Old historic archive shot recalling Karl Moritz - # 08/153

Wanting to stay with a boat theme I dug out this old archive shot from the series "Searching for Karl Moritz, 1782". Here is the (at least) 400 year old ferry crossing point from the old village of Chiswick to Barnes. I discovered that Karl Moritz did not use it, but whizzed past in the stage coach direct to cross over the "modern 1759" Kew Bridge into Richmond. Indeed exactly as I would, in my car, today. (Except that I prefer the train....much more convenient).

Looking back at this archive I'm horrified to see - yet again - that my tendency to tilt the camera to the right has made the Thames flow up-hill. You also get a good view of the plastic rubbish washed up on high tides.............

Karl Moritz, Julius Caesar and Brentford - # 08/30

Before we dive into "deepest dockland" and experience the old 1805 atmosphere we must take a look back towards Kew Bridge. Karl Moritz, our 1782 German visitor, crossed into Richmond at this point. However, it was not by ferry. My early research overlooked the fact that the first bridge was built in 1759/60 (and a new bridge came in 1790 - this was not mentioned in the information I first discovered). I always felt that Karl had not used a ferry....his description of the easy arrival in Richmond, on the regular coach service through Chiswick from central London always made me suspicious: it was too slick. At last I have found out why.

The ferryman noted the expanding traffic and built the first bridge in 1759/60. This bridge, used by Karl, actually spanned the river at the point where you can see the tip of the island. The new bridge was built where you see it now, and renewed yet again in the early 20th C.

The main channel of the river runs on the other side of the island, but you can see that Brentford was always an important crossing point. The tides fall very low here, and the Romans are believed to have used this point to ford the river in AD 51 on their march towards the Midlands.

A house fit for a King's mistress (saved by Karl Moritz - well, sort of) - # 290

Marble Hill House sits on the Twickenham bank of the river, immediately opposite Ham House and beside Hammerton's Ferry (featured in an earlier posting "the 500 year long queue" http://richmonduponthamesdailyphoto.blogspot.com/2007/02/500-yr-long-queue-5.html ).



Built in 1720 in the Palladian style by George II for his Mistress Henrietta Howard, the house was a centre for high-tone social and literary gatherings (as you would expect!). Its park forms part of the unique heritage that is known as "The view from Richmond Hill".



Around 1900 the wealthy owners wanted to demolish the house and build suburban villas with riverside amenities across the whole park (one's blood runs cold). A public outcry ensued, public subscriptions were raised to buy the site and the land was placed into public ownership. If Karl Moritz - and of course many, many other more relevant people - had not written about, admired and painted the view from Richmond Hill, then the battle to save it would have been much harder.



Imagine! Had the houses been built, Karl Moritz's much admired view from Richmond Hill would have been totally destroyed by a sea of Edwardian villas. Karl would indeed have wept.

The sun always shines (but Karl Moritz couldn't find it) - # 288

The Sun Inn always looks spectacular, day time or night time. This photo was taken earlier in the year during my search for the inn where Karl Moritz might have stayed on his visit to Richmond in 1782. According to library records, there was an inn more or less on the site of the Sun, so he might have found a room at this spot. We cannot be certain. We know that the inn where he stayed was difficult to find after his evening walk on the Hill. Therefore I conclude that he did not stay at the Ship, which is close to the Hill, and was the official mail-coach inn at the time. Perhaps the Ship was full and he had to stay elsewhere; perhaps at the site of the Sun which is at the other end of town. As a stranger and he would need to look for it in the twilight after taking his inspiring evening walk.

The search for Karl's inn developed into the R. u. T. "Bar Fly" series.

Richmond Hill, at night from across the river - # 282

....another unusual shot, looking towards the famous Terrace above the river on Richmond Hill. I am standing on the opposite bank to catch the reflections in the river. The white streak in the sky is an airliner on its descent path to land at Heathrow, 15 miles away. The large building on the right is the Star and Garter home for wounded ex-servicemen, (still full today even after its foundation in 1920). I wonder what Karl Moritz would have made of this "Vision of Britain" had he seen it on his visit to Richmond in 1782.
http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/text/contents_page.jsp?t_id=Moritz

This, you see, I have now done. - # 162

Is this Karl's "lone tree"?

