178 THE DEVELOPMENT OF ARCHITECTURE IN ESSEX.
west door is undoubtedly a relic of the original edifice, which was
then the Priory Church, now the Parish Church.
At Blackmore there is still left a portion of the west end of the
original Norman nave of the Priory Church, now the Parish
Church.
At Little Dunmow the north arcade of the south aisle of the
Priory Church, as erected by Iuga, sister of Ralph Baynard, about
noo, still remains, although now built up, so that this fragment of
a glorious old Priory Church now forms the north wall of the Parish
Church.
I am not aware whether there are any remains of this period
at St. Osyth's Priory ; it was probably the oldest monastery in the
county, having been founded by St. Osyth in the seventh century.
It was, however, destroyed by the Danes in one of their harrying
expeditions, and was not apparently rebuilt until the time of
Henry I., about 1188.
Waltham Abbey contains by far the most important remains
of this period of any of our old monasteries. The nave and aisles
of the Old Abbey Church, although they have been at the west end
subsequently altered, are most interesting.
St. Botolph's Priory, Colchester, is a very interesting building of
the Norman period, and is remarkable for the interlacing arches
which decorate the front; the pointed arch formed by the interlacing
of semicircular arches is said to have led up to the next period, of
Gothic architecture.
Of castellated buildings of this period the most important is
Hedingham Castle. Here we have the remains of the ancient keep
or tower of the castle, erected by the second Aubrey de Vere, and
as his father died in 1088 and he himself in 1140, it follows that
this work must be considered as belonging to the early part of the
twelfth century. It is indeed a magnificent piece of work, entirely
faced with Barnack stone, which shows but little depreciation from
the storms and winters of seven centuries, with walls upwards of ten
feet thick as solid as they were when first built. As the architecture
is all of the same period it must have been rapidly constructed, and
no doubt the De Vere of that period was anxious to consolidate his
power as quickly as possible. The exterior is entirely faced with
regular blocks of stone about 24 inches long by 12 inches high.
The original doors, windows, and fireplaces are all there, and, with