Chepstow - Gloucester Hole and Union Jack - geograph

The Gloucester Hole is a roughly square opening in the

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

cliffs of the River Wye, directly opposite the town of

Chepstow Chepstow ( cy, Cas-gwent) is a town and community in Monmouthshire, Wales, adjoining the border with Gloucestershire, England. It is located on the tidal River Wye, about above its confluence with the River Severn, and adjoining the wester ...

. The hole itself is on the

Tutshill Tutshill is a village within the parish of Tidenham in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, England. It is located on the eastern bank of the River Wye, which forms the boundary with Monmouthshire at this point and which separates the village ...

side of the river, in

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

; the river forms the boundary with

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

. The small square opening leads into a much larger chamber within the cliffs. The entrance is about square, and runs in for about . The cave was a natural opening in the limestone which was enlarged so that its greatest depth and greatest breadth are , and its height at one point is . There is speculation about its origin and about what it has been used for in the past. Suggestions include its use by the

Shirenewton Shirenewton ( cy, Drenewydd Gelli-farch) is a village and community in Monmouthshire, south east Wales. It is located 3 miles due west of Chepstow, 5 miles (8 km) by road. The village stands around 500 feet (154 m) above sea level, and has ...

Quakers Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belief in each human's abil ...

for storing tea, or for the storing of explosives by Brunel when the

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

was built. A local antiquarian, J.G. Wood, wrote in 1901 that nearly 50 years earlier he had quizzed the oldest inhabitants and discovered that this natural

cave A cave or cavern is a natural void in the ground, specifically a space large enough for a human to enter. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. The word ''cave'' can refer to smaller openings such as sea ...

had been enlarged and fitted with a crane at its mouth to unload large ships that could moor there in deep water, but could not easily dock at the shallower wharves on the Chepstow side of the river. The cargo was then reloaded onto

trow A trow was a type of cargo boat found in the past on the rivers Severn and Wye in Great Britain and used to transport goods. Features The mast could be taken down so that the trow could go under bridges, such as the bridge at Worcester and ...

s and taken up river to Monmouth and Hereford. For many years mooring chains and rings in the cliff below survived to support this explanation. Information plaque prepared by the Chepstow Society
/ref> The cave can only be reached by boat at high tide. Next to the Hole is a

Union Flag The Union Jack, or Union Flag, is the ''de facto'' national flag of the United Kingdom. Although no law has been passed making the Union Flag the official national flag of the United Kingdom, it has effectively become such through precedent. ...

which was first painted in 1935 to mark the Silver Jubilee of

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Qu ...

by some Chepstow

salmon Salmon () is the common name for several commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the family Salmonidae, which are native to tributaries of the North Atlantic (genus ''Salmo'') and North Pacific (genus '' Oncorhy ...

fishermen, and is regularly repainted. The highest tides reach nearly to the top of it. During flooding in January 2014, the water level rose above the flag for the first time in many years.

References

{{authority control Chepstow Caves of Gloucestershire Wild caves Tourist attractions in Gloucestershire River Wye Tidenham