to the Coombe was about a headless coachman? "

So there you have it, there seems to be plenty of paranormal activity in and around the Coombe. I am sure that some of it will reveal itself to the team in due course!

Ghosts of St Nicholas Church

Ghosts at St Nicholas Church, Brockley

This church is supposed to be haunted by "Little Lady in Brown", the spirit of a former cleaner at the Church who died around 1900.

Several visitors to the church claim to have witnessed the spirit in either the vestry or the church aisle. A renowned ghost hunter of the 1940's, Elliot O'Donnell performed an all night sitting in the church and failed to seen any evidence of the ghost, however, he was interrupted a few times during the vigil by whisperings and little footstep sounds, but could not conclusively attribute these footsteps or whispers to the Brown Lady. It has even made international news, with a correspondent for the St Petersburg Newspaper, dated 1st November 1947 reporting the tale. Please click HERE to see an original copy of the newspaper article

There is also supposed to be the spirit of a condemned parson of the church, John Hibbestson, who in 1776 witnessed the squire of Chelvey Batch, James Stevens, have a nasty fall from a horse.

The parson nursed James back to health, but with an ulterior motive of wheedling his way into the Squire's favour. the squire altered his will to include the parson, leaving him with a considerable amount of the Squire's wealth. Once this will has been officiated, the parson made sure that the Squire met an untimely end by murdering him in cold blood.

It is also alleged that the parson was into devil worship, and it is rumoured that when the parson died, a terrifying beast was seen entering the property of the parson to claim his soul for Hell.

St Nicholas Church, Brockley Coombe

St Nicholas Church, Brockley Coombe

St Nicholas' Church, Brockley

This church dates back to the 12th Century and is currently a grade II listed building and registered with the Church Conservation Trust. It gained this status on the 1st April 1989.

It is therefore a church of the Norman Period, with a pinnacled style tower constructed around the 15th Century. The font is Norman and the stone pulpit dates from around 1480.

The Pigott Family - famous in the area, invested heavily in the Church and gave it a complete overhaul in 1820. The Pigott family originally were of Irish descent where they had originally been granted lands and the estate of Dysart in 1562. Family connections through a wife saw the Pigott family gain the manor of Brockley, In 1683, one of the Pigott's gained the title of Deputy Lieutenant of Somerset as a reward for seeking out the disaffected peoples of Taunton. He, however, lost this commission in 1688 for refusing to agree with the repeal of the Test Act and Penal Laws. Reinstated again in 1691 he declined to act with the Bridgwater Militia on account of his connections to Ireland.

In 1702, supported by family connections from Lord  Poulett, the Pigott family gained a Knightship of Somerset. Thus set up the Pigott family with their many influential contacts around the County.

In 1842 a Royal Coat of Arms by William Edkins was installed at the church.

On This Day in History - 5th December

5th December

St Paul's Cathedral
(Source: St Paul's)

1697 The first Sunday service was held in the new St Paul's Cathedral, London. After the Great Fire of London, this was the fourth incarnation of a cathedral upon this holy site in London. It was designed and constructed by Sir Christopher Wren, the construction started in 1675 and was finally completed in 1710, but enough was constructed to start holding services by this day in 1697

Modern Day Christie's
(Source: Reuters)

1766 James Christie, the founder of the famous auctioneers, held his first sale in London. Sales were held here at his sales rooms in Pall Mall, London until 1779, when they moved to new premises in Gainsborough. Christie's was, and still is, a sales room of internationally reputation and as such is a premier location with which to sell your valuable antiques.

Christina Rossetti
(Source: Rossetti Institute)

1830 The birth of Christina Georgina Rossetti, the English poet who wrote a variety of romantic and children's poems. She had a happy family upbringing until later on in her formative years when her father suffered physical and mental health issues, leading to the family running into hard times. She took a job with the Exercise Office, and in her spare time started writing poetry. 

Her first collection was published in 1842, and from there her notoriety and fame grew until her death in 1894 of breast cancer.

