The Cross itself has already been described, but the Abbey Gateway is merely some three hundred years old. On either side are the usual "one man lock-ups" for drunks and disorderlies, found in Wiltshire towns. The door on one side is genuine but the other was restored recently.
The present cafe next door is the oldest house left in Malmesbury and was part of the Hospitium where poor travellers were entertained for the night. Inside the ancient building there is a holy "stoup" inside which the original "Apostle Spoon" was found many years ago. The writer, and many old Malmesburians, have seen this but the premises have changed hands so many times and so many structural alterations have been made, that when we tried to find where it was recently we failed, much to the dismay of the present owner who knew of its existence and would have been delighted to have exhibited it. Another example of lack of care in preserving objects of great interest-it is probably now hidden for ever, behind some modern brickwork, unless some happy chance re-discovers it.
If one turns left towards the cinema there are two houses of interest before coming to the entrance to the great house, called Abbey House. "St. Michaels" facing is dated 1796 and is on the site of St. Michael's Chapel. On either side of the front door of this house are two stones, a carved head and a Saxon cross. These are the sole existing remains of the Saxon castle of Brokenborough. The old Brewery House on the right is dated 1672. The old stocks and whipping post stood by the Cross in the old days.
The Abbey House itself, is the last remaining house of grandour left. It is still a private residence. The best view of it is from the Abbey Church grounds in the Memorial Garden. The greater part is 16th century and was built by Stumpe on the site of what was the Abbot's private house. The base, however, is pure Norman, and the view from the back down by the river shows the old Norman structure. There are some fine vaulted cellars and windows on the ground level behind. The gardens are laid out to show the main outline of the East end of the Nave, the High Altar and Lady Chapel, and the vegetable garden still marks out the site of the Cloisters. The grounds and house are opened on especial occasions.
If one turns down the short street called Oxford Street, one passes two interesting places. What is now the modern front of Lockstone's shop conceals the remains of the old Manor House of Malmesbury. This contains a fine staircase and some beautiful windows. Lockstones, the grocers, bought the Manor House in 1808 from Lord Carisbroke and have been there since.
Almost opposite is a fine example of a Guildhall of the 16th century. The structure and roof are interesting.
Facing the end of this road is "Tower House," the home of Dr. Pym. This has already been described in previous chapters, but this has been the official "Guest House" of the town, and has entertained Henry VIII and Charles I, and has even been the Poor Law Institution in its day. From State Banquets to skilly, in fact. In the garage, there is a fine roofing which was continued through-out the houses running towards the main square, or Cross Hayes.
Cross Hayes, the name is Saxon, has been the open space and market for this town since time immemorial. The weekly market was held here until a few years ago when it moved to its present position by the railway at the other end of the town. There are three houses of historic interest. Cross Hayes House, where the Roman Catholic nuns live and Nos. 30 and 32. The lay-out of the little streets behind the square show the usual plan of mediaeval towns, in square formation, and one passes down Silver Street. (N.B. There is always a Silver Street in towns of this age, and always near the Market place, their use was obvious). Then towards the gentle slope called "Back Hill." This ends in steps down to the river, but notice the beautiful Culver House on the right.
A better view will be seen from the bottom by the small bridge called Goose Bridge. Culver House, itself is a tall three-storey building, with gables and mullioned windows. It originally housed the servants of the Manor House and derived its name from the "Culver House," or pigeon cote, which was the perogative of the Lords of the Manor who reserved the sole right to keep pigeons and doves.
The original cote has long since vanished, but there is one at Foxley Manor, about two miles from Malmesbury in the Bristol direction. This building, now of no great size or importance, is one of the most beautiful sights of Malmesbury when entering the town from the Chippenham and Swindon direction. It stands up like a flag on the high eminence of the town and gives it an almost continental aspect.
During the Commonwealth this house was the residence of the Military Governor and in later days the office of High Steward, "Dr." Edmund Wilkins, about whom I have written much. He used to give large parties here in the "Rotten Borough" days to the Old Corporation when the house was much bigger than it is now and had a large dining hall, (it is now divided into several parts), but in those days it had not only the present entrance, but also an important main entrance from the High Street, between nos. 72 and 74 on the brow of the Town Hill.
