We went for a tramp along the Edge Wood at midday yesterday. It’s three fields up from our back garden and quite a haul to reach it. Once there, a breather is definitely called for, and so it’s a good moment to stop and look at the old Ironbridge Power Station cooling towers.
Some find them ugly, but I like them. They are true landmarks – geologically and historically speaking. They stand on the banks of the River Severn, England’s longest river, which rises in the Welsh uplands and descends through the Midlands to the Bristol Channel. The towers stand on a piece of landscape – the Severn Gorge – which was only created 15,000 years ago – a mere nano-second past in Earth History Time.
But the thing that most fascinates me is that the River Severn, presently running south past the towers, once flowed north, so meeting the sea on the coast between North Wales and Chester. This remarkable change of direction is all down to the last Ice Age and the fact that the land was glacier-locked as far south as Shrewsbury, our county town. The Severn’s northern outlet thus became blocked by ice, and so the river backed up, forming a great lake (Lapworth) as the water lay trapped between the ice sheet, and the limestone ridge of Wenlock Edge.
Little by little, as the Ice Age drew to a close, the river wheedled its way through the northerly end of Wenlock Edge and carved a new course, cutting through, and so exposing the Industrial Revolution-making strata of coal, ironstone, fire clay, and limestone. And as I’ve said in other posts, this part of Shropshire lays claim to being ‘the cradle of the Industrial Revolution’, though crucible might be a better metaphor, given the emphasis on iron production.
However, the 18th century pioneering ironmasters of the Severn Gorge were not the first to take advantage of the local geology. Nearly two millennia earlier the Romans were already exploiting these resources. Their military camp of Viroconium (Wroxeter) lay just to the north of the Gorge and, once the locals were suitably subdued, so the camp transformed into a great city, one of the four largest in Britain. There is evidence of glass making and iron working in the area, and local clays would have served for brick and tile production. In fact one of the brick-built basilica walls still rises impressively above the surrounding farmland, a surprising survival when so much of the city fabric was recycled through succeeding centuries.
Back in the Gorge, and many centuries after the end of Roman rule, the mediaeval monks of Buildwas Abbey and Much Wenlock Priory were also busy making use of local natural resources on an industrial scale. They had mines, decorative tile works, iron-making forges and bloomeries. They also had a thriving export business along the River Severn. There’s a record from around 1200 that states that the Prior of Buildwas was fined because twelve of his barges were blocking the river downstream at Bridgnorth. Probably not your usual vision of what monastic enterprises got up to.
Given so much entrepreneurial and manufacturing business afoot in the Gorge AND a navigable river with access to the great port of Bristol, it is not surprising that when the monasteries were dissolved in 1540, and their properties distributed to the king’s friends and favourites, that the place should attract a rash of opportunistic London merchants, lawyers and aristocrats, all out to get rich and exploit the former monastic concerns for themselves. Soap making, cold tar exploitation, coal mining, iron production, steel-making experiments were being conducted by very unlikely people of the well-heeled sort across south-east Shropshire.
Such industrial fervour was further stoked by Queen Elizabeth I (1533-1603) who offered a prize for anyone who could find a way to smelt decent iron using coal instead of charcoal. The loss of the nation’s great trees, needed for naval purposes and the protection of the realm, was causing the monarch much concern. The prize, however, was to remain unclaimed. It would be a good century later before Abraham Darby arrived in the Gorge and, after remodelling a former monastic iron works in Coalbrookdale, perfected the much sought-after technique.
His discovery helped shape the world we occupy today. See what geology has to answer for.
And here’s some more of quite another sort: the Wrekin. We have the best view of it on our homeward path back down into Wenlock.
The plain to the left of the hill was the location of the glacial Lake Lapworth. The Roman city was in that vicinity too. The Severn Gorge is off-screen to the right of the Wrekin.
