Read Ebook {PDF EPUB} The Voice from the Garden Pamela Hambro and the Tale of Two Families Before and After the Great War Looking back 100 years to a post-war Suffolk wedding that captured public imagination. On October 22 1919, the first peaceful year since the end of the First World War, the bells of St Clements Church, Ipswich rang out joyfully to herald a significant wedding. Large crowds gathered in the afternoon sunshine to watch the arrival of the bride whose family had been associated with the church and the town for nearly 200 years. Nineteen-year-old Pamela Cobbold was the youngest of three children of John Dupuis Cobbold, head of the brewing family that had brought its business to Ipswich in 1746. In those days Thomas Cobbold and his family lived at Cliff House (later the Brewery Tap) by the River Orwell, where he built the first Cliff Brewery and used for his beer the spring waters of Holywells. A Cobbold and Company Ltd lorry in Ipswich during the early 1930s. (Photograph by The Titshall Brothers) Today, its grounds are enjoyed as a public park, and although the mansion Thomas's grandson built there was demolished in 1962, some outer buildings have been painstakingly restored. Pamela was the last Cobbold to be born at Holywells, something her father did not anticipate as he led his beloved daughter from the house to the waiting carriage. Most Read. 1 20 of the best places to eat out in St Ives 2 6 waterfall walks in Derbyshire and the Peak District 3 12 beautiful waterfalls in Yorkshire 4 11 pretty riverside pubs in Hertfordshire 5 8 great family walks in the North West 6 20 of the best restaurants in Hertfordshire 7 10 great hill walks in Cheshire 8 35 great Surrey pubs with beer gardens and terraces 9 6 walks near Bakewell and Chatsworth House 10 10 of the best restaurants in Hastings. The beautiful floral arrangements adorning St Clements were provided by the Cobbolds' head gardener, Mr Davis, whose "flowers of various hues" set amid "waving plumes of pampas grass" attracted many compliments. He must have been relieved. He had been working under the unerring eye of Pamela's mother, Lady Evelyn Cobbold, an aristocrat and knowledgeable gardener, who enjoyed growing exotic plants in her orangery at Holywells. DAY OUT: A family group at Felixstowe, with nannies, in about 1906. The resort was a favourite destination for members of the Cobbold clan. Pamela is in the middle row, second from the right - Credit: Archant. At the church, Charles Hambro, aged 22, scion of the merchant banking dynasty, waited nervously for "the most wonderful, beautiful girl in the world" to arrive. As a tall, handsome schoolboy, he had met Pamela through his friend, her brother John Murray 'Ivan' Cobbold. After war broke out, aged 18 they joined their families' regiments, Ivan the Scots Guards, Charles the Coldstream Guards. Pamela was close to her brother and feared she would lose both him and her dear friend Charles, who begged her to write to him while he was away. Gradually, their letters changed from jokey humour between friends to something deeper, and he saw her on the few occasions he was home on leave. In 1917 Charles was awarded the Military Cross for bravery during the battle of Passchendaele. He eventually came home in May 1919. Theirs was a short engagement. During one of his leaves, Pamela had lent him a two-shilling piece for a taxi and, as he told her later, "That was the night I really knew!" She accepted his proposal straight away. "Thank God for giving us this," she wrote. SEAT OF A DYNASTY: Holy Wells in Ipswich, which was home to the Cobbold family. This picture shows the orangery and clock tower - Credit: Archant. Her best friend and now chief bridesmaid, exuberant Angy Tollemache, from another brewing family, would miss her. They had planned to buy a farm together in Canada, for which Pamela had been saving her wartime wages from local firm Ransomes. Pamela was also helped in her preparations by her new sister-in-law, for there had been another Cobbold celebration on April 30, when Ivan married Lady Blanche Cavendish, daughter of the 9th Duke of Devonshire. Theirs was another short betrothal. The war, in which Ivan was wounded, had reminded people of the preciousness of life and the need to make the most of it. Pamela was a bridesmaid, along with Blanche's sister, Dorothy, who would marry Harold Macmillan. After the wedding at the Guards' Chapel in London, a reception was held at glorious Lansdowne House, a home of Blanche's mother. Ivan and Blanche returned to Suffolk where he had joined his family's business, living first at Sutton Hoo and later Glemham Hall, where they raised their family of four. HAPPY DAYS: Pamela Cobbold and pony - Credit: Archant. Their two sons would become known as 'the football brothers', walking in Ivan's footsteps in their commitment to Ipswich FC. Meanwhile, at St Clements Church, Pamela walked calmly down the aisle on her father's arm, attended by two young pages and seven bridesmaids in apricot satin. Her Italian-designed dress was of white and silver brocade, with a diamond girdle passing loosely round the waist, one end caught up on her shoulder at the back. Her long veil was secured