Tuesday 21 February 2012

A Walk around Lewes, East Sussex






Having left the castle we have walked along part of the High Street where we come to Keere Street on the left where we see this
Fifteen*th Century Bo*ok Shop






As I step through the door on the corner and take a photo of what is obviously a great collection of old children's books a lady immediately appears and very rudely says "delete that immediately" while ushering me to the door and slamming it in my face!
How I wanted to browse those books, seeing many of my childhood favourites, but not now!


Instead we begin to walk down the hill, our intention is to visit "Anne of Cleves" House, a bit of a walk yet



It's mid afternoon and children are on  their way home from  school





We come to Anne of Cleves 15th Century Timber framed house. She was the 4th wife of King Henry VIII
It formed part of Queen Anne's annulment settlement from King Henry in  1541 although she never visited the property



Anne of Cleves was the fourth wife of King Henry VIII; it was a very brief marriage, to the astonishment of all observers but the relief of both spouses. Henry infamously referred to his bride as a 'Flanders mare' and told courtiers and ambassadors that he could not perform his husbandly duties because of Anne's appearance. Anne's reaction to Henry's physical charms was not recorded, but she agreed to an annulment very quickly and remained in England for the rest of her life. Henry was grateful for her cooperation and granted her a generous income and several homes, including Hever Castle. Anne enjoyed an independent lifestyle denied most women, often visiting Henry's court as an honored guest. Her fondness for English ale and gambling were her only vices. Along with her successor as Henry's wife, Catherine Howard, Anne remains a mysterious figure about whom too little is known. Had she and Henry remained married and had children, the course of English history might have changed dramatically. But the mysteries of physical attraction denied Anne her place on the throne, ended the brilliant career of Thomas Cromwell, and thrust the king into the arms of his ill-fated fifth queen, Catherine Howard.


Read the biography of Anne of Cleves.  History buffs can read this biography (which is very interesting and explains much about the time) by clicking on this link









The place is not heated so it closes at 4.30 pm and it is now 4.15 pm so we do not go in to look around


but begin to make our way back to the car instead
We are actually on our way to a conference centre and have access to our room after 4.0 pm and it is extremely cold


Looking back down the hill - note the original cobble stones


Passing Bull House built in 1480 where between 1768 - 1774 lived Thomas Paine, writer and revolutionary


and back past the castle entrance


through the Barbican arch


passing some tiny cottages


and do you feel you are being watched while walking past this door


Interesting the late afternoon sun shining on the castle as it goes down. Another 5 minutes and we will be back to the car.



19 comments:

Anonymous said...

Looks like a lovely place, and definitely added to my 'places to see' list. I was just thinking what a wonderful book shop when I read on and decided perhaps not! What a rude woman, you ought to email a copy of this post! She not only lost your custom, but I would avoid the shop too now.

Margaret said...

This spring, we will be traveling to England on vacation. Your blog is a source of inspiration. So many places to visit! Thank you.

I'm mostly known as 'MA' said...

Too bad about that old book shop...it would have been a place I'd have liked to browsed too. Such lovely sights and history there. Glad though that you were doing the walking in the cold and not me. Thank you for sharing!

Lorrie said...

I always felt sorry for Anne of Cleves, but it appears she lived a relatively content life in spite of it all.

Adrienne said...

I'm so sorry the book shopkeeper treated you so rudely! I think anyone reading your blog won't want to visit her shop again. She might be surprised to know that she not only lost your business but the business of people all around the world! She certainly could have handled things with much more finesse. I loved the door with the face - and the history of Anne.
~Adrienne~

Needled Mom said...

What an interesting place to visit. I loved the little history lesson too.

What a rude way to treat a customer!!! I see you did not "delete immediately" as ordered. ;-)

Loved the whimsical door!

HOPE said...

Such a shame the bookstore lady..if she only knew!

and..oh how funny the DOOR with the face!!

Such a wonderful walk with you..wish I was there in person.

Thank you!!
HOPE

Scriptor Senex said...

Another great walk, of course.

How sad that an experience which could have been so wonderful - the old bookshop - was turned into something unpleasant. When I saw your photos I was imagining my comment about 'Gosh, that's a bookshop, I'd love to spend hours in'. But now, I would touch it with a barge pole. Do people who are trying to sell things not realise how custoners should be treated? Even if she had a valid reason for not having the shop photographed (which is hard to imagine) she could have approached you so very differently and asked politely what your intentions were. So sad.

However, I'm not going to let her ruin my walk so I must pop over to a friend's e-mail and tell her about your blog. She lives in the Outer Hebrides but comes from Lewes. Lewes to Lewis! She' love this trip of yours.

bristowmom said...

Once again as I read your blog I think "I wish I could visit England". Sigh...

Lori Zehr said...

Lovely pictures as usual!

Patsy said...

I enjoyed this post very much.
Thanks for asking , The Bennie is well and doing so good. I hope your hubby is doing much better.

bristowmom said...

P.S. I read the biography. I think Anne of Cleves got a sweet deal! At least she didn't lose her head.

nikkipolani said...

Barbara, what a visual treat to see all the structures and textures you saw in your ramblings. I love seeing the bricks and stones and tiles. That book collection would have been fun to peruse, but obviously not camera-friendly! Oh well.

Vee said...

Fascinating biography of Anne. She sounds like a woman who knew exactly how to keep her head and one who fell in to a bit of a mess and came out quite well. I had to laugh at the young lady of Milan's comment.

How rude of the owner of the bookstore. I had a similar incident happen quite awhile ago now with someone who gave permission and then changed his mind. He stood over my shoulder watching as I deleted every photo.

Sara at Come Away With Me said...

Yes, that is quite a door! What a face he has. I loved this post, Barbara, I think because of all those old buildings and their history, and of course, the bookshop with the rude proprietor. I'm glad you did NOT delete the photo! And she probably lost a customer too, since you did not buy any books there.

Now I'm going to click the link to Anne of Cleve's biography.

Arlene said...

First time I'm posting but have been reading your blog for awhile now. Love all the photos you took of Lewes. Love all the historical houses and the castle. Too bad about the book shop. It looked amazing and I would certainly loved to have visited it. What did the woman think you were going to do with the photos? Can't imagine. Thanks for sharing.

Cathyjo said...

Thanks agin for sahing,it's the only way I get to travle and see the wrold.

Denise said...

Such a delightful walk, even if it was cold! I wish there was a "like" button for individual photos, there are so many I just love :-)

Unknown said...

Hello Barbara
Have been reading a wonderful book about the Ouse by Olivia Laing (To the River). She writes engagingly about Lewes, so i looked for pictures of that town on my iPad, and consequently came upon your marvellous pictures and comments. So glad you are blogging about your life and travels (!) You now have a friend in the Cowichan Valley on Vancouver Island, BC, Canada :)