Shaved Ankles and a Mystery Count - or rambling (on) again

No wargaming yet again this weekend. The mojo has disappeared since I finished my split rail fencing. On the positive side, because it was her weekend off, Rouva Nundanket and I decided to go for a longer walk on Saturday. We've had a few shorter ones lately, but nothing longer than an hour. So forgetting that outdoor clothing shops would be deemed 'non-essential' (I suppose the definition of essential depends on how harsh your weather is) I suggested we walk to Richmond, where there is a reasonably priced emporium of such apparel.

We set off through Richmond Park from our usual point of departure, Laddersile Gate, and headed in a northerly direction.  Quite soon we were able to spot that rare species, the Expatriate Homo Fennica (the Finn abroad). We weren't close enough to confirm, but the signs were there. I saw a couple collecting birch twigs and bundling them into what looked like a vihta (only there were no leaves). Then there was evidence of the plumage. A Marimekko* bag placed on the floor https://www.marimekko.com/gb_en/bags/all-items/peruskassi-pieni-unikko-bag-white-red-048295-001 . But the Finn is a shy creature, so we kept our distance and walked on.

* This brand is almost part of the national costume these days, and is often a giveaway abroad. We originally met one of Mrs R's London friends in a park in Hampton. I heard her chatting in Finnish to a woman we didn't know. Afterwards I quizzed her on how she knew the woman was Finnish as the stranger had hardly said a word, and that was in English. "Oh her girls had Marimekko tops on." I once pulled off a similar feat of recognition on a bus, also in Hampton, though this time it was the pattern on the child's socks, and we're still in touch with that family too.

After a while we stopped to decide exactly which way we were going to go, and Mrs N pointed out that I wouldn't be able to buy a new 'fleece' because the shops were shut. I hate to say it but I Googled it to check - oh ye of little faith! Of course she was right. So we followed her suggestion of heading down to Petersham, an area of meadows south of Richmond.

On the way to the river we walked through a field where cattle sometimes graze, and along the side of some fencing. "What type of fencing do you call this?" asked my companion (who's doing a garden planning module at horticultural college). "Oh it's a type of split-rail fence", I stated with confidence and not a little swagger. "A different type of split-rail fence to that model I made, but...blah blah blah...these don't need to be placed at angles as they have vertical support posts. The ends of the rails are chamfered to fit into slots*** on the uprights". "She nodded sagely, no doubt impressed by my knowledge. I did admit that the only reason I know is because I looked up split-rail fencing when I was making the model and saw that there were different types, including this one which is referred to as a 'mortice fence'.

** yeah, yeah, I forgot they were called mortices

We walked on chatting amiably. And she mentioned the fencing again and used the term "Shaved ankle". "You what?". "Those fences. Shaved-ankle fences." It took me a while to recover my composure, before I could correct my sweetheart.

Lovely smooth ankles

I reasoned that this arises from two factors. One, being Finnish, she has sometimes has trouble with Gs. Especially hard Gs. There is no*** G sound in Finnish, only in borrowed foreign words or names. And they often substitute that with a K. Thus Swedish for street, 'gata', becomes 'katu'. The second factor is, and I say this quietly, she's a bit deaf and has denied this for years. So somehow she heard me refer to angles/ankles and chamferred/shaved.

*** well almost none, but this isn't a language lesson, and I'm not sure the example I can think of would be considered a proper hard G sound.

Our route, starting towards the SE corner, north past the golf course. Then SW along the river and circling back via Ham

Once by the river she suggested we sit on a nearby bench and have the soup she'd prepared. No point going to cafes as we'd have to eat outside anyway. And the bench she picked (position 1 on the map) was nice and clean and dry "there might not be another suitable one". This one.

I was unable to find out who Count Stephen Ouvaroff was, though presumably the offspring of a Russian emigré given the birth year. The name sounds like Uvarov, commander of the Russian cavalry on the right wing at Borodino. Given that transliteration from Cyrillic to Latin script is not exact, it's plausible that they could be the same name, if not the same family. Anyone I imagine a dapper gentleman with a very neat beard with a cane sitting here, overlooking the view below towards Marble Hill on the Twickenham side of the river. Whoever he was, he liked a nice view, and I tip my hat to him and his executors for placing the bench there.

The count's view.

Late late update: thanks to anonymous, I had a clue to who the late Count Stephen Ouvaroff was. He was indeed Steve Ouvaroff who my anonymous correspondent points out was an Australian racing driver, born 1935. He does appear to have been the son of a Russian emigré - his father was Count Igor Ouvaroff, born in 1901.

https://www.geni.com/people/Igor-Ouvaroff/6000000021838424068

Count Stephen’s funeral was held at St Peter’s Church, Church Lane, Petersham (the address writes itself!) which is just a short walk from the bench, so I guess he settled in the area. Stephen’s widow (April or Aprille Brighten) was a fashion model in younger life. Now you can’t get more Jetset than that can you. Son of a Russian emigré, racing driver and married to a model. No link yet to the Battle of Borodino…..yet!

http://www.brdc.co.uk/Notice-of-Death---Count-Stephen-Ouvaroff-1935---2017

Just a short walk upstream from here is a Jacobean pile called Ham House (point 2 on the map). I've never been in in all my 26 years of living over this side of London. Never really wanted to. Since I got interested in the ECW, I've become more keen on the idea. There's an interesting section in the Wiki article about the ECW period, though there was no action in the vicinity.  Refer to the section headed William Murray, 1st Earl of Dysart and the one below it.

Ham House from the river path. I guess before the river banks were built up and the channel narrowed, the water came right up to this first wall, depending on tides and rain.

The gardens are surrounded by a high brick wall, rather like Hougoumont at Waterloo.

We walked back to Richmond Park via the suburb/village of Ham, worth a walk and a post on its own. Maybe one for the future.