Kent - Canterbury - High Street - a photo on Flickriver

            The Postcard

A postcard bearing no publisher's name that was posted in Canterbury on Saturday the 30th. April 1910 to:

Mrs. P. Stubberfield,
Ashburnham Lodge,
Hellingly,
Sussex.

The message on the divided back of the card was as follows:

"1.30 pm,
County Hotel.
30. 4. 10.
Hope you arrived safely
at Hellingly.
We have stopped here
to lunch. Miss G. is here
with us.
Hope all are getting on
alright at home.
Love to all in haste,
Ron."

The County Hotel is still going strong to this day.

Canterbury

Canterbury is a cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour.

The city has been occupied since Paleolithic times, and served as the capital of the Celtic Cantiaci and Jute Kingdom of Kent. 

The Archbishop of Canterbury is the primate of the Church of England and of the worldwide Anglican Communion owing to the importance of St. Augustine, who served as the apostle to the pagan Kingdom of Kent around the turn of the 7th. century.

The city's cathedral became a major focus of pilgrimage following the 1170 martyrdom of Thomas Becket, although it had already been a well-trodden pilgrim destination since the murder of St. Alphege by the men of King Canute in 1012. 

A journey of pilgrims to Becket's shrine served as the frame for Geoffrey Chaucer's 14th.-century classic The Canterbury Tales.

Canterbury is a popular tourist destination: consistently one of the most-visited cities in the United Kingdom, the city's economy is heavily reliant upon tourism. 

Many historical structures fill the area, including a city wall founded in Roman times and rebuilt in the 14th. century, the ruins of St. Augustine's Abbey, the Norman Canterbury Castle, and the oldest extant school in the world, the King's School. 

Modern additions include the Marlowe Theatre and Kent County Cricket Club's St Lawrence Ground.

Canterbury has a substantial student population, and one of the highest ratios of students to permanent residents in the UK. Nevertheless, the city remains relatively small when compared to other British cities.

Canterbury in WWII

Canterbury was heavily bombed by the Luftwaffe in 1942 during the ‘Baedeker raids’ of the Second World War; these were air raids deliberately aimed at some of the most historic British cities, chosen from the Baedeker guide books, and were an attempt by the Germans to lower British morale. 

The cathedral suffered relatively minor damage, but the bombs destroyed a great deal of the city itself. 

However, one result of the damage was that much of Canterbury’s Roman foundations were discovered during reconstruction work, and much more is now known about the city’s earliest years.

The Bicycle Wheel

Have you ever wondered how the thin metal spokes of a bicycle wheel can support the combined weight of the bicycle and its rider?

Well they don't. The thin spokes would buckle if they were compressed from above by such a weight. In fact the bicycle wheel hub hangs from the spokes immediately above it; a thin steel spoke has a high degree of tensile strength, meaning that it can carry a lot of weight without failing.

As the bicycle wheel rotates, successive spokes take over the job of carrying the weight of the bicycle and rider.

The bicycle wheel is such a remarkable piece of engineering that someone (Jobst Brandt, 1981) has written a 150-page book about it that has run to three editions.

The Belgian Congo

So what else happened on the day that Ron posted the card?

Well, on the 30th. April 1910, the Vice-Governor of the Belgian Congo ordered the introduction of the "medical passport", mandatory for all black African subjects.

The purpose was ostensibly to combat the spread of sleeping sickness. Formerly, a document (Feuille de Route) was required only for persons travelling outside their home area. 

The medical passport was mandatory for all residents, to be presented upon request to any colonial official, an idea picked up by other colonies.

The Battle of Kačanik Pass

Also on that day, in the battle of Kačanik Pass, Turkish troops defeated Albanian rebels.

Taken on: June 13, 2022

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