Chapter 10

The Mohuns had ecclesiastical sympathies as well as military ambitions, for in addition to building the castle, they established a priory here in connection with Bath Abbey. This explains the peculiarity of Dunster _Church_, which possesses a separate monastic choir. The prior's lodging, and the conventual barn and dovecot, may still be seen in a yard on the N. side of the church. The church has a central tower of rather weak design. Internally this forms the division between the secular and monastic portion of the building. The chief feature of the church is a magnificent rood-screen which spans the whole width of the structure. It has been the model for many neighbouring imitations. The western half of the church is Perp., with occasional traces of an earlier Norm. building. The W. doorway is Norm., and on the W. side of the tower are the piers of a Norm. chancel arch. At the base of the tower there is a bit of masonry locally claimed as pre-Norman. The monastic choir and its sanctuary have been restored from indications of its original E.E. character. Besides transepts, the church has three chapels--that of the Holy Trinity on the S., St Mary's on the N., and beyond this the interesting chantry of St Lawrence, which contains a fine altar slab and a tiled floor. The monuments which call for notice are (1) in the monastic choir the effigy of a lady (said to be one of the Everard family), under a canopy; (2) on the N. of the sanctuary the recumbent figures of Sir Hugh Luttrell and wife (1428-33); (3) at E. end of the Chapel of Holy Trinity an incised slab with figure of Lady Eliz. Luttrell (1493); and (4) on S. of same chapel an altar with two pairs of recumbent figures, also Luttrells. A small brass with the figures of a man and woman will be found at the W. end of the S. aisle, bearing date 1470. In addition to features already mentioned, note (1) the unique E.E. arch at entrance of S. chapel, widened by Perp. builders for ritual purposes; (2) old alms and muniment chests in N. chapel; (3) old bench-end near W. doorway, from which the other woodwork has been copied. Externally should be observed (1) priest's house at S. entrance of churchyard; (2) recess for stocks in the wall close by; (3) churchyard cross with round base at W. end of church; (4) conventual barn and dovecot in yard on N.

The "Luttrell Arms," at the entrance of the village, has a mediaeval porch with openings for cross bows, a fine timbered wing at the back of the buildings, and some plaster work in one of the rooms. The _Watch Tower_ on Conygar Hill (i.e. _Coney Garth_--"rabbit enclosure") is, as will easily be seen, a mere shell, built (probably for ornament's sake) in 1775. Amongst the old houses in which Dunster is peculiarly rich, the curious three-storeyed building at the entrance of the street leading to the church claims particular attention. It is locally known as the _Nunnery_, a curious designation, which points to a possible connection with the priory, perhaps in the capacity of guest house. The three storeys overhang one another, and are faced with shingles. At the bottom of the street which leads into the Dulverton road will be found a lane to the L. This descends to a stream which is crossed by a picturesque pack-horse bridge of two spans. There is an old market cross (locally known as the butter cross) hidden by the hedge on the right-hand side of the upper Minehead road.

_Durleigh_, a parish 1-1/2 m. W.S.W. of Bridgwater. It has a church which retains its old tower (with a gabled roof); but all other traces of antiquity have been obliterated, save for the remains of a stoup in the porch. In this parish is an old manor house called _Bower Farm_, with a picturesque front, showing a small window flanked by two towers. The porch roof is, of course, modern. Belonging to the farm is a curious _columbarium_, constructed of mud, in which the nesting niches are said to number 900.

_Durston_, a village 5 m. N.E. of Taunton, has a church (rebuilt in 1853) which possesses a good tower. The Communion-table bears date 1635, and there are some carved bench-ends. Near here, at _Mynchin Buckland_, there used to be a Preceptory of the Knights of St John of Jerusalem, to which was attached a priory of women belonging to the same order. It is said to have been very rare in this country for communities of men and women under vows to exist side by side in this way.

_Easton_, a village at the foot of the Mendips, 2-1/2 m. N.W. of Wells. The church is modern (1843).

_Easton-in-Gordano_, a village 1 m. W. from Pill (G.W.R.). The church is a large and dignified modern clerestoried structure (rebuilt in 1872), with a good Perp. W. tower (original).

_Edington_, a village on the Poldens, with a station 2 m. away. The church has been rebuilt (1877-79), and contains no ancient features except a very good Norm. font. On the locality, see p. 13.

_Elm_, or _Great Elm_, a village 3 m. S.W. from Frome, perched on the edge of a vale of quite romantic picturesqueness (see _Vallis_). The church is an unpretentious little building with a saddleback tower. It bears one or two indications of high antiquity. Note (1) on S. external wall, herring-bone masonry (cp. _Marston Magna_), (2) Norm, doorway to tower, and E.E. arch within. The interior has been remodelled in accordance with early Victorian ideas of ecclesiastical propriety.

