So Many English Things This Week!

 Greetings to my fellow cocooning friends!
Some days have not a lot going on, and it is difficult to find interesting things to blog about.
However... April 23rd, actually has too many things!

First of all...today, April 23rd is St. George's Day, and St. George is the symbol of England...not the Union Jack....

 Which is thy symbol of the United Kingdom, but this is the flag of England...it's the symbol on the National teams of England. St. George is the patron saint of England and believed to have died on April 23rd. 
He is thought to have been a Roman soldier, and, of course...reputed to have killed a dragon.....

 This is a Dunoon, England bone china mug we have at Time Was Antiques with the ubiquitous image of the St. George Cross, symbol of England...so...

April 23rd is also famous in England because it is celebrated as Shakespeare's birthday in 1564, and also his date of death in 1616...

 which is a big deal in parts of England...especially Stratford-upon-Avon where he lived...big celebrations there every year...

 This the is Church Of The Holy Trinity in Stratford where the Bard is buried...

This is a cake plate from 1904-1906 of the church...

And Shaespeares gravestone within the church. My husband was born just a few miles from here, so we have visitied many times and loved rambling along the River Avon along the picturesque Shakespeare Trail.

Speaking of my husband... 

April 23rd in the anniversary of the founding of the Coldstream Guards, a unit of the Queen' Own Guards brigade of 5 units, and special to us because it was my husband's old unit. For more on the guards, I have posted previously about it HERE

The Coldstream Guards is a part of the Guards Division, Foot Guards regiments of the British Army. It is the oldest regiment in the British Army in continuous active service, originating in Coldstream, Scotland, in 1650 when General George Monck founded the regiment.

My husband has some great stories of his time in the Guards, and guarding the Queen at Buckingham Palace.... 

 

And on April 23rd of last year, Prince Louis was born... third child of the Duke & Duchess of Cambridge...

 

 

This photo was just released by his Mum Catherine for his second birthday... obviously an enthusiastic finger painter!

 

 

So wishing you a wonderful day celebrating a lot of things British! We will be flying the flag outside again!

Cheers!

Prince Louis of Cambridge First Birthday April 23rd, Shakespeare And St. George and More!

source: minimiddleton.tumblr

Hello there. Thanks for joining me for a post about English birthdays...

The youngest being little Prince Louis, son of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge who turns one year old today... April 23rd. The photo was taken by his mother, Catherine. So cute!

Wonder if he will face plant in his cake... if he does, it will be publicized!

This was taken of the entire Cambridge family in 2018 when Louis was 6 months old at Amner Hall near Sandringham...

Also...today is St. George's Day, and St. George is the symbol flag of England... ask any English sport fan...not the Union Jack....

 Which is the symbol of the United Kingdom, but the flag of St. George, or the George Cross is the flag of England, and is the symbol on the National teams of England. St. George is the patron saint of England and believed to have died on April 23rd. He is thought to have been a Roman soldier, and, of course...reputed to have killed a dragon.....

 This is a Dunoon, England bone china mug we have at Time Was Antiques with the ubiquitous image of the St. George Cross, symbol of England...so...

April 23rd is also famous in England because it is celebrated as William Shakespeare's birthday...

 

Who has the added distinction to be thought to have been born on April 23, 1564 and died on the same day in 1616...

 

 

We have just added an 1896 volume of Shakespeare's play King Henry IV part II that even has an actual etching of a castle bound into the book... click on the photo for more info at Time Was Antiques

And, lastly, April 23rd is also the anniversary of the founding of the Coldstream Guards, a unit of the Queen's Brigade of Guards... 5 units, and special to us because it was my husband's old unit. They take turns being actually a crack infantry unit mixed with guarding royal properties including Buckingham Palace...you know, changing the guard, etc. He has some great stories of his times on guard.  For more on the guards, I have posted previously about it HERE

 So... thanks for joining me!

Shakespeare Time! April 23rd Shakespeare's Birthday And Death Anniversary

Hello there....and welcome to Time Was Antiques blog...

 I just wanted to pop in today, as April 23rd is the anniversary of both William Shakespeare's birth and his death...The above image is my favorite, although probably decidedly glamorized, but the one below is the more often seen image of Shakespeare...ubiquitous even!
This engraving was made by Martin Droeshout for the First Folio, published in 1623.

William Shakespeare was born in 1564 on April 23rd and dies on April 23rd 1616...amazing coincidence...and what an influence his works have had on the world...

 This is SHakespeare's recreated Globe theater on Southwark on the Thames in London, while the Globe in Stratford is more modern. His plays are still some of the most produced world wide, and quotes from his works are only surpassed by quotes from the Bible as the most used.

Last year, on the anniversary of his death, the Old Vic in Stratford, England...a place we are very familiar with as my husband was born a few miles from there... had a 24 hour Shakespeare reading session with various famous actors called "Tea With Shakespeare". He is certainly a figure recognizable around the world. 

so....

Happy Birthday Shakespeare! 

Something else I am excited about...

the re-launch of my English antiques website

Time Was Antiques

I have changed website hosts, and am very excited about the new one!

I would love you to come by and visit! 

Hope you have a wonderful weekend!