February 2017 Friendly Social Club Looking for New Members


Abingdon’s Breakaway Club is a friendly social club for people living by themselves. We meet on the second Monday of each month at the Social Services Centre in Audlett Drive for bingo, quizzes and tea and cakes. We also organise regular excursions to visit places of interest in the region, for shopping, for theatre and for meals out. The Club runs a minibus and can collect members from their homes for the regular meetings and the excursions. The minibus has wheelchair access.


The work of the Club was recognised last year by the Lady Mayor of Abingdon who chose the Breakaway Club as one of her two selected charities of the year.


More information can be obtained from the organiser Wendy Barratt on Anthony.barratt@outlook.com or from Tom Hardy on Tomrw.Hardy@btinternet.com.


Congratulations to our Choristers at St Helen’s


On Sunday 22 January Light and Dark blue ribbons were awarded to members of St Helen’s choir.


The ribbons represent the stages achieved on the Royal College of Church Music’s Voice for Life Awards. Each cover five ar- eas essential to develop good choral sing- ing; using the voice well, musical skills and understanding, repertoire, belonging to the choir and the choir in context including the pattern of the Church’s year and the role of music.


Light Blue ribbons were awarded to Rachel and Laura and Dark Blue ribbons to Sarah and Emily.


AND FINALLY (episode 6) After 1066


At his coronation in December 1066 William I swore to uphold the laws and customs of England. From Abingdon Abbot Ealdred (appointed by Harold) paid homage to William. Abingdon Abbey, being the 2nd largest landowner in Berkshire after the king, was very important. Queen Matilda vis- ited in 1068 but was not a welcome guest as she demanded some of the abbeys most treasured pos- sessions.


In 1071 some of the abbey tenants joined the rebellion in the fens and so Ealdred was deposed and held in Wallingford and later in Winchester. He was replaced by a Norman from Jumieges. By the end of William’s reign all the ‘top people’ were Normans. They spoke Norman-French, the natives Anglo- Saxon and Latin was the language of church and government. The most important local Nor- man was Robert d’Oiley who built castles at Wallingford and Oxford. He married the daughter of Wigod of Wallingford (see episode 5)


In Abingdon there is a small mound commemorated by a plague ‘Fitzharry’s Castle mound’ and a nearby road called ‘The Motte’. Besides castles the Normans were also great church builders. Christ Church Oxford (then St Frideswide Priory) and Iffley Church are good local examples and St Nicolas has a Norman west doorway.


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