Rowland Taylor - Hadleigh's Martyr

In 1544 Rowland Taylor became Rector of Hadleigh where the new Protestant reforms of Edward VI's reign were adopted. However, in 1553, Mary Tudor became Queen and reinstated the Roman Catholic religion, but Taylor, and others, refused to give up the Protestant changes and beliefs. His arrest was ordered in March 1554 and in January 1555 he was excommunicated and sentenced to be burnt at the stake. He was returned to Hadleigh and on February 9th 1555 burnt at the stake on Aldham Common.

Some history:

On 16 April 1544, he was presented to the living of Hadleigh, Suffolk, thus becoming their spiritual leader and rector. Then, on 15 August 1547, he became canon of Rochester, the same year during which King Henry VIII had died in January.

In 1548, Taylor was further appointed archdeacon of Bury St Edmunds, followed 3 years later, in 1551, being made archdeacon of Exeter in the diocese of Exeter

Other positions he was appointed to include being one of the Six Preachers of Canterbury Cathedral and being appointed chancellor to Bishop Nicholas Ridley. A very busy man!

Taylor's troubles began on 25 July 1553. He was arrested just six days after the new queen, Mary I, ascended the throne. Aside from the fact that Taylor had supported Lady Jane Grey, Mary's rival, he was also charged with heresy for having preached a sermon in Bury St Edmunds denouncing the Roman Catholic practice of clerical celibacy, which required that a priest in holy orders be unmarried. Many English clergymen, including Taylor, had abandoned this teaching since the 1530s as a token of the English Reformation.

Taylor also denounced the Roman Catholic doctrine of transubstantiation, which is the belief that the two elements (bread and wine) taken during Holy Communion, or the Eucharist, actually become the body and blood of Jesus Christ. Since the Roman Catholic position is that the Eucharist (and the miracle of transubstantiation) is a sacrament commanded by God, anyone denying it, particularly a cleric or pastor, is considered a heretic. This teaching was opposed universally by the Reformed and Protestant Churches, who maintained that, since a sacrament is a sign, it cannot also be the thing signified. For similar reasons relating to the problem of idolatry, Taylor took issue with the Roman Catholic form of the Mass and received much support from the villagers of Hadleigh.

These issues came to a head after Edward VI died (6 July 1553) and was succeeded by Queen Mary I. In 1554, Mary began a program of re-establishing Catholicism in England. However, the English clergy and Anglican faithful, whose hopes for a Protestant royal succession had been dashed by Mary's imprisonment and execution of Lady Jane Grey, saw it as a matter of English Christian duty to resist this backlash, not least to resist the political ambitions of the king of Spain (Philip II, whom Mary married) to draw England within the sphere of the Holy Roman Empire and its Roman Catholic satellites. Although Mary, as Henry VIII's eldest daughter, was a legitimate successor to Edward VI, England was no longer minded to tolerate a Roman Catholic monarch, and the courage and endurance unto death of men such as Taylor provided the public example which ensured that the Reformation was not in fact overturned, but became established in the realm of England.

On 26 March 1554, the Privy Council ordered the arrest of Taylor, and he thus appeared before Bishop Stephen Gardiner. The proceedings against Taylor ran over several years. During this time he was kept in the King's Bench Prison. While in prison he befriended many inmates and was instrumental in many conversions to Anglicanism.

January 1555 was an ominous month for Anglican clergy in England. After several years of separation from Roman worship and governance, the accession of Mary I in 1553 and her immediate reversion to Roman Catholic rule in obedience to the pope (an attempt to turn back the Reformation of the English church) led her to unleash her wrath upon those whom she defined as treasonably minded heretics.

His execution took place on 9 February 1555, at Aldham Common just to the north of Hadleigh. His wife, two daughters, and his son Thomas were present that day.

A local butcher was ordered to set a torch to the wood but resisted. A couple of bystanders finally threw a lighted torch onto the wood. A perhaps sympathetic guard, named Warwick, struck Taylor's head with a halberd, which apparently killed him instantly. The fire consumed his body shortly thereafter.

