Pottage was surprisingly tasty
Gloucestershire Local History Association (GLHA) is a voluntary organisation of around 50 local history groups across Gloucestershire. We aim to promote local history throughout the County and to encourage as many people as possible to become involved in the history of where they live. You can find out more about us at www.gloshistory.org.uk.
One of the Association’s most active members is Chipping Campden History Society, which is currently engaged in a Lottery-funded project to discover more about old Campden House and Gardens.
Chipping Campden History Society reported:
This has been an exciting summer for the project, with some discoveries and some challenges to our assumptions about what Campden House looked like before it was burned down in 1645, only thirty years after it was built. The two Banqueting Houses still exist, at the ends of the terrace in front of the remaining ruin of the main house, together with some ancillary buildings. Using a combination of archaeological digs and documentary research, we are trying to create a view of Sir Baptist Hicks, his buildings and achievements, and his impact on the town.
We have done two digs so far, excavating the parterre and the outline of the building shown by our earlier geophysical survey. In total, twenty-eight volunteers participated - not all at once! The interim report on the two digs has now been completed and a further dig is planned, to explore the conclusions further.
We were able to test our thinking about the design of the house with group outings to Aston Hall and Hatfield House, both built at around the same time; and members have been reporting on their own visits to other houses of the period, providing examples for our attempts to rethink 'the great burnt howse'.
Document research is supporting the archaeology: Gloucestershire Archives has provided a valuable resource with the Hicks-Beach papers that include family wills and some love letters written by Baptist Hicks. Many other old documents have been transcribed, giving a fascinating insight into life and attitudes at the time. Two volunteers have been inspired to sign up for online learning courses, about Jacobean food and Elizabethan life.
The Old Campden House site is owned by the Landmark Trust who opened it to the public one weekend in June. We put up a display and in spite of the very hot weather well over two hundred people came to find out more about our discoveries. On the first day two volunteers sat marking finds and this encouraged interest and conversation.
Two volunteers prepared a session for the top class at St. James' Primary School, taking food and quizzes to show the food eaten by rich and poor people: 'pottage' was surprisingly tasty! The pupils tasted spices and made their own sweetmeats. Then they visited one of the Banqueting Houses to recreate the dessert course, complete with musical accompaniment, 'Greensleeves' on guitars. The sweetmeats were a little the worse for wear, but we offered biscuits from an original recipe.
Many more activities are planned for the second year of the project – so do look at our project blog via www.chippingcampdenhistory.org.uk