_Elworthy_, a village 4 m. S.W. of Stogumber Station. The small church (Perp.) contains a carved illuminated Caroline screen (1632). The pulpit, approached by the rood staircase, is of the same date. In a small window in the N. wall is some ancient glass. Above the village is a British camp, called _Elworthy Barrows_, which can be reached from near the church. Towards Wiveliscombe, on the L. of the road, rises _Willett Hill_ (950 ft.), crowned by a tower.

_Emborrow_ (the first syllable perhaps a corruption of _Elm_), a small hamlet on the Mendips, 1-1/2 m. N. of Binegar Station. The church is a forlorn-looking building with a central tower containing a 14th-cent. sanctus-bell. _Emborrow Pool_ is a dismal sheet of water bordering the main road and surrounded by trees. It has the appearance of being rapidly silted up.

_Englishcombe_, a small and rather uncouth-looking village 3 m. S.W. from Bath, and 1-1/2 m. S.W. from Twerton Station (G.W.R.). It still retains something of the aloofness which once characterised it as an English outpost on the Welsh border, and is worth a visit. The church is of considerable antiquarian interest. It consists of a Perp. nave, a central Norm. tower, and a Norm. chancel. A Perp. chapel, now occupied by the organ, adjoins the porch. Externally, note the fantastic corbel table round chancel. Within, it has two good pointed Norm. arches, and on the N. wall of tower a well-preserved Norm., arcade. Observe (1) detached Norm. capitals on N. wall, (2) panelling round splay of W. window of nave and S. window of chapel. Almost opposite to the S. entrance to the churchyard is a tithe barn once belonging to Bath Abbey, which still shows some indication of its ecclesiastical origin. At the W. end of graveyard is a farm-house with orchard, and beyond this is a field where may be seen a good specimen of the Wansdyke. Near the village once stood a castle of the De Gourneys. The site is marked by a mound on a neighbouring estate.

_Enmore_, a village 5 m. S.W. of Bridgwater, on the road leading to the S.E. extremity of the Quantocks. Its church has a good tower, noticeable for the pinnacles that crown the staircase turret. The tower-vault is groined, the chancel arch panelled, and there is a Norm. S. door (belonging to a former fabric) with carved capitals and good mouldings. Note (1) the carved wooden pulpit, (2) the niche, supported by an angel, on the S. face of the tower. In the churchyard there is the broken shaft of a cross. _Enmore Park_ (W.B. Broadmead) is hard by. It was formerly called Enmore Castle, and once belonged to the Malets.

_Evercreech_ is a large village 3-1/2 m. S.S.E. from Shepton Mallet, with a station on the S. & D. J.R. The first syllable of the name probably means "boar" (cognate with the Latin _aper_), and recurs in Eversley. It is famed for its church, which has perhaps the most graceful tower in all Somerset; its double, long-panelled windows, buttresses, and clustered pinnacles are particularly fine. The earliest part of the building is the chancel (14th cent.), with Dec. windows at the E. and N.; the rest of the church is Perp., the S. aisle being modern. Note (1) wooden roof of nave, the colours of which are believed to reproduce the original; (2) carving of gallery in the tower; (3) brackets (perhaps for lights) on piers of N. arcade; (4) quaint inscription behind the organ, of the date 1596. Outside the churchyard is a much defaced cross. S.S.E. of the village is the commanding eminence of _Creech Hill_, where there seem to be traces of earthworks, and whence a fine view is obtainable, with the town of Bruton in the valley to the S., and Stourton Tower conspicuous on the hills to the E.

_Exford_, a village on the fringe of Exmoor "Forest," near the source of the Exe, 12 m. N.W. from Dulverton Station. It is one of the many rendezvous of the huntsman, as there are kennels here for staghounds and harriers. The houses are dropped into a hollow of the moors through which trickles the stream. The church braves the gale on the hill top above. It is remarkable for nothing but its exposed situation, a thousand feet above sea-level--a fact which has no doubt necessitated its frequent renewal. The tower is original, but the nave and chancel are modern. The S. aisle appears to have been built chiefly out of a legacy left by a local blacksmith about 1532. Note the Devonshire foliage on capitals. The churchyard contains the base of a cross locally known as the "Crying Stone," from its appropriation by the parish beadle as a pedestal for proclamations. At the churchyard gate is a "lipping" or mounting stone.