An unhewn stone marks the place of Taylor's death at Aldham Common (just to the north of Hadleigh, where the B1070 Lady Lane meets the A1071 Ipswich Road). Next to the unhewn stone, there is also a monument erected in 1818, and restored by parishioners in 1882.

The memorial window to Rowland Taylor in St Mary`s Church, Hadleigh.

Aldham Common, the site of Rowland Taylor' burning, was enclosed in 1729 with the income to be used for the 'poor of Hadleigh'. Today the Aldham Common Charity administers the land and money raised is used to help with cases of hardship within the Parish of Hadleigh.

The Charity is able to make grants to individuals or organisations to help in a number of ways eg. contributions towards school uniform, school trips, college and university books and equipment, assistance with travelling costs to hospital appointments, replacement of furniture and white goods etc.

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Exploring in the the Forest of Dean

Friday started dull and misty (again) despite a forecast of sunshine, so we delayed going out until 10:30 when we headed for the Forest of Dean. Had a bit of a wander along the Sculpture trail before heading to Beechenhurst Lodge for lunch and a coffee.

Beechenhurst Lodge (formerly the site of Speech House Colliery, closed around 1906) is now the ideal base for a family day out, the sculpture trail being only of many family orientated activities you can pursue from here. Very difficult to visualise the area once being an active coal area.

Freckled Dapperling (Lepiota aspera) We had hoped to see more fungi in the forest as well as more Autumn colours, so it was a bit disappointing to find almost no fungi, apart from this one. As for autumn colours, they were not as apparent as at home.

Dor beetle (Geotrupes vernalis) spotted by Rosey. It is a beetle neither of us had photographed before. 

Since 1984 The Forest of Dean Sculpture Trust has raised funds to commission artists to celebrate and help us appreciate and understand the life of the forest. 

The Sculpture Trust works in partnership with the Forestry Commission which maintains the sculptures and trail. 

The sculptures are mostly constructed from natural material from the Dean - wood, stone and iron. They are interspersed along the trail through majestic oaks and towering Scots pine trees 

IRON ROAD by Keir Smith 1986.Twenty carved jarrah wood railway sleepers remind us of the train line that used to run through the forest carrying coal and iron. Each sleeper illustrates an aspect of the forest, from smelting to writing, charcoal to hunting. 

The Speech House was the administrative building of the Forest of Dean. The building was originally constructed as a hunting lodge for Charles II and the Speech House was authorised by the Act of 1668 as part of a reorganisation of the open land in the area, and its construction was finished in 1682] It hosted the "Court of the Speech", a sort of parliament for the Verderers and Free Miners managing the forest, game, and mineral resources of the area. 

It was severely damaged in the Revolution of 1688, but repaired soon thereafter. Around 1840 it began to be used as an inn, and by the late 19th century it was functioning as a hotel, which (as of 2013) it continues to do. 

I must confess that I had to Google the word `Verdeers` and the answer was "Verderers are officials in Britain who deal with Common land in certain former royal hunting areas which are the property of The Crown. The office was developed in the Middle Ages to administer Forest Law on behalf of the King. Verderers investigated and recorded minor offences such as the taking of venison and the illegal cutting of woodland, and dealt with the day-to-day forest administration. In the modern era verderers are still to be found in the New Forest, the Forest of Dean, and Epping Forest, where they serve to protect commoning practices, and conserve the traditional landscape and wildlife." 

So, something learnt! 

A small painted stone found in the forest on this stone marker. I was tempted to bring it home, but I decided against it. 

The stone marker was inscribed to commemorate the loyal service of Deputy Surveyor R G Sanzen-Baker. 

A short walk back to the car by which time it was getting very dull, so back to Monmouth, a bit of shopping before heading home for packing and cleanup, as tomorrow we head back to Suffolk 

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A walk around Symonds Yat

On Thursday we headed north along the A40, past Monmouth and across to Symonds Yat (east to be precise), the intention, a pleasant walk along the bank of the river Wye, past where canoeists come from all over the country to paddle the white-water.

