St Michael and All Angels, Great Witley

The church of St Michael and All Angels stands alongside the burnt out shell of Witley Court. It is a brick building with an exterior that was faced in Bath stone c.1850 by the architect, Samuel Daukes. The lavish Italian Baroque interior was brought to Great Witley from Cannon's House, Edgeware and fitted to the building by James Gibbs c.1735. The gilded walls and ceiling feature painted panels by Bellucci, a towering monument by Rysbrack and stained glass by Price. It is, if anything more unexpected in an English setting than yesterday's featured church at Hoarwithy.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: iPhone

Witley Court's fountains

Witley Court was a large country house that succumbed to fire in 1937. Much of the exterior walls and grounds remain and the building is now in the care of Historic England. As well as looking after the remaining structure Historic England brought the magnificent fountains back into use. The main fountain, that depicts Perseus and Andromeda, is turned on for several minutes every hour on the hour and visitors assemble to see the spectacle as fountains slowly build up to their maximum height.

 photos © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon Z 5

Crossing vaulting, Malvern Priory

The point at which the nave and chancel of a church cross the transepts is called "the crossing". When, as is the case here, at Malvern Priory, Worcestershire, the crossing has a tower above it, the crossing has vaulting, much of which directs some of the tower's weight outwards to the main arches and the vertical walls. In the vaulting above some of the ribs do not do this "spreading" work. These are the short "lierne" ribs that give this style of vaulting its name.The period of the crossing at Malvern is Perpendicular i.e. broadly of the c15. It is a particularly fine example of crossing vaulting, one I've photographed quite a few times over the years.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon Z 5

WW1 soldier's memorial

Most churches have memorials to members of the armed forces who died in WW1. Sometimes it is a list of all those in the parish who were killed. Then there are the stained glass windows commemorating an individual. But, by far the most numerous style of memorial are those in the form of a wall plaque in stone, brass or, sometimes, mosaic. The example above is a brass on marble memorial. What caught my eye here was the composition including the Lee Enfield rifles propped against the cross - something I've not seen before. It can be viewed at All Saints church at Hollybush, Worcestershire.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon Z 5

Coade stone

Coade stone was an artificial stone used to cast sculptures and garden ornaments. It is named after Eleanor Coade (1733-1821) who in 1769 bought an artificial stone manufacturing company and set about improving the product and dominating the British market. The stone has proved to be longer lasting than much natural stonework and over 650 pieces have been recorded still in use. Coade stone comprised 60-70% ball clay from Devon and Dorset, 10% crushed soda lime glass, 5-10% fine quartz, 5-10% crushed flint and 10% grog (crushed shards of pottery).

 The examples shown here are part of a garden arch at Croome Court, Worcestershire, and date from 1797.

photos © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon Z 5

Pershore Abbey revisited

Passing through Pershore recently we stopped to have a look at the abbey. The first time I visited this building was in 2010 and here's what I had to say in a blogpost about this "ugly duckling" of a building.

"The church is the former abbey at Pershore in Worcestershire. This building, originally an Anglo-Saxon foundation, rebuilt c.1100, and extended in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, was severely reduced in size at the Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1539. The monastic outbuildings were destroyed and the nave and Lady Chapel were taken down completely. The north transept subsequently collapsed and in 1686 the crossing tower had to have supports constructed on that side. An east apse (shown in the photograph) was built in 1847. There was a general restoration in 1862-5 and in the early twentieth century when two massive flying buttresses (dated 1913) were placed against the tower to help to hold it in position (see smaller photograph)."

 You might want to click the link to the 2010 post to find out more and make more sense of the above. 

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon Z 5

Pump Rooms, Tenbury Wells

In 1839-40 saline springs were discovered in the Worcestershire town of Tenbury causing it to change its name to Tenbury Wells. In the Victorian period many towns developed such "wells" and "spas" as genteel holiday attractions with an emphasis on visitors being able to "take the waters" for the sake of their health. This often necessitated the construction of buildings that housed the wells and spas, as well as hotels to accommodate the increased number of visitors.

Many of the spa buildings featured traditional classical architectural styles. However, others sought something more novel as at Tenbury Wells. The Pump Rooms here were the work of the Birmingham architect, James Cranston (1821-71), and are quite innovative and light-hearted, using a prefabricated system of his own design that borrowed ideas from large glasshouses. Pevsner thought it "Gothicky" or "Chinese". To my mind the buildings recall English seaside pier pavilions or low-cost eastern European churches.

photo 1 © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2
photo 2 © T. Boughen     Camera: iPhone

What are these buildings?

