QUEST 31 CONT: “Even when we find the church doors closed all is not lost, for being in different parts of the country one is able to pick up on the different energies of the land; pick up on the ‘vibes’ as it were, the ‘lie of the land’, which certainly do change from area to area. Even when travelling around Europe as in Quest 28, going from country to country one can certainly feel the different energies and i am sure as we walk in Arthur’s footsteps he would have felt the same energies also, the energies that guided him to where he needed to be on his quest for the Grail, as they are indeed guiding us today”

“A SON LOST”

DAY FOUR: MONDAY 3RD AUGUST: ST EDWARDS CHURCH. EGGBUCKLAND PLYMOUTH. 

Eggbuckland is a suburb of the city of Plymouth in Devon, which before the second world war was a small village, a few miles north of Plymouth.  ‘Bocheland’ is of Saxon origin and means “Royal land held by charter”. The Domesday Book of 1086 recorded that this manor was held by King William of Normandy but was granted to the Saxon Heche or Ecca, thus the land was known as Heche or Ecca’s Bocheland. This was the site of a Saxon church which was replaced by the present church of St Edward in 1470. The village was held by the Royalist Cavaliers during the Civil War against the Parlimentarian Roundheads and was badly damaged. During the 19th century the area was host to new Palmerston Forts built as part of a northern defense line around Plymouth. Much of the structures remain but are privately owned and used for differing purposes.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eggbuckland

Sadly today the doors of St Edwards Church were shut, but it was early in the morning and early on in our quest so maybe all is not lost. It is thought that a church has stood on the current location since Saxon times and the present building dates from the fifteenth century (1420-30). Sir Walter Swyft, the church vicar from January 1349, is believed to have fallen victim to the Black Death, so only holding the vicariate for a short three months. There was only one bell in the church tower when first built, but others were installed in 1682 and 1768. These were melted down in 1882 and the metal used to cast the current peal of six. In 1653 the Plymouth Puritans wreaked revenge on Eggbuckland, destroying many religious artifacts and turning out the 80 year old vicar. A Governor was appointed in 1819 to administer the five Parish work houses situated at the north of the church. The pinnacles of the church were rebuilt in 1864 and the church was enlarged with the building of the north aisle and chancel. The clock was installed in 1901 in memory of Charles Turner who had been Vicar for 40 years. In 1906 the new church vestries were completed, including a new organ chamber and other improvements. 1914 saw the Consecration of the new church at Laira (St Mary the Virgin), replacing the Crabtree Mission Church (which had opened in November 1874). The new building was a daughter church of St Edward’s and stayed within the parish until 1931(when the city boundaries were redrawn).

A brief wander around the outside of St Edwards Church, Eggbuckland <click to enlarge>

http://www.eggbucklandhistory.co.uk/church.php

GRAIL BLOODLINE CONNECTION: 

  • Lord George Neville: Wrotham Kent 1659 (8 x GGF) ‘a son lost’

“INTO THE NIGHT”

ST MICHAEL’S CHURCH: BRENTNOR TAVISTOCK.

‘INTO THE NIGHT’

After a short journey following the route towards Dartmoor and driving up and up, we arrived as near as we could to the amazing St Michaels Church on top of Brent Tor, which from a distance looks as if it is going to be an epic climb! But fear not, for as we wound our way up onto the moors the road too climbed and climbed to offer a very walkable trek. Still quiet a walk, but steadably doable. Brent Tor is on the western edge of Dartmoor, approximately four miles (6.5 km) north of Tavistock, rising to 1100 ft (330m) above sea level. The Tor is surmounted by the Church of St Michael, the parish church of the village of Brentor, which lies below the Tor. Around the Tor are iron Age earthworks and the remnants of a Hill Fort. Unusually, the fortifications are at the base of the Tor, rather than the summit as is more normal. No serious archaeological work has been carried out on this sacred site upon the St Michael Ley Line, which maybe is a good thing….

