Churches of Clodock

• St. Clydog Church - Clodock

  The village of Clodoch stands on the Munnow river near the Black Mountains and is roughtly 15 miles from Hereford.

   

  

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

  St. Clydog church dates from the 12^th century, and is dedicated to St. Clydawg, King of Ewias who was martyred about 500AD over whose tomb the church was built. .   It has a large 15^th century tower which was not only used as a bell tower but also as a defence against the marauding Welsh.

   

  Restoration of St. Clydog church

  In 1919 the church was re-opened on 10th December by the Bishop of Hereford.

  The Bishop said that preserving churches such as this was of national importance as they stood as a witness of the centuries.

  There had been many previous restorations, starting with one during the Norman period and the 1919 restoration was long overdue as the church was in an appalling state, with half the seats broken and the flooring in a dangerous condition.  Many of the windows were broken and the heating was non existent.

  A restoration fund was opened, and it was hoped that the work would come to no more than £1000, but the estimate was soon increased and the bells scheme had to be shelved altogether.

  However, although in 1919 some work still needed to be done, the congregation at the re-opening loved not only the beautiful setting, but also the old oak pews;  the decker pulpit;  the Jacobean communion table;  the stone font;  the ancient mural tablets and the deep set windows.

  Tomb of Guinnidas

  This church boasts  9^th century stone inscribed in Latin – “This tomb holds the remains of the faithful and dear wife of Guinnidas, who was herself a native of this place”.

  There is a 17^th century  three deck pulpit which dates from the 17^th century and is believed to be one of the best in the country.

  Font

  The font in St. Clydog church dates from the late 13^th century

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News from the Past of Clodock

• Clodock - News from the Past

  Practical Joke goes badly wrong

  1798 – Elopement of Wife from Clodock

  Mary, the wife of Howell Howells, a carpenter in Clodock, eloped without any cause or provocation (so he said).

  Howell Howells therefore put notices out that nobody should give credit to Mary, as he would not pay any of her debts in the future

  1893 – Practical Joke leads to Tragedy at Clodock

  Five men appeared at the Herefordshire Assizes, charged with killing William Prosser.  They did, by  terrifying him and causing him to be exposed whilst naked in the night time, feloniously kill the man.

  The five men were William Davies, 34, a Miller;  Leonard Miles, 32, a Farmer;  John Williams, 21, a farmer;  Walter Griffiths 22, a labourer, and Thomas Jones, 18, a labourer.  Another man, Charles Lewis, 17, a farmer, also stood charged with the manslaughter of William Prosser.

  The Pranks Begin

  It was said that all the men were highly respectable, but they had been drinking spiced beer at the Cornewall Arms Inn on the night in question, and embarked on a series of pranks.

  They rolled one man in the snow, and dipped another in the river Monnow after taking them from their beds, then went on to William Prosser’s cottage.

  Prosser heard them coming and jumped out of a window to try to escape but he was caught by the men and rolled in the snow.  Eventually be managed to break free and ran to the Garn farmhouse where he managed to lose the men.

  William Prosser Found Dead

  Next morning however, he was found dead – hanging by his short and waistcoat on the gate in front of two cottages;  it was later discovered that death was caused by syncope brought on by the cold, exhaustion and fright.

  It was said that Prosser was a weakly man with a weak heart, and he had had nothing to eat that day.

  Sentencing

  All the men pleaded guilty, and the Judge said that it was one of the most serious cases that he had had to deal with.  He took into consideration the good character of each of the prisoners, and said that he realised they did not know what they were doing at the time, but also said that he could never allow drunkenness to be an excuse for a crime.

  William Davies and Walter Griffiths were sentenced to three years penal servitude;  Leonard Miles and John Williams were given 18 months imprisonment with hard labour;  and Thomas Jones was given 12 months hard labour.

  The Appeal

  However, an appeal for mercy given the extreme previous good conduct of the men made the Judge review the sentences.

  In the end the sentences were reduced, and Walter Griffiths and William Davies were given imprisonment and hard labour for 12 months;  Leonard Miles, John Williams and Thomas Jones would be imprisoned for 4 months with hard labour, and Charles Lewis was imprisoned for just 3 days given that he had actually tried to stop the others.

   

  1899 – Gun Accident at Clodock

  William Davies a Miller aged 41 was the subject of an inquest in December 1899.

  A local farmer, William Wilhams went one afternoon to Clodock Mill after being summonsed by the deceased’s son to kill rabbits and saw William Davies outside his door.

  William Davies went inside the house to fetch cartridges, leaving Wilhams with his gun (an old converted rifle, which was loaded;  the action was hammerless and could only be carried full cock) and Wilhams then put the butt end of the gun over the mill door with the muzzle pointing into the yard.

  A few seconds later, William Davies’ 14 year old daughter came through the door and immediately after that the gun exploded, with the stock swinging round.  The  shocked child said that she had run against the gun, and then William Davies cried out that he had been shot before falling onto his back.

