[diggers350] St. George's Hill and the Diggers - The First Communists

[Eric Sommer]

Elmbridge Museum (Weybridge).******  FREE ADMISSION. *****  01932 843573

St. George's Hill & The Diggers


Between 26 February and 10 April 1999 Elmbridge Museum will be hosting
an exhibition on St. George's Hill and the
Diggers. Today St. George's Hill is known as being the most exclusive
residential estate in Britain: few people know that it
has in the past functioned as an Iron-Age stronghold, a centre for
country walks and, most strange of all, the birthplace of
communism.

The exhibition is timed to co-incide with the 350th anniversary of the
occupation of the hill by the 'Diggers', a group of
revolutionaries today regarded as the first communists. The Diggers, led
by Gerrard Winstanley, occupied the hill in a bid
to change the nature of society. They wanted to make the earth a "Common
Treasury for All" and for everyone to live in
equality and freedom. They soon found their views were too radical for
the local population and after a series of violent
raids they were forced to leave the hill.

Long before the brief occupation by the Diggers the hill was the site of
an Iron-Age Fort, for many years wrongly believed
to be where Julius Caesar camped before leading his Roman army across
the Thames. This important site took advantage
of the hill's strategic position between the Rivers Mole, Thames and
Wey. Many finds from the period of the fort will be
included in the exhibition.

In the Twentieth Century St. George's Hill was converted from a local
beauty spot and wilderness into a prestigious
housing estate. The exhibition will use original estate maps and other
material to show how local builder WG Tarrant
fulfilled his dream of building Britain's premier housing development.
Reproductions of the plans will be available to
members of the public.


The exhibition is open to the public from 27 February to 10 April at the
museum in Church Street, Weybridge, Surrey.
Admission is Free.


Living History Day     March 20.             Children's Workshop
March 27

More information can be found by ringing Michael or Neil at the museum
on 01932 843573.


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