by a wreath of orange blossom and her jewellery was simple, a pearl necklace and the Coldstream Star of Charles's regiment. A bouquet of lilies and white heather completed her outfit. Blanche was worried that one of the pageboys who was recovering from whooping cough might be sick down Pamela's train. Fortunately he was fine. The Bishop of Edmundsbury and Ipswich conducted the ceremony in which the congregation sang well loved hymns such as Fight the Good Fight, made all the more poignant by memories of the war and the absence of those who had not returned. John Dupuis Cobbold, whose death prompted the breaking of the link between Holy Wells and the family - Credit: Archant. Pamela and Charles made their vows standing on a white rug at the front of the altar and signed the register to the singing of Miss Ivy Lush from the Royal Opera House. Mendelssohn's Wedding March played as they left the church and passed underneath the crossed swords of the guard of honour of Charles's regiment. Everyone enjoyed a lavish reception at Holywells, where the newlyweds posed for pictures inside the orangery. Guests came from a diverse mix of business, aristocracy and the arts, including artist the Hon Marion Saumarez, whose family owned Shrublands Park, and the Tollemaches of Helmingham Hall, who would later join with their old friends to form Tolly Cobbold. Budding politicians mixed with war heroes, including Lord Cranworth, who had won both the Military Cross and the Croix de Guerre, and Mr and Mrs Chevallier, close relations of Lord Kitchener and of the Cobbolds. A Kodak camera and a travelling watch were among the gifts, reflecting the couple's desire to travel. A crocodile skin writing case, and a seal and musquash coat reflected the era. A silver biscuit barrel from Pamela's sister, Winifred, went well with Ivan and Blanche's silver kettle and stand. The cover of the auction catalogue from 1930 as the contents of Holy Wells are sold. Jane Dismore thinks it says 'Remaining Contents' is because some items would have been retained by the Cobbold family - Credit: Archant. Pamela, never one for dressing up, nevertheless looked forward to wearing her new jewellery at one of Charles's business functions, for he would be joining his family's bank. As Pamela and Charles began their honeymoon at Rannoch Lodge on her father's Scottish estate, Ivan and Blanche looked forward to their first child, expected the following May. Such hopeful beginnings - but nothing lasts forever. John Dupuis Cobbold and Lady Evelyn separated in 1922. After his death in 1930 the Holywells estate was sold, although the brewery continued to flourish. Ivan's death came during the Second World War on June 18, 1944, when a doodlebug fell on Guards Chapel, where he and Blanche had just celebrated their silver wedding. Pamela and Charles enjoyed a happy marriage and four children. At Holywells today, on the lawns where the Cobbolds hosted summer parties, in the orangery where the newlyweds kissed a century ago, and in the stable block where Pamela kept the horses she loved to ride, there remains a sense of the vitality of a family who for generations were part of the fabric of Suffolk. Duchesses - Living in 21st Century Britain. The title of 'duchess' has long been part of Britain's heritage. In 2011, it was brought up to date with the marriage of Prince William and Catherine Middleton, when the Queen conferred a number of titles on her grandson, among them Duke of Cambridge. Catherine joined that select group of the highest ranking duchesses, well-know royals whose husbands are dukes as members of the Royal Family. But another group of women sit just one notch down from royalty, at the top of the aristocratic tree with their dukes. These non . Read More. The title of 'duchess' has long been part of Britain's heritage. In 2011, it was brought up to date with the marriage of Prince William and Catherine Middleton, when the Queen conferred a number of titles on her grandson, among them Duke of Cambridge. Catherine joined that select group of the highest ranking duchesses, well-know royals whose husbands are dukes as members of the Royal Family. But another group of women sit just one notch down from royalty, at the top of the aristocratic tree with their dukes. These non-royal duchesses enjoy titles that were bestowed by monarchs for centuries but they are a dying breed: it is unlikely that any more non-royal dukedoms will be created. Here, for the first time, ten of Britain's non-royal duchesses speak candidly about their role and their lives in the 21st century, an era when privilege is an unpopular concept. Each duchess also selects her favourite ancestor in the role, providing a colourful gallery from the 17th to the 20th century. The parallel biographies provide a thought-provoking comparison - for what does it mean to be a duchess in the 21st century? The results are often surprising and always fascinating. Read Less. All Copies ( 9 ) Hardcover ( 9 ) Choose Edition ( 1 ) Book Details Seller Sort. 2014, BLINK Publishing. Gillingham, KENT, UNITED KINGDOM. Edition: 2014, BLINK Publishing Hardcover, Very Good Available Copies: 3 Details: ISBN: 1905825854 ISBN-13: 9781905825851 Pages: 288 Publisher: BLINK Publishing Published: 2014 Alibris ID: 16504496783 Shipping Options: Standard Shipping: $3.99. Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination. Seller's Description: Very good. Ready to dispatch from the UK. ► Contact This Seller. 2014, BLINK Publishing. Milton Keynes, BUCKINGHAMSHIRE, UNITED KINGDOM. Edition: 2014, BLINK Publishing Hardcover, Good Available Copies: 4 Details: ISBN: 1905825854 ISBN-13: 9781905825851 Pages: 288 Publisher: BLINK Publishing Published: 09/04/2014 Alibris ID: 15374065597 Shipping Options: Standard Shipping: $3.99. Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination. Seller's Description: **Simply Brit** Shipped with Premium postal service within 24 hours from the UK with impressive delivery time. We have dispatched from our book depository; items of good condition to over ten million satisfied customers worldwide. We are committed to providing you with reliable and efficient service at all times. ► Contact This Seller. 2014, BLINK Publishing. London, UNITED KINGDOM. Edition: 2014, BLINK Publishing Hardcover, Good Available Copies: 3 Details: ISBN: 1905825854 ISBN-13: 9781905825851 Pages: 288 Publisher: BLINK Publishing Published: 09/04/2014 Alibris ID: 16147805194 Shipping Options: Standard Shipping: $3.99. Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination. Seller's Description: Good. **SHIPPED FROM UK** We believe you will be completely satisfied with our quick and reliable service. All orders are dispatched as swiftly as possible! Buy with confidence! ► Contact This Seller. 2014, BLINK Publishing. Ammanford, CARMS, UNITED KINGDOM. Edition: 2014, BLINK Publishing Hardcover, Very Good Details: ISBN: 1905825854 ISBN-13: 9781905825851 Pages: 288 Publisher: BLINK Publishing Published: 2014 Alibris ID: 16508449397 Shipping Options: Standard Shipping: $3.99. Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination. Seller's Description: Very good. All orders are dispatched within 1 working day from our UK warehouse. Established in 2004, we are dedicated to recycling unwanted books on behalf of a number of UK charities who benefit from added revenue through the sale of their books plus huge savings in waste disposal. No quibble refund if not completely satisfied. ► Contact This Seller. 2014, BLINK Publishing. Wilmington, DE, USA. Edition: 2014, BLINK Publishing Hardcover, New Available Copies: 10+ Details: ISBN: 1905825854 ISBN-13: 9781905825851 Pages: 288 Publisher: BLINK Publishing Published: 09/2014 Alibris ID: 16674192839 Shipping Options: Standard Shipping: $3.99. Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination. Seller's Description: New. BRAND NEW BOOK! Shipped within 24-48 hours. Normal delivery time is 5-12 days. Please note some orders may be shipped from UK with same delivery timeframe, ***NO EXPEDITED ORDERS*** ► Contact This Seller. 2014, BLINK Publishing. Edition: 2014, BLINK Publishing Hardcover, Good Details: ISBN: 1905825854 ISBN-13: 9781905825851 Pages: 288 Publisher: BLINK Publishing Published: 09/2014 Alibris ID: 16556485859 Shipping Options: Standard Shipping: $3.99 Trackable Expedited: $7.99. Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination. Seller's Description: Good. ► Contact This Seller. 2014, BLINK Publishing. Edition: 2014, BLINK Publishing Hardcover, New Available Copies: 5 Details: ISBN: 1905825854 ISBN-13: 9781905825851 Pages: 288 Publisher: BLINK Publishing Published: 2014 Alibris ID: 16563212967 Shipping Options: Standard Shipping: $3.99. Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination. Seller's Description: New. Ten of Britain's non-royal Duchesses speak candidly about their role and their lives in the 21st century, an era when privilege is an unpopular concept Num Pages: 288 pages, illustrations (colour). BIC Classification: 1DBK; 3JM; HBJD1; HBTB. Category: (G) General (US: Trade). Dimension: 196 x 249 x 19. Weight in Grams: 974. 2014. Hardcover. We ship daily from our Bookshop. ► Contact This Seller. 2014, BLINK Publishing. Southport, MERSEYSIDE, UNITED KINGDOM. Edition: 2014, BLINK Publishing Hardcover, New Details: ISBN: 1905825854 ISBN-13: 9781905825851 Pages: 288 Publisher: BLINK Publishing Published: 2014 Alibris ID: 16148528897 Shipping Options: Standard Shipping: $3.99. Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination. THE VOICE FROM THE GARDEN. In 1900 few people could have imagined that their world would change so drastically in such a short time. The shell-shocked society that emerged from the Great War was at once less unequal and more demanding, more hopeful and yet less certain, than the old. The Voice from the Garden opens a window onto these two worlds through Pamela and her families. The daughter of a doomed union between trade and title, Pamela was born into the Cobbold brewing family of Suffolk and married into the famous merchant banking dynasty, the Hambros. Wealthy the families may have been, but money is no protection against the loss caused by war or the frailties of human nature. From an extraordinary period of social and economic change, here are fascinating characters, mystery, adultery, despair and hope. It is a unique tale, at the heart of which lies the love story of Pamela and Charles. NEW ANGLE PRIZE FOR LITERATURE. In 2013, the book was selected for the long list of 12 for the New Angle Prize for Literature, a literary competition for books about or inspired by East Anglia. In the announcement the judges, Dr Jo Catling, the writer Esther Freud, and previous winner Jim Kelly, said of the book: “A meticulous and captivating reconstruction of the life of Pamela Hambro – of the East Anglian Cobbold family – and the impact of the First World War on her life.” In a discussion with the judges on BBC Radio Suffolk, one of the panel judges said it was “a great way to read history.” 