Starting out like most of our journeys – we headed out the M3 toward the West to see what we could see. Approaching Winchester there was a car park. Given that most cities do not have great parking close to the center (especially for someone driving a van) we parked. As it turns out, for 2.70L you can park for the day and take the bus in.
We wandered around Winchester, looking at street entertainers, the old buildings, the castle. And yes, that is the Round Table in two views. The other end of the great hall is covered with painted calligraphic family trees. We walked past Winchester Cathedral but did not fork over the entry fee to see the inside. We had a much better time at the used book sale run continually by the Cathedral Choir as a fund raiser. I found a couple of fiber related books and George rummaged through both the German and political sections.
From there we walked along the paths to see what was left of Wolvesey Castle. As you can see from the English Heritage Site’s overhead photo, the Bishop did not have a small residence, nor did he likely stint himself on his surroundings. Present in this location since the 12th Century, it is one of the free historical sites in which you can really wander around and get an idea of the size and quality of the old buildings.
Mostly what you are going to get is a gallery of photos, hopefully in the order described above. Let me know if you need something specific clarified.
We drove home leisurely along the A30 enjoying both the countryside and not getting lost.
The names on the wall — maybe not a genealogy, but a list of the bishops? or the fiefholders? The boxes with multiple names list all men with different last names, no women (except queens, associated with some of the dates. )
A family historian linked one of my ancestors to a medieval list like this one, and published a genealogy associating the line with a bunch of Romans from BCE. Since the medieval versions were fictional political statements in the first place, I decided against adding in his research. Although it would have been fun.