The actual place-name Garway derives from the Welsh, gwrwe, meaning a marsh or gwre a camp and wy meaning water. “This then gives camp by water” or ”marsh by the water”.
The Herefordshire sites and monuments record (No. 6253) notes that an early Medieval/Dark age clas or monastic unit existed here whose foundation date is unknown but was thought to have been dissolved somewhere in the 11th century.
It was on the sixteenth of July 1199 that the knight’s templar received confirmation from king john that the gift of 2000 acres of land at Garway officially belonged to the order. In 1294 the Templars at Garway received a distinguished visitor in the form of a grand master of there order – Jacques de Moley, who 20 years later on the demise of the order was burnt at the stake on the 18th of March.
One of the privileges the Templars held was the right of sanctuary which meant if anybody claimed such a right they had a choice of standing trial or leaving the country.
If they opted for the second option as most sanctuary seekers did, they were given safe passage to the nearest port with heavy penalties going to anybody who tried to interfere with there departure.
Bond, 2001, P82, notes how poachers from the forest of Dean often received shelter from the Templars at Garway as well as the monks at Tintern and the Canons of Llanthony.
The Templars made many repairs and alterations to the church. Subsidence had several damaged the round nave and so they constructed the present-day nave, it is also thought that the knights repaired the nearby columbarium or dovecote in 1326. There are several important features outside the church and starting at the main door the first obvious structure working in a easterly direction is the tower.
This stands around 70 foot high and was built in the 12th/13th centuries when it would of provided a safe place to retreat to in times of trouble.
This period of time saw the struggles of the Norman Marcher Lords as they attempted to dominate the Welsh borderlands. It is thought that originally the tower was a separate entity with the connecting passageways being constructed in the 17th century.
Sometime between the 1500’s the tower was heightened by about 8 feet for some unknown purpose.
The north wall of the church is probably the star feature for below it can be seen excavated walls of the original Templar building. The distinct curving of the original round knave can be seen, these were revealed in an excavation of 1927.
During the excavation fragments of worked stone were found along with several pieces of medieval pottery and the top of a two branched iron candlestick. In the north wall are also the visible remains of the 13th century door and window.
Above the blocked doorway sits one of the many carvings and inscriptions that can be found at Garway, in this case it is the Dextra Die or Right Hand Of God that’s emerging from the clouds.
Over the chapel window is a decorated arch with corbels fashioned into two heads, one each side. These are said to represent “life” and “death” and depict the Grand Master of the Templars.
Moving around to the south wall, again there are some more incised stones; there is a cross of Lorraine, a Swastika; and a Masons mark.
Slightly higher up the west wall of the chapel is a carving of the “Lamb of God” or Agnus Die, beside the doorway there is a cross potent and although very feint what appears to be a masons compass.
Another strange symbol appears on the side of the western buttress and that is of a matrix of nine dots.
On the west where the main door is located is a Gryphon and another Patriarchal Cross.
There is also another incised carving which is another mason’s mark, inside he church once again there are symbols and inscriptions abounding.
ng settlement.
