Migration : Geordie Vikings

Art   Laing Art Gallery
Posted by administrator on June 24, 2013     Permalink     Comments (1)

I’ve sometimes heard that the Geordie phrase ‘gan yem’ for ‘go home’ has Viking connections, and it certainly sounds like the Danish equivalent, ‘gå hjem’. Viking rule was established in Northumbria in the 9th century (ruling through a puppet king). Their leader was Guthrum, King of the Danes. He’s shown here in his tent, leaning back with a pretty girl’s head on his shoulder. The picture Guthrum appears in is Daniel Maclise’s  Alfred the Saxon King (Disguised as a Minstrel) in the Tent of Guthrum the Dane (1852), in the Laing Art Gallery collection.

Northumbria was once part of Viking-controlled Danelaw, which covered roughly what’s now the northern areas of England, the East Midlands and East Anglia. In 878, this division was formalised in an agreement between Guthrum and King Alfred of Wessex, who ruled the southern part of England. The story behind Maclise’s picture says quite a lot about national identity and also about migration – in the brutal form of invasion.

It looks like there’s a great party going on in Maclise’s picture. People are laughing and singing. All the colours are bright and attractive, and pretty blossom hangs over the tent. But this is a war party, and there are weapons scattered around.

Maclise has shown King Alfred disguised as a wandering harp-player, spying on the Danes (he’s looking super suspicious in the picture). This story was part of the heroic myth of King Alfred. Actually, it would have been fantastically foolhardy for a king because of the risk of capture. Alfred has been regarded as a great English king for his leadership in war and peace. However, Alfred’s heritage was Saxon, from earlier invasions by Germanic tribes.

Viking settlement in Northumbria was not peaceful. The monks of Lindisfarne were the earliest victims of the Viking invasions of England, with a raid in 793. Around 80 years later, the monks fled with their holy relics and books, including the Lindsfarne Gospels, eventually settling at Durham (the Gospels will be returning to Durham for an historic exhibition at Durham Library from 1 July to 30 September 2013 – more details here).

Those strong Viking genes will now be part of the make-up of some of the population of the North East. They’re mixed with Celtic and Anglo-Saxon genes, plus the genetic heritage of people who’ve moved to the region since. Scandinavian Viking culture (Vikings came from Norway and Sweden as well as Denmark) was once influential over large areas of what is now England, as well as parts of Scotland, Ireland, and Normandy in France. We can get an inkling of the influence of Viking Norse on the English language in the names of the weekdays from Tuesday through to Friday (named after Viking gods Tyr, Woden, Thor, and Frigg). Viking power reached its peak from 1016 to 1035, when the Danish King Canute (Knut) ruled all of England as well as Denmark and Norway. However, soon after Canute’s death, Saxon kings took power again.

An online article from Sheffield University Linguistics Department points out that there was an earlier divide between regions of England following invasion by Germanic groups – Angles settled in East Anglia and the north, while Saxons occupied more southern areas. The article discusses the way different accents and patterns of speech can act as a focus of identity, as well as other aspects of attitudes to life in northern and southern regions (details here). There has been quite a lot of comment in recent years about economic disparity and perceived cultural divisions between North and South England. Another online article brings together reports of research on these subjects (details here – www.fhv.umb.sk/app/cmsFile.php?disposition=a&ID=17880), including a claim by The Economist magazine in 2012 that the gap between the North and South was growing to the extent that they were almost separate countries (details here). These are complex subjects – maybe you have a view on them?

Do you think the North/ South divide still exists?

What does the heritage of your region and national identity mean to you?

We’d really like to hear your views on this and any issues that interest you in this blog. It is part of a series of blogs linking museum objects to the topics of ‘Migration’, ‘Britishness’ and ‘Culture in an Industrial Region’. Later in the summer, there’ll be a debate on the most popular topics featuring Northumbria University academics, museum staff and the general public. You’re welcome to come along to listen or contribute – details will be posted later. Do let us know what you think!

