Melksham Times Past

A column about days gone by in Melksham by local historian Lisa Ellis

Beltane: Dissenters and Defectors (part 2)

Beltane was the name of the agricultural school which followed the Montessori method of teaching children, emphasising a hands-on approach to learning. Classes were of mixed gender and age, activities were self-directed, and learning was done by guidance rather than instruction.

In 1939, when the school was brought to Shaw Hill House, you can imagine the founders, teachers and students were quite progressive and liberal; bohemian, in fact, having a way of life away from society’s conventional norms and expectations.

The timing of the opening also brought those escaping the war, either through defection or dissent. Kindertransport saved the lives of Jewish children who arrived as students, and artists, mathematicians and scientists who were conscientious objectors became teachers.

With such an eclectic mix, it is notable that many have fascinating stories and remarkable achievements. Space only allows the briefest of mentions – and only a few – but many can be learned more about from Wikipedia.

Joan and Andrew Tomlinson founded the school. She studied psychology at university and was inspired by the latest thinking and influenced by her father, Herbert Wildon Carr, who was a stockbroker and then a professor of Philosophy at King’s College London. In her book, “On a May Morning”, Joan writes that her parents were introduced to each other by their mutual friend, George Bernard Shaw, and her mother, Geraldine, for her strength and independence, was the model for Candida in Shaw’s comedy by the same name.

Ernst and Ilse Bulova also helped to set up the school. Due to their political views, they were exiled from their German homeland, firstly to England and then in 1940 settling in America after Britain became hostile to Germans living in their country. Their emigration was assisted by their relatives who owned the luxury watch company, Bulova.

Harry Blamires taught English. He studied at Oxford University under the mentorship of CS Lewis, author of “The Chronicles of Narnia” as well as other non-fiction books. Blamires was a pacifist and authority of Christian theology and ethics. He wrote “The Christian Mind”.

Arthur Wragg was an art teacher noted for his illustrations which were featured in books and magazines. His popular “Psalms for Modern Life” published in 1933, was reprinted ten times within the first three years. A student and friend of his, Judy Brook, wrote a biography of his life in 2001 subtitled “20th Century Artist, Prophet and Jester”.

Hilary Bardwell Amis Bailey Boyd, also known as Lady Kilmarnock, or “Hilly”, was a student at Beltane. Described in records as being “unteachable”, her colourful exploits throughout her life are noted online. Her first husband, Kingsley Amis, dedicated his book “Stanley and the Women” to her.

Barbara Poe (stage name Barbara Steele) was a student who went on to become an actress and producer, known for starring in Italian gothic horror films of the 1960s.

Muriel Prynne was a teacher at Beltane. In 1993, she closed her Bramble Wood School in Farnborough Park, Kent, after 54 years. One of the first students she taught was Rolling Stones’ guitarist, Bill Wyman.

William Bennett, OBE, boarded at Beltane from when he was seven until the age of 16, where he began to play the flute. By the age of 22, he was 1st principal flute with the BBC Philharmonic.

Raoul Bott was sent to Beltane from Bratislava. He became known for numerous contributions to geometry but best known for his Bott periodicity theorem, the Morse-Bott function which he used in this context, and the Borel-Bott-Well theorem.

Charlotte Salmon, who took on the professional name of Charlotte Mayer, escaped Czechoslovakia and later became a sculptor. Her work was influenced by the death of her grandmother in a concentration camp while she was at Beltane.

Denis Grant King, an English draftsman, artist, historic monument conservation campaigner and archaeologist. He worked predominantly in Wiltshire, most notably as Alexander Keiller’s surveyor and draftsman during the excavations at Avebury.

When Beltane officially closed in 1952, the remaining students and teachers moved from the area and continued lives elsewhere. But memories of their time in Melksham remained, as evidenced through fond recollections in published works, occasional (re)visits to the town, and even email enquiries.

Pictured: Beltane School grounds. Founder Andrew Tomlinson (seated, centre) and Art teacher Arthur Wragg (3rd from left), from the book, ‘Arthur Wragg: 20th Century Artist, Prophet and Jester’.