In the Jungle the Lion Sleeps

In a deep wooded valley in Home Wood, half a mile to the south of the hamlet of Nettlebridge, there are several structures which are known locally as "Lion Cages".  They are rectangular in shape and have raised concrete bases, which are surrounded by iron railings.  Each one also has a gate.  According to Penny Stokes, the author of Ashwick: Coal, Ale & Pasture, they were probably built at some point in the past by Bristol Waterworks, possibly to house pumps which extracted water from some of the many springs in the valley. 

There is another Lion Cage at St Dunstan's Well in Stoke Bottom near Stoke St Michael. The water that reappears at the surface at this point has travelled more than a kilometre underground from a sinkhole at Stoke Lane Slocker.

Lion Cage in Home Wood

 

Lion Cage in Home Wood

 

Lion Cage in Home Wood

 

Lion Cage in Home Wood

 

Lion Cage at St Dunstan's Well

 

St Dunstan's Well, Stoke St Michael

Abbot's Fish House, Meare

When sea levels rose after the end of the last Ice Age around 10,000 years ago, and before the Somerset Levels were drained in the Middle Ages, the area around the present village of Meare was an island of slightly higher land surrounded by marshes. Three miles north west of Glastonbury and to the north of Meare village was a large lake.  In Saxon times it was called Ferramere or Ferlingmere but it later became known as Meare Pool. 

The monks of Glastonbury Abbey, who owned large areas of the Somerset Levels, drained large parts of them in the Middle Ages to use for livestock grazing and crops.  In the mid-13^th century they diverted the courses of the Rivers Brue, Hartlake and Sheppey to flow into Meare Pool, which improved the drainage of the area around Glastonbury and increased the size of Meare Pool.

Meare Pool now had a circumference of 4 miles in winter (but less in summer) and provided the monks with a year round supply of fresh fish (including pike, tench, roach and eels) and swans, which were eaten by royalty and nobles on special occasions.

Adam de Sodbury, Abbot of Glastonbury Abbey, had a manor house built at Meare in the 1330s for the monks to use as a relaxing and contemplative summer residence.  The manor house was surrounded by herb and fruit gardens, a vineyard and orchards. 

Abbot Adam also built a church close to the Manor House and a smaller house on the southern edge of the Meare Pool to house the chief fisherman or water bailiff, which became known as the Fish House.  There were 3 rooms on the ground floor: a hall, a parlour and a service room (used for food storage, preparation and serving). There was also a latrine on the west side, which was linked to the parlour.   The first floor, which was reached by an external staircase on the south side of the building, had two chambers and a latrine. There were three small ponds outside the Fish House, which were used as live-tanks for keeping fish caught in the lake, and a boat house.

Glastonbury Abbey was dissolved in 1539 and Meare Pool was drained between the late 16^th century and 1718.  The Fish House was then used for various agricultural purposes for several centuries until it caught fire in the 1880s and the interior and roof were destroyed.  It was subsequently repaired and re-roofed by the Ministry of Works in 1912 and 1955.  In 2002 major repair work was carried out on the Fish House, which is now cared for by English Heritage.  The external staircase and the latrine were demolished at some point in the past and the floor of the upper storey has not been replaced. It is the only surviving monastic fishery building in England.

The Fish House, which now stands in a meadow close to the south bank of the River Brue, is kept locked but the key can be obtained from Manor House Farm next to the Fish House.    In the summer months the field in which the Fish House stands is grazed by cattle and for this reason dogs are not allowed to visit.  When I visited in August 2017 at first the cows ignored me but then they all started to run towards me and I ran for the gate.  I decided I would come back in the winter when the cows will most likely not be there and borrow the key to have a look at the interior.  I think they were just curious but I wasn't taking any chances.

Fish House

 

Fish House

 

Map showing the location of the Fish House in relation to Meare Pool and the Manor House

 

Manor House with Adam de Sodbury's Statue over the porch

 

St Mary and All Saints Church, Meare

The West Somerset Oil Field

In c1914 a mining engineer called John Berry realised that there were oil shales in the Jurassic Lower Lias rocks in the cliffs at Kilve. Oil had been extracted successfully from oil shales in Scotland since the 1850s.  An exploratory borehole was sunk at Kilve in 1921. This found oil shales at a depth of 91 metres and they continued to at least 168 metres.  It was later claimed that the oil bearing beds extended to a depth of 300 metres, covered an area of 8,000 acres and extended two miles inland. 

A company called Shaline Ltd (spelt Shalime in some sources) was proposed in 1924 by a Scotsman, Dr William Forbes-Leslie.  He was also involved in the unsuccessful development of an oilfield at Setchey in West Norfolk in from 1918-1926.  He planned to build a crude oil works at Kilve, an 11 mile long light railway to connect Kilve with Bridgwater and an oil refinery and dock at Combwich. 