4D Stamp circa 1839
(Source: Cavendish Auctions)

1839 The postage rate in Britain was changed to a standard charge of 4d (4 old pence) a half ounce instead of being charged by distance. this made a huge difference to the way the system worked as before, being priced upon distance it made people restrict their communications to local areas, whereas now, given a flat fee based on weight rather than distance, they were able to send mail to all corners of England


1863 The rules of Association Football were published.

Henry Tate
(Source: Tate.org)

1899 The death of Lancashire businessman and philanthropist Henry Tate (sugar refining and the Tate Gallery) Henry Tate was the son of a clergyman, and by teh age of 13 had got a job working in a basic grocery store as an apprentice. After his 7 year apprenticeship was up, he was able to open his own grocery store, and by the age of 35, he had a chain of 6 stores. 

In 1859 he was offered a partnership with John Wright and Co, a sugar refinery which enabled hi to sell off his grocery business some 2 years later. By 1869, only 10 years after joining Wright and Co, he had taken control of the company and renamed it Henry Tate and Sons. In 1872, he purchased the patent for making sugar cubes which drove his business to even higher profits, and built a new refinery in Liverpool.

In 1877 he opened a new refinery in London, at a plce called Silvertown. Priot to construction, Silvertown wasnt much more than a marshland area, so he developed the area and installed housing, and a building known as Tate Institute which consisted of a bar and dance hall for his staff. He was very concerned about workers welfare and improving their standard of life.

He rapidly accumulated a lot of money, as sugar was also known as "White Gold". In 1889 he donated 65 of his personal paintings to the Government, on condition they were displayed in a suitable gallery - of which he donated nearly £80,000 to its construction. The National Gallery of Art as it was known opened on 21st July 1897 on the site of the old Millbank Prison, and it now known as Tate Britain.

Charing Cross, Roof under reconstruction
(Source: Tate Gallery)

1905 The roof of Charing Cross Railway Station in London collapsed, killing six people. When the roof collapsed at 5pm in the evening, evacuation of the platforms had already started, but a lot of passengers remained. Two of the dead were workmen on the roof trying to shore it up at the time, one was an employee of W H Smith's the newsagent and stationers and the other 3 fatalities were workmen constructing part of the Royal Avenue Theatre adjacent to the station. The station was closed for 3 months whilst the roof was removed and rebuilt with a safe design, but this helped the Euston, Charing Cross and Hampstead railway Company (now part of the London Underground) as they were able to carry out some excavations as part of the new underground line that they wouldn't have been able to build otherwise.

1913 Britain forbade the selling of arms to Ireland, due to the troubles in Ireland with the Irish Republican Army trying to assert independence from the United Kingdom

Rose Heilbron QC
(Source: TheJC.com)

1956 Miss Rose Heilbron QC was appointed Recorder of Burnley to become Britain’s first woman judge. She was an outstanding barrister of her era, being the first woman to win a scholarship to Gray's Inn, the first woman recorder, one of the first two woman to be appointed to the King's Counsel, the first woman to lead a murder case and the first woman judge to sit at the Old Bailey, she as also teh second woman to be appointed a High Court Judge.

1958 The Queen dialled Edinburgh and spoke to the Lord Provost from Bristol, to inaugurate the first direct dialled trunk call, known as STD (Subscriber Trunk Dialling)



1958 Prime Minister Harold Macmillan opened the Preston bypass in Lancashire. First conceived as a relief road to the heavy traffic through Preston, it laid the "foundations" (excuse the pun) for the motorway system, with it being incorporated in to the present day M6 motorway

1973 During a petrol shortage, the government imposed a 50mph speed limit to save fuel.


1989 Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher defeated Sir Anthony Meyer in the first challenge to her leadership of the Conservative Party.

1991 Robert Maxwell's business empire collapsed with huge debts of more than £1bn and revelations about misappropriation of money in pension funds.

