John Stanley Purviss Commemorative Stone - Mouse Lane
| Browse information by: Location Makers General Information Classification Object Parts Object Condition History References Photographs |  Author: Anthony McIntosh Copyright for Photograph: Creative Commons |
Location
| Street: | Mouse Lane |
| Town: | Steyning |
| Parish: | Steyning |
| Council: | Horsham District Council |
| County: | West Sussex |
| Postcode: | BN44 |
| Location on Google Map | |
| Object setting: | Road or Wayside |
| Access is: | Public |
| Location note: | Next to Charlton Court Barn |
| In the AZ book: | West Sussex |
| Page: | 129 |
| Grid reference: | M2 |
| The A-Z books used are A-Z East Sussex and A-Z West Sussex (Editions 1A 2005). Geographers' A-Z Map Company Ltd. Sevenoaks. | |
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Makers
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General Information
| Installation date: | 2006 |
| Work is: | Extant |
| Owner custodian: | Steyning Parish Council |
| Object listing: | Not listed |
| Description: | A rough hewn grey granite block with a flat, polished, raised rectangular centre that holds the inscription in carved letters painted black. |
| Inscription: | I can't forget the lane that goes from Steyning to the Ring In summer time and on the downs how larks and linnets sing High in the sun. The wind comes off the sea, and oh the air! I never knew till now that life in old days was so fair. But now I know it in this filthy rat-infested ditch, Where every shell must kill or spare, and God alone knows which, And I am made a beast of prey, and this is my lair - My God, I never knew till now that those days were so fair, And we assault in half-an-hour and it's a silly thing: I can't forget the lane that goes from Steyning to the Ring. Written by John Stanley Purvis (using the name Philip Johnson) 5th Battalion, Yorkshire Regiment, on 2nd December 1915 in a trench behind the Somme. The original stone was placed in the lane by the people of Steyning in the year 2000 AD in celebration of their inheritance, and replaced, after damage to the original, in 2006 A D. |
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Classification
| Categories: | Commemorative, Military |
| Object type1: | Marker |
| Object subtype1: | Commemorative stone |
| Subject type1: | Non-figurative |
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Object Parts
| Part 1: | Stone |
| Material: | Grey granite |
| Height (cm): | 68 |
| Width (cm): | 97 |
| Depth (cm): | 23 |
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Object Condition
| Overall condition: | Good |
| Risk assessment: | No known risk |
| Date of on-site inspection: | 11/12/2007 |
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History
| History: | Replaced the original stone that was placed on Mouse Lane as part of the Milennium celebrations. It was damaged when a lorry backed into it and it was subsequently moved to its current location on the exterior wall of the Museum when it was replaced by this one.
Dedicated to the author, Lt. John Stanley Purvis, who wrote under the pseudonym of Philip Johnson. Engraved on this stone is his poem, ‘Chance Memories’ (http://www.chequerinnsteyning.co.uk/) British Lieutenant John Stanley Purvis, who wrote under the pseudonym of Philip Johnstone, was invalided out of the army having been wounded during the Battle of the Somme. Following the war he returned to Cranleigh School in Surrey where he had previously taught. He then took holy orders and at the age of 50 he settled in York. Here he gained an international reputation as the translator of the York Mystery Plays and was awarded the OBE for work on the York Minster archives. He died in York in 1968. (http://oldpoetry.com/oauthor/show/John_Stanley_Purvis) The mystery is how Purvis came to write the poem sitting in a trench waiting to 'go over the top' when, according to their official history, the 5th Battalion had been at rest from 12th November to 19th December in billets near Outtersteene, some two and a half miles from Bailleul. |
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References
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Photographs
Author: Anthony McIntosh Copyright: Creative Commons |  Author: Anthony McIntosh Copyright: Creative Commons |
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