His "house-keeper," one Mrs. Dual, used to give dinners in the old English style with "roast beef, pork, boiled mutton, plum pudding and mince pies with plenty of strong ale, followed by dessert." Not of course, to mention the usual little gold "sweet-meats" usual at such dinners to valued friends and fellow members of the Old Corporation. There are some good stories of the drunken parties of those times, but it is impossible to retail them in this article.
When at river level, if one lookes over Goose Bridge towards the town, one notices the terraced appearance of the hillside beneath the walls of the town. Here were grown the vines for the Abbey, and the building beyond the new Bowling Green is still called Wynyards Mill, the name is obvious. This was one of the seven mills surrounding the town in the old days, but the present house is comparatively modern. The row of terraced buildings beyond are called Baskerville, where the basket-makers lived in those times.
If one retraces one's steps back along St. John's Street, we come to the old Court House lying back off the road, by the old Gas Works. I have described this fully in previous chapters but it can be visited by permission. The old Priory of St. John of Jerusalem is next door but this has also been described.
As one enters the main stream of traffic at the bottom of the town the gates of the War Memorial face you. Notice the large buildings called the "Silk Mills" on the left at the turn to go up the hill towards Chippenham. This is in two parts, the front portion being occupied by a firm of antique dealers and behind by the firm of Peter Saunders, well known to women for knitwear and woollen goods.
There is also a firm of iron-work makers, so all three represent in part the old use of this building as a Mill which has stood there since the Middle Ages. In turn it has been first corn, then cloth, then woollen and finally to silk, and it is still known locally as "the Silk Mills." Up to the beginning of the last war the Liberty Silks were made here, but conditions of labour were vastly different from my description of work there in the 19th century.
An interesting event took place here after the Crimean War. The poor troops were merely brought home to England and "dumped" to get home as best they could. It is on record that a Highland Regiment were disbanded and told to make their way home. They camped on the Worthies, a field near the Abbey, and many of the Mill local girls went to visit them, to see the wild Scots. It is said that "four of them left the town with the Scots and never returned home again."
I suggest that you enter the gates of the Memorial and wander round the outskirts of the town, through what was St. Aldhelm's Mead, which has been described in full. This gives a good picture of the town as it has always existed throughout the ages. The river surrounding, and the town walls protecting the town on its embankment. About 200 yards from entering the fields, now the town recreation ground, one can see a row of charming old 16th century buildings, called "Dual's Court." Apart from modern TV ariels, etc., this is much as it must have been when built.
Further on, after passing a charming modern Cotswold house, one comes to the famous Kings House. Contrary to "popular ideas" this has nothing to do with a King, not even King Athelstan who is the Malmesburians ideal of any royal personage. It was built by one Matthew King, a wealthy clothier who owned Postern Mill (now Linolite Factory) and was M.P. for Malmesbury in 1554, 55 and 57.
The end nearest the playing fields is therefore of 16th century origin and the other portion, with sash windows about 1700. The famous "King's Wall" built from the house along the ramparts of the old town was merely built by him to give him access to his Mill. The house contains some fine oak panelling and staircases, with pine ditto in the newer end. Both houses are however privately owned. An interesting comment on the coat of arms seen on the facade is that they are not "official." The smaller one is that of the old Borough, and the larger one a "fake" according to the College of Heralds.
The front was altered by a Mr. Thomas, who took over part of the existing house in the early 18th century and amongst other forms of business he acted as Town Clerk to the Old Corporation, which I have described in detail and of their wealth of those days. He did "most of the town affaires, and collected the taxes," so probably helped himself in those decadent days of the "Rotten Boroughs." The Malmesbury Borough Arms are therefore probably legitimate, but many years ago the author had a telephoto taken of the other arms with the above result from the College of Heralds. I strongly suspect that Mr. Thomas made them up.
At the top of this slope one enters the Kings Wall itself, and almost immediately one comes to a passageway on the right, known fondly as "The Tuppen'y Tube." but really still called Kings Walk, as distinct from Kings Wall, which leads one back to the High Street by the "Kings Arms Hotel." The observant might notice an old stone cannon ball built into the stone walls on the left, going up. What a mark old Mr. King made on the town's history.
