entertained me with a very pretty song: So busy "Flying Horse Inn" in Flying Horse now, farewell', and he left the church. Lane, or for special occasions there was Things were finally settled, however. It always the "York Hotel", and the "Ship Inn", was agreed that the young man should do or "Wrights", down at the harbour. most of the work and that Old Rev should be Old Rev. continued to enjoy life among paid £15 a quarter and allowed to officiate his people, sharing their joy and their grief, from time to time, because everybody was until he died, to be buried in St. Mary's fond of him and did not want to hurt him. churchyard on 13th January 1733, m ourned He was content. He had countless friends by the whole town. When he was appointed, and few enemies. He spent nothing on it was to a community divided into many clothes and little on food, and many a hostile warring factions, bitterly at odds family always had, and still would, give him with each other, and when he died he was a meal at any time. Moreover, in those days mourned by everybody. The social crisis of £15 a quarter would buy a great deal of the town had been resolved, and the many uncustomed liquor and convivial company old, deep wounds inflicted in the Stuart in the snug little "Light of the Son", or at the reigns had been healed. GLIMPSES of th e PAST Sonic sn ip pets of D over History SEA PIRATES "SO contributed by Margaret Robson with material from an article by David Grant OU may recall a reference in the Dover twelve murdered English mariners swung YSociety Newsletter of April 2000 by Peter from her yard arm. King Edward I, occupied Pascall to the skill of the Cinque Port pilots, more in wars with Scotland and Wales, of whom it was said that they knew the made a strong protest to King Philip of Channel and the waters up to the Port of France and then let the matter drop. Not so London that they could tell where they were the men of the Cinque Ports. In days the in the deepest of fogs by dropping a greased Channel coasts were ablaze. Still neither lead down to the sea floor, drawing it up and French nor English king acted and so the observing and tasting a sample. Was it pirate admirals of England and Normandy fanciful? Who knows? - but by one of those declared their own war. The English fleet extraordinary coincidences an old 'Daily disguised as traders assembled at Ttelegraph' supplem ent of October 1969, Portsmouth to deflect suspicion from the saved originally for an article by Bertrand Cinque Ports. The French massed 200 Russell, came to light. Thumbing through towering warships, each flying a red its yellowing pages I discovered a far more streamer signifying 'Death without interesting one, 'Pirates by Charter', by Quarter'. An empty marker ship had already David Grant. been placed outside St. Mahe off Brittany Here it is in paraphrase: where battle was to commence. One March day in 1293 a Norman ship The English set sail and, in the teeth of came bounding along the Kent coast a gale, reached the marker ship first and flaunting an obscene signal to her enemies dropped anchor. As soon as the French in the Cinque Ports. From Sandwich she appeared they weighed anchor and rounded the Dover cliffs and on to the scattered. The French sailed on. As they heights of Hastings. TWelve dead dogs and sailed past the English ships closed in. Before sunset the battle was over. As a result blue and vanish in a pall of smoke. When it of this engagement the French king annex­ came to dodging the currents of the deadly ed some of Edward's castles in Aquitaine Goodwins, your Kentish cog could turn on a and so began the Hundred Years War. cockleshell. Edward, angry at the situation now After 500 years a-roving, the Cinque forced upon him, demanded an Ports were, one by one, locked in their explanation, to which the men of the harbours by the movements of the Channel Cinque Ports reminded him that he, the tide, their only acknowledged master. Their King, was sworn to see them righted final burst of glory came in the reign of according to the laws, customs and Henry IV when a Henry Pay from franchise which he and his ancestors had Faversham (Arripay' as the Spaniards called granted. And so this small body of men him) captured a French squadron and roped lived a charmed life in outlawry from the in no less than 120 ships, laden with iron, time of the Danelaw until the Battle of salt and wine! But such deeds were already Agincourt. English seamen, right up to the anachronisms, for the ports of time of Drake and Hawkins, were noted for Southampton, Plymouth and Bristol could their nautical genius, which came from a each send greater tonnage to the wars than life, barefoot in all weathers, with neither all the Cinque Ports together. compass, chart or rudder and only one Footnote: David Grant's first book 'Waes', set in square sail. Their tubby boats, not like the Cinque Ports, was published by Allen & Viking long boats, could rocket out of the Unwin in 1968. ROYAL SECRET REVEALED AT DOVER contributed by Terry Sutton HE visit to Dover by Queen Elizabeth I not commit the subject to paper. Of course T in the autum n of 1573 is well this captured Henry's curiosity and he sent documented. But not so well known is her over, in secret, his minister Rosney second visit to Dover in August 1601 when, (afterwards the Due de Sully) who was two years before her death, for the first time swiftly unmasked on arrival at Dover, in history the term 'Great Britain' was arrested and taken before Elizabeth at Dover heard. Queen Elizabeth I, then 67, travelled Castle. She was not too annoyed at his in some secrecy to Dover in 1601 for the sole secrecy and drawing him aside, out of the purpose of trying to persuade Henry IV, earshot of others, explained her proposals King of France, to cross the Channel to talk for keeping a counter balance to Austria by about the balance of power in Europe. For 42 forming the Low Countries into an years she had ruled the kingdom and won independent republic. respect throughout Europe as a ruler. Age Rosney, in his memoirs, recalled that was beginning to tell on her physical powers Elizabeth spoke about the future of linking but she was determined to reshape the map England and Scotland. For the first time she of Europe. And she knew her views were revealed she wanted to make James VI of shared by the king of France. But, to her Scotland her heir. "One day the King of annoyance, she failed to persuade Henry to Scotland will become the King of Great cross the Channel from Calais to Dover. He, Britain," predicted the great Queen during in turn, suggested she board a ship and m eet her meeting with the French minister in him in Calais. It was not to be and she wrote Dover Castle. And so it came to pass. It was him, in her own hand, regretting that only on her deathbed, suffering from blood because of their royal positions neither poisoning, that Elizabeth revealed to her could be seen to meet in the others' lands. ministers the decision about which she had She added that there was something of secretly told the French minister in the importance she wished to reveal but dare ancient walls of Dover Castle..