In Herefordshire and Worcestershire hops have long been grown for use in the beer brewing industry, and hops are grown still. In the past they were dried in specially designed tall buildings known locally as hop kilns. Many of these charming structures and their adjoining buildings can still be seen with some having been converted into living accommodation. On a recent visit to Tenbury Wells, Worcestershire, we came upon two small versions of these hop kilns in a street near the centre of the town. I didn't pay them much attention when we first passed by, being more interested in getting to the building we had specifically come to see. But as we passed them later on I went across to see what they were. To my surprise they were the town's public toilets!

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2

Worcester Cathedral and King John

This photograph was taken from in front of the high altar in Worcester Cathedral. It is a fine prospect showing off many of the best features of medieval architecture (and the careful work of Victorian restorers). In the foreground, in a place of honour, is the tomb of King John. Amongst English monarchs King John is possibly the most reviled. Successive tellings of the story of Robin Hood have him as the usurper of King Richard I, and his quarrels with the barons leading to Magna Carta frame him as quarrelsome, spiteful and reluctant to relinquish any of his powers. More recently historians have credited his hard working nature, administrative skills and generalship. None of this has affected his resting place; he was placed in the cathedral in 1216 and he remains there still.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon D5300

Chinese Bridge in the landscape

In the eighteenth century, just as today, fashions and styles came and went. One style  that lingered a while was a liking for all things Chinese: what came to be called "chinoiserie". Blue and white pottery, painted wall-paper depicting Chinese scenes, birds etc, Chinese motifs in chairs and other furniture, mirror frames with oriental decoration and much else was bought from the far east or manufactured nearer to home. A particular favourite was a footbridge based on the ones painted on the scenes that decorated the blue and white plates and saucers. This example at Croome Court, Worcestershire, is a reconstruction of one built there in the eighteenth century. You can find out more about that bridge here.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon D5300

Country house compositions

The great temptation when photographing a large, ornate, historic country house is to let the architect's symmetrical facade speak for itself. In other words, fill the frame with the facade of the front of the house, the place where all the money was spent. There's nothing wrong with this approach. However, it's an interesting challenge to find a composition that gives less emphasis to the facade. These two shots of Croome Court, Worcestershire, a house completed in 1760 to the designs of Lancelot "Capability" Brown, a man better known for his landscape gardening, do just that. The first retains a measure of symmetry - the house in the centre glimpsed between two trees with a path leading to it. It also contextualises the house in its grounds with the nearby Gothick church built in 1763 for the then owner (also by Brown). 

The second photograph puts the house on the right of the frame with balance achieved by the tree on the left.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon D5300

Clappers of the old ring

Many English churches feature inscribed bells that date from the medieval period and later. The bells and the structure in which they hang often requires repair and restoration. This must have happened at Great Malvern Priory in 1887 because in that year Edward Archer preserved the old "clappers" (the pieces of metal that strike each bell) of the ring i.e. the collection of bells, and mounted them on a display board with accompanying text, verse and decoration, all made from dome-head nails. If you look carefully you can see the date of each clapper - two are dated 1611, three are dated 1707 and one has the words "Virgin Mary about 1380". The display can be seen in the Priory porch.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Olympus OMD E-M10

St Mary, Ripple, Worcestershire

Last year we visited the very charmingly named Worcestershire village of Ripple and tried to gain access to the church. It was locked. However, the exterior seemed to promise much and we determined then to try again, which we did in December when it happened to be open (see a following post). As far as the exterior goes the unbuttressed tower and some narrow, rounded arch windows tell of Norman beginnings, the tower top balustrade are clearly Georgian, and some columns and traceried windows speak of early and later Gothic work. For such a small village it is a large and imposing church. This can be attributed to the fact that it was a possession of Worcester Cathedral Priory and may well be on the site of a former Saxon minster.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2

Witley Court fountains and conservatory

The Perseus and Andromeda fountain at Witley has been restored to working order. However, the original water pressure system has been replaced by a modern mechanism and during opening hours it comes to life every hour on the hour.

The east front of the house has formal gardens and a further fountain that is unfortunately no longer working. It is also based on a classical story, in this instance Flora, the Roman goddess of flowers and spring.