I’ve written about the Wrekin’s mythological and geological origins HERE, but I may not have mentioned there that it has an Iron Age hillfort on the top. This was a stronghold of the Celtic Cornovii i.e. those who were duly subdued and citified by the invading Romans. Under Roman rule Viroconium became the Cornovii regional capital, which they continued to occupy until the late 600s – 700 C.E. when the site was abandoned.
We were always told at school that Viroconium’s last days were due to Saxons or Vikings marauding up the River Severn, but there is no sign that the exit from the city was anything but peaceful. I remember working on the excavation of the presumed road-of-retreat long ago as an archaeology student. I have to say that at the time I wasn’t altogether convinced by the site director’s interpretation of the remains that we were uncovering. At least it made me consider that much depends on the way you excavate a site. This site was being stripped across a whole field, rather than being investigated through the judicious placing of exploratory trenches. It seemed to me that certain trowelling techniques, as applied by willing and enthusiastic novices, might be responsible for creating features that aren’t actually there at all. An interesting thought on how the past might be re-created and invented.
And now just to prove how cold it was on our ramble, and not just gloriously, and so unexpectedly sunny: next some ICE, a phenomenon not witnessed in these parts for several seasons. Which brings me back to the start of this yarn, but hopefully not to the start of a new Ice Age as long predicted by certain climatologists. There have been enough tangents along our path already.
copyright 2016 Tish Farrell
Jo’s Monday Walk Please take a turn in this quarter for another fabulous ramble with Jo in the Algarve.
Tish Farrell 
Woo hoo! I go bananas (or ape 🙂 ) when I see a Tish link in my Inbox. What a fantastic romp through history this is. Including that fascinating fact about Liz I 🙂 🙂 My husband worked in the local Power station and in the steel industry before that. Whenever we pass Pontefract I look at the cooling towers with mock horror, but I’m slowly warming to them. Do you watch Time Team, or is there no room for TV in your busy life? (I’m just pursuing links-my husband is a fan of the programme and I ‘half watch’ but I don’t like bones and skeletons. Not a match made in Heaven 🙂 ) Thanks so much, Tish. I always enjoy one of your yarns. And I love a bit of ice to scrunch under foot. Not too much though!
Ice-scrunching is good, especially if the sun is shining, and yes I’ve been lured into Time-Team watching by Graham – on YouTube tho as we don’t have a TV. I’m now thinking of you going ape-bananas when I appear in your in-box. It sounds a bit painful, but how very nice of you to be so happy to see me. Lovely you!
🙂 🙂
Wonderful post. The Wrekin picture is awesome and I enjoyed reading about the history of the area.
Kind words, GC. Thank you so much for coming on this ramble. The more the merrier 🙂
What a fascinating post…I will never cross the Severn again and see it in the same light….Thank you so much. As for the ice, yes indeed it has been most unusually cold for us. Excellent images as always…janet.
It’s amazing isn’t it re. the Severn. I mean it’s such a BIG river to be changing its course 🙂
This information completely blew me away!…..Mother Nature is truly amazing. Have a lovely day and weekend ahead. Looks like another clear one this end…Janet:)
Yes, bright and frosty again this a.m. A v. good rest of week to you too, Janet.
I, too, enjoy the history and I’m a big fan of the Romans (at least in many ways.) Makes me want to get my Rosemary Sutcliff books out and start re-reading, which I just might to. Her “young adult” books are just great as are her adult books, but not “adult” in the common parlance of these days. Your title got me thinking about one of my favorite children’s Christmas books, Rumer Godden’s “Holly and Ivy.” I used to read that to the girls every Christmas and maybe I shall again this year, even though they’re in their late 20’s. I’ll at least read it myself.