  William had been shot in his leg, and helpers put a tourniquet above the wound to stop the bleeding whilst he drifted in and out of consciousness.

  The leg subsequently had to be amputated, but he died from shock soon afterwards.

  The verdict was accidental death.

   

  Read More >

Practical Joke goes badly wrong

1798 – Elopement of Wife from Clodock

Mary, the wife of Howell Howells, a carpenter in Clodock, eloped without any cause or provocation (so he said).

Howell Howells therefore put notices out that nobody should give credit to Mary, as he would not pay any of her debts in the future

1893 – Practical Joke leads to Tragedy at Clodock

Five men appeared at the Herefordshire Assizes, charged with killing William Prosser.  They did, by  terrifying him and causing him to be exposed whilst naked in the night time, feloniously kill the man.

The five men were William Davies, 34, a Miller;  Leonard Miles, 32, a Farmer;  John Williams, 21, a farmer;  Walter Griffiths 22, a labourer, and Thomas Jones, 18, a labourer.  Another man, Charles Lewis, 17, a farmer, also stood charged with the manslaughter of William Prosser.

The Pranks Begin

It was said that all the men were highly respectable, but they had been drinking spiced beer at the Cornewall Arms Inn on the night in question, and embarked on a series of pranks.

They rolled one man in the snow, and dipped another in the river Monnow after taking them from their beds, then went on to William Prosser’s cottage.

Prosser heard them coming and jumped out of a window to try to escape but he was caught by the men and rolled in the snow.  Eventually be managed to break free and ran to the Garn farmhouse where he managed to lose the men.

William Prosser Found Dead

Next morning however, he was found dead – hanging by his short and waistcoat on the gate in front of two cottages;  it was later discovered that death was caused by syncope brought on by the cold, exhaustion and fright.

It was said that Prosser was a weakly man with a weak heart, and he had had nothing to eat that day.

Sentencing

All the men pleaded guilty, and the Judge said that it was one of the most serious cases that he had had to deal with.  He took into consideration the good character of each of the prisoners, and said that he realised they did not know what they were doing at the time, but also said that he could never allow drunkenness to be an excuse for a crime.

William Davies and Walter Griffiths were sentenced to three years penal servitude;  Leonard Miles and John Williams were given 18 months imprisonment with hard labour;  and Thomas Jones was given 12 months hard labour.

The Appeal

However, an appeal for mercy given the extreme previous good conduct of the men made the Judge review the sentences.

In the end the sentences were reduced, and Walter Griffiths and William Davies were given imprisonment and hard labour for 12 months;  Leonard Miles, John Williams and Thomas Jones would be imprisoned for 4 months with hard labour, and Charles Lewis was imprisoned for just 3 days given that he had actually tried to stop the others.

1899 – Gun Accident at Clodock

William Davies a Miller aged 41 was the subject of an inquest in December 1899.

A local farmer, William Wilhams went one afternoon to Clodock Mill after being summonsed by the deceased’s son to kill rabbits and saw William Davies outside his door.

William Davies went inside the house to fetch cartridges, leaving Wilhams with his gun (an old converted rifle, which was loaded;  the action was hammerless and could only be carried full cock) and Wilhams then put the butt end of the gun over the mill door with the muzzle pointing into the yard.

A few seconds later, William Davies’ 14 year old daughter came through the door and immediately after that the gun exploded, with the stock swinging round.  The  shocked child said that she had run against the gun, and then William Davies cried out that he had been shot before falling onto his back.

William had been shot in his leg, and helpers put a tourniquet above the wound to stop the bleeding whilst he drifted in and out of consciousness.

The leg subsequently had to be amputated, but he died from shock soon afterwards.

The verdict was accidental death.

St. Clydog church dates from the 12^th century, and is dedicated to St. Clydawg, King of Ewias who was martyred about 500AD over whose tomb the church was built. .   It has a large 15^th century tower which was not only used as a bell tower but also as a defence against the marauding Welsh.

Restoration of St. Clydog church

In 1919 the church was re-opened on 10th December by the Bishop of Hereford.

The Bishop said that preserving churches such as this was of national importance as they stood as a witness of the centuries.

There had been many previous restorations, starting with one during the Norman period and the 1919 restoration was long overdue as the church was in an appalling state, with half the seats broken and the flooring in a dangerous condition.  Many of the windows were broken and the heating was non existent.

A restoration fund was opened, and it was hoped that the work would come to no more than £1000, but the estimate was soon increased and the bells scheme had to be shelved altogether.

However, although in 1919 some work still needed to be done, the congregation at the re-opening loved not only the beautiful setting, but also the old oak pews;  the decker pulpit;  the Jacobean communion table;  the stone font;  the ancient mural tablets and the deep set windows.

Tomb of Guinnidas

This church boasts  9^th century stone inscribed in Latin – “This tomb holds the remains of the faithful and dear wife of Guinnidas, who was herself a native of this place”.

There is a 17^th century  three deck pulpit which dates from the 17^th century and is believed to be one of the best in the country.

Font

The font in St. Clydog church dates from the late 13^th century