HER 5052 DESCRIPTION:- Chapel House Farm, on OS 2" map of 1812, commemorates the former chapel of St. David at the end of 'the pons de Strugull' or "juxta pontern de Strugull". {Source Work 175.} St. Davids Chapel stood near the Roman bridge on the Gloucestershire side. Wakeman remembered its walls with the lower part of the east window and a doorway. {Source Work 6806.} A chantry chapel of St. David near Chepstow Bridge is recorded in 1307. A hospital of St. David occurs in 1306, probably the house for the sick recorded before 1282. It was sold with a house and land in 1530 by Striguil Priory. {Source Work 894.} Walls only 3" above ground, enclosing two attached rectangular rooms about 14ft by 8ft, and a small chapel of slightly larger dimensions, found at ST53599506 many years ago. The Chapel was identified by its stone floor incorporating the south-west corner, the last part standing, had fallen, but the rectangular area was still obvious. {Source Work 862.} The site of St. Davids chapel undoubtedly lies at ST532947 [the site of HER 5052] but no one has seen any remains during my inquiries over 60 years (Mr. Reeves may have confused the remains of Laucaut Church, SMR 327, with those he saw). The site at ST535954 is erroneous. The owner and builder of Castleford and the present owner have never found any ancient remains there. {Source Work 862.} 1845 - 'Chapel House Wood' is recorded on the rectified copy of the Tidenham tithe map and apportionmnet of 1845, and perhaps reflects the location of St. David's chapel in the vicinity. {Source Work 6634.} 1925 - The 3rd series 25" OS map records the 'Site of St David's Chapel' at this location. {Source Work 5138.} 1983 - The site is in a meadow currently used as pasture - its exact location is not very clear but a possible site is beside the wood on a levelled off rectangle c.30 metres long and 10 metres wide, the cut in the hillside varying in depth from about 3 metres to 0 - there is some cattle erosion going on on this. No signs of any building rubble or other such activity save one "Little Mill Pontypool" brick (C19?). It is presently grassed over with some small deciduous trees on one corner. {Pers. comm. J. Colombo.} |