Ferdinando Paleologus, the last male descendant of the Byzantine Imperial Dynasty, fled to Barbados in the mid-17th century after the fall of Constantinople in 1453 and the subsequent English Civil War, where he built Clifton Hall Great House in 1656 and served as church warden at St. John's Parish Church until his death in 1678, making his grave one of the most significant historical sites in Barbados.
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I Found the Home of the Last Descendant of the Byzantine Empire in Barbados
Added:In July of 2025, I had the incredible opportunity to visit Barbados where I documented all the historic sites in the country. But this one was something special. What started as a simple tour of Clifton All Great House quickly became something far greater. The owner welcomed me warmly, shared the estate's history, and gave me a lesson that reached far beyond Barbados, touching on the Roman Empire, the Bisantine world, theology, and the remarkable story of the Paleologos family.
Now, this video is going to be a little bit longer than usual, but I'd really encourage you to watch it all the way through. Everything leads to the final chapter when I visit the grave of Ferdinando Paleologos, the last descendant of the Bisantine Imperial Dynasty.
Don't miss that part. So, settle in, enjoy the journey, and I think by the end you will see why this became one of the most unforgettable experiences of my research.
Cliftonal great house circa 16 56 >> and uh it's right there are no live termites but there's lots of evidence where they've been >> so I've had to rip down lots of walls >> okay >> rebuild lots of stuff >> okay so uh it's like you occupy all of the building >> yeah I own the whole building >> okay let me get a wider angle so that you can stay Hello, sir.
>> All right. So, you'd love to give me a tour of the building or would you give me some information about it while we walk? All right.
>> The house was first built by Fernando Paleogus.
>> Fernando Pale.
>> Fernando Paleo.
>> I found this tomb.
>> I found this tomb the other day. I just did the video.
>> And he was referred to >> He was from the Bisantine. Yeah. From the Bisantine Empire.
>> He was the the last Well, his son was the last male descendant of the Byzantine Emperor.
>> Yes. Yes. Of course, the word business.
>> Oh, hold on. Just a question. Sorry to cut you. The person that built this house, he's the father of the one that's buried in St. John's Church.
>> No, it's it is the man.
>> He is the man.
>> He's the man. He was the first owner.
>> Oh.
>> He had the first mortgage on this property. Fernando Paleoggas. And it was built in 1656.
>> 1656.
>> But of course, it wasn't the Byzantine Emperor.
>> Oh, >> it's the Roman Empire.
>> I said that in the video. The word Byzantine was given to um the name of the empire by some German historian many years later.
>> Okay.
>> If you would have gone to Constantinople and you asked what are you people then I said we are Romans. We are the Roman emperor.
>> Yeah. Because there's a lot of Greco Roman influence on the island.
>> Right. Right. What what happened was uh I got a bit there. This house was opened by the historic society and it says that Fernando Paleogus in in the advocate it said was descendant of Constantine the Great.
>> Oh, >> that's not true.
>> He's descendant of Constantine the 11th.
>> Constantine the Great was the governor of the armies of Great Britain.
>> Mhm. And that was in the year 312 when Maxensius who was the emperor of the eastern part of the empire because sometimes the Roman Empire had two emperors sometimes four and sometimes one.
>> Oh >> and Constantine's father was the emperor for the western section and his father died and his troops named his son as his successor.
>> Okay. Um and Maxensius who was the emperor of the east tried to take the whole lot. And this is in about the year 312. Constantine went back to Rome to fight Maxius to get to be the emperor >> of his bit.
>> Okay. And he was supposed to have seen according to history a sign in the sky with the letters I HS saying in this sign conquer in hawk signa in Latinx in this sign conquer. And he saw the chioo sign of Christianity.
>> Okay.
>> And it says that he put that symbol on his shields. He fought the battle of Milvin Bridge. He defeated Maxenthius and he became the Roman emperor.
>> Right.
Then he switched the capital from Rome to Constantinople which he built which is now called Istanbul >> in Turkey. That was the wealthiest part of the empire. It was more defensible and uh have you ever have you ever seen anything about Constantinople and the walls and >> yeah a bit of history about outside of >> so he he then shifted the capital there.
>> Mhm.
>> So they were Romans and it was the Roman Empire. The Roman EMP the Rome fell in 410 and then a bit later totally fell to the barbarians in the year 410 but of course the capital now was in Constantinople >> was in constant >> and that carried on and when did that last until >> I'm not sure >> 1453 a thousand years more >> oh so uh the question I really have although I think you're getting there how did they end up in the Caribbean?
Yeah. Well, well, let's go from it. So, Constantine the 11th was the last Byzantine emperor, Roman emperor because the name Byzantine was foisted on them because the city was originally founded by some guy who who they derived his name from Baiser. All right. So, but but >> and because of the German influence, >> the German the Germans foisted this name on it. But if you had ever gone there, they would have said we're Romans.
>> Okay. Okay. Although they spoke Greek because >> that's why it's called Greco Roman.
>> The the the the language of the empire was was Greek until it became Latin.
>> That's why the New Testament was written in Greek because it was the common language all over the Middle East.
