In the first Tuesday Talk of 2019, Alan Green will be talking about the fascinating histories of what became known as The Little Churches of Chichester. Chichester was once the most pious of cities. In Pre-Reformation times there were nine parish churches, three chapels, a cathedral and two friaries all within its walls. Of these…
Tag: Chichester
Historic baking – Little almond cakes
Like most people I like baking and cooking, so when Lauren (our Searchroom Archivist) set the challenge to try some historic recipes from the archives, I jumped at the chance to have a go. One thing I noticed when going through the recipe books held at the Record Office was that over the centuries, there…
Historic baking – Spanish puffs
On hearing about Lauren’s idea for a blog series based on trying out historical recipes, I was keen to sign up – as a lover of both history (which rather comes with the territory as an archivist…) and, well, food in general it seemed right up my street. After a week or two of procrastination…
The NHS at 70
Susie Duffin, Searchroom Assistant and former Midwife The National Health Service (NHS) was introduced by Aneurin Bevan, Minister of Health, on the ‘appointed day’ of 5 July 1948. It was born out of the ideal that good health care should be available to all, regardless of wealth. There were three core principles: that it should…
The ‘Sussex Declaration’ of Independence held at West Sussex Record Office
Many of our followers will recall the news last year of the 'Sussex Declaration', an early copy of the US Declaration of Independence, and the only other ceremonial copy of the Declaration known to exist besides the signed 1776 copy now displayed at the National Archives in Washington, D.C. Although the manuscript has been catalogued and stored here at West Sussex Record…
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A Call to Arms! – The Royal Sussex Regiment Heritage Project
West Sussex Record Office are developing an exciting new project to catalogue, digitise and provide access to the historic collections of The Royal Sussex Regiment dating back over 260 years. This will be a ground-breaking opportunity to use the combined collections to develop innovative ways for people of all ages across the UK and beyond…
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Priory Park 100
In 2018 it will be 100 years since the Duke of Richmond and Gordon gave Priory Park to the people of Chichester for their leisure and as a perpetual memorial to those who lost their lives in during WWI. Priory Park 100 is an initiative run by the Friends of Priory Park to celebrate this centenary…
International Women’s Day: West Sussex Women and the Centenary of Suffrage
Between the centenary of the Representation of the People Act on 6th Feb 2018, which granted the first women the right to vote, and International Women's Day on 8th March, we have been using Twitter and Instagram to share some of the notable West Sussex women involved in the campaign for suffrage. Using the tag #WestSussexWomen you can follow…
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The Women of Bishop Otter College and the University of Chichester
The University of Chichester (previously known as Bishop Otter College) has a rich history of female leaders - starting with Sarah Trevor, the college's first female principal in 1873, to Professor Jane Longmore, the University’s present day Vice-Chancellor. Sarah Trevor (1873-1895) became principal when the Bishop Otter College reopened as one of the country's first…
Continue reading ➞ The Women of Bishop Otter College and the University of Chichester
Witchcraft and the ‘Wicked Women’ of Sussex
Prior to the British Witchcraft Act of 1735, the infamous witch trails of the Early Modern period saw widespread moral panic sweep through a religiously unstable Europe, resulting in the horrific punishment of individuals for their supposed sorcery. Although no instances of witch drowning or burning have been evidenced in West Sussex, accusations of witchcraft still led to the persecution…
Continue reading ➞ Witchcraft and the ‘Wicked Women’ of Sussex
West Sussex Record Office 