Here’s some links to more Viking information, in case it’s of interest – Viking Northumbria; Vikings in Britain; Alfred the Great; Vikings in Ireland; Danelaw; Guthrum, Danish king.

From Sunderland to Seville: Diary of life at sea in 1865 (part 2)

Collections & Objects   Discovery Museum   Local History   Maritime History   Social History   The Archives
Posted by administrator on June 21, 2013     Permalink     Leave a comment

The previous instalment of this blog reflected on the diary entries of John Hall during his voyage from Sunderland to Seville onboard the sailing ship ‘Success’. John Hall lived at 62 Lawrence Street in Hendon, Sunderland, located near to the harbour and docks. He was onboard to look after the business interests of his father, George Hall, who was the ship’s owner.

Ordnance Survey Map, Durham series 1:2500, 2nd edition sheet VIII.15, showing Lawrence Street

The outward journey to Seville passed quite peacefully but as the vessel got ready to return to the North East there were already warning signs of the trouble ahead. The ship’s Captain, Thomas Holburn, like many sailors before and since, had enjoyed a few drinks on shore. Unfortunately, the drinking didn’t stop as the ‘Success’ headed for home.

On 19 July a local river pilot boarded the vessel as she left Seville. When John Hall arrived on deck after breakfast the vessel had stopped for no obvious reason. As he discovered:

“… the Captn & Pilot had gone on shore in the boat & came off again in about 2 hours both drunk. They gave orders to get the ship underweigh (sic) & presently had her on the ground. Then the two drunkards commenced to quarrel & the Spaniard drew his Stilleto or Knife & made an attempt to stab the Captn but did not succeed. This is one of the million evils of drink. One moment they are great friends & the next sworn foes. Things are all going adverse on board – the crew swearing & not disposed to obey the orders of the two drunken fools who stand at the head of affairs on board the Pilot and the Captain”.

Diary entry, 19 July 1865 (TWAM ref. DX1527/1)

The journey home was proving to be slow and tortuous and the Captain’s mood didn’t improve as the days dragged on. Our author notes on 27 July that he was woken by the Captain quarrelling with the mate. Hall put this down to the Captain’s troubled mind.

“Constantly drunk at Seville, robbed on all hands, losing his purse tobacco pouch & their contents whilst in bad company, having spent the greater part of his earnings. Now that he can quietly think over his past conduct he grows wild with passion, upbraided by conscience he must give vent to his feelings … He seeks to drown his troubles in sleep but sleep will not visit his uneasy mind, altho he is in bed about 18 hours out of the 24. I am long since sick of this voyage & wish we were once more back to England”.

Diary entry, 27 July 1865 (TWAM ref. DX1527/1)

Unfavourable weather meant progress on the return journey was much slower than hoped. However, John Hall believed that Capain Holburn was using delaying tactics.

“It appears to me that so long as he can get anything to eat & the weather is fine so that he is comfortable he is not at all anxious about the wind – for to repeat the old saying ‘more days more dollars’ seems to be his only care or anxiety. It is evidently an attempt to make the passage as long as possible” (11 August).

Diary entry, 11 August 1865 (TWAM ref. DX1527/1)

One consequence of the slow progress was that food started to run out on the ‘Success’. The diary entry for 18 August notes:

“Not a particle of Beef to be seen today. Everything goes hard with us. Living on bread & the suction of our thumbs. Some of us must die of starvation soon unless we get a fair wind & whose (sic) to blame then”.

Two days later hunger was setting in and perhaps seeking divine intervention Hall writes “Oh Lord how long are we to be without something to eat?” Captain Holburn’s lack of urgency in dealing with the food shortage led the author to worry about a possible mutiny.

“Fair wind today & not at the English Land for we are steering a Mid Channel course & no intention of getting anything to eat for the Crew. I am afraid of a rising amongst the Crew” (24 August).

