Mary Arden was the mother of William, she lived here until she married his father and moved to the town of Stratford (William's birth home).
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Stratford-upon-Avon (Mary Arden's Farm)
Mary Arden's farm, is a working Tudor farm in Wilcote (set in the1570s, complete with animals and actors).
Mary Arden was the mother of William, she lived here until she married his father and moved to the town of Stratford (William's birth home).
Mary Arden was the mother of William, she lived here until she married his father and moved to the town of Stratford (William's birth home).
Stratford-upon-Avon (Anne Hathaway's Cottage)
Anne Hathaway was the wife of William Shakespeare. They were married when he was only 18 and she was 26. She was the eldest daughter of the Hathaway family and they where very well off. She was left a dowry for when she married while William at the time was overshadowed by his father's debt. It was thought that they married for love since it did not make sense financially for Anne to marry someone without money. They were married very quickly as Anne was pregnant and the exact date as well as the location of the wedding are still a mystery.
The Hathaway Cottage was still inhabited by the descendants of Anne's brother until the early 1900s, although plumbing, and electric were never added as they were very poor.
The Hathaway Cottage was still inhabited by the descendants of Anne's brother until the early 1900s, although plumbing, and electric were never added as they were very poor.
Stratford-upon-Avon (Hall's Croft)
Hall's croft was the home of Susanna Shakespeare (William's daughter) and her husband the only doctor in Stratford at the time John Hall.
Stratford-upon-Avon (Holy Trinity Church)
Holy Trinity Church upon Avon.
William Shakespeare is buried in front of the alter.
During the era in which he diedit was common for those who were buried in the church yard to be dug up after about 20 or so years and have their bones burned in a bone fire (bonfire) and the plot be resold. William opted to be buried in the church itself (17 ft under) and have his resting place be permanent. He even laid a curse on his stone warning all those who dare move his bones.
William Shakespeare is buried in front of the alter.
During the era in which he diedit was common for those who were buried in the church yard to be dug up after about 20 or so years and have their bones burned in a bone fire (bonfire) and the plot be resold. William opted to be buried in the church itself (17 ft under) and have his resting place be permanent. He even laid a curse on his stone warning all those who dare move his bones.
Stratford-upon-Avon (New Place & Nash's house)
New Place archaeological dig (currently in progress!)....the house was purchased by William in 1597, at the time it was the second biggest home in Stratford, he lived here with his wife and children until his death in 1616.The house in the background is Nash's house and which to William's granddaughter and her husband.
About 150 years after Shakespeare's death the man who owned both New Place and Nash's house became sick of visitors coming to the home that belonged to Shakespeare. He decided to apply for permission to extend his lot, with that came a tax increase on the house which he refused to pay. Instead he demolished the house and moved into Nash's house next door (which is still standing and now a visitors centre).
The Dig.
The beautiful gardens behind New Place and Nash's House.
About 150 years after Shakespeare's death the man who owned both New Place and Nash's house became sick of visitors coming to the home that belonged to Shakespeare. He decided to apply for permission to extend his lot, with that came a tax increase on the house which he refused to pay. Instead he demolished the house and moved into Nash's house next door (which is still standing and now a visitors centre).
The Dig.
The beautiful gardens behind New Place and Nash's House.
Stratford-upon-Avon (Birth House)
The "birth" house where William Shakespeare was born to John Shakespeare (a glove maker) and Mary Arden. He grew up in this house and lived with his wife for the first 5 or so years of their marriage.
A view from the street.
A view from the gardens at the back of the house. These once would have housed the tanning pools to produce the leather for the gloves (a lovely mixture involving animal urine), a chicken coop, and possibly a pig or two.
A view from the street.
A view from the gardens at the back of the house. These once would have housed the tanning pools to produce the leather for the gloves (a lovely mixture involving animal urine), a chicken coop, and possibly a pig or two.
October Update!
It's been a while since last time I updated this! I've been working and not getting up to many adventures lately. We are just starting to explore and make plans for the winter months so I will be updating this more often. This week was half term so we decided to do a little bit of exploring in the area. We visited the National Sea Life Centre and went on a day trip to Stratford-upon-Avon (the birth place and home of William Shakespeare). We have also booked tickets for an event called Aston Hall by Candlelight (December 10th). This means we will get to see the hall lit up with over 300 candles and witness some reenactments from the 1600s. I am super excited for this! I checked out some pictures from previous years on their website and it looks amazing!
