Tag: medieval buildings

Duart Castle: the turbulent history of the ancestral home of Clan MacLean
14th Century · 17th Century · 18th Century · 20th Century · Lochdon

Duart Castle: the turbulent history of the ancestral home of Clan MacLean

Caroline23 Comments

It’s impossible to miss Duart Castle.  It stands proudly on a spur of land reaching out into the Sound of Mull, and it’s a familiar sight to people who travel through those waters.  The powerful MacLean clan have controlled Duart Castle for much of its history, using the castle’s prominent location as a symbol of the clan’s power and prestige.  In common with other Scottish castles, Duart has a fascinating, turbulent and sometimes bloody history, from medieval clan wars to the Jacobite uprisings of the 18th Century.  Today, the Chief of Clan MacLean welcomes visitors from all over the world to his family seat, so that they can learn about the history of the castle and the clan that made it their home.

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New Romney: a thriving medieval port devastated by a storm
13th Century · New Romney

New Romney: a thriving medieval port devastated by a storm

Caroline7 Comments

It’s easy to look at a map of the British Isles and assume that the outline of land that’s so familiar to us has been that way for millennia.  However, the coastline – particularly in the east – has changed dramatically over the centuries, partly due to human intervention (such as the draining of marshy areas) and partly due to the forces of nature.  Often, these changes are quite gradual and happen over many years (for example, towns on the Norfolk coast that have been gradually disappearing into the sea over many decades and centuries), but sometimes, a storm or other natural disaster could change the fortunes of coastal towns overnight.  New Romney in Kent is one of these places.  Once a thriving and important port, a terrible storm in 1287 cut off the town’s lifeline.

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Pennygown: the ruined chapel and medieval effigies of a Hebridean burial ground
13th Century · Pennygown

Pennygown: the ruined chapel and medieval effigies of a Hebridean burial ground

Caroline23 Comments

I first came across the ruined chapel whilst on a wildlife trek – we had stopped near the little town of Salen to watch harbour porpoises in the Sound of Mull.  Intrigued as I was by the ruined chapel and its surrounding burial ground, there wasn’t time to stop and explore and I had to return a few days later to get a good look around the site.  My stay on the beautiful Scottish island of Mull had been blessed with warm sunshine, but on the final day of my trip – when I finally had time to visit the chapel and the burial ground surrounding it – the clouds had arrived.

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This is Pennygown burial ground, and it is still used by the people of the Mull today.

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The many reinventions of Winchester Castle’s Great Hall
13th Century · 17th Century · 19th Century · Winchester

The many reinventions of Winchester Castle’s Great Hall

Caroline14 Comments

Winchester, England’s ancient capital, is home to a great many fascinating old buildings.  The area was originally settled in the Iron Age, then became the Roman town of Venta Belgarum and there has been a cathedral in the city since the 7th Century.  King Alfred the Great was buried at Winchester and his links with the city are commemorated by an imposing Victorian statue of him in the city centre.  Visitors to the city flock to the grand Gothic cathedral and its beautiful cathedral close , the medieval almshouses of St Cross and Winchester Castle’s Great Hall, which is the subject of today’s blog post.

Winchester Great Hall (Image by Johan Bakker on Wikimedia Commons)
Winchester Great Hall (Image by Johan Bakker on Wikimedia Commons)

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Behind the high walls of London’s Charterhouse
16th Century · 20th Century · Clerkenwell

Behind the high walls of London’s Charterhouse

Caroline19 Comments

Hidden behind high walls, the Charterhouse in Clerkenwell exudes an air of mystery – at least to those who, like me, spend their lunchbreaks wandering around the interesting old places close to their place of work.  The Charterhouse is only open to the public for pre-booked guided tours, but a few weeks ago I was fortunate enough to be able to visit the Charterhouse to attend a wonderful lecture about the history of the site by the Charterhouse’s head archivist, Dr Stephen Porter.

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The view from Charterhouse Square

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