Crediton & District

Events in 2023

Talks in 2023

Nov talk
Crediton & District u3a talk 15th November 2023 by Professor Peter Edwards: “The life & Times of Galileo”

Peter was a little late in getting to the center. This he put down to an errant satnav which had taken him to Church Lane Sandford instead of Church Lane, Crediton! He used humor throughout his beautifully illustrated talk to lighten its content

He used images of the historical buildings of Pisa, Florence & Padua to illustrate Galileo’s life. He was born in 1564, the same year as Shakespeare – and also the year of Michelangelo's death probably in Ammannati House, Pisa. His father was a lutenist & music theorist and his mother was of aristocratic stock

At age 10 the family moved from Pisa to Florence where Galileo received his early education from the monks of Valembosa Abbey (the building survives). In 1581 he moved back to Pisa to study medicine (at his father’s urging) at the university. He gradually lost enthusiasm for the subject instead becoming interested in mathematics & opted to specialise in mathematical subjects & philosophy.

In 1583, at the age of 19, Galileo discovered the isochronic nature of the pendulum & went on to develop the law of the pendulum.

IN 1586 he ended his university education without a degree, but circulation of his ideas among mathematical groups had enhanced his reputation and he was appointed to the chair of mathematics at Pisa university in 1589.

Galileo never married but fathered three children, two daughters & a son, with his mistress, Marina Gamba.

It is said (and this is almost certainly apocryphal), that Galileo dropped two spheres of different masses from the tower to prove his theory whereby all objects fall at the same rate in a vacuum. Aristotle had said that heavier objects fall faster than lighter ones.

Now contradicting Aristotle was considered heresy and in 1542 Galileo was not invited back to Pisa University as a result.

In 1592 he was appointed to the chair of mathematics in Padua where Copernicus had studied astrology almost 100 years earlier.

In 1606 Galileo had invented the geometric & military compass and continuing his research on motion had, by 1609, determined that the distance fallen by a body is proportional to the square of the elapsed time (the law of falling bodies) and that the trajectory of a projectile is a parabola, both were conclusions that contradicted Aristotelian physics.

Also by 1609, Galileo was made aware of the development of the telescope in Holland and constructed his own instrument, the astronomical telescope.

From 1609/1610 he made a series of discoveries he described in Sidereus Nuncius or starry messenger. These included the Mountains of the Moon, revealed the existence of a multitude of stars and described the four moons of Jupiter. This was the first work anywhere describing observations made through a telescope.

In 1610 he became Chief Mathematician of the University of Pisa and Mathematician & Philosopher to the Grand Duke of Tuscany. He had no teaching duties so could concentrate his thoughts on developing

During his years in Pisa and earlier in Padua he acknowledged the Medici family as his patrons and favored them by naming planetary features after them,

From 1610 Galileo observed with his telescope that Venus showed phases, despite remaining near the Sun in Earth's sky. This proved that it orbits the Sun and not Earth, as predicted by Copernicus's heliocentric model and disproved the then conventional geocentric model.

In 1616 the Inquisition declared heliocentrism to be "formally heretical". Galileo went on to propose a theory of tides in 1616, and of comets in 1619; he argued that the tides were evidence for the motion of the Earth.

In 1632 Galileo published his Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems, which defended heliocentrism, and was immensely popular. Responding to mounting controversy over theology, astronomy and philosophy, the Roman Inquisition tried Galileo in 1633, found him "vehemently suspect of heresy", and he was sentenced to house arrest where he remained until his death in 1642 having been forced to recant his theory that the earth moves around the sun. Heliocentric books were banned and Galileo was ordered to abstain from holding, teaching or defending heliocentric ideas.

In 1979 Pope John Paul II set up a committee of enquiry that reported in 1992 conceding that Galileo had been right and saying that the Inquisition had ‘acted in good faith, but was wrong’

