Sir Geoffrey Shackerley (1619 to 1696)

I was reading a book about the English Civil War and read about a Royalist called Sir Geoffrey Shackerley. In 1645 he emerged as a good soldier fighting for Charles 1^st. He was galloping across countryside on his horse to receive orders from the King however the journey was halted when they arrived at the sides of the River Dee. Rather than riding up to a bridge Geoffrey threw a barrel into the water, jumped in and rowed across. He needed his horse at the other side so it swam alongside him.

He sounded pretty cool and when I read there was Shackerley Chapel in a corner of a church in the Cheshire countryside I just had to have a look. I drove through beautiful countryside one Saturday afternoon saw a sign for St Oswald’s church and parked on a cobbled lane that must have led up to it. Those cobbles might shake my car lifeless so I pulled up and had a coffee. A woman was walking down the lane toward me. I got out an asked if the church was definitely at the end of the lane. I felt a bit of a nerd as I noticed she was wearing a vicar’s collar and there was confetti on her shoes. “Would you mind if I go inside your church?” I asked and she said she’d just married a couple so give it ten minutes before I slipped inside.

The couple she had married were just outside having photos taken. I waited a respectable ten minutes then slipped into the church, treading over confetti. There was a wealth of wood inside the beautiful church - arcades, arches, rafters - all hewn from trees that were growing in Saxon England. This is the oldest arcaded wooded church in Europe, put up in the 14^th century.

The Shackerley family must have been big around here as pews had their family crest on them and their wee chapel was in a corner of the church. The Shackerley tomb is there and I touched it, ran my finger along Geoffrey’s name while imagining him rowing in a barrel with his horse swimming nearby. He lived a long time for the era – 77 years old.

I read about Geoffrey in a book about churches in bed one night. I turned off the lamp about midnight then had a dream about a man rowing across a river in a barrel, horse alongside him. Why haven’t Microsoft invented a Dream Machine where you can selected what you’re going to dream about before you drop off to sleep? Come on Bill (Gates), Google, Sony, Samsung – wake up, get one invented. I’ll buy one and I hardly buy anything.

Looking for Sir Geoffrey who is on the left.

Waiting for Jason Statham to get out of the way….hurry up I’ve other places to visit after this….

You can’t blame the lad for looking, he’s only human…

I only have to see a pulpit and want to start preaching (but I didn’t bother that day)…

The man who rowed cross the river in a barrel is here…

Out in the grave yard I like this grave with the bowling ball but…no holes…

Time to go…hope the marriage works out. I liked how the woman wore blue to match the clock face…