New Course On Windsor's Famous People

Windsor Local History Group has organised new WEA course:

Windsor Personalities: People who are part of our history

Starting on Wednesday 16 January 2008 at the East Berkshire College in St Leonard’s Road Windsor SL4 3AZ the course runs for 9 weeks. Here is what is on offer. Please come and join us. Talks begin at 7.15, and if you have not already signed on please come much earlier than that. The cost is £61.20 with reductions for some people.

16 January: Geoffrey Chaucer, as a young man he was valet in the royal household during the reign of Edward III and Clerk of the King’s Works in the reign of Richard II, speaker Tony Davenport.

23 January: Christopher Wren, left an important architectural legacy in Windsor, he was responsible for building and for influencing major historical buildings in Windsor, his father was connected with works at Windsor Castle, speaker Elias Kupfermann.

30 January: Nell Gwyn and the St Albans family, there is more to Nell Gwynne than being mistress to Charles II; she left behind a legend, a street name, and her descendants contributed to Windsor civic life for a hundred years, speaker Hester Davenport.

4 February: William Herschel, court astronomer to George III and discoverer of Uranus lived in Old Windsor and Slough, speaker Guy Hurst.

13 February: Charles Knight, father and son, exploring their considerable civic personas and the legacy they left to Windsor, speaker Brigitte Mitchell.

27 February: Evelyn Ellis and Tommy Sopwith, Ellis lived in Datchet and is associated with the first car in England in the 1890s, Sopwith visited his family in Datchet and landed his first plane there in 1911, speaker Janet Kennish

5 March: Queen Alexandra, queen consort of Edward VII left a considerable legacy at Windsor Castle, speaker Frances Dimond.

12 March: Daniel Gooch and Brunel, were both linked to Windsor through the Great Western railway, Gooch was responsible for bringing the railway to Windsor and later lived in Clewer, speaker Malcolm Lock.

19 March: James Stanier Clarke, Canon of Windsor, he worked for George III and the Prince Regent, but he achieved much more besides persuading Jane Austin to dedicate Emma to the Prince Regent, speaker Chris Viveash.

Sorry, this course is now full. There will be a new course starting shortly on Windsor In The 20th Century. Details will be available shortly.