Diary entry, 24 August 1865 (TWAM ref. DX1527/1)

Finally on 26 August Hall went on shore at Weymouth and got some provisions. While his hunger was soon gone, his feelings towards Captain Holburn only deepened. Writing on 1 September he notes:

“Hundreds of ships passing us bound to and from London whilst we laid at anchor not at all inclined to get any further ahead. How I detest this man whom people call the Captain!!!”.

When the ‘Success’ reached Hull on 5 September John Hall telegraphed his father in Sunderland who caught a train and arrived the next day. They searched for the Captain but couldn’t track him down. The following day Captain Holburn finally appeared, apparently drunk, and in Hall’s words “… accused me of everything bad. Father he blackguarded shamefully & we were obliged to get a policeman to drag him on shore without hat or coat” (7 September).

By the following morning tempers had calmed and John Hall writes:

“We had the master on board this morning in company with his wife. He was then sober and quite a changed man – begged pardon for his Conduct and treatment & asked forgiveness for the injury he had tried to do to me & others. Asked me to make out his account & having done so paid him up to the 6th & let him go” (8 September).

Diary entry, 8 September 1865 (TWAM ref. DX1527/1)

Hall’s diary is a fascinating slice of Sunderland’s maritime history. It would be easy to take it all at face value but it needs to be remembered that our author was an inexperienced seafarer and his interpretation of Captain Holburn’s behaviour may have been clouded by personal dislike.

To find out more about Captain Holburn I checked our microfiche copy of Lloyd’s Captains Register for 1869. This records that he was a Sunderland man, born in 1810. It also shows that his previous ship ‘Beaver’ was lost at sea in September 1864. This may have played some part in his caution on the return journey. It would be interesting to find out more about the loss of the ‘Beaver’ and if anyone has any details I’d be grateful to receive them. Interestingly, Lloyd’s Captains Register doesn’t record any subsequent vessels under Holburn’s command. I can’t help thinking that events on the ‘Success’ may have damaged his reputation.

The diary and thousands of other remarkable documents can be enjoyed by visiting Tyne & Wear Archives. You can see the full range of our collections by visiting our searchroom. We’re also adding new material all the time to our exiting sets on Flickr Commons.

From Sunderland to Seville: Diary of life at sea in 1865 (part 1)

Collections & Objects   Discovery Museum   Local History   Maritime History   Social History   The Archives
Posted by administrator on June 18, 2013     Permalink     Comments (1)

Recent blogs have highlighted some of the fascinating diaries that Tyne & Wear Archives holds. Ian Whitehead’s blog about First World War Patrol boats makes excellent use of the diary of William Bartram written in 1916, while an earlier one by yours truly explored the diaries of Karl Otto Keller, who is credited with the development of the Doxford Opposed Piston Oil Engine.

I’m delighted to be able to report the addition of another diary to the Archives collections. The new arrival is an account of a voyage in 1865 on the merchant ship ‘Success’, written during its passage from Sunderland to Seville and back to Hull (TWAM ref. DX1527/1). The diary doesn’t tell us much about the ‘Success’ but an entry for 9 August 1859 in the Customs and Excise register for Sunderland (TWAM ref. EX.SU/1/36) records that she was a two-masted sailing ship of 149 tons, built in 1858 at St Martins, New Brunswick in Canada.

Sketch of the ship by John Hall (TWAM ref. DX1527/1)

The diary’s author was a John Hall of 62 Lawrence Street, Sunderland, son of the ship’s owner, George Hall. John Hall was onboard to take care of his father’s business interests and his entries suggest that he was pretty inexperienced. Within a day of departure he admits that he was “Weary already with the monotony of a life at Sea” (21 May). Hall’s pain, however, is our gain since with little else to do he had plenty of time to write his diary. The daily entries are all the more interesting because the author is open with his thoughts and feelings.

John Hall’s motives for coming to sea are hinted at in his entry for 2 June, writing “… generally felt a landsman at sea … and this is called coming to Sea ‘for Pleasure’ or for ones Health”.  The situation had not improved by 6 June when he complains “… the time is wearisome and it is with difficulty I find anything to occupy my mind”. By mid June, though, he’d settled down and was feeling the benefits of his voyage.

