St George’s Day at Cross Bones Graveyard
Published:
April 27, 2009 11:13
by
M
Neighbourhoods: southwark
More than a hundred people gathered for the St George’s Day celebration at the Cross Bones Graveyard shrine in Redcross Way SE1.
St George’s Day celebration at Cross Bones Graveyard
St George’s Day celebration at Cross Bones Graveyard, John Crow performs the 'Dragon Rap'.
St George’s Day celebration at Cross Bones Graveyard, Val Shawcross, Chair of the London Assembly Transport Committee makes promises
St George’s Day celebration at Cross Bones Graveyard, Val Shawcross, Chair of the London Assembly Transport Committee makes promises
St George’s Day celebration at Cross Bones Graveyard, Southwark Council Leader Nick Stanton makes a speech
St George’s Day celebration at Cross Bones Graveyard, Southwark Council Leader Nick Stanton makes a speech
St George’s Day celebration at Cross Bones Graveyard, Poet Niall McDevitt performs a Blake poem
St George’s Day celebration at Cross Bones Graveyard, John Crow
St George’s Day celebration at Cross Bones Graveyard, John Crow
St George’s Day celebration at Cross Bones Graveyard
St George’s Day celebration at Cross Bones Graveyard
St George’s Day celebration at Cross Bones Graveyard, London Shaman John Crow
Local writer John Constable hosted the gathering and performed a Dragon Rap about reclaiming St George – a poem from his book The Southwark Mysteries, a work inspired by Cross Bones. Other participants performed songs and poems focusing on St George as an inclusive symbol of all the many cultures that have helped shape the English character. This diversity was reflected in the crowd, which included people of all ages, cultures and walks of life.
Cross Bones Graveyard was first mentioned by London historian John Stow, who called it the ‘single women’s churchyard’ a reference to the tradition that it was originally a burial ground for prostitutes or ‘Winchester Geese’, those women licensed by the Bishop of Winchester to work within Southwark’s medieval ‘Liberty of the Clink’. By Victorian times it had become a pauper’s graveyard in what was then one of the poorest parts of London.
For more than a decade John Constable and other Friends of Cross Bones have been raising public awareness of this ancient heritage site. Having successfully opposed a previous plan to build tower blocks on the site, the Friends are campaigning for a Garden of Remembrance and people’s park to be created there. They meet at 7pm on the 23rd of every month to renew the shrine at the gates in Redcross Way and to ‘honour the outcast’.
This St George’s Day celebration was attended by Val Shawcross, Chair of the London Assembly Transport Committee, who told the crowd: ‘We have to have planning protection for this site.’ Southwark Council Leader Nick Stanton HYPERLINK "http://www.london-se1.co.uk/community/councillor/8/nick-stanton" suggested that Cross Bones could be zoned as a park in Southwark’s upcoming supplementary planning guidance.
The event climaxed with the crowd singing: ‘The Green Man is come / To bless our garden’, then a libation of gin was offered as everyone called out a blessing for the Spirit of Cross Bones: ‘Goose may you never be hungry. Goose may you never be thirsty. Goose may your Spirit fly free!’
Links:
The Cross Bones Graveyard official site
MaxKollective photos of the Cross Bones Graveyard
photographs of past events at the Cross Bones Graveyard
Contact email: m@s-kollective.com
Additions
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Published: April 27, 2009 11:31
by
your name
look perhaps the above was too hasty. i understand the aims of the people and so on and there is merit in it i just think why tie it with st georges. we all know the diversity that has formed the culture here but we don't need to 'reclaim' anything of this sort. it was hard enough reading billy bragg's (who i admire much) 'progressive patriot' book. i know this is all meant well but i believe it is misdirected energy. well good luck with the real substance behind the event anyway.
Reclaim St George?
Published: April 27, 2009 11:58
by
John Crow
The act of 'reclaiming' any cultural myth or icon is clearly fraught with dangers and contradictions. That said, St George has become identified in many people's minds purely with nationalism, militarism and bigotry - thereby denying access to his more interesting archetypal potencies. And where better to attempt a redefinition of his attributes than in Red Cross Way, just north of St George's Fields. If George isn't your Martyr of choice, please feel free to support the campaign to establish a Garden of Remembrance for the outcast dead (and living): http://www.gopetition.co.uk/online/21659.html
Of course any politician's promise needs to be taken with a hefty dose of salt. Nevertheless, having worked to protect Cross Bones by sympathetic magic and direct action for more than 10 years, some of us have come to realise that such little bureaucratic victories, such as zoning Cross Bones as a park in a Council planning brief, may ultimately be the surest way to underpin and reinforce our work. I understand your qualms about allowing any establishment to even partially identify itself with an alternative project like this, yet I feel that to absolutely reject ANY support from the mainstream is to condemn such work to the temporary self-gratification of gesture politics.
i see
Published: April 28, 2009 15:13
by
your name
Thanks for the link. Perhaps i will do abit of reading on the st george myth to see what you mean. My qualms are not with allowing the establishment links with projects, on the contrary i support that kind of thing fully im not one of these holier than thou sorts who doesn't want to be 'contaminated' by the 'system'. My problem was more with my immediate reaction to the name southwark council who are fairly notorious thanks to certain ill decisions in the past such as the 'reclaiming' of the spike and hence i made the link with this idea of reclamation. Sorry, was abit of a bitter joke but there we go, was just an immediate reaction.
Best of luck with progress i'm sure everyone reading will check out the link for sure
much thanks
Thanks
Published: May 23, 2009 00:08
by
John Crow
Thanks for the Open Mind.
re: commentary on the photos: 'Val Shawcross makes promises.' At a time when cynicism about politicians and their motives is pretty much universal, I respect her - and Nick Stanton too - not least for coming to speak outside a people's shrine to the motley crew that is the Friends of Cross Bones, meeting the people like proper 'old school' politicians. All are welcome to join us at 6.45pm on the 23rd of every month at this shrine in Redcross Way, SE1.
http://www.crossbones.org.uk
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yawn
we should remember that without the state there can be no nationalism and without nationalism and the state there can be no war. this talk of 'reclaiming' this and that bothers me. One can appreciate elements of english culture and various writers, groups, music etc. without being a nationalist. The best contributions to human thought from this island have largely been from those who are anti-nationalists. taking pride in those aspects does not require this flag waving nonsense. anything involving southwark council members can't be expected to use intelligence though now can it. Where's the spike surplus scheme when real inclusive community celebrations would have happened in future?? oh yea. you 'reclaimed' that as well!