Tag Archives: Dorset
Shaftesbury and the Abbey Ruins
The entrance to the Abbey
The excavated foundations of the Abbey, once a Benedictine nunnery founded by King Alfred around 888AD and destroyed during the reign of Henry VIII in 1539. The Abbey ruins are enclosed by a walled garden. Continue reading
Littlebredy, Dorset
Littlebredy is, as its name suggests, a small village situated in the Bride valley between Bridport and Dorchester, with a population of just 85. It boasts a lovely little church…
Durdle Door/Corfe Castle
Another lovely day yesterday. Freezing cold but sunny…and dry! Couldn’t let that go to waste so we headed down into Dorset. First stop was Durdle Door, an iconic landmark on the Jurassic coast…heights are so not my thing..and this was high! So it was a quick click and back to my comfort zone = way back 😀
I zoomed in for the next shot and didn’t realise until I uploaded the photos I’d actually caught someone ‘tombstoning’ – a very scary craze that’s been going on for years. I don’t know how far he jumped. I had noticed a couple of people in the water but didn’t realise that’s what they were doing.
Just a couple of random shots of the surrounding cliffs..
Next stop was Corfe Castle, standing above Corfe village on the Isle of Purbeck. The original castle was built by Alfred the Great in the 870s. The Norman castle was begun in 1090 by William the Conqueror and partially demolished by the Parliamentarians in 1646.
Lyme Regis ~ Dorset
Taking advantage of the lovely sunny, crisp and perfect November day on the beautiful Jurassic Coast…
Sherborne Abbey, Dorset
We visited here again today. The Abbey was founded in the year 705 AD by Aldhelm, the then Abbot of Malmesbury 
and is a gloriously Gothic structure which has been added on to over the years. In it’s lifetime it’s been a Saxon Cathedral, a Benedictine Abbey and now is a Parish Church. The Abbey as it is today was mostly the work of an Abbot named Ramsam (1475-1504)
I don’t think you have to be a ‘religious’ person (I’m not) to appreciate such buildings, it’s an amazing feat of architecture that can just be admired as such.
Simon Jenkins, who wrote a book about England’s greatest churches said he would…
pit Sherborne’s roof against any contemporary work of the Italian Renaissance
The vaulted ceiling is incredibly intricate and the stained glass is beautiful…
This is a view of the main altar and the detail on the stonework
A further away view of the altar and the unbelievable organ
Clicking on the photos will give you a bigger image
All photos ©CathyRyan
