Sacred Sites in South Shropshire

Shropshire Hills as a Sacred Landscape

“It is not easy to define, and therefore understand, the term "a sacred landscape"; for its mystery comes from a different era, from a time when people were closely dependent on the land where they settled; where customs were forged and previous generations venerated.

Ancient burial grounds (barrows) much in evidence in south Shropshire, and are indicative of the relationship between hilltop and valley, and this world and the next as once perceived.

Certain wells, springs, and woodland came to be revered for healing properties and they along with trees such as the yew came to signify sacred spots. Evidence of early British or Celtic sites of worship are to be found in such places and these same sites were often reconfigured when Norman stone churches were erected.

To summarize these brief pointers to defining sacred places: in ancient times they could be a scenic hilltop or a tranquil place of healing, a place concerning burial and death, and lastly a place of worship.”

What do we define and understand by the term "sacred landscape" today

Sacred Spaces through the Ages Project

The Project was
Designed to provide opportunities that inspire and engage people in the sacred spaces (natural, historical and spiritual) of the Shropshire Hills, helping to develop a ‘sense of place’ and a deeper connection with the landscape in which we live.

'Sacred Spaces' themes

• Wells and water,
• trackways and pilgrimages,
• legends and folklore,
• prominent ancient trees

Thirty three sacred sites, selected within south Shropshire as example, listed here with visitor information.

Bettws y Crwyn

Bettws-y-Crwyn is a small, remote village and civil parish in south west Shropshire, England. Situated close to the Welsh border, it is one of a few English villages to have a Welsh language place name, which translates roughly as "chapel of the fleeces". Click on the link for further information:- Bettws y Crwyn 

 

 

Bromfield

The village of Bromfield is a treasure trove of archaeological and historical interest. Over the years Bromfield has seen a huge amount of activity; from early Bronze Age to Roman times to the time of Henry VIII and onward until the present day.  Click on the link for further information:- Bromfield.pdf

 

 

Buildwas Abbey

Located on the banks of the River Severn, Buildwas Abbey was built around 1135 by Cistercian monks brought over from Normandy by the Bishop to start the construction.  Click on the link for further information:- Buildwas Abbey.pdf

 

 

Bury Ditches

Bury Ditches is one of the best-preserved hill forts in the country, dating from about 500BC. The hillfort situated on Forestry Commission land is freely accessible to members of the public, with a car park close by. Click on the link for further information:- Bury Ditches

 

Caer Caradoc

Caer Caradoc, the highest of the Stretton Hills at 1056ft, is crowned by an ancient British Iron Age or late Bronze Age hill fort. It is this which the hill is named after - Caer Caradoc, in Welsh meaning Caradoc's fort. Click on the link for further information:- Caer Caradoc

 

Clun & River Clun

Research by the Campaign for the Protection of Rural England suggests that Clun is one of the most tranquil locations in England. The town takes its name from the River Clun that runs through on its way to meeting the River Teme at Leintwardine. Click on the link for further information:- Clun and River Clun 

 

Harwick Oak and Lydham Manor Oak

These two grand old oak trees are sited within five miles of each other.  Click on the link for further information:- Hardwick Oak and Lydham Manor Oak

 

 

 

Heath Chapel

The mid 12th-century chapel, of no known dedication, is a 'perfect example of a small Norman church'. 

For further information please click on the link:- Heath Chapel 

 

 

 

Hope Bagot

St John the Baptist Church, in the tiny village of Hope Bagot, five miles east of Ludlow, is one of the most picturesque examples of a small Norman village church.  For further information please click on the link:- Hope Bagot

 

 

Hyssington

This ancient place has seen its fair share of legend and local folklore over the centuries. The earliest evidence of human activity in the area is represented by the important middle Bronze Age axe factory site which produced a distinctive form of axe-hammers from the picrite which outcrops on the hillside to the north of Cwm-mawr at Hyssington.  Click on the link for further information:- Hyssington

 

 

Kerry Ridgeway

The ancient pathway of The Kerry Ridgeway runs from the historic market town of Bishops Castle in England to the beautiful Welsh Kerry. The Ridgeway's origins have long been forgotten, but its history stretches back further than the Iron Age and Dark Age earthworks which cut its line.

Click on the link for further information:- Kerry Ridgeway

 

Linley Beeches

This picturesque line of Beech trees is located in the grounds and parkland around the Palladian country house of the 1740s, Linley Hall. Linley Hall, 'a Georgian house of marked originality', was built by Henry Joynes for the MP for Bishop's Castle (1727-41), Robert More.

For further information please click on the link:- Linley Beeches

  

Lords Hill Chapel

The countryside around Lords Hill is peaceful and rural but in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries this was a busy industrial area with a series of small mines extracting lead, zinc, barytes and other minerals. Click on the link for further details:- Lords Hill Chapel

 

 

Ludlow

The town of Ludlow with its ancient castle and church stand on a cliff above the River Teme, surrounded by the beautiful hill country of South Shropshire.

Click on the link for further information :- Ludlow

 

 

Much Wenlock

The modest sized town in Shropshire is an unlikely setting for the first modern Olympic games, but Dr William Penny Brookes, founding father of the modern Olympic Games, set his first Olympic events around this beautiful Shropshire town. Click on the link for further information :- Much Wenlock

 

 

 

Norbury Yew at All Saints Church

The ancient Norbury Yew stands to the south of the church in the Saxon churchyard of the church of All Saints.

Click on the link for further information :- Norbury Yew

 

 

Wenlock Edge

Wenlock Edge is perhaps best known as the setting for A. E. Housman's lines "On Wenlock Edge the Wood's in Trouble" from A Shropshire Lad. Near the town of Much Wenlock, this dramatic limestone escarpment which is 16 miles long, runs from South West to North East between Craven Arms and Much Wenlock. It is roughly 330 metres high (above sea level). 

Click on the link for further information:- Wenlock Edge

 

Wistanstow

Wistanstow has been a residential settlement since the time of the Roman conquest, it also has Anglo-Saxon myths and legends attached to it, being central to the cult of saint Wigstan also known as Saint Wystan, from whom the village takes its name. 

For further information please click on the link:- Wistanstow

 

Wroxeter

Wroxeter (or 'Viroconium') was the fourth largest city in Roman Britain. It began as a legionary fortress and later developed into a thriving civilian city.

For further information please click on the link:- Wroxeter

 

 

More sites to follow