the share it may claim to have in Bristol, it possesses only three,
Portishead, Bridgwater, and Watchet. Portishead, like Avonmouth on the
other side of the Avon, is subsidiary to Bristol. Bridgwater lies 12 m.
up the Parrett, though only half that distance from the sea in a direct
line. Watchet serves the district, between the Quantocks and Brendons.
Minehead has a little harbour, but is of no mercantile importance.
IX. CELEBRITIES
The roll of Somerset worthies, either natives of or residents in the
county, is long and illustrious. The Church, law, literature,
philosophy, arms, science, politics, and adventure are all
represented. The following alphabetic list contains the most
important names, with dates and brief particulars.[5]
_Natives_
_Alphege_ or _Aelfeah_, b. 954, at Weston near Bath; successively
Bishop of Winchester and Archbishop of Canterbury; killed by the
Danes, 1011; canonised.
_Bacon, Roger_, b. about 1214, at or near Ilchester; became a friar
of the Franciscan Order; studied natural philosophy and wrote,
besides other works, the "Opus Majus" (described as "at once the
'Encyclopaedia' and the 'Organon' of the 13th century"); d. 1294.
_Bagehot, Walter_, b. 1826, at Langport; economist and author of "The
English Constitution"; d. 1877.
_Beckington, Thomas_, b. about 1390, at Beckington; successively
Bishop of Salisbury and Bishop of Bath and Wells; d. 1465.
_Blake, Robert_, b. 1599, at Bridgwater; took part in the Great Civil
War on the Parliamentary side, and defended Lyme and Taunton; made
admiral of the fleet, and fought against Holland and Spain; d. 1657.
_Coleridge, Hartley_, b. 1796, at Clevedon; poet and biographical
writer; d. 1849.
_Coryate, Thomas_, b. 1577, at Odcombe; travelled, first on the
Continent (his journal, entitled "Coryat's Crudities," was long the
only handbook for Continental travel), and subsequently in the East;
d. at Surat, 1617.
_Cudivorth, Ralph_, b. 1617, at Aller; Professor of Hebrew and Master
of Christ's College, Cambridge; author of "The True Intellectual
System of the Universe"; one of the "Cambridge Platonists"; d. 1688.
_Dampier, William_, b. 1652, at East Coker; explorer and scientific
observer; author of "A Discourse on the Winds" (said to have value
even now as a text-book); d. 1715.
_Daniell, Samuel_, b. 1562, probably near Taunton; poet and prose
writer (there appears to be no authority for the belief that he
succeeded Spenser as poet-laureate); d. 1619.
_Dunstan_, b. 924, at Glastonbury; successively Abbot of Glastonbury,
Bishop of Worcester and London, and Archbishop of Canterbury; d. 988;
canonised.
_Fielding, Henry_, b. 1707, at Sharpham, near Glastonbury; novelist
(best known work, "Tom Jones"); d. 1754 at Lisbon.
_Hood, Samuel_, b. 1724, at Butleigh; admiral (Nelson wrote of him as
"the best officer, take him altogether, that England has to boast
of"); made a viscount; d. 1816.
_Hooper, John_, b. 1495 (place unknown); Bishop of Gloucester and
Worcester; burnt at the stake, 1555.
_Irving, Henry_ (real name John Henry Brodribb); b. 1838, at
Keinton-Mandeville; actor; knighted; d. 1905.
_Kinglake, Alexander William_, b. 1809, at Taunton; wrote "Eothen"
and "Invasion of the Crimea"; d. 1891.
_Locke, John_, b. 1632, at Wrington; philosopher; author of "Essay on
the Human Understanding," and works on education and the currency; d.
1704.
_Norris, Edwin_, b. 1795, at Taunton; Oriental scholar; d. 1872.
_Parry, William Edward_, b. 1790, at Bath; Arctic explorer; knighted;
d. 1855.
