Original subtitles

(wind howling)

(triumphant music)

- Our journey begins at Symonds Yat,

in an area of outstanding natural beauty in England.

Our flight takes us south to north

across the counties that straddle the Anglo-Welsh border.

In Herefordshire, we visit the medieval ruin

of Goodrich Castle.

At Hereford,

we look down on its magnificent cathedral

and the home of a rare medieval treasure.

We continue on to Stokesay Castle,

one of the best preserved medieval fortified houses.

In Welshpool,

we explore a beautiful garden at Powis Castle,

as well as a Victorian experimental farm.

We then fly north

to one of the greatest 18th century

engineering feats near Llangollen,

before ending our journey at the Dee Estuary.

Symonds Yat in the Wye Valley

is a protected area of outstanding natural beauty.

(calming instrumental music)

The River Wye meanders through 72 kilometers

of protected unspoiled British countryside.

It's often said

that it is this section

where it's most beautiful.

Throughout history,

people have always left their mark on Britain's landscape,

tangible links to what life was like in Britain.

On this journey,

we're seeking out some of these landmarks

as we go up through the counties

that straddle the Anglo-Welsh border,

a once greatly contested frontier.

This borderland is known as the Welsh Marches,

lands once under the rule of the Marcher lords.

After William of Normandy conquered England in 1066,

his Norman companions established themselves

at the border of an unconquered Wales.

(calming instrumental music)

Like the swans of England and Wales,

who by the way have been

under royal protection since the 13th century,

the Marcher lords were afforded virtually royal status.

In exchange for guarding the Welsh border,

they were left to rule their Marcher territories

as they wished.

(calming instrumental music)

These virtual kingdoms shaped life

at the border for generations,

which explains why it's here in the Marches

that you'll find the highest concentration

of castles in Britain.

Three miles further north along the River Wye

we find our first fortress, Goodrich Castle.

It's well positioned to keep a watchful eye

on Wales to the west.

First constructed in timber at the start

of the 12th century,

it was rebuilt in stone during the 13th.

It has a rectangular Norman keep in the center

with later defensive towers in three corners,

and a gatehouse in the fourth.

The castle was still in use in the mid 17th century,

when civil war broke out in England.

A parliamentarian army battered the royalist castle

with a specially made cannon nicknamed "Roaring Meg,"

which survives and is on display in the courtyard.

(crow cawing)

The castle was then slighted,

which means intentionally destroying it

to make it useless as a fortress.

It's been a ruin ever since,

and today is a very popular place to visit.

Close by is the small market town of Ross-on-Wye.

It's said that this is the birthplace

of the British tourist industry,

when in 1745 the local vicar offered boat trips

down the River Wye for friends and colleagues.

It soon blossomed into a more professional concern

for all those seeking a picturesque landscape.

And in 1808, a guidebook of the area was published,

the first in Britain.

We now cross the border into Wales

as we head for Monnow Valley

and Skenfrith Castle.

The first fortress was established here

soon after the Norman conquest of 1066,

but this stone version dates from the 13th century,

and built by the Marcher Lord Hubert de Burgh.

He had spent time fighting on the continent,

and brought back with him new construction ideas.

He also built more comfortable domestic quarters

for his family,

so making the castle more of a lordly residence.

Close by is the medieval church of St. Bridget's,

which was enlarged in the century

after Hubert de Burgh's time.

Norman lords were often very pious,

and built substantial churches in close proximity

to their castles.

And in the name of god,

they subjugated the local population

with often cruel punishments.

Nearby is Grosmoth Castle,

another largely rebuilt by Hubert de Burgh

over the top of an earlier Norman fortification.

When he eventually fell from grace

the castle returned to royal hands,

and King Henry III then granted it to his second son

who said about turning it into a more suitable residence

for a noble family.

This can be seen in Grosmoth's distinctive feature

the tall octagonal chimney,

known as "Eleanor's Chimney".

Eleanor was the wife of King Henry,

and the fireplace must've once warmed the royal apartment

when they visited.

But by the time of the English civil war

in the 17th century, the castle was already a ruin.

So the visiting king Charles I

had to be put up for the night in the town.

Across the border in England is Garway Hill,

a 400 meter high natural landmark

which overlooks an impressive house

in the Monnow Valley below, Kentchurch Court.

(calming piano music)

The house had been connected

with the Scudamore family since 1042,

when Stonemason Ralph Scudamore moved here from Normandy

to build castles.

The house itself dates from the 14th century,

though much altered and improved over the years.

And in the next century another Scudamore

married the daughter of the Welsh rebel leader,

the last prince of Wales, Owain Glyndwr.

His rebellion against English rule failed,

and he disappeared without a trace.

Legend has it that this is where he went into hiding

to live out the rest of his days.

Continuing north across the lush countryside

of Herefordshire sees us reunited with the River Wye.

This is farming country

with the fields creating picturesque patterns

in the landscape.

