National Civil War Centre unveils 400-year-old school graffiti to public

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-nottinghamshire-34112451

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Graffiti left by schoolboys up to 400 years ago has been revealed to the public for the first time.

The graffiti was discovered etched on walls at the Old Magnus Building in Newark ahead of work to create the National Civil War Centre on the site.

The building was originally a grammar school and the attic where the markings were found was used as a dormitory.

The list of names include R. Disney 1608 - believed to be an ancestor of Walt Disney.

Walt Disney's family came from Norton Disney, a village in between Lincoln and Newark.

He is known to have visited the area in 1949, while researching his family's past.

Manager Michael Constantine said the graffiti was daubed on the walls by pupils at the school.

He said: "We think school discipline would have been a bit more fierce back in the 1600s, so it was probably the thing the children did the day before they were due to leave.

"Probably like a tradition - just before they set sail."

Mr Constantine said the school - which was built in 1529 - was used as council offices during the Civil War.

"We know some of the children were at this free grammar school because their fathers lent King Charles £1,000-plus and never got it repaid.

"Which is why, instead of being educated at home as members of the gentry, they attended a grammar school in Newark," he said.

Although the £5.4m National Civil War Centre has been open for four months, this is the first opportunity for the public to see the graffiti.