An experimental plant was built at Kilve Pill in 1923 with one oil retort and an adjacent shed.  The shale used came from open cast quarries but the sulphur content was too high and the yield was only 5-10 gallons per ton.  The lower sulphur seams were much deeper and it wouldn’t have been cost effective to mine them, so the site at Kilve was abandoned. 

Dr Forbes-Leslie was not the oil shale expert that he claimed to be and in London in 1935 he and two other men were convicted of conspiracy to obtain money under false pretences in a confidence trick involving a fictional trust fund.

The remains of the oil retort can still be seen at the north end of the car park at Kilve Pill.  A small tree is growing out of the chimney in a shape reminiscent of smoke. (Grid reference ST 144 443).

Oil Retort at Kilve

Oil Retort and associated iron shed at Kilve

Porchester's Post, Exmoor

As its name suggests, Porchester's Post is a tall wooden post.  It is located high up on Exmoor between Withypool Hill and Halscombe Allotment (grid reference SS 828 334).  The plaque on it reads as follows:

"First erected in 1796 to mark the boundary of the Carnarvon Estate.

Re-erected in memory of Lord Porchester, Earl of Carnarvon, the Chairman of the 1977 inquiry into the protection of moorland on Exmoor and to commemorate the Golden Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II in 2002."

Pixton Park is a stately home half a mile to the south east of Dulverton.  It was built for the Acland family c1760 and altered internally c1820 and again in 1870. The Earls of Carnarvon acquired the house and estate from the Acland family by marriage in 1796. 

In 1977 Henry Herbert, Lord Porchester (later the 7th Earl of Carnarvon) chaired a public inquiry, which examined the loss of moorland on Exmoor due to ploughing.  He proposed Moorland Conservation Orders, which would give the National Park Authority to power to prevent farmers from ploughing up moorland if voluntary agreements could not be reached.  Landowners would have received financial compensation.  However the Labour government's Countryside Bill of 1978, which included many of the recommendations of the Porchester Report, was not passed by the time of the 1979 General Election, which they lost to the Conservatives.  The Conservative government introduced their own legislation, which became the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. Under the terms of this act management agreements with financial compensation for farmers and landowners were to be voluntary.

Porchester's Post

White Post to the Left, Withypool to the Right

 

Plaque on Porchester's Post

 

Windswept Tree near Porchester's Post

 

Porchester's Post on a sunny day

 

St Margaret's Church, Middle Chinnock

St Margaret's Church in the quiet hamlet of Middle Chinnock is full of surprises:

• The arch over the south door is Norman and decorated with zig-zag patterns. The tympanum is decorated with a fish scale pattern.
• The font is also Norman and has a band of beaded foliage around it.
• Under one of the bench seats in the porch is part of a statue.  It is thought to be the head of a priest wearing a cope and cap.  It may be a memorial to a 14th century rector.
• Inside the church is a memorial plaque to the philanthropist Elizabeth Austin (nee Harding), who was born at Middle Chinnock in 1821 but emigrated to Australia in 1841.  She married Thomas Austin in 1845 but he died in 1871 (he is noted for introducing rabbits into Australia, which proved to be a bad mistake, as they soon multiplied out of control).  In 1882 Elizabeth founded the Austin Hospital for Incurables at Heidelberg which is now a suburb of Melbourne.  The original patients were mainly suffering from tuberculosis and later cancer.   The hospital is now called the Austin Hospital and is a big public teaching hospital.

Norman Doorway

 

Statue under porch seat

 

Memorial Plaque to Elizabeth Austin

 

Norman font

 

Nave and chancel

 

St Margaret's Church, Middle Chinnock

Tenacious Trees: Dunster Douglas, the Ashbrittle Yew and their friends

Somerset has its fair share of noteworthy and remarkable trees:

Dunster Douglas was declared the tallest tree in England in 2009 when he was measured at 60.05 metres.  Presumably he has grown taller since then.  He is located on the Crown's Dunster Estate on an easy access trail and a short distance from the Nutcombe Bottom Car Park.  He is a Douglas fir and was planted in 1876.  The reasons for his record breaking height are that he is growing at the bottom of a sheltered valley in fertile soil, with plenty of water nearby and plenty of other trees to act as windbreaks.  The tallest tree in Britain is also a Douglas fir.  It is growing in Reelig Glen near Inverness and in 2014 was measured at 66.4 metres.  Next to Dunster Douglas are two of the tallest magnolia trees in Britain.  However unless you visit in spring when they are in flower, you are unlikely to notice them.

Dunster Douglas

Dunster Douglas

Dunster Douglas

Noticeboard at the foot of Dunster Douglas

Notice board with statistics about Dunster Douglas and General Sherman - the largest tree in the world.  General Sherman is a giant sequoia growing in California

Tallest magnolia trees in Britain?

