The story behind ARRAS
What's in a name?
Arras is an area of the Yorkshire Wolds, famous for its hills, along the A1079 road that goes from Beverley to York. This region of East Yorkshire has been settled since Neolithic times, something which was proven during the 19th Century with the discovery of ancient Iron Age burials which told us a great deal about the people who once lived here. This tribe was given the name of the 'Arras' tribe by archaeologists, with their burial practices distinctive from the neighbouring tribes of the Parisi and Briganti (pre-Roman Britain) and having commonalities with those found in Gaul and mainland Europe.
Using the name 'Arras' we are honouring the land around us and the ancestors who once roamed here. Just like the Arras people were different and unique from the tribes surrounding them, Arras Healing takes a different and unique approach to health, wellness and recovery.
By working with nature, the land around us, and a sense of our heritage and roots (no matter where we are), this can support us to integrate the parts of ourselves that have gone unseen, unknown and unloved. Just as the Arras burials were unseen, unknown and unloved for thousands of years – until they were rediscovered and brought back to the light again.
FIRST WORLD WAR CONNECTIONS
The Battle of Arras was a key battle during the First World War, taking place in 1917, but it is not as well known today as the household names of the Somme, Passchendaele and Verdun. In Canada, the battle is well-known for its links to Vimy Ridge (pictured left), where Canadian and Allied divisions captured the well-fortified German position of Vimy and held it for the rest of the war. It is now the site of one of the most impressive commemorative structures ever built, and well worth a visit if you ever get a chance.
Market Weighton is built at the bottom of 'Arras Hill,' and the Arras War Memorial Institute takes up a central position next to the town green. Although the Memorial Hall bears the commemorative plaque of the war dead of both world wars, it's not clear if there is any link to the Battle of Arras itself. It may be that the name of the hall is simply to reflect the surrounding landscape known as Arras, described in the section above.
Coach Candy visited the Arras battlefields in 2017, a good four years before she had any idea of creating Arras Healing, but which seems like synchronicity. Although Arras Healing isn't named after the battle, there are potential links between the region of Arras in France, and this area of the Yorkshire Wolds. You can read more about these connections at this special blog here.
Blogs and Research
Arras - The Ancient and Lost Connections of Market Weighton
Land of Yews and Druids - in search of York's ancient secrets
Land of Yews and Druids - in search of York's ancient secrets
What's in a name? Coach Candy explores the oft-forgotten historical connections between ancient Britain and Market Weighton...
Land of Yews and Druids - in search of York's ancient secrets
Land of Yews and Druids - in search of York's ancient secrets
Land of Yews and Druids - in search of York's ancient secrets
Yorkshire as a forgotten centre of Druid activity takes Candy from the Wolds to the big city -- on the trail of overlooked ancestors and the wisdom still awaiting discovery in our collective pasts...
Delgovicia - Story of a Forgotten Roman Settlement
Land of Yews and Druids - in search of York's ancient secrets
Delgovicia - Story of a Forgotten Roman Settlement
Healing our ancestral wounds is a significant part of the trauma recovery journey. For Candy, this led her into deeper relationship with the people who roamed here long before Arras Healing was formed...
Coach Candy's story
Candy has lived experience of mental health and knows what it is to come out the other side, having moved from a place of hopelessness and darkness to feeling joy and light in her trauma recovery journey. It is now her passion and mission to help bring hope and healing to others, and transform the way we see and process our traumas in society.
By drawing upon the inherent wisdom of our bodies, breath, and spirits, as well as land, nature and our shared wild origins, Candy believes we can tap into the 'Inner Healer' that all of us have within, who is waiting for us to call upon their strength, love and courage.
Read more about Coach Candy's journey here: "What I wish I had been told 10 years ago" at the Arras Healing blog. Or you can follow Candy's Medium page here.