Noel Edmunds and Mr Blobby
(Source: BBC)

1993 The record by Mr Blobby, a pink-and-yellow spotted BBC television star, reached number one in the charts.

2005 The Civil Partnership Act came into effect in the United Kingdom. It gave same-sex couples rights and responsibilities identical to civil marriage. In addition a formal process for dissolving partnerships was put in place, akin to divorce.

2012 The Audit Commission announced that English councils had increased their reserves by £4.5bn over the previous five years to £12.9bn despite cuts to funding. The money set aside was the equivalent of almost a third of their spending on services.

On This Day in History - 4th December

4th December

Pope Hadrian IV
(Source: NNDB)

1154 - Pope Hadrian IV elected Pope. The only Englishman to become pontiff, Nicholas Breakspear was a member of the family which until recent years brewed beer in Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire. He attended at monastery school and his father became a monk there. Nicholas wanted to also become a monk, but the abbot told him to carry on his studies until he became a more suitable candidate.

Not happy with this answer, Nicholas ran away to Paris and became a monk there instead.He became a "Canon Regular" then a Priest, then was elected by his peers to be abbot. Some of the clergy weren't happy with the new abbot's reforms and made presentations to the Pope to get him removed, but this only brought Nicholas to the attention of the Pope, who rather than punish him, promoted him to Cardinal Bishop instead.

When the Pope at the time died, Nicholas was elected Pope and took office. His tenure only lasted until 1159, but it was one driven by the determination to remove anti-Rome factions from the Vatican

Pilgrims from the Berkeley Hundred Parish
(Source: Crystal Links)

1619 - 38 colonists from Berkeley Parish in England disembark in Virginia and give thanks to God. Considered by many as the first Thanksgiving in the Americas. According to their ships charter - known as the Charter Berkeley Hundred" it stated:-

"We ordain that the day of our ships arrival at the place assigned for plantacon in the land of Virginia, shall be yearly and perpetually kept as Holy as a day of thanksgiving to Almighty God"

This first thanksgiving was a simple affair, nothing more than an outdoor gathering of kindred souls, thanking their God for a safe journey.Some believe that this was the very first official thanksgiving ever observed.

1688 - General John Churchill (later 1st Duke of Marlborough) changes allegiance from James II to William of Orange

William Pitt
(Source: Commons Wikimedia)

1798 - British Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger announced the introduction of Income Tax to help finance the war against France.

Mary Celeste
(Source: Smithsonian)

1872 - Crew from the British brigantine Die Gratia boarded a deserted ship drifting in mid Atlantic. The captain's table was set for a meal but the Captain, crew and passengers were all missing. The name of the ship was Mary Celeste...

Ronnie Corbett
(Source: Daily Mail)

1930 - Ronnie Corbett, born in Edinburgh. This pint sized comedian saw National Service in 1950 and was officially the shortest serving (in height) officer in the RAF, standing at just 5'1". After his National Service where he obtained the rank of Pilot Officer, he went into acting.

He started in television from 1957 and got his really big break in 1966 on The Frost Report, where he met life long friend and colleague - Ronnie Barker. Ronnie Corbett can still be seen on TV with recent appearances in Red Nose Day specials, Have I Got News for You, filling in for Brucey on Strictly Come Dancing when Brucey was ill, and even with a new series called Ronnie Corbett's Supper Club which he did with comedian Rob Brydon.

1937 - The first issue of the Dandy comic. With a fan club of over 350,000, Desperate Dan proved a durable character. A copy of this first edition is worth between £850 and £1,000. The closure, on 4th December 2012, coincided with its 75th anniversary and the final print edition included a pull out reprint of the very first edition of the comic

1941 - Nazi ordinances places Jews of Poland outside protection of courts

1952 - Killer fogs begin in London England, "Smog" becomes a word. On the night of 4th December, a thick smog formed, which wasn't that unusual. However, an anti cyclone hanging over London the following morning meant that the fog couldn't lift and additional smog components from open fires and industrial smoke was absorbed into it. 

