Nigel's Photo Blog

 [c Madingley Village Hall (Community Centre) This evening, I am posting information on the very 'English' village of Madingley, which is about 63 miles (100 km) north of London, near Cambridge . This impresses as very neat, tidy, quaint and picturesque with houses featuring neatly manicured thatch roofs. Population is around 200, about the same as in 1086.   Three Horseshoes Pub, Madingley Some summary facts and information: Was recorded in the 1086 Domesday Book as Madingelei, an Old English term which may mean 'Woodland clearing of the family or followers of a man called Mada'. Enjoys academic links with nearby Cambridge via Madingley Hall, a mansion dating from 1543, which now houses the Institute of Continuing Education, part of Cambridge University. At southern edge of the village is the Cambridge American Cemetery and Memorial, a WW2 military cemetery where 3812 servicemen are buried plus a Wall of the Missing listing 5127  whose bodies were never recovered. In

This evening, I am reporting on the quaint town of Ely which is located in the Fens, north of Cambridge in eastern England. This town was founded in the 7th century by Etheldreda, a Northumbrian Queen and later became famous as site of the last (unsuccessful) stand by Hereward the Wake against William the Conqueror in the 11th century. Ely is about eighty miles north of London.   Ely Cathedral, Cambridgeshire Benefiting from its relatively remote location Ely has retained a good number of medieval and Tudor buildings. Main attraction is the 14th century Cathedral, a gothic design by local monk Alan de Walsingham. The building features an octagonal tower which stands prominently on the local landscape.   Ely Cathedral, Cambridgeshire,   Centre of Ely, Cambridgeshire Other places of interest include: Pubs and restaurants on the River Ouse which lazily winds close to the town.                                                                    River Ouse A stained glass museum. Local hist

  (Above image is a capture of St Peter's Church, Wallingford.) Tonight, I am posting information on the historic, English market town of Wallingford which is located to the south of Oxford on the banks of the River Thames about fifty miles west of London. Population is about 45,000. Onamatology: The name may derive from Saxon origins in the first millennium and translate as 'Ford of the British people'. The origin of the 'Wall' element probably means 'foreigner' as to the in-coming Saxons the native British people were foreign.  Despite being tucked away and off the tourist trail, in fact Wallingford has experienced all the major upheavals of English history, including Saxon,Viking, Norman invasion, English Civil War and even a resident whose writings influenced the Declaration of Independence and Constitution of the U.S.A.   Wallingford is not a mass tourist destination and qualifies as one of those 'hidden' places which has a grea

  Old Sarum Tonight, I am posting information on the historic hilltop site known as Old Sarum in Wiltshire, England which is just two miles north of the cathedral city of Salisbury . Both sites are about 92 miles S.W. of London. This site can demonstrate a period of human occupation lasting about 4000 years,from the Neolithic to the medieval. Around 400 BC the site was an Iron-Age hill fort but the Romans appear to have ignored it. Next, the Saxons acquired control around the 6th century and it was used as stronghold against Viking attacks. Final phase was the medieval period when the invading Normans built a motte-and- bailey castle which evolved into a power base for Henry I comprising castle, cathedral and royal palace. In the 13th century a new cathedral was built in what is now Salisbury and Old Sarum was abandoned and went into decline. The site is an English Heritage property and is open to the public.Check website for details. Video clip of Old Sarum   Ruins of former castle.

               Visitors dressed for the occasion This evening, I am focusing on one of the most important 12th century castles in England, namely Castle Rising near King's Lynn in Norfolk, east of England. The castle is situated about 106 miles north of London. Although roofless, the walls and some rooms are substantially intact from which a full appreciation for the scale and grandeur of this historic building set inside massive earthworks can be obtained. Key historic facts as follows: The stone keep dates from around 1140. This benefits from fine arcading and embellishments. Built by/for William D'Albini reflecting status on his marriage to Alice of Louvian, widow of Henry I. Over the years the castle has been used as a hunting lodge and royal residence. One of the castle's most important residents was Queen Isabella ( 1295-1358), the French born wife of Edward II and mother of Edward III. She may have been involved in the murder of her husband, Edward II.Records indicat

