This was an all-important meeting, time to review the year gone by and to highlight plans for the year ahead. Judith, our Chairperson, welcomed us all, and regretted the absence of those who couldn’t make the meeting. She then gave a summary of our Ricardian year of 2010 – 2011: the many interesting talks that had been given, such Dorothea’s account of the “Blood and Roses” weekend at Oxford, Dr Penny Bishop’s talk on plagues and pestilences in the Middle Ages , Isolde Martyn on life in Medieval London and the always interesting and innovative Scrabble talks.

Several branch members had attended the biennial Australasian Convention in Melbourne, and Kevin, Julia, Helen and Denise had contributed presentations.

Judith thanked all the committee members for their hard work and contribution during the year, especially welcoming Judy who had joined us mid-year as Treasurer, easing Dorothea’s workload. Read the rest of this entry »

Julia and I were talking yesterday about Alice Chaucer, granddaughter of Geoffrey Chaucer and wife of John de la Pole, duke of Suffolk.  Complementing our discussion is today’s free biography of the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography.  You can find Rowena Archer’s biography of this fascinating woman at http://www.oxforddnb.com/public/lotw/1.html, but only during this week.  While you are there make sure that you sign up for the free ‘Lives of the Week’, many of which are relevant to our period of interest.

Illustration: Alice Chaucer’s effigy in Ewelme church (photograph by Dorothea Preis)

We are delighted to welcome a new member to our branch, Barbara Gaskell Denvil.

As I’ve just joined the Richard III Society, NSW Branch, I thought I should introduce myself.

I actually live in Victoria, but having received a strong recommendation from a friend to seek out the inestimable Dorothea Preis, I decided to do just that.

I’m an author, and I’ve recently published my first novel FAIR WEATHER (by BARBARA GASKELL DENVIL $2.99 Amazon Kindle and soon on smashwords.com for all other e.book devices) which is a fantasy set in medieval England around the early 1200s. There’s a fair chunk of historical content, but the basic plot is pure fantasy. It seems quite popular so far and has received some good reviews.

However, my main passion is later medieval history and the life and times of Richard III in particular, which I’ve been researching for years.  My next book which is due out within the month, starts on 22nd August 1485, and covers the first months of Henry VII’s reign. This is called SATIN CINNABAR and several members of the RIIISoc in the UK have been kind enough to give it a firm thumbs up.

I was born in England (near Gloucester, which seems apt) and I hold joint citizenship but have been living here in semi rural isolation for the past 15 years.  I spent the middle years of my life living on a yacht and sailing the Mediterranean, so probably it’s high time I settled down – though itchy feet still keep me restless and dreaming.

Now retired, I’m delighted to take up the love of my youth and once again start writing. When much younger I worked for Books and Bookmen as a critic and reviewer, and published numerous short stories and articles but all that seems centuries ago.  Now the flocks of parrots and the odd wallaby in the garden seems to add piquancy to the medieval intrigues which so inspire me.

I’m delighted to have finally joined the Society, and look forward to many further years of learning – and writing – about Good King Richard.

With the best of luck to all of you.

Cheers, Barbara

Please feel free to visit Barbara’s blog!

Just a short reminder that this coming Saturday, 8 October 2011, the AGM of the NSW Branch will take place.  We meet as usual at the Sydney Mechanics School of Arts, 280 Pitt St, Sydney, at 14h00.

As it is the AGM, a new committee is to be elected.  Our branch has great plans for the future and we need new faces on the committee to achieve these.  We are organising our biennial NSW convention in Mittagong next May and will be hosting the Australasian Convention in 2013 – the year of the 530th anniversary of Richard and Anne’s coronation.  In order to make this an as memorable event as possible we need your assistance.  Please, consider in which way you will be able to help your branch.

If you have not yet done so, you will be able to bring your subscription renewal and payment to the AGM.  Remember, we have to forward our subscriptions to the UK Executive by 14 October 2011.  While the branch covers the banking charges for sending the bulk renewals to the UK, for any subscriptions and renewals received after 14 October, we have to ask you for an extra $20 to cover the cost of sending individual subscriptions.

However, our AGM will not just cover the necessary administrative matters, but will of course also feature an interesting talk.  Our Chairperson Judith will talk on Hildegard of Bingen,  It should be interesting to find out more about this multi-talented 12th century lady.

