AS is so often the case, it began with legend, when the robin’s bold frontal display was interpreted as blood. The compassionate little bird had perched on the shoulder of Christ on the cross, singing a melody to console him and trying to pull out the thorns of the crown that pierced his brow, thereby covering its face, neck, and breast in gore. This tale goes way back. It was related in the 6th century, if not sooner, by Kentigern, Bishop of Cumbria (COUNTRY LIFE, May 27), who is remembered there with six churches dedicated to him and four more in Scotland, including Glasgow Cathedral. Also known as Mungo, St Kentigern was famed for bringing back to life by prayer a robin so tame it was fed by hand—it had been killed by boys jealous of the affection it enjoyed.
The notion of the blood-stained robin was established and, in his late-14th-century poem The Parlement of Foules, Chaucer referred to ‘Robert redbreast’—the first recorded example of a bird given a human name (and hence of anthropomorphism) in the English language. Also well established was the belief in robin’s sympathetic nature. Babes in the Wood, an anonymous ballad first published in Norwich in 1595, based on a traditional tale and subsequently incorporated into pantomime, ended with the lines: ‘No burial these pretty babes/Of any man receives,/Till Robin Redbreast painfully/Did cover them with leaves.’
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Kitchen garden cook - Apples
'Sweet and crisp, apples are the epitome of autumn flavour'
The original Mr Rochester
Three classic houses in North Yorkshire have come to the market; the owner of one inspired Charlotte Brontë to write Jane Eyre
Get it write
Desks, once akin to instruments of torture for scribes, have become cherished repositories of memories and secrets. Matthew Dennison charts their evolution
'Sloes hath ben my food'
A possible paint for the Picts and a definite culprit in tea fraud, the cheek-suckingly sour sloe's spiritual home is indisputably in gin, says John Wright
Souvenirs of greatness
FOR many years, some large boxes have been stored and forgotten in the dark recesses of the garage. Unpacked last week, the contents turned out to be pots: some, perhaps, nearing a century old—dense terracotta, of interesting provenance.
Plants for plants' sake
The garden at Hergest Croft, Herefordshire The home of Edward Banks The Banks family is synonymous with an extraordinary collection of trees and shrubs, many of which are presents from distinguished friends, garnered over two centuries. Be prepared to be amazed, says Charles Quest-Ritson
Capturing the castle
Seventy years after Christian Dior’s last fashion show in Scotland, the brand returned under creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri for a celebratory event honouring local craftsmanship, the beauty of the land and the Auld Alliance, explains Kim Parker
Nature's own cathedral
Our tallest native tree 'most lovely of all', the stately beech creates a shaded environment that few plants can survive. John Lewis-Stempel ventures into the enchanted woods
All that money could buy
A new book explores the lost riches of London's grand houses. Its author, Steven Brindle, looks at the residences of plutocrats built by the nouveaux riches of the late-Victorian and Edwardian ages
In with the old
Diamonds are meant to sparkle in candlelight, but many now gather dust in jewellery boxes. To wear them today, we may need to reimagine them, as Hetty Lintell discovers with her grandmother's jewellery
