Cirencester

Our next stop was Cirencester one of the largest Roman towns of its day and slap bang in the middle of the Cotswolds … so great history and pretty countryside.

On the way to Cirencester we

• Stopped briefly Stratford on Avon – home of Shakespeare and
• drove through Chipping Campden … just love these village names.

There will be some photos of this in the Houses Album.

While in Cirencester we saw -

The Corinium Museum which focusses on Roman and some Anglo Saxon history and contains some wonderful exhibits … one of which is Boudicca’s headstone … she was the Queen of the Iceni who rebelled against Roman occupation and burnt Colchester to the ground

Chedworth Roman Villa - Situated in a beautiful Cotswold valley this is one of the finest Roman Villas in the country. Discovered by the Victorians and largely excavated and conserved from public funding the villa remains are enormous.

Originally shaped like a U looking down the valley, it had three large ranges. What is spectacular here is the amount of earthwork they did to create two terraces. Mostly the ruins are wonderful Mosaics and bathhouses but still a great thing to see.

A Roman Amphitheatre situated on the outskirts of Colchester … in the middle of a suburb … are the massive earthwork remains of one of the largest Roman amphitheatres in Britain. It was built in the early 2nd century, when the Roman city of Corinium (now Cirencester) was second only to London in size and importance, with a population of over 10,000. The amphitheatre could hold about 8,000 spectators Cathedral and Museum

St John the Baptist Cathedral - In 1117 AD King Henry I … son of William the Conqueror … founded an abbey and parish church … St John the Baptist … to replace the Old Saxon church.

King Henry's church was rebuilt around 1240, and again in Perpendicular Gothic style around 1520. It contains beautiful Chapels, an amazing wedding chest and Anne Boleyn’s cup.  …   the cup, so named because it was given by Queen Anne Boleyn to Dr Richard Masters, physician, in thanks for his care  Apparently when the current Queen visited the Cathedral she commented that she had one exactly the same … so Anne must have a more than one.

Odda's Chapel is a surviving Anglo-Saxon church at Deerhurst, Gloucestershire. Earl Odda had it built for the benefit of the soul of his brother Ælfric, who died on 22 December 1053. It was consecrated on 12 April 1056. The chapel is partly incorporated into a 16th or early 17th century farmhouse called Abbot's Court. Can I live here please?

It is in a larger protected heritage area, which includes the remains of St Mary's Priory Church.

The stone with the dedication inscription was discovered in 1675 by Sir John Powell, a local landowner and can be translated as "Earl Odda ordered this royal hall to be built and dedicated in honour of the Holy Trinity for the soul of his brother Ælfric, taken up from this place. Ealdred was the bishop who dedicated the building on the second day before Ides of April in the fourteenth year of the reign of Edward, king of the English” … amazing stuff!!

St Mary's Priory Church  is older than the chapel and is  200 meters down the road from it … The church is unusual in that it contains many elaborate Anglo-Saxon details, and carvings and sculpture. My favourite things!!

It is generally accepted is was constructed during the 9th and 10th centuries.

As we left Cirencester on our way to Cornwall we stopped at Wells Cathedral - lovely medieval Cathedral and drove through Cheddar Gorge … beautiful scenery. Look in the Wells Album for some photos.

The village of Coates, Gloucestershire

Whilst checking out places of interest around Cirencester, we came across signposts for the nearby village of Coates and decided that it warranted closer inspection to see if anyone by that name lived there now or had in the past.  As a matter of interest, there are 4 towns\villages named Coates in the UK.  This particular village of Coates in Gloucestershire is the closest village to the source of the river Thames.

On the way there, we drove past some beautiful scenery including fields of bluebells.  As we drove through the village, we discovered local landmarks like Coates House, Coates Village Hall and of course the Coates sewerage treatment works (under construction). 

We were aware that there was a pub in the countryside near the village and eventually we found it and stopped for lunch.  The pub started out as accommodation for workers building the nearby canal and tunnel. 

We both had the beef and Guinness pie with mash and peas which was very tasty.  I told the bar staff my name and asked if they knew of anyone in the village with the name Coates.  They didn’t but checked with a long time local and came back with the news that no one by that name lived there.   I informed them that on this basis I was staking a claim for the village and all of its property, goods and chattels and that for their assistance I would grant them a house each.  They were both very happy with this pronouncement.

Till next time, please enjoy the accompanying photos.

The Abbey we see today was built between 1714 and 1726 - a palatial four-storey fifteen-bay west wing provides an impressive range of state apartments.

It is interesting to note that Henry Parkes – referred to as Father of Federation – was born and went to school in Stoneleigh.

History - The estate was acquired by Sir Thomas Leigh, Lord Mayor London in 1558, and a house was built ( which now forms the north and west wings of the present house) on the site of the monastic buildings. It was the home of the Leigh Family from 1561 to 1990.

It had originally been founded by the Cistercians in 1154, but very little trace remains of the original Abbey buildings except for the 14th-century Gatehouse - Currently lived in by a UNESCO doctor.

Also look out for the really old oak tree and bench

During the tour of the Abbey the guide mentioned two local churches that we remarkable for their original Norman architecture … so yes we went to both of them

St Mary the Virgin in Stoneleigh and The Church of the Assumption of our Lady at Ashow … From the photos you can see the original Norman features.

Enjoy

 Said by many to be the best kept secret among the forty-two English cathedrals, it is a gem. From the beautiful Pepper pot Towers to the amazing carving I enjoyed every minute. There is early Norman carving around the doors and windows and some Anglo Saxon carving from the original church.

There is also a bishop’s palace that has seen the likes of Richard the Lionheart, Richard II and Cardinal Wolsey. Cardinal Wolsey failed to get Henry VIII his divorce so Henry sacked him and then put a warrant out for his arrest … he had been staying in the Bishop’s palace at Southwell when he was captured … lucky for him he died before he could be beheaded.

The Church is beautiful.

I read about this crypt years ago and I finally got to visit it.

Repton was where Christianity was first preached in the Midlands and a monastery was founded in here around 653. A crypt was constructed in the first half of the 8thC, during the reign of King Æthelbald as a mausoleum for the Mercian Kings. Originally built with a wood roof, King Wiglaf added the four barley sugar columns and vaulting to carry the weight of a chancel built above it in the 9thC. 

It contained the tombs of Æthelbad (757), King Wiglaf (839) and his grandson, St Wystan, who was brutally murdered in 849 by his guardian who wanted the throne. There were claims of many miracles after his death and the crypt became a place of pilgrimage. It became so popular two staircases, north and south, were needed to manage the flow of pilgrims.

The monastery was sacked by the Danes in 873/4 who destroyed the wooden buildings and set fire to the church. St Wystan’s remains were removed and the church lay in ruins, although the crypt survived.  A new stone church was built in the 10thC. All of the remains were moved to Winchester by King Canute.

Enjoy