No symmetry...Other than the place, I do not think the rest of the second group spells anything in particular - and I do not think 'outline' is an accurate description of what gets removed since the interior of the shape is included.
Still it's a worthy Inquisitor - if rather dark...
I too have removed all the letters within a shape , so that the total number of letters removed relates to the date. I didn't see any meaning to the letters removed inside the shape.
I have completed the grid and a shape of sorts, can anyone confirm the total no. of letters relates to the last two digits of the year the event took place ? Thanks
Still not convinced by my shape even though all the words remaining are real...
Boreas, haven't worked through the wordplay but in the clue for "Cabbage etc. " the definition is "salt" so ends in "-ate", with the first part a reference to the latin name for cabbage. The solution to the clue "Once cooked..." refers to "back". Not sure where the "mutton" bit comes in, there's probably an old 4-letter word that ends in "-en".