On to London

     The last section of our trip to England and Wales was a trip back to London for research at the British National Library.  On our way back to London we stopped off at Avebury and its stone circle.  I had been there once before, but Nan hadn't. I convinced her it was worth a stop.
     Avebury consists of a circle of ditch and bank enclosing 28 acres.  Within this acreage lie the remains of the largest stone circle in England. A prehistoric mound called Silbury Hill is less than a mile away, which in turn is overlooked by a long burial mound, the West Kennet long barrow.

     There is no firm answer as to why Avebury was built or what its function was.  It is surmised that, like its neighbor Stonehenge, it held some importance for marking specific times of the year or as a transitional area celebrating changes in or departures from this world.(We are talking about 3,000 B.C. here.  People just didn't write things down then.)  The 28 acre circle of stones held around 100 standing stones, only 15 of which lasted into the 20th century.  During excavations in the 1930s, 21 more were found and resurrected(so to speak).  Within the large outer circle there were a number of inner stone circles.

     It's hard to imagine how Neolithic humans maneuvered the stones, some of which weigh over 100 tons.

     In addition to the Neolithic sites at Avebury,  a visitor can also tour Avebury Manor, a structure over 900 years old.  Unfortunately, we didn't have enough time to take the tour.  It was very crowded, as the BBC had funded and shot a TV series which dealt with the restoration of the manor. making it a very popular tourist destination.

     We did however take time to walk through The Church of St. James in the village.  Avebury village was founded in Anglo-Saxon times, that is the period after the Roman control of Britain ended.  Many of its buildings date back to that period, including parts of the church which date back to 1000 A.D

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Wales of a Time VIII - Raglan Castle

     After leaving St. Fagans, we headed north and east towards the English border. It was one of the days that we didn't have a reservation for the evening and our search for a room was a bit stressful.  Fortunately, we found a spot in Abergavenny, Wales.  It was great.  We heartily recommend Plas Derwen in Abergavanny, not only for the fine rooms(some with tubs), but also great food and beverage.
     Our last stop in Wales was at Raglan Castle.  It was an excellent site set in the rolling farmland of eastern Wales.

    
        The remains of the castle dates from the 15th century when Sir William ap Thomas began construction of the castle by building the Great Tower which could only be entered from inside the castle and was surrounded by a moat..

          His son continued work on the castle by beginning construction on sumptuous living quarters and a splendid gatehouse.  Unfortunately William backed the wrong side in one of the many English fights for the Crown and was executed in 1469.  His work was finished and expanded by the Somerset family who became the owners of Raglan, at the King's pleasure of course.

      Through the 16th century the castle was expanded and refined to become an elegant Elizabethan country house with lush gardens, walled terraces, and a lake.  The Long Gallery on the third floor was the entertainment center of the castle.  All that is left of that room now is the remains of an ornate Renaissance fireplace.

     When Civil War broke out in England between the Crown and Parliament in 1642, the owners of Raglan backed King Charles I.  Oops!  After a 10 week siege in 1646 the 5th Earl of Worcester surrendered the castle to the Puritan forces.  It was decided  by the victors that the castle should be destroyed and steps were taken to take it down.. After removing all things of value from the castle, the piece by piece destruction of the buildings was abandoned.  The lead and timbers were removed and used to build bridges around Bristol.  What remains however is an impressive reminder of the elegance of  Elizabethan times.
 

   
     The views from the Great Tower show the beauty of the surrounding countryside, which are as impressive as the remains of the castle.

Wales of a Time VII - St Fagans

    On our way back towards Cardiff from Swansea we decided to stop at St. Fagans - National History Museum.  Since it's the National History Museum of Wales I think its only appropriate that the title of the entry should be written in Welsh - Sain Ffagan: Amgueddfa Werin Cymru.  Don't ask me - but it really does mean St Fagans: National History Museum.  This large open air museum has over 40 original buildings from sites all over Wales which were moved and re-erected on the 104.5 acres of the site. They include everything from an ancient representation of how Iron Age tribal Celts lived to a 15th century Manor House with gardens to an 19th century Guild Hall.  It was a very impressive collection of buildings, with interpreters at each site.  If you want to get a flavor of Wales without braving the narrow country lanes, this is your spot.