_Exmoor_. Though generally associated in the popular mind with Devonshire, Exmoor is really, in the main, a part of Somerset. It is the highest, wildest, and most fascinating portion of the county--a truly delightsome land, a veritable paradise for the sportsman and the painter. The red deer run wild at will over the moors, or find a congenial covert in the oak scrub which clothes the combes. Brawling brooks abound on all sides to entice the angler and interest the artist, and a charming strip of sea-coast must also be numbered amongst its attractions. Though mainly given over to the sportsman and the tourist, efforts have from time to time been made to civilise these wilds. In general they have proved futile. Mines have been sunk only to be abandoned, and the agriculturist has fared little better than the miner. Early in the last century, a Mr Knight made an heroic effort to enclose a large portion of the moor for the purposes of cultivation. The heather, however, is still triumphant. The only memorial of his ambition is a ruined mansion at Simonsbath. The hills are all of considerable altitude--well over 1200 ft.--but with the exception of Dunkery few can pretend to any marked individuality. The landscape is a mere "tumultuous waste of huge hill-tops," which no one takes the trouble to specify. Perhaps the least praiseworthy feature of Exmoor is its weather. To adapt a Cornish description of something quite different, "when it's bad, it's execrable; and when it's good, it's only middlin'." It has a disagreeable partiality for haze and drizzle. In such an untamed region "routes" are only an embarrassment. The regulation drive is from Minehead to Dulverton, and from Dulverton through Simonsbath to Lynton, which virtually circumscribes the moor. The best way, however, is to turn oneself loose in the district, and ramble over the moors at will. The sturdy tourist will find many an exhilarating excursion. Winsford, Exford, Withypool, and Simonsbath are all worth seeing. Dunkery Beacon (1707 ft.) may be conveniently ascended on the Porlock side from Luccombe or Cloutsham, and on the Dulverton side from Wheddon Cross, near Cutcombe.

_Exton_, a village 8 m. N. of Dulverton Station, picturesquely perched on the hillside overlooking the valley of the Exe. The church is without interest.

_Farleigh Hungerford_, a small village 7 m. S.S.E. of Bath. It is a place of some interest to the antiquarian, and should be visited in conjunction with Hinton Charterhouse from Freshford Station (2 m.). Its attractions consist of a few crumbling fragments of a castle once belonging to the Hungerfords, and the contents of the castle chapel. The ruins stand on the shoulder of a deep defile descending into a wooded bottom called Danes' Ditch. The annals of the castle are long rather than stirring. An old manor house of the Montforts was transformed into a castle by Sir Walter Hungerford (d. 1449), who spent upon the alterations the ransom which he had obtained for the capture of the Duke of Orleans at the Battle of Agincourt. In the Great Rebellion it was, curiously enough, held for the king whilst its owner was commanding the Parliamentary forces in Wilts. To one of the existing towers a grim story is attached. In the unchivalrous days of Henry VIII. a Sir W. Hungerford, who, like his royal master, was a much married man, consigned his third wife to these uninviting quarters, and kept her under lock and key, with a chaplain for her only attendant. The lady, however, not only survived this knightly Bluebeard, but had the courage to contract a second marriage. The general arrangements of the castle are not very obvious to the casual observer. It seems to have consisted of a gatehouse and an outer and inner court. The inner enclosure was flanked by four cylindrical towers, and contained the dwelling-rooms, which overlooked the ravine. On its accessible side the castle was protected by a moat. Nothing now remains but the gatehouse, a few fragments of the enclosing walls, the remains of two towers, and the chapel. Passing under the gatehouse, the visitor will see the chapel and inner court on the R. The Chapel of St Leonard (keys to be obtained at inn above, fee 3d.) is now a museum, and contains a good collection of armour. Amongst other curiosities on show are a "He" Bible, a pair of Cromwell's boots, and one of his letters. A gigantic fresco of St George adorns the E. wall, and beneath the E. window is the original stone altar. The Chapel of St Anne, on the N., is shut off by an iron grille, and contains some fine monuments: (1) in centre, a costly marble cenotaph with effigies of Sir E. Hungerford, the Parliamentarian, and his wife Margaret (1648), (2) within the grille, Sir T. Hungerford and his wife Joan (1398-1412), (3) on N., Sir E. Hungerford and wife (1607), (4) against W. wall, tomb of Mrs Shaa (1613), with panel of kneeling figures. In the S.E. corner of main building is a plain altar-tomb of Sir W. Hungerford and son (1596). The font is said to have been brought from the church. At its foot is a slab with incised figure of a chantry priest of unknown identity. Beneath the side chapel is a vault (to which access can be obtained outside) containing the leaded corpses of several members of the family. The parish church of St Leonard stands on the other side of the road on rising ground overlooking the ruins. It is a small plain Perp. building with square W. tower surmounted by a short pyramidal spire. It is somewhat quaint, but contains nothing of interest except an altar made out of an ancient settle. Over the doorway is a semicircular stone bearing a curious Latin inscription, said to be not later than 1200 A.D. It is supposed to have belonged either to an earlier building or to some dismantled church in the neighbourhood. Below the church is _Farleigh House_, a picturesque modern mansion.