_Prynne, William_, b. 1600, at Swainswick; Presbyterian pamphleteer;
wrote "Histriomastix" (directed against stage-plays); several times
pilloried; d. 1669.
_Pym, John_, b. 1584, at Brymore, near Cannington; politician; one of
the five members of the Commons whom Charles I. sought to arrest; d.
1643.
_Quekett, John Thomas_, b. 1815, at Langport; microscopist and
histologist; conservator of the Hunterian Museum; d. 1861.
_Speke, John Hanning_, b. 1827, at Ashill; African explorer;
discovered Lakes Tanganyika and Victoria Nyanza; accidentally shot,
1864.
_Young, Thomas_, b. 1773, at Milverton; scientist, and Egyptologist;
described as the founder of physiological optics, and one of the
first to interpret the hieroglyphics on the Rosetta Stone; d. 1829.
_Residents_
_Church, Richard William_, Rector of Whatley from 1852 to 1871.
_Coleridge, Samuel Taylor_, resided at Clevedon (1795) and Nether
Stowey (1796-98).
_Ken, Thomas_, Bishop of Bath and Wells from 1684 to 1691; wrote the
morning and evening hymns, "Awake, my soul, and with the sun," and
"Glory to Thee, my God, this night."
_More, Hannah_, resided for many years between 1786 and 1833 at
Barley Wood, near Wrington, and did much to spread education and
religion among the Mendip miners.
_Smith, Sydney_, the humorous Canon of St Paul's, and one of the
founders of the _Edinburgh Review_, held from 1829 till his death in
1845 the living of Combe Florey.
_Wolsey, Thomas_, the famous cardinal, held for a time the living of
Limington. Whilst here he is said to have been put in the stocks by
Sir Amyas Poulett of Hinton St George for drinking too much cider.
When he became Chancellor of England he revenged himself on the
knight, who was Treasurer of the Middle Temple, by forbidding him to
quit London without his leave.
_Wordsworth, William_, resided in 1797 at Alfoxden, a house near
Holford.
For distinguished persons who have resided at Bath, see p. 46.
[5] Chiefly derived from the "Dictionary of National Biography."
DESCRIPTION OF PLACES IN SOMERSET ARRANGED ALPHABETICALLY
_N.B._--The following abbreviations are adopted:--
Norm. = Norman (1066-1190).
Trans. = Transitional (1145-1190).
E.E. = Early English (1190-1280).
Dec. = Decorated (1280-1377).
Perp. = Perpendicular (1377-1547).
[Proofreader's Note: Additional abbreviations found in the text are:
G.W.R. = Great Western Railway
S.& D. = Somerset and Dorset Railway.]
_Abbot's Leigh_, a village 4 m. W. from Bristol. The church, which
stands at the bottom of a long lane, is, with the exception of the
tower, entirely modern, the original fabric having been destroyed by
fire in 1848. Near the S. porch is the base of an old cross. The
churchyard commands a good view of the mouth of the Avon. _Leigh Court_
is a modern residence. A former mansion was one of the many
hiding-places of Charles II. when a fugitive.
_Aisholt_ (or _Asholt_), 8 m. W. of Bridgwater, is a little village on
the E. slope of the Quantocks. The church is hidden away in a small
combe, and its tower looks most picturesque against the green
background of Asholt Wood, but it is not in itself interesting. Note,
however, (1) little plain stoup and niche in the S. porch, (2) large
squint (now blocked) in the S. aisle, (3) old font. S. of Aisholt is
_Holwell Cavern_, a cave of considerable extent, and containing
stalagmites and stalagtites, but rather inconvenient of access.
_Alford_, a small village on the river Brue, 1-1/2 m. S.W. from Castle
Cary. In the fields on the S. side of the road is a mineral spring,
which once enjoyed a short-lived local popularity. The church stands in
the grounds of Alford House. It is a 15th cent. Perp. building, and
contains (1) some ancient benches, (2) old glass in one of the N.
windows, (3) a slender Perp. screen, (4) a pulpit dated 1625, (5)
piscina. Note massive corbels in chancel. The shaft of a cross with a
modern head stands in the churchyard.
