The past bears a heavy legacy in Latvia, one of three Baltic states, including Lithuania and Estonia, that were only granted independence from Russian rule in the closing decade of the 20th century. Little known in much detail to Western Europeans, Latvia, for a large part of the 20th century, languished behind the Iron Curtain…
Category: Historical Case Studies
A Late Afternoon Vision of Medieval England: Pugin and the Remedy of the Past
This afternoon I captured a vision, not on my camera but in my mind. I was standing high on the Staffordshire Moorlands and the late afternoon winter sun was illuminating the hilly landscape before me, casting it in a golden haze. As I looked down into the valley, I could make out a church spire…
The House at Heaven’s Door: The Lost Priory of Stone
The rain lashed our faces as we made our way hastily towards the steps of the house, seeking shelter. Once through the door, we were taken down a flight of steep steps twisting their way below ground, underneath the house. The Undercroft Hidden away from sight and sound, a large vaulted undercroft lay waiting, its…
The Church that Refused to Crumble: The Miracle of Pershore Abbey
First Sight We waited with excitement for our car to crest the hill between us and Pershore. A moment later, our patience was rewarded with a magnificent view. The abbey church of Pershore stood confidently in the valley before us, the small Georgian town of Pershore wrapping itself around the abbey grounds. Red brick houses…
The Lost City of Gogyrfan: Uncovering a Landscape of Legend
I felt rather overdressed as we struggled up the steep earth bank, the sun scouring the early morning mist from the hillside. As we placed our feet on the dark brown earth, we were merely brushing the surface of an ancient landscape more composed of myth than physical reality. The Wrong Hill Finally, after a…
Keeping up with the Moretons: around the World in 300 years, the Rise and Rise of an English Noble Family
I have wanted to go to Brewood (Staffordshire) for a while and I was thrilled to be finally entering the parish church of St Mary and St Chad at last. We stepped through the porch abandoning the warm summer weather for the gloom of the church interior. The range of memorials was impressive enough, the…
The Beating Heart of a Dead Man
The main high street to St Alkmund’s church in Whitchurch, Shropshire, was steep and we were relieved to have finally reached the top. Excited and flushed from our brisk walk we placed warm hands on the cold iron handle of the church door and twisted. The scene which greeted us was filled with light cascading…
A Tale of Love, Loss, and Architecture in Seventeenth Century Staffordshire
Some places are hidden not just from the modern world but from time itself which seems to pass by without causing any change or decay. Ingestre, near Stafford in Staffordshire, is one of those places. Yet, at the heart of Ingestre’s untold story is loss, grief and death. Lashed with Rain As we (me and…
Join Alex on an epic adventure involving the crumbling walls of Rome, an Anglo-Saxon church, and an escape from a horse in hot pursuit
The valley of the River Wear around Bishop Auckland in County Durham hides many secrets and, as me and a good friend found out, it often reluctantly shares its treasures. Our Journey Began In the early hours of a cold April morning, me and my friend set off from the deserted market place of Bishop…