As the celebrations of the King and Queen’s coronation proceed, one man remembers the final time Britain marked a second like this.
John Reid from Settle, a small market city in North Yorkshire, has vivid recollections of how a rural neighborhood got here collectively for a parade that was a part of a fortnight of celebrations in 1953.
As we walked via the city, the 79-year-old identified elements of the market sq., starting to color an image of a day that has stayed with him his complete life.
“It was all in the market square, hundreds of people, I think it brought all the community together. You never were really split up, no matter what denomination you were, what age you were, you were all brought together and you all celebrated it, from youngsters right to grandparents age.”
As a part of the pageant, he gained first prize for his costume; dressing as an English nobleman. The reward was 10 shillings, which might be just below £18 in as we speak’s foreign money.
“Nana Reid, my dad’s mum, made the costume out of any sort of material she had available and was suitable,” he recalled.
“I probably would have been encouraged to put it in my savings bank, it was a lot of money in 1953.”
For John and his spouse Helen, preserving and defending recollections like these are vital.
Before we strolled via Settle, the pair proudly confirmed me a set of plastic wallets, crammed with pictures and newspaper cuttings about occasions within the city 70 years in the past to commemorate the late Elizabeth II being topped.
“There are not a lot of people living locally who actually can remember these events,” mentioned Helen, “so it’s nice to have it documented. I think it’s very important for the next generations to look back on.”
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For John, a retired joiner, it is also a approach to share his private historical past.
While watching some archive footage from the parade captured on digital camera by Eddie Percy – who was an area plumber and beginner filmmaker – he picked out and names quite a few individuals having fun with the festivities. Many of these individuals had been his kin.
“Sadly a lot of people aren’t with us anymore, but when our family comes up, I can pass on information, what we did and what we were involved in.”
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In the close by village of Langcliffe, there’s additionally an extended and well-documented historical past of celebrating royal events, with footage relationship again to Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee in 1897.
At the center of festivities shall be a set of banners first utilized in 1935 for the Golden Jubilee of George V, then throughout the reigns of George VI and the late Queen.
One facet of one of many banners is inscribed with the phrases “God save the King”, whereas the opposite facet says, “God save Queen”.
Kate Croll, who lives in Langcliffe, retains them at her house, together with footage and paperwork chronicling greater than a century of historical past.
Talking in regards to the banners she mentioned: “It must have been one of the Queen’s Jubilees when I first saw them, and I was blown away.”
“They’ve been well-used, there’s that continuity there. It’s nearly 90 years since they were made and here we are reusing them,” she mentioned.
In each Langcliffe and Settle, there’s a recognition that this time the occasions in each locations shall be smaller.
“Now I suspect, yes, we will celebrate, but it’s not going to be on the same scale, I’m afraid,” mentioned Kate.
“I think it’s a generation thing, a lot of my generation are looking forward to it very much, but it will a bit more low-key this time round.”
After the celebrations, Kate will flip her consideration to discovering a approach do proudly show the items of historical past she has collected, with plans for an exhibition within the close to future.
“I do think it’s absolutely vital,” she mentioned. “For future generations, I think in the fullness of time they will want to look back.
“To have these information is vital, if earlier generations hadn’t saved them, we would not have them to look again on now.”
Source: information.sky.com”