The Close
In my Salisbury Cathedral Pt 2 review I gave James Wyatt a bit of a rough time for his so-called improvements to the church, but I’m going to give ’Wrecker’ Wyatt a bit of credit here for a change.
Between 1789 and 1792 he embarked on his mission to improve the Cathedral and its surroundings including the churchyard which was situated in an area of swampy marshland. He removed the tombstones, drained the swamp, and created a landscape fit for a Cathedral.
It now stands in the centre of a large enclosed Green known as ‘The Close’, which is entered by one of three gates – the North Gate, St. Ann’s Gate, and Harnham Gate. Inside these gates is an oasis of peace and tranquillity no matter how many people come to visit the Cathedral. This is the largest Close in England with plenty of room for everyone and the buildings surrounding it are an absolute architectural delight. They’ve evolved over the centuries into a harmonious composition of different styles.
I would imagine most people will enter The Close through the North Gate, and so I’ll begin here with what you can see. On your immediate left is a building with a crest and a small octagonal tower which is the College of Matrons, an almshouse founded for the widows of the clergy in 1682. It’s possible, but not certain, that the architect was Sir Christopher Wren, who was born at East Knoyle, thirty miles away.
On the right-hand side is the attractive Chorister’s Green which includes Mompesson House, built in 1701 for local MP Charles Mompesson, and now in the care of the National Trust. Talking of MPs, if you carry on up West Walk past the Rifles (Berkshire and Wiltshire) Museum, you’ll come to Arundells, a medieval house rebuilt in the 18th century, and the home of former Prime Minister Edward Heath.
Further along West Walk at No 63 is The King’s House, so called because of its connections with King James I, and now the home of the Salisbury and South Wiltshire Museum.
The £8 entrance fee (July 2018) is a bit steep for a provincial museum, but it would be a shame if you were to miss the Wessex Gallery because of it.
This £2.4m gallery was opened in July 2014 to house an amazing local archaeological collection spanning around 500,000 years from the Stone Age through to the Middle Ages.
The area around Salisbury, Stonehenge and South Wiltshire have given up some nationally important finds from the Beaker period, and some, such as the ‘Amesbury Archer’, are of international importance. According to experts he was buried around 2300 BC with his possessions, including the oldest gold objects found in Britain.
Walking around the south end of the Cathedral will bring you to Salisbury Cathedral School. This building was the original Bishop’s Palace which has undergone various changes over the years since it was built in the early 13th century.
To complete the circuit, walk along the Bishop’s Walk to North Walk. Turning right will lead you to St. Ann’s Gate, and going left will return you back to Chorister’s Green and the North Gate
Wrecker Wyatt was guilty of some terrible mistakes where Salisbury Cathedral is concerned – but clearing the swamp full of gravestones and helping to create this marvellous setting for it, wasn’t one of them.
Originally posted 2018-04-01 06:08:31.
Would it be OK if I used the photo at the top of this page to illustrate the WikiTree profile of a woman who was born in the Liberty of the Close on 1859? If so, how would you like the credit line to go?
You’re more than welcome. Just credit it as Easymalc, that’ll be fine – and thanks for asking.
Be back later today for a wee armchair trip. We are of to Glencoe tomorrow to do a bit more than that.
Great news on both counts. I hope you take a bit more care than those three who came to grief up there last weekend 😨
Well, as I said to my train daughter..lol.. just cos you have a guide does not mean you are safe. Some years ago we rescued the damn guide and his party who’d got caught by suddenly hellish wet conditions in Glencoe. It doesn’t mean they know it all. And that ridge is not for setting foot on if it is at all wet. And the fact it is summer does not mean a thing on these hills either. They can be pretty damned brutal actually. We had to come off a hill once, beautiful sunshine, there, first week in June, cos of this arctic blizzard that came down from nowhere. I know you go to walk for a weekend with targets in mind and you go out in the weather regardless–we always have– but you need choices as opposed to doing a particular one regardless . I was actually astonished that they were up there in these wet conditions and also that they were roped together. (I must have gotten awfie sensible in my old age… but truly we’ve stopped going out at certain times of the year , or conditions.)
There’s no substitute for experience Shey, especially in circumstances like that. I’d love to hear about your Scottish exploits. I bet they’re something else 🙂
Oh there’s been a few.
🙂
The tourist board need to give you a job. This is fascinating.
They wouldn’t have me Shey. I wouldn’t fit the mould 🙂
Utter twats. Don’t know what they are missing
LOL. That’s the way of the world. I applied for a job with the local tourist board but they chose a young blonde girl instead. She wasn’t chosen by a man either I hasten to add.
Well the devil is in the deatail of how you get to the heart of a building,s treet, monument, whatever. There you are talking about why the museum is worth the charge, ANd why. you are insdie the palce and most tourist’s minds. Just typical that biz of let’s have this instead.
As long as I’ve got followers like you behind me Shey, that’ll more than do for me.
YOu well deserve a following. Seeing the country here.
I don’t have a big following Shey. Others have lots more than me, but I have a hard core of genuine followers which I value a great deal – and of course, you’re one of them. Thanks for all your support 😊
It is a pleaure to support your blog. I am truly enjoying reading your posts and learning about all these places. I can see why your followers are hard core.
And it’s a pleasure to have you as one of my hardcore supporters Shey.
Aww.. thank you. I am fair enjoying the travels.
It’s always good to hear. Thanks again.