Samples – God Save Our Loyal Pubs

Alfred The Great

In 847 Alfred was in full spate and used the famous Blowing Stone in Kingston Lisle in Oxfordshire to summon his army. If this was so he must have had great lungs as well. Most appropriately we have The Blowing Stone Inn nearby and Rugby the public school is only a stone’s throw away. The hospitable Pub will know all about these things and also Rugby Football.

William The Conqueror

1066 The date we all remember. The one and only Pub bearing his name is in Rye, East Sussex, near what remains of the harbour as the sea has receded. There has been some sort of a Pub on the site for many years. The present modest building is almost like a beachside cafe from the outside – the last time I saw it there were even lace curtains. Inside it is very pubby and cosy.

Henry V

Here squeezed in by modern Southampton High Street shops is The Red Lion which was used as a Court Room by this Henry in 1415. Once inside it goes vertical and oozes atmosphere. The high ceiling has the most amazing cruck beams and there is a narrow two-sided gallery where you can sit and see it all from another perspective. For a relatively small pub there is a lot to be seen including Henry V’s very own flag and other intriguing artefacts including a suit of armour. What you can’t see are the cellars with possibly Saxon stonework making this the prime contender for oldest Pub in town. With 21 ghosts it is also highest in the spectre stakes. It seems to have resisted the temptation to be tarted up and the fantastic old solid radiator system which even heats the bar rail dates from 1899. It is an oasis from the West Bay Mammoth Shopping Complex which is currently besieging the City Walls.

Henry VI

In 1440 he founded Eton college in Berkshire on the outskirts of Windsor. In those days the college was for 70 poor boys, not the posh public school it has become since. Just down the road is the Pub bearing his coat of arms as a name. It is comfortable rather than historic with lounge type bars going through to a pleasant patio.

Mary Tudor

What on earth is Mary Tudor doing on the sign of a fine little country Pub called the Queen’s Head tucked away in Barns Green in rural West Sussex? No one seems to know the age or history of the old beamed Pub but I doubt if it goes back to 1553 when Mary gained the throne. Known as ‘Bloody Mary’ she must have been one of the most unpopular monarchs ever.

Edward VI

The Crown in Chiddingfold Surrey was visited by this Monarch in 1542. He was only 14 years old at the time. His entourage overflowed the building which dates from 1258, and camped on the green outside. There was no underage drinking problem as the old Hostelry was not granted an alehouse licence until 1552, in good time for a visit by Elizabeth 1st some years later. It is a fantastic Pub with a simple sumptuousness that appeals. There are several rooms each with their own character, one with a splendid moulded ceiling. There are fine furnishings and fireplaces and a massive long scrubbed table in the front bar. Enough to seat a full cricket team. There is a wonderful mix that works. You can have anything from cream teas to cask ales.

Charles II

In 1667 Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese in an alley in Fleet Street was rebuilt after the fire of London.. And we have a list of 15 sovereigns which make life a little easier for us. This is not to say that any of them popped into the Cheese, but who knows? It was the haunt of local of Dr. Samuel Johnson at one time and must be one of the most visited London Pubs of all time. Under the ownership of the brewers Samuel Smith everything has been kept intact. It really is living history. There is a visitors book that goes back a long long way with many signatures of the great and famous – at least one president of the United States. It keeps on Reigning All the time – but in this instance backwards, as any Pub which has been in continuous use from before 1667 (and you will be surprised how many do) will have a much longer list of reigning monarchs if they cared to mention them.

George III

There have been 6 Georges. This one has his portrait on a very nice sign that that goes well with the colourful hanging baskets that adorn The King’s Head at Beach Street in Deal in Kent, with the date 1764 which we assume must be the date of the portrait in some gallery from which the sign was copied. The Pub itself dates from around 1746 and George himself did not reach the throne until 1760. By 1776 he realised he was not going to be the King of America as well when we lost the War of Independence. This was just as well because now he could concentrate on things closer to hand like preventing Napoleon invading. After this he had bouts of madness which meant he could talk to trees and not have to bother unduly. Surprisingly this did not diminish his popularity. He had become eccentrically English whereas his two predecessors from the House of Hanover were known as the German Georges.