(peaceful instrumental music)

For centuries the river has carved its way

through the countryside as it gradually meanders

towards the county capital,

the city of Hereford,

and its great landmark the Norman cathedral.

(choir singing)

There's been a cathedral on this site

since the days of the Saxons in the 10th century,

and dedicated to one of their kings, Aethelberht.

With the arrival of the Normans

a new cathedral was begun,

and over the centuries,

added to and rebuilt in the latest styles:

Romanesque, then Gothic, followed by early English

and finally perpendicular.

Stored safely inside the cathedral

is the Hereford Mappa Mundi,

a medieval world map from the 14th century.

In the historic heart of Hereford

are many fine and old buildings

like this old inn in the High Street.

The city also has another religious building,

the ruins of the 14th century Blackfriars Priory.

This was home to the order of preachers

who later become the Dominican Order.

Close by the Knights of Saint John,

who fought in the Crusades,

built a refuge which acted as a simple hospital.

Later in 1614,

Thomas Coningsby incorporated the existing buildings

in his old servator's hospital.

And so old became new.

It's now a museum,

and one of the many attractions that Hereford

has to offer visitors.

Heading north,

we come to the picturesque village of Weobley.

Its name possibly derives from "Wibba's Ley,"

a ley being a woodland glade

and Wibba being a local Saxon landowner.

The village is known

for its old black and white cottages and houses.

However, it was the Victorians in the 19th century

who popularized this style and created this iconic look.

Originally the houses might've been painted with a limewash

with an added pigment to provide color.

Weobley's church is part Norman.

It has perpendicular Gothic elements

which emphasizes vertical lines in its design,

as its looming 14th century spire demonstrates.

(birds chirping)

We now enter the county of Shropshire,

and a key location in the history

of England and Wales, Ludlow Castle.

It was one of the first stone castles in England

built soon after the Norman conquest in 1066

as a Marcher stronghold.

In the following centuries it grew in size

and also importance as the administrative center

for governing Wales.

It was also in this castle that the story

of the Princes in the Tower began.

When Edward, age 12, became king in 1483,

he was here with his younger brother, the Duke of York

when his father Edward IV died in London.

The two boys left this castle for the city,

and within a year both had died in the Tower of London.

It's suspected, but never proved,

that they were murdered by their uncle,

who then became King Richard III.

The town of Ludlow grew up in the shadow of the castle

and remarkably was laid out in a symmetrical grid plan.

In this old section there are over 500 protected buildings,

many dating back to medieval times.

As a result this historic and picturesque town and castle

has become a very popular place to visit.

This is Stokesay Castle in Shropshire

and it's not strictly a castle at all,

but one of the earliest examples

of a medieval fortified house from the 13th century.

There's still a castle tower and a stone curtain wall,

but the main building is not truly fortified.

It was built for a successful local wool merchant,

Laurence of Ludlow,

and begins for the first time to look like a real house.

There was still no glass in the main windows

and oak shutters had to keep out the wind and rain,

but there was a private room called a solar

for Laurence and his family.

This remarkable survival is largely due to the house

being abandoned in later centuries,

and only rediscovered in the late 19th century

when restoration began.

Stokesay Castle is considered one of the best preserved

medieval fortified manor houses in England.

(classical instrumental music)

We're now approaching the Shropshire Hills

and the Long Mynd,

which has been declared an area

of outstanding natural beauty.

It's long been a popular place to walk,

and one of the favorite trails is the Jack Mytton Way

named after an eccentric Shropshire land owner.

Nestling in the foothills is the village of Church Stretton,

nicknamed "Little Switzerland" by the Victorians

who came to explore the area

and turned it into a tourist resort.

Close by is the old volcanic hill of Caer Caradoc.

From the top it's possible on a clear day to see the

high rise buildings of Birmingham nearly 40 miles away.

And on the top are the remains of a 2000 year old hill fort

which local legend tells us was the last stand

of a chieftain called Caractacus,

against the might of Rome during its conquest of Britain.

With fuel running low,

we need to cross the border again into Wales

and head for the small airfield at Welshpool.

This is the only airport in the mid border area.

(techno music)

On the edge of the airfield and over the trees

is a very distinctive castle.

In the 14th century,

this was rebuilt and named Powis Castle.

During the civil war of the 16th century,

the Powis family sided with the king

and the castle was taken by the Roundheads

and suffered considerable damage.

In the 1660s, it was repaired and enlarged

with a new garden planned in a series of formal terraces.

The original clipped yew trees still stand

along with the beautiful lead statues

of shepherds and shepherdesses.

Powis somehow avoided the fashion for landscaping

in the 18th century

which makes this a very rare garden indeed,

and one of the few places in Britain

where a true baroque garden can be fully appreciated.

(classical music)

Today the castle and garden

are in the care of the National Trust,

who over the years have undertaken extensive

restoration programs to secure its future.

Close by is the market town of Welshpool

which has a long agricultural past

and hosts one of the largest livestock markets in the world.

It also has an ancient history,

and in 1400 was largely destroyed by the Welsh leader

Owain Glyndwr during his ill-fated rebellion

against the English.

