ADVERTISEMENT,
A portion of the lower part of the Wye has been described by Gilpin, Archdeacon Coxe, and some others; and the same portion has been touched upon, with greater or less minuteness, by Prince Puckler Muscau, and various Welsh tourists, as well as by Whateley in his Essay on Modern Gardening. It seemed, however, to the writer of the present sketch, that something more was due to the most celebrated river in England; and that another book (not too large for the pocket, and yet aspiring to a place in the library) which should point out the beauties of the Wye, and connect them with their historical and romantic associations—beginning at the source of the stream on Plinlimmon, and ending only at its confluence with the Severn—might still be reckoned an acceptable service by the lovers of the picturesque. Hence this little work, which may be consulted at will either as a finger-post by the traveller, or as a companion by the reading lounger at home.
London, November 28th, 1840.
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER I. | |
| Page. |
Philosophy of the picturesque—Peculiarities ofEnglish scenery—Worcester—Immigration of peasantgirls—The Devils’ Garden—The Rest on theStones—Plinlimmon—Inhabitants of the summit—TheInn—Source of the Wye | |
CHAPTER II. | |
Descent of Plinlimmon—Singularillusion—Llangerrig—Commencement of thepicturesque—The Fall of the Wye—BlackMountain—Course of the river—Builth—Peculiarityof the scenery—Approach to the English border—Castleof the Hay—First series of the beauties of the Wye | |
CHAPTER III. | |
Clifford Castle—Lords-marchers—FairRosamond—Ruins of the Castle—The silentcottage—Approach toHereford—Castle—Cathedral—NellGwynn—Cider—Salmon—Wolves | |
CHAPTER IV. | |
Beauty and tameness—The travellinghill—Ross—The silver tankard—The Man ofRoss—The sympathetic trees—PenyardCastle—Vicissitudes of the river—WiltonCastle—A voyage to sea in a basket—Pencraig Hill | |
Roman passes of the Wye—GoodrichCastle—Keep—Fortifications—Apartments—Itshistory—Goodrich Court—Forest of Dean—Laws ofthe Miners—Military exploit—Wines ofGloucestershire | |
CHAPTER VI. | |
Iron furnaces of the Wye—Lidbroke—Nurse ofHenry V—Coldwell Rocks—Symond’s Yat—NewWeir—Monmouth | |
CHAPTER VII. | |
Monmouth—History of the Castle—Apartment ofHenry of Monmouth—Ecclesiastical remains—Benedictinepriory—Church of St. Mary—Church of St.Thomas—Monnow Bridge—Modern town—Monmouthcaps—The beneficent parvenu | |
CHAPTER VIII. | |
Welsh pedigree of queen Victoria—A poet’sflattery—Castles of Monmouthshire—Geoffrey ofMonmouth—Henry of Monmouth—The Kymin—Subsidiarytour—Sir David Gam—WhiteCastle—Scenfrith—The Castlespectres—Grosmont—Lanthony Abbey | |
CHAPTER IX. | |
Raglan Castle—Description of the ruins—Historyof the Castle—The old lord of Raglan—Surrender of thefortress—Charles I. and his host—Royalweakness—The pigeons of Raglan—Death of the oldlord—Origin of the steam engine | |
CHAPTER X. | |
Troy House—Anecdote—Antiquecustom—Village churches ofMonmouthshire—White-washing—The bard—Strewinggraves with flowers—St. Briavels’Castle—Llandogo—Change in the character of theriver—The Druid of the Wye—Wordsworth’s“Lines composed above Tintern Abbey” | |
Vales of the Wye—Valley of Tintern—TinternAbbey—History—Church—Character of theruin—Site—Coxe’sdescription—Monmouth—Insecurity of sepulchralfame—Churchyarde on Tombs—Opinions onTintern—Battle of Tintern | |
CHAPTER XII. | |
The Wye below Tintern—BenagorCrags—Lancaut—PiercefieldBay—Chepstow—Ancient and modern bridge—ChepstowCastle—Roger de Britolio—Romance ofHistory—Chepstow in the civil wars—Marten theregicide | |
CHAPTER XIII. | |
Piercefield—Points of view—Curiousappearance—Scenic character of the place—View fromWyndcliff—Account of ValentineMorris—Anecdotes—The Wye below Chepstow—AustFerry—Black Rock Ferry—St.Theodoric—Conclusion | |
ENGRAVINGS.
| Page. | |
| GOODRICH CASTLE | VIGNETTE TITLE. |
| LLANGERRIG | [19] |
| RHAIADYR | [21] |
| NEAR RHAIADYR | [22] |
| CLIFFORD CASTLE | [35] |
| HEREFORD | [44] |
| ROSS | [48] |
| THE NEW WEIR | [81] |
| TINTERN | [158] |
| TINTERN ABBEY | [160] |
| CHEPSTOW | [177] |
| VIEW FROM WYNDCLIFF | [198] |
CHAPTER I.
Philosophy of the picturesque—Peculiarities of English scenery—Worcester—Immigration of peasant girls—The Devils’ Garden—The Rest on the Stones—Plinlimmon—Inhabitants of the summit—The Inn—Source of the Wye.
Foreigners have often expressed their surprise that the English should travel so far in search of picturesque scenery, when they have abundance at home: but the remark is conceived in an unphilosophical spirit. We do not travel for the mere scenery. We do not leave the Wye unexplored, and go abroad in search of some other river of its own identical character. What we gaze at in strange lands is not wood, and water, and rock, but all these seen through a new medium—accompanied by adjuncts which array universal nature herself in a foreign costume. A tree peculiar to the country—a peasant in an un-English garb—a cottage of unaccustomed form—the slightest peculiarity in national manners—even the traces of a different system of agriculture—all contribute to the impression of novelty in which consists the excitement of foreign travel.