Oct Talk
October’s talk: ‘Cosa Nostra’ by Richard Haigh

Richard started by telling us a little about the history of the Cosa Nostra or Mafia. Italy is a relatively new country being found in the middle of the 19th Century, Before then, Sicily was part of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. This covered both Sicily and southern areas of Italy.
Sicily was a largely agricultural almost feudal society. The language spoken was Sicilian and they regarded themselves as distinct from the rest of Italy. The wealthy landowners lived in towns like Palermo. They rented their land to the Gabellotti, small entrepreneurs.
The Gabellotti were ruthless in protecting their assets, often using threats and violence. After unification, little attention was paid to Sicily by central government, and as old social structures fell apart, the Gabellotti established new systems which eventually became the Cosa Nostra or Our Thing.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, many Sicilians emigrated due to poor economic prospects in Italy. This led to branches of the Mafia becoming established in America, particularly New York. The American Mafia maintained strong links to Sicily.
The Cosa Nostra is a loose network of criminal gangs with initiation rites and a code of strict silence
(Omertà). The basic group or gang is known as the family or Cosca. Each family has a distinct
territory. They derive their income by extracting protection money (Pizzu) by setting up illegal
agreements and transactions such as the illegal drug trade. They act as an unofficial police force,
enacting draconian punishments for perceived transgressions. For a long time, they were the effective
government of Sicily, their activities being largely ignored by central government. In fact,
government institutions were widely infiltrated by them. Berlusconi, the ex-prime minister, had strong
links. Even the Vatican had it’s share in the corruption.

Throughout the 20th century, Cosa Nostra kept an iron grip on Sicily. When Sicily was liberated from
the Nazis in 1943, Cosa Nostra took advantage of the situation by infiltrating the government and aid
structures set up by the Allies. When they did not approve of officials, the officials were simply
assassinated. In 1947, seven recently-elected Sicilian mayors were assassinated. After the war, fear of
communist take-over in Italy led US aid to go to the Christian Democrat party. This party was
strongly anti-communist but also strongly infiltrated by the Cosa Nostra.

In the second half of the 20th Century, the Italian State started to take action against Cosa Nostra.
However, their activities were hampered by systematic corruption in all institutions. There were many
assassinations both of officials and infighting between the families. Today some progress in
successful prosecution of Cosa Nostra members has been achieved. The high levels of violence that
were seen in the 1970s and 1980s came to a sudden halt in the early 1990s. We don’t know why. Is
the Cosa Nostra in decline or have they reached a compromise with central government? The story
continues.

Septembers Talk
September’s talk: A Century of Water Quality by Peter Chave
Peter told us about the history of our use of water starting in the 19th century, so a bit more than
100 years! He divided the topic into three main areas, the quality of our drinking water, the
treatment of wastewater and the quality of water in our rivers, lakes and the sea.

The drinking water story starts in the 1850s. At this time the quality of drinking water in London
was appalling. In 1854, a cholera epidemic was initiated by contaminated drinking water from a pump in Broad Street. By careful detective work, Dr John Snow identified the pump as the source of the outbreak. However, the authorities refused to believe him, maintaining that the disease was spread by a miasma in the air. Snow removed the handle from pump, and the epidemic halted!

This was one of the first instances where the source of an outbreak could be traced. By 1871, various legislation was enacted in London that required all drinking water to be filtered and available every day of the week. Water examiners were also employed to assess water quality. The legislation then spread nationwide. In 1945, the Water Act stipulated that water had to be ‘wholesome’ but did not define what this meant. Nevertheless, using WHO standards, drinking water quality could be assessed. It wasn’t until 2016 that these standards became defined by law. Water from any source must be purified before being made available to the public. In the early days this was by allowing debris to settle and filtration through sand. Today, extra steps such as ion exchange are used to remove contaminants like nitrates. Finally, water is chlorinated to ensure there is no bacterial contamination.

The sewage treatment story also starts in London with the ‘Great Stink’ of 1858. The introduction
of toilets that flushed straight into the local rivers meant that the Thames was effectively an open
sewer. In the summer of 1858, the smell was so bad that parliament had to close. Joseph Bazalgette was employed to solve the problem. He built two huge sewers that ran along either side of the Thames. (They run under the Thames Embankment, that was built to house them.) Still in use today, they collected all the sewage from the rivers running into the Thames and took it downstream to be released into the river as the tide went out.
Today, the sewage is treated at a large sewage works before being discharged. Gradually large civic projects across the country built similar sewers and treatment plants. In 1912, standards were brought into law that defined the quality of water that could be discharged. But until 1991, untreated sewage could still be legally discharged into the sea and some rivers under licence. Since 1991, no routine discharge into the sea or rivers is permitted. Sadly, underinvestment means that untreated sewage still reaches our waterways particularly after heavy rain.

It is only since 1976 that legislation has been enacted to set standards for the quality of water in
our rivers and lakes. In 2000, the river framework directive called for plans to be set in place for
the improvement of environmental water quality. This has proved difficult to do and the quality of
water is not improving. This is partly due to pollution from sewage but also farm run-off and
industrial contamination is a huge problem. Peter summed up the talk by suggesting we know
what we what to do about water quality but do not seem able do it!

