Leicestershire and Rutland Unusual and Quirky

Download or read book Leicestershire and Rutland Unusual and Quirky written by Andrew Beardmore and published by . This book was released on 2016-09-06 with total page 160 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Leicestershire and Rutland, home to English football¿s 2016 Premier League Champions ¿ and also home to some of England¿s best kept secrets: beautiful countryside, pretty, quintessentially English villages, and a rich and diverse history. Not so secret, though, is the fact that the already historic city of Leicester has been firmly put on the international map recently, with the discovery of the remains of Richard III and his high-profile reinterment in Leicester Cathedral. And of course, Richard III, the Wars of the Roses and Leicester¿s pivotal connection with the English Civil War are amongst many topics covered in Leicestershire and Rutland: Unusual & Quirky in depth, from the Stone Age to present day. However, lurking not far beneath the surface of both counties is a host of oddities and peculiarities that turn the apparently staid and conventional into something much more intriguing. Therefore even the Conventional Leicestershire & Rutland section sees its County History interspersed with the book¿s idiosyncratic ¿Quirk Alerts¿; like anecdotes covering Roman latrine management, how Robin-a-Tiptoe Hill became so-named, and the meaning of bizarre Leicestershire terms such as Gongoozlers and Yawny Box! Naturally, though, it is the Quirky Leicestershire & Rutland section where things turn very strange, and where a seemingly random almanac of 55 Leicestershire and Rutland places have their quirkiest facts laid bare: like which village has a cow-milking organist, which had a beerswilling fox, another a wig-detecting phantom, and yet another a parson who tied 58 bulldogs to 58 apple trees to prevent scrumping! Or what about which Leicestershire village was hit by a meteorite, which one saw doves dictate the build of a church, and which one still fights annually over a hare pie! Alternatively, find out which Rutland village had a fourteenth-century rector involved in serious organised crime, which one is twinned with Paris, and which one is home to a truly mind-blowing historical revelation. If you think you know Leicestershire and Rutland, read this fascinating and profusely illustrated book and think again¿