Nelson & His World

The jetty where Lord Nelson came ashore at Great Yarmouth on his return to England after the Nile is under threat:

http://www.edp24.co.uk/news/plea_to_sav ... y_1_774043

I can sympathise with local feeling but in these difficult times one has to prioritise. Perhaps this is one to 'let go'. What do others think?

Anna,

I think I agree with you and sympathise – but £300,000 needed to restore it? They also have plans to retain the concrete part and provide a monument and boards to explain the jetty's significance, so they are marking the spot historically. I'm not sure either that many local people would agree to spending that amount of money on it and there is not actually that much connection with Nelson.

It is not even the jetty he walked on, so it's a bit like saying even though the hammer head has had several handles, it's still the same hammer. Of course you might say the same about the Victory, in that very little of the original Victory that Nelson knew is left, yet it is the same by continuation. However I believe the Victory has far greater significance!

I just hope that the monument and boards don't cost £300,000!

...latest news. It has to go, according to news in the EDP.


http://www.edp24.co.uk/news/historic_no ... _1_1118041


- Mil -

Thanks for the update, Mil.

Strange isn't it? Nelson's birthplace in Burnham Thorpe and his last home at Merton were both demolished without, it appears, much public protest and none of the concern that has accompanied the discussions about the jetty at Great Yarmouth.

Our modern sensibilities are much more attuned to understanding and preserving the past than used to be the case - perhaps aided by modern technology that allows us to unearth, conserve and protect sites and artifacts of historic interest. Sites like the pre-historic Avebury Stone Circle were regarded as a source of building materials for the locals until antiquarians became more active in the cause of preservation. We are more conscious now of historic resonances, but, as I said in my first post, when the harsh winds of economic downturn blow, some things have to give.