Kempley
Encyclopedia
Kempley is a village
in the Forest of Dean district
of Gloucestershire
, England, close to the border with Herefordshire
.
The small village (230 residents) has two notable churches, one dedicated to St Mary and another to St Edward the Confessor
.
St. Mary's Church, Kempley has in its chancel "the most complete set of Romanesque fresco
s in northern Europe", including the Christ in Majesty
painting created in about 1120. On the walls of the nave are further images, including a wheel of life, showing the life cycle of man. These are worked in tempera
painted on dry lime mortar
, unlike those in the chancel which are true frescoes. St Mary's Church is owned by English Heritage
and maintained by The Friends of Kempley Churches.(Location: 51.9787°N 2.4823°W)
The Church has the oldest roof of any building in Britain, dating from 1120-1150 and has an unusually well-preserved interior. The churchyard is very beautiful in the early months of the year often being covered in wild daffodils in late February and early March.
The Church of St Edward's (1903), described by Betjeman as "a mini-cathedral of the Arts and Crafts movement
", was built from local materials by local labour, under the direction of Randall Wells
, clerk of works at All Saints, Brockhampton-by-Ross. The church was planned by the Lord of the Manor and major landowner, William Lygon, 7th Earl Beauchamp
, because St Mary's was too far away from the main centres of population in the parish at Kempley Green and Fishpool, and liable to flooding. The walls of the church are in Forest of Dean red sandstone.
In March 1994, fields near the village were found to contain the remains of two of the victims of serial killer Fred West
.
The village also features the Kempley Tardis - a National Lottery
funded project supported by English Heritage. The project which is run by the Friends of Kempley Churches, aims to archive and document the entire social, economic and cultural history of the village.
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
in the Forest of Dean district
Forest of Dean (district)
Forest of Dean is a local government district in Gloucestershire, England, named after the Forest of Dean. Its council is based in Coleford. Other towns in the district include Cinderford, Newent and Tidenham....
of Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn, and the entire Forest of Dean....
, England, close to the border with Herefordshire
Herefordshire
Herefordshire is a historic and ceremonial county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire" NUTS 2 region. It also forms a unitary district known as the...
.
The small village (230 residents) has two notable churches, one dedicated to St Mary and another to St Edward the Confessor
Edward the Confessor
Edward the Confessor also known as St. Edward the Confessor , son of Æthelred the Unready and Emma of Normandy, was one of the last Anglo-Saxon kings of England and is usually regarded as the last king of the House of Wessex, ruling from 1042 to 1066....
.
St. Mary's Church, Kempley has in its chancel "the most complete set of Romanesque fresco
Fresco
Fresco is any of several related mural painting types, executed on plaster on walls or ceilings. The word fresco comes from the Greek word affresca which derives from the Latin word for "fresh". Frescoes first developed in the ancient world and continued to be popular through the Renaissance...
s in northern Europe", including the Christ in Majesty
Christ in Majesty
Christ in Majesty, or Christ in Glory, in Latin Majestas Domini, is the Western Christian image of Christ seated on a throne as ruler of the world, always seen frontally in the centre of the composition, and often flanked by other sacred figures, whose membership changes over time and according to...
painting created in about 1120. On the walls of the nave are further images, including a wheel of life, showing the life cycle of man. These are worked in tempera
Tempera
Tempera, also known as egg tempera, is a permanent fast-drying painting medium consisting of colored pigment mixed with a water-soluble binder medium . Tempera also refers to the paintings done in this medium. Tempera paintings are very long lasting, and examples from the 1st centuries AD still exist...
painted on dry lime mortar
Lime mortar
Lime mortar is a type of mortar composed of lime and an aggregate such as sand, mixed with water. It is one of the oldest known types of mortar, dating back to the 4th century BC and widely used in Ancient Rome and Greece, when it largely replaced the clay and gypsum mortars common to Ancient...
, unlike those in the chancel which are true frescoes. St Mary's Church is owned by English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
and maintained by The Friends of Kempley Churches.(Location: 51.9787°N 2.4823°W)
The Church has the oldest roof of any building in Britain, dating from 1120-1150 and has an unusually well-preserved interior. The churchyard is very beautiful in the early months of the year often being covered in wild daffodils in late February and early March.
The Church of St Edward's (1903), described by Betjeman as "a mini-cathedral of the Arts and Crafts movement
Arts and Crafts movement
Arts and Crafts was an international design philosophy that originated in England and flourished between 1860 and 1910 , continuing its influence until the 1930s...
", was built from local materials by local labour, under the direction of Randall Wells
Randall Wells
Albert Randall Wells was an English architect who worked principally in the Arts and Crafts style.He was the son of an architect, Arthur Wells of Hastings...
, clerk of works at All Saints, Brockhampton-by-Ross. The church was planned by the Lord of the Manor and major landowner, William Lygon, 7th Earl Beauchamp
William Lygon, 7th Earl Beauchamp
William Lygon, 7th Earl Beauchamp KG, KCMG, PC , styled Viscount Elmley until 1891, was a British Liberal politician. He was Governor of New South Wales between 1899 and 1901, a member of the Liberal administrations of Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman and H. H...
, because St Mary's was too far away from the main centres of population in the parish at Kempley Green and Fishpool, and liable to flooding. The walls of the church are in Forest of Dean red sandstone.
In March 1994, fields near the village were found to contain the remains of two of the victims of serial killer Fred West
Fred West
Frederick Walter Stephen West , was a British serial killer. Between 1967 and 1987, he alone, and later, he and his wife Rosemary, tortured, raped and murdered at least 11 young women and girls, many at the couple's homes. The majority of the murders occurred between May 1973 and September 1979 at...
.
The village also features the Kempley Tardis - a National Lottery
National Lottery (United Kingdom)
The National Lottery is the state-franchised national lottery in the United Kingdom and the Isle of Man.It is operated by Camelot Group, to whom the licence was granted in 1994, 2001 and again in 2007. The lottery is regulated by the National Lottery Commission, and was established by the then...
funded project supported by English Heritage. The project which is run by the Friends of Kempley Churches, aims to archive and document the entire social, economic and cultural history of the village.