_Aller_, a village 2-1/2 m. N.W. from Langport, lying at the base of
High Ham Hill. Aller witnessed the sequel to two stirring events. Here
Guthrum was baptised at Alfred's insistence after his defeat at
Ethandune (879), and here the Royalists made their last but ineffectual
rally after their rout at Langport in 1645. The church stands apart
from the village on a knoll rising from the marshes. It contains (1) an
ancient font, (2) an effigy of Sir W. Botreaux (1420) on the N. side of
choir. The internal arrangements of the tower are peculiar. It has
three arches, those on the N. and S. being apparently purposeless.
_Angersleigh_, a small parish 5 m. S. of Taunton (follow the Honiton
road to the fourth milestone, then turn to the right). It has a very
small church, perhaps originally Dec., but altered into Perp. It
contains a good carved oak reading-desk and lectern.
_Ansford_, or _Almsford_, a village 1/2 m. N. from Castle Cary.
Restoration has robbed the church of most of its interest; its tower
has some good gargoyles. A memorial-stone on the roadside near the
church marks the scene of a sudden death.
_Ash_, a parish including several small hamlets, 1 m. N.E. from
Martock. The church is modern.
_Ash Priors_, a small village 1 m. N.W. of Bishop's Lydeard Stat., owes
its name to the fact that it once belonged to the Priory of Taunton.
The church contains nothing of interest, though the N. pier of the
chancel arch preserves its squint.
_Ashbrittle_, 7 m. W. of Wellington (nearest stat. Venn Cross, 3 m.), a
parish standing on very high ground. The second element in the name is
a personal description, derived from the Norman Brittel de St Clare.
The parish church has been completely restored, and is devoid of
interest.
_Ashcott_, a parish on the Poldens, 3 m. S.W. of Glastonbury, with a
station (S. & D.J.R.) two miles away. The church has a W. embattled
tower with a carving on the W. face representing the sacred monogram, a
mitre, and a pastoral staff. There is a stoup in S. porch, but no other
feature of interest.
_Ashill_, a parish 3-3/4 m. N.W. of Ilminster, situated on rising
ground on the Taunton and Ilminster road. The church is interesting by
reason of the Norman work that it contains, including N. and S. doors
and triple chancel arch (restored). There are two effigies in recesses
in the nave wall, one representing a woman and her six children. At
Capland, 1-1/2 m. off, there is a chalybeate spring.
_Ashington_, 3 m. E.S.E. of Ilchester, has a small church dedicated to
St Vincent. It is remarkable for the large square bell-cot over the W.
gable (cp. Brympton and Chilthorne Domer) which is supported by a
massive buttress in the middle of the W. front. Within the building
note (1) the three lancets at the E. end; (2) the foliated interior
arches of the chancel windows (two of which are very small lancets);
(3) the pulpit, dated 1637. The glass in some of the windows is good.
_Ashton, Long_, is a straggling village, noteworthy for its court
and church. _Ashton Court_, the seat of Sir J.H. Greville Smyth,
was erected by Inigo Jones in 1634, and is surrounded by a
beautifully-wooded park. Long Ashton church contains a fine screen,
gilded and painted (the old colours being reproduced), and a 15th cent.
tomb (in the N. chapel) with two effigies, belonging to Sir Richard
Choke and his wife. There are also two mutilated effigies, preserved in
the N. porch, which are supposed to belong to the de Lyons family, who
once owned the park.
_Ashwick_, 2 m. S.E. of Binegar. There is no village, but merely a
group of houses. The church has a graceful late Perp. tower, with
spirelet: this is the only original part of the fabric, the rest having
been rebuilt in 1825. _Ashwick Grove_ is a prettily-situated mansion,
said to contain a good collection of pictures.
