Of the Monstrous Regiment

Am looking forward very much to our next meeting - Poetry Reading and Afternoon Tea at historic Carberry House Hotel on 17th. March. Full details will be e-mailed to members or will in the post within the next 48 hours.

 Meantime thought it very appropriate that this week's "Poem of the Week" in the Scotsman Magazine should be  "On the Monstrous Regiment"  by Henry Marsh

Henry Marsh has written  quite a few poems on Mary and John Knox and will be reciting a number of them  at the Scottish Poetry Library off the Canongate  (above) on Wednesday evening at 6.30 - just sorry I am not going to manage along.

 The poem:

Were you fed by ravens

Master Knox? At the least,

your zealous brethern

obliged with a wilderness,

where you could approve,

crows nodding

amongst shards and ashes.

 

Jezebel- how convenient

the heft of the old stories

a stolen vineyard,

 Naboth stoned,

and Yahweh harrying,

your captive souls,

 half demented.

 

How neat to cast

 our mischievous Marys

in one image

a painted whore.

Did you ever catch

in the mirror your own

soul's darker strands?

 

Thou shall die the death-

even Calvin winced

at regicide. Were not all

equal in the sight of God?

But who dares walk

that perilous ridge

between iniquities.

 

 Find it a thought provoking if somewhat dark poem.

 Probably a bit unfair to suggest Knox preached regicide - not aware that he ever did so and why in the third verse is Mary(mischievous) in the plural (was he purporting to refer to the four Marys or perhaps including Mary Tudor - or a simple typo?)

 

 

National Portrait Gallery Re-opening

Was very interested to note from today’s ‘Scotsman’ that the National Portrait Gallery in

Queen Street

will be reopening after extensive refurbishment on the 1^st. of December next. The refurbishment work has been extensive and many portraits not previously in the public domain will now be on show.

Members will of course recall our guided tour of the gallery shortly before it shut  - it hardly seems three years ago now and a return visit must now be very high on the agenda.

According to the ‘Scotsman’ article the oldest item in the gallery is a portrait of Lord Darnley of 1755 by Hans Ewart.

Also on show is of course is what is known as ‘The Sheffield Portrait’ of Mary (above) probably by Rowland Lockey. The portrait was previously thought to have been based on  one currently in Hardwick Hall painted during Mary’s lifetime and this may or may not be the case. The date 1578 appears  and as Helen Smailes puts it in her book “The Queen’s Image” “the significance of the date is not clear but may represent an aspect of James’ policy of rehabilitating his mother’s reputation”.

Also in the exhibition is a rare woodcut which is believed to be the only image made of John Knox during his lifetime.

I think I am also correct in saying that on the façade of the building, remains a range of statues including the only one in Scotland of Mary. As a Society we presently have in hand a project for the erection of a full size statue to Mary, we hope very much at or in the precinct of Holyrood House.

Ronald