Chairman Tony Brown welcomed club members to the 505th meeting of Henley Probus Club and ,following a short business update including a report from the Treasurer, the Chairman introduced John Brearley who gave a talk, assisted by a slide presentation ,about Medieval England.
John talked about the period 11th to the 13th century (the Medieval Period) and he started his talk by reminding the audience of the lasting legacy left by the Romans in respect of the infrastructure created by them in England in c. 300 BC. In the 11th century William the Conqueror invaded England and proceeded to allocate land to nobles who utilised the land by introducing farming as a ‘profession’ ;the Normans who came to England with William were skilled builders and they commenced with the construction of sophisticated buildings (such as St Paul’s Cathedral and the Palace of Westminster), castles across England(3 in London), and churches/monastaries throughout the country.
The original buildings were constructed in stone but in time wood(oak) became the prime material for building construction; John’s slides showed a number of such buildings across the country. During this period, the technological and agricultural innovations allowed trade to flourish and was the period that was the start of apprenticeships and guilds which led to further economic growth.
The talk concluded with questions from the audience followed by a very warm message of thanks and appreciation from Club members.
