Happy Birthday Mylodon!

Wishing you love and jelly babies on your Birthday!
PS Card to follow.

A Flagship Store

A couple of weeks ago, when I was in London for work and to meet esmerelda_t and nodbear, I took a little detour to visit Liberty, not to indulge in some chi chi shopping therapy, but to admire the masts! Liberty's flagship London store was designed and built by Edwin T. Hall in the 1920's in grand mock Tudor style from the timbers of HMS Impregnable and HMS Hindustan. The facade of the store on Marlborough Street is the length of the Hindustan and the massive timbers supporting the beautiful galleries were once the mast of the war ships.

    
I spent so long staring up at the "masts" that one of the awfully polite assistants came and asked if she could help me :}  When I said I was interested in the ships she kindly directed me to the lower ground floor where, at the back of menswear, there is a rather lovely picture of the two ships, one with her yards manned and the other under sail.



HMS Impregnable and HMS Hindustan

HMS Impregnable

Earlier today when I wrote that little post about the ships that were used to build Liberty's London store, I hadn't had a chance to investigate the history of the actual vessels themselves, HMS Hindustan and HMS Impregnable. I have now, and I'm kicking myself! I should have recognised Impregnable right away, as she has direct connections to a certain Admiral Lord Exmouth.



( The Improbable History of HMS Impregnable )