>> All right.
>> And so uh Constantine is the emperor there. And that now goes on until 1453.
And Constantine the Great, the whole empire has been lost. There's only the only bits left is Constantinople, the city itself, which is in Istanbul, and a place called the Maria, which is an area of Greece >> and some islands. That was all that was left of the empire.
>> And the Tur the Turk the Ottoman Turks now made a big attack for I think it was 20 odd days attacking the city and uh eventually they breached the walls, which were triple walls. I've been there. And um Constantine Paleogga said that he would rather die as an emperor with an empire than live as an emperor without an empire. So he charged into the battle.
He said, "Whoever's with me, come on."
And he got killed fighting on the battlements.
>> Okay.
>> His brother was called Thomas and he was still in charge of that piece of the empire in Greece called the Maria >> and his title was the despot of Maria.
Have you heard the word despotic?
>> That's what I'm That's what What is despotic?
>> Well, well, despotic is someone who's really nasty.
>> Now, we have a saying in Britain that power corrupts. An absolute power corrupts absolutely.
>> A despot was an absolute ruler. No, no parliament, no government, no advisers.
He was the total ruler. What he said went >> a total dictatorship. And obviously people like that can go arry.
>> So we've developed the word despotic from the way some despots used to act.
>> Okay.
>> So about three years later the Maria was again conquered and Greece became part of the Ottoman Empire as well.
>> Okay.
>> And sorry. So Thomas fled to Rome >> and they had joined they'd rejoined the Catholic Church rather than the Orthodox Church thinking they would get some assistance from the pope to get their empire back which they didn't get. And so Thomas lived in Rome.
>> His descendants burn [snorts] >> his descendants then.
>> Yeah, >> he moved to Brit. They moved to Britain.
>> And if we come in here, this is the old part of the house. We'll we'll deal about the house in a moment. But we how did we how did how did Fernando ever come here? What brought him here? Yes.
That's >> Well, first of all, if the empire had not been divided, >> Mhm.
>> he wouldn't have survived as an emperor.
That wouldn't have happened.
>> True.
>> So, it goes back there.
>> So, it's one of those things where you have to lose to gain.
>> Yeah. So, you come in here. This is the main entrance.
>> It's lovely.
>> I want to show you this book first.
>> Okay.
>> And then we'll deal with the house.
>> Yes. So Fernando's descendant uh ancestors then fled to England.
>> Mhm.
>> And his father was in the employment of the Earl of Lincoln. And his job was >> he was an assassin.
>> An assassin for the Earl of Lincoln, >> this henchman.
>> And this was the story of the man who built this house, his father. and he has um a commemoration in a church in Cornwall >> seducer spy and the killer.
>> Yeah. Okay. [snorts] And it and so so what brought his son here?
>> Yeah.
>> Well, there's another bit of history.
>> His son fought in the English Civil War.
Fernando fought in the English Civil War and he fought for the king.
>> Yeah.
>> The king lost the war. And what did he lose next? His >> head is as usual.
>> So Fernando thought, let's get out of dodge. I've supported the wrong guy.
>> Mhm.
>> So that's why he came here.
>> Okay.
>> So if it wasn't for Constantinople being moved, if it wasn't for the British civil war, he would never have come here.
>> He wouldn't have >> He come here because he had a relative called Mary Balls who had a plantation.
>> Mary Balls. B O W B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B O O W L S >> B >> B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B A A L S Balls.
>> I think I come across >> Mary Balls, >> the Balls plantation. And he came here and built this house in 1756 and started a plantation. And in his plantation, >> if you look around at some of our mats, you'll see they have pineapples on >> because on the map of this plantation, the ancient map, it shows pineapples.
And they think probably he grew pineapples.
>> He grew pineapples.
>> Yeah.
>> Okay, let me get some footage of this.
And everything all of these in the house is from everything in the house is from that era.
>> This part of the house is was built in the 1800s.
>> Okay.
>> When we go through here, the older part beyond the staircase, the older part is what is left that was built in 1656.
>> Okay. Okay. Okay. And has it ever been refurbished after the 1800s?
>> Uh, it fell into great ruin >> and uh, somebody who was the minister of tourism, a man called Morgan bought it and did some restoration. Mhm.
>> It fell into war ruin. And 17 years ago, a lot of work was done by an an Italian who a Scottish Italian who was called uh Masimro Franchi.
>> I bought the house off him in December and he did a lot of renovation, but uh also a lot of it was just covered over.
>> Okay.
>> I'll tell you it's all I paid a lot less than >> really lovely. Okay. So that that gives us an idea. She's checking out what pieces are missing >> and she's managed to so far find 20 pieces more to get in in UK to finish off the set.
>> Oh, so you're trying to complete >> I think it's uh how many people do we seat here?
>> 1 2 3 4 6 4 5 6 14 16 18 sit down for dinner.
>> So it's a 18 seater table.
>> 18 of everything.
>> Okay.
>> With our goldplated. So you guys are serious in putting it all back together.
You're serious in putting it all back together back.
>> Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. We're collecting all have 18 of everything.