We started in Symonds Yat East but immediately crossed to West via a unique ferry, powered by one man and a line between the banks.

The ferry at the Saracens is one of two hand-pulled ferries on this short stretch of the River Wye, the ferries at Symonds Yat are enshrined in locally history and they make up a traditional way of life. 

Travel back in time to 1800, and the Wye was a busy place for industry, it also posed a potential barrier between the two sides of the river, and this is a river that has always commanded respect with many losing their lives when swimming or attempting to cross. An interesting 19th century child’s gravestone at St Margaret’s Church, Welsh Bicknor is testament to the dangers of the Wye. It describes cause of death by drowning in the river, locals will have more recent memories of such tragic stories. 

During the early 19th century, there were 25 hand ferries between Ross and Chepstow, many of which were similar to the present day Saracen’s ferry. 

It is thought by historians that the ferries were introduced in Roman Times to link the forts of the Doward and the Yat. They have certainly served Military, Civilian, Tourist and Horse traffic since this era. 

The ferry outside the Saracens is a hand pull cable ferry. The ferryman uses the overhead tensioned cable which is connected to the boat by a rope, this is to prevent the boat from drifting down stream should the ferryman lose control of the boat, which is what is what apparently happened many years ago with the boat drifting down to the rapids. Health and safety is far more stringent these days. 

While the ferry appeals to tourists, it is still today a very useful and important part of local life for those wishing to travel between Symonds Yat East and West. The only connection by road is upstream over Huntsham bridge (a five-mile trip).

By foot the other option is a three mile round-trip walk down to the Biblins suspension bridge and back. The suspension bridge was built in 1957. 

View from the Biblins suspension bridge

This is another beautiful area and I can imagine the crowds in high summer may well overrun it - we were lucky - it was a good October day and very few people about. 

Once back at Annie`s Cottage, I took a wander down the hill to the Cross Dermond Coffin Stone. 

The stone was used by bearers on foot to rest the coffins of the deceased upon during the uphill walk to Penallt Old Church. A cross was once socketed into the adjacent stone . The notice informs us that psalms were sung and refreshments taken on board too. Rightly so.! 

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The ancient market town of Monmouth

Wednesday dawned dull and wet and, supposedly, this was to be the story of today. So a visit to Monmouth, and a trip to Costa, before a wander to some shops, was the plan. 

Once in Costa I managed to log onto the internet to check emails (what for, I wonder?) and to download some info for future blog / diary. Then a brief stroll up to the remains of Monmouth castle and a brief look at the Benedictine priory, which was established around 1075 by Withenoc, a Breton who became lord of Monmouth. 

Nothing really remains of the original Priory which may have once been the residence of the monk Geoffrey of Monmouth, who was born around 1100 and is best known for writing the chronicle Historia Regum Britanniae ("History of the Kings of Britain") 

It was credited, uncritically, well into the 16th century, but is now considered historically unreliable.

The Shire Hall in Agincourt Square, is a prominent Grade I listed building. Built in 1724, the Shire Hall was formerly the centre for the Assize Courts and Quarter Sessions for Monmouthshire. In 1839/40, the court was the location of the trial of the Chartist leader John Frost and others for high treason for their part in the Newport Rising

The memorial statue to the aviation pioneer Charles Rolls stands in front of the Shire Hall. The 8 feet (2.4 m) high bronze statue was designed by Sir William Goscombe John, R.A.and Sir Aston Webb, R.A. designed the pink granite plinth. The statue is a Grade II* listed structure. 

Charles Stewart Rolls was the third son of John Rolls, 1st Baron Llangattock, and his family home was The Hendre to the north of the town, where Sir Aston also designed the Cedar Library.[3] The Rolls family were significant landowners in the nineteenth century and major benefactors to the town and county. The statue was proposed by the Borough Council in June 1910, to celebrate Charles Rolls' two-way crossing of the English Channel. However, Rolls was killed in an accident at an airfield near Bournemouth on the south coast of England the following month. The statue and plaques around the plinth therefore commemorate his life achievements. 

