History Trivia - Religious festival Agonalia held

December 11

The Ancient Roman religious festival, Agonalia, held. It was also celebrated on January 9th, March 17th and May 21st. On each day a ram was sacrificed, probably as an offering to deities Janus and Angonius. 

1192 Richard I (the Lionheart) was captured by Leopold, Duke of Austria, as he returned from the Third Crusade. 

1282 Llywellyn the Last, the last native Prince of Wales, was killed at Cilmeri, near Builth Wells, south Wales by King Edward I of England soldiers. 

10 things you didn’t know about the history (and mystery) of Halloween

History Extra

1) Most people believe 31 October is an ancient pagan festival associated with the supernatural. In fact, it has religious connotations – although there is disagreement among historians about when it begun. Some say Hallowtide was introduced as All Saints’ Day in the 7th century AD by Pope Boniface IV, while others maintain it was created in the 9th century AD by Christians to commemorate their martyrs and saints.
In medieval Britain, ‘Halloween’ was the eve of the Catholic festival All Saints or All-Hallows (from Old English ‘Holy Man’) on 1 November, and was followed by the feast of All Souls on 2 November.

2) The tradition of carving a face on a turnip or swede (and more recently pumpkin), and using these as lanterns seems to be a relatively modern tradition. On the last Thursday in October, children in the Somerset village of Hinton St George carry lanterns made of mangel-wurzles (a type of root vegetable). The light shines through a design etched on the skin. They are carried around the streets as the children chant: “It’s Punky Night tonight, It’s Punky Night tonight, Give us a candle, give us a light, It’s Punky Night tonight.”


3) Much of the modern supernatural lore surrounding Halloween was invented as recently as the 19th century. Scots and Irish settlers brought the custom of Mischief Night visiting to North America, where it became known as ‘Trick or Treat’.  Until the revival of interest in Halloween during the 1970s, this American tradition was largely unknown in England. The importation of ‘Trick or Treat’ into parts of England during the 1980s was helped by scenes in American TV programmes and the 1982 film E.T.

4) There is no evidence the pagan Anglo-Saxons celebrated a festival on 1 November, but the Venerable Bede says the month was known as ‘Blod-monath’ (blood month), when surplus livestock were slaughtered and offered as sacrifices. The truth is there is no written evidence that 31 October was linked to the supernatural in England before the 19th century.

5) In pre-Christian Ireland, 1 November was known as ‘Samhain’ (summer's end). This date marked the onset of winter in Gaelic-speaking areas of Britain. It was also the end of the pastoral farming year, when cattle were slaughtered and tribal gatherings such as the Irish Feis of Tara were held. In the 19th century the anthropologist Sir James Frazer popularised the idea of Samhain as an ancient Celtic festival of the dead, when pagan religious ceremonies were held.

6) The Catholic tradition of offering prayers to the dead, the ringing of church bells and lighting of candles and torches on 1 November provides the link with the spirit world. In medieval times, prayers were said for souls trapped in purgatory on 1 November. This was believed to be a sort of ‘halfway house’ on the road to Heaven, and it was thought their ghosts could return to earth to ask relatives for assistance in the journey.


7) Popular Halloween customs in England included ‘souling’, where groups of adults – and later children wearing costumes – visited big houses to sing and collect money and food. Souling was common in parts of Cheshire, Shropshire, Lancashire and Yorkshire on 1 and 2 November. In parts of northern England, special cakes were baked and left in churchyards as offerings to the dead.

8) Until the 19th century, bonfires were lit on Halloween in parts of northern England and Derbyshire. Some folklorists believe the enduring popularity of Guy Fawkes bonfires on 5 November may be a memory of an older fire festival, but there is a lack of written evidence for these in England before the late 17th century.

9) Love divinations on Halloween spread to England from Scotland as a result of the popularity of Robert Burn’s poem Halloween in Victorian times. One love divination mentioned by Burns includes placing hazelnuts in the fire, naming one for yourself and the other for your partner. If they burned gently and then went out, this indicated a long and harmonious life together; if they coughed and spluttered or exploded, this was a sign of problems ahead.
Apples were also used for divination purposes: the skin was thrown over the shoulder, or the fruit floated in water or hung upon strings, to be seized by the teeth of the players.


10) The idea of Halloween as a festival of supernatural evil forces is an entirely modern invention. Urban legends about razor blades in apples and cyanide in sweets, hauntings by restless spirits and the use of 31 October as the date of evil or inauspicious events in horror films, reflect modern fears and terrors.
Every year Halloween provokes controversy and divides opinions: most people see it as just as a bit of harmless fun, but modern witches say it marks an ancient pagan festival, while some evangelical Christians claim it is a celebration of dangerous occult forces. This explains why folklorist Steve Roud calls it “the most widely misunderstood and misrepresented day in the festival year”.
Dr David Clarke is a senior lecturer in journalism at Sheffield Hallam University. He holds a PhD in English cultural tradition and folklore, and a degree in archaeology, prehistory and medieval history.

Richard III Festival - March 6 - March 14 2015 - Gloucester U.K.

Richard III Festival

                After the success of last year’s Festival we are back this year with an even better program of talks. Featuring talks with Professors from the University of Leicester, visitors can expect to hear all the expert findings directly from those who have published the research. Details of all talks below, follow the links to purchase tickets online. Please note that new talks will be added so check back for up to date details.
6th – 14th March
Friday 6th March
‘Richard III: the King under the car park’, with Mathew Morris
Mathew Morris, Greyfriars site director, presents the latest research from the search for Richard III. Tickets £7.50 per person.
7pm, City Museum CLICK HERE| to purchase tickets online, or telephone (01452) 396131.

