Chronicles of the Reigns of Edward I and II Volume 2

The Chronicles of the Reigns of Edward I and Edward II, Volume 2, comprising A Sorrowful Commendation on King Edward, the Life of Edward II by a Monk of Bridlington, Life of Edward II by a Monk of Malmesbury and Life of Edward by Thomas de la More, presents a rich collection of medieval English chronicles illuminating the political, military, ecclesiastical and social upheavals of the late thirteenth and early fourteenth centuries. The volume offers contemporary and near-contemporary accounts of the reigns of Edward I and Edward II, a period marked by war with Scotland, conflict between Crown and nobility, disputes over royal government, ecclesiastical tensions, rebellion, deposition and civil violence. Particular attention is given to the struggle surrounding Piers Gaveston, Thomas of Lancaster and the Despensers, as well as the turbulent final years of Edward II and the political circumstances that shaped the early reign of Edward III. These chronicles are especially valuable for their vivid narrative detail. They preserve speeches, political arguments, descriptions of battles and executions, accounts of parliaments and royal councils, reports of diplomatic missions, ecclesiastical controversies, prodigies and natural events, and contemporary judgements on the conduct of kings, magnates and churchmen. Written from differing institutional and regional perspectives, the texts reveal not only what happened but how medieval observers interpreted events, often through ideas of divine judgement, legitimate kingship, loyalty, treason and moral retribution. An important primary-source collection for readers interested in Edward I, Edward II, medieval politics, the Scottish wars, the baronial opposition, the fall of Edward II, church history and fourteenth-century England, Volume 2 provides an indispensable window into one of the most turbulent periods of the English Middle Ages.

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VI Folklore Berkshire Brecknockshire Gloucestershire Herefordshire Monmouthshire Oxfordshire Warwickshire Wiltshire Section 4.5 Monmouthshire

Long Barrows of the Cotswolds

Long Barrows of the Cotswolds is in Prehistory.

The Long Barrows of the Cotswolds. A Description of Long Barrows, Stone Circles and other Megalithic Remains in the area covered by Sheet 8 of the Quarter-inch Ordnance Survey comprising the Cotswolds and the Welsh Marches By O. G. S. Crawford [aged 38], B.A., F.S.A. Archæology Officer, Ordnance Survey. Published by John Bellows, Gloucester, 1925.

Section 4 Mound, Standing Stones and Other Objects

Section 4.5 Monmouthshire

Section 4.5 Trellech Harold's Stones

Harold's Stones, Trellech [Map]

Monmouthshire, 20 N.E. Parish of Trelleck. 114.

Latitude 51° 44' 32". Longitude 2° 43' 31". Height above O.D. about 670 feet.

Mr. J. G. Wood, M.A., F.S.A., points out that these three stones cannot possibly be the remains of a circle, as suggested by Mrs. Bagnal-Oakeley, since the diameter would be 672 feet, far greater than that of the Keswick Circle, and quite impossible here on account of the nature of the ground. With reference to the name "Harold's Stones" Mr. Wood remarks:— "A stone such as these was called Har-stan, which means old or hoary. Hence Dr. Grifiin (that first class guesser) probably invented 'Harold's Stones.'"

A plan (reproduced here) elevation and sketch of the stones is amongst the Lukis MSS. in the Lukis Museum, Guernsey. From these it appears that they are oriented in a direction 72 degrees E. of true north. The S.W. stone leans considerably and is eleven feet high. The middle stone is 9 ft. 11 ins. high. The N.E. stone is 8 ft. 3 ins. high. The original drawing is by Sir Henry Dryden, and is dated July 6th, 1841, There are also two copies. The purpose of these short alignments of huge uprights is obscure. Comparisons are suggested with the "Five Kings," near Rothbury, Northumberland, and the "Devil's Arrows" near Boroughbridge, Yorks.

Rude Stone Monuments in Monmouthshire, by M. E. Bagnall-Oakeley, 1889, pp. 13-15. Plates V. (view) and VI. (plan),

Lukis Collection (MSS), Lukis Museum, Guernsey.

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