Chairman’s Blog Category
Extraordinary private Napoleonic collection revealed
September 10, 2018 - The Chairman
A unique collection of Napoleonic items is going on show in Paris this week. Just 20 items including this beautiful glass are to be displayed at a special exhibition at the 3oth edition of the La Biennale Paris. Its where spectacular items of all sorts of art are purchased. It is “the storehouse of European […]
Wellington’s Irish birthplace
August 31, 2018 - The Chairman
On our recent trip to Ireland we spent some time in Dublin and were able to visit 24 Upper Merrion Street, Dublin, now the Merrion Hotel. This is allegedly the birthplace of the Great Duke although there is a question that he was born at 6 Merrion Street, very close by. Anyway the Merrion Hotel were […]
Picton’s home goes under the hammer
August 29, 2018 - The Chairman
I read in today’s Country Life that Lieutenant Sir Thomas Picton’s old home in Carmarthenshire is about to go under the hammer. Iscoed Mansion was bought by Picton in 1804 but sadly now it is something of a ruin. It remained in the Picton family until 1919. Whilst much of the estate has been sold […]
Ireland’s Wellington Monument
August 29, 2018 - The Chairman
A number of the Waterloo Association visited Ireland in August to see the many sites of the 1798 Rebellion which few people have heard of. It so nearly toppled the British Empire and yet little is known. More about this later as the subject fits well into the Age of Revolution. But let us start […]
Pondering Wellington’s Monument in Guildhall
July 2, 2018 - The Chairman
Last week I was in Guildhall for the election of sheriffs and this year there was a real competition for the election of the Aldermanic Sheriff. It all took a very long time so my mind wandered to the magnificent marble memorial to Wellington sculpted by John Bell. There are three figures; the main one […]
More on Colonel Harris
July 2, 2018 - The Chairman
I have discovered more about Captain Harris whose coateee was recently DNA tested. Having been wounded he was left in the open on the battlefield overnight and was only found by his Brigade Commander, Hussey Vivian and his cousin Clement Wallington. Harris was so weak he could only whistle quietly but this was enough to […]
The Waterloo jacket of Thomas Harris
June 20, 2018 - The Chairman
An interesting item has come to the fore, and again on the anniversary of the Battle of Waterloo. A jacket worn by Thomas Harris – who was Hussey Vivian’s Brigade Major – was bought at auction by his descendants. A very good effort by them – they took it to Cranfield University to see if […]
Napoleon’s Hat… Again
June 19, 2018 - The Chairman
Would you believe it but another one of these has cropped up in the news. The last one I wrote about some time ago in 2014 had been bought by a South Korean for £1.5m, no doubt to put on President Trump’s head one day! However the illustration below is a part of our own […]
Famous Guide at Waterloo
August 16, 2017 - The Chairman
Through one of Waterloo 200’s associations with the website, The Online Book Company, a fascinating story has come to light. A lady in the United States has unearthed her ancestor as Joseph Munday who was a friend of Sergeant Cotton and took over his guiding business on the battlefield of Waterloo when Cotton died in […]
Wellington Obelisk
August 14, 2017 - The Chairman
I was in Dublin last weekend delving into family history and in the process passed through Phoenix Park where there stands a magnificent obelisk, allegedly the largest in Europe as it stands at 203 feet tall. It is most impressive. The obelisk was designed by the architect Sir Robert Smirke and the foundation stone was laid […]