2015 IPSWICH STAR ARTICLE ABOUT COBBOLD BREWERY. THE GRAND RE-OPENING AFTER RESTORATION OF HOLYWELLS PARK ON 18TH JULY 2015. The author with Pamela’s great nephew, Philip Hope Cobbold, and Anthony Cobbold. The Grand re-opening with the restored greenhouse in the background and the redesigned stable block in the right picture. Princess : The Early Life of Queen Elizabeth II. Available. Expected delivery to the Russian Federation in 9-21 business days. Description. In November 2017 the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary. As a 13-year-old Princess, she fell in love with Prince Philip of Greece, an ambitious naval cadet, and they married when she was 21; when she suddenly became Queen at 25, their lives changed forever. Philip has been her great support, but fortunately she also had a solid foundation that helped prepare her for a life dedicated to duty. With previously unpublished material and unique memories from friends and relatives who have known her since childhood, this book looks afresh and in richer depth at her life as Princess, glittering yet isolating. Vivid detail and anecdotes reveal more about her, the era in which she grew up and the people who shaped her life. The archives of royal confidante Lady Desborough and Private Secretary Sir Alec Hardinge reveal unseen letters from the Princess and the royal family, giving intimate insights into their lives and minds. Here is her sadness at the death of her nanny, Alah; her joy in her children; her melancholy as a young wife when Philip returns to his ship; the sensitivities of her father. Here too is the Princess with the aristocratic Bowes Lyons, her mother's family, who featured significantly in her life, yet rarely appear in books. The author sheds new light on anomalies surrounding the birth of her mother who, it has been asserted, was the daughter of the family's cook. The strain of wartime on the royal family is highlighted in new material contrasting the stance of the Princess's uncles, the Duke of Windsor and David Bowes Lyon. In contrast with her upbringing, Philip's early life was turbulent, although their lives shared some interesting parallels. Lady Butter, a relation of Philip and friend of the Princess, recalls time spent with each of them; and unpublished documents show how intelligence agencies considered the socialist influence of the Mountbattens on Philip and thus on the royal court. More importantly, Princess traces how an "ordinary country girl" suddenly found herself in the line of succession to the crown at age ten when her Uncle, the Duke of Windsor, abdicated the throne to his brother Albert ("Bertie" to family and friends), the once and future King George VI. Breaking new ground for a future English monarch, she became the first female member of the royal family to serve on active duty during World War II, and broke tradition by sending her children away to school rather having them privately tutored. Indeed, by the time of her coronation in 1953, she had already achieved a "broad and solid background from which she could draw during the rapidly changing times of her long reign. Out of a little princess they made a Queen." show more. What happened to my father on that hilltop? Jane Dismore’s new book about a passionate love affair conducted in the shadow of war was inspired by a shocking event 40 years ago. Some events can confound us even when they happen to someone else. If that person is close to us, their experience can become ours; they might talk to us about it and we see so keenly how it has affected them that it is as though we have been there, too. Their words might try to rationalise the experience, even making light of it. But the effect upon them will always remain near the surface, so that try as they might to conceal it, somehow it will reveal itself. So it was with my father, John. What happened to him when we were on holiday in Scotland in 1973 affected his very being. For if someone has adhered all their life to a particular belief, yet on a still, sunlit evening in midsummer when, walking alone in unfamiliar hills with no other movement but that of their dog and a wild animal darting from under an old hut, they are confronted by an assault on their reason, they cannot ever be as they were before. The old world of certainty had gone in the time it took to climb to the top of a hill. When later that evening my father returned to my mother, sisters and me at the farmhouse where we were staying, he was white and shaking. I knew it was one of those significant moments that