London Smog
(Source: The Guardian)

This carried on for a couple more days until the fog was so dense that pedestrians couldn't see their feet. Our historian recalls tales of his mother walking through London that year with a handkerchief fixed over her face and walking with one foot on the pavement, and one in the gutter so that she could tap the kerb and know where she was.

Over 4000 people died due to the smog with many more suffering breathing difficulties, traffic came to a standstill due to visibility, and reports from the press showed that cows as far across London as Smithfield were suffocated by the smog.

1980 - English rock group Led Zeppelin officially disbanded, following the death of drummer John Bonham on 25th September

On This Day in History - 3rd December

On This Day in History - 3rd December

King Charles VI of France
(Source: Wikimedia)

1368 - Charles VI, King of France born. Some history records recall him as Charles V1, The Beloved, some call him Charles VI the Mad! He inherited the throne of France at age 11, but as the Age of Majority (age at which you become responsible for your own actions according to the Roman Catholic church) was 14, the country was put into Trust and run equally between his 4 uncles, however, they decided to run the country up until Charles was 21. When Charles took over, the country and its outlook improved significantly, earning him the title of "The Beloved" by the people, however in 1392 he had a "fit of insanity" and slew 4 of his knights and nearly killed his brother. These bouts of insanity grew more frequent, earning him the title of "The Mad"

Thomas Herriot
(Source: St Andrews University)

1586 - Sir Thomas Herriot introduces potatoes to England, from Colombia. Born in Oxford in 1560m Thomas Herriot was a gifted man, pioneering in Mathematics and Astronomy, but it was his gift with foreign languages that gained him passage to America with one of Sir Walter Raleigh's expeditions.

Thomas Herriot had learned the language of the native Americans, by befriending and study the language written and spoke of two Indians brought back to England on a previous trip,Mancheo and Wanchese were the names of the two Native Americans.

This made Thomas very important to the expedition, as he could communicate with the First Nation people and gain knowledge and skills that would help the settlers. It was through this knowledge and skill sharing that he was introduced to the potatoes by members of the Ranoke Tribe, and he subsequently brought a sample back to England

Galileo
(Source: National Geographic) 

1621 - Galileo invents telescope. The original telescope is alleged to have been invented in 1608 by Hans Lippershey, but the now common refracting telescope, with its concave and convex lenses was first brought into popular acclaim by Galileo for use in astronomy. For this purpose it is safe to credit him with the telescop, but technically, the telescope for observation use, was indeed invented by Hans Lippershey.

Samuel Crompton
(Source: Bolton Museum)

1753 - Samuel Crompton, English inventor born. Whilst a young boy, his father died, meaning he had to gain employment to help the family. He gained work in a mill, spinning yarn of the infamous spinning Jenny, however, he felt it needed more work to make it a truly effective machine. In his own time he perfected his spinning machine, called the Spinning Mule. He did not have enough funds to patent the design, but released it to chosen manufacturers on demand that they paid for the designs. He received a total of £60 for his designs, which allowed him to start his own spinning mill with indifferent success.

Beecham's Pills
(Source: Science Museum)

1820 - Thomas Beecham, English manufacturer and inventor of Beecham's pills, was born. At the age of 8, he started work as a shepherd and it was through this work in the countryside that he learned his way around the hedgerows to provide medicines. He worked for a while as a village postman too, but in 1847 he moved to Wigan, where he started making and selling herbal laxative pills - Beechams Pills - as they were known.

By 1859 he had received much success and started his own network of agents and started advertising his pills, so successful was this approach that in 1880 he was able to set up a factory and start researching other medications - thus a medicinal giant -Beechams - was founded

Robert Louis Balfour Stevenson
(Source: New Yorker)

1894 - Robert Louis Balfour Stevenson, Scottish novelist, dies at 45. He was born of "good stock", with his father and grandfather and other relatives all in the business of designing lighthouses, however, he was born with "a weak chest" and as such he did not pursue a career in the family business of engineering. He instead chose to write articles, novellas and novels.