Overlooking Welshpool is a rare example of a Victorian farm

built on an industrial scale.

John Naylor, who lived in Leighton Hall,

spent around $300,000 on the construction,

the equivalent of over $9 million in today's money.

The railway once ran through the complex

to add speed and efficiency to the operation.

The two round constructions are a piggery and a sheephouse.

Most of the Leighton farm buildings are now listed,

meaning that they are protected from any future development,

and it's hoped that this rare and fascinating site

will be restored.

This is Lake Vyrnwy,

a reservoir which was constructed back in 1881

to provide the growing population of the city of Liverpool

with a much needed fresh water supply.

The city fathers also purchased the surrounding 24,000 acres

to control the purity of the water.

And for fisherman, the new reservoir was stocked

with 400 thousand Loch Leven trout.

The lake took two years to fill

after the new dam was finished.

And as there were so many sightseers and dignitaries

who came to see it,

a hotel was built on a hill overlooking the new lake,

and it's still open to visitors.

The most famous site is the Victorian Gothic

water filtering tower standing out into the lake.

It would seem that no expense was spared

into making this a very picturesque place.

Back in the 18th century, canals were the new

and quickest form of transport.

They inspired some of the greatest engineering feats

of their day.

One of the great 19th century engineers, Thomas Telford,

was asked to get a Llangollen Canal

across the River Dee at Chirk.

He achieved this by building the magnificent

Pontcysyllte Aqueduct.

This enormous metal and brick aqueduct

rises 120 feet from the valley floor below.

On one side of the cast iron trough is a narrow towpath.

And on the other,

a thin metal lip only a few centimeters wide

and half a meter above the water line.

It looks frightening enough from up here,

let alone crossing it in a boat.

60 massive arches carry the canal across the valley

in one of the great engineering feats

of the early 19th century.

In fact, it was so famous

that at the time it was admired right across Europe.

A plaque on one of the piers

sums up the pride of the builders

who created this industrial wonder

at the end of the 18th century.

The nobility and gentry of the adjacent counties,

having united their efforts

with the great commercial interest of this country

in creating an intercourse in union between England

and North Wales,

caused the first stone of the aqueduct of Pontcysyllte

to be laid on the 25th of July, 1795.

Within 50 years a much faster form

of transport arrived, the railways.

And within sight of the now out of date aqueduct,

the Cefn Viaduct was built.

This was a faster and more reliable form of transport

which was to power Britain in the 19th century

into becoming the most important industrial nation on Earth.

As we approach Hawarden airfield in North Wales,

a strange looking aircraft is on final approach.

This is a Beluga transport plane,

and it's designed to carry heavy long loads,

because this is where airbus industries

make the wings for their production aircraft.

The Beluga Super Transporter came into service in the 1990s

and was adapted from an Airbus A300

by adding the enormous fuselage

on top of the original aircraft,

giving it the appearance of a gigantic whale,

hence its name.

There were only five built and all are still in service,

carrying aircraft parts from around Europe

to the main assembly plant in Toulouse, France.

However, the wings of the A380,

the world's largest passenger aircraft,

are too big for the Beluga.

So they are taken on trolleys to the River Dee,

floated on barges and then onto larger ships

in deeper water for transport to Bordeaux in France.

Ahead of us is the Flintshire Bridge,

which was opened by Queen Elizabeth II in 1998.

It is the largest asymmetric cable-stayed bridge

in the whole of Britain.

On the side of the Dee Estuary is Flint Castle,

guarding the entrance to the river

and the city of Chester.

It was built by King Edward I in the 13th century

to oppress the Welsh,

and was the first of many great castles in his Iron Ring

around North Wales,

all of which survive today.

Flint Castle is interesting

because it was heavily influenced by French designs,

which the king had seen as he passed

through France on his way to the Crusades.

This can be seen in the large corner tower, or keep,

which appears to be separate from the main castle.

This design was not repeated in his other Welsh castles,

and is unique in Britain.

Having withstood several attacks and being partially rebuilt

after one of them,

it was eventually destroyed or slighted

during the civil war in the 17th century,

and was left to become a romantic medieval ruin.

Our journey ends here on the Dee Estuary

where the border between England and Wales

runs down the middle.

It's unusual in that it's very shallow and as a result

is a haven for wildlife,

and one of the most important estuaries in Europe

for its populations of waders and wildfowl,

and consequently designated as a nature reserve.

Other wildlife also finds a home in the estuary

like this colony of grey seals.

This type of seal can be found

around much of Britain's coastline.

Having once been hunted, they are now protected

under an Act of Parliament of 1970,

and so can enjoy life in safety on this sandbar

separating England and Wales.

This is a border that has seen rebellion,

and the building of great castles.

And that history is now enjoyed by the thousands of visitors

who come to this beautiful part of Britain.

And as the sun sets over the Dee Estuary,

this really is the perfect place to end this journey.

(triumphant music)

(air whooshing)