I’ve gone far afield, so to speak, from your post, which I did enjoy. But that’s part of the fun of blogging. Hope you’re having a marvelous day.
janet
You’ve reminded me of Rosemary Sutcliffe’s books. I haven’t read them for years. Time for a reprise. And as for ‘Holly and Ivy’ it would good to read it for yourself, though lovelier if the girls were there too 🙂
Sutcliff’s books are a great way to learn about Roman Britain and just a pleasure. Of course, her Arthur book “Sword at Sunset” is one of my favorites. She was quite prolific, as this link to her books shows: https://rosemarysutcliff.com/latest-summary-bibliography-list-of-books-by-rosemary-sutcliff/. I’ve always like Rumer Godden’s books. Have you read her autobiography, two books, and/or her autobiography (a partial one) with her sister Jon? What a life they had!
I will look into Rumer Godden. I’ve not read very much of her work. Thanks for adding to my reading list, Janet 🙂
Great history Tish and I for one like the towers, they’re handsome and add to the landscape.
I’m glad you think that too.
Thanks for a most informative post, Tish…I’ll leave the Ape-bananas to Jo, but I do like to see your posts plop into my inbox!
And that’s lovely of you too 🙂
Well, thank you, Tish
Another interesting post. I like the photos of the brooding cooling towers and the contrast with the one of the ice. An odd juxtapositioning symbolic of climate change perhaps.
Yes. All sorts of contradictions – with me and the landscape 🙂
Your writing reflects that. You bring a depth to your observations of the landscape that is quite compelling reading.
That’s a very touching comment, Suzanne. Thank you. I am feeling compelled myself by the landscape. Not sure what’s going on. It’s like unravelling a great mystery – us and the earth; the earth before us.
aha – indeed it is. I feel the same pull to experience the land down here. I thought I was going to move back to the city but the land called out to me and I just couldn’t do it. Instead I moved 25 k to another town. 🙂
As always, thank you for sharing your walk and your knowledge Tish. I learn so much from your posts and in such an enjoyable way!
You are an excellent walking companion 🙂
🙂 thanks Tish.
All new information for me and really interesting. Kind of similar to the history of this valley … except taking place an ocean away and a few thousand years earlier.
I think it’s fascinating how our human stories/sets of circumstances are replicated across the globe. River valleys are potent places.
I’m also a fan of your posts, but you already know that 🙂 I do hope they don’t pull down those towers. I was immensely saddened when the Tinsley towers nr Sheffield were blown up in 2008. They were a sign to me travelling up the M1 that I was back in my northern homeland, Yorkshire.
And your comments are v. much appreciated, Jude. It’s always nice to know that you are moving in my orbit. And vice versa when I call in at your place. As to the towers, landmarks are important things. Often we’re not wholly aware that this is so. Things to think by. Things to give us directions – actual and metaphorical. Hm. This sounds like a topic for a new post – a signpost in fact 🙂
Fascinating post, Tish. Love the history, and the photos. Thank you!
Thank you, Jennie.
You are welcome.
Another ripper of a post. You navigate so easily through landscape, history, geology and archaeology and give us a smooth and scenic sail though what could easily be (but not in your hands) a turgid catalogue of facts. You make me realise the layers that underlie any landscape and show how one might bring together, say, the geology, Aboriginal history, invader history of my world around Potatao Point. But you also show how such a feat requires deep knowledge, not just surface skimming.
Layers are good. Your comment is reminding me of a book I think you would like set in US tornedo belt. The writer who is tri-racial takes a square mile of the tall grass prairie and then unravels the doings there of residents past and present. It’s called ‘PrairyErth’ by William Least Heat-Moon, and is a very big book. Here he is in a youtube clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y7xQQGdrMb0
And now you have the makings of your own possible enterprise telling the story of Potato Point. You MUST do it.
A most interesting post, Tish. One that I really enjoyed. As was just mentioned, you peel back the layers of the locale and give us a more rounded view of area’s history. Always very engaging. Your opening photo is a good one, too. The eye is drawn first to the holly’s berries before drifting off to the distance and the power station’s towers. You situated yourself perfectly for the juxtaposition.
Thank you for all those most appreciative comments, John. Wishing you a good week.