>> Okay. Let me get a look at this. This is awesome.
This is original, right?
>> Uh this is reproduction furniture.
>> Okay.
>> All this furniture we bought with the house.
>> Okay.
I built a house here 17 years ago on the coast in um St. Chris Twist.
>> Mhm.
>> On Seaside Drive and I sold that villa and bought this.
>> Okay.
>> Because I needed something to keep me active because I'm in my 80th year.
>> Wow. You don't look it.
>> I'm 79.
>> You don't look it.
>> The the music room. And if you come here in August, we're having a classical music event by two >> people from UK, two musicians, a vi violinist and a pianist.
>> You can film. You can film cuz we have the mic. All right.
>> Wow. It's It's just lovely.
>> The artwork was done by the best artists in Wales. We come from Wales in the UK.
>> Okay. And this artwork was all done by a Welsh artist which has a theme of a carnival.
>> Yeah, that's what I'm noticing. Oh, so it it's more >> grand piano we've recently acquired.
>> Uhhuh.
>> And incredibly that grand piano came from Clifton House in the UK to Clifton Hall in Barbados >> because Yeah. I noticed that with a lot of the buildings that I found, they always have another in Scotland or in somewhere in the UK. So, one thing I didn't mention is that Fernando fought for the king and had to get out of dodge because the king lost.
>> But Fernando's brother was a captain in the army fighting for the parliament.
>> Oh.
>> Uh on the other side. And >> so they were on different sides.
>> Yes. Wow.
>> And his brother has a memorial in Westminster Abbey, which is the church where all the kings and queens in England get crowned.
>> Okay.
>> So Fernando's brother has a memorial in Westminster Abbey.
>> That's interesting. I'm going to find a picture of that and make sure that's in the video also.
Yeah, interesting. So far, let's see.
I'm I'm just amazed. I'm certainly amazed because I found so many great houses. The first time I'm being inside of one that's still >> And here we have three novels.
>> Mhm.
>> This is written about >> the pretender.
>> These are these are fictitious with some facts.
>> Mhm.
>> Fernando's son became a privateeer.
>> Mhm.
>> Do you know what a privateeer is?
Privateeer is just like a pirate.
>> A pirate with a license.
>> Yeah. He was [laughter] legal. He was [clears throat] >> He he he gives part of his spoils to >> He got a license from the crown.
>> Yeah.
>> Yeah.
>> So Fernando's son was a privateeer.
>> The last of the line was his daughter called God's Paleogus.
>> And that's virtually all we know about her. She probably died in childhood is which is why we know no more about her.
>> Okay. And these are three fictitious novels written by an English lecturer at the university about the family about this house.
>> I'm hoping to get her to come here and maybe do a talk about her work.
>> Record them so that I can find them on Amazon. Can they be found on Amazon?
>> Family history.
>> Can they be found on Amazon?
>> Yes. Yes, they can. They can. And that one.
>> Okay. [snorts] >> I found that very boring.
And um the gentleman that owned the house previously, he has um Clifton Hall room manufactured.
>> Uh okay.
>> Let's go upstairs. [snorts] >> Yes.
It's really a pleasure to tour this place.
>> Okay. All this artwork was done by our Welsh artist Leonard Beard.
>> Okay.
>> Unfortunately, he died 2 years after he did all our artwork for us.
>> It always happens like that in most cases.
>> Actually makes our paintings worth more money, but that's not very nice.
>> No.
Okay.
So this room [snorts] here was the first.
>> So this was the second area I started to repair.
This is the master bedroom.
>> Wow.
>> Now the floor which sunk 4 in.
>> Mhm.
>> That's all been taken up and leveled.
The walls were all eaten away with termites. They've all been replaced. The ceiling was caving in. And >> Oh, you got it when it was like going into ruin.
>> No, that was when we bought it.
>> Mhm.
>> That's what it was like. I've just finished this room.
>> Okay. So, you're actually bringing it back to what it was. It's like you're recreating it.
>> Yes.
>> To the way it was.
>> I'm quite skilled at all sorts of things. And so you you you do a lot of this yourself.
>> Yeah.
>> Okay. Like Oh, the furniture is bought, right?
>> The furniture came with the this furniture came with the house.
>> Came with the house.
>> Yeah.
>> It looks modern.
>> Okay. And all these floors were all taken up because they were sunk and we had >> Oh, they were s Okay.
>> New ceilings, new walls, new walls.
>> Okay. Nice closet.
>> Now, when local people come >> Mhm. and they see this bathroom, I always ask them one question. I say, "Are you one of the 10?"
>> And they say, "What do you mean?" And I said, "Well, apparently there's a photograph going around on this island of 10 naked people in that shower." So I said, "Are you one of the 10?" And they usually say, "No, but I never had anyone admit it yet."
>> Okay. Okay. [laughter] Oh, may I understand?
Lovely shower.
I haven't seen one like it before.
>> No, >> this is all Italian marble.
>> Okay. So, total different designs and shoes and handbags.
>> She has also a wardrobe in Tenneref in our apartment and a wardrobe in the UK in our apartment there.
