|
Sturminster Newton Castle
Sturminster Newton Castle is a site consisting of the remains of a medieval manor house within an Iron Age hillfort, near Sturminster Newton in Dorset, England. The ruins are privately owned. Description The manor house is thought to date from the 14th century. The southern end of the building survives as a two-storey ruin with no roof; it is probably the service range of the house, with a room above that is perhaps a solar. It is built of rubble with ashlar dressings. Architectural details can be seen, such as a fireplace in the supposed solar, and arched doorways. South-west of the ruin there is level ground, perhaps the site of the garden of the manor house.'Sturminster Newton', in ''An Inventory of the Historical Monuments ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sturminster Newton
Sturminster Newton is a town and civil parish in the Blackmore Vale area of Dorset, England. It is situated on a low limestone ridge in a meander of the River Stour. The town is at the centre of a large dairy agriculture region, around which the town's economy is built. The larger part of the town (Sturminster) lies on the north side of the river, and includes most shops and services, whilst to the south is the smaller Newton. Between these two areas is a wide flood plain. The town was the home of poet and author William Barnes, and, for part of his life, Thomas Hardy. The town has 43 shops, a primary and secondary school, and a school and college catering for children with Special educational needs. In the 2011 census the town's civil parish had a population of 5,234. A market is held in the town on Mondays. One of the largest cattle markets in England used to be held here, but it was closed in 1998 and now in its place stands a housing estate and a 300-seat community arts ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dorset
Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset (unitary authority), Dorset. Covering an area of , Dorset borders Devon to the west, Somerset to the north-west, Wiltshire to the north-east, and Hampshire to the east. The county town is Dorchester, Dorset, Dorchester, in the south. After the Local Government Act 1972, reorganisation of local government in 1974, the county border was extended eastward to incorporate the Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch. Around half of the population lives in the South East Dorset conurbation, while the rest of the county is largely rural with a low population density. The county has a long history of human settlement stretching back to the Neolithic era. The Roman conquest of Britain, Romans conquered Dorset's indigenous Durotriges, Celtic tribe, and during the Ear ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Solar (room)
The solar was a room in many English and French medieval manor houses, great houses and castles, mostly on an upper storey, designed as the family's private living and sleeping quarters. Within castles they are often called the "Lords' and Ladies' Chamber" or the "Great Chamber". Etymology The word ''solar'' has two possible origins: it may derive from the Latin word ''solaris'' meaning sun (often a room with the brightest aspect), or — as the solar provided privacy for its occupants — it may come from the Latin word, ''solus'', meaning, "alone". Function In some houses, the main ground-floor room was known as the Great Hall, in which all members of the household, including tenants, employees, and servants, would often or could sometimes eat. Those of highest status would be at the end, often on a raised dais, and those of lesser status seated further down the hall. But a need was felt for more privacy to be enjoyed by the heads of the household, encouraged by the senior women ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Iron Age Britain
The British Iron Age is a conventional name used in the archaeology of Great Britain, referring to the prehistoric and protohistoric phases of the Iron Age culture of the main island and the smaller islands, typically excluding prehistoric Ireland, which had an independent Iron Age culture of its own. The parallel phase of Irish archaeology is termed the Irish Iron Age. The Iron Age is not an archaeological horizon of common artefacts but is rather a locally-diverse cultural phase. The British Iron Age followed the British Bronze Age and lasted in theory from the first significant use of iron for tools and weapons in Britain to the Romanisation of the southern half of the island. The Romanised culture is termed Roman Britain and is considered to supplant the British Iron Age. The tribes living in Britain during this time are often popularly considered to be part of a broadly-Celtic culture, but in recent years, that has been disputed. At a minimum, "Celtic" is a linguistic te ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Promontory Fort
A promontory fort is a defensive structure located above a steep cliff, often only connected to the mainland by a small neck of land, thus using the topography to reduce the ramparts needed. Although their dating is problematic, most seem to date to the Iron Age. They are mainly found in Brittany, Ireland, the Orkney Islands, the Isle of Man, Devon, the Channel Islands and Cornwall. Ireland Only a few Irish promontory forts have been excavated and most date to the Iron Age, though some, like Dunbeg Fort (County Kerry) might have originated in the Bronze Age. Others, like Dalkey Island (County Dublin) contain imported Eastern Mediterranean pottery and have been reoccupied and changed in the early medieval period. Some, like Doonmore (near Dingle, County Kerry) are associated with the Middle Ages. Dunbeg contains an early medieval corbelled stone hut (clochán). Isle of Man On the Isle of Man, promontory forts are found particularly on the rocky slate headlands of the south. F ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Corallian Limestone
