St Mary's Berkeley Christmas Tree Festival - Friends' Tree

St Mary's Berkeley hosted a Christmas Tree Festival last weekend (12th/13th).  Various local organisations and charities decorated trees and will share in the proceeds from the event.

Here's a photo of the Friends' tree - bought by our very own Chairman and kindly donated back to the church.

FoBC Tree

The event was a great success with more than 200 visitors over the weekend and in excess of £450 raised for the participating charities and organisations.

Battle of Agincourt Talk

We celebrated the 600th anniversary of the Battle of Agincourt by hosting a talk by medieval archery expert Neil Eddiford.

Neil came equipped (armed?) with a vast array of weaponry, as shown in these photos.

Harvest Festival

On Sunday 4 October, the Castle hosted a Harvest Festival.

Here's some of our favourite photos from the day.

Summer Party

FoBC members enjoying our annual Summer Party at Berkeley Castle last Sunday, hosted by Charles Berkeley and attended by other members of the Berkeley family.  Some sixty Friends enjoyed Pimms and canapés on the garden terrace.  Funding for the Friends objectives was assisted by a well supported raffle organised by deputy chair Diana Merrett, pictured with FoBC chairman Paul Walkden.

Countess of Wessex at Berkeley Castle

Sophie, Countess of Wessex, visited the Castle on 10 September.

She was greeted by rapturous applause from the children of Berkeley Primary School, shown round the Castle by Charles Berkeley and then presented to the Friends' Committee, guides and volunteers, and the Berkeley family.

Here are a couple of photos from a very memorable occasion:

Charles Berkeley giving a guided tour

Paul Walkden introduces the Committee to the Countess

Waterloo Commemoration

Friends enjoyed watching a commemoration of the 200^th anniversary of the Battle of Waterloo organised by the Royal Society of St George Gloucestershire branch.  A detachment from the 23^rd Regiment of Foot, the Royal Welch Regiment Fusiliers, fresh from the recent re-enactment of the Battle of Waterloo, together with Sandham’s 9^th Company of the 3^rd Battalion Royal Foot Artillery, fired muskets and cannon from the Castle Gun Terrace:

Archeological Dig Tour 2015

Photos from today's tour, led by Dr Stuart Prior of Bristol University:

FoBC Supporting St Mary's Bell Tower Appeal

At the recent FoBC tour of the Berkeley Family Mausoleum in St Mary’s church, Friends supported the church fund raising efforts for the Bell Tower Restoration Appeal,  explained on the day by appeal committee member and Friend, Chris Smith.

The Friends generously donated £192 on the day.

If you are interested in supporting the appeal, please visit St Mary's Website or email belltowerappeal@stmarys-berkeley.co.uk

Magna Carta Illuminated Pedigree

Last weekend the Castle held a Magna Carta exhibition, with 12th Century original documents on display and a Feudals Living History Event.

Here's a photo from a Friends talk by Castle Archivist, David Smith, showing the illuminated pedigree that was shown as part of the exhibition.  David is pictured with Mr John Berkeley.

Friends of Berkeley Castle AGM

Our AGM was held on 27 April. 

Sally Morgan, newly appointed FoBC Honorary member, is shown below presenting the financial figures to the Friends AGM, with President Charles Berkeley, Chairman Paul Walkden and Vice-chair Diana Merrett.

Visit to Berkeley Family Mausoleum

The Friends recently had an interesting private tour of the Berkeley Mausoleum in St Mary’s Church with Henry Phythian-Adams, who provided fascinating insights into its history.   Henry is pictured below with Charles Berkeley and other members of FoBC.

Christmas Concert

Christmas may be a distant memory, but our Christmas Concert with The University of the West of England choir, a barbershop quartet and a brass quintet will live in the memory for a long time. 

Here's a few photos from what was a great evening: