“The History of York is the History of England.” ~ King George VI
Death in a Chocolate Box!
With the coming of dusk and the door of an atelier closed for the day – it is possible to catch a glimpse of a celebrated miniaturist and storyteller clad in her distinctive black feline boots wandering through the snickelways and secret passages of York in a quest to wake the dead.
For those of a curious and hardy temperament – why not come along and listen to the Lady Brigante as she shares with you the tales of the illustrious, miscreants, artists, misfits and ordinary folk who have ALL been lost to history – until now!
However, for those of a sensitive nature averse to real stories of tears, heartache and tragedy – an evening walk with the Lady Brigante may NOT be to your taste.
For all of the ‘Chocolate Box’ gossip, exciting discoveries AND the dates of Lady B’s unique walks, place of rendezvous and ticket availability – subscribe to the Brigante Chronicles to bring forth EVERY snippet of chatter direct to your inbox.
Or, if you would prefer to talk to an actual human – that’s fine too!
Welcome to Death in a Chocolate Box!
Ordinary People. Extraordinary Deaths…
Having returned to British shores only the previous month – on a chilly January morning in 1889 a soldier with the 10th Hussars was found hanging from a pole in the stable block of the York Cavalry Barracks.
On the day following Private Dalby’s death the city coroner opened the inquest at the military hospital and as a succession of witnesses stepped forward to offer testimony – the tragic story unfolds…
Private William Dalby
Pregnant and suffering from severe sickness, a young mother along with her husband and toddler son are living in a quiet area of York and one chilly February evening – things took a turn for the worse.
As a post mortem examination revealed that Mrs Byrne had died as a result of a brain haemorrhage caused by some kind of mysterious ingested poison – an inquest into her death was opened.
Mrs. Florence Byrne
Waking the Dead?
“Every day above ground is a good day.” ~ Al Pacino
Have you ever heard the one about how there are only two things that are certain to us?
The first one being that we are all subject to some form of taxation and the second is that one day we WILL all die.
As a genealogical researcher my time is spent grappling with the mystery of death and if I’m not in search of a missing ancestor or researching another life long lost to history – I will be poring over the details on a newly discovered and often indecipherable certificate of death or trawling through the parish records in search of a burial entry.
Being able to locate the final resting place of those from my research endeavours has always been an important task and an unsuccessful search is disappointing as the final piece of the jigsaw remains missing.
However, if you struggle with the thought of death and have no wish to contemplate – MY world is probably NOT for you!
As I love nothing more than a ramble through a cemetery and have been pottering among the tombstones for as long as I can remember – I will be sharing the tales and triumphs of family history and the images and podcasts of my wanderings among the dead.
The author Lailah Gifty Akita said “the graveyard is an everlasting home of every man” and within most of our cemeteries – evidence of spectacular craftsmanship, awe inspiring stonework, history, sublime words of poignancy and the occasional flashes of humour are ALL just waiting to be discovered!
See you on the other side?