The Gate House over the river Monnow

Interesting sign giving some history of the bridge and GateHouse

Past the Gate House and across the river Monnow, we came to the church of St Thomas the Martyr with interesting interior, as seen below. The building is constructed of Old Red Sandstone. Dedicated to St Thomas à Becket, it became a chapel-of-ease to St Mary's Priory Church as it did not have its own parish. It is listed in a papal edict by Pope Urban III in 1186. It is thought to have existed in 1170 although Charles Heath in 1800 reported evidence of earlier Saxon design in the shape of the architecture. 

Both St Thomas' and the nearby Monnow Bridge were damaged by fire in the Battle of Monmouth in 1233, part of the series of uprisings against Henry III by his barons. This required the church to be repaired using over a dozen oaks supplied by the Constable of St Briavels in Gloucestershire. The wood was delivered by royal command from the Forest of Dean the following year 

St Thomas the Martyr Church - The dog's tooth Norman chancel arch is still untouched. 

The altar, from the Chancel steps.

The font on the south wall is decorated with crude images of faces, birds and a serpent in a Garden of Eden theme. At first sight it appears to be an unusually well preserved example of a 12th-century font, and carries a label that uses the word "early", but is now thought by historians to be a 19th-century pastiche.

A fairy door is a miniature door, usually set into the base of a tree, behind which may be small spaces where people can leave notes, wishes, or gifts for the "fairies". This one was opposite the Church and I nearly missed it! 

The Robin Hood Inn building has late medieval origins. It is constructed in stone, with a wide, fifteenth-century four-centre doorway and is a rare medieval survival in Monmouth. Post the Reformation, the town was a centre for Catholicism and the landlord in the 1770s, Michael Watkins, allowed Mass to be celebrated in an upper room of the pub. The Penal Laws against Catholics were in force until the Papists Act of 1778, and Watkins was amongst those who successfully petitioned Monmouth magistrates to allow a building that would become St Mary's Roman Catholic Church. This public house and the church that Michael Watkins lobbied for are two of the 24 buildings in the Monmouth Heritage Trail. A blue plaque was added to the exterior of the building in 2009, which celebrated the religious history of the building. 

A four centred doorway in the Robin Hood

Now for the technical bit! - A four-centred arch is a low, wide type of arch with a pointed apex. Its structure is achieved by drafting two arcs which rise steeply from each springing point on a small radius, and then turning into two arches with a wide radius and much lower springing point. It is a pointed sub-type of the general flattened depressed arch. Two of the most notable types are known as the Persian arch, which is moderately "depressed", and the Tudor arch, which is much flatter. I guess this was a Tudor one? 

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Raglan castle - built to impress

Tuesday dawned rather dull and it was difficult to guess what the weather would do. However as the sun began to peep through, we headed out to Raglan Castle. First impressions were spot on - the place is huge! 

It is a magnificent Tudor-period sandstone structure, which was not built specifically as a defence as the other great castles of Wales had been. Instead, it was designed mainly as a statement of wealth and influence. 

A manor had existed on the site before William ap Thomas acquired the property through marriage in 1406. A veteran of Agincourt in 1415, ap Thomas enjoyed the favour of King Henry VI and was knighted in 1426. He wanted to demonstrate his upwardly-mobile status, so set out on an ambitious building plan for Raglan. In 1435 he began work on the Great Tower, also known as the Yellow Tower of Gwent, but he was never to see it completed, as ap Thomas died in 1445. The building work was continued by his son, William, who took the surname Herbert. 

Herbert continued his father's building work, drawing on continental influences common to veterans of the French wars. The building was complex and stylish - and the polygonal structures used can still be seen today. Herbert supported the Yorkist cause in the Wars of the Roses, and was made Lord Herbert of Raglan by King Edward IV in 1461, then Earl of Pembroke. His rising fortunes were reflected in Raglan Castle as more sumptuous building works were added. When Herbert was defeated at the battle of Edgecote in 1469, he was beheaded and the castle went between families during the Tudor period depending on the ruling families factions and fortunes. 