_Athelney_, included within the parish of Lyng (with a stat.), is the
spot historically famous for having harboured Alfred in 878 when he had
to escape before a sudden inroad of the Danes (see p. 12). It was once
an island (the name means "isle of the nobles"), and in wet weather
must even now almost resume that condition. Alfred, after having
defeated the Danes at Ethandune, founded a monastery here, of which all
traces have unhappily disappeared. A small monument (best approached
from the main road between Lyng and Borough bridge) was erected in 1801
by Mr John Slade, the owner of the estate, to commemorate the events
connected with the locality; but the inscription is misleading in
giving 879 (instead of 878) as the year when Alfred took refuge here,
and in stating that he lay concealed for a whole year (instead of a few
months). The neighbourhood abounds in osier and reed-beds, producing
materials for basket-work.
AXBRIDGE, 10 m. N.W. of Wells, is an ancient town, which still
preserves an air of antiquity. It is situated in a neighbourhood
largely devoted to market gardens, in which quantities of strawberries
are grown. It was a borough as early as the reign of Edward the
Confessor, but its corporation was abolished in 1886. Its most notable
feature is the church of St John the Baptist. It is a large cruciform
structure with a central tower, having three windows in the belfry, and
rather shallow buttresses. The figure on the W. face of the tower is
supposed to be Henry VI. or Henry VII., that on the E. St John. Within
the church note (1) the roofs, that of the nave plaster with pendants
(1636), those of the aisles oak (15th cent.); (2) the carved capitals
of the S. arcade and squint in the S.E. tower pier; (3) the mural
monument to William Prowse in the N. aisle; (4) the altar before the
tomb of Anne Prowse (in S. aisle), covered with a cloth worked by her
own hands (1720); (5) brass in N. aisle to Roger Harper (1493); (6) in
S. wall of sanctuary piscina and sedilia. In the N. wall is a curious
hole, apparently connected with an external cell (where there are the
remains of a broken piscina). The purpose of this cell is a great
puzzle. The church seems to have possessed two rood-lofts (cp.
Crewkerne); and has a two-storied building on the S. of the W. door,
which is thought by some to be a treasury.
In the town there are some old houses with projecting upper storeys.
One of them, called _The Old Manor House_, deserves a visit for the
sake of a fine ceiling in one of its rooms. In the Town Hall are
preserved the old stocks, the apparatus used in bull-baiting, and a
money-changer's table, dated 1627.
_Babcary_ is a village a short distance E. of the Fosseway, 6 m. N.N.E.
of Ilchester (nearest stat., Sparkford). The first syllable of the name
is a personal appellation which doubtless appears in Babbicombe; the
second is derived from the neighbouring stream. There is a church of
ancient origin, but since its restoration it exhibits little of
interest except a piscina (with credence shelf) and a good Caroline
pulpit (1632).
_Babington_, 1 m. S. of Mells Road station. There is no village. The
church dates from the reign of George II. _Babington House_ is a
mansion of some age but little beauty.
_Backwell_, 1-1/2 m. S.E. of Nailsea station, a parish which perhaps
owes its name to the _back_ or ridge on which it stands. It has a
spacious church, prettily situated. The Perp. tower has double belfry
windows, and elaborate pinnacles, but the summit seems to have been
injured and rebuilt, for the upper lights are enclosed within an ogee
moulding which breaks the line of the parapet; and one of the pinnacles
is of unusual character. At the S. door note stoup, and within the
church observe (1) the 15th cent. screen; (2) the squints, high up in
the chancel pillars; (3) the E.E. sedilia on the S.; and (4) the chapel
on the N. side of the sanctuary. In front of the chapel is a large tomb
with a full length effigy of a knight in armour (probably a Rodney);
whilst within there is a mural brass and other memorials. The chapel is
the resting-place of Elizabeth, successively wife of Sir Walter Rodney
and of Sir John Chaworth, who died 1536.
