GOODRICH CASTLE AND PRIORY--WILTON CASTLE--SCENERY OF THE WYE FROM ROSS
TO MONMOUTH--ROSS--GLOUCESTER.
We took our farewel leave of Monmouth on a hazy morning, that concealed
the surrounding scenery in the earliest part of our ride to Gloucester.
But the mist gradually withdrawing allowed us a gleam of the majestic
Wye, about two miles from Monmouth; which, soon deserting the course of
the road, winds beneath the bare rocky cliffs of the little Doward, and
becomes lost among high wooded hills. Near the seven-miles stone from
Monmouth we struck off the turnpike into an embowered lane in search of
GOODRICH CASTLE, a very picturesque ruin, which rises among tufted trees
on a bold eminence above the Wye. The view of the castellated hill,
combined with a grand fertile valley, which extends for many miles in a
richly-variegated undulation, enlivened with the elegant though simple
spire of Ross church, and with peculiar graces, watered by the copious
river, was uncommonly striking: while to the right we caught a glimpse of
the grand features about Symonds-gate and the Caldwell rocks, backed by a
range of heathy hills that forms the boundary of the forest of Dean.
[Picture: Goodrich Castle]
The remains of this castle shew it to have been of considerable strength,
though not very extensive. Its figure is nearly square, measuring
fifty-two yards by forty-eight, with a large round tower at each angle.
A deep trench, twenty yards wide, is cut in the rock round the walls,
leaving a narrow ridge which crosses the moat to the grand entrance. On
entering the gateway, a small apartment to the left, with an ornamented
Gothic window, and a stone chalice for holding holy-water, appears to
have been the chapel; or, considering its small size, rather an oratory.
A curious octagon column rising from a mass of ruins opposite has
belonged to a principal apartment, and most probably the baronial hall.
A large square tower was the keep, which is said to have been built by an
Irish chieftain named Mackbeth, as a ransom for himself and his son, who
were held prisoners in the castle; and until lately two ponderous helmets
were shewn as belonging to them, one of which held half a bushel.
There is no doubt but that this was a frontier post held by the Saxons;
and many parts of the ruin still bear a Saxon or early Norman character.
{349} During the reign of king John, and in several succeeding ages, it
was in the hands of the earls of Pembroke, but afterwards deviated from
that line. In Jacob's Peerage, under the article of the earls of
Shrewsbury, it is related, that the Hugh le Despencers forcibly seized
Elizabeth Comyns at Kennington in Surry, and detained her in confinement
above a year; concealing her in their different castles, until she was,
by menaces of death, constrained to pass "her manor of Painswick in the
county of Gloucester to the said earl, the elder Despencer, and the
castle of Goodrich to Hugh the younger; to them and their heirs."--Thus
it was in feudal ages, when every potent baron dared violate the
strongest bands of society; when the property and freedom of humble
individuals, and the honour of females, were subjected to the will of
contiguous power; and suffering innocence could only plead the wrongs
that she suffered at the tribunal of the oppressor. But, alas! it is a
principle of our being, it is a fact which ought to be treasured in the
minds of Britons, that where power is without controul it seldom fails to
act unjustly.
In the civil wars of Charles the First this castle was in the hands of
both parties successively; and upon the parliamentary cause proving
triumphant, it was ordered to be dismantled: but a sufficient
compensation was allowed to the countess of Kent, to whom it belonged.
The farm-house appertaining to the meadows and corn-fields about the
castle is situated a few hundred yards from the castle, to the right, and
occupies the site of GOODRICH PRIORY: the chapel, converted into a barn,
and some other Gothic remains, are still visible.
In our way from Goodrich to Ross, for the first two miles traced in a
bridle road that might with equal propriety be called a ditch, we had
frequent views of the proud ruin towering above its incircling groves;
which, variously combining with the surrounding landscape at each
succeeding station, proved a new and delightful object. We crossed the
Wye at Wilton bridge; a short distance above which, on the low western
bank of the river, appear the mouldering towers of WILTON CASTLE, a
Norman structure, once the baronial residence of the Greys. Several
pleasure-boats with awnings, handsomely fitted up for the reception of
company that would navigate the Wye, are moored by the bridge. {351}
I earnestly advise every traveller of taste and leisure, proceeding by
the way of Ross to Monmouth, not to neglect the beautiful scenery of this
river: he may take one of the boats; or, if he prefer riding or walking,
he may enjoy its principal charms by reversing my journey from Goodrich;
whence crossing Hensham ferry, he will proceed among pleasant meadows on
the margin of the stream in front of the sublime grandeur of the Caldwell
rocks; then ascending the isthmus of an immense peninsulated rock called
Symond's gate, at the height of 2000 feet above the surface of the river,
he will enjoy a superlative prospect of its mazy extent and the grand
scenery around. From the vicinity of Goodrich the Wye urges its course
through a narrow valley inclosed by towering woody mountains, or
struggles in more limited confines, where protruding rocks plunge their
naked perpendicular sides into the body of the stream. Descending from
the lofty neck of the peninsula, which is but six hundred yards across in
a direct line, although the circuit of the river round the rock is
upwards of four miles, he will find himself in a deep valley of
astonishing grandeur, formed on one side by the romantic precipices of
the peninsula, and on the other by the great Doward, a huge stratified
limestone mountain, studded with lime-kilns and cottages. At the
New-wier he will re-cross the river, and soon join the turnpike to
Monmouth.
