EASTER at Monmouth for a few heady years in the 1900s was the scene of spectacular balloon ascents.

Lord and Lady Llangattock organised ballooning house parties at their Hendre estate just outside Monmouth for their son, the Hon. Charles Stewart Rolls.

Rolls approached ballooning with the same intensity he applied to motorcars and aeroplanes. He was interested in the military potential of balloons, and took part in competitions in Britain, the United States and on the Continent.

However, the social appeal of ballooning, and its suitability as a sport for ladies, seems to have provided Rolls with his only purely recreational, relaxed, sociable activity. Rolls is centre in the balloon basket.