Pizza at the Kymin

The Kymin Photo: Roger Davies

At the Kymin above Monmouth in Wales two custodians who lived in a tied cottage on the site were made redundant in 2020 after looking after the site for 17 years. The Round House is no longer open to visitors and there has been a proposal to let the landscape ‘go wild’. The National Trust owns these six acres of picturesque landscape at the top of a pointy hill, together with a big crenellated summerhouse and the Naval Temple. The latter commemorates Nelson, who visited with Sir William and Lady Hamilton three years before his death at Trafalgar. The National Trust bought the site in 1902, and in 1905 the centenary of the Battle of Trafalgar was enthusiastically celebrated here.

Local people are alarmed by the recent developments, with The National Trust website stating: ‘We celebrated a grand re-opening of the newly restored Naval Temple on 1 August 2012, exactly 211 years after its official opening on 1 August 1801, and will continue to preserve this unique monument forever, for everyone.’ A statement seemingly at odds with the reality at the site. The Gardens Trust commented: ‘The thought that this important landscape and its unique buildings might instead now be abandoned is shocking.’

At the end of July 2021, though the lawns are freshly mown, the buildings are empty, paint is peeling from window sills, grids are blocked by gravel and brambles are taking hold.

In 2019 the Trust said the grounds would be ‘rewilded’, perhaps unaware that in late 18th century picturesque terms, such a landscape needs to be carefully arranged, that is, ‘God on a thoughtful day’ rather than ‘God-forsaken.’

There is nothing on the National Trust’s website to explain what is happening or when the Round House can be visited. However, people are visiting, as Gloucestershire Live recently reported that ‘National Trust manager urges takeaway bosses not to deliver to beauty spot’ after volunteers found discarded pizza boxes. In the absence of the custodians and with proper maintenance no longer taking place, it seems anything goes.