The old town of ROSS, situated on the gently-inclining bank of the Wye
near Wilton bridge, afforded us no subject of admiration or interest,
except in the recollection which it excited of Mr. John Kyrle, whose
public spirit and philanthropy inspired the verses of Pope. We baited
our horses at an inn which was formerly his house, and now bears the sign
of "The Man of Ross." The views from the cemetery of Ross church are
among the most beautiful that imagination can picture, looking over a
lovely value, adorned with the majestic meanders of the Wye, enriched
with numerous groves and woods, and finished by a distance of Welch
mountains: to detail its several charming features would be as tedious,
as it would prove a vain attempt to realize a just idea of the landscape.
We now traversed a well-cultivated district, whose numerous though gentle
hills were frequently clothed with apple-orchards, and in about six miles
ride, upon a wretched road, gained a heathy eminence, when the great
plain of Gloucester appeared before us, stretching to an immense distance
in every direction. At the extremity of the plain, at least in
appearance, rose the towers and spires of Gloucester, faintly relieving
from the Cotteswold hills, whose high continuous summits were strongly
contrasted by the broken form of the Malvern hills afar off on the left.
The Severn, near GLOUCESTER, separates into two channels; which, soon
re-uniting, inclose a tract of land called the Isle of Alney; so that we
approached the city over two bridges connected together by a high
causeway near a mile in length, which traverses the islet. An assemblage
of ships, houses, and numerous spires, greeted us with a look of more
public importance than we had been used to for several weeks, as we drew
near the city. It would require a volume to give an adequate description
of this place: all that my limits will allow me to say is, that it is one
of the fairest cities in England, regularly composed of four principal
wide well-built streets, meeting at right angles in the middle of the
town; abounding with Gothic churches and other public structures, and a
new-built gaol, which is one of the best in the kingdom. But its chief
ornament is its truly grand cathedral, remarkable for its elegant tower,
surmounted with four transparent pinnacles of the most exquisite
workmanship, and for having the largest Gothic window in Britain: nor is
it less to be noticed for the curious ramifications and transomes of its
fretted roof, and the high state of enrichment throughout the structure.
{355} We ascended to the summit of the tower, where
"The bursting prospect spreads immense around:
And, snatch'd o'er hill and dale, and wood and lawn,
And verdant fields, and dark'ning heath between,
And villages embosom'd soft in trees,
And spiry towns by surging columns mark'd
Of household make, your eye excursive roams
To where the broken landscape, by degrees
Ascending, roughens into rigid hills;
O'er which the Cambrian mountains, like far clouds
That skirt the blue horizon, dusky rise."
A tributary sigh escaped as we caught the last gleam of our much-loved
principality; nor can I conclude my subject without transmitting that
view of the Welch individual character and state of society (particularly
alluding to the southern district), which impressed me during my tour,
and which I have since believed to be just.
Wales may be considered as exhibiting almost the sole remnant of "the
good old times" existing in Britain. Separated from those causes of
extrinsic splendour which domineer over other parts of our island, the
opulent landholders freely dispense the wealth of their inheritance with
unostentatious liberality. Indifferent to outward shew, their first
cares evince a parental regard to the poor on their domains, and the
maintenance of their forefathers' good cheer. An interchange of good
offices is alike conspicuous between them and the commonalty; and it is
no less pleasing to see the friendly solicitude of the one, than the
unaffected respect and attachment of the other.
The Welch are justly described to be the most robust and hardy
inhabitants of this kingdom; for, unenervated by those sedentary
employments foisted on less happy regions by luxury and avaricious
policy, they boast the vigorous frames of aboriginal Britons. Although
not generally tall, they possess a more unequivocal criterion of
strength, in a fine breath of chest; and hence it has been remarked, that
a Cambrian regiment drawn up in line covers more ground than any other.
By healthful toil and simplicity of diet invigorated, they are at once
potent, courageous, animated, and generous.
It has been asserted, that the Welch are averse from strangers;--but by
whom? By those who have provoked that aversion; who, carrying with them
a vulgar estimation of superior show at the tables of England, have not
known how to approve a regular board of hospitality, when contrasted by
the splendid profusion of fashionable entertainments; who, representing
the more gay appointments of other resorts, have pitied the Welchman's
old-fashioned furniture, and wondered how any gentlemanly being could
exist in his gloomy Gothic habitation. Such as can conceive no other
travelling enjoyments than superior inns, sumptuous dinners, and
bowling-green roads, may quarrel with our principality. But it is for
those who travel with more enlarged views, and proper introductions, to
declare the ingenuous welcome that they have experienced: the eager
solicitude that was every where manifested to afford them information;
and the liberal fare set before them, which not even the
greatly-increased expence of family establishments could effectually
suppress.
As every virtue has its concomitant shade, we have to lament that the
Welchman's ardent spirit sometimes inclines him to be quarrelsome; yet,
as there is generosity at the bottom, his passion seldom becomes
vindictive. A disposition for social enjoyment has led him from
conviviality to habits of intemperance; and an improvident hospitality,
to the ruin of his family's fortune. An error more harmless in its
operation arises from his admiration of illustrious ancestry; which often
resolves itself into an association of personal importance, that
unbiassed individuals are not inclined to allow. These asperities are
wearing away, under the attrition of a more extended and enlightened
intercourse. But it is the heartfelt wish of an earnest admirer of their
present state of society, equal to every essential duty of a manly
people, that the chilling apathy of morbid refinement may never paralize
their spirit of independence, that spring of energetic action which forms
the noblest attribute of Man.
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