The gough Map
The Gough Map is a map of England, Wales and Scotland that was donated to the Bodelian Library in Oxford by Richard Gough in 1809.
It's the first known, detailed map of Great Britain, and although the name of its creator is lost in the mists of time, experts have suggested it was made sometime between 1300 and 1400AD.
It's not like a modern map, with north at the top. Here you see the country lying on its side, facing east. The major features of the south of England and Wales are fairly accurate, but it gets progressively less accurate the further north you go, with Scotland just a rough sketch.
My personal theory about the Gough Map is that it's likely to have been drawn in a religious establishment such as an Abbey or Monastery. They were one of the few places that had the skills of writing and artwork at that time. Another clue is that the map faces east; most churches face east and if that was the orientation that the map-maker was used to, then that's how they would have drawn it.
The map also features religious establishments prominently.
I suspect that whoever drew the map hadn't travelled themselves, but rather spoke to people who had travelled and asked them to describe where they had been and how places related to each other. This adds to the religious establishment theory, as there would have been pilgrims and travellers visiting on a regular basis.
When you look more closely at the map, the relevance to The North Wessex Way starts to become clear.
As you zoom in on the area between Oxford and Bristol, you can start to see some of the detail that the mediaeval map-makers drew. The dominant geographical features are the rivers, with the Thames and the Bristol Avon clearly marked. The key towns (with the labels showing the modern names) are also marked on the map.
On this section of map, you can see three red lines:
- To the left is a line that follows the route of what is today the A40 from Oxford to Gloucester.
- On the right is, the red line follows the route of the A4 from Reading, through Marlborough to Bristol
- In the centre, the red line follows the route of the North Wessex Way, from Oxford, through Faringdon and Malmesbury and then on to Bristol.
This means that the North Wessex Way was seen as a significant route back in the 14th Century.
Malmesbury Abbey
Renowned local historian, Tony McAleavy, who has written the definitive book on the history of Malmesbury Abbey, pointed out that this was the only contemporary illustration he's seen of the Abbey with its Spire.
The spire, which was taller than that of Salisbury Cathedral, is said to have collapsed in a storm in about 1500AD.
The Gough Map online
If you'd like to explore the Gough Map for yourself, there is a digital version that you can visit here.
You are able to search the map by putting in place names, though there is an element of trial and error to see if the place you are interested in is actually shown on the map.