Clothier John Lane at Cullompton Church
With churches closed this year, I have been taking the time to look at their exteriors (when allowed out!). One church that has fascinating carvings that take the viewer back to the early 16th century is St Andrew's at Cullompton in Mid Devon. On the south side of the...
The Teasel in the English Woollen Cloth Industry
Tuckers Hall, Exeter - The Guild and Incorporation of Weavers, Fullers & Shearmen THE TEASEL IN CLOTH PRODUCTION Earlier this year I visited the 15th-century Tuckers Hall in Exeter (before Lockdown). It has been occupied by the Guilds and Incorporation of Weavers,...
The Curse of Sherborne
Hutchins dedicates a section in Volume IV of his work The History And Antiquities of the County of Dorset titled ‘The Curse of Sherborne Castle from a MS. of Bishop More’. Below is a summary of the report in Hutchins: The castle was built by Roger, third Bishop of...
Sir Walter Raleigh in Dorset Part 5: The New World – The Potato & Tobacco
On the main road leading east from Sherborne (A30) at the crossroads at Henstridge is an inn, namely the Virginia Ash Inn. Although Henstridge is just in Somerset and not Dorset, I am going to include it in this series of articles in reference to the legends of...
Sir Walter Raleigh in Dorset Part 4: The Atheist – 1593 & the Wolfeton House Supper
Figure 1:Gatehouse of Wolfeton House, Dorset. In late-Elizabethan England those who pursued a career in scholarship, science and thinking generally required a patron for room, board and access to a library. A patron, driven by his or her interests, may surround...
Sir Walter Raleigh in Dorset Part 3: Architectural Ambition – A New Castle for Sherborne
Architectural Ambition: Sherborne Lodge Raleigh’s architectural ambitions for the old medieval Sherborne Castle hit their limits, whether financial and/or practical, and he began to think again. He turned his attention to an early 16th-C hunting lodge[1] across from...
Exploring Building History
Exploring Building History is a non-commercial site. It is my own personal musings on architectural history. There is wealth of built heritage in England, and as I explore and think about what I see, I post my reflections on this site.