If you cannot read all your books…fondle them—peer into them, let them fall open where they will, read from the first sentence that arrests the eye, set them back on the shelves with your own hands, arrange them on your own plan so that you at least know where they are. Let them be your friends; let them, at any rate, be your acquaintances.
Winston Churchill
As 2014 came to a close, nature provided a glorious sunset.
The Churches Concervation Trust guide book for St Andrew’s Church at Wroxeter provides and informative introduction to both the Wrekin and Wroxeter.
The name Wroxeter appears to mean ‘fort by the Wrekin’. This hill, which is prominent for miles around, has an Iron Age fort at its crest and the Celtic name for it is thought to have been Wreocen. When the Romans came they founded a large fortified town five miles (8km) away from the fort and close to where Watling Street crosses the River Severn. This ‘castrum’ supplies the second half of the name.
The Roman name for Wroxeter is Viroconium, also an echo of Wreocen. Their town was one of the largest they built in England, smaller only than London, St Albans and Cirencester, and became an important provincial capital. It extended to the Severn beyond the church and nearly as far in the other direction towards the present A5 road.
In his article in the June 2013 edition of the Wrekin News, George Evans refers to ‘The Wrekin’ as ‘The little mountain with many secrets’. The article explains how he persuaded the Royal Geographical Society (RGS) that The Wrekin was worthy of being included in their 100 best walks in Britain. His article mentions the local folk law, history and geology of the surrounding area. He explains that the hill still retains some of its secrets.
The Calendar stones are an enigma. They don’t look natural but I’m told no archaeologist has ever investigated them. Surely it’s not accidental that a shaft of light shows each equinox is it? The hill-fort was started about 3,500 years ago (we think), extended 2,500 years ago and disused after the Romans invaded. That’s 1,500 years. How was it built, who used it and for what purpose? There’s a nice little story to tell about the Magic Tree in the Druid’s Circles on the Little Hill and there are tales about the Devil’s Coach-house, where the four winds meet and King of the Wrekin.
Just inside the front door of the church stands a huge font which is thought to be part of a Roman column. The organ was originally built by Charles Brindley in 1849, but little now remains from that date. The knave is furnished with box pews, the pulpit is Jacobean and the altar rails are dated 1637.*
*From The Churches Conservation Trust guide book.
Some of you may recall that I have had two failed attempts at taking photographs of St Andrew’s Church. On my first attempt I was nearly run over by a driver who had not noticed I was walking along the country lane.
Afterwards I decided to make the short walk to St Andrew’s church in the nearby village. It has an interesting history and it is a long time since I visited. At one stage I was in danger of getting knocked over by an oncoming vehicle whose driver only slowed the vehicle down and came to a halt when the driver of another vehicle coming in the other direction slammed his brakes on and pulled to one side. The first driver clearly hadn’t noticed me until then! I decided that discretion was the better part of valour and retreated back to the ruins. I will visit the church another day by car.
My second attempt turned out to be a rescue mission, two rooks had become trapped within the church and needed releasing. The few photographs that I took of the outside of the church whilst waiting for the rooks to leave the building were overexposed because I had inadvertently pressed a button on my camera.
The church was first mentioned in the Domesday Book (1086), though it must have existed for some time before that. The building was greatly extended in the late 12th century. The tower was built in stages and carvings incorporated into it are thought to come from the nearby Haughmond Abbey after its dissolution in 1539. Further alterations and additions were made to the structure, the latest being the present porch which dates to 1870.
The main entrance to the church is through a gateway that is formed by a pair of columns from the nearby Roman site of Wroxeter. Near to the gate is a stile that also doubles as a mounting block for horses.
*Information from the Churches Conservation Trust guide book.
…due to an unfortunate weekend incident.
On arrival at work this morning I was greeted at the doorway and informed that most of the electrics in the building were not working. Hot and cold water were available and partial lighting in one of the ladies toilet facilities. I was also told that if I was not comfortable with these arrangements I could go to a nearby building to use the facilities there.
We moved office buildings in early 2011 to a building that had been newly refurbished. One of the features was state of the art water boilers for hot drinks. They are billed as having the capacity of providing 200 cups of boiling water per hour. They never quite lived up to expectations and broke down frequently and the temporary alternatives were less than adequate.
The decision was eventually made to provide wall mounted zip boilers in addition to the current facilities. These were fitted over a weekend two weeks ago. They did not get wired up for use that weekend because the electrician had fallen ill. The work was rescheduled for last weekend. The electrician turned up but an unfortunate incident occurred. He dropped his screwdriver shorting out most of the building’s electrical circuits and at the same time gave himself quite a ‘shock’. We were informed that the electrician was alright (thank goodness).
The building facilities were back up and running mid morning but the computer systems took a little longer… And the hot drink facilities are still less than adequate.
After a day like that it was an ideal opportunity to take advantage of the sunny weather and hop on my bicycle to enjoy a relaxing cycle ride. The experimental route I chose was rather overgrown (including lots of brambles and nettles). This was not ideal especially as the pathways are supposed to be part of the local cycle network. This meant I had to do a lot of walking in addition to the cycling. On the plus side, at least it gave me a bit of exercise 😉
These photographs were taken in the middle of March just after the severe flooding we had in the south of England.
Still round the corner there may wait, A new road or a secret gate.
J.R.R. Tolkien
Cherie's Other Place 