August talk
August’s talk: The Merry Wives of Sax-Coburg-Gotha by Stewart Raine
Stewart’s talk was the story of how the Royal Family took on its modern role in our society. He started by explaining the talk’s title. As you probably know, the Royal Family had many links to Germany at the start of WWI. George V, the king at this time, was greatly affected by the anti-German feeling in the country.
He decided that his Family should sever links with Germany, and this included a change of surname from Sax-Coburg-Gotha to Windsor. As he said, ‘I may be uninspiring, but I’ll be damned if I’m an alien.’ In retaliation, the Kaiser ordered that the Shakespeare play ‘The Merry Wives of Windsor’ be renamed ‘The Merry Wives of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha.’

The role of the monarchy actually started to modernize during Queen Victoria’s reign. Political power moved away from the monarchy as successive acts of parliament increased the size of electorate and restricted the powers of the monarch. This led to the modern concept of the monarchy being above partisan politics, while still being the head of state. Many of the ceremonial duties performed by the Royal Family today are not long-held traditions but were formalised at the start of the 20th century.

For example, the ceremony we see today at the State Opening of Parliament was introduced by Edward VII in 1901.
Service to the community was another role taken on by the new-look royals. Queen Victoria’s daughters,
granddaughters and daughters-in-law had a big part to play in this.

For example, Princess Helen, who married Queen Victoria’s son, Leopold, worked hard to raise funds for unmarried mothers’ homes, nursery schools and skills training for young women. She was a founder member of the Red Cross and worked hard for the state registration of nurses.

Princess Alexandra (future Queen to Edward VII) had a huge role to play in establishing the training of nurses and setting up hospitals. Many hospitals today still bear her name.

Stewart also spoke briefly of the huge role Queen Victoria’s children had in world history, as many of them married into European royalty.
All in all, it was a riveting talk covering so much ground it is hard to summarise here. Many
thanks Stewart

July’s Talk: The Origins of Mass Production Fashion by Laura Jones
Laura has a background in the fashion industry. She has designed and made costumes for films and TV, worked for couturiers, researched the origins of mass production in clothes, had her own fashion label, taught fashion at Plymouth University, and in her latest project has a shop in Crediton called ‘The Makers’ Boutique’ where you can buy locally produced garments or even learn how to make your own garments. Well worth a visit!
Laura told us that before the industrial revolution, clothes were made in the home and were ‘made to measure’. The very rich would employ tailors to visit their homes and construct garments to their own personal size and shape. At a lower level, most garments would have been made by the ladies of the house. However, there was a thriving trade in second-hand clothing and the poorest members of society largely wore these.
The industrial revolution saw tailoring moving from domestic situations into commercial ones. However, clothes were still ‘made to measure’. This all changed with the advent of Elias Moses, a London-based Jewish tailor. His importance in the development of fashion has largely been ignored by historians, and Laura undertook substantial research to raise his profile. E Moses and Son were in operation between 1829 and 1884. Moses recognised thatincreasing national wealth and the blurring of class boundaries lead to a demand for high quality clothing at more affordable prices. The company was able to lower prices by introducing standardized garments produced in bulk and sold with a narrow profit margin. This led to the development of ‘standard sizes’. Which in turn led to the need for a paper pattern and for consumers to know their ‘size’.
Perhaps you would be astonished to learn that the humble tape measure was not invented until the 1820s. Moses was also an excellent salesman and although based in London, his clothes were sold nationwide through catalogues.