..................."As far as Hounslow the way was very pleasant; afterwards I thought it not quite so good. It lay across a common, which was of a considerable extent, and bare and naked…………..to my astonishment, I saw a tree in the middle of the common that stood quite solitary……………………..Beneath the shade of this tree I reposed myself a little, read some of Milton, and made a note in my memorandum-book that I would remember this tree, which had so charitably and hospitably received under its shade a weary traveller. This, you see, I have now done."

Karl, has discovered the radar tower at LHR. Hounslow Heath has been totally annihilated and his “lone tree” now lies under the concrete of Heathrow Airport.

Karl Moritz now bids you all "Goodbye" for a short time.

Thanks to all my readers. I have grown very fond of this character as I read and followed his letters.

I have noted requests and suggestions. I plan to prepare a CDP photo series that makes use of material collected whilst preparing this “tour”.

Just for fun look at this item (URL below) on the “Highwaymen of Hounslow Heath”. Karl actually had a brush with one, but I cannot go into that!

http://www.stand-and-deliver.org.uk/hounslow_heath.htm

"I met with a singularly clear rivulet" - # 161

Karl's letter is tantalizingly detailed and yet also frustratingly lacking in necessary precision. So, this might be THAT rivulet, or perhaps he is referring to "another one further on".

This is the delightfully fast flowing, crystal clear River Crane at Cranford (Crane Ford) just beyond Hounslow. The extremely narrow old bridge carries a tiny road that could be the remains of the old road.

On the far side of the bridge, hidden by the trees, is the bridge carrying the fast express A4 Great West Rd built in the 1930s. I have driven over the 1930s bridge many times in the past 40 years and never even knew it was a bridge, or that just behind the trees, the tiny river existed.

So let's dream and imagine this as the exact spot where Karl refreshed himself. It could be.

..........."As far as Hounslow the way was very pleasant; afterwards I thought it not quite so good. It lay across a common, which was of a considerable extent, and bare and naked, excepting that here and there I saw sheep feeding............

.......It now began to grow hot. On the left hand, almost close to the high road, I met with a singularly clear rivulet. In this I bathed, and was much refreshed, and afterwards, with fresh alacrity, continued my journey."

Karl Moritz and the bus route to Bangalore - # 160

Karl's letter home recounts his pleasure, walking along the highway surrounded by open fields, until he comes to the tiny settlement of Hounslow.

Today, Hounslow is a boundless sea of houses that stretches as far as the eye can see, to the ends of the earth. It is crossed by a main line railway, a London Underground railway, a main road A 315, the express dual carriageway A4, and the M4 Motorway.

Hounslow is a key element in the huge, chaotic, uncontrolled experiment in social demography that is "Modern Britain" - a melting pot of almost every race and nationality and creed you can think of. In a way, it's probably very 18th Century. What would Karl have said? We can be certain that whereas Karl would recognise much of Richmond, he would not recognise Hounslow!

"British highways are fantastic!": Karl Moritz 1782 - # 159

The "Oxford Road" from Isleworth to Hounslow is no longer photogenic, nor recognisable - except for the traffic. Karl's road still exists, and has also been supplemented by two more: the dual lane express road A4 Great West Rd built in the 1930s and in the 1960s the M4 Motorway. All three of these are stunningly busy, somewhat as Karl describes in his description of the main road to the West. They are also a difficult photographic challenge, because of the siting and the dangers involved.

On the Great West Rd at "Gillette Corner" there is a fine collection of iconic 1930s factory and headquarters buildings - and indeed some brand new ones are appearing nearby e.g. the Glaxo Smith Kline HQ. Alas, the Firestone Tyre building was cunningly and wickedly demolished by developers only a matter of hours before a preservation order was issued. Today, the various sites are better appreciated. It's worth seeing. This is the "Gillette Building".

Karl Moritz wrote................" I was now on the road to Oxford. It is a charming fine broad road, and I met on it carriages without number, which, however, on account of the heat, occasioned a dust that was extremely troublesome and disagreeable..........I was tired... I sat down in the shade under one of these hedges and read Milton....... those who rode or drove past me, stared at me with astonishment, and made many significant gestures as if they thought my head deranged..........many of the coachmen who drove by called out to me, ever and anon, and asked if I would not ride on the outside........every now and then, a farmer on horseback met me, he said, and seemingly with an air of pity for me, "'Tis warm walking, sir;" and when I passed through a village, every old woman testified her pity by an exclamation of - "Good God!"

The journey will continue tomorrow.

