Today, the drive from Ross on Wye, through Monmouth, to Chepstow, along the banks of the River Wye, takes under an hour. It is hard to believe that, over 250 years ago, this was the route now often labelled “Britain’s first package holiday”.
19th Century Watercolour Artists Flocked to the Wye Valley
The tours were started around 1740 by local vicar, John Egerton, taking friends on a two day cruise down the Wye from Ross to Chepstow, with an overnight stop in Monmouth. By 1770, regular trips were taking fare paying passengers, for the not insignificant sum of 3 guineas each, and the popularity of the tour was increased in 1783 when another local vicar, William Gilpin, publish a book entitled Observations on the River Wye, and several parts of South Wales etc Relative Chiefly to Picturesque Beauty: Made in the Summer of the Year 1770.
Among those visiting the area were a number of prominent watercolour artists including Turner, Paul Sandby, Michael ‘Angelo’ Rooker, Thomas Hearne, Edward Dayes, John & Cornelius Varley, Samuel Palmer, David Cox and Joshua Cristall. The Wye Valley inspired them to produce a wealth of material, which is now owned by various museums across the country.
70 Scenes on Display at Chepstow Museum
Until 5th September, there is a unique opportunity to see over 70 local watercolour scenes back in the Wye Valley, on display at Chepstow Museum. The exhibition is curated by eminent playwright Julian Mitchell and includes works loaned by The British Museum, The Tate, The Victoria and Albert and the Whitworth Art Gallery in Manchester.
The area is one of unspoilt beauty and many of the scenes on display are largely unchanged two centuries later. From the keep at 12th century Goodrich Castle, painted by William Turner of Oxford, to Paul Sandby’s portrayal of Chepstow Castle there are instantly recognisable views to be seen. Every major landmark along the river has been captured; Thomas Hearn visited Symonds Yat, a rock towering 120 metres above the river, with views over the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, Herefordshire and Monmouthshire and David Cox visited Wyndcliffe on the Wye in 1831.
See JMW Turner's Painting of Tintern Abbey
Perhaps the best known landmark on the Wye is Tintern Abbey, a ruined Cistercian monastery on the Welsh side of the border north of Chepstow. In 1794, JMW Turner visited the abbey and his work The Chancel and Crossing of Tintern Abbey, Looking towards the East Window, usually on display at the Tate in London is one of the centrepieces of the display.
Chepstow is best known for its castle and its racecourse, but, for the next few weeks, lovers of British watercolours may wish visit the Chepstow Museum.
Image Credits
All images shown are copyright and reproduced with the kind permission of the copyright holder.
John Oyston - I am a freelance travel writer, accountant and further education teacher. I have spent a lifetime travelling across the UK, Western Europe ...
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