_Badgworth_, 3 m. S.W. of Axbridge, lies a little way off the Bristol
and Bridgwater road. The church is dedicated to the saint that has
given his name to Congresbury, St Congar. It has a fair tower (with a
good open parapet), which contains two pre-Reformation bells, but the
interior contains little of note. The piscina looks like E.E. with a
restored drain.
_Bagborough, West_, 3-1/2 m. N. of Bishop's Lydeard station, is a
parish pleasantly situated on the S.W. side of the Quantocks. The
church (St Pancras) adjoins Bagborough House, and preserves its former
stoup and piscina. There are a few carved bench ends.
_Baltonsborough_, a village on the Brue, 4 m. S.W. of Glastonbury. It
possesses a 5th cent. church (St Dunstan's) containing a few features
of interest in the chancel, among them being the cornice, the piscina
and aumbry, and an old chair dated 1667. The screen is modern. The nave
retains a number of the old 15th cent. benches; to the end of one of
them is hinged a seat which, when raised, projects into the aisle,
perhaps to accommodate some youthful but unruly member of the
congregation. The old door and lock deserve a passing notice.
_Banwell_, a large village 1-1/2 m. W. of Sandford and Banwell station,
was once the site of a Saxon monastery, bestowed by Alfred upon Asser,
and is now famous for its church and caves. The place gets its name
from its large pond, fed by a copious spring, though the meaning of the
first syllable is obscure (perhaps from _bane_, ill, implying that the
spring was thought to have remedial qualities). The church has a tower
with triple belfry windows, which is lofty and finished with pinnacles
and spirelet. It should be compared with Winscombe, both being spoilt
by the flatness of the buttresses. It is regarded as early Perp., and
assigned to about 1380. The figures on the W. front are the Virgin and
St Gabriel; note the lilies (there should be only one, as at
Winscombe). The nave is lofty, with clerestory and plaster roof
(coloured like oak); the effigy at the W. is St Andrew. There is a very
fine rood-loft (1521) with fan-tracery both in front and rear: the
present colours are believed to reproduce the original; curiously, the
choir seats are _outside_ the screen. Note (1) the font (Norman) with
unusual carving on the bowl; (2) Perp. stone pulpit, attached to one of
the pillars of the arcade; (3) the seat ends and oak benches (the
original width of the latter may be seen in the last pew on the S.
side); (4) the brasses, three on the floor before the chancel, and
another (of John Martok, succentor of Wells, and physician to Bishop
King) in the vestry. This vestry contains some old Flemish glass
(brought from Belgium in 1855), depicting the story of Tobit; and there
is more ancient glass belonging to the church in the E. windows of the
aisles. Originally there was only a N. aisle, and the tower buttresses
can still be seen within the S. aisle.
_Banwell Court_, near the church, contains some remains of a manor
house, built by Bishop Beckington. In a shed near the fire brigade
station are (1) two old thatch-hooks (1610), used to drag burning
thatch from the roofs of houses; and (2) an old fire-engine of the same
date.
On the hill which rises above the church (in a field entered near the
junction of the roads) a large cross is traced on the surface of the
ground, and raised in relief to the height of 2 ft., the limbs being
between 50 and 70 ft. long. It is surrounded by a low stone or earth
fence, and its purpose is problematical. On the hill there is also a
camp, where flints of Neolithic date have been found; and near it is an
ancient track-way known as the _Roman Road_.
The _caves_ (two in number) are in private grounds belonging to Mrs
Law. They have probably been created by the action of water, and when
discovered were filled with the bones of wild animals (many of them now
extinct) embedded in silt, which had been washed into them. In one of
them there is now stacked a quantity of these bones, whilst a selection
of them is deposited in Taunton Museum. The caves are shown by some of
the outdoor servants of the house. Unlike the caves at Cheddar and
Burrington, they open upon the summit of the hill instead of into a
ravine.
