From the tithe barn walk along the road towards the River Severn.
At Ashleworth Quay turn left over a stile to walk along the riverbank. Follow it for a little over 2 miles (3.2km). In general the path is obvious, negotiating a series of gates and stiles close to the river. (You may find some gates locked or tied when livestock is around – there is usually an accompanying stile to be found in the undergrowth.) Sandhurst Hill will come and go across the river, followed by The Red Lion pub (sadly also out of reach across the river).
Eventually you will pass Haw Farm. Immediately after it bend left, away from the river, with the track graduating to a lane, passing a line of houses and cottages. The Haw Bridge will appear before you.
Just before the lane goes left, turn left over a stile into a field. Walk straight on and then, as the field opens up at a corner, bear half left to arrive at two gates either side of a drainage channel. Continue straight on across two fields to a lane.
Turn left, and within 400yds (366m) turn right along Great House Lane, passing Great House Farm.
Stay on the lane as it bears left. After passing two houses, cross left into a field. Head downhill, diagonally right, to a corner and rejoin the lane.
Turn left and continue into Hasfield, keeping left for Ashleworth. Turn left to visit the church and return to carry on through the village, still heading towards Ashleworth at the next junction.
Before a row of cottages on the right, turn right at a footpath sign. Follow a good farm track to Colways Farm. Pass beside outbuildings, keep left of a bungalow, and as the track veers left continue ahead to the end of the buildings. Keep the hedge to your left in the first field, then in the next pasture drift over to the right corner to cross two footbridges, then through gates and beside a pylon. At a lane go over a stile just left of the road opposite. Head across to a gap. Now follow the path on the right side of fields all the way back to a point just before the tithe barn.
Medieval tithe barns, such as the impressive example at Ashleworth, still survive around the country in surprisingly large numbers. In many cases they are still in use, even if the original purpose for which they were built has long been an irrelevance. They date back to the period before the 16th... century when the great monasteries owned much of the land that was not held by the Crown. Around Ashleworth the land belonged to Bristol Abbey and the local people who worked the land were its tenants. There were different categories of tenant, and in return for working the land of their landlord they were permitted access to common land and also to work a certain amount of land for themselves. Whatever category they belonged to, they all shared one special obligation and that was the payment of tithes – taxes – to the abbey. This was most often in the form of produce, which would be stored in the tithe barn, which usually stood close to the church and the abbot’s residence. If the abbot was not in permanent residence then he would make regular visits with his entourage to ensure that the tithes were paid correctly and on time. The presence of a huge tithe barn here, in what today is a comparatively remote village, has a geographical explanation. Ashleworth is situated at an easily fordable part of the river – an important consideration before the era of easy transportation. There had been a church at Ashleworth since before the compilation of the Domesday Book. A manor house certainly existed during the Norman period, and no doubt before. The barn, and Ashleworth Court next to it (which was used as an administrative centre), date from the late 15th century. The vast limestone barn is 125ft (38m) long, consisting of 10 bays. If you look up to the stone slate roof you can only marvel at the deceptively simple timber braces that support it. In this barn ‘queen post trusses’ are used – that is, a trellis of posts standing vertically from the horizontal tie beams (as opposed to a ‘king post truss’, consisting of a single vertical post). The bays would have been used to store both tithes and also the normal produce of the farm. Had you wandered through the barn 500 years ago you would have seen different types of grain, honey, dairy produce and, of course, bales of Cotswold wool, all of which would have been subsequently shipped downriver. Ashleworth Court, next door, is a fine example of a medieval stone building barely changed since the time of its construction. The black-and-white timbered Manor House, built as the abbot’s residence, stands a short distance along the road. Ashleworth Court, next door, is a fine example of a medieval stone building barely changed since the time of its construction. The black-and-white timbered Manor House, built as the abbot’s residence, stands a short distance along the road.
Gloucestershire is home to a variety of landscapes, including the Cotswolds, a region of gentle hills, valleys and gem-like villages that roll through the county. To their west is the Severn Plain, watered by Britain’s longest river and characterised by orchards and farms marked out by hedgerows that blaze with mayflower in the spring; beyond the Severn are the Forest of Dean and the Wye Valley.
From the tithe barn walk along the road towards the River Severn.
