Early in the 14
th Century a hermitage, (small chapel)
was founded on St Catherine's Down. Three years after this one stormy night
in the winter of 1314 a vessel, one of a fleet under charter to a group of sundry
merchants of the King's Duchy of Acquitaine, was driven ashore on Atherfield
Ledge, a notorious grave yard of many ships of the day
The sailors survived the wreck and illegally sold their cargo, 174 casks of
white wine, to many people of the Island. The merchants took proceedings against
the receivers of the wine as it would have been impossible to trace and prosecute
the crew.
One Island landowner, Walter de Godeton was found guilty of receiving 53 casks
of wine and was fined by the courts. However the wine had been destined for
a religious community in Picardy and they lodged a complaint against him in
the Roman Court.
This resulted in de Godeton having to build a lighthouse on the Down to warn
ships of the area. He also had to found an Oratory for a priest to say masses
for the souls of those lost at sea and also to trim the light.
At the Reformation the monk ceased his masses and the lamps were no longer trimmed.
For nearly three hundred years there was no warning light above the treacherous
area of the "Back of the Wight". It is probably for this reason that so mnay
ships were lost in this area.
At certain times of the year dense fog is quite the norm around the Blackgang
area which obscure all landmarks and a ship's navigator could have soon become
disorientated and his ship soon dragged onto the rocks.
It was then that the forerunner of Trinity House, the Trinity Board began the
building of a new lighthouse very close to the Pepper Pot. This was never completed
as experience showed that the mists and fogs rendered it almost useless and
the ruin of the base of this building can be seen. Possibly as a compliment,
this is known to some Islanders as the Mustard Pot.
It was not until 1840 that the current lighthouse was built at St Catherine's
Point in Niton as a result of the public outcry after the wreck of the
Clarendon
in 1836.