The main problem we faced was that the rain was beginning to fall. However, between showers, we took a few photos and did some exploring, but as the rain persisted, we headed for the tea room and an early lunch.

The dominant structure is the Great Tower, seen here on the left. Raglan Castle is one of the last true castles to be built in Wales. Its construction began in the 1430s by Sir William ap Thomas, the Blue Knight of Gwent who fought at the Battle of Agincourt with King Henry V in 1415. He was responsible for building the Great Tower at Raglan, which became known as the Yellow Tower of Gwent.

During the showers we were treated to a rainbow over the castle!

During the English Civil War in 1646, Raglan Castle was besieged by parliamentarian forces led by Sir Thomas Fairfax. The castle was surrounded and mortar batteries (short bell shaped cannons) were dug into place. Henry Somerset who attempted to defend the castle, knew his efforts were futile and surrendered to Fairfax. As a result of the siege, the castle was heavily damaged and thus began a period of disrepair

Another view of The Great Tower at Raglan, which in its finished state was another storey higher.

The magnificent Gatehouse to Raglan Castle, with the Closet Tower to the right. Note the beautiful carved and jointed work on the tops - this really was a statement of wealth in reality!.

A closer look at the tops of the towers.

A Corbel from the Chapel roof in Raglan castle. In architecture a corbel is a structural piece of stone, wood or metal jutting from a wall to carry a superincumbent weight, a type of bracket. A corbel is a solid piece of material in the wall, and there would, I guess, have been several of them supporting the ceiling or the floor above.

Carving which have survived in the Long Gallery.

Arrowloop at Raglan Castle

Detail of the windows badges and shields above the State Apartments - the Lord's Bedchamber.

The castle was also the boyhood home of Henry Tudor, later King Henry VII. As a boy he spent his time at Raglan, while his uncle Jasper agitated a Lancastrian return to the throne in the person of young Henry - so history tells us.

A great day out with plenty to soak up. (Pun intended!)  Well worth a visit.

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Tintern Abbey - The amazing ruins.

Monday dawned foggy. For a while we were undecided as to where to go, as the fog was slow to clear. As the weather looked to be improving, we decided to visit Tintern Abbey, a place we had promised ourselves for a long time.

Roads were narrow, and mostly single track, until we reached the A466 where it became a normal width. When we parked we were almost the only people on the site.

The place is stunning in its size and surroundings and warranted several photos, although it is difficult to get a feeling of its grandeur in a photo.

In 1131 the Norman lord of Chepstow, Walter Fitz Richard, established the abbey here. Fitz Richard was a member of the powerful de Clare family, and his abbey was the first Cistercian foundation in Wales - and only the second in all of Britain after Waverley, in Surrey. The monks for the new abbey came directly from France, from the abbey of l'Aumone. It is intriguing that despite Tintern's early foundation, it established no further daughter houses in Wales.

The monks were granted sizeable estates on both sides of the Wye, the border between Wales and England. By the middle of the 13th century Tintern administered a dozen granges, or remote farmsteads. Even better days were to come, for when Roger Bigod III, Earl of Norfolk, inherited the lordship of Chepstow in 1301 he granted the abbey his estate at Acle, some 200 miles away. The Acle manor was to provide up to one-fourth of the abbey's income.

More of the stunning windows. The mind can hardly grasp what it all must have looked like in it`s heyday. Perhaps like the windows in York Minster?

The east window is magnificent as well!

A section of original ceiling in part of the Abbey - I just loved the patterns.

A coffee and scone later we crossed the River Wye ---

---- and headed for a viewpoint called The devils Pulpit. It was quite an uphill slog which took a toll on the knees and legs but it was worth the visit.

Although the sky clouded over, the images hopefully show something of the atmosphere.

A faster return downhill and a late lunch, we walked along the road to get an image of the other side of the Abbey before we headed for home.

