tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22435662024-02-19T23:12:57.809-08:00On the trail of Mad Jack FullerA journal researching the life and times of John "Mad Jack" Fuller (1757-1834).Annettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13781246573982369093noreply@blogger.comBlogger206125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2243566.post-23147551463305432992023-04-05T11:26:00.004-07:002023-04-05T11:26:26.379-07:00Mad Jack Book Talk at Robertsbridge Literary Festival 22 April 2023 Annettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13781246573982369093noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2243566.post-68087715735278809432023-03-02T04:13:00.000-08:002023-03-02T04:13:54.408-08:00The Hoares and Stourhead Part 1Stourhead, Wiltshire was home to an illustrious goldsmith-turned-banking family, the Hoares. Henry I 'the Good' purchased the estate in 1717. It was inherited by his son Henry II 'the Magnificent' in 1725. His daughter and heir Anne married her first cousin Sir Richard Hoare, of Barn Elms. Their son Richard Colt Hoare built the house's fabulous library and picture gallery. Sir Richard's Annettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13781246573982369093noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2243566.post-89621449912070730982023-02-24T01:19:00.002-08:002023-02-24T01:19:19.148-08:00Fuller's Sugar Loaf FollyMany unanswered questions remain: Did Mad Jack Fuller win his bet? Who did he wager with and what was at stake? How was the site chosen? Legend has it the Sugar Loaf Folly was built overnight. Is this true? I've been trying to read the artist's signature on the bottom left. The initials A D can be seen followed by????Annettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13781246573982369093noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2243566.post-75687169912451189372023-02-20T01:10:00.002-08:002023-02-20T01:10:07.706-08:00Brightling Church Postcard 1904 Postcards were a quick, inexpensive way of communication back in the days before everyone had a telephone. Sent from Etchingham on 8 June 1904, the message reads 'Much better shall be in by the 10-8 at T. W. hope all are well Gr.' I trust Mrs Francis of Windmill Street was glad to see them arrive by train. Mad Jack Fuller's pyramid mausoleum is seen to the left of Brightling Church.Annettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13781246573982369093noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2243566.post-74850090183503575502023-02-19T08:40:00.000-08:002023-02-19T08:40:18.662-08:00Broadway TowerPart of the buzz I get from researching is making connections, most of all between John 'Mad Jack' Fuller and seemingly different things. Barbara, Countess of Coventry wondered if the beacon on Middle Hill, Broadway could be seen from her house, Spring Hill, in Worcester 35km (22 miles) away. The construction of Broadway Tower, designed by James Wyatt and built in 1794, confirmed this to be true.Annettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13781246573982369093noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2243566.post-46899800488068543002023-02-13T01:26:00.004-08:002023-02-13T01:26:38.769-08:00Nore Folly, SwindonFollowing Countess Newburgh's tradition, we took a picnic lunch to Nore Folly near Slindon. The views from its hillside site were spectacular. Built for her al fresco parties in 1814, this flint structure is also known as Slindon Folly. Annettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13781246573982369093noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2243566.post-32997894039437083842023-02-08T01:33:00.003-08:002023-02-08T01:33:47.231-08:00Wern Manor, Dolbenmaen, Gwynedd, WalesThis folly temple is situated in the 15-acre gardens & woods of Wern Manor, one of the most delightful airbnbs we've ever stayed at. Hosts Paul and Marie-Ann have worked tirelessly to restore the property to its former glory. In 1892, the house was remodeled in the Jacobethan Arts & Crafts style for Richard Geaves the manager of Llechwedd Slate Quarry (Blaenau Ffestiniog). He was the Annettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13781246573982369093noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2243566.post-74149653620666674522023-02-03T07:34:00.001-08:002023-02-03T07:34:50.842-08:00Wellington Clock Tower, Swanage, DorsetIn 1854 when the Wellington Clock Tower was originally erected at the southern end of London Bridge it had four clock faces and housed a small telegraph office. It was relocated to Swanage, Dorset in 1868 when local building contractor George Burt disassembled it, transported it as ship's ballast and gave it to his friend Thomas Docwra, another builder, as a gift. For obscure reasons, the Annettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13781246573982369093noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2243566.post-80593999377371292562023-01-31T04:20:00.000-08:002023-01-31T04:20:08.557-08:00Cranmore