something of the chameleon: July 2015

Monday, 20 July 2015

Abergavenny Priory

Our final port-of-call on what was a busy day of sight-seeing was Abergavenny - a lovely market town in Mid-Wales. The priory church is full of good things: a good set of late Medieval choir stalls, a plethora of tombs (Medieval and later) and a remarkable sculpture, in wood, of the sleeping Jesse. It is about life-size and would have formed the base of a monumental sculptural group culminating in a figure of Christ - a 'Tree of Jesse'. It is a rare and fortunate survivor. Of the church the crossing, transepts and chancel (with chapels) are Medieval; the nave is Victorian replacement for the replacement of the Medieval structure. The nave is not too bad, rather G F Bodley in style. Like the priory at Kidwelly that we visited last year it was founded, along with a castle, by a Norman aristocrat (in this case Hamelin de Bohun) as part of Norman invasion and settlement of Wales.

Wednesday, 15 July 2015

Holiday IV Raglan Castle

Our next stop was the mighty Raglan Castle. As far as Welsh castles go it is not as famous the great Edwardian castles, like Harlech or Caernarvon, however architecturally it gives them a good run for their money. It is a large and deeply accomplished Late Medieval design - a Perpendicular Gothic interpretation of Late Gothic French domestic design, both formidable and luxurious. There is an outer and inner bailey, the latter consisting of two courtyards connected by the screens passage at the kitchen end of the Great Hall. From the second courtyard access is gained by a bridge to the great donjon - 'The Yellow Tower of Gwent'. Hexagonal in plan, it stands isolated in the outer bailey surrounded by its own moat and wall. It was both the final place of refuge during a siege and a flanking defence for the main gate to the inner bailey. After a long siege during the Civil War - like the rest of Wales it was a Royalist stronghold - the castle was dismantled, and thereafter left to decay.