families sometimes have, for we had never seen him like that before. He rarely showed his emotions; he was a loving man but his parents had been inhibiting and discouraged spontaneous shows of affection. They did not raise him to be religious in any conventional sense and he would never come with us to our local church, much to the disappointment of our mother. He liked to laugh, but he never talked about how he felt. Yet here he was, with us and the farmer and his wife, strangers, doing just that. He had followed the dog, he said, through some old iron gates and up a steep wooded hill, catching glimpses of the loch below, glistening in the early evening sunlight. Then he noticed the dog becoming agitated. Suddenly a name flashed into his mind: “Pamela”. He thought nothing of it and hurried after the dog. It came again – Pamela. By now the path was narrower and twisted and turned through the wood, and as it did so the word became more frequent and insistent – Pamela, Pamela. And then they were at the top of the hill and in front of them was a large standing stone, facing a wonderful view across the valley. As he admired the view, my father realised the stone was the headstone of a grave, and as he scraped away the lichen from the words he realised he was looking at a name, and that name was Pamela. At that moment, he said, he was filled with an awful sense of depression despite the beauty of the place. Dusk was falling, and panic set in that he would not find the way out. Eventually he did, and in the fading light as he left the garden – for he realised that, for all its wildness now, a garden was what it had been – he saw that on the iron gates were two sets of letters: at the top OM and at the bottom PH. The farmer and his wife were ready listeners. In that part of Scotland, near Loch Rannoch, lies the great melancholy wilderness of Rannoch Moor; to the south-east, the soaring heights of Schiehallion, the Fairy Hill of the Caledonians. Back then in the Seventies, the locals lived a deeply rural life; it is not so different today. Gaelic myths abound. Wayside signs and guidebooks tell of bloody clashes among local clans. Old farms at the end of ancient tracks once housed fugitives from battles; others sit on ancient burial sites. The strange little castle-like building in the middle of the loch is reputed to have been a prison, or worse. So when my father told the farmer and his wife of his experience, they did not smirk or patronise him. When he asked who Pamela was, they told him what little they knew of Pamela Hambro – who had been just 32, an adored wife and the mother of four young children when she died – and of their own experiences near the garden. They also told us they once lived not far away, by the Pass of Killiecrankie, where the famous battle took place, and said, matter-of-factly, that 17th-century soldiers regularly walked through their house. This suggested they thought our father’s experience was of the same kind. We could tell it was not. For him it was not a tale to be told at a dinner party to a group of excitable guests. The effect was too profound for him to speak of it directly again. We tried many times over the years to persuade him, but he, back in the safety of our suburban existence, would only ever allude to it obliquely when discussions about life and death arose. We were rarely allowed to mention her name. There was a song from the 1960s called Pamela, a pleasant little ditty that we would sing quietly in a slightly menacing way, to wind him up. Angrily he would turn on us. Don’t mock, he would say, you don’t know what there might be. Given his upbringing, I thought it was surprising that he should have had such an experience. But on reflection it was right. That remote part of Scotland was his choice of destination; he was always deeply in tune with the natural world rather than the material. In another life he could have been a Buddhist. As, I discovered, was Pamela – the OM on the gates represented the Buddhist chant Om Mani Padme Hum. One year, on January 2 2005, she had simply appeared in my mind. I thought it was a whim but later discovered it was the eve of her birth. Suddenly I needed to know about this woman who had caused my father to question his whole philosophy. Her story opened a door and led me through a life that started in the England of 1900 and ended in the very different society that emerged from the Great War. The daughter of a doomed union between trade and title, she was born into the Cobbold brewing family of Suffolk and married into the merchant banking dynasty, the Hambros. At the heart of it all was the love story of Pamela and her war hero husband, Charles. Love changed their lives, as it is meant to do. But neither love nor money were protection against the loss caused by war or the frailties of human nature. My father died before I finished my book, The Voice from the Garden . I wondered if there was an explanation I could have given him for his experience. In fact, there were several. Easier, though, to say that perhaps the past and the present coexist in ways we do not fully understand. 'The Voice from the Garden’ by Jane Dismore is published by SilverWood Books (£20)