He had great success with such titles as Treasure Island, The Strange case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, Kidnapped, The Ebb Tide etc, in fact it is believed that he may well be the most translated author in history as his books have been published in many languages across the globe.

Edward and Wallis
(Source: BBC)

1936 - The Royal Family cancelled all engagements as news broke of Edward VIII's determination to marry divorcee Wallis Simpson. It was viewed by the government at the time that the Nation of Great Britain would not stand by the King, if he married a woman, twice divorced, with two living ex-husbands.

Such a scandal was caused at the time by such news that eventually realising that if he were to push ahead with the marriage, the Prime Minister and the Government would be forced to resign, this would have forced a political turn of events at odds with his politically neutral position, he decided to abdicate from his throne so that he could marry Mrs Simpson.

Home Guard Stand Down March
(Source: Home Sweet Home Front)

1944 - Britain's Home Guard ('Dad's Army') is officially stood down at a special farewell parade in Hyde Park, London. The Battle of Britain in 1940 was won long ago, and the threat of invasion by Germany, having lost the Air Superiority was at an all time low, the decision was made to stand down these Home Guard Soldiers. During their existence, over 1600 had lost their lives through enemy action, all had been awarded The Defence Medal, all received a personal letter from the King to thank them for their service and around 1000 received special medals from the Military Medal, through to the George Cross 

1948 - Ozzy Osbourne, Aston, Birmingham,rock vocalist born. His full name is John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne. He rose to fame as the lead singer of Black Sabbath in the early 1970's. He left the band in 1979 but his success continues, currently he has produced and sold 11 albums as part of his solo career 

Oswald Mosley - British Fascist
(Source: Guardian)

1980 - Oswald Mosley, British politician died He served during the First World War and once service was over, became a conservative politician. After falling out with the Conservative Government over their proposed use of the Army in Northern Ireland, he left the party, crossed the floor and stood in his constituency as an Independent member of Parliament. He constituents had great faith in him and he kept his seat at the by-election.

He is famous for his outspokenness and his fascist beliefs. So much so, that some of his Fascist Ideals can easily be likened to Nazi viewpoints

Edwina Currie
(Source: Guardian)

1988 - Health minister Edwina Currie provoked outrage by saying that most of Britain's egg production was infected with the salmonella bacteria. This outraged farmers as the total production of eggs in 1987 was around 30 million eggs, yet only 26 cases of salmonella were confirmed. 

Sales of eggs crashed and the government were forced to compensate the egg producers to the tune of many millions of pounds and buy up surplus eggs and pay for the slaughter of unwanted poultry.



2012 - St James's Palace announced that the Duchess of Cambridge was expecting a baby. 

On This Day in History - 2nd December

2nd December

St Paul's Cathedral
(Source: Telegraph)

1697 - The rebuilt St Paul’s Cathedral, the work of Sir Christopher Wren, was opened. The previous cathedral had been destroyed in the Great Fire of London in 1666. There has been a cathedral building in one shape or another on this site for 1400 years, dedicated to St Paul. 

It seems to be a beacon for news and radical ideas to be announced and the cathedral always seems to be at the thick of things when it comes to National Events, most recently Baroness Thatcher's funeral on 17th April 2013.

The current cathedral was famously designed and constructed by Sir Christopher Wren. Although it officially opened today for services, it wasnt officially completed until 1710.

This particular cathedral was the first to be built in England since Henry VIII's infamous "Reformation" that saw the Roman Catholic Church driven out and the Church of England take over.

The 2nd Eddystone Lighthouse
(Source: Wikipedia)

1755 - The second Eddystone Lighthouse (located off the coast of Devon) was destroyed by fire. Four lighthouses have been built on the site in it's history. The light was lit on the fourth, (Douglass's lighthouse, designed by James Douglass) in 1882 and it is still in use.

Napoleon Bonaparte
(Source: BBC)

1804 - Napoleon Bonaparte is crowned emperor of France in Paris. The coronation was carried out at Notre Dame Cathedral by Pope Pious VII. He crowned Napoleon as "Napoleon I", then the Pope turned to Josephine and crowned her Empress of France. 

