Canterbury poster – Claude Buckle – 1950

Canterbury poster Where History Lingers poster – Claude Buckle – 1950

This vintage Canterbury railway poster is one of a series of four created as part of the British Railways’ ongoing See Britain by Train advertising campaign. The set of four posters featured places of historical significance leading with the strapline: Where History Lingers. The four chosen destinations for the railway posters being Hampton Court, Winchester, Salisbury, and the one on this listing, Canterbury. This British Railways poster focuses on the visit of Queen Elizabeth I to Canterbury in 1573.

Elizabeth was the daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn, Henry’s second wife. Elizabeth succeeded Queen Mary I, herself the subject of one of this series of railway posters reigning as Queen of England and Ireland from November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last of the five monarchs of the House of Tudor.

Each year during her reign, in summer, Elizabeth would embark on a Royal tour of the country, these were known as ‘Progresses’. The Queen loved travelling and meeting her subjects and the people enjoyed seeing their Queen.

However, these ‘progesses’ were big affairs. The tours would include an entourage of hundreds. Servants, courtiers, soldiers, dignitaries, aristocrats and lords would be on hand to cater to the Queen’s needs. All of whom would be expected to be fed, accommodated and entertained at the cost of the town, city, or host. Playing host to the Queen and her court was phenomenally expensive!

Among the many places visited by the Queen are Warwick, Kenilworth, Oxford, Cambridge, Salisbury, Coventry, Bath, Chichester, Southampton, Northampton, Hastings, Colchester, Ipswich, Harwich, Huntingdon, Harlow, Worcester and Canterbury.

The Royal visit to Canterbury in 1537 coincided with Elizabeth’s 40th birthday. It fell to the then Archbishop of Canterbury, Matthew Parker, to be the host for the Queen’s stay in Canterbury. Parker had just finished rebuilding the Old Palace, following its destruction by fire in 1543. It was there that he welcomed Elizabeth I in 1573 when she stayed in Canterbury. To celebrate a sumptuous feast was held in the Palace’s Great Hall, which after Westminster Hall was the second-largest medieval hall in Britain.

An article on the Canterbury Cathedral website describes the event in more detail: “Parker held a magnificent banquet in the palace’s Great Hall on 7 September. According to various accounts, the Archbishop’s throne was brought over from the cathedral for her to sit in, covered with a gold cloth. At the cathedral’s service to welcome the Queen, the cathedral’s own choir was joined by the choir of the Chapel Royal, which was part of the royal household and included leading performers and composers of the day. The cathedral’s accounts record the purchase of large quantities of luxury fabrics for the occasion, presumably for vestments, cushions and hangings within the cathedral itself. Elizabeth stayed in the former prior’s lodgings at St Augustine’s Abbey, which had been converted by her father into a palace.”

It is Matthew Parker’s reputation for prying into the affairs of others that gives us today’s well-used expression ‘Nosey Parker’ referring to a person of an overly inquisitive or prying nature.

Original copies of this Canterbury Where the history lingers poster, in excellent condition, currently sell for in excess of £1500.

Our posters are carefully and professionally created from vintage originals. Whilst great care is taken in the production of these posters, we also try to maintain a vintage feel, so there may be small imperfections, fold marks, scuffs, tears, or marks that were part of the original poster master. If these do appear they should be visible on the larger views of the item on this listing. The originals of many of the posters we offer can cost many thousands of pounds, so whilst these posters look great, especially framed and mounted on a wall, they are intended as fun, affordable reproductions and not intended fine art prints.

The 50x70cm version has been specially produced to be used in conjunction with Ikea’s 50x70cm Ribba picture frame which currently retails for around £12. So you can bag a bargain of print and frame for a great price.