Saffron Walden
 Castles |
Saffron Walden is a beautiful old Essex town and should be on every tourist's itinerary. The ancient Essex art of plaster design called 'pargeting', is viewed at its most exuberant on some of the old town buildings. This lively plasterwork can be seen at its best in Church Street, where vivid figures, foliage and designs decorate the overhanging gables of medieval houses. Here, the Sun Inn was redecorated in 1676, and the pargeter incorporated a depiction, raised in wet plaster, of the folk hero Tom Hickathrift defending himself against the Wisbech Giant.
The autumn-flowering crocus, which gave the town the first part of its name, was cultivated locally on a wide scale until the end of the 18th century. The flower itself is purple, but it makes a yellow dye for cloth; it was also once employed as a source of perfume, a food flavouring and as a medicine. Saffron was hugely expensive in the Middle Ages, as it is today, and the prosperity it helped to bring to Walden, along with local cloth-making, is very evident from the many fine medieval buildings located in the streets around Market Square. The town's ancient layout can be detected from an overview of King Street, Market Place, Mercer Row and Butcher Row; these thoroughfares indicate how the rows of traders' stalls dictated the plan of the town centre.
The huge Church of St Mary the Virgin, set back from Church Street, owes its splendour to the wealth of local Saffron Walden cloth merchants; at 200 ft in length it is one of the longest and finest churches in the county. St Mary's was completely rebuilt between 1470 and 1540; that is, virtually everything else was replaced but the impressive spire, this, rising to a glorious 193 ft, was not added until 1832. Up to that date there was a wooden lantern, said to have been erected by Henry Winstanley, designer of the first Eddystone Lighthouse, as an experiment in shining a light long distances. Within the church stands a handsome monument to Thomas, Lord Audley, Lord Chancellor, who died in 1544, complete with a distinguished coat of arms.
Walden Castle stood at the highest point of the town and was built to the order of the Norman lord, Geoffrey de Mandeville, in about 1125-40. However, the castle served a useful life for no longer than a century, after which it was abandoned to gradual decay. Only the merest token of its 40 ft square keep lingers on in grass and undergrowth; the castle well has been sealed for safety's sake and the ramparts and ditches have been smoothed over.
The splendid Saffron Walden Museum is located near the ruined Norman keep, in fact, it stands on ground once occupied by the castle bailey some 800 yrs ago. The museum was constructed in 1834 by Lord Braybrooke for the collection then being assembled by the local natural history society. The displays focus on the geology, archaeology, ecology and history of the Saffron Walden area in particular. The town is also home to the Fry Public Art Gallery in Castle Street, which exhibits work produced by 20th century artists of distinction and achievement, who have lived in and around the town's locale.
On the western side of Saffron Walden stands the enormous bulk of Audley End House. Before its inception in the 17th century, the Mandeville family had founded a priory on the site in the mid 12th century; this structure remained until Henry VIII dissolved the monasteries between 1536-9 when it fell into disrepair. The land eventually passed to the Earl of Suffolk, the Lord Treasurer, who built Audley End House between 1603-16, on a scale much greater than the large mansion we see today. "Too large for a king, though it might do for a Lord Treasurer", said James I on visiting Audley End. Charles II took a fancy to it and bought the house in 1668, but was unable to secure enough cash to complete the transaction, so it reverted to the family in 1701. Parts of the enormous edifice were demolished to reduce it to manageable proportions, and its present size and conditions were determined by the 18th century refurbishment of Lord Braybrooke, who then owned it. Features of interest include the fine work of the architect Vanbrugh and of the famous interior designer Robert Adam; also, the vast and richly ornamented hall screen dated to 1605.
The Audley End grounds were landscaped by 'Capability' Brown in about 1763. The circular temple seen on the rise to the west beyond the road, and the three-arched bridge, both designed by Robert Adam, were essential features in Brown's overall plan. House, park and gardens are all open to the public.
Bridge End Gardens lie on the northern side of the town and have been considerably restored by the local council. Designed by Francis Gibson in the early 1800's, the gardens now contain wonderfully mature trees, forming a splendid backcloth for the impressive Dutch Garden. Lying at the eastern end of Walden Common is the largest turf maze in Britain, 100 ft in diameter. Those who patiently follow its twisting pathway will have walked a mile in distance - thought to be prehistoric in origin, the maze was probably used in some form of fertility rite to ensure a good harvest.