No Matter How Many Skies Have Fallen
In 1943 a group of pacifists took possession of a vacant farm in Frating, a hamlet on the Essex Tendring Peninsula. There they established a working community, inspired by their association with The Adelphi journal, where D.H.Lawrence, Vera Brittain, Iris Murdoch, George Orwell and others shared ideas for the future with European religious radicals such as Nikolai Berdyaev and Simone Weil. Frating Hall Farm provided a settlement and livelihood for individuals and families and a temporary sanctuary for refugees and prisoners-of-war. Over time it became a successful arable and livestock farm and a centre for the arts, winning the grudging respect of their neighbours. This is the lost story of Frating Hall Farm, based on the memories of those who grew up on the farm, together with photographs, letters and records – a kaleidoscopic history and an enquiry into the religious and political ideals of the back-to-the-land movement in post-war rural England.
‘What Worpole’s account attests to is the paradise of making paradise, of meaningful labour, and especially of a deep relationship with the land.’ Olivia Laing, TLS
‘…intelligent and compelling.’ Lucia Dove, Caught by the River
‘…insightful and authoritative, with witty asides.’ Louise Foxcroft, History Today
Ken Worpole
Ken Worpole is a writer and social historian, and the author of many books on architecture, aesthetics, landscape and public policy. A founder member of the think-tanks Demos and Open Democracy, in recent years he has focused on post-industrial settlements, landscapes and communities, together with questions of English and regional identity.
Author portrait © Larraine Worpole
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