>> Wow. That's a whole line, [laughter] you know.
Love the fan blades.
>> Yeah, >> lovely.
>> So, this was totally renovated.
>> It's really lovely. And you're doing an excellent job. You know, >> this room >> Mhm.
>> is the room they're currently working on.
>> Okay.
Some idea of what you have to do.
Oh, >> here we're putting in a new ceiling and reboarding that wall. The timbers there are okay. The timbers in that wall in those walls in there were all falling falling down. We don't have to replace those timbers. We had to replace the ceiling.
>> Oh, wow.
>> So, we're currently doing this room.
Now, there was a lobby there going into a bedroom. I've stolen the lobby and I'm going to put a bathroom in here as part of the bedroom open to the bedroom. Oh, you're going to So, it would be a >> just a shower, a wash and basin, a small wall, a low wall to hide the the L and that will all be part of the room.
>> Okay. Now, I'm going get an idea as to how it was, you know.
>> And then, so you used to go into that bedroom by going through a an opening here and through the doorway there.
>> Oh, but you moved it.
>> But we've moved it. So, now this comes into the bathroom >> which was shared between the two rooms.
It's >> now going to be we're going to move this wall from here to here.
>> Increase the size of the bedroom and this will be the on suite for this bedroom.
>> Okay.
>> This is the one bedroom here.
>> So this bedroom this bedroom will get So you see the door used to be there.
>> Mhm.
>> So it's going to move over. This bedroom will become a bit larger. All >> the beds are the same.
work in progress.
>> Yes. Well, you have done a lot.
>> You have done >> This is since December.
>> Since December.
>> Yeah.
>> Okay. All of up here.
>> Yeah.
>> Wow.
>> I've worked every day, 12 hours a day.
>> This is lovely.
>> Because we moved in here before we bought it. The man allowed us in November. So, and I had to do work on my other house before I left. So, since September the 1st, I've worked seven days a week. Okay.
>> Every day.
>> Every day >> since September. At least 12 hours a day. Sometimes 16.
>> And And that's one of the reason why you're still >> I'm still fit.
>> Yeah. You know.
>> I was 79 on the 22nd of May.
>> Wow.
And we'll go from here.
>> Mhm.
>> Through here. There's another room which you can't see.
>> Yeah. I understand.
>> Grandson is in there at the moment. He said, "Please don't come in." So, there we have a large bedroom and another bathroom with all the sweets.
>> Okay.
>> I'll have it cleaned up if they want to come in like five minutes.
>> Okay. We'll come in the other way then.
We'll do the other home first. All right.
>> All right. Thank you.
>> No worries.
>> So, there we go. He doesn't want to see it.
>> Mhm.
This was the This was the first room I started which I haven't finished. This is going to be the library.
>> Okay.
Well, I have 2 and a half thousand books of Christian theology.
>> 2 and a half thousand like 2,500 >> books >> and Christian theology.
>> Yeah. So, I study orthodoxy as well, so I know a little bit about that.
>> Okay. Okay. I understand.
>> Um, this got to have a lot of um fancy timber around all the doorways put back.
Some of it has been >> Okay. Like a religious theme.
>> Some [snorts] of it has already been.
You see what happens is that if you look at the timbers around, we got these wide panels and they look okay, but actually [clears throat] they're full of holes and rotten with termites.
I take them off, fill them, treat them to prevent further termite damage, put them back and repaint them.
>> Okay, >> so that has happened with all these archetraes in the rooms that you've seen completed.
We just did the whole stairs and landing and got it finished the day before the wedding was here.
>> I like the setting of the stairs being painted and new ceiling.
>> Okay.
>> And and here this was originally the outside door of the house.
>> Mhm.
>> And this is now the older section of the house.
>> Okay. This was like this or you put the tiles in >> the original tiles 1656.
>> They give you a small toilet with >> Oh, this is like a visitor's >> we have this like off.
>> This ver here is on three sides of the building like this.
>> Okay.
Wow.
>> Down there.
>> It's lovely.
>> You can walk around it if you like. So this is on three sides of the building.
>> Mhm.
>> Original arches.
>> These are the grounds where we have weddings out here.
>> We we do we anyone getting married.
People get married here. So again you see like all this has been have to be taken off repaired pieces put in but it was rotten back together.
I [snorts] do all that work.
>> You're doing a good job. You mean you actually replace these pieces?
>> Wow.
>> And it looks as if it was like that.
>> Yeah.
>> He can't even see that it was repaired.
>> No.
>> My trade.
>> Mhm.
>> I started work as a boy >> repairing cars.
>> Oh.
>> Painting and repairing crashed vehicles, panel beating and spraying body vehicle body work and painting.
>> And that was around age >> I was 15.
>> 15. And I earned £3.19 shillings.
>> That's a week or a day.
>> A week, >> one shilling and 8 p an hour. And then there were 20 shillings in a pound. I was getting one shilling and 8 p an hour for a 48 and 1/2 hour week with two weeks holiday.
>> And that would be good back then.
>> That was it.
>> Mhm.