                                       Ladies dressed in high end fashion of the 16th century. This evening, I am posting information on Berkeley Castle which is situated about 130 miles west of London in the Bristol region. Berkeley Castle has been occupied by the same (Berkeley) family for 900 years. The castle's origins date back to the 11th century when it was constructed as a Norman fortress. Edward II is reputed to have been murdered at Berkeley.Inside can be found a Great Hall, Norman Keep, State Apartments, furniture, rare paintings, tapestries and silver. Outside are eight acres of landscaped gardens. There is also an interesting Tropical Butterfly House.  Aspect of the castle    Castle courtyard                                               Tropical butterfly                                                         Tropical butterfly Check castle website for opening times and other relevant information.  

This evening, I am reprising a day tour of Wales and the border region with England. Wales is a country that is   part   of the U.K. It is bordered by England to the east , the Irish Sea to the north and west, and the Bristol Channel to the south.Population is 3.13m and area 8,023 sq mi.. Wales has over 1,680 miles (2,700 km) of coastline and is largely mountainous with its higher peaks in the north and central areas, including Mount Snowdon , its highest summit. English is the dominant language whilst Welsh, an ancient Brittonic language, is also widely spoken.   Llangollen, Wales Trip record First, we departed our lodgings in Llangollen , N.E. Wales and drove  S.E. to Ludlow, just over the border in England. Ludlow is a fine old English town with good examples of Tudor architecture dating back about 500 years. A market was in process in centre of the town. Close to the town centre are the ruins of  Ludlow Castle . This castle has its origins in the 11th century as a border stro

This evening, I am posting information reports in today's media carrying new information on the origins of Stonehenge near Salisbury in southern England. Most of the information herein was sourced from today's Times newspaper.                Above image shows the famous stone circle. Archaeologists have now determined that the Stonehenge monument has its origins in an earlier stone circle located in west Wales, about 175 miles away. It appears that a dense population of Neolithic (New Stone Age) peoples which existed in the Preseli region of west Wales around 5000 years ago suddenly relocated to the Stonehenge region and took parts of an existing stone circle with them. Refer map extract below. This must have been an heroic effort for the people who had no wheel or lifting equipment and were faced with a landscape which was untamed and probably heavily forested. (The lines on the map are intended to highlight the start and finish locations, not the actual route taken.)  More in

     This evening, the focus of my post is Kylemore Abbey on the shores of Kylemore Lough, Connemara in the West of Ireland. This Gothic Revival fantasy mansion was built by a wealthy Manchester (England) business tycoon, Mitchell Henry (1826-1911) as a present for his wife. In association with the building project, the Henrys undertook considerable work on the local landscape entailing draining boggy hillsides and planting thousands of trees as windbreaks. Upon the sudden death of both Mrs Henry and his daughter, Mitchell Henry lost interest in the property and sold it. Later, it became a refuge for nuns fleeing Ypres in Belgium during WW1 and subsequently an abbey The building is now home to a girls boarding and day school run by nuns of the Benedictine order. Visitors have partial access comprising: Grounds Restaurant Craft Shop which features earthenware pottery with a distinctive fuschia motif. Victorian Walled Garden which includes double herbaceous borders, a nuttery and stream-

  Irish Jaunty Car Tonight, I am reprising a day trip to the Aran islands, three rocky isles in the mouth of Galway Bay in western Ireland. The visit focused in Inishmore, largest of the islands to reach which entailed connecting with 1015 am ferry crossing to Kilronan The crossing lasted 45 minutes.   Ferry at Rossaveel Harbour, On arrival at Kilronan we connected with a tour bus which embarked on a 3 hour trip covering various aspects of the island including thatched cottages, seals, Dun Aonghasa Bronze Age Hillfort and site of Seven Churches.   Inishmore, Aran Islands, Ireland   Seven Churches, Inishmore   Summer wildflowers at Inishmore   Karst landscape at Inishmore. ( Karst is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble rocks such as limestone, dolomite, and gypsum.)     Thatched House, Inishmore   Seacliffs at Inishmore, Aran   Dun Aonghasa Bronze Age Hillfort. See this link for more information Karst geology at Dun Aonghasa Hillfort   Seals at Inishmore    At end of t