_Farmborough_, a biggish village 8 m. S.W. from Bath (nearest stat. Clutton, 2-1/2 miles). The church is modern, but has a Perp. W. tower. The chancel contains a piscina, and there is a ribbed stone squint. Near the village is _Barrow Hill_, a conical-shaped eminence.

_Farrington Gurney_, a pleasant village on the Bristol and Wells road, 8 m. N.E. from Wells (nearest stat. Hallatrow, 1 m.). On the Midsomer Norton road is an old manor house. The church, which lies beyond the house in a field, is modern (1843), but occupies an ancient ecclesiastical site. Over the W. doorway is a small Norm. effigy, called by the natives "Old Farrington." The churchyard contains the base of an ancient cross.

_Fiddington_, a parish 7 m. N.W. of Bridgwater. Its church retains a few carved seat ends, an oak pulpit, and a piscina, but presents no other feature of interest.

_Fitzhead_, a village 2 m. N. of Milverton. The church has been rebuilt, with the exception of the tower. In the churchyard is a good specimen of an effigied cross (cp. Wiveliscombe). Hard by is _Fitzhead Court_, an ancient manor house said to contain a good plaster ceiling.

_Fivehead_, a parish 5 m. S.W. of Langport. The church has two Dec. windows in the chancel, the rest are Perp. There is a 16th-cent. tomb of John Walshe, and an ancient Norm. font with double mouldings. Note in the S. aisle (1) piscina, (2) remains of canopy. The manor house, the home of the Walshes, now a farm, preserves the old hall.

_Flax Bourton_, a parish 5 m. S.W. of Bristol (with a station), is said to owe the first part of its name to the abbey of Flaxley in Gloucestershire, which possessed the principal estate in the parish. The small Perp. church is noteworthy for the 12th-cent. Norm. work preserved in it, which consists of (1) a S. door, exceptionally tall and narrow, with banded pillars and a quaint carving of St Michael and the Dragon; (2) a chancel arch, recessed, with curious carvings on the chamfer of the abacus and on the capitals. Note also (1) terminals of the label of the S. chancel windows, (2) font.

_Foxcote_ (or _Forscote_) is a small hamlet 2 m. E.N.E. of Radstock. The church is modern, with the exception of the tower.

_Freshford_, a village near the confluence of the Frome and Avon (with a station), 5 m. S.E. of Bath. The church is Perp., with a W. tower. _Freshford Manor House_ once belonged to the priory of Hinton Charterhouse.

FROME, a thriving market town of some 11,000 inhabitants, on the E. side of the county, with a station on the G.W.R. line to Weymouth. Though its surroundings are pretty, the town itself is an ill-arranged collection of steep and narrow streets, one of which--Cheap Street--deserves notice for its quaintness. The spaciousness of the market-place redeems the narrowness of the streets. With the exception of a little faint-hearted sympathy shown to Monmouth, Frome has never helped to make history. Nowadays it does a brisk trade in woollen cloth, and possesses some large printing-works, breweries, and art-metal works. The visitor would do well to make his way at once to the church, which is practically the only thing in Frome worth seeing. It is a building of much greater dignity within than the exterior suggests, and has been restored on a very elaborate scale by a former incumbent, the Rev. W.J. Bennett (1852-66), a figure of note in the early Ritualistic controversies. The tower, crowned with a spire, is somewhat eccentricly placed at the E. end of the S. aisle. The interior is remarkable for its heterogeneous mixture of styles and its multitude of side chapels, of which St Nicholas's, the Lady Chapel, and St John Baptist's are on the N., and St Andrew's on the S. A Saxon church was built on the site by St Aldhelm, and possibly a couple of carved stones built into the interior of the tower may have belonged to it. This was succeeded in the 12th cent. by a Norm. church, of which a doorway remains, leading from St Nicholas's Chapel to the Lady Chapel, and perhaps a piscina opposite the latter; in the 13th cent. the chancel arch, the lower part of the tower, and the eastern half of the arcade were erected The rest of the arcade was added in the 15th cent. The abrupt change in the mouldings is very noticeable. The Lady Chapel, originally Norm. (see above), was rebuilt at this time, as well as St John's Chapel (now the organ-chamber). The chapel of St Nicholas (the baptistery) dates from the 16th cent.; the old glass in it bears the rebus of Cable, the founder of it (K and a bell). St Andrew's Chapel is said to have been founded in 1412 (though it looks like Dec. work). Interesting features are (1) piscinas above the rood and in the S. aisle, (2) a _memento mori_ in the Lady Chapel (said to be a Leversedge of Vallis), (3) brass (1506) on tower wall. The rood-screen, the statues at the W., the medallions above the arcade, and the _Calvary Steps_ outside the building are all modern. In the churchyard, beneath the E. window, is the tomb of Bishop Ken, who, after his "uncanonical deposition," lived in retirement at Longleat, and, dying in 1711, was buried at his own request "just at sunrising in the nearest parish church within his own diocese."