>> I was 15 years old with no qualifications.
>> Boy, you made use of it. And then uh I learned my trade and I got a job teaching in a technical college and while I was teaching I then did a degree in education.
>> Okay.
>> So I I'm a bachelor of education.
My wife is a master of got an MBA in business >> which she got as we were running our businesses. This is a statue of St. Francis. [snorts] That is a statue of David, King David.
really old statue. You've got it a while. It came with the house, right?
>> It came with the house.
>> Yeah.
>> Mhm.
>> The man walked away.
>> So then we have three sides of this.
>> Three sides.
>> It's lovely. I have been I've found ruins but >> garages and outuildings. We're going to put an apartment under here.
>> Then that will be garages and above we will put two more apartments and it will be for people just holiday makers to rent.
>> Okay. Okay.
>> That's currently I'm playing around with that.
>> Yeah.
>> All right.
This is our kitchen.
>> Hello, Gracie. This is Gracie the parrot.
>> Hey, Gracie.
>> Hey, Gracie.
>> She does say a few things.
>> Okay. She doesn't feel like it now.
Okay. This is a kitchen area.
>> Yeah.
>> Yeah. And the next bit over there.
>> Wow. This is rather huge. Fancy >> that fireplace.
>> Why they have fires in this heat is to do with the sugar cane.
>> Okay.
>> And then we come through here. All this rendering has recently been finished.
All this was um just painted pink and it was all bubbling and flaking off. Oh, she's the only person that can touch it is my wife.
>> So, we've just had all this done.
Branded through.
>> And this was this was like a courtyard.
>> Yeah. The swimming pool. The swimming pool was a water tank.
>> Okay. Hold on. Give me a second.
So this was the water tank.
>> George Fox in the 1600s.
>> Mhm.
>> He used to walk into British churches and take over the meeting and got locked up and put in prison for doing that.
>> He used to call their churches steeple houses.
>> Okay.
>> And the Quakers came to Barbados, help educate the slaves. Mhm.
>> Because the Church of England would not preach the gospel to the slaves because how could you have a man as a slave and as a Christian brother?
>> Oh.
>> So you stole his life by enslaving him and you stole his heaven by not letting him know about Jesus.
So who were the first missionaries to teach the slaves in the Caribbean? Do you know?
I think >> the first missionaries to the Christian missionaries to the slaves in the Caribbean were the Moravians.
>> Moravians.
>> The Moravians were a Christian sect which they lived on the land of Moravia.
Count Zinsandorf welcomed all peop all Christians were at that time in Europe were at war with each other and anyone who wanted peace could go to um Heron Hut which was the land that Zinsenorf owned and they could find peace and live together. or it was like a song.
>> So all the different groups came and of course they all disagreed with everything they thought and it was very difficult to keep the peace and they decided they would pray and ask God to join them in love.
>> Oh.
>> And the Holy Spirit fell upon them in the 1600s.
>> Mhm.
>> And they kept praying for quite a while.
How long do you think their prayer meeting lasted?
>> Like 40 days. 40 nights. 40 days on 40 nights. A >> little more.
>> Like 50. Mhm.
>> Like a year.
Like more than a year. Wow. About half a century. 50 years.
>> That's like a thousand years.
>> They prayed for 100 years.
>> 100. Oh. [laughter] >> In shifts.
>> Wow.
>> And their prayer was that one family out of 10 would go as missionaries and spread the message of Jesus.
>> God didn't answer that prayer.
>> One family in four went as missionaries.
>> Mhm.
>> So, how did the missionaries come to the Caribbean? because the only people coming here were slaves and slave traders and plantation owners.
>> Okay.
>> Well, two missionaries decided they would sell themselves to a slave owner and then they would come as slaves to preach to the slaves.
>> And um eventually they didn't have to do that because the queen of Denmark paid for their passage.
>> Okay?
>> And two of them came and they white people and they said to the slaves, "We've come to be your servants."
>> And that have sounded aware to the >> slaves thought this is another white man trick >> how can slaves have slaves >> you know [laughter] >> yeah they would they would have thought that >> and one of them beca one of them returned home and the other missionary became very sick and two slave family took him into his hut >> and they looked after him and they saw he was a real genuine Christian and they became the first Christian slaves >> and that were the Moravians and that was that they started in the island of St. Thomas and if you Google a film by the Moravian church called first fruits you will see that story in film.
>> I was most first fruits I most certainly do that >> and so the Moravians um they were also very in influential on John Wesley. John Wesley went to America to preach and he was coming back a failure and there was a great storm and people were in great fear and there were Moravian people on the on the ship and they were singing hymns and praising God while everyone else was frightened and uh they were he was very impressed by them and it was through the Moravians that John Wesley had an awakening in his own heart a spiritual awakening and became a true Christian >> and started the Methodist church.
>> Oh, so the Methodist church, you would say it's because of influenced by the Moravians.
>> Here we have another small bathroom.
>> Mhm.
>> So the second owner was a Quaker. They are called Quakers because in America you have a similar group who are called the Shakers.
>> Shakers.
>> The Quakers and Shakers. What do you think they did? They quake and they shaked.