Beautiful views climbing up to Brent Tor and from the summit <click to enlarge>

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brent_Tor

St Michaels Church is also known as  (St Michael of the Rock) and it has been likened to St Michaels on Glastonbury Tor and is a stunning example of a church on a height. There are magnificent views from the churchyard in clear weather, across Dartmoor, Plymouth Sound, Whitsand Bay, the Tamar Valley and Bodmin Moor and even the heights of Exmoor is just visible in clear weather. Even when the thick moorland fogs descend, this is an eerily beautiful place, as the wind whips shreds of cloud past the hill. The church stands 1,110 feet above sea level on an ancient, extinct, volcanic cone. It is an ancient site situated upon St Michaels Ley line and is a site of amazing and powerful energies.

Inside St Michaels Church the decor is very simple, yet simple in a very sacred way; we certainly felt the energies while we were there. The church is thirty-seven feet (11.3m) long, and fourteen feet six inches (4.4m) wide; it is the fourth smallest complete parish church in England. It consists of a nave, chancel (not developed), north porch, and a low, unbuttressed tower thirty two feet (9.8m) high, probably built in the fourteenth century and raised to its present height and embattled a century later. There are doorways in both north and south walls, which is unusual in so small a building, although the porch is slightly more recent. They are similar in design and are probably fourteenth century. The stunning stained glass window in the east wall depicts St. Michael holding the sword of and the scales of justice. This window was damaged in 2002, but has since been restored.

Inside the church and the stunning window dedicated to St Michael <click to view>

In 1995 the church was struck by lightning, and significant damage was done to the Tower. This was repaired, and four new lightning conductors installed to prevent future recurrence. The font is an octagonal granite basin standing on a pedestal of the same shape. The remains of the iron fastening for securing the cover may be seen in the rim of the bowl. In the Middle Ages fonts were ordered to be kept locked in case the hallowed water was stolen and used for black magic! The font is the only furnishing of the church that dates from before the restoration of 1890. There are five bells in the tower, two from the fourteenth or fifteenth century, one seventeenth and two from the early twentieth century; although all were re-cast in 1909. Two bear the medieval inscription Gallus vocor ego, solus per omne sono (I am called the cock, and I alone sound above all); and two “TPI Colling W Nichol H Davis Wardens 1668”. The heaviest of them only weighs six hundredweight (305kg). There is a stone sundial on the south side of the tower, one of the oldest in south Devon. At the top of the dial is a strange figure, half imp, half angel, wearing a flat cap and with outstretched wings. The name Walter Batten is at the foot of the dial, which is dated 1694.The churchyard has never been closed for burials, but owing to a lack of earth and the presence of rabbits it is considered by modern standards unsuitable as a burial ground. A granite path was made around the church in 1980 with the assistance of the Dartmoor National Park Authority.

GRAIL BLOODLINE CONNECTIONS:

  • Barron Edward Neville: Newton Somerset 1551 (11 x GGF) ‘into the night’

“OF PRECIOUS STONES”

ST LUKES CHURCH: TIDEFORD SALTASH.

After a lovely lunch we made our way to Tideford, a small village in east Cornwall which is is twinned with Plouguerneau in Brittany, France. Its name derives from its location on the River Tiddy, literally meaning “Ford on the River Tiddy”. Tideford is not listed in the Domesday Book but the earliest settlement is thought to have been around 1100AD. The bridge over the River Tiddy at the bottom of Bridge Road dates from the 14th century and this is the earliest surviving structure. Tideford grew in the eighteenth century as the nearby Port Eliot country estate built a number of houses in the village.