Tall Tree Combe

The Ashbrittle Yew (Taxus baccata) is not nearly as tall as Dunster Douglas.  However it is much, much older - possibly as much as 3,000 years old.  It is growing in the churchyard of St John the Baptist Church in the village of Ashbrittle.  It is hollow inside and in 2015 it was reported to be very sick and possibly dying.

Ashbrittle Yew

Base of Ashbrittle Yew

Noticeboard in Ashbrittle Churchyard

Ashbrittle Church and Yew Tree

Inside the Ashbrittle Yew

In Turner's Barn Lane on the southern edge of Yeovil there is a beautifully trimmed conifer, which overhangs the pavement by about 6 feet.  It must take some maintaining and it caught my eye.





Overhanging Tree, Turner's Barn Lane in Yeovil 

Near Hawkridge on Exmoor there is a young tree growing in the stump of a large dead tree.  It looks very healthy at the moment.  However the tree stump is already decaying and presumably at some point in the future it will collapse and the young tree will almost certainly collapse with it, as its trunk won't be strong enough to stand up on its own, as it has always been supported by the dead tree.

Young tree growing in stump of old tree, near Hawkridge

Cutcombe area of Exmoor - toppled over but still growing

On the western edge of Stoke-sub-Hamdon, where the road into the village meets the A356,  there is a solitary very tall conifer known as the Holy Tree, although I haven't been able to find out why it has this name.  The junction is called Holy Tree Cross, although it is no longer a proper crossroads, as the road opposite has been blocked off at its western end where it meets the A303.

Holy Tree, Stoke-sub-Hamdon

There is a very windswept tree growing on the seafront at Clevedon.  It is almost bent double.  I think it is a yew tree

Windswept Tree, Clevedon Seafront

The Glastonbury Thorn is a form of common hawthorn: Crataegus monogyna 'Biflora'.  However it differs from its common relative in that it flowers twice a year: in spring and at Christmas.  According to legend Joseph of Arimathea visited Glastonbury and thrust his staff into Wearyall Hill, which grew into the original "Holy Thorn". This was cut down by Cromwellian troops during the English Civil War, as they regarded them as objects of superstition.  

The Glastonbury Thorn, which was planted on Wearyall Hill in 1951, was chopped down by a vandal in 2010. Its replacement was also broken a few days after it was planted on Wearyall Hill in 2012. There are several Glastonbury Thorns growing around the town of Glastonbury e.g. Glastonbury Abbey and the churchyard of St John the Baptist Church.  A flowering branch is sent to the sovereign every Christmas. This tradition was started in the reign of King James I.

Remains of the Holy Thorn on Wearyall Hill, looking towards Glastonbury Tor

Glastonbury Thorn, St John's Churchyard

While walking the River Parrett Trail, we came across two trees near North Perrott, which looked remarkably like African baobab trees.  Baobab trees have very thick trunks, in which they store water.  While I am sure that the trees we saw are not baobabs, I don't know what they are.

"Baobab" Trees near North Perrott

"Baobab" tree

The Seven Sisters are a clump of beech trees growing near the top of Cothelstone Hill on the Quantocks.  However there are now only 3 of them still standing.  A replacement set of trees was been planted about 40 years ago adjacent to the original ones. However these are apparently damaging an ancient monument and were scheduled to be felled.  I'm not sure if this has happened.

Seven Sisters, Cothelstone Hill 

Angersleigh, near Taunton

 This is a tree, which is well past its prime but still growing

Oak tree on the beach near Porlock Weir

This oak tree will soon be a casualty of coastal erosion.  Until about 5 years ago it was growing in a field.  Since then the coastline has eroded by several metres and the pebble beach has moved inland.  Presumably it will eventually succumb to salt poisoning or be washed into the sea.  In the meantime it still looks healthy.

Dole Stones or Tables

Dole stones or tables were stone tables or ledges usually located in church porches and more rarely in churchyards.  From medieval times until the 16^th or 17^th centuries they were used for settling contracts and the payment of debts, bequests, tithes and church dues.  They were also used to distribute money or bread to the needy of the parish and passing travellers in need of help. Very few dole tables have survived to the present day.  There are three in the historic county of Somerset: at Dundry in North Somerset; Nynehead near Wellington and Oake near Taunton.

Dundry’s Dole Table is located in the churchyard of St Michael’s Parish Church.  It is a 1.5 metre cube of locally quarried Dundry Stone/Freestone, which is an Inferior Oolite limestone. An alternative theory is that it isn’t a dole table but is a sample of dressed Dundry Stone, which acted as a demonstration of its qualities as a building stone. 

Dole Table at St Bartholomew's Church, Oake

It is thought to date from the 16th century but it has been restored since then. It is made of local sandstone and is 85cm high and 40cm wide.  It is located just outside the porch.

Nynehead's Dole Table with Nynehead Court in the background

 

 Dole Table in the churchyard of All  Saints' Church, Nynehead

It is thought to date from the 16th or 17th centuries

St Michael's Church, Dundry