One of the finest pieces of architecture at Witley is the remains of the conservatory. It is Quattrocento Italian in style, with rounded arches and delicate, slender columns.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon D5300

Witley Court

A first glance at Witley Court, Worcestershire, gives the impression of a massive mid-Victorian country house. A second look reveals the absence of roofs, windows and areas of stonework. A closer examination of the remaining shell shows evidence of seventeenth century, eighteenth century and Regency remains. Until a great fire wrought havoc at Witley Court in 1937 the house was a grand building whose nineteenth century owner, Lord Ward (created Earl of Dudley in 1860) lavished enormous amounts of money. Now it is an interesting ruin in the care of English Heritage who have undertaken sensitive restorations, including bringing the Perseus and Andromeda fountain back to life every hour on the hour.

The first photograph shows the main south front of the house with the restored fountain in full flow. The second image shows the east front. The clock tower that can be seen above the south front belongs to a splendid Baroque church immediately next to the house, that was relatively untouched by the fire.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon D5300

Upton upon Severn old church tower

In 1769 the spire of the medieval church at Upton upon Severn, Worcestershire, was replaced by an octagonal timber cupola in the then current classical Georgian style. In 1937 the body of the old church was demolished but the tower and cupola were preserved and the structure became not only a visual oddity, but a clock tower. Today it stands at a busy corner by the River Severn, surrounded by lawns, flower beds and a small museum with a pedimented entrance at the base of the tower.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon D5300

I Am Archive

I Am Archive is an installation designed by an architectural practice in one of the rooms at Croome Court, a Georgian mansion in Worcestershire owned by the National Trust. The designers say that "the tower visually links the ground floor exhibitions with the top floor offices and archive storage, and celebrates the direct relationship between events at Croome and it's (sic) historic archive." The visitor sees a structure that incorporates numerous box files and hears "abstracted recorded voices taken from Croome’s archive (which) gives the sculpture a voice and encourages a more intimate connection with the visitor". My photograph shows part of the "immersive infinity effect" which many people don't notice because they don't look directly above their head.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon D5300

Polychrome stonework, Great Malvern Priory

Down the ages the builders of stone churches and houses have used different coloured stone in decorative ways. Banding and chequering is common in Britain as is the marking out of entrances and windows. In the Victorian period architects extended this practice to brickwork, particularly during the period when Venetian Gothic was fashionable. Coloured stonework is a feature of the exterior of Great Malvern Priory in Worcestershire. However, here it results from the great variety of types and colours of local stone, aided by the way the stone changes colour over the years. Many architects and restorers look to match and blend new stonework with the old. At Malvern this isn't the case and the effect is very attractive.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Nikon D5300

The White Lion

Anyone who has visited Britain cannot fail to have noticed the names given to pubs. Some are very unusual, such as "The Five Alls", a Chepstow establishment with a self-explanatory pub sign. This appears to be one of only a small handful of that name in the country. The Red Lion, on the other hand, is the name of about 520 pubs in England alone, and since it is an emblem of Wales, must count many more in that country. The White Lion is the name of around 150 pubs. Its name comes from the frequently used colour of the lion that forms part of the royal coat of arms. Like the Red Lion, and many other pub names, it is a name of long standing, certainly in use for hundreds of years.

The White Lion shown above is in Upton upon Severn, Worcestershire. The building dates from the mid-eighteenth century and is reputed to be "the inn at Upton" that features in Henry Fielding's novel, "Tom Jones" (1749). The Automobile Association (AA) sign, indicating a level of quality offered by the inn, dates from the some time in the twentieth century.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2

Chinese bridge, Croome Court

When, in 1751, Lancelot "Capability" Brown was engaged to re-fashion the landscape around Croome Court, Worcestershire, he decided to keep the Chinese bridge that had been designed by William Halfpenny in the 1740s. "Chinoiserie" was fashionable during the eighteenth century and many British country houses still retain wallpaper, furniture, mirrors, tableware etc that was influenced by this taste for the oriental. Being made of wood the original bridge has not survived the intervening centuries. The National Trust, now the owners of Croome Court, recently had this replacement built. It is based on Halfpenny's original drawing that features in an eighteenth century book, and on Richard Wilson's painting. The National Trust website tells and illustrates the fascinating story of the building of the new bridge.

photo © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2