Tudor Kentwell from the eyes of a reenactor

What it's like behind the tudor recreations at Kentwell Hall (www.kentwell.co.uk)

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Location: United Kingdom

I LOVE social history.

Tuesday, April 10, 2007

Eastertide


Good Friday

Started off the day not knowing much, but soon picked up a few useful bits – how much yeast to put in the alebalm and what Holy manchets are actually for (hanging in your cott to bring luck for a year!)
Unfortunately there isn’t much flour – they ordered the usual amount, but the bags are smaller.


Saturday

Well, we obviously baked some bread today! What made my day was that I got to sing to the gentry (from the gallery) with Honour, Jennyt, Mary, James, Kitty and Ned. We sang ‘Green Groweth the Holly’ and ‘Love Has Come Again’.
Tissy came round this afternoon and said that we were good and enjoyed us singing and we sang GGTH to her. Margaret the housekeeper said the same about us.
Anyway, we’ll be back there tomorrow performing right in front of the gentry!
We also had some apricots with some icing in and a sultana on the top! They were really yummy – I must try making some!


Easter Sunday

I was known as and called ‘Cross’ Annis today because i put about 99% of all the crosses on the Holy manchets (all Mary’s fault!)
Sang to the gentry which was really good and they liked it! Honour let me use one of her drums for the prosession into the hall and one or two other songs. It was a pity that most of us couldn’t remember all the words to GGTH! Then Honour, Jennyt, Ned and me started singing on the courtyard afterwards and there was a large crowd!
Dot and I took some Holy manchets about the manor to sell for charity, although she did all the talking.
When the woodmen came in the afternoon, they suggested that Mary got her snips on Dot’s shift (to make it lower) and then, i think, Mary (or one of the woodmen) lead it onto me! Apparently I was smiling innocently all the way through!
Tamsin gave me some mini eggs at breakfast, Tissy came round with some and so did Aimee from the stillroom. It was all very well indeed!


Easter Monday

Had lots of yummy food from the kitchen – welsh cakes and something like stuffing which was fashioned and decorated to look like a hedgehog, to name but a few.
We decorated some bread rolls to look like ducklings and I got to take them to high board – they were liked very much!
I didn’t sing to the gentry today, but Ned thanked me for what i did.
I took some bread to the cott (stuff that was made yesterday) which they were greatful for as they were to make some gingerbread and cheesy farts. Pity I didn’t notice the hanging coney with the bloody (as in covered in blood) nose! I got some blood on my hat! But luckily it came off.
I watched the childer’s play which was very good and funny!
Oh yes, I forgot to say that I overheard Mary and Beth (from the dairy) sing my praises in the activities room – I think they think very highly of me!

1 Comments:

Blogger Poodle said...

And so they should sing your praises! You sound like a hard worker to me. I have really enjoyed reading about your Kentwell experiences. :-)

1:19 PM  

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