Tower, SomersetLocated on the highest point of the Mendip Way, Cranmore Tower is about 45m (148 ft) tall. Built by Thomas Henry Wyatt for John Moore Paget of Cranmore Hall between 1862 and 1864, it is now on private land and closed to visitors. Unsurprisingly it was used by the Home Guard and Royal Corps of Signals during the Second World War. Annettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13781246573982369093noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2243566.post-85566038173595376012023-01-30T06:18:00.000-08:002023-01-30T06:18:56.233-08:00St Audries ParkIn 1835, Mad Jack Fuller's nephew and heir Sir Peregrine Palmer Fuller Palmer Acland purchased St Audries, East Quantoxhead, Somerset. It became home to his daughter Isabella and her husband Sir Alexander Bateman Periam Fuller Acland Hood when they married in 1849. Over the years the house was much improved and expanded. It remained in the family until their grandson sold it in 1925. It is now a Annettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13781246573982369093noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2243566.post-80511475120921952232023-01-29T03:54:00.001-08:002023-01-31T04:01:28.645-08:00Watchet Barometer Gift of Sir A A HoodLike Mad Jack Fuller, Sir Alexander Bateman Perriam Fuller Acland Hood was a generous benefactor to his community. His wife, Lady Isabella Harriet was the only surviving child of Mad Jack's nephew Sir Peregrine Palmer Fuller Palmer Acland. As well as family ties, Hood shared Mad Jack's interest in saving lives at sea and scientific instruments. In 1862, Sir A A Hood gifted the town of Watchet, Annettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13781246573982369093noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2243566.post-87291291317029536922021-08-30T03:31:00.001-07:002021-08-30T03:31:33.002-07:00The Mad Jack Walking Tour Enjoy a walk, drive or cycle ride around the Sussex village of Brightling to see the intriguing follies built by John 'Mad Jack' Fuller. Download a pdf of the map and guide here. Annettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13781246573982369093noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2243566.post-53317628496348724562021-01-28T10:47:00.002-08:002021-01-28T10:47:39.304-08:00Mad Jack, the many lives of John Fuller, squire of BrightlingIn a country and era renowned for its colourful characters, John 'Mad Jack' Fuller stands out as the archetypical eccentric English Georgian squire. Born in 1757 to a family of wealthy landowners, Fuller carved his own niche in the annals of Sussex history.'Mad Jack is best known for his follies in the village of Brightling, Sussex and apocryphal tales about his eccentricity. His lengthy Annettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13781246573982369093noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2243566.post-76601355590448287972020-01-22T10:14:00.002-08:002020-01-22T10:14:50.032-08:00Fuller Biography in ProgressAnnettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13781246573982369093noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2243566.post-47753597910606415752019-08-18T20:15:00.003-07:002019-08-18T20:17:59.486-07:00A few years ago, I purchased these two original pen and ink sketches made by Paul Sharp in about 1963. They were made in preparation for a drawing that appeared in the Follies volume of the National Benzole Books series published in 1963. The final drawing and text appear below.
Paul Sharp was born in Sowerby Bridge, West Yorkshire in 1912. He studied at the Royal Annettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13781246573982369093noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2243566.post-86297458337067961592019-07-06T07:35:00.000-07:002019-07-06T07:45:06.553-07:00Excursion: On the Trail of Mad Jack Fuller
NOT AFFILIATED WITH THIS BLOG OR ITS AUTHOR
Roadmark Travel
Friday 2 August 2019
Overview
John “Mad Jack” Fuller was an eccentric Georgian squire who built a number of follies in some of the highest and most attractive countryside in the South of England. Your guide for this fascinating day out will be Mark, who will introduce you to the life and times of this Annettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13781246573982369093noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2243566.post-74044648567762049632019-06-13T08:15:00.005-07:002019-06-13T08:15:58.709-07:00Bodiam Castle: Four Reports - Seminal Texts Made Accessible
Playwrite, performer and heritage interpreter Lance Woodman works at and has a keen interest in Bodiam Castle. He has gathered long out of print texts and, "offers them side-by-side in a modern typescript with introductions that set them in context.
Included are:
A Graphical and Historical Sketch of Bodyam Castle by William Cotton, 1831.
