Out and About || Rye Lifeboat Memorial

Hello love birds,

A month or so ago James and I went to Rye Harbour church. We didn't go in but there was one very interesting and sad feature to see in the cemetery. This memorial is a tribute to 17 men who lost their lives in the Mary Stanford Lifeboat tragedy of 1928.

The oldest was 47 and the youngest was 17. Some families lost three men. It is the biggest loss of lives in one incident in RNLI history.

The lifeboat house that the Mary Stanford launched from can be seen in this Snow Patrol video from about the 1 minute mark to 1.15.



Thanks for reading.
Leah xoxo

St Mary's Church & Frewen Mausoleum, Northiam

Hiya loves,

Here's another lovely cemetery we visited, although it was 6 months ago! Bad, bad blogger. These photos just fell through the cracks, but no more. :)

This part of the building you see on your left is the Frewen Mausoleum

The nave and tower of the church are 12th century and there's been a lot of work done in the centuries since. The Frewen Mausoleum is 19th century and was built by one of the Frewens after his wife died. The Frewens were an important family in Northiam. You can read more about the mausoleum here. We couldn't make out what most of the names below the shields said and the church appeared to be closed when we visited. I'd like a look inside. You can read about the church here - it's a long but informative read.

New graves don't interest me at all. I love the mossy, the faded away, the broken and the aged gravestones. I love the history, and wondering who these people were and what life was like when they were alive. I are history nerd. :)

Our next trip to a cemetery will be to a huge 87 acre site in Hastings. We've never visited the biggest graveyard in our (adopted) home town. How daft is that?! I've looked at some photos online and there are some proper bobby dazzler graves so I'm rubbing my hands together with glee at the thought of that.

The ultimate cemetery for me to visit would be Highgate in London (37 acres) - I think I'd burst with joy! Pere Lachaise (110 acres) in Paris looks grand too - Oscar Wilde and Jim Morrison's graves? Hell yeah! I'll hopefully tick Highgate off the list next spring or summer.

Thanks for reading!
Leah xoxo

St Dunstan in the East

Tucked away off the main drag in a quiet street in London is the beautiful ruin of a Christopher Wren church. Bombed in the Second World War and left to ruin, it was eventually turned into a lush garden paradise. Hub-features and I went there a few weeks ago for the first time and spent an hour or so soaking up the surroundings.

The only part of the Wren church which survives is the tower.

If you want to go for yourself you can read more here, including how to find this gem.

Architecture and nature are two of my biggest pleasures in life and I was in heaven on this visit.

Thanks for reading.