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GLOUCESTERSHIRE DID YOU KNOW

The Royal Connection

Sudeley Castle, in Gloucestershire, is unique among private castles in England but I'm not going to tell you why yet. It was built in the 15th century and passed through various owners. The future Richard III used the castle as his base during the Battle of Tewksbury in 1471. When Richard became King, the castle became the property of the Crown. Henry VIII visited with Anne Boleyn (wife number 2). After Henry's death in 1547 his son, Edward VI gave the castle to his uncle Thomas Seymour, brother of Jane Seymour (wife number 3). Seymour then married Catherine Parr (who had been Henry VIII's wife number 6).

In 1548 Catherine gave birth to a daughter but six days later Catherine died and, this is the unique bit, Catherine Parr was buried in the castle chapel. The castle is then the only private castle to have a queen buried in its grounds. Sudeley is also one of the few castles left in England that is still a residence. As a result, the castle is only open to visitors on specific dates, and private family quarters are closed to the public.

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Gloucestershire Eats

A squab is a young domesticated pigeon. Squab pie is a dish from this area and it would seem to mean that years ago the pie would have contained pigeon but, since 1737 mutton and apples have been used as a substitute. It was a west country dish so we've included it in our fun facts for Gloucestershire, where there is written evidence of it from hundreds of years ago.

The pie is traditionally made with mutton which, if you don't know, is the meat from a sheep more than two years old. Alternate layers of mutton chops and apple are placed in a dish, one layer of onions added, some water and then covered with a shortcrust pastry lid and cooked for two hours. A survey in 2009 said less than 3% of British teenagers had tried the dish. Charles Dickens had some when in Bideford and wrote that the resulting mixture was detestable. Worth a try then.

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Gloucestershire VIPs

Seven random people who were born in Gloucestershire in the last 100 years:-
Eddie (The Eagle) Edwards (Ski Jumper), William Mosely (Actor), J K Rowling (Author), Nathan Sykes (Singer), Kate Thornton (TV Presenter), Martin Kent (Guitarist - Skunk Anansie) and the late Brian Jones (Guitarist and Founder of The Rolling Stones)

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Richard Remembers

Last year (2019) my son and his wife, Rachel, came over from New Zealand for a month. They had been over a few years before and we had taken Rachel, who had never been to England before, to see Cornwall. I know Cornwall really well having visited many times and was able to show her many beautiful places. Last year we toyed between the Lake District or the Cotswolds and decided on the latter.

I'd never really spent much time in Gloucestershire so much of it was new to me too. On our second day, in a sudden rain shower, we visited a typical Cotswold village, Bibury. The top two photos are from there. They show, from different angles, the Arlington Row cottages and the first one is possibly the most photographed Cotswold scene. The cottages are a converted wool store, built in 1380, and then used by weavers in the 17th century.

But if I loved that scene, a few days later I was totally blown away when we visited Bourton-on-the-Water, the bottom two photos. It is a totally stunning little village with a tranquil stream running the length of it. Numerous bridges cross the stream, gift shops line one side and there are other attractions too. Bourton is the seventh of my 10 memorable, wow-giving views in England.

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Owlbut's Birdwatch

This is a really pretty and colourful liittle bird, isn't it? It's a goldfinch. They can be found all over England and, in total, there are about 1.2 million breeding pairs. That's a lot. They eat seeds and insects and with their long beaks can extract seeds other birds might not be able to reach.

They grow to about 12cm, have a wingspan of 25cm and weigh between 14 and 19 grams. I don't need to tell you their colouring, you can see it, and it is quite likely you could see one in your garden, especially in the south of England. Some of them will fly off to Spain, France or Belgium for a winter holiday.

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Two extra sections, "It Happened Here" and "Now That's Weird", will appear on 6 January 2025