   

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tideford

St Luke’s Church was very sadly shut for us today, but we had a quick wander around, but access was difficult; we do try and make contact with those connected, but often to no avail. To be truthful there was not much outside that we could see, to take photos of apart from a general shot of the church and the separate bell tower. The Victorian church of St Luke was designed by renowned architect George Wightwick. The building was originally erected as a chapel-of-ease in St Germans parish and was consecrated on 31 July 1845, 175 years ago. It consists of nave and chancel and the east window with its nativity theme was given by a former incumbent, the Rev’d Edward Glanville in memory of his daughter. For safety reasons the bell cot which housed two bells was removed from the roof. To-day there is just one bell now at shoulder level by the south door. I did find by chance, a video on youtube of the church and it looked looked quite bare inside, the walls especially, so maybe over time it has lost its artifacts….

GRAIL BLOODLINE CONNECTIONS:

  • Barron William Neville: Wrotham 1701 (7 x GGF) ‘of precious stones’

“ON EASTERN SHORES THE LAND WAS”

TALLAND CHURCH: TALLAND BAY. LOO.

Travelling further into the rural countryside of Cornwall, the views were astounding and driving along the coast, over hill and down dale, our eyes were given a true feast. Many folks never see this side of England and rush towards other countries for their leisure but belive you me, there can be no more spectacular place on this planet than right under our feet here in England. There are beautiful walks around the area, which are part of the Cornish Celtic Way; a pilgrimage walk of 125 miles from St German to St Michael’s Mount, that passes right by the door of Talland Church. The path includes The Saints Way, St Michaels Way and 60 miles of the South-West Coastal Footpath, so sacred indeed with St Michaels Ley Line running through the site. Sadly though, yet again we found G-d’s doors well and truly closed, but the energies there were lovely, the views astounding from the cliff tops and most important some Craft pointers relating to our bloodines were discovered under the little porchway in the cut. Tal-Lan in the Cornish language means ‘Holy Place on the hill’

The stunning view from Talland Church, that overlooks Talland Bay and forms part of a 125 mile pilgrimage walk <click to view>

Set beside the South West Coast footpath, between Looe & Polperro, Talland Church is a place of peace & tranquility, the church as we see it today was not built to serve a large community but to maintain a holy site where the Christian faith had been established some 1500 years ago. The church is a grade 1 listed building located on the cliff-top at Talland near Looe, Cornwall, it is dedicated to St Tallanus and was built by Augustinian monks from Launceston. ‘Tal-Lan’ means holy place on a hill, in the Cornish and indeed it is, for the  altar of the present-day church is situated on the site of the original Celtic altar. The altar of the church is said to date from the time of Tallan and was built at the junction of ley lines. However, St Tallanus’s existence is disputed and the ley lines cannot be proved to exist either (some say). Yet to those of Craft and to those whom follow the old original teachings of the planet, know that the church is in fact built upon the St. Michael Ley Line, and also acknowledged are the geomagnetics of this planet (see all our quests so far) The church celebrated it’s 500th anniversary in 1990.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tallanus

St Talland Church on the cliff-top – the Cornish Celtic Way footpath goes right past the front door <click to enlarge>

The church celebrated its 500th anniversary in 1990. Part of the nave and the first stage of the tower probably remain from a 13th-century church: the remainder must be late 15th century and is in typical Cornish Perpendicular style. Unusually it has a detached bell-tower on the south side which was only joined to the main body of the church in the 15th century. Looking on the internet there are some interesting sculptures and carvings in the church, so such a shame it was locked.

Hidden within the beams of the porchway under the cut, are symbols relating to our quest and bloodlines <click to view>

Snuggling up close to the windows i was able to get some interia shots of the church thanks to the wonders of digital photography!

<click to expand>

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Tallanus%27_Church,_Talland

GRAIL BLOODLINE CONNECTIONS:

  • Barron Edward Neville: 1551 Newton Somerset (11 x GGF) ‘on Eastern shore the land was’

All journeys and travelling should be fun and all part of the experience and our journeys certainly are always loads of fun! We rounded off this day of knowledge and enjoyment with time spent at the historic fishing village of Polperro before continuing back to Plymouth for the night. Tomorow we travel to St Austell, Padstow and Bodmin.

 

‘The Keeper of Scrolls’ September 2020

‘moon.willow@ntlworld.com’