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Neath Castle Glamorganshire
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Neath Castle Glamorganshire
Credit Line
Private Collection, England / Photograph by John Hammond
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Artist
Richard Wilson (1713/14-1782)
Title
Neath Castle Glamorganshire
Date
c.1765-70 (undated)
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
37.5 x 45 cm
Dimensions
14 3/4 x 17 3/4 in.
Details
Links
Collection
Private Collection, England
Accession Number
BB24
Wilson Online Reference
P151
Description
Exhibited
Brighton 1920 (40); Mold 1923; Bangor 1925 (16); London 1925 (57); Conwy 2009 (21); Weston 2011 (21); Gainsborough House 2014 (unnumbered)
Brighton 1920 (40); Mold 1923; Bangor 1925 (16); London 1925 (57); Conwy 2009 (21); Weston 2011 (21); Gainsborough House 2014 (unnumbered)
Provenance
<span class="underline">Benjamin Booth</span>; perhaps his sale, Christie's 30 May 1809 (87); <span class="underline">The Revd R.S. Booth</span>; <span class="underline">Richard Ford</span>; <span class="underline">Sir Francis Clare Ford</span>; <span class="underline">Captain R. Ford</span>; <span class="underline">Brinsley Ford</span>; thence by descent
Benjamin Booth
; perhaps his sale, Christie's 30 May 1809 (87);
The Revd R.S. Booth
;
Richard Ford
;
Sir Francis Clare Ford
;
Captain R. Ford
;
Brinsley Ford
; thence by descent
Signature/inscription
Unsigned; no inscription
Unsigned; no inscription
Techniques and materials
Collectors' marks
Verso inscriptions
Mount inscriptions
Labels
Subject
Neath Castle was one of the minor Norman castles in the lordship of Glamorgan. Like the Romans before them, the Normans chose this strategic spot, guarding the river crossing, for a stronghold. The main surviving feature of the castle is the great twin-towered gatehouse on its west side. This belongs to the latest phase in its 250 year history. The first castle was a ringwork known to have been built in the 12th century by Robert, Earl of Gloucester. It was much harried by the Welsh and was rebuilt sometime in the early 13th century, The castle was again severely damaged by enemies of the unpopular lord of Glamorgan, Hugh Despenser. It was the 14th-century rebuilding after this attack that gave it its magnificent gatehouse. Only the fronts of the great D-shaped towers and the arch between them survive. The steps of the old gateway, now uncovered again, were buried and a drawbridge used instead. Jutting out from the front of the right-hand tower is the broken end of the town wall. This painting is a noteworthy early record of industrial development in Wales as the chimneys of Neath's furnaces are clearly visible in the background of an otherwise medieval subject. The district of Neath was a popular stop for the aspiring traveller in South Wales since the two main routes from England - the coastal road from Chepstow to Newport and the Heads of the Valley Road from Ross to Abergavenny - converged there.
Neath Castle was one of the minor Norman castles in the lordship of Glamorgan. Like the Romans before them, the Normans chose this strategic spot, guarding the river crossing, for a stronghold. The main surviving feature of the castle is the great twin-towered gatehouse on its west side. This belongs to the latest phase in its 250 year history. The first castle was a ringwork known to have been built in the 12th century by Robert, Earl of Gloucester. It was much harried by the Welsh and was rebuilt sometime in the early 13th century, The castle was again severely damaged by enemies of the unpopular lord of Glamorgan, Hugh Despenser. It was the 14th-century rebuilding after this attack that gave it its magnificent gatehouse. Only the fronts of the great D-shaped towers and the arch between them survive. The steps of the old gateway, now uncovered again, were buried and a drawbridge used instead. Jutting out from the front of the right-hand tower is the broken end of the town wall. This painting is a noteworthy early record of industrial development in Wales as the chimneys of Neath's furnaces are clearly visible in the background of an otherwise medieval subject. The district of Neath was a popular stop for the aspiring traveller in South Wales since the two main routes from England - the coastal road from Chepstow to Newport and the Heads of the Valley Road from Ross to Abergavenny - converged there.