The big problem for the coming weekend is to decide which party to attend.  There is the barbecue in honour of Richard III’s birthday in the Southern Highlands hosted by the NSW Branch of the Richard III Society.  However, if you can’t make this, you might consider the party at the Bosworth Battlefield Heritage Centre.

The Bosworth party in honour of Richard’s 559th birthday will take place from 11h00 to 15h00 on Sunday 2 October 2011.  The highlight will be at 12h00, when King Richard III dressed in full battle armour will tour the courtyard with his ‘men at arms’.

David Sprason, Leicestershire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Adults and Communities, said:

This is a great opportunity to celebrate what would have been Richard III’s 559th Birthday! The Battle of Bosworth was a defining moment in British history and had King Richard lived, the Country may have been on a completely different course. The celebrations at the Battlefield will take visitors back to medieval times and will be a great day out for the whole family.

More info:  ‘You are cordially invited to King Richard III’s Birthday Party!’, In Loughborough

Illustration:  © Andrew Jamieson, www.http://www.jamiesongallery.com

The NSW Branch of the Rchard III Society now has its own facebook page.  Make sure that you visit us!

You can find us here.

Plans are well under way for our day-long conference on Saturday, 12 May next year at the Mittagong RSL from 10h00 – 16h30 (registration from 9h30). We have some interesting speakers lined up to include such subjects as Medieval Coins, the Nevill family, Royal Relics and Richard III on Stage.

Expect the usual raffle, sales tables, quizzes of course, as well as morning and afternoon teas and lunch.  We will arrange somewhere for dinner for those staying on after the conference and, on Sunday, hopefully something as interesting as our last visit to the Southern Highlands for a conference.

Keep the weekend free in your diary for our biennial conference!

The Church of St Mary and St Alkelda in Middleham, North Yorkshire, was elevated by Richard, when still Duke of Gloucester, to the status of a college in 1477 and it retained its collegiate constitution for about 350 years.

The church has a memorial window to Richard III and his family, which was given by the Richard III Society in 1934. The window has St Richard of Chichester, with his emblem of an ox, in the left hand upper light and in the right hand appears St Anne teaching the Virgin to read.  Beneath, in small panels of blue, are figures of King Richard kneeling at a prie-dieu with his son Edward behind him. Facing them is Queen Anne Neville.

A recent inspection of the church fabric revealed the need for extensive repair work, estimated to cost in the region of £160,000

As the church is a Grade I listed building, it is hoped that English Heritage will pick up a large part of the bill, but this will leave the church to raise over £30,000, of which they have about half but need help to raise the rest.

The Ricardian Churches Restoration Fund has made a contribution, but more help is needed.  For us as Ricardians it is important to show our support for this historic church, with its links to Richard III and the Richard III Society.

You can make a donation by cheque (for the details look on the website of the Richard III Society and click on “What’s New?”) or via the Society’s PayPal account. To do this log on to your PayPal account and select the Send Money option. Then select ‘Payment for Services’ option and enter the Society’s e-mail address: ricardianfunds@yahoo.co.uk. Enter the amount to be paid and specify GBP sterling. Please complete the ‘Message to Recipient’ box and enter ‘Middleham Appeal’ This is very important since it is the only way the Society can recognise the transaction and ensure your payment is credited to the Appeal Fund.

Photo:  The Collegiate Church of St Mary and St Alkelda, Middleham (© Copyright Bill Henderson and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence)

The Australian Heraldry Society has yet another intriguing lecture planned.  Those of us who enjoyed hearing Professor Stephanie Trigg from Melbourne University speak a couple of years ago about ‘The Ladies of the Garter’, won’t want to miss ‘The Traditional, the Quaint and the Medieval in Australian Parliamentary Practice’.

Appropriately this will take place in the Parliamentary Theatrette, NSW Parliament House, Macquarie Street, Sydney on Thursday, 13 October 2011.  Entry is by gold coin donation; doors open at 17h45, lecture begins at 18h30.  Refreshments will be served beforehand and, naturally, there will be one of Heraldry Australia’s interesting raffles.

The illustrated talk “explores the medieval component of parliamentary rituals, objects and traditions”… and “the relationship between the medievalism of such objects and practices and the idea of tradition in modern Australian parliamentary practice.”

The Heraldry Society events are always worthwhile, so if you would like to attend  the evening please contact their secretary Stephen Szabo by email:  secretaryATeraldryaustralia.org (replace the word  “AT” with ‘@”).  Please let Julia know if you will be going, too.