Ralegh's Cross
A Scheduled Monument in Clatworthy, Somerset
Latitude: 51.101 / 51°6'3"N
Longitude: -3.3741 / 3°22'26"W
OS Eastings: 303885.673649
OS Northings: 134414.957983
OS Grid: ST038344
Mapcode National: GBR LN.BYWY
Mapcode Global: VH6H1.GLMC
Entry Name: Ralegh's Cross
Scheduled Date: 24 July 2002
Civil Parish: Clatworthy
Traditional County: Somerset
Lieutenancy Area (Ceremonial County): Somerset
The monument includes the remains of Ralegh's Cross, a medieval cross
which is located in the grounds of the Ralegh's Cross Hotel and which
marks the course of the parish boundary between Nettlecombe and Clatworthy
in the Brendon Hills.
The remains of the original cross structure include a Red Sandstone base
approximately 0.95 sq m and 0.3m high into which is set the remaining
stump of a square shaft 0.7m in height. The cross is believed to have been
erected during the reign of Edward I (1272-1307) to mark the boundary of
the manor, which belonged to the Raleghs of Nettlecombe.
The cross is Listed Grade II*.
All modern fencing and fence posts are excluded from the scheduling, where
they fall within the cross's 1m protective margin, although the ground
beneath these features is included.
A standing cross is a free standing upright structure, usually of stone,
mostly erected during the medieval period (mid 10th to mid 16th centuries AD).
Standing crosses served a variety of functions. In churchyards they served as
stations for outdoor processions, particularly in the observance of Palm
Sunday. Elsewhere, standing crosses were used within settlements as places for
preaching, public proclamation and penance, as well as defining rights of
sanctuary. Standing crosses were also employed to mark boundaries between
parishes, property, or settlements. A few crosses were erected to commemorate
battles. Some crosses were linked to particular saints, whose support and
protection their presence would have helped to invoke. Crosses in market
places may have helped to validate transactions. After the Reformation, some
crosses continued in use as foci for municipal or borough ceremonies, for
example as places for official proclamations and announcements; some were the
scenes of games or recreational activity.
Standing crosses were distributed throughout England and are thought to have
numbered in excess of 12,000. However, their survival since the Reformation
has been variable, being much affected by local conditions, attitudes and
religious sentiment. In particular, many cross-heads were destroyed by
iconoclasts during the 16th and 17th centuries. Less than 2,000 medieval
standing crosses, with or without cross-heads, are now thought to exist. The
oldest and most basic form of standing cross is the monolith, a stone shaft
often set directly in the ground without a base. The most common form is the
stepped cross, in which the shaft is set in a socket stone and raised upon a
flight of steps; this type of cross remained current from the 11th to 12th
centuries until after the Reformation. Where the cross-head survives it may
take a variety of forms, from a lantern-like structure to a crucifix; the more
elaborate examples date from the 15th century. Much less common than stepped
crosses are spire-shaped crosses, often composed of three or four receding
stages with elaborate architectural decoration and/or sculptured figures; the
most famous of these include the Eleanor crosses, erected by Edward I at the
stopping places of the funeral cortege of his wife, who died in 1290. Also
uncommon are the preaching crosses which were built in public places from the
13th century, typically in the cemeteries of religious communities and
cathedrals, market places and wide thoroughfares; they include a stepped base,
buttresses supporting a vaulted canopy, in turn carrying either a shaft and
head or a pinnacled spire. Standing crosses contribute significantly to our
understanding of medieval customs, both secular and religious, and to our
knowledge of medieval parishes and settlement patterns. All crosses which
survive as standing monuments, especially those which stand in or near their
original location, are considered worthy of protection.
Despite being incomplete and not in its original position, having been
re-sited approximately 50m south of its former setting in around 1800,
Ralegh's Cross represents a manorial boundary cross, one of only a few to
survive. It continues to mark an important road junction and parish
boundary along the route of the ridgeway which extends through the Brendon
Pooley, C, Old Stone Crosses of Somerset, (1877), 62
World War II pillbox 100m west of Ralegh's Cross Hotel
Clatworthy
Bowl barrow 260m north east of Ralegh's Cross Hotel
Tripp round barrow north west of Tripp Farm
Huish Champflower Barrow
Huish Champflower
The Incline, lying between Brendon Hill and Comberow, and the remains of Combe Row Station
Old Cleeve
Raleigh's Cross iron mine, 310m south east of Heather House
Carnarvon New Pit iron mine and section of mineral railway trackbed, 300m south west of Heather Hous
Bowl barrow 700m north east of Burrow Farm
Treborough