Belgium and England

We went to Belgium and England only a few days after returning from our trip to the States. We drove to Brussels and stayed the night, then went to beautiful Bruges, Belgium. Then we took the ferry from Calais, France to Dover, England. It was a little nerve racking driving on the wrong side of the road (more so as a passenger), but then it became kind of fun in a rebellious sort of way. Ok, it was the most fun we could have driving with 3 tired kids and not on the autobahn.

We fell in love with the beautiful English countryside. We went to Bury St Edmunds, Ely, Cambridge, and Great Yarmouth.

A large majority of my ancestry comes from Great Britain. While in England I looked up my genealogy I've saved online to see if we were staying anywhere close to where my ancestors once lived. I found Green ancestors of Greens Norton who died in the 1400's. The village of Greens Norton, Northamptonshire was not too far away, so I got excited I might find gravestones or some sort of interesting history if I could go there. I did more research and found the oldest church in the town, St. Bartholomew's and I contacted the church warden. I wanted to at the very least see the church in Greens Norton. So the following evening, we left for Northamptonshire. I was so excited to see this wonderful church and quite surprised to discover tombs of my ancestors within its walls.

St Bartholomew's Church. The original church has been expanded, and a few of the new chapels were funded by the Greene's. The original Saxon church was built sometime between 650-900 AD.

When we arrived, we were greeted by beautiful church bells and the church warden. He was a most friendly and informative older man. He was excited to give an American descendant information about the church and the Green's.

The long and short work of the stone on this inner wall of the original church is proof of its Saxon origin.

Looking back toward the entrance of the bell tower. We got to watch the six volunteers ring the bells and look up into the bell tower. The bells are so heavy they lift you into the air. It would be quite a workout to ring the bells for an hour.

Here you can see part of the original Saxon nave window above the closest arch.

A really neat trunk which held important church items.

Greene family tree. The whole village, now named Green's Norton was sold to Sir Henry Greene in the 14th century. Sir Henry Greene was an English lawyer, Justice of the Court of Common Pleas, Chief Justice of the King's Bench, and was knighted by King Edward III.

Sir Thomas Greene (1421-1462) and his wife Matilda Throgmorton (1425-1496)

Coat of Arms

I had to stand on a chair to get at an angle downward to try to capture the whole slab.

This translates the latin inscription that borders the marble slab

Sir Thomas Greene (1399-1461) and Lady Phillipa de Ferrers (1397-1415)

The effigies were painted and beautifully gilded, but were defaced during Cromwell's era. Some of the color remained in small crevices.

I also learned that we're related to Catherine Parr, the sixth wife of King Henry VIII

I apologize if that was boring, but I'm sure my family members will enjoy it ;) We also went to Windsor Castle and London. We definitely want to make a trip back to the UK.