The Corallian Group or Corallian Limestone is a geologic group in England. It is predominantly a coralliferous sedimentary rock, laid down in the Oxfordian stage of the Jurassic. It is a hard variety of "coral rag". Building stones from this geological structure tend to be irregular in shape. It is often found close to seams of Portland Limestone (e.g. Abbotsbury in Dorset, England). It is a younger limestone than its near-neighbour, the Oolitic, as found in the Cotswolds, in Gloucestershire. It is laterally equivalent to and interfingers with units of the Ancholme Group. A ridge of Corallian Limestone rises above the Vale of Avon and the Thames Valley in its Oxfordshire stretch. The Oxfordshire Corallian ridge is an escarpment holding back the hanging valley that is the Vale of White Horse and its hardness forced the River Thames to take a wide northern detour, to cut through the low ridge at Oxford. High points along the ridge are Cumnor Hurst and Wytham Hill. The outcrop kno ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
River Stour, Dorset
The River Stour is a river which flows through Wiltshire and Dorset in southern England, and drains into the English Channel. The catchment area for the river and its tributaries is listed as . Toponymy It is sometimes called the Dorset Stour to distinguish it from other rivers of the same name in Kent, Suffolk and the Midlands. According to Brewer's ''Dictionary of Britain & Ireland'', the name Stour rhymes with ''hour'' and derives from Old English meaning "violent", "fierce" or the "fierce one". History The river burst its banks at Christchurch during the 2013–14 winter floods and 100 residents were evacuated. Prehistoric archaeology The Stour valley has produced rich evidence for early human (Palaeolithic) activity. Gravel pits in the lower reaches of the river (many underlying modern day Bournemouth) produced hundreds of Lower Palaeolithic handaxes when they were quarried, particular during the late 19th century and the first half of the 20th century. Archaeologic ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Combe
A combe (; also spelled coombe or coomb and, in place names, comb) can refer either to a steep, narrow valley, or to a small valley or large hollow on the side of a hill; in any case, it is often understood simply to mean a small valley through which a watercourse ''does not'' run. The word "combe" derives from Old English ''cumb'', of the same meaning, and is unrelated to the English word "comb". It derives ultimately from the same Brythonic source as the Welsh '' cwm'', which has the same meaning. Today, the word is used mostly in reference to the combes of southern and southwestern England. Examples The following is a list places in the British Isles The British Isles are a group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Northern Isles, ... named for having combes: References {{reflist Valleys Slope landforms [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Glastonbury Abbey
Glastonbury Abbey was a monastery in Glastonbury, Somerset, England. Its ruins, a grade I listed building and scheduled ancient monument, are open as a visitor attraction. The abbey was founded in the 8th century and enlarged in the 10th. It was destroyed by a major fire in 1184, but subsequently rebuilt and by the 14th century was one of the richest and most powerful monasteries in England. The abbey controlled large tracts of the surrounding land and was instrumental in major drainage projects on the Somerset Levels. The abbey was suppressed during the Dissolution of the Monasteries under King Henry VIII of England. The last abbot, Richard Whiting (Whyting), was hanged, drawn and quartered as a traitor on Glastonbury Tor in 1539. From at least the 12th century the Glastonbury area has been associated with the legend of King Arthur, a connection promoted by medieval monks who asserted that Glastonbury was Avalon. Christian legends have claimed that the abbey was founded by J ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Edmund Ironside
Edmund Ironside (30 November 1016; , ; sometimes also known as Edmund II) was King of the English from 23 April to 30 November 1016. He was the son of King Æthelred the Unready and his first wife, Ælfgifu of York. Edmund's reign was marred by a war he had inherited from his father; his cognomen "Ironside" was given to him "because of his valour" in resisting the Danish invasion led by Cnut the Great. Edmund was not expected to be King of England; however, by June 1014 two elder brothers had died, making him heir apparent. At the end of the same year, England was conquered by Sweyn Forkbeard, who died shortly thereafter. Æthelred was able to reclaim the throne, despite opposition. Sweyn's son, Cnut, was defeated and returned to Denmark, where he assembled an invasion force to reconquer England. It would not arrive for another year. After regaining the throne, the royal family set about strengthening its hold on the country with the assistance of Eadric Streona (Edmund's broth ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Edgar The Peaceful
Edgar ( ang, Ēadgār ; 8 July 975), known as the Peaceful or the Peaceable, was King of the English from 959 until his death in 975. The younger son of King Edmund I and Ælfgifu of Shaftesbury, he came to the throne as a teenager following the death of his older brother, King Eadwig. As king, Edgar further consolidated the political unity achieved by his predecessors, with his reign being noted for its relative stability. His most trusted advisor was Dunstan, whom he recalled from exile and made Archbishop of Canterbury. The pinnacle of Edgar's reign was his coronation at Bath, Somerset, Bath in 973, which was organised by Dunstan and forms the basis for Coronation of the British monarch, the current coronation ceremony. After his death he was succeeded by his son Edward the Martyr, Edward, although the succession was disputed. Early years and accession Edgar was the son of Edmund I and Ælfgifu of Shaftesbury. Upon the death of King Edmund in 946, Edgar's uncle, Eadred, rul ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