_Barrington_, a village 4 m. N.E. of Ilminster, is worth visiting for
the sake of its church and its interesting Elizabethan house called
_Barrington Court_. The church is cruciform, with an octagonal central
tower. The tower arches are E.E., with plain chamfered piers; but there
is a good deal of Dec. work in the transepts (note windows and the fine
canopy over one of the piscinas). The E. window is Perp.: observe the
piscina and niches in the chancel, and the large squints. The N. porch
has an ogee moulding, and contains a niche with figures of the Virgin
and Child.
_Barrington Court_ (now a farm) is a magnificent E-shaped building,
with numerous twisted chimneys, turrets, and finials. It was built by
Henry Daubeny, the first Earl of Bridgwater, (d. 1548); and passed
successively into the possession of the Phelipses (afterwards of
Montacute) and the Strodes. It was here that William Strode in 1680
entertained the Duke of Monmouth. Recently an effort has been made to
purchase it for the nation.
_Barrow Gurney_ is a small village, prettily situated (1 m. from Flax
Bourton stat.), with a church about a mile away. Near the church there
once existed a Benedictine nunnery (said to have been founded before
1212); and what is now the S. aisle was formerly the nuns' chapel, and
it still retains an early doorway and a few other vestiges of
antiquity. At the W. end of the aisle is an enclosure with a number of
tiles, supposed to be the burial-place of one of the sisters. With the
exception of this S. aisle, the church has been entirely rebuilt and
enlarged. Note the mural monument to Francis James (of Jacobean date),
and the old bell beneath the tower. The churchyard contains a restored
cross. Adjoining the church is _Barrow Court_ (H.M. Gibbs) a fine
Elizabethan building. In the village is a house of the date 1687. Some
reservoirs of the Bristol waterworks are close by.
_Barrow, North_, a small village 2-1/2 m. N. from Sparkford Station
(G.W.R.). The church, rebuilt 1860, is without interest, except for a
very curious font of uncertain date, standing on a modern pedestal.
_Barrow, South_, is a village 1 m. N. from Sparkford. The church, a
small aisleless building, contains (1) ancient bench ends; (2) piscina
and aumbry in sanctuary; (3) brass to R. Morris on floor of nave. A
fragment of Norman work will be noticed over the N. door. The font,
dated 1584, has a curious E.E. look.
_Barton St David_, 5 m. S.S.E. of Glastonbury, 4 m. N.E. of Somerton,
gets its name from its church, dedicated to the Welsh bishop (who was
buried at Glastonbury hard by). The plan of the church is cruciform,
the tower (which is octagonal) being placed in the angle formed by the
N. transept and the chancel. The N. doorway is Norman, the arches of
chancel and transepts E.E. The chancel windows are lancets with
foliated heads and interior foliations. Note (1) the squint; (2) the
piscina. In the churchyard there is a headless cross, with the figure
of a bishop in his mitre on the shaft (perhaps St David).
_Barwick_, a small village 1 m. S. from Yeovil. The church--a rather
large building for so small a place--has the tower oddly placed at the
E. end of N. aisle (cp. E. Coker). The N. aisle is richer and evidently
later than the S. aisle. Observe the panelling of the arches of the
arcade and the external battlements. The character of the arcade on
both N. and S. is peculiar (cp. Shepton Mallet). The chancel has been
rebuilt, but it retains the original piscina. The church has some fine
bench ends (1533). The initials _W.H._ on the door of the reading-desk
are said to be those of William Hope, the patron of the living early in
the 16th cent. Note (1) position of Dec. piscina in S. aisle and dwarf
doorway, showing raising of floor; (2) squint and rood-loft stairs on
N.; (3) square fluted font with cable moulding; (4) consecration
crosses on jamb of W. door, on chancel buttresses, and on wall of S.
aisle (cp. Nempnett); (5) arched doorway into tower from chancel, made
up of a sepulchral slab with incised foliated cross.