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winchcombe
Motte & Bailey Fenny Castle
We did not visit Winchcombe on
the same holiday as Wells, but the pictures are
here |
During
Anglo-Saxon times,
Winchcombe was a chief city of
Mercia favoured by
Coenwulf; the
others being Lichfield
and Tamworth.
Subsequently, during the 11th century, the town
was briefly the
county town of
Winchcombeshire.
The Anglo-Saxon St. Kenelm
is believed to be buried in the town.
During
the Anarchy of the
12th century, a motte-and-bailey
castle was erected in the early 1140s by
Roger Fitzmiles, 2nd Earl
of Hereford for the
Empress Matilda, although the exact site
of this is unknown;
It has been suggested
however, that it was to the south of St Peter's
Church.
In the
Restoration period, Winchcombe was noted for
cattle rustling and other lawlessness, caused in
part by poverty. In an attempt to earn a living,
local people grew tobacco as a cash crop,
despite this practice having been outlawed since
the Commonwealth. Soldiers were sent
in on at least one occasion to destroy the
illegal crop. |
