Lewes History Group

Lucy Noakes: The Social Impact of the Great War – Never Such Innocence Again?

Dr Lucy Noakes, Reader in History at the University of Brighton talks about the social impact in Sussex of the ‘Great War’ of 1914-1918. How it shaped the lives of almost everyone in Britain, leaving in its wake a society shaken not only by the enormous loss of life, but by the huge social, political and cultural shifts that the war had bought about.

Women were employed, often close to the front line, in huge numbers; air raids had, for the first time in British history, killed and injured civilians; rationing had been introduced; the franchise had been extended and war memorials could be found in almost every British city, town and village. Sussex had a key role in the war, being close to the Western Front. It was home to large numbers of army camps housing soldiers from around the UK and worldwide; was where many hospitals for the war wounded were located; and also accommodated significant numbers of refugees from occupied Belgium.

This talk will reflect on just some of the ways that the war shaped Lewes, Sussex and wider British society, discussing the extent to which it can be understood as a ‘watershed’ in British history.

Image courtesy of the Royal Pavilion & Museums, Brighton & Hove. Released for re-use under a BY-NC-SA 4.0 Creative Commons licence

All are welcome from 7.00pm for free refreshments and updates on the Group’s activities. The talk will begin promptly at 7:30pm and will finish by 9.00pm.

There is an entry fee for these meetings, payable at the door, of £2 for members, and £3 for non-members.

Venue: The King’s Church building on Brooks Road, Lewes, BN7 2BY. (Between Tesco car park and Homebase)

See the Meetings page for a list of  forthcoming monthly talks organised by the Lewes History Group.

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A Sussex Archaeological Society members only event

Leader: Esme Evans

Come and see some of the SAS Library Treasures, not normally on open display, including rare books, early maps etc., Scrapbooks, and West Gallery music. You will have a chance to meet some of the volunteers who staff the Library and who can introduce you to the material.

Numbers are restricted to 16 because of the limited space in the Library. If demand exceeds this number, the SAS will try to arrange another visit early in the new year.

This is a free event for members.

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Drop in to Lewes Castle, and to Reeves Studio on Sunday 26 October 2014 for a special family Sunday to accompany Captured Light, the photography exhibition in the museum.

Enjoy pinhole photography workshops, drawing activities and much more.

Here is a picture of the tins that are being prepared for Sunday!

The pinhole cameras are made from coffee tins, with aluminium pinhole inserts made from drinks cans. The coffee tins are then spray painted black inside and PVC vinyl tape is used as a shutter. They make great pinhole cameras as they are designed to be air tight with the rubber lid which is easily removable, and the aperture is a good distance from the photosensitive paper inside.

Photographer Melanie King will lead a workshop using these pinhole cameras and will show participants of all ages how to capture an image on the photosensitive paper inside. Families will be encouraged to create ghostly pinhole portraits, using 1 minute long exposures. Workshops will last for 30 minutes, and participants will be able to take their images home after a further 30 minutes of processing.

Film maker Abigail Norris will lead a drop in work shop filming video portraits in the style of 19th century portraiture in the original Edward Reeves Studio at 159 High Street, capturing personal responses to the exhibition and recording memories of the Reeves Studio. The studio will be open to visitors on Sunday from 11.00 – 16.00 hours, showing the history of the shop and giving a glimpse of the archive. Tom Reeves will be on hand to answer questions and show some of the equipment.

The activities are included in the admission price but places on the workshops will be limited so please book in advance.

Ring 01273 486290 or speak to staff  at the museum’s front desk.

All ages welcome. Part of the Edward Reeves Archive Project.

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