Saturday 7th March
'CSI Richard III: Analysis of the King's Bones', with Sarah Hainsworth
11am, City Museum Tickets £7.50 per person.
CLICK HERE| to purchase tickets online for this talk, or telephone (01452) 396131.
‘Richard III: the genetics, the genealogy and is it actually him?’, with Dr Turi King
Hear Dr Turi King take us through the genetics and genealogy behind the Richard III case, and demonstrate how you can extract DNA from a non-Medieval banana!
1.30pm, City Museum. Tickets £7.50 per person.
CLICK HERE| to purchase tickets online
‘‘R’ Almost Marked the Spot – Filming the Search for Richard III’, with Carl Vivian
As a video producer for the University of Leicester Carl Vivian was asked to record the Search for Richard III from the moment the ground was broken at the Greyfriars site to the final announcement that confirmed the identity of the remains.
The images taken over the six month project is a unique record of the event and has been used in three Channel 4 films, to illustrate the City Council's King Richard III Visitor Centre and by News Broadcasters from all over the world.
In this short talk Carl Vivian picks out some of the highlights of the project illustrated with material that’s never been broadcast and concludes with a look at what’s happened on the project since that historic announcement on 4th February 2013. Tickets £7.50 per person.
3.30pm, City Museum CLICK HERE| to purchase tickets online, or telephone (01452) 396131.
Tuesday 10th March
‘Music in the Age of Richard III’, talk with Cllr Sebastian Field
Richard III's lifetime (1452-1485) saw a remarkable development in English music. Composers such as John Dunstable and John Plummer were leading this development, which flowered in the reign of Henry VII with the Eton Choirbook. Professional singer and Gloucester City Councillor Sebastian Field traces the origins of medieval polyphony and the growth of English music, particularly during the reign of King Richard III. The talk will be illustrated with recorded musical examples. Tickets £7.50 per person.
7pm, Gloucester Guildhall CLICK HERE| to purchase tickers online, or telephone (01452) 503050
Friday 13th March
Richard III – Walking Tour of the City Centre, tour with Christine Morgan
Follow in Richard's footsteps to look at some of the buildings he would have seen and visited during his stay in Gloucester and hear about the background to and purpose of his visit which was part of his royal progress in the area. Tour lasts approximately one hour, maximum of 20 people. Tickets £4 each.
2pm, Meeting at the City Museum CLICK HERE| to purchase tickets online or telephone (01452) 396131
‘Richard III, Tudor Propaganda and the Judgement of History’ – Choral Concert
The programme will include Sumer is Icumen in, the earliest known piece of English polyphony, the beautiful medieval carol There is no Rose, and Pastime with Good Company, allegedly written by Henry VIII. The concert will feature vocal music performed by the Sine Nomine Youth Choir, instrumental music from IatB Ensemble, and solo songs performed by Sebastian and Vicki Field, accompanied by members of IatB. Narrator Chris Chatterton, former Mayor of Gloucester, will tell the story of this much maligned Plantagenet King, and how his reputation has waxed and waned under the Tudor propagandists and after.
CLICK HERE| to purchase tickets for this event
7pm – 9.30pm, St Nicholas Church This event will include a 30 minute interval in which mulled wine and cakes will be served over the road at the Gloucester Folk Museum. A special rate £10 ticket is available if you’d like to include refreshments.  Please note that refreshments are NOT available on the night without a pre-booked ticket. PLEASE REMEMBER to bring a thick coat - the church can get very cold!
Saturday 14th March ‘‘’Tis but a scratch”, the reality of 15th century Warfare’, with Bob Woosnam-Savage
Medieval arms and armour, and particularly that of the 15th century often conjures up wonderful images of knights and men-at-arms in shining armour together with, what appear to be almost fantastic displays of superb heraldry, perhaps in the form of painted silken banners and ostrich feather panache’s and plumes. Join Bob Woosnam-Savage, Curator of European Edged Weapons at the Royal Armouries in Leeds, as he takes us on an interesting journey. Warning: Contains adult content and images some viewers my find distressing. Tickets £7.50 per person.
10.30am, City Museum CLICK HERE| to purchase your tickets online or telephone (01452) 396131.

‘Richard III’s Heir? – The Dublin King’, with Dr Louis-John Ashdown-Hill
In 1486 – just a year after Henry VII had killed Richard III at the battle of Bosworth and seized the crown - a young man claiming to be a Richard’s heir appeared, to oust the usurper and reclaim the throne for the legitimate royal family. In 1487, he was crowned King of England in Dublin’s cathedral. So who was this boy? Henry VII’s government officially announced that he was an imposter called Lambert Simnel, son of a craftsman from Oxford. But late fifteenth-century Continental and Irish writers insisted that he was Edward, Earl of Warwick, son of Richard III’s brother, the Duke of Clarence. Whoever he was, he had the backing of key members of the Yorkist royal family. In his talk (and in his latest book) John Ashdown-Hill offers new and intriguing evidence regarding the identity of THE DUBLIN KING. Tickets £7.50 per person.
12pm, City Museum
CLICK HERE| to purchase your tickets online or telephone (01452) 396131.
‘Shakespeare and the Remains of Richard III’, with Professor Philip Schwyzer
This talk will be followed by a book signing featuring the publication of the same name. Tickets £7.50 per person.
2pm, City Museum CLICK HERE| to purchase tickets for this event.
Events may be added to the programme above any day, so please check back regularly to make sure you don't miss out.

 

Gloucester