{"id":728,"date":"2023-05-27T13:36:45","date_gmt":"2023-05-27T13:36:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/triskelepublishing.com\/weirdstonewalk\/?page_id=728"},"modified":"2023-05-28T17:58:04","modified_gmt":"2023-05-28T17:58:04","slug":"errwood-hall","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/triskelepublishing.com\/weirdstonewalk\/errwood-hall\/","title":{"rendered":"Errwood Hall"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Approximate Location<\/strong>
OS Grid Reference: SK 00818 74769
Latitude \/ Longitude: 53.269912 , -1.9891950<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The ruins of Errwood Hall feature in The Moon of Gomrath<\/a><\/em> as the lair of the Morrigan. Cunningly, she used magic to revive the hall as a semblance of its former grandeur whenever the moon shone upon the stones. However, if the moon was obscured by clouds or if the property was viewed during daytime the house appeared to be ruined from the exterior. Despite this, the occupants of the interior were able to access the renewed rooms and spaces. This is easily one of the creepiest locations featured in the entire Weirdstone Trilogy<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Errwood became the prison of Colin after he was captured by Pelis the False ay Holywell<\/a>. Colin was driven there by the renegade dwarf and a large number of palugs:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“They went by Adders’ Moss, past Withenlee and Harehill, to Tytherington, and then into the hills above Swanscoe, up and down across ridges that swelled like waves : by Kerridge and Lamaload, Nab End and Oldgate Nick, and down Hoo Moor above the Dale of Goyt<\/em> : mile after mile of killing ground, bare of all trees and broken only by gritstone walls. And then, deep at the bottom of the moor, they came to a small, round hill on which rhododendron bushes grew thickly; and about the hill curved a track<\/em>.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Garner, A., 1963 (1988 edition), The Moon of Gomrath<\/em>. William Collins \/ Lions. London. p91.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Colin’s approach to Errwood, looking south-east towards the round hill which lies behind the trees in the mid-ground (Credit: James Wright \/ Triskele Heritage)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The round hill, looking east from the lower slopes of Shining Tor (Credit: James Wright \/ Triskele Heritage)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Colin was then herded into the valley of Shooter’s Clough, with the stream below, to his right, and terracing on the hill to his left. The pathway divided and Colin was driven down the left-hand fork.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Gate pillars at the entrance to the left-hand fork in the road, looking north-east (Credit: James Wright \/ Triskele Heritage)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Upon rounding a bend, Colin stopped dead in his tracks: “Before him, on a terraced lawn, was a house, big, ugly, heavy, built of stone. The moon shone palely on it, yet the light that came from the round-arched windows and the open door seemed to be moonlight, also<\/em>.” The moon then disappeared behind a cloud and the scene changed dramatically: “Now the house lay barely visible against the hill behind it, yet what was to be seen made Colin stare. It could have been a trick of the darkness, but somehow the building lost its form, had slumped. Surely that was the sky through one of the windows : he could see a star<\/em>” (Gomrath, Chapter 11 – The Dale of Goyt<\/em>).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The south elevation of Errwood Hall, which Colin first saw, pictured whilst still a residence (1843-1934), looking north-east (Credit: https:\/\/www.goyt-valley.org.uk\/)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The south elevation of Errwood Hall, without the influence of the Morrigan’s moon magic, looking north (Credit: James Wright \/ Triskele Heritage)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Colin was then ushered across the lawn in front of the south elevation of the house, at sword point, and in through the east-facing main doorway. Within he was confronted by a wide stone stair upon which was the Morrigan herself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Main doorway to Errwood Hall, looking west (Credit: James Wright \/ Triskele Heritage)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The next to encounter Errwood was Susan, who awoke on the bank of the River Goyt after spending time at Redesmere<\/a>. Sadly, much of Susan’s early impressions of the landscape – including the river, a stone gateway, the eastern parts of hall drive and the first stone bridge over Shooter’s Clough – were lost during the construction of Errwood Reservoir, which was completed in 1967, four years after the publication of The Moon of Gomrath<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Errwood Reservoir, looking north from Shooter’s Clough (Credit: James Wright \/ Triskele Heritage)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Modern road bridge over the confluence of Shooter’s Clough with Errwood Reservoir, looking west (Credit: James Wright \/ Triskele Heritage)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Susan edged her way up the rhododendron-thick driveway, following the course of the Shooter’s Clough stream, until she observed that: “The second bridge stood at a fork in the valley : in the fork was a bush-covered hill, and the stream and a tributary flowed on either side of it, becoming one at the bridge. The path continued up the left-hand arm of the valley, and standing close to the bridge, in the shadow of the rhododendrons, unmoving, was what looked like a man<\/em>” (Gomrath, Chapter 13 – The Bodach<\/em>). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instinctively understanding that she must press on, Susan slipped into the bed of the stream, traversed under the bridge and carried on upstream, despite the heightening of the banks, until she felt safe from the bodach on guard at the bridge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Driveway to Errwood Hall, looking south-west (Credit: James Wright \/ Triskele Heritage)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Bridge over Shooter’s Clough, looking south-west (Credit: James Wright \/ Triskele Heritage)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Shooter’s Clough, looking south-west (Credit: James Wright \/ Triskele Heritage)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Having hauled herself from the streambed, Susan then approached the hall. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“The path bordered a terraced lawn, approached by steps, and on the lawn was a mansion of stone, built in the heavy Italianate style of the last century. All the windows glowed with a light that was stronger than the moon, but of the same quality, and lifeless… Above the door of the house was a square tower, and as if to confirm Susan’s thoughts, a figure appeared in one of the arched windows of the tower. It was the Morrigan<\/em>.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Garner, A., 1963 (1988 edition), The Moon of Gomrath<\/em>. William Collins \/ Lions. London. p103.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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East elevation of Errwood Hall, looking south-west towards the main doorway and tower, probably taken during the 1920s (Credit: https:\/\/www.goyt-valley.org.uk\/)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In complete terror, Susan crept away from the house and followed the driveway that her brother had formerly been brought to the house by (south of the round hill) until she came to: “an empty gateway in a stone wall, and beyond this, open ground fell gently for a distance, and then reared to a whale-backed ridge of mountain that dwarfed the world<\/em>” (Gomrath, Chapter 13 – The Bodach<\/em>). The hill was, of course, Shining Tor<\/a> and the location of the gate was at the ruins of the farm at Castedge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Errwood landscape mapped in 1896 and showing the estate in its heyday (Credit: Ordnance Survey Cheshire XXXVII.8 revised 1896 and published 1898). Susan encountered the second bodach at the end of the drive at Castedge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Gate where Susan was attacked by the bodach, looking north-west (Credit: James Wright \/ Triskele Heritage)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Susan was here assailed by another bodach and fled into the open ground beyond the gateway. She made for a stand of dead trees where she was rescued by Uthecar. The two then fled up onto the crest of Shining Tor<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The copse of dead trees is mentioned two more times by Alan Garner<\/a>. Firstly it is noted as a landmark when Susan and Albanac return to Errwood Hall via Shining Tor<\/a> (Gomrath, Chapter 15 – Errwood<\/em>) and then again when the great black dog howls to signify the doom of Albanac (Gomrath, Chapter 16 – The Howl of Ossar<\/em>). Today no such feature is present in the landscape. However, I would hazard a guess that, at the time of writing The Moon of Gomrath<\/em>, Garner may well have observed such a stand of dead trees. Everything else about the landscape of the book is so very well-realised but we must not completely discount artistic licence as there are several copses in the otherwise open ground to the west of Castedge… it may be that Garner decided to kill off a stand to make the tone of the book darker and more sinister.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Stands of trees on the lower slopes of Shining Tor to the west of Castedge, looking north-west (Credit: James Wright)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With the Morrigan trapped outside the house, a confederation of forces including Susan, Uthecar, Albanac, Atlendor and the lios-alfar attempted to rescue Colin. To do this they needed to take control of the hall and prevent the Morrigan from returning. They cut back the rhododendrons on the steep ground directly to the west and then built fires in the garden to the south and on the terrace to the east of the hall (Gomrath, Chapter 16 – The Howl of Ossar<\/em>).