1707 Kip View of Chepstow Castle, Wales

A lovely c. 1707 Johannes Kip view of the town of Chepstow and its namesake castle in Wales. Chepstow Castle is renowned both for its historical significance and the beauty of its surrounding scenery in the Wye Valley.

A Closer Look

The view takes in the town of Chepstow and the castle (which predated the town), showing the Ryver Wye, traversed by a bridge, with figures crossing on horseback and in a buggy. At top is the coat of arms of the Duke of Beauford, including a fire-breathing spotted lion or panther and a wyvern, with the Latin phrases 'Honi soit qui mal y pense' and 'Mutare vel timere sperno.' Ships line the shore of the town, with others in the background on the River Severn sailing out to or arriving from the Atlantic Ocean.

Chepstow Castle

Chepstow Castle (Castell Cas-gwent) on the Welsh-English border is arguably the oldest surviving post-Roman stone fortification in Britain, and certainly among the best-preserved Medieval castles, commissioned by William the Conqueror during the Norman invasion of Wales in the late 11th century. It is strategically located at a bend in the River Wye near its confluence with the River Severn, feeding into Bristol Channel. Such as historically significant castle to English-Welsh relations would have been especially resonant to a contemporary viewer given the Act of Union the same year this view was published.

Publication History and Census

This view was drawn and engraved by Johannes Kip in 1707 or soon afterwards for the work Britannia Illustrata, a collection of views of the estates of the landed gentry. It is only independently listed among the holdings of the National Library of Wales. A hand-colored edition of the map was published in 1712 in Sir Robert Atkyns, Ancient and Present State of Glostershire and is held by the Government Art Collection (United Kingdom).