Readers please note: I intend to clear up an error I have found (thanks to more research on a doubt in my mind) and also to produce a mini series "The Making of Karl Moritz". In that I will try to take up the suggestion of pinpointing the sites on a map. I will also give you a few URLs so that you can see some sources for yourselves. This needs a little more time to prepare.

Karl Moritz gets his priorities right - # 158

Karl would have stepped off the ferry almost at the very foot of this church tower, built in 1398.

However, he has 15 miles to walk to Windsor via Slough along the main road that goes from London towards the port city of Bristol in the far west. Karl found it very busy in 1782, and nothing has changed.

He wastes no time looking around Isleworth. It's clear he wants to hurry along. He has an eye for fine views, but he is able to set his priorities. Islworth has nothing much to grab his attention, although today it is an essential stopping point for the Richmond tourist.

............."On the opposite bank of the Thames was Isleworth, a spot that seemed to be distinguished by some elegant gentlemen's country-seats and gardens. Here I was obliged to ferry the river in order to get into the Oxford Road, which also leads to Windsor.

When I was on the other side of the water, I came to a house and asked a man who was standing at the door if I was on the right road to Oxford. "Yes", said he, "but you want a carriage to carry you thither". When I answered him that I intended walking it, he looked at me significantly, shook his head, and went into the house again."

Once again, Karl notices the mobility of the English and their preferences for travelling in coaches and carriages.

Karl Moritz approaches the Isleworth bank - # 157

Karl's ferry will take him from the Richmond side and land him at the foot of the church tower in the distance. The construction cranes are today building new apartments on the site of a large water-powered flour mill that stood there from the 16th century until 1941. In 1782 Karl would probably have noticed numbers of large grain barges tied alongside.

For those interested: my research is based on the British Ordnance Survey map 1816-1822, plus careful reading of Karl Moritz's letters, visits to the local museum, and research on the local system of small rivers. I have recently found some misinterpretations and will correct those later. For the time being we should keep up the momentum. The Richmond/Kew/ Hounslow area is closely associated with the early history of official map-making thanks to George III's enthusiastic cooperation with the French Government. The French asked Britain to help with the survey of the English Channel coastal area in 1783. For once, Britain and France were (briefly) at peace. Unfortunately, by 1790 we were again fighting. In 1791 Britain started the official "Ordnance Survey" map making process, allegedly as a direct result of the earlier French initiative in cooperation. We can all be grateful to those men of science who undertook that initiative to cooperate.

Karl Moritz quits Richmond - # 156

Karl sets out for the road to Oxford. The inn keeper's son accompanies him to show him the way. It's quite clear that the lad took Karl by a footpath across the Old Deer Park, the gardens of George III's palace at Kew (now Kew Gardens botanical research establishment) on the right, as Karl mentions.

So, we can safely say that Karl Moritz left Richmond via the ferry across to Isleworth. Karl writes about the houses he could see across the river. I think we can be absolutely certain that he was referring to the brick mansion, if not indeed also the pinkish looking "temple shaped" house as well.

This is therefore almost exactly the view he saw as he approached the steps for the Isleworth ferry, and wrote about in his letter.

Karl Moritz muses over Ham House - # 153

Only another 300 yards or so as the crow flies, and Karl stops to admire Ham House, standing on its natural hump, raised slightly (but safely enough) above the river bank level. The master builder seems to have been perfectly aware of flood risk, topography and excellent practice in the daring but ultimately safe siting of an important house so close to the river. The same goes for its neighbour, Douglas House, seen yesterday.

(This is an archived shot from last year. Right now the lawns are much greener, on account of the excessive rainfall).

Built in 1610, Ham House was at the centre of politics throughout the Civil War and the Restoration. Only "first rate Big Hitters"....both men and women....were entertained here.

By 1782 things had subsided somewhat to the the level of the Duke writing to his son asking why he needed yet more money to fund him on "the Grand Tour" of the continent of Europe, and "wasn't the modest allowance enough?"

On a domestic note (and let's not forget that Karl became a professor in the field of aesthetics), I am struck by the influence of this design on the "British 1930s suburban semi-detached villa". It has the typical bay window, the classic English brickwork; the same roof line and so on. I look at it every day and think how "homely" it is, although its history is one of hosting the nation's most powerful people and contributing to Richmond's current fortunate status.

From what I know, it is highly likely that Karl Moritz saw this view exactly as we see it here.

(The Moritz tour will continue, but I confess that right now the excessive rain and dark clouds are hampering my efforts and my intentions).

