In Search of George and The Dragon
IN SEARCH OF GEORGE AND THE DRAGON
With the Summer still here, walking in and around the Vale is as popular as ever. Whilst Valeways walks celebrate a 25th anniversary this year, the Visit the Vale website also provides details of a host of other opportunities to get out an enjoy the area. With the Vale steeped in history it is perhaps no surprise to learn that you can indulge your interest in the past by joining one of the Glamorgan History Walks, which also has a dedicated website.
Glamorgan History Walks are an award-winning immersive history and storytelling experience taking in sites and places of significance across the Vale and beyond. All walks are circular (so you finish at the same point you start) and nearly always end at a fantastic old pub. At each location, the history and stories of the places visited are brought to life through storytelling, history discussion and even on occasion, through song and character performance. All walks are organised and hosted by historian, author and broadcaster; Graham Loveluck-Edwards. With tickets priced at £10, this month Vale walks are planned around St Athan (3rd July at 6pm. 3.9 miles /2 hours), Monknash and St Donats (19th July at 10am. 6.8 miles/4 hours), Llantwit Major (24th July at 6pm. 3 miles/2 hours) and Dinas Powys (26th July at 9am. 5.5 miles/3 hours).
Fast forward to August 14th and there is a fascinating walk taking in the area in and around Llancarfan. This 4-mile, 3-hour walk beginning at 6pm, takes in the amazing 15th century wall paintings discovered at St Cadoc’s Parish Church in 2007. During repairs to roof timbers at St Cadoc’s in 2007, the architect suspected something exciting was hidden below the whitewashed walls. Expert uncovering and conservation by Jane Rutherford and Anne Ballantyne, beginning in 2010, revealed remarkable wall paintings hidden for 450 years. Now if you visit the church, you will be rewarded by the sight of stunning paintings centred around a depiction of George and the Dragon. The image of St. George appears to be the largest wall painting of this subject in Britain. A representation of the ‘Seven Deadly Sins’ is equally spectacular. Both were amongst the most popular subjects in Britain’s medieval churches but there are few to compare with those at Llancarfan. With most parishioners illiterate and few printed books unless they were written in Latin or French, wall paintings assisted the parish priest in the telling of Bible stories, the lives of the saints and the moral teachings of Christianity. They became known as the Biblia Pauperum, or the Poor Man’s Bible.
Research indicates that the paintings date from between 1455 and 1485, the period of the Wars of the Roses. However, during the Reformation, they were subjected to the same fate as other wall paintings in ecclesiastical buildings throughout England and Wales: in 1547, the first year of the boy king Edward VI’s reign, an order was given for the ‘obliteration and destruction of popish and superstitious books and images and St. Cadoc’s paintings would have been duly obliterated with limewash. Over subsequent centuries, the church was re-limewashed at least twenty times, a fact which only serves to indicate the skill and patience of the experts who recovered them.
Travelling a little further afield then other July walks planned include historic Cardiff, historic Llantrisant and Kenfig and Sker. You can find out more online: grahamloveluckedwards.com/ You can also find self-guided walks of the capital city on the website https://touristwalks.co.uk/cardiff-city/ These include walks in the city centre, the Bay and one based on Cardiff pubs. An App with walking summaries is free, though there are charges for additional audio/audio visual presentations.