There is a myth that Napoleon grabbed the crown and placed it on his own head before the Pope could complete the move as Napoleon didn't want to be subjugated by the Pope's authority, but this tale is dubious in origin. Napoleon turned France away from democracy back towards imperialism, a move which his long term friend, Ludwig van Beethoven disapproved of, so much so that the dedication to Napoleon on his 3rd Symphony was removed.

Charles Dickens
(Source: Victorian Web)

1867 - In a New York City theatre, British author Charles Dickens gives his first public reading in the United States. He read from his own works, "Carol" and "Trial of Pickwick"

John Cobb
(Source: Ness-Scape)

1899 John Cobb, British racing driver was born. He made money as a director of fur brokers and could therefore afford to specialise in large capacity motor-racing. He was born and lived in Esher, Surrey, near the Brooklands race track. He broke the land speed record at Bonneville on August 23, 1939, achieving 367.91 mph. Without this being beaten he raised the record to 394.19 mph in 1947. He died in 1952, attempting to break the world water speed record on Loch Ness in the jet speedboat Crusader at a speed in excess of 200 mph.

Admiral Yamamoto
(Source: Imperial War Museum)

1941 - Yamamoto sends his fleet to Pearl Harbour, who successfully attacked the American Fleet at Pearl Harbour on 7th December 1941

1966 - The Mini skirt, the symbol of the Swinging Sixties, was banned from the Houses of Parliament at Westminster

Britney Spears
(Source: Billboard)

1981 - Britney Spears, singer born in Mississippi - famed for acting roles as a child star and then launch of her pop career with "Hit Me Baby One More Time". She is also famed for her personal struggles and her highs and lows of life became legendary

Big Daddy - Wrestler
(Source: Mirror)

1997 -  Former wrestler Big Daddy (real name Shirley Crabtree) died in Halifax, aged 67. He was a member of the Coldstream Guards, Rugby League player for Bradford Northern and even a coal miner before he followed in his fathers footsteps and became a professional wrestler. In 1975 he formed a tag team with a relative newcomer, Giant Haystacks, but the relationship became sour by 1977, and Haystacks became famous for being Big Daddy's nemesis in the ring.

1999 - The United Kingdom devolves political power in Northern Ireland to the Northern Ireland Executive

Tom Daley, British Olympian
(Source: Telegraph)

2013 - British Olympic Diver Tom Daley announces to the world via a YouTube broadcast that he is gay. After various rumours and speculations about his relationships he confirmed that he had been on dates with various women, but that a particular relationship with a man "just clicked and felt right"

Background History To Mary Hyatt and Joel Fisher

The Playhouse, Weston Super Mare, Somerset

Playhouse Theatre Frontage
(Source: Weston Mercury)

If you have been watching our investigation at The Playhouse at Weston-super-Mare, you will know that throughout the nights investigation, we were being followed and contacted by the spirit of Mary Hyatt. She initially revealed herself to our medium, but she also made contact with James, through knocking in response to questions and finally through the Ouija experiment.

Below we have listed the historical facts that we have unearthed regarding Mary Hyatt and her ill fated marriage to Joel Fisher

Here are the facts that we have dug up about Joel and his wife.

An Example of a Waterloo Medal
(Source: British Medals.co.uk)

Joel Fisher was born in wick St Lawrence, near Worle, Weston-super-Mare on 10th June 1792, his parents were John and Susannah Fisher.  Joel Fisher served with the 7th Hussars in 1811, fought in Orthes and Vittoria and other battles his regiment engaged in until 1814. At that point his regiment fought at Waterloo, as did Joel which won him the Waterloo Campaign Medal. He was in the army for a total of 23 years, without a single black mark upon his service record. 

When his Commanding Officer retired in 1836, Fisher also retired to become the Colonel's "Batman", a kind of man-servant. He served with the Colonel for a period of around 9 months. He married his first wife around 1834, but in 1837 his first wife died leaving him with two small children. Not long after the first wife's passing, Joel met Mary Hyatt, whom he ended up marrying in St Mary Redcliffe Church in Bristol, then they moved to Backwell.

