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The
place for information on Ross-on-Wye and the Wye Valley
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| HISTORIC
PLACES OF INTEREST IN AND AROUND ROSS-ON-WYE |
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The
historic market town of Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire,
'Gateway to the Wye
Valley' overlooks the River Wye and is located in the county
of Herefordshire between the ancient cities of both Hereford and
Gloucester. Scroll down the page to watch video and view photographs
of historic places of interest in and close to Ross-on-Wye.
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| SHORT
FILMS SHOWING SOME HISTORIC PLACES TO VISIT WITHIN EASY REACH OF ROSS-ON-WYE |
| PREHISTORIC
LOCAL OCCUPATION |
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King
Arthur's Cave is just one of many small caverns which can be found
at the Doward,
close to both Ross-on-Wye and Monmouth. It was occupied by stone-age
man during the upper Palaeolithic period and may well have been
occupied prior to that but the ice floe of the lower Palaeolithic
has removed any evidence of this. Past finds in the cave include
a flint axe, a hearth, broken woolly mammoth and other large animal
bones. Unfortunately however the cave was 'excavated' using dynamite
in the 1870s, so what one sees now on visiting is not necessarily
the same view that greeted the troglodyte people of the upper Palaeolithic
on returning home from a hunt.
The caves are not reachable by car but should you would wish to
discover them on foot, the precise National Grid Reference is: SO
54574 15607. Please respect the remaining archaeology of the site
however if visiting!
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Entrances
to the two caverns of King Arthur's Cave, spring 2002.
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A
view from the inside of King Arthur's Cave, spring 2002. |
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Located
high above the river Wye near Ross-on-Wye, Goodrich
Castle was a medieval fortified palace which is now owned by
English Heritage and open to visitors. Mostly, the castle is still
intact. Although unoccupied by the sixteenth century it was still
able to withstand a major siege during the English Civil War. Built
around 1150, the keep is the castle's oldest remaining section.
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Goodrich Castle,
photographed during the summer of 2000. |
Goodrich Castle,
photographed during the summer of 2000. |
Located
beside the River Wye at Ross, the
ruins of Wilton Castle
date from the 13th century but there has been a fort at the site
since the reign of Stephen. Although the castle is private property,
it is possible to follow the public footpath and view this fortress
from the outside.
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Wilton
Castle, a view from across the River Wye, summer of 2002. |
Wilton
Castle, photographed during the summer of 2002. |
Although
Ross is a medieval market town, the current market house was built
between 1650 and 1654, replacing an older building. Ross
Market Building is still in use by local traders on Saturdays
and Thursdays and also houses the Ross
Heritage Centre, which is open to visitors during the summer
months.
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Ross
Market House, photographed during the summer of 2000. |
Ross
Market House, photographed during the summer of 2000. |
| THE
RUDHALL ALMS HOUSES AND PLAGUE CROSS |
The
Plague Cross marks the burial site of the town's 315 victims of
plague in 1637 and is located within the grounds of St.
Mary's Parish Church. Located close to the cross are the Rudhall
Alms Houses, which probably date from the 14th century. According
to the plaque on the outside, these almshouses were repaired by
William Rudhall in 1575 and when restored again in 1960 the five
almshouses were converted into three without altering their Tudor
front.
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The
Plague Cross, photographed during the winter of 2002. |
The
Rudhall Alms Houses, photographed during the summer of 2002. |
The
Gazebo Tower as it is now known was built, along with mock gothic
town walls, during the 1833 construction of Wilton Road. It was
built as part of Palace Pound
the house of John Collins and originally known as "Collins
Tower."
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The
Gazebo Tower, photographed during the summer of 2000. |
The
Gazebo Tower, photographed during the summer of 2000. |
| MORE
HISTORIC PLACES OF INTEREST |
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If you visit
Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire or the Wye Valley, would you please make
a point of
mentioning
WYENOT.COM (rather than just 'the internet'.)
Thank
you for your help!
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