     One of the center pieces of the Museum is St Fagans Castle.  It is an Elizabethan Manor House built in 1580 with major interior renovations done in the 1850s.  It is furnished in a late Victorian style with many of the pieces being furniture used by the last owner, The Earl of Plymouth, who donated the "Castle" to the Museum in 1946.  The gardens were incredibly beautiful.

      To me one of the most fascinating structures was St. Teilo's church.  The original church was built in the 12th century and added to over the years with the nave and the chancel dating from the late 13th or early 14th century.  The structure is rather bland from the outside.

    It's the insides that are amazing.  It seems that when the church was being moved and reconstructed in 2007 the workers found the remains of pre-Reformation wall drawings.  It is believed that the church members white-washed over the painting to protect them from being discovered and destryed during the English Civil War and the Puritan rule of the mid-17th century.  When they were discover it was determined that they should be restored to their original splendor  and the interior of the church is set as it would of appeared in around 1530.

      The museum did an interesting thing with a series of 19th century row house that were built by iron mine owner Rober Crawshay to provide housing for his workers.  Although the row houses date back to almost 1800, each separate house is set up for a different period from the early 19th century to the late 20th: more paritcularly 1805, 1855, 1895, 1925, 1955, and 1985.

     Since there are over 40 buildings this report could go on for quite a while.  Let it suffice to say it is a very impressive museum.  And if you need to, you can even call home

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Wales of a Time VI - Return to Swansea

     After wandering the lanes of the Gower peninsula, we went back to Swansea to spend the night at a very fine hotel called The Dragon(one of the symbols of Wales is a red dragon). We had an excellent room, bath with a tub, and a great meal.  The next morning we set off to see a bit of Swansea.
     In the middle of the downtown area are the remains of Swansea Castle(not much left, it's said to say)  The castle was originally built in 1106, but all that is visible today are two sides of the rectangular shaped "new" castle built in the late 13th or early 14th century.  Urban renewal and World War II bombing raids took the rest.

       Across the street from the caste is a lovely park, which contained a large video screen that had been set up for people to watch the Olympics.  The day we were there was the final parade of athletes associated with the para-olympics and people came to eat theirs lunches and watch the parade of athletes on the big screen.

     Wales was the home of the Welsh poet and playwright Dylan Thomas, whose most recognizable works include the poem "Do not go gentle into the night" and the play "Under Milk Wood".  Swansea is the home of the Dylan Thomas museum.  The museum does an excellent job of displaying Thomas's life and works, and isn't shy about discussing his shortcomings.  As a 20th century writer and actor, there are quite a few movies and videos showing him and his work.  It was moving but sad to see such a great talent was ravaged by alcohol and infidelity.(He died in NYC in 1953 having put himself in an alcohol coma after a night of binge drinking.  He left a wife and children back home in Wales)

    
     Our last stop in Swansea was actually unplanned.  After visiting the Dylan Thomas Museum we happened upon a theater named after him.  As fate would have it, the manager of the theater was outside having a smoke and invited us in for a look-around.  It seems that as a youth Thomas performed in some of the productions at the theater.  It remains a community theater.  In order to audition for a production you must be a member of the theater and pay an annual fee.  The manager was a character.  She never really introduce herself, but told us about the history of the theater and their productions.  She even let into a rehearsal of a show being prepared for a school age audience based on a Welsh legend.  It was an interesting 30 minutes.  Many thanks to "whoever-you-are" for the tour.

 

 

 

 

Wales of a Time V - Mumbles to Rhossili

     Our adventures on the Gower peninsula continued after our visit to Mumbles.  The guide book we were using suggested a driving tour of the Gower peninsula which we decided to take.  Driving on the left side of the road took some concentration, but it was the narrowness of the roads that was more of a problem.  There were sections where I literally had to fold-in my side view mirror in order to get by oncoming cars without hitting them.  It was stressful.

  
      We took a break by visiting a beach at Oxwich Bay, where we had lunch and just sat on the beach and relaxed in the sand before heading on to the western portion of the Gower peninsula and the village of Rhossili.

