 WESSEX
TOURIST BOARD'sWESSEX HALL OF FAME |
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 Actually,
“Famous people born in Wessex” would be a more suitable title for this
page. An accident of birth does not automatically create a loyalty to a
place. For example, the actor Anthony Head (Giles in Buffy the
Vampire Slayer) was born in London, but moved to Wessex out of
love for the region, whereas Julie Burchill left her native Bristol at
the earliest opportunity, and rarely misses an opportunity to disparage
her home town. I would say that Head is far more deserving of being
called
a Famous Wessaxen than Burchill. However, birthplaces are far easier to
research than attitudes towards a place, so Burchill is in and Head is
out. The only exception is the First Doctor himself, William Hartnell,
who always listed his birthplace as Seaton in Devon, but was later
found
to have been born in London. His desire to be a Wessaxen went above and
beyond the call of duty, so I have posthumously granted him his wish
(sort
of).
The following list has two sources: the Biographies section of the Internet Movie Database (whose reach extends beyond the movie industry— those who have appeared as themselves in newsreels and documentaries, and authors whose works have been filmed, are also included) and the Birthplaces of Famous People pages of the Readers Digest Atlas of the British Isles. I also added Sir Francis Drake myself as he was noticeable by his absence. Please report any other errors and omissions at the e-mail address below. Two groups of people deserve to be
mentioned en masse. The first is the Royal Family, which claims descent
from the
House of Wessex, and many of whose members throughout history have been
born in Windsor Castle. Slightly closer to our own era, it would be too
time-consuming to list the practitioners of the so-called “Bristol
Sound” (e.g. Massive Attack, Portishead) individually. If you are
interested,
I recommend Phil Johnson’s excellent book Straight Outa Bristol.Having
got all that out of the way, let’s start the list with Caroline Munro Actress & Bond Girl (1950-) - Windsor |
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Sir Winston Churchill, Prime Minister (1874-1965) - Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire |
THE
WESSEX HALL OF FAME
It is hoped that we may be able to open an
actual Wessex Hall of Fame in Chard, Somerset in 2010. Whilst not on
the
scale of the Walhalla in Bavaria it will
commemorate
the lives of famous Wessaxens. We would appreciate any assistance from
the
living listed below, or relatives of the deceased. We are hoping to
collect
possesions, and or writings of those enrolled in the Hall. So if you
know
any of those listed or have anyinformation please contact cerdic@wessex.me.uk
Underlined
Names are Click throughs to information on them
It's Official Somerset Girl Comes
down Fastest : Amy
Williams from Bath
wins the Olympic Gold Medal in the Skeleton event at the 2010
Vancouver Winter Olympics.
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Details
above
are overall visitors to all sites
+Today's
Visitors
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The
Walhalla, Hall of Fame and Honour is a hall of
fame
located on the Danube River 10 km from Regensburg, in Bavaria, Germany.It was the idea of 20 year old crown prince Ludwig I of Bavaria in 1807, at a time when German states were defeated and occupied by Napoleon. It should provide a place for the commemoration of great figures and events from Ethnic German history, covering (then) 1800 years, with the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest in the year 9 marking the beginning. Even though the Valhalla of Norse mythology is the home for those slain gloriously in battle, the Walhalla was intended not only for warriors but also for scientists, writers, clerics, and expressedly for females also. Decades before the German Empire was founded in 1871, 'German' was taken in the sense of Germanic, since Gothic, Langobardic, Anglo-Saxon and Swiss German figures are included, as well as persons who gained their fame mainly in other countries or for non-German governments. For the coronation of king Ludwig I of Bavaria in 1825, already 60 busts were finished. In 1826 he commissioned the temple above the Danube near Regensburg, modelled after the Parthenon in Athens. On the Walhalla's inauguration on 18 October 1842, there were 96 busts, plus 64 plaques for those persons or events of which no portrait was available to model a sculpture after. As of German tongue was the main criterion for the original 160 persons representing 1800 years, the king included persons from modern-day Sweden, Austria, United Kingdom, Netherlands, Russia, Switzerland and the Baltic States in his selection. As successor to the King, the government of Bavaria decides on additions. Proposals can be made by anybody, but only persons who are dead for at least 20 years are eligible. Only 31 busts were added since on an irregular basis, for a total of 191 of which 12 are female. The
following Anglo-Saxons are included:
Alfred the Great - first King of England Egbert of Wessex (-839), considered the first de facto King of England, grandfather of Alfred the Great Plus: Wilhelm III. of Orange – King of England, Scotland, and Ireland My name is Nick Xylas, and I was chairman of Wessex Society from 1999 to 2003, when I moved to South Carolina, USA in order to marry my American sweetheart. But I have not forgotten my roots, and so I decided to produce a website dedicated to the region that I was born and raised in. However I have now donated my writings for the www.wessex.me.uk website. This page is one of the pages that I compiled. The page is under construction as it is hoped to put both pictures and click throughs to other websites ( for full details about each Wessaxen listed). |
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