Within a few months of the marriage, Joel and Mary were arguing. Mary rekindled her romance with her first husband, a Mr Hill and ran off with him. Mary had told Joel that Mr Hill was a cripple and diseased and could hardly function so she said she needed to be with him during his final months, which was a real shock to Joel as only a month afterwards, Mr Hill turned up, in full health and strength demanding furniture that Mary and Joel had received as part of their wedding gifts. Joel told Mr Hill where to go as it were and Mr Hill was never heard of again. Within two months of this, Mary was back with Joel, Joel having forgiven her and allowed her back home.

Present Day London Inn (Old Devonshire Inn)
(Source: JonnyEdgar.com)

In 1841 the couple bought the Devonshire Inn on the High Street in Weston Super Mare (now called The London Inn) and moved there, but things were far from happy for the couple. Mary would quite often leave Joel, usually taking some valuable items with her to sell, but Joel would always take her back, which we believe was in part due to the fact that Joel was illiterate and needed Mary to be able to help him run his business.

Map of the Area
(Source: Gina Suzuki)

In 1840, Mary made off with a quantity of fine linen and £20 cash from the pub. She ran as far as Bath however, Joel employed the use of a policeman to track her down and bring her back.

In the end, the couple had one too many arguments and Joel became very violent towards Mary. The final argument was about Mary kicking out a lodger, Peter Baker, and then turning on the other lodger, William Upshall. This cut the inn's income down immensely and made Joel very angry. She ran up the stairs into one of the servants (Ann Evans) quarters and pleaded to stay with the servant over night as she would feel safer. Joel was having none of this and broke the door down. She made for the bedroom window. She was part way out of the window when Joel grabbed her and dragged her back in.

Things calmed down for a bit and Mary managed to get to sleep, however at 5am the next morning, Joel was stood at the foot of the bed and jumped onto Mary, pinning her to the bed with his feet. He then produced a long carving knife and drew it across her throat, cutting so deep that he actually went down to the bone. The wound was only 4 inches across, however, it had "severed her carotid artery, divided her wind pipe and gullet and the bones of the spine were laid bare" according to Charles Bernard, a surgeon of Weston who performed the autopsy.

He stood over her corpse, and refuse to leave. He told the serving girl Ann, that he had done a great sin, but in doing so had removed an even bigger sin from the world. He asked Ann to go and get a policeman, he would wait. Once the constable arrived he was immediately arrested to await trial. The trial was held in September with Mr Justice Patteson presiding, and Joel was sentenced to Death. Joel stated then that the sentence as a just one.

Rev. John Forsyth
(Source: Gina Suzuki)

Weston's curate, Rev John Hamilton Forsyth visited Joel many times during his brief prison time, as the case deeply troubled the Reverend. In the time Joel had left, he became deeply religious. 

The sentence was carried out at Taunton Jail. Moments before he died he said to his son "Oh, John, would that I had died at Waterloo; you then would never have been born to this disgrace, and I never should have committed this dreadful crime"

At the execution some 5000 people came to watch. Joel walked to the gallows calmly and offered not a sign of fear. He prayed to God and resigned himself to his fate. It is said when he swung from the gallows, he did not struggle and he died very quickly. After hanging for the regulation 1 hour, he was cut down and buried in the grounds of Wilton Prison, Taunton

St John The Baptist Church. WSM
(Source: WSM Family History Society)

The Bristol Mercury, dated 17th August 1844 ran an article on the murder to inform its readers of the sordid goings on.

Mary Hyatt is buried in an unmarked grave in St John the Baptist Cemetery, and was interred on the 8th June 1844, register reference number 498, but it is worth making a note that she is referred to as Mary FISHER (Joel's married name) aged 54. St Johns stopped receiving burials in 1850 after the parliamentary act was passed allowing Weston Council to create a new burial ground at Milton.