The the Quakers had a tradition that they would meet in silence and they would not preach or sing or do anything until the power of the spirit visited their meeting.
>> Okay?
>> And how would they recognize that? They would start to shake.
>> They would start to shake >> and that's why they were called Quakers.
And a lot of religions adopted that in a lot of religions have adopted that because when they say they get into spirit, they shake and tremble, you know.
>> Now, when when I was in the UK, I was seeking to buy a new kitchen for one of my businesses.
>> And we went into this shop and they had this very simple furniture for kitchens.
And I said to the lady, "This is shaker style furniture, isn't it?" She said, "Yes, it is." I said, "Do you know why they are called shakers? What shaker style is?" I said there was a religious group in America called the Shakers >> and they meet in silence until the spirit comes and they start to shake when the power of the spirit comes upon them.
>> Yeah.
>> And then that's where they get the name.
I said the same thing happens to my wife when the power of the spirit comes upon her.
>> She starts to shake >> and she said now you're just telling me jokes. I said no. And as my wife walked by her and asked her something about the kitchen, the the woman in the shop started to shake. I said yes like that.
I said that is that is the Holy Spirit telling you that what I'm telling you is not nonsense.
>> Yes.
>> It's a fact.
>> So, oh, and then we carried on and and then when we we actually bought something and when my wife went to to write the check by the lady again, she started shaking again. I said, "There you go."
>> I said, "The Holy Spirit is present here."
>> Whatever believer is.
>> There he is.
>> Yes. This is lovely.
>> Oh, the Quakers and the Shakers. The Quakers was the forget his name with the second building here.
This is where we have our sort of more relaxed meals.
And we just put a pond in because we found a turtle on the ground.
>> Oh, so having built the pond for him, we named him Speedy >> and he's still here. He's gone.
>> Yeah.
>> Where did he go?
>> Well, somewhere in these 4 acres.
>> Wow.
>> There are currently 4 acres of land here.
Uh there were 400 acres when it was a plantation and 300 odd slaves.
>> What's the what it was? Still Clifton Hill Plantation, right?
>> Yeah. Clifton Hall. Clifton Hall of the area.
>> Yeah.
>> And this is Clifton Hall. Great house.
This is Clifton Hall Plantation.
>> Okay. I'll find the information uh like whatever you haven't given to me already, I'll be sure to find it. you know, and I don't think there's anything to be found because it told me almost everything about the plantation.
>> Several generals own this place as well.
>> I think the minister of tourism >> Mhm.
>> the the um the prime minister that was in charge when it became independent here, I think was Errol Barl. He's been here.
>> Oh, that's who the highway is named off.
>> Yeah. Okay.
>> And we can take a little walk around the grounds.
>> Yeah.
>> My son lives in the stables.
>> Mhm.
>> And we have just built these kennels where my son has 45 dogs.
>> 45 dogs.
>> He breeds Cane Corsos, >> French bulldogs.
>> Mhm.
>> And American bullies. They are champion dogs. They go to shows in South America, the UK, and the US.
>> Okay.
>> And he has sold dogs from to from between from Colombia, California, and Finland.
>> They've gone all over.
>> All right. Is it possible to see them?
>> Yeah.
>> Okay.
I just want to plant some trees in front so we don't see them from the house. But >> Oh, you don't want to see them from the house?
>> Thing that we have to do.
>> Okay.
And they're all locked up, right?
>> Yeah.
>> Okay.
Cuz that's one of my fears in them.
Dogs. It's one of my phobias.
>> A little white one's a stray dog we took in.
>> Okay.
>> It was not one that we breed.
And 40 dog kennels there.
These are all fruit trees.
>> Oh, these. Yeah.
What type of fruits are these though?
>> I'm not sure.
>> Okay. All right.
Let me get a look at the dogs.
[screaming] [ __ ] [ __ ] [ __ ] [ __ ] [ __ ] [ __ ] [ __ ] [ __ ] [ __ ] It's a very lovely place and you really did a good job with it.
We've got our own bees. We're going to be making our own honey.
>> Yeah.
>> Selling jars of honey.
>> Cliftonal on it.
>> Yeah.
>> Yes.
for wedding events on these doors.
>> Okay. You keep like reading wedding receptions.
>> Yep.
Mhm.
I love the greenery. Mhm. Yeah. It's like just peaceful.
made through the woods.
>> Some >> not quite finished.
>> Okay.
>> We have to finish this little area here.
>> Mhm.
Oh, so that you know you can have like a stroll.
>> Yeah.
You just got to finish this area.
>> What's that?
>> Is that a twig? Oh, I'm scared of things that, you know, once it it has more legs than us or slides or slithers, you know, I put gravel on these pods like you get some little solar lights to go.
>> Yeah. along the Yes, that would be lovely.
>> Bus stops right outside if you need to get the bridge down.
>> Huh?
>> The bus stops right outside if you need to get the bridge down.
>> Oh, if I need Oh, I drive them.
>> Yeah. Oh, so this is the gate right here.
>> We come full there's there's several gates. There's a gate there. There's a gate at the front.
