Maud Heath's Causeway is a pathway dating from the 15th century in rural

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated Wilts) is a historic and ceremonial county in South West England with an area of . It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset to the southwest, Somerset to the west, Hampshire to the southeast, Gloucestershire ...

, England. On both sides of its crossing of the River Avon, just west of

Kellaways Kellaways, also known as Tytherton Kellaways, is a village and former ecclesiastical parish in the present-day civil parish of Langley Burrell Without and ceremonial county of Wiltshire, England. Its nearest town is Chippenham, which lies south ...

, the path rises above the

floodplain A floodplain or flood plain or bottomlands is an area of land adjacent to a river which stretches from the banks of its channel to the base of the enclosing valley walls, and which experiences flooding during periods of high discharge.Goudi ...

on sixty-four brick arches (built 1812, largely reconstructed in the 20th century) alongside an undistinguished country road between

Bremhill Bremhill is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. The village is about northwest of Calne and east of Chippenham. The name originates from '' 'Bramble hill'.'' Geography Bremhill civil parish is a rural area which stretches nort ...

and

Langley Burrell Langley Burrell is a village just north of Chippenham, Wiltshire, England. It is the largest settlement in the civil parish of Langley Burrell Without which includes the hamlets of Peckingell (south of the village) and Kellaways (to the east on ...

. The causeway is the gift of the eponymous Maud Heath, who made her living carrying eggs to market at

Chippenham Chippenham is a market town A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village ...

. She was a widow and childless, and when she died she left money to improve and maintain the path along which she had tramped to market several times a week for most of her life. Over five hundred years later, the charity still maintains the path out of her bequest. Since 1960, the raised section has been listed Grade II* on the

National Heritage List for England The National Heritage List for England (NHLE) is England's official database of protected heritage assets. It includes details of all English listed buildings, scheduled monuments, register of historic parks and gardens, protected shipwrecks, an ...

. A brief guide to the causeway was written by K.R. Clew in 1982.

Monuments

Near the east bank of the Avon at , a three-metre high carved stone pillar with sundials, dated 1698, is inscribed "To the memory of the worthy Maud Heath of Langly Burrell Widow who in the year of Grace 1474 for the good of travellers did in Charity bestow in Lands and houses about Eight pounds a year for ever to be laid out on the Highways and Causey leading from Wick Hill to Chippenham Clift". Maud heath monument

A roadside marker stone near the eastern terminus at Wick Hill near Bremhill, at about southeast of the Avon crossing, carries an iron plate inscribed "From this Wick-Hill/begins the praise/Of Maud Heath's gift/To these highways". Further up the hill stands Maud Heath's Monument, a statue of the eponymous lady, erected on a high column in 1838 and looking out over the river and its floodplain. The statue, in a bonnet and authentic plebeian clothes from the reign of

Edward IV Edward IV (28 April 1442 – 9 April 1483) was King of England from 4 March 1461 to 3 October 1470, then again from 11 April 1471 until his death in 1483. He was a central figure in the Wars of the Roses, a series of civil wars in England ...

, was erected by Lord Lansdowne, and features a poem by the critic

William Lisle Bowles William Lisle Bowles (24 September 17627 April 1850) was an English priest, poet and critic. Life and career Bowles was born at King's Sutton, Northamptonshire, where his father was vicar. At the age of 14 he entered Winchester College, where ...

, who was vicar of Bremhill at the time, which reads:

References

External links

*
Walk: Bremhill and Maud Heath's Causeway
– The AA, * John Edward Jackson
''Maud Heath's Causey''
Devizes, 1854 – via Internet Archive. {{coord, 51.4810, N, 2.0782, W, type:landmark_region:GB_source:enwiki-osgb36(ST946757), display=title 1838 establishments in England 1838 sculptures Geography of Wiltshire Grade II* listed buildings in Wiltshire Grade II* listed monuments and memorials Grade II* listed public art Monuments and memorials in Wiltshire Monuments and memorials to women Outdoor sculptures in England Sculptures of women in the United Kingdom Stone sculptures in the United Kingdom Statues in England