Karl Moritz admires the steps of Douglas House - # 152

A couple of hundred yards from Rutland Lodge Karl pauses to admire delicate iron work and planting around the steps of a large mansion called Douglas House, built in 1680. It would please him to know that today this mansion is part of the campus of the German School for London. The grounds now host a very fine modern school building developed in the late 1970s.

Karl Moritz pauses to admire Rutland Lodge - # 151

Only a few paces from Petersham House, Karl's eye is drawn to it's neighbour, the three storied Rutland Lodge, also dating from about 1680, and he pauses to admire the decorated line dividing the first floor from the top floor, the colour and quality of the brickwork, and the overall proportions of this large "house in the country", fitting for any "gentleman of the first rate".

At this point one might turn to the painter William Hogarth and his comments on London society in the series "the Rake's Progress".

Karl Moritz notices the architectural gems of Petersham - # 150

Within the tiny area of Petersham Karl would have noticed a dense concentration of country mansions built by "first and second rate" gentry needing to be near the King when he too was "out of London".

I'll try to delight you by showing extra special little details of the mansions. We can be certain that this is almost exactly as Karl would have seen them, and it is the kind of detail he would have picked out.

After passing St. Peter's church in its tiny lane, Karl turns right into the narrow main road (now almost overwhelmed by motor traffic), and passes No. 143, Petersham House, built about 1680, and admires the unusual doom shape over the elegant front door. He also notices the "fire insurance plate" pinned to the wall, to advise the firemen that they will be paid for tackling the blaze.

A walk down into Petersham - # 149

I'm imagining that Karl Moritz probably spent his morning in Richmond exploring the villages of Petersham and Ham. So you'll get the benefit of seeing what he probably saw but did not write about. (Although Daniel Defoe did write about it in his "A tour through the whole of the island of Great Britain").

If Karl Moritz had walked directly down the slope of the meadow towards the white house (Petersham Lodge) he would have come first to St. Peter's church. Here you can see the church with it's early 18th century "new building": a christian church had already been here for about 1,000 years before even Karl Moritz arrived.

German guest suffers British weather: true! - # 148

(some readers have made special requests which are noted and will be handled as "off piste" extras in due course).

So, Karl rises very early to catch the sunrise over "the view" from Richmond Hill. We then have a piece of comedy in his letter where he describes his total frustration being locked into the inn and unable to rush out for about 2 hours. He laments the "late rising" of the English inn staff. Arriving on the hill he is greeted by cloud, and deeply disappointed. But, in spite of the cloud, this picture looks good to me.

This photo is therefore pretty well the sort of snap that Karl would have taken. The white building down among the trees was already there forty years before Karl came. The hotel, built in 1865, more or less replaces other buildings he would have seen on the spot in 1782.

But, OH SHOCK AND HORROR....a Victorian business man, who owned the island in the river, proposed putting up huge advertising hoardings in 1898 to catch the eyes of the visitors on the hill! This was the last straw, and the movement to protect the view gained strength, forcing the Act of Parliament in 1902.

Karl Moritz "does" Richmond; at last! - # 147

Karl rushes out in the evening to explore. He crosses the new bridge from Richmond to Twickenham and is astounded by the view looking up towards Richmond Hill from the Twickenham side. Today it's less easy to get the view he saw from that same point (I'll show it later as a comparison), but by standing on the Richmond side close to the Hammerton's Ferry crossing I can recreate the view more or less the same as Karl saw it, and wrote about it in the letter. On the left you can see the river squatter's raft I mentioned in a previous posting. This view is protected by Act of Parliament and cannot be changed (one of the earliest examples of environmental protection law). Karl's description, although emotional, is very accurate and perfectly captures the atmosphere and the scene.

Toasting Karl Moritz - # 146

Here we are working hard on our research to find the inn where Karl Moritz stayed in Richmond.

He arrived on the 21st June 1782, so it's appropriate to toast him.

Over the next few days I'll post photos that try to show the scenes he described in Richmond during his short stopover, and also some shots of the various inns that I tested. Later, I'll also go back to show some shots of the other possible river crossing points that I identified but eliminated.

It's amazing how much of what he describes still exists in essence, and some of it almost unchanged after 225 years. Even the weather is the same! Karl expresses dismay that the morning of 22nd June was very cloudy.....and so it is today!!!!!......very cloudy indeed!!!!!!