“The air however feels so soft & mild & it seems to do me good. I am constantly in a gentle perspiration which seems to relieve me of those distressing pains which in cold weather affect me so much” (13 June).

Diary entry, 13 June 1865 (TWAM ref. DX1527/1)

At about this time Hall’s diary starts to focus a bit more on the ship’s Captain, Thomas Holburn. His entry for 10 June notes “at night the wind increased & Captn orders the men to shorten sail. He seems timid & dare not ‘carry on’ as some do”.  Within a week it becomes clear that relations between the Captain and his crew were very difficult. Hall writes of the Captain “I knew how he was disliked by every man on board & his disagreeable manner towards everyone has rendered him almost detestable” (16 June).

Hall’s diary regularly records the ship’s progress and as it passed along the southern coast of Portugal he mentions a strange story he heard.

“In the afternoon we rounded Cape San Vincent, a high rugged rock on which stands the Lighthouse & a nunnery about which some strange stories are told about the Priests and the nuns for this Cape is near the Sea & the water very deep & as the Nunnery is on the extreme edge of the cliff there is the greatest facility for disposing of any body that was unwelcome. Hence the Fishermen of Lisbon etc are reported to have seen or even picked up the bodies of several new born infants undoubtedly thrown over the Cliff by the Priests or their attendants, these Infants having been brought into the world through the Combined agency of Priests & Nuns …” (20 June).

Diary entry, 20 June 1865 (TWAM ref. DX1527/1)

The diary is very much a personal account and inevitably reflects the prejudices of its author. This story should perhaps be taken (like the meat onboard) with a large pinch of salt.

On 26 June the ‘Success’ reached Seville.  Our author’s initial impression was that “Seville seems to be a dusty dirty place” (27 June) but after exploring the city he viewed it more favourably, describing the Cathedral as “a superb building” (29 June).

During the first half of July the ship’s cargo of ground flint was unloaded and replaced with a consignment of 80 tons of lead and 10 tons of olive oil. While on shore some of the crew took the opportunity to let their hair down and our author reports with dismay

“The Captn has been on shore all day spending his time in drinking and dissipation as is evident from the fact of his bloated countenance & unsteady gait … Such alas is the manner in which hundreds of Englishmen spend the Sabbath in a foreign country” (16 July).

Diary entry, 16 July 1865 (TWAM ref. DX1527/1)

Nearly 150 years on and the same complaint could just as easily apply today. Captain Holburn’s behaviour was to be a warning of troubles ahead. On 19 July the ‘Success’ left Seville. The journey to Spain had been plain sailing, but the return to England was to prove anything but.

 

Britishness- A National Identity?

Art   Collections & Objects   Laing Art Gallery   Military History
Posted by administrator on June 17, 2013     Permalink     Comments (2)

2014 will mark the 100th anniversary of the beginning of the First World War, a four-year international conflict that marked the lives of people from every nation. This is a subject you will be hearing a lot about over the next year as we build up in the UK to commemorating the anniversary. Museums and galleries will not be slow in developing programmes around the commemoration; indeed TWAM has a number of projects already underway.

The collections in our museums and galleries relating to this conflict are small in number but large in significance. One example is this painting from the collection at the Laing Art Gallery:

French Artillery Crossing the Flooded Aisne and Saving the Guns (1915) by John Charlton (1849-1917) C10000

During the First World War, the British Government (specifically the Ministry of Information) realised they needed a powerful and immediate way of communicating news from the Front- and indeed their overall message about the war- to the public at home. Artists were commissioned from 1915 to record the battlefields in person. The results, as would be expected from the variety of artists eventually commissioned, were a mixed range including topographical, futurist and traditional perspectives on the events witnessed. This work is an excellent example of a more traditional, historic battle scene.