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Steep ground to the west of the hall, looking south-west (Credit: James Wright \/ Triskele Heritage)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The garden to the south of the hall, looking south-west (Credit: James Wright \/ Triskele Heritage)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Terrace to the east of the hall, looking west (Credit: James Wright \/ Triskele Heritage)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Much of the battle between the lios-alfar and the bodachs and palugs took place on the terraced lawn in front of the door to the hall. It was also here that after Pelis escaped, by throwing himself through a window in one of the rooms that flanked the staircase hall, that he duelled with Uthecar (Gomrath, Chapter 18 – The Dolorous Blow<\/em>; Chapter 19 – The Children of Danu<\/em>). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This was also the area that Susan and the Morrigan fought with magic in Gomrath, Chapter 20 – The Last Ride<\/em>. After the lios-alfar withdrew from the conflict and headed for Shining Tor<\/a>, Susan stubbornly refused to leave the Morrigan to release the Brollachan and returned to the hall by traversing a track to the north of the round hill. The confrontation then took place on the driveway in front of the hall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Track to the north of the round hill, looking south-east (Credit: James Wright \/ Triskele Heritage)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Driveway to the north of the hall, looking south-east (Credit: James Wright \/ Triskele Heritage)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Having been defeated by the Morrigan, and with the Brollachan released, Susan spurred her horse back to the north of the round hill but was pursued by the evil power. Colin observed his sister in dreadful peril and noted how the Brollachan concentrated on the spot where Susan was, which led to “a blast that knocked him to the ground, and a section of the hill where Susan had been slipped into the water<\/em>” (Gomrath, Chapter 20 – The Last Ride<\/em>). This appears to be another of Garner’s myth-making tropes – in which he explained a landscape feature through reference to a moment in the plot (as also occurred with Goldenstone<\/a> and the Bullstones<\/a>), as the north-western section of the round hill features outcropping rockfaces beneath the foliage which gives the appearance of a landslip.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Location of the spot where Colin witnessed the Brollachan attacking Susan, looking south-east (Credit: James Wright \/ Triskele Heritage)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The very final moments of The Moon of Gomrath saw the Susan desperately trying to catch up with Celemon and the Einheriar: “But Susan was left as dross upon the hill<\/em>” (Gomrath, Chapter 20 – The Last Ride<\/em>). I suspect that this scene took place on the lower slopes of Shining Tor<\/a>, immediately to the north-west of the round hill.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Last Ride, looking north-west (Credit: James Wright \/ Triskele Heritage)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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View from an approximation of Colin’s location on the lower slopes of Shining Tour when he witnessed The Last Ride, looking east towards Foxlow Edge (left) and Castedge (right) (Credit: James Wright \/ Triskele Heritage)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Errwood Hall is a popular spot with visitors to the valley of Shooter’s Clough on the lower, eastern, slopes of Shining Tor<\/a>. Today it is owned and managed by Forestry England<\/a>, yet it was originally built in 1843 for the wealthy industrialist Samuel Grimshawe<\/a> to designs by architect Alexander Roos<\/a>. The Grimshaw line died out in 1930 and, after purchase by Stockport Corporation<\/a>, the house was demolished in 1934. In 1954, the local author Crichton Porteous<\/a> wrote: \u201cAnd none who see what is there now can form any proper idea of the beautiful old home<\/em>\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There has been lots of recent research into the history and archaeology of the hall, much of which has been led by Dr Catherine Parker Heath<\/a> and a team of volunteers. An outline of the project can be found here<\/a> and I heartily recommend downloading the Errwood Hall Revealed<\/a> app to access a wealth of reconstructions and fact files. There is also a healthy dose of information about the history of the hall available via The Goyt Valley website<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Locations<\/a><\/blockquote>