      Rhossili was incredibly beautiful.  We were able to walk on a semi-paved trail along a bluff high above a three mile long beach to a point above what is called the Worm's Head.  At low tide the Worm's Head is accessible by scrambling over exposed rocks to the tidal island itself.  Naturally, because of Nan's broken ankle, we were in no position to take any such an excursion.  There was a large sign at the top of the cliff notifying those able to cross the exact times of the tides.  I couldn't help but wonder how often people get caught out on the Worm's Head because they didn't heed the sign.

                                                                
                                                               Beach at Rhossili

                                                  The Worm's Head at Almost Low Tide
                                

        Yes those are sheep grazing at the edge of the cliffs.  They are sprayed with different color paints.  I assume that this is to indicate ownership of the particular sheep.   It was truly a beautiful spot.  From the cliffs you could see trails weaving their way along the headlands in both directions.  We're putting a return to Rhossili on our list of future expeditions so we can hike a few of those trails.

Wales of a Time IV - Swansea

 

      Our plan before Nan broke her ankle was to spend several more days in Wales hiking on the Pembrokeshire Coast Path before heading to London and research at the British National Library.  Needless to say with the broken ankle we had to change those plans.  Nan had visited Wales once before and talked about seeing the beaches and area around Mumbles on Wales southern coast.  Mumbles is a resort community within the boundaries of the city of Swansea, which is located east south east from Cardiff.

      On reaching Mumbles we had a snack at a waterfront cafe which overlooked Swansea Bay(scones with strawberries and welsh muffins) and then rode a tram which took us past the shops and homes of Mumbles.

     At Mumbles pier, we looked out to Mumbles Head with its lighthouse(under renovation) which was originally built in 1794.

      At the other end of town, we visited Oystermouth Castle, built originally in about 1106 as part of the Norman's efforts to extend their control into Wales. The day we visited there was an open house and we were able to take a guided tour with a very knowledgeable volunteer historian.  They were celebrating a massive restoration project which had just been completed allowing visitors to visit parts of the ruins which haven't been seen for several centuries.

     
      The view from the front gate of the castles shows why it was located at the top of this hill.  The whole coastline of Mumbles can be seen, including an 11th century Norman church.

Wales of a Time III - Cardiff Castle

     One of the interesting historic sites in Cardiff is Cardiff Castle.  It's actually a hodgepodge of different structures which trace the 2000 year history of the city from it's earliest beginnings.
     It is believed that around 50 A.D.  the Roman army had established a base to extend the Empire's authority into Wales.  Over several centuries the Romans built 4 forts on the site the last of which was a stone structure.  The Roman fort disappeared over time and was not discovered until 1888 when the 3rd Marquess of Bute decided to build a new tower. To his credit, Lord Bute stopped the work on his new tower when the old Roman walls were unearthed.  He reconstructed the walls on their original foundation using a redish brick to cap the Roman walls to indicate the remains(which can be seen in the photo below).

     The area continued to be used as a stronghold and was refortified after the Norman Conquest of England in 1066.  By 1135 the Normans had built their own fortification on a man-made hill within the original Roman Fort.  It was called - The Keep.

     The 12 sided structure is a "shell" keep, as its outer walls provide protection for smaller buildings built inside.   It was surrounded by a moat, had its own well, and could be well stocked with provisions to defend against a siege.  This picture from inside the Keep shows the remains of a fireplace and indication that structures of at least five floors existed.

     As domestic warfare subsided, the importance of The Keep became secondary to the comfort of  the Earl of Warwick, Richard Beauchamp, who became owner of the site around 1420.  He desired a more comfortable and less fortified residence.  Successor Earls continued to expand and "modernize" Beauchamp's residence, adding towers and assorted additions creating an interesting structure which features a variety architectural styles.

     It was the 3rd Marquess that oversaw the last renovation of the "Castle" in the mid-19th century.  He turned it into what has been described as an "extraordinary and outstanding example of Gothic Revival architecture".  The interior is rich in ornate historically based decorations and was incredible to walk through.

                                                           The Chaucer Reading Room

            
                                                                 The Banqueting Hall

                                                              The Library Chimneypiece

     One other interesting is the feature attached to the "Castle" is the Clock Tower.  Modeled after European clock tower of the middle ages,  this tower was created by architect William Burges in 1874.