1 of 8
At Ashleworth Quay turn left over a stile to walk along the riverbank. Follow it for a little over 2 miles (3.2km). In general the path is obvious, negotiating a series of gates and stiles close to the river. (You may find some gates locked or tied when livestock is around – there is usually an accompanying stile to be found in the undergrowth.) Sandhurst Hill will come and go across the river, followed by The Red Lion pub (sadly also out of reach across the river).
2 of 8
Eventually you will pass Haw Farm. Immediately after it bend left, away from the river, with the track graduating to a lane, passing a line of houses and cottages. The Haw Bridge will appear before you.
3 of 8
Just before the lane goes left, turn left over a stile into a field. Walk straight on and then, as the field opens up at a corner, bear half left to arrive at two gates either side of a drainage channel. Continue straight on across two fields to a lane.
4 of 8
Turn left, and within 400yds (366m) turn right along Great House Lane, passing Great House Farm.
5 of 8
Stay on the lane as it bears left. After passing two houses, cross left into a field. Head downhill, diagonally right, to a corner and rejoin the lane.
6 of 8
Turn left and continue into Hasfield, keeping left for Ashleworth. Turn left to visit the church and return to carry on through the village, still heading towards Ashleworth at the next junction.
7 of 8
Before a row of cottages on the right, turn right at a footpath sign. Follow a good farm track to Colways Farm. Pass beside outbuildings, keep left of a bungalow, and as the track veers left continue ahead to the end of the buildings. Keep the hedge to your left in the first field, then in the next pasture drift over to the right corner to cross two footbridges, then through gates and beside a pylon. At a lane go over a stile just left of the road opposite. Head across to a gap. Now follow the path on the right side of fields all the way back to a point just before the tithe barn.
Medieval tithe barns, such as the impressive example at Ashleworth, still survive around the country in surprisingly large numbers. In many cases they are still in use, even if the original purpose for which they were built has long been an irrelevance. They date back to the period before the 16th... century when the great monasteries owned much of the land that was not held by the Crown. Around Ashleworth the land belonged to Bristol Abbey and the local people who worked the land were its tenants. There were different categories of tenant, and in return for working the land of their landlord they were permitted access to common land and also to work a certain amount of land for themselves. Whatever category they belonged to, they all shared one special obligation and that was the payment of tithes – taxes – to the abbey. This was most often in the form of produce, which would be stored in the tithe barn, which usually stood close to the church and the abbot’s residence. If the abbot was not in permanent residence then he would make regular visits with his entourage to ensure that the tithes were paid correctly and on time. The presence of a huge tithe barn here, in what today is a comparatively remote village, has a geographical explanation. Ashleworth is situated at an easily fordable part of the river – an important consideration before the era of easy transportation. There had been a church at Ashleworth since before the compilation of the Domesday Book. A manor house certainly existed during the Norman period, and no doubt before. The barn, and Ashleworth Court next to it (which was used as an administrative centre), date from the late 15th century. The vast limestone barn is 125ft (38m) long, consisting of 10 bays. If you look up to the stone slate roof you can only marvel at the deceptively simple timber braces that support it. In this barn ‘queen post trusses’ are used – that is, a trellis of posts standing vertically from the horizontal tie beams (as opposed to a ‘king post truss’, consisting of a single vertical post). The bays would have been used to store both tithes and also the normal produce of the farm. Had you wandered through the barn 500 years ago you would have seen different types of grain, honey, dairy produce and, of course, bales of Cotswold wool, all of which would have been subsequently shipped downriver. Ashleworth Court, next door, is a fine example of a medieval stone building barely changed since the time of its construction. The black-and-white timbered Manor House, built as the abbot’s residence, stands a short distance along the road. Ashleworth Court, next door, is a fine example of a medieval stone building barely changed since the time of its construction. The black-and-white timbered Manor House, built as the abbot’s residence, stands a short distance along the road.
Gloucestershire is home to a variety of landscapes, including the Cotswolds, a region of gentle hills, valleys and gem-like villages that roll through the county. To their west is the Severn Plain, watered by Britain’s longest river and characterised by orchards and farms marked out by hedgerows that blaze with mayflower in the spring; beyond the Severn are the Forest of Dean and the Wye Valley.