June 21st 2023
Mark Branwell
The spanish Guitar for Today
"The musical evolution of the Spanish guitar"
"A musical journey of how the Spanish guitar has evolved over time, from the early days of Francisco Tárrega through the era of Classical and Flamenco to the integration of the Spanish guitar with orchestras and popular music, covering the likes of John Williams, The Shadows and Sting."
Our meeting started a little chaotic as the church car park was full due to a sports day at the local school, meaning that the start was delayed while people hunted around for somewhere to park. Once all were assembled, a near full house of attendees was treated to a very entertaining talk by Mark Branwell about the evolution of both the Spanish Guitar and also the various types and styles of music played on it.
During the talk he explained how the instrument had had its range extended by its design changes and the addition of various electronic devices from its original acoustic beginnings to the current standard. He illustrated the various different styles of music played with it and also the types of Flamenco style music by playing many small selections and ending up with a tune from the Gipsy Kings. These are a band of Catalan rumba, flamenco, salsa, and pop musicians, founded in 1978 in Arles and Montpellier, in southern France, who perform mostly in Catalan but also mix in Spanish with southern French dialects. In all he delivered a very informative and engrossing 45 min talk which was much enjoyed by all present.
Aprils Talk
April’s Talk: talk: In Search of Disney’s ‘Yeti’ by Martin Pailthorpe
Martin spoke about his adventures in Nepal and China with Joe Rohde of Disney’s Animal Kingdom as they
‘searched’ for the ‘yeti’. Joe was constructing a ride for the Florida theme park based on myths from this part of the world called ‘Expedition Everest’ .
He went to Nepal and China to study the culture and collect ‘yeti’ stories so that the ride was ‘authentic’. Joe and Martin spent a lot of time talking to the local people about their traditions. ‘Yeti’ stories originated with the Sherpa peoples. Now they live at high altitude, but they used to be more widespread across China, particularly Szechuan. Their tales speak of a large monster with long claws and feet. Details varied, but there was always a pointy head. For some local people, the ‘yeti’ were real.
Although fierce, these creatures protected the environment around them from invaders and their presence was regarded as good luck. The ‘yeti’ only ate people at night, which was fortunate!
Part of the project was to give something back to the community and so Disney was funding an environmental survey high in the Himalayas. Jo and Martin visited the scientists at work in some of the
most isolated parts of the world. Access was difficult and sometimes dangerous. The people were poor
subsistence farmers, but satellite dishes were everywhere.
If you visit Florida today, you can see the ride created by Joe in action. It is both exciting and educational.

U3A January’s Open Meeting “Russia and the Ukraine” by Natalia Letch

Those of us who braved the weather on January 18th (a total of 57 brave souls) heard a very moving talk by Natalia Letch on “Russia and the Ukraine”. We held a collection after the talk and raised £206.40p. This has been given to the DEC Ukraine Crisis appeal via the Red Cross. Thank you to everyone who came and donated and thanks also to Natalia. I hope my summary below does her credit.

Natalia is in a unique position to describe the current situation in the Ukraine. Born to a Ukrainian father and a Russian mother, as a child she lived in both Kyiv and Moscow. In adult life, she was for many years a TV broadcaster in Moscow before moving to the UK.

Natalia described how the Ukraine seceded from the Soviet Union in 1991. This was part of the general break-up of the USSR. Natalia emphasized that the Ukraine followed a legal process enshrined in the original constitution of the USSR and Russia guaranteed to recognize its border provided certain conditions were met. This included the relinquishing of nuclear weapons. However, Russia was left with a problem for its Black Sea fleet, which until the break-up of the USSR, had its main base in Sevastopol in the Crimea. An agreement was made for the base to continue here but it left the Russian Navy very vulnerable. This was a strong reason for Russia to annex the Crimea, which it tried to do unsuccessfully in the 1990s, but succeeding in 2014.

Meanwhile, Ukraine became closer to Western Europe and the EU. Although for a time, President Yanukovych (Ukraine’s 4th president) was sympathetic to Russia. His corrupt practices and slowing down of negotiations with the West were unpopular and he was ousted from power, fleeing to Russia in 2014.

In Russia, President Putin came to power in 2000 and has been so ever since, except for a stint as prime minister with a ‘puppet president’ from 2008-12. At first, he portrayed himself as pro-democracy and liberal. However, Natalia described that, as time went on, the state became more totalitarian. She was glad to leave to come to the UK.

For some time, there had been unrest in the eastern part of the Ukraine. There are native Russian speakers throughout the Ukraine, and perhaps not surprisingly, many along the border with Russia. Some of these felt poorly treated by the Ukrainian government. Small groups of Russian-backed fighters sought independence from the Ukraine and in 2022, the area was annexed by Russia as part of their invasion. Despite Russian claims to the contrary, Natalia told us there were no strong feeling pro the Russian state in the area. Her view is that by annexing these states, Russian has obtained a land bridge between Russia and the Crimea, which was probably Putin’s intention from the beginning.

Natalia showed us photos of Kyiv taken before the war; it was a truly beautiful city. She finished by playing us a traditional Ukrainian New Year song set to images of the Ukraine as it was and as it is now. It was most moving. Thank you, Natalia, for a wonderful talk.