Vase
Whitefriars
Category
Glass
Date
4 Nov 1955
Materials
Glass
Measurements
385 mm (Height); 180 mm (Dia)
Place of origin
London
Order this imageCollection
Chartwell, Kent
NT 1101017
Summary
HEIRLOOM. A large Whitefriars vase and cover, the flaring fluted body having a similarly faceted cover and finial. Two oval panels are engraved with the coat of arms of the Corporation of Harrow and an inscription commemorating the presentation of the Freedom of the Borough to WSC on 4th November 1955. The base is engraved W.J. Wilson Whitefriars.
Full description
Churchill’s admittance into Harrow School was due to his name rather than his academic qualities. He entered the lowest class possible and stayed there three times as long as any other boys had. He didn’t make it into the Upper School as he would not study the classics. In later life he returned annually for the Harrow ‘Songs’, which have been a unifying force in Harrow life since John Farmer wrote the first one as Head of Music in 1864. The autumn ‘Songs’ have been renamed as ‘Churchill Songs’ in Sir Winston’s honour. Churchill received the Freedom Award in person at Harrow Town Hall. The Times on 25 November 1955 reported, “Citizens of Harrow, with people who work there, lined the streets yesterday to greet Sir Winston Churchill when he visited the borough to be admitted as its first honorary freeman. … The Mayor, inviting the guest of honour to sign the first page of the freemen’s roll and the distinguished visitors’ book, remarked that scrolls on such occasions were usually presented in caskets of conventional design. “But you, Sir”, he added, “are not a conventional person, and therefore we trust that presenting you with the freedom scroll contained within a cut crystal casket, skilfully executed – and in record time – by craftsmen working in the borough, we shall have divined your tastes. …” In his speech WSC recalled the first time he came to Harrow, 70 years before, to take the school entrance exam. The report includes a photograph of WSC reading the scroll. In the evening he visited Harrow School for “Songs”. There is 2-minute (silent) British Pathé film of Sir Winston and Lady Churchill arriving at Kodak Hall through the crowds for the ceremony.
Makers and roles
Whitefriars , glass manufacturer William J. Wilson (b.1914), designer