Paul Bommer’s Huguenot Plaque
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People often stop and admire the Huguenot Plaque of twenty Delft tiles by Paul Bommer commissioned by Huguenots of Spitalfields and installed on Hanbury Hall in Hanbury St, which was originally built as a Huguenot Chapel in 1719.
Nicholas Hawksmoor’s Christ Church, Spitalfields
Méreau with a chalice
La Neuve Eglise – now Brick Lane Mosque
Méreau showing the Lamb of God
Méreau showing the Dove of Peace, Shield with Cross of Lorraine & Swan
1598 – Edict of Nantes when Henry IV granted rights to Huguenots
Anna Maria Garthwaite, designer of Spitalfields Silk
1685 – Revocation of the Edict of Nantes which forced Huguenots to flee persecution
Fleur de Lys, méreau with crucifix and hare
Huguenot Silversmiths
Horticulture in Spitalfields
Psalms 9:9 – “The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble…”
Horticulture in Spitalfields
Huguenot Clockmakers
Spitalfields Silk Merchant
Méreau with a cross, a silk bobbin and an oak symbolising Strength & Fidelity
The Huguenot Cross
Méreau with crest of France, canary and oak symbolising Strength & Fidelity
Protestant preaching at La Neuve Eglise
Paul Bommer’s Huguenot plaque at Hanbury Hall in Hanbury St
Images copyright © Paul Bommer
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Quidam umbram obscuram iaciunt?
I have traced my Huguenot ancestry as far back as the sixteenth century. The symbols within these tiles have come to have greater meaning to me. I have traced my ancestors steps from Northern France, to Canterbury and then on to Spitalfields. Some travelled to the Netherlands before fleeing to England as the Spanish army brutally enforced Catholicism. In fact, I will soon be visiting Delft as part of my quest, and I still have a lot of research still to complete in Leiden.
Following my forebears has become my principal hobby, and motivation to visit where they came from. This set of tiles, in Spitalfields, is a lovely reminder of their presence and the end point of their journey and their refuge.