>> The gates.
>> We come full circle.
>> Mhm. Mhm.
This was lovely. Uh it's the first I'm getting a tour of a like a great house, a plantation house.
>> I've been inside a lot of them, but the ones that I've seen, those are in ruins because in Jamaica, they don't preserve the heritage like here in Barbados.
>> So, normally it goes to ruins because people will say that, well, it was colonial history. So they have nothing to do with it.
>> Now you have an area in in Jamaica called Glan Ramnney.
>> Glenn Romney.
>> Lani.
>> Lan Romney. That's in uh in Saintan.
I've >> heard it begins with double lan.
>> Yeah. L A N R O M N E Y. Yes.
>> And that's to do with Captain Morgan, >> the governor.
>> Captain Morgan was the governor of of Jamaica.
>> Mhm.
>> And he lived two miles from where I was living in Wales.
>> Okay. Yeah, he was the el the the the younger brother of Lord Tradigga and uh he was a bit of a pirate.
>> Yes, he was a pirate. Yeah.
>> A privateeer.
>> First at first he was a pirate and then he was made into a privateier by the crown by by he became the governor.
>> Yeah. And then he became governor.
>> Van Ramy is an area in Cardiff which is the capital of Wales.
>> Okay. And yeah, there's also a place that Henry Morgan used to feature in Jamaica called the Bath. It's the uh something like the St. Michael's Bath of but it's somewhere that's in Whale also, but it's named after >> Mhm.
>> the one in whale. It's also in Jamaica.
>> Land Remny Hall was literally about >> cuz I've been a half from where I lived.
>> Okay.
>> I lived in an old 16th century vicarage there.
>> Oh. And I've been doing some research into Simon Taylor. You ever came across his name?
>> No.
>> Okay. He was like a one of those place persons put in charge of the plantations in Jamaica while the owner was still in London in England.
>> Yeah. That was >> must not forget.
>> Yeah.
>> Up the stairs. Yeah.
>> Okay.
We're going up to another bedroom.
>> Mhm.
>> This bedroom has got an interesting room off it.
>> Okay.
At the moment, the guy that's helping with the building is staying here.
>> Mhm.
>> He stays here about five nights of the week and he works here and he stays in this room here.
>> Okay.
>> This is a little area room, little bathroom.
>> Mhm.
>> All work.
>> And here we have A strange room with a shutter on the door.
>> What do you think that is all about?
>> It seems like someone was locked in here or food was served from here or something.
>> Yeah.
>> This room is called the poor relations room.
>> Poor relations.
>> If you had somebody in the family who was a bit crazy.
>> Mhm.
>> You would not put him in an institution.
Cuz if my brother was crazy and I put him in an institution, what might you think about me?
>> You might think I was a little mad, too.
Maybe I had the same problem.
>> So, I would hide my brother away in this room.
>> Mhm.
>> And we would feed him through the hatch >> and the floor has some openings in it.
So, when he defecated, we would just hose it out.
>> Oh.
>> And this is where he would stay in the poor relations room. Okay.
>> And this is one of only two poor relations rooms left intact in the Caribbean.
>> And it's the first one I'm coming across. First I'm seeing one. I didn't even know that there was such a thing as a poor relation room.
>> There we go.
>> Yeah. So I'm learning.
I'm learning a lot. Some people say I'm teaching them a lot, but I'm learning a lot. You know, >> you can't teach a lot unless 10.
>> Unless you're learning, you know, and we never stop learning.
So, we'll say goodbye to Jack. Lock him back up again.
>> Mhm.
>> He's had his dinner.
>> Okay. Yeah. You know, >> and >> Jack's locked in there. We say goodbye to Jack. Give him his dinner. And Yeah.
>> Here we have another bedroom. Oh, this just goes up to a little attic room.
>> Okay.
>> And here we have another bedroom.
And we use this one for the brides at our weddings. The bride gets ready in this room.
>> Okay.
>> And again, it has it own bathroom.
>> Mhm.
>> A little smaller bathroom here, this one, but still quite adequate.
Yeah. This bathroom is rather huge compared to some I've seen, you know.
It's our whole entire room.
It's lovely.
One of the scariest things outside of one of these house is somebody shift the curtain and look for oops.
And it's real quiet around here, you know.
>> Yeah.
>> Mhm. Even though there's traffic close by, I don't hear any cars or anything like that.
I like that.
So, you just stay here in Barbados now or you go back and forth. by be >> I haven't been back to UK for 2 years.
>> Okay.
>> Normally people say houses like these you hear stuff inside them in the nights and stuff like that. How is it here?
>> Normally people say houses like these you hear stuff in the night and all of that. You got any ghost stories?
>> No. No ghost. Okay. Okay.
>> I have lived in houses with ghosts, >> but I told the girl leave.
>> Okay. You you you went and there left.
>> Yeah.
>> There we go.
>> Yeah. That's really lovely. Yeah. So, it was a lovely tour. Really lovely. And remind me your name again.
>> Robert.
>> Robert.
>> Robert Katrrol.
