Upcoming talks and events
Frittenden Historical Society’s season runs from October to April and meetings are held on the last Tuesday of those months (excepting December). We meet in Frittenden Memorial Hall and start promptly at 8pm.
Visitors are welcome to all talks at just £5 per visit.
Transport can be arranged within the village if required, please contact us if you need assistance.
Fields and Their Secrets – September Skies
Tuesday 29th October 2024 @ 7pm
An evening of Kent war films from local historian and film maker, Phillip Day.
An ambitious Luftwaffe ace encounters a 19 year old RAF recruit flying his first operational Spitfire sortie. Thrown into the Battle of Britain over Kent, what could possibly go wrong … for the both of them?
PLEASE NOTE THE EARLIER START TIME OF 7PM
The CWGC and Gardening the World
Tuesday 26th November 2024 @ 8pm
The CWGC was founded in the midst of the First World War and today commemorates the men and women from the United Kingdom, and the Commonwealth countries, who fell in both World Wars.
We will learn of the origins of the Commission and the challenges of maintaining the high standards of horticulture in a multitude of different environments.
West Gallery Music and Country Carols
Tuesday 28th January 2025 @ 8pm
West Gallery Music also known as Georgian psalmody, refers to the sacred music (metrical psalms, with a few hymns and anthems) sung and played in English parish churches, as well as nonconformist chapels, from 1700 to around 1850. In the late 1980s, west gallery music experienced a revival and is now sung by several west gallery “quires” (choirs). Tony Singleton is our guide for this musical evening.
A history of hops and hop picking
Tuesday 25th February @ 8pm
Hops were a major crop for Frittenden during the nineteenth and into the twentieth century. While there are no longer any hop gardens within the village, there is still evidence of hop-picking around us. Chris Levett will help us explore this industry.
Archaeology at Smallhythe Place
Tuesday 25th March @ 8pm
The excavation of a medieval site at Smallhythe Place that was once used for shipbuilding has delighted archaeologists when they also came across earlier evidence of a Roman settlement. National Trust historian, Nathalie Cohen, will explain the finds and how they contribute towards our knowledge of the site and wider area.
Annual General Meeting
Tuesday 29th April
The AGM of the Historical Society will start promptly at 8pm and will be followed by the talk below.
The Hazards of the Journey: Pilgrimage and Travel in the Middle Ages
Tuesday 29th April (following the AGM)
We are pleased to welcome back Imogen Corrigan who is going to help us answer the question of what possessed people to trudge hundreds of miles, often in appalling conditions and sometimes perishing on the way? She will also consider how there was a shift from spiritual wandering in the Anglo-Saxon period to religious tourism in the days of Chaucer’s pilgrims. She will also look closely at travel in general and the hazards of the journey: how did people organise themselves for long journeys and how safe was it?