Related Subjects
Related Drawings
Related Prints
E72/10 Thomas Hastings after Wilson, <i>Neath Castle, Glamorganshire</i>, 1821, The British Museum (1854,0708.67) E72/10A Thomas Hastings after Wilson, <i>Neath Castle, Glamorganshire</i>, 1821, National Museum Wales, Cardiff (NMW A 5989) and other impressions
E72/10 Thomas Hastings after Wilson,
Neath Castle, Glamorganshire
, 1821, The British Museum (1854,0708.67)
E72/10A Thomas Hastings after Wilson,
Neath Castle, Glamorganshire
, 1821, National Museum Wales, Cardiff (NMW A 5989) and other impressions
Versions
Related Paintings
Related Works by Other Artists
Hendrik Frans de Cort (1742-1810), <i>The Knoll and Castle, Neath</i>, Neath Port Talbot Civic Centre (NEA2_PCF1)
Hendrik Frans de Cort (1742-1810),
The Knoll and Castle, Neath
, Neath Port Talbot Civic Centre (NEA2_PCF1)
Critical commentary
Concentrating on the castle, unframed by trees and with the burgeoning industrialisation of Neath undisguised in the background, this simple study was probably made on the spot. Tradition and antiquity are thus revealed as potentially vulnerable to the incursions of the developing town.
Concentrating on the castle, unframed by trees and with the burgeoning industrialisation of Neath undisguised in the background, this simple study was probably made on the spot. Tradition and antiquity are thus revealed as potentially vulnerable to the incursions of the developing town.
Previous Cat/Ref Nos
Bibliography
Booth Notes Doc. 9 (16); WGC, pp. 92, 182, pl. 47b; Walpole Society 1998-I, p. 17, BB23; Lord 2009, pp. 19 repr. & 58, no. 21; Williams 2011, p. 32, repr.
Booth Notes Doc. 9 (16); WGC, pp. 92, 182, pl. 47b; Walpole Society 1998-I, p. 17, BB23; Lord 2009, pp. 19 repr. & 58, no. 21; Williams 2011, p. 32, repr.
Link to WG Constable Archive Record
<a href="http://calmview.co.uk/paulmelloncentre/calmview/Record.aspx?src=CalmView.Catalog&id=WGC%2f1%2f1%2f55" title="WGC/1/1/55" class="rewritten">WGC/1/1/55</a>
WGC/1/1/55
Location featured in work
More Information
Previously known as <span class="italic">Welsh Landscape</span>
Previously known as
Welsh Landscape
Condition/Conservation
Illustrations of the Work
Updated by Compiler
Work of Art
Prints
Thomas Hastings after Wilson,
Neath Castle, Glamorganshire
, The British Museum
Thomas Hastings after Wilson,
Neath Castle
, National Museum Wales, Cardiff
Exhibitions
Brighton, Fine Art Galleries, 28 February - 2 May 1920
Conwy, Royal Cambrian Academy, 24 October - 23 December 2009
Weston Park, The Granary Art Gallery, 2 April - 3 July 2011
Sudbury, Gainsborough's House, 11 January - 31 May 2014
Biographies
Benjamin Booth, 1732-1807
Sir Brinsley Ford, 1908-1999
The Revd Richard Salwey Booth, 1762-1807
Elizabeth Booth, 1763-1819
Marianne Booth, Lady Ford, 1767-1849
Sir Richard Ford, 1758-1806
Documents
William George Constable,
Richard Wilson
Peter Lord,
Richard Wilson. Life & Legacy
Brinsley Ford and other authors,
The Ford Collection
Gareth Williams,
Masterpieces from the Ford Collection
Benjamin Booth, Unpublished Notes, Document 9: List of Wilson's Landscapes with Sizes and former Owners
Part of a sketchbook
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