>> Robert Katrrol. And my name have arrived.
Trans church.
Yeah, guys. So, finally arrived. We are in a place called Galill at the Ferdinando Paleolus. I'm going to put the spelling of that on screen cuz we can't really pronounce it good. But he was a descendant of the Bisantine Empire. He was the final descendant of the Baisantine Empire. He died in 1641 and we are at his tomb. This is one of the oldest and one of the most like the most important ruin or the most important historical site in the country of Barbos. So I'm going to be showing you all that now guys. But before we do that, let me show you all a view and the church in which the tomb is located.
Yeah.
Hello.
That's another one over there.
That seems like to be Ferdinand tomb.
However, I'm not sure. This church is just magnificent.
It's fascinating.
Now these are the tombs.
This one 1822 Samuel Lewis Mayers. This is another Lewis.
And then this one go east 1941.
This is another day.
All right. So we go over here. Seems like there are lots and lots of graves.
Really old graves. Check out this one.
Then we got that one right there.
And then we go further. I'm trying to find Ferdinando Halego's grave. This is another grave right here. And it seems these are for important people. Why they are built like this?
And there's another one right here.
There's something inscribed over here.
1974.
All right. So, this is the back of the church, guys.
And I'll give you information as to when this church was built, who built it, and all of that. Also, there will be information about Ferdinando Paleago. As soon as I find his grave, this Ferdinando palabos. This is the grave I'm looking for. Uh, so I am here.
I am here.
So that means Ferdinando's grave should be right there.
Or could it be this one?
I'm not sure. Let us find out, guys. So go further up.
This is a baby's grave or someone was buried standing.
That's some of the headstone right there.
However, I think this should be Ferdinando's grave, but I'm not seeing any inscriptions on these graves, guys. You see that? This is so amazing.
These graves are really built different.
That's a tree coming out out of the grave. All right. So, we're just going to circle around, guys, and see if we can find this one. If not, we'll just Ferdinando Halos.
Now, this is the grave we searched for, guys.
and earlihot the body of Ferdinando Polologus I can't pronounce so I don't you know descended from ye imperial line of ye last Christian emperors of Greece church warden of this parish 1655 to 1656 vestman 20 years died October 3rd 1678 so I was a little off when I said he died in 1641. However, this is the grave and now I'm going to show you all the other graves that are here and you will I will give you information about Ferdinando Polio Logos. All right, guys.
So, yeah, make me circle these graves.
Let me show you all this.
Ferdinando Polologus is one of the most fascinating historical figures buried in Barbados and he carries a name tied to imperial legacy. According to tradition and family records, he was a descendant of the Polos dynasty, the last ruling family of the Bisantine Empire. That dynasty ended in 1453 when Constantinople fell to the Ottoman Turks. But somehow the name and bloodline found their way to the Caribbean. In the mid7th century, Ferdinando Palagus fled to Barbados, likely escaping the chaos and persecution brought on by the English Civil War. He settled in the rugged Windsweet parish of St. John where he lived as a respected gentleman and served as a church warden at the historic St. John's Parish Church.
Locals knew him simply as a gentleman of noble family, but his lineage told a much deeper story.
Palagos died in the year 1678, and today his tomb still stands in the churchyard overlooking Barbados's dramatic eastern coastline. The gravestone is plain, but the inscription is powerful. It identifies him as a man descended from the imperial line of Constinople. That makes his final resting place one of the most remarkable and unexpected connections between European royal history and the Caribbean landscape and Roland Taylor.
There's another Taylor, Mariel Mary Louisa Taylor. You know, the tailor are very well known when it comes to slavery and colonialism. This seems to be another grave right here.
Oh, it's a marker stone.
Yeah, guys, I haven't ever seen one of these. It's like a a sund dial. Yeah, I think it's a sund dial. Yeah, I haven't seen one of these. It's the first time seeing one of these, guys. So, it's a good look. Yeah, we move forward.
Yeah, guys, a funeral is about to be kept. So, I've got to be very quiet. But even in the church, there is a grave.
But the date on this grave, you notice that that's a J, not a one.
So, this would be very, very, very old.
Yeah, the Jay's from before they started using the one. So that would be very old.
J 728. It would be 728. That would be the year.
>> The J it looks like it's here. J 73, but it cuts off right here.
So, another number would be here.
>> 70.
>> So, because because if this is 73, this would be year 73, but it couldn't be that old. I think there's another number here under here. I'm not sure >> because the J is before we started using the ones. If you notice on some old documents, you see it's still to the jail.
>> So this would be a very very long time and this person died at age seven.
>> Because this used to be part before it was >> part of the cemetery but then after it rebuilding >> the church then they include this here.
>> Okay.
>> This one.
>> There's also one over here.
Light inter the body of M. Richard Adams born November the 5th 1667 died May the 19th 1752.
as all of his aal of his daughter Elizabeth born 17th of January 1728 or 29 by 17th of August 1733.
So this this is really old also.
>> Yeah guys and there's still another one here.
Not seen this one proper but these are really old. These are inside the church now guys. These are inside of the church.
Not sure if I see anymore.
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