Devil’s Pulpit is a limestone rock jutting out from the cliffs from where (legend has it) the devil preached to the monks below, tempting them to desert their order. It offers spectacular views over Tintern Abbey and the River Wye. Makes a story!

More history: 

It seems likely that the first monastic buildings begun within a decade of the foundation in 1131. The first church was fairly simple, but gifts by the Earl of Pembroke, William Marshall the Younger, around 1223 helped finance a great building programme. The chapter house and cloister were extended, and subsidiary buildings sprouted like mushrooms. No sooner did the monks rebuild the cloister walks and chapter house than they embarked on an ambitious plan to rebuild the entire abbey church.

It is fascinating to see how the early 13th century remains of the abbey church and the chapter house drifted away from the austere philosophy of the early Cistercians and became works of art, embellished with beautifully carved details. In contrast to normal Cistercian simplicity of design, Tintern was decorated with intricate floor tiles and painted glass.

From 1269 the abbey church was rebuilt from scratch, under an anonymous master mason who is known to us only through the superb quality of his work.

By the middle of the 14th century the abbey had roughly the shape we see today, enclosing an area some 27 acres, including guest accommodation, private lodging for the abbot, a grand gatehouse facing the River Wye and another on the slope of the hillside above.

By the time of the Dissolution the abbey had abandoned maintaining remote granges, and instead, relied on renting out its estates to tenants. An audit by Henry VIII's men in 1535 found that Tintern had an annual income of 192 pounds, making it the wealthiest monastery in Wales. The last abbot, Richard Wyche, surrendered Tintern to the king's commissioners in 1536, and the crown granted the property to Henry Somerset, Earl of Worcester.

When you consider that by the time of Henry VIII, this was just one of possible 850 to 900 religious houses in the country, you can see why he wanted some of their enormous wealth!

Then a quick wander round the Penallt Old church again as the light was good at this point, and in for dinner.

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Our arrival in Penallt, and a visit Monmouth

Monmouth was an area which we had not explored before, having just passed below it on our way to Pembrokeshire in the past. We had a good journey, despite moderately heavy traffic, stopping at Reading service station on the M4, which looked as it had been invaded by hundreds of pensioners - bus loads of them.!!

Having left the M48, we descended rapidly onto very narrow Welsh roads until, and without too much trouble, we arrived at Annie’s Cottage. It was in a beautiful spot and was really well equipped and spotlessly clean.

Annie's Cottage 

The view from the cottage toward Monmouth soon after we arrived. 

Sunday was a different story (below) with mist rising from the valley and providing a great backdrop to the Old Church just a few meters from our cottage. 

Penallt Old Church as the mist cleared 

There are indications of a church on the site in 1254 and an internal batter to the north wall of the nave, that suggest that the present church is a rebuilding of an earlier structure. But most of what survives today is of the late C15 or early C16, with the lower half of the tower probably early C14 and then heightened in the mid C17, probably to accommodate the bells, the earliest of which is dated 1662. The new St Mary's Church had already been built in Pentwyn in 1869 with a resident curate, and this was much closer to the centre of the local population; St Mary's, Penallt then became known as the Old Church. 

The remains of a Preaching Cross in the churchyard. In the 6th and 7th centuries, wooden crosses marked the spots where priests or monks preached to the local community. The wooden cross was replaced by a more permanent stone cross, around which services were held. Later still a wooden church might well have been erected, perhaps the forerunner of the existing church? 

View from the church door. 

On the door centre is a carved heart, symbol of love, containing the initials I H S, the Latin initials for `Jesus Saviour of mankind`. with the date 1539. 

An old Parish chest, carved out of a single tree, in which the records and treasures of the community were kept in medieval times. 

The octagonal shaped font from the C17, the bowl being carved from a single stone block. One of the industries of Penallt used to be the manufacture of millstones, which were then rolled down the hill and loaded onto barges bound for Bristol. 

The original stone altar retrieved from the floor of the porch and now located in the aisle.

A record of the days when people left monies, or as in this case land, for the church and the poor of the parish, usually so that prays would be said for the soul of the departed to speed it through Purgatory! 

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