Nunney Castle, Somerset: The Architectural Ambition of a 14th C Knight
Many years ago, I happened upon Nunney Castle whilst out on a walk in the area. I was mesmerised by this ruined castle, set in the centre of a village surrounded by a moat. It was not the classic, Norman stronghold on a rocky outcrop. I felt I had been transported...
The Shouldered Corbelled Arch or Caernarfon Lintel at the Bishop’s Palace, Wells, Somerset
The term ‘Caernarfon lintel or arch’ comes from the use at Edward I’s Caernarfon Castle of the frequent use of passage doorways with shouldered lintels sitting on convex corbels. Edward’s castle at Caernarfon was started in 1283. These doorways also at exist at Wells...
The Road to Justice, Temperance & Social Order via the Lock-ups of the 18th & 19th Centuries in Somerset & Wiltshire
England still retains a number of lock-ups, clinks or ‘blind houses’. They were used as staging posts to hold an offender on their route to a magistrate’s court. They were also used to incarcerate those disturbing the peace, vagrants, and drunks. The parish was...
The Cult of St Thomas Becket – Murder, Miracles & A Challenge to Royal Authority
Main Picture: Wall Painting of Thomas Becket restored in 1984 at St Thomas a Becket Church, South Cadbury, Somerset. The year 2020 was the 850th anniversary of Thomas Becket’s death and the 800th anniversary of the translation of his body to a new shrine in Canterbury...
The Elizabethan Church: Books, Pulpits & Hourglasses
According to popular myth it was on the 31st of October 1517 that Martin Luther nailed his Ninety-five Theses disputing the Roman Catholic Church’s practice on indulgences to the door of Wittenberg Cathedral. Whether this act was true or not does not dispute the fact...
Gaumont Palace Taunton: Art Deco Architecture & the ‘talkies’ in 1932
Art Deco was an international movement that had a variety of influences, innovative and decorative. There were several drivers behind the movement. The post WWI generation, the invention of new and improved materials as well as the advances in providing an electricity...
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.