An Iron Age to 1980s multi-period living history show
Rufford Country Park, Nottinghamshire
On the A614 Nottingham to Doncaster road, 2 miles south of Ollerton. Tel; 01623 822944 (general enquiries)
Saturday 20 and Sunday 21 May 2006
11am to 4.30pm
Admission free (£3 parking charge applied)
ollowing our
popular 2005
show, Nottinghamshire County Council asked us to restage this great event,
which successfully took place despite some very adverse weather conditions this time.
Once again enthusiastic visitors
stepped back in time as the
fascinating history of
Rufford and
the surrounding area was brought to life with living history displays and
entertainments from the Romans to 1980s, featuring the Cistercian Order of monks, ordinary folk,
soldiers and warriors that helped shape the abbey, house and estate down the
centuries.
Click for an initial selection of photographs
Visitors had a huge range of things to see and do. They could compare the fighting skills of Romans and Britons, meet medieval knights and men-at-arms, enjoy lively C15th music and song, and find out about everyday medieval life including within the great Cistercian monastery. The children especially enjoyed watching Tudor and 1940s puppet plays! You could decide whether you would have been a Parliamentarian or Royalist in the civil war, when Rufford was a great C17th estate, and explore the extensive grounds whilst being careful not to fall into the clutches of a gang of dastardly C18th highwaymen! Fashionable Victorians strolled about, played croquet and enjoyed tea and cake in the gardens, whilst WWI troops commemorated the 90th anniversary of the Battle of the Somme, which involved many thousands of local men. Visitors met a trooper of the Leicestershire Yeomanry (stationed here in 1939) and learned about tank warfare - no stranger to Rufford as the Coldstream Guards trained with their Churchill tanks here prior to D-Day. After the war and indeed still today, the army trains in nearby Sherwood Forest and this was represented by a group of soldiers from the 1980s on the exact 24th anniversary of the British task force landing on the Falkland Islands. Nottinghamshire's volunteers in the Spanish Civil War were commemorated by a living history encampment, and a 1940's concert party rounded off a splendid if wet weekend with music, song and fashion shows. With an ongoing series of arena displays, living history, other entertainments and historical craftsmen/traders, there was always something new for families to enjoy throughout each day.
Organised on behalf of
Nottinghamshire County Council.
Participating groups and performers:
Roman: Legio VIII Augusta MGV and The Vicus
Norman: The Albini Household
Medieval: The musical duo Hautbois, Dudley, Howard, Neville, Savile, Stafford and Stanley Households; The Ringwoods of History and the Knights Hospitalers.
Tudor: Perrotts Puppet Players
C17th: The Fairfax Battalia, Marquis of Winchesters and Essex's Regiments of The English Civil War Society
C18th: Stand and Deliver
Victorian: The Chatelains.
WWI: The Royal Norfolk
Regiment and Croix de Lorraine
1930s: Spanish Civil War Volunteers portrayed by La Columna
WWII: The popular singing group The Spitfires, with Ancient Wisdom and History Horse
1980s: British soldiers of the 1980s portrayed by Forces 80
Plus 17 historical trader and craftsmen's stalls & tents including The Sharpe Appreciation Society, with Jason Sakey (Rifleman Harris from the Sharpe series). Richard Rutherford-Moore (Rifleman Moore and Technical Advisor to the series) was also present on Saturday.
Re-enactment groups and other performers interested in taking part in our events are invited to contact us for further details; please click the link for our Standard terms and conditions for participation.
Visiting Rufford Country Park
The main entrance to Rufford is situated on the A614 Nottingham-Doncaster road, 2 miles south of Ollerton and 17 miles north of Nottingham. The park offers lots for visitors to see and enjoy:
- the remains of the 12th century Cistercian abbey with an exhibition on the life of the monks who once lived there
- craft centre and gallery with changing exhibits
- ceramics centre tracing the history of studio pottery
- craft shop
- coach house, offering a variety of snacks and drinks
- Savile Restaurant, serving home-cooked lunches and traditional cream teas
- restored former orangery and bath house
- formal gardens, including a herb garden and the Rufford Sculpture collection
- Reg Hookway memorial Arboretum with a range of trees
- lake with a variety of wildfowl
- lakeside garden shop at Rufford Mill
- outdoor living store
- teddy bear shop
- woodland walks
- remains of two ice houses
- animal graves including the famous Derby winner, Cremorne
- picnic area and children's playground
A brief history of re-enactment
Interested in how and why re-enactment has become so popular in recent years? Click on the link to read a history of re-enactment.
Other events 2006
Click here for details of many other historical events organised by EventPlan this year.
Back to Events 2006
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Updated 16 November 2006