You can check it out here:
Unfortunately this year I won't be coming home for Christmas as it is WAYYYY to expensive to fly overseas in December. Instead I will be spending the holidays in........GERMANY! We got a great deal on flights and will be staying with Robyn's friend (a former exchange student at her highschool) for Christmas in Wurzburg.
You can check it out here:
Unfortunately this year I won't be coming home for Christmas as it is WAYYYY to expensive to fly overseas in December. Instead I will be spending the holidays in........GERMANY! We got a great deal on flights and will be staying with Robyn's friend (a former exchange student at her highschool) for Christmas in Wurzburg.
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Aston Hall
Yesterday we went to visit Aston Hall, a jacobean style mansion, built 1618-1631 by the Holte family. It was damaged by Parliamentarians in a siege in 1643 (cannon ball holes which have been patched can be seen in the walls of one wing of the house and a large hole in the oak staircase). The house was built and owned by someone named Sir Thomas Holte who had a horrible reputation for his temper. Our tour guide even told us a horrific story about Sir Thomas hitting his chef over the head with a butcher's knife and killing him because dinner was not ready on time. He disowned a son for marrying a woman who came from a family that was not as rich as he would have liked, and there is even a rumour that he locked away a daughter for refusing to marry a man he had chosen for her and letting her starve to death.
The Hall remained in the Holte family for a few hundred years before it was purchased by a group of bankers for a small amount of time (they sold off a lot of the surrounding land). The Hall was purchased in the mid 1800s by the Birmingham City Council and became a museum which it is still today. Fortunately the house is still very much the same as it was when it was first built, there have been some changes but no major changes to the architecture of the house.
Afterwards we wandered across the street to wander through the graveyard at Aston Parish Church. It was really creepy but pretty neat! The church actually predates the house (the main tower was built in 1480).
The Hall remained in the Holte family for a few hundred years before it was purchased by a group of bankers for a small amount of time (they sold off a lot of the surrounding land). The Hall was purchased in the mid 1800s by the Birmingham City Council and became a museum which it is still today. Fortunately the house is still very much the same as it was when it was first built, there have been some changes but no major changes to the architecture of the house.
Afterwards we wandered across the street to wander through the graveyard at Aston Parish Church. It was really creepy but pretty neat! The church actually predates the house (the main tower was built in 1480).
Tuesday, October 11, 2011
Thanksgiving & What I discovered today......
This weekend we celebrated Thanksgiving abroad with a South African and an Australian! We managed to cook an entire turkey dinner with all the fixings including a pumpkin pie in our super tiny kitchen! Dinner was great and we are still enjoying turkey left overs.
Unfortunately this turkey lead to the discovery that rats are attracted to meat!!! I came home today to discover a rat had chewed a perfect hole in the middle of a garbage bag and picked a turkey carcass clean in our front garden! So gross!!
Unfortunately this turkey lead to the discovery that rats are attracted to meat!!! I came home today to discover a rat had chewed a perfect hole in the middle of a garbage bag and picked a turkey carcass clean in our front garden! So gross!!
Saturday, October 8, 2011
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Moseley Bog
So since Robyn and I both had the afternoon off I decided we needed to go on an adventure. I originally wanted to go to Weoley Castle ruins but the buses were too complicated (we'll save that site for another day).We ended up in Moseley bog which happens to be the childhood hangout of JRR Tolkien and is rumoured to have inspired the settings for his books.
Anderton Park Primary School
This morning I had the opportunity to supply in a year two classroom at Anderton Park Primary School. The kids were so cute and the school was one of the neatest buildings I have ever been in! At first I thought it may have once been a convent of some sort just based on the architecture. As it turns out it has always been a school, it has just happened to be open since the mid 1890s without very many changes.
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Finally Moved In!!
It's been a while since the last time I updated this thing! We've moved into our new flat in Edgbaston and it is awesome! Feel free to send me mail....and send me your addresses on facebook or email them to me if you'd like a postcard!
I'm at
Jill Scriver
Flat 1, 40 Stirling Road
Birmingham, United Kingdom
B16 9BL
I've been working fairly steadily since we've moved in and just got the internet hooked up today (thank god). I'll be posting more pictures on here soon of my city adventures and some pictures of my very very tiny but efficient apartment. Who knew that your laundry, kitchen, dining area, and living room could all fit into an area so small!
I'm at
Jill Scriver
Flat 1, 40 Stirling Road
Birmingham, United Kingdom
B16 9BL
I've been working fairly steadily since we've moved in and just got the internet hooked up today (thank god). I'll be posting more pictures on here soon of my city adventures and some pictures of my very very tiny but efficient apartment. Who knew that your laundry, kitchen, dining area, and living room could all fit into an area so small!
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