Bodiam and its Lords, by Mark Antony Lower, 1871.Annettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13781246573982369093noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2243566.post-30101766897556097902019-06-08T15:10:00.000-07:002019-06-08T15:10:00.131-07:00Brightling Church Bells: What's in a Name?
Source: The Bell News and Ringers Record Vol III, 5/4/1884 - 28/3/1885, p 103
Fuller wished to celebrate the victories of the Duke of Wellington by gifting this peal of bells to home Brightling church. They are still rung regularly by the dedicated bellringers of the village.
The Battle of Salamanca was fought on 22 July 1812 in Spain; The Battle of the Pyrenees lasted from 25 July to 2 Annettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13781246573982369093noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2243566.post-53708238410346631572019-01-20T07:39:00.000-08:002019-01-20T07:39:06.360-08:00Stephen Lloyd MP Continues Fuller's Philanthropy
In 1822, two years before the RNLI was founded, Fuller funded the first lifeboat at Eastbourne. The "Samaritan" or "Rose" as she was variously called, performed her first service on 21 February 1833 rescuing 29 people from the "Isabella" a West Indiaman that, when en route to Madiera and Demerara, got caught in a storm off the Sussex shore.
Fast forward to 2019 and MP for Eastbourne Stephen Annettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13781246573982369093noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2243566.post-16503612515302257022019-01-01T15:46:00.000-08:002019-01-01T15:46:11.094-08:00Christmas at Rose Hill, Brightling
BRIGHTLING - JOHN MEAKIN
Christmas 1815
Christmas 1820
Christmas 1823
Christmas 1828
Christmas 1832
Annettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13781246573982369093noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2243566.post-64971037761276573692018-12-19T12:59:00.000-08:002018-12-26T15:23:06.301-08:00Missing Mummy
In 1819, the Rev. Robert Fitzherbert Fuller presented the inner and outer coffins, coffin board and mummy of Iw-s-m-hes.t-mwt (previously misnamed Au-Set-Shu-Mut) to the Devon and Exeter Institution. It appears that he acquired this set of 21st Dynasty artifacts while in Egypt with Col. Sir Joseph Stratton and Captain Bennett in 1817. Born 11 Aug 1794 at East Annettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13781246573982369093noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2243566.post-6522798291651882302016-07-04T06:51:00.003-07:002016-07-04T07:29:03.688-07:00Turner's Watercolour of Bodiam Castle to be Auctioned by Christie's
Below are Chritie's notes included in the listing. What they do not mention is the fact that Jack Fuller purchased Bodiam Castle in 1829 in order to save it from being dismantled and used as building material by a Hastings firm.
When Jack Fuller died in 1757, Bodiam Castle was left to General Sir Augustus Eliott Fuller MP, the son of Jack Fuller's cousin John Trayton Fuller. It Annettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13781246573982369093noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2243566.post-27233985477177025242016-03-28T04:49:00.001-07:002016-03-28T04:49:47.775-07:00Postcards of Brightling ObservatoryAnnettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13781246573982369093noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2243566.post-58323894612950426692015-07-18T18:54:00.000-07:002015-07-18T18:54:01.640-07:00Mad Jack Takes Over Toronto Subway StationYesterday I traveled downtown, by subway, to do some research at the Toronto Reference Library (more on that in a future post). To my astonishment, all of Yonge Station, the busiest hub in the system, was covered in Mad Jack Premium Apple Lager ads.
See my previous blog post on the topic: http://madjackfuller.blogspot.ca/2014/09/mad-jack-premium-apple.html
Annettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13781246573982369093noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2243566.post-11024996134822561522015-07-05T15:02:00.000-07:002015-07-05T15:02:00.414-07:00SOME SUSSEX "FOLLIES": Pepper Box, Brighton & Deer Tower, Shillinglee
ix. Pepper Box, in Queen's Park, Brighton
OS Grid Reference: TQ3205904811
Date: 1830
Built by: Thomas Atree from plans by architect Charles Barry
Construction: One of the earliest buildings to be built using "Ranger's
Artificial Stone" or "Ranger's Lime Concrete"; 60 feet tall.
Also called the Pepper Pot, this structure has housed various things over the years including a wind-powered water Annettehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13781246573982369093noreply@blogger.com0