Crossing the Atlantic

I've just returned from a stimulating conference in Plymouth. It began on Independence Day, in the city where the Pilgrim Fathers last left the British Isles as they headed for America.

The conference was organised by the Transatlantic Studies Association - and it was their 15th Annual Conference. The Association brings together many disciplines - so we had a wide menu of workshops - which ranged from literature to history, through International Relations and on to politics. There were also keynote lectures each day. We began with a roundtable involving representatives from sister organisations (I took part on behalf of the American Politics Group). I found the whole conference incredibly stimulating. The conference programme is available here. Recent events - the Brexit vote - dominated discussions and conversations around the conference, as did the upcoming elections in the USA. Delegates came from across Europe and from Canada and the USA.

We also had a dinner at the National Marine Aquarium - which had a fantastic backdrop with fish swimming around as we ate and listened.

Details of the Transatlantic Studies Association can be found at http://www.transatlanticstudies.com

Southampton

On Easter Sunday we headed down to Southampton for a couple of days relaxation before heading to Sheffield and then to Ipswich. We got home last Saturday.

Southampton is a fascinating place for anyone with an interest in history (we also had some good meals there!). The walls that were built in the medieval period can still be seen, and - especially on a quiet Sunday and bank holiday - it's easy to picture the original city. Our hotel was just outside the Westgate (in the sea, then but happily not now).

As the plaque shows it was from there that Henry V and his troops set off for France [and the battle we know of as 'Agincourt' - there's a useful site here about the battle and the museum], and from which the Pilgrim Fathers set off for America. They only got as far as the west of the British Isles before having to return to Plymouth. Finally the Mayflower sailed from there across the Atlantic.

Previous Washminster posts on the Pilgrim Fathers can be found at http://washminster.blogspot.co.uk/2011/12/arrival.html
http://washminster.blogspot.co.uk/2009/11/thanksgiving-day-2009.html
http://washminster.blogspot.co.uk/2007/09/washminster-returns.html
and http://washminster.blogspot.co.uk/2008/08/john-milton.html

We also visited the SeaCity museum, which was excellent - lots on the people who came from; left from and lived in Southampton. There were two excellent exhibitions about the Titanic (one on the ship itself and its sinking; the other on the 'myth' of the Titanic). well worth a visit - particularly if it is a cold and/or wet day.

Further information about visiting Southampton is available here and here.

A brilliant educational video -

It's from the "Horrible Histories", another excellent programme from the BBC.

Arrival

Today is the anniversary of the Pilgrim Father's arrival at Plymouth Rock - in 1620. Their journey had begun many years earlier. The first attempt to escape England was in 1607 when members of the separatist church in Scrooby, Nottinghamshire tried to (illegally) flee the country via Boston, Lincolnshire. They walked across country, paid the captain of a ship to take them to Holland - they were taken onto the ship, but he then betrayed them - which is how they came to be imprisoned in the town & brought before the court in the Guildhall.

The next year they successfully escaped to Holland - where the group (and worshipped) for over a decade. In 1620 - after much planning - they set out for America. The last place their ships left in England was Plymouth in Devon. A website dedicated to the Mayflower Pilgrims in Plymouth, Devon - can be accessed here.

Thanksgiving Day 2009

A Happy Thanksgiving Day to you all!

The traditional 'first Thanksgiving' was held by the Pilgrim Fathers in 1621. One place in England particularly associated with the Pilgrim Fathers is Scrooby in Nottinghamshire. It was here that a separatist church was founded whose members were to be the nucleus of the religious group on the Mayflower. It's a lovely village to visit, not far from Doncaster.


View Larger Map

There are a number of websites about the history of the 'pilgrims' in Scrooby and in the surrounding areas. My favourites are -

The Pilgrim Fathers UK Origins Association - which links to a number of interesting pages and
The Scrooby Village website - which has a number of history articles accessed via the left hand side of the page.