Beaulieu

The Corridor Gallery: Evidence of the Past

Our present knowledge of the history of the Montagu family home is drawn from a variety of sources. This gallery shows a selection of the types of evidence available to us and illustrates selected events from the history of the house and family. (The photograph on the left shows Lord Montagu's father during the First World War).

Man leaves behind many traces of his existence, deliberately and accidentally.What remains gives us an idea of personalities, societies and events at a particular time in history. However when considering these sources of information it should be remembered that they do not provide us with an infallible account of an episode or person from the past. Written and spoken evidence particularly are open to many different interpretations. Peoplewrite to convey a particular point of view, perhaps for a specific audience. The finished piece may be for their own personal use or intended forpublication; only parts of it may survive. This bias, intended or oth erwise, and indeed our own experiences, affects the way in which the information is interpreted and the use to which it is put.

Pictures, photographs, maps and plans give us an idea of how people, places and objects may have looked. Artefacts, some r ecovered during archaeological excavations, either in fragments or intact, and others lovingly preserved over the centuries provide us with a further insight into thelives of our ancestors. The 20th century has provided new media with which we can record events and people of our own time. The recording and preservation of oral evidence is now possible. Radio, film, television and the video recorder can all be used, both as a primary source to present a first hand account and as a secondary source, providi ng an interpretive account.