November update from the Yeomanry Museum

Here’s a short article written by Philip Wilson, one of the Yeomanry museum trustees. It explains the current situation of the museum and the plans for it’s renewal.

If you’d like to know more about the Yeomanry museum or to get in contact with Philip and the trustees then please go to their website at  www.warwickshire-yeomanry-museum.co.uk

 

Update on the progress of major improvements to the Museum

It had been envisaged that building work would have commenced in the Spring of 2012 and the improved access, by way of a lift, completed. The delay is due to the Court House having been built on the foundations of a number of medieval buildings, necessitating excavations to ascertain the practical issues involved with the installation of the lift. This has also required the removal of the toilet block to the rear of the Court House, in the Pageant Gardens. Further structural surveys were undertaken following the removal and storage of the Museum’s contents, by volunteers, during June 2012. Suffice to say that the contents of the Museum are now in a secure store thanks to the good auspices of  Warwick Town Council and Warwick District Council. The glass display cases have gone into store but the Field Gun has been boxed in situ.

Since June the Museum Conservation Team has met weekly to maintain clean & polish items in the secure store. The Uniforms were put into a deep freeze at minus 30 degrees in heavy duty sealed polythene bags for one week in early June. They have since been thoroughly inspected and are now residing in their splendid protective hanging clothing bags made and provided by Margaret Haycock of Kenilworth. Surprisingly given the age of the uniforms only a handful of these require minor repairs which will be addressed before the Museum re-opens next year. John Haycock is gradually cleaning and restoring swords and other weapons and a review of the condition of all pictures and their frames has commenced.

Building works are now underway and completion is expected within 36 weeks with fitting out taking a further three to four months. The Museum will gain additional display and storage space in what should be a much improved basement thanks to the Unlocking Warwick Project and the Heritage Lottery funding scheme. All being well this time next year the Museum will be back in place.

Cavalry Guidons

Professor James Geddies is writing a book on Cavalry Guidons and the Museum is assisting him in this by providing high quality digital images of both sides of QOWWY Guidon and the three Standards (Swallow Tail Guidons) which were presented in front of the Grandstand, on Warwick Race Course on 17 May 1848. The Museum has also supplied images of the Fencible Cavalry Guidon, which currently resides in Warwick Castle, and may be the only Fencible Guidon known to exist. These images remain the copyright of the Warwickshire Yeomanry Museum Trust and will be acknowledged as such in the book.

Presentation of the Standards

On 17 May 1848 the Regiment was lined up in three Squadrons, plus the band, on three sides of a square with a drum head in the middle. At that time the Regiment consisted of a number of Troops located across the County but for the purposes of this Parade they were in Squadron formation. The Royal or Queen’s Standard, as it was known, was presented to Cornet Parker by Lady Leigh. Mrs Bolton-King and Mrs Dugdale presented the other two Standards to Cornet Oakeover and Cornet W.H.Leigh respectively.

Whilst we have both sides of The Royal Standard we only have one side of each of the two White Standards presented that day, which are mounted on display boards. The Museum has no idea what the reverse might have looked like for, at some stage, they were unpicked.

Adderley’s History of the Warwickshire Yeomanry Cavalry pages 76-77 provides a brief description of the event as recorded by a local newspaper. Those of you who research newspaper archives might like to see what you can find on this subject and inform the Museum direct.

Museum website

Since the launch of the Museum website in June 2010 some 4,000 people have visited it many of whom continue to visit periodically:

www.warwickshire-yeomanry-museum.co.uk

The Museum continues to operate a minimal research service, given that much of the Trustees’ time is now being spent working with the Unlocking Warwick Project Team on issues linked to improvements to the Museum.

During the past two months the Museum Trustees have met periodically to set up the WkY Museum 2012 Appeal.

Our thanks are recorded to those members of the WkY Museum Friends who have continued to give freely of their time to further the Museum these past six months.

Philip Wilson

Warwickshire Yeomanry Museum Trustee and Archivist.                          November 2012