Clare Pye and the Civil War in Cheshire

It's always a treat to hear a talk from someone who both knows their subject and is excited about it. So it was when Clare Pye came to talk to us on 28th November. Clare stressed the importance of Cheshire in the Civil War. Who ever held Cheshire controlled the movement of armies down the West side of England and, via Chester, troops from Ireland. Clare described the military encounters in Cheshire from the early battle in Middlewich, the role of Beeston Castle, the decisive battle at Nantwich, the siege of Chester and the King's defeat at Rowton Moor. This military perspective was enhanced by stories of the people involved, of the military commanders, of the great families who had some choice in the side they supported, and of the ordinary folk who had little say.

Christmas lunch Peckforton Castle 12th December

The Society will be holding its Christmas outing at Peckforton Castle. Di Carr has arranged for a tour of the Castle followed by lunch in the 2010 Brasserie.
It would be very helpful to the Castle staff if we could pre-order our meals.
Please click on Menu to see the Brasserie menu. 
Could members please email Di (dianarcarr@btinternet.com) by 6th December to let her know you are coming and what you would like to eat.
Detailed timings will be published shortly. 

The Civil War in Cheshire 28th November

Our next talk will be given by Clare Pye from Manchester Musuem. Clare will be looking at the progress of the Civil War, mostly from 1642-46, emphasising the county's strategic importance in the national struggle, but with a summary of 1646-59 looking ahead to Booth's rebellion in 1659 in order to put that event in context. 

Tiverton Village Hall, 7:30. All welcome.

Cheshire Archives and Local Studies

I have just received the Autumn CALS newsletter. This covers a wide range of local topics from the early history of cycling, 18th century medicine in Chester, school records and information on the First World War among other items. A worthwile read which you can see by clicking on CALS newsletter

The CALs website http://archives.cheshire.gov.uk/default.aspx gives information on this service and on their resources.

Cheshire History

This Society is a member of the Cheshire Local History Association. The Association has just published its annual journal. We have two copies which I will bring to our next meeting in November. In the meantime please contact me (paul.bujac@virgin.net) if you would like to borrow a copy.

Peter Styles and the Geology of Cheshire

The second of this season's talks was given by Professor Peter Styles from Keele University and a local Bunbury resident. Peter took a packed hall on a fascinating whistle stop tour of the last few million years from the influence of plate tectonics, through erosion and glaciations, to the latest thoughts of exploiting geothermal energy.

We were delighted to see both returning and new members and to welcome visitors. Currently we have 47 paid up members.

We were also pleased to see the refurbishments in the Village Hall. These were funded by

WREN (Waste Recycling Environmental Limited).

Geology and Geomorphology of Cheshire 24th October

This month's talk will be given by Professor Peter Styles of Keele University. He notes:

'The United Kingdom has a complicated Geological History with records of almost all parts of the geological record for such a small country as it has been the site of much more dramatic tectonic episodes than we might suspect now from its tranquil repose.

It may not be surprising that Wales and Scotland did not originally form part of what we Geologist call Avalonia but have been forcibly cemented onto the main central block with associated Volcanoes, earthquakes and faulting in the relatively recent past of 500 Million years!

The Cheshire Basin is a consequence of one of those periods of faulting as it sits in a lopsided basin which deepens south-east from the Chester area toward the south and east where the basin may be more than 7 kilometres deep against the Wem-Bridgmere-Red Rock Fault which bounds the basin. A fringe of coal again surrounds this in the Macclesfield area.

Most of the geology of Cheshire has been controlled by this subsiding basin where thick Coal deposits are followed by Red Sandstones and thick Salt deposits , the basis of the Cheshire Chemical Industry, formed as the basin progressively subsided. Later rocks were mostly scraped away by the Ice Age ice sheets which have sculpted the surface leaving the Cheshire plain with occasional interruptions such as the Peckfortons and Alderley Edge where Copper deposits have been exploited along faults.

This lecture will show how the British Isles have formed and specifically how the Geology and Landscape of Cheshire has been superimposed on the framework that Plate Tectonics left us.'

Usual time 7:30 in Tiverton village hall. Visitors welcome.