ON the afternoon of February 29, 1672, Charles II and a glittering company of courtiers were honourably received at Lincoln's Inn. The occasion was proudly described in the society's administrative chronicle, known as the Black Books, and is celebrated in a series of early 19th-century heraldic painted panels inserted in the ornate screen of the Inn's Old Hall.
The monarch was met at the gate on Chancery Lane and proceeded to walk in the surrounding gardens to the accompaniment of trumpets and kettle drums played from the roof of one of the buildings. Members of the society then lined his route to the council chamber. From there he went on to view the chapel and, afterwards, took his seat in the hall for dinner.
The king sat under a canopy of estate-a rich overhanging cloth bearing the royal arms at a table enclosed by a rail and was served on bended knee by members of the society. Prince Rupert, who was one of the party, shared the table but all the 'dukes and lords, and... attendants of quality stood by for a period watching the King eat before they were graciously permitted to sit at tables to either side of the hall for their own repast. Throughout this 'most liberal banquet... his Majesty's violins' played from the gallery above the hall screen.
When the meal was concluded, the King called for the Book of Admittance' to the society and with his own hand entered his royal name therein, most graciously condescending to make himself a member thereof." Such an honour, the account smugly observes, was 'not precedented by any former King of this realm.' His royal companions then likewise signed and, borrowing gowns, began waiting at table. Rising from the meal, the King knighted someone from every degree within the hierarchy of the society-two Benchers, a Barrister and a student-and departed.
Bu hikaye Country Life UK dergisinin October 12, 2022 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Giriş Yap
Bu hikaye Country Life UK dergisinin October 12, 2022 sayısından alınmıştır.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
Happiness in small things
Putting life into perspective and forces of nature in farming
Colour vision
In an eye-baffling arrangement of geometric shapes, a sinister-looking clown and a little girl, Test Card F is one of television’s most enduring images, says Rob Crossan
'Without fever there is no creation'
Three of the top 10 operas performed worldwide are by the emotionally volatile Italian composer Giacomo Puccini, who died a century ago. Henrietta Bredin explains how his colourful life influenced his melodramatic plot lines
The colour revolution
Toxic, dull or fast-fading pigments had long made it tricky for artists to paint verdant scenes, but the 19th century ushered in a viridescent explosion of waterlili
Bullace for you
The distinction between plums, damsons and bullaces is sweetly subtle, boiling down to flavour and aesthetics, but don’t eat the stones, warns John Wright
Lights, camera, action!
Three remarkable country houses, two of which have links to the film industry, the other the setting for a top-class croquet tournament, are anything but ordinary
I was on fire for you, where did you go?
In Iceland, a land with no monks or monkeys, our correspondent attempts to master the art of fishing light’ for Salmo salar, by stroking the creases and dimples of the Midfjardara river like the features of a loved one
Bravery bevond belief
A teenager on his gap year who saved a boy and his father from being savaged by a crocodile is one of a host of heroic acts celebrated in a book to mark the 250th anniversary of the Royal Humane Society, says its author Rupert Uloth
Let's get to the bottom of this
Discovering a well on your property can be viewed as a blessing or a curse, but all's well that ends well, says Deborah Nicholls-Lee, as she examines the benefits of a personal water supply
Sing on, sweet bird
An essential component of our emotional relationship with the landscape, the mellifluous song of a thrush shapes the very foundation of human happiness, notes Mark Cocker, as he takes a closer look at this diverse family of birds