The range of artistic responses to the First World War mirror, of course, the huge diversity of political and societal responses to the conflict. Some believed the war to be vital, some that it was unnecessarily prolonged, others that it should never have started at all. This list is in itself a very simplified version of the range of views!

So we should perhaps not be surprised that now, as the anniversary approaches, there are competing and dissenting voices on how, as a country, we should observe and commemorate. The government has announced a £50 million fund for key events to mark the anniversary. David Cameron said:

‘Our ambition is a truly national commemoration worthy of this historic centenary.’

‘A commemoration that captures our national spirit in every corner of the country, from our schools and workplaces, to our town halls and local communities.

‘A commemoration that, like the diamond jubilee celebrations this year, says something about who we are as a people. Remembrance must be the hallmark of our commemorations.’

On the other hand, this has not been received well elsewhere, as a letter to the Guardian (extracts below- go to http://bit.ly/13FLb4c for full letter) from a number of public figures on 21 May demonstrated:

‘Next year marks the 100th anniversary of the beginning of the first world war. Far from being a “war to end all wars” or a “victory for democracy”, this was a military disaster and a human catastrophe.

We are disturbed, therefore, that David Cameron plans to spend £55m on a “truly national commemoration” to mark this anniversary. Mr Cameron quite inappropriately compared these events to the “diamond jubilee celebrations” and stated that their aim will be to stress our “national spirit”. That they will be run at least in part by former generals and ex-defence secretaries reveals just how misconceived these plans are.’

Still more commentators believe the Government is doing too little, too late. They also argue that:

‘politicians and officials are focusing too much on British defeats and the carnage and futility of the war, because they are too anxious to avoid upsetting Germans and want to make sure the events are not considered triumphalist.

However…. by doing so, the Government is presenting only the modern, orthodox view of the conflict: that it was avoidable and unnecessary. It thus ignores arguments that, like the Second World War, it was a fight for survival.’

A ‘commemoration that captures our national spirit’ or ‘misconceived’? What are your thoughts? Do you think there is such a thing as a ‘national spirit’ to be captured? Is the commemoration of this fundamentally controversial and devastating part of our collective history a time to reflect on our identity, to celebrate our national spirit, or to simply remember the dead?

This blog is part of a partnership between Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums and Northumbria University to encourage new thinking and comment around important subjects.

Each week we’ll be blogging about a museum object and posing a question for you to respond to.  Please help us get the discussion going by adding your comments below, whatever comes to mind.  Staff from the university and from TWAM will then lead a live debate on the most hotly contested issues so watch this space!

In addition TWAM would like to know more about your thoughts on commemorating the First World War, which could inform our programmes for the next four years.

I look forward to your comments!

 

Ralph Hedley at the Shipley Art Gallery

Art   Exhibitions   Shipley Art Gallery
Posted by administrator on June 14, 2013     Permalink     Comments (1)

On Saturday, I got a number 21 ‘Angel’ bus to the Shjpley Art Gallery in Gateshead for another look at the Ralph Hedley: painting the North East exhibition.

thanks to http://st-travelblog.blogspot.co.uk/ for the bus pic.

The 21 leaves from Eldon Square bus station – stand G – every 7 to 8 minutes – and goes past St. Nicholas Cathedral, the Black Gate, and the Castle Keep, then across the High Level Bridge (best seen from the front seats of the top deck).

On the way back it goes across the Tyne Bridge.

The stop for the Shipley is Durham Road, Shipcote, the next stop after Springfield motors which is easy to spot on the left side of the bus.


Hedley’s paintings look glossy in the gallery lighting, and details showed up well.

For instance you can read titles of lots of the ballad sheets in The ballad seller, the Black Gate, Newcastle (1884)…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

…in The winnowing sheet (1898), the grains of corn tossing and blowing in the sheet are sculpted in 3D paint, as if they were blowing off the canvas…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

…and in a display case near to the painting Duty Paid (1896) is a quick sketch of the painting by Hedley.