Cotswolds

We left Northern Wales driving through the rugged Welsh countryside to spend time exploring the Cotswolds.  Spanning five counties, the Cotswolds offers iconic English countryside charm renowned for its rolling hills, historic market towns, idyllic villages built from honey-coloured limestone and an “Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty”.

Arriving in Bath we drove along Bathwick Hill a prestigious, steep residential area known for its Georgian architecture, historic listed buildings, and panoramic views over the city as we turned into Darlington Street we passed St Mary the Virgin church. Bathwick Hill connects the city centre (near Pulteney Bridge) to Claverton Down and the University of Bath. The area features luxury homes, popular walking routes, and borders National Trust land.

On our first day in the Cotswolds, our first stop was the private residence gardens of HRH King Charles III, Highgrove strolling around the royal gardens with our Highgrove guide.  Dating back to between 1796 and 1798, the house itself was built in a Georgian neo-classical design on the site of an older property. When The Prince of Wales bought the Highgrove estate in 1980, it had little more than a neglected kitchen garden, an overgrown copse, some pastureland and a few hollow oaks. Using his vision and ideas, His Majesty, with the help of some of Britain’s finest garden designers have created a series of individual gardens that is now regarded as one of the greatest gardens of our time.

Inside King Charles’ garden at Highgrove | Alan Titchmarsh visits

Leaving Highgrove we toured some of the golden stone villages of the Cotswolds. Travelling to our first stop, Tetbury an historic market town set in the southern Cotswolds known for its elegant streetscape and rich heritage, many of these fine houses which were originally built and financed by the wool-staplers on the proceeds of the sale of wool with many of the wool merchants’ houses remaining the same as they were in the 16th & 17th centuries during the height of the town’s prosperity from the wool trade.

My walk around Tetbury included the Chipping Steps in the corner of The Chipping car park which is an old entrance to the town and the cottages running down the side are very picturesque and probably originally weaver’s cottages.

The Grade: 1 listed Market House in the centre of Tetbury was built in 1655 by Tetbury Feoffees and is still owned by them to this day.  The Feoffees were founded in 1633 and at the time they were a group of four local residents from the town who bought the advowsons from the landowner and took responsibility for the towns future. The Market House has had many uses, administration of the Town, sales (stapling) of wool and under the entrance steps storage for the hand fire pump and was even used as a “lock up” until the Police Station was built. The Market Hall is still used today for Craft Fairs, Exhibitions, Sales and Private Functions with Markets taking place underneath every week.

The Highgrove Shop, inspired by Highgrove Gardens and the personal interests of His Majesty King Charles III, is filled with an exciting array of sustainably sourced products, artisan crafts and ranges designed exclusively for Highgrove.

Leaving Tetbury on the A433 we travelled via Cirencester on the B4425 to Bibury. Driving through Bibury, a picturesque, highly popular Cotswold village in Gloucestershire, renowned for its honey-colored stone cottages, the River Coln, and the iconic 14th-century Arlington Row weavers’ cottages. Being a Sunday it was extremely crowded.

Arlington Row in Bibury, Gloucestershire, is a renowned, picturesque row of 17th-century, honey-colored Cotswold stone cottages originally built as a 14th-century wool store. Owned by the National Trust, these iconic, Grade I listed, former weavers’ cottages are among the most photographed in the UK and famously appear inside the British passport.  They overlook Rack Isle, a low-lying, marshy area once used to dry cloth and graze cattle, and now a wildlife refuge. The cottage at 9 Arlington Row can be rented via the National Trust (£952 per week in summer.

Continuing our drive though the Cotswolds we stopped at Burford.  Heading down High Street the traffic had to be seen to be believed.  During the 19th and 20th centuries, Burford prospered due to its thriving local industries, from farming and weaving to saddle-making and stonemasonry.  At the end of Priory Lane off High Street is the Burford Priory where media businesswoman Elisabeth Murdoch, her ex-husband Matthew Freud, owner of the public relations company Freud Communications, and their family were residents.

We spent a lovely day exploring and experiencing the history of Bath, the only city designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The city of Bath in South West England was founded in the 1st century AD by the Romans who used the natural hot springs as a thermal spa.  Bath became an important centre of the wool industry in the Middle Ages. In the 18th century, under George III, it developed into an elegant town with neoclassical Palladian buildings, which blend harmoniously with the Roman baths.

Our driver took us along Bathwick Hill, a street lined with historic houses many of which are designated as listed buildings.  It became part of Bath with the 18th-century development of the Pulteney estate and the building of Pulteney Bridge.

We continued along Great Pulteney Street over 1,000 feet long and 100 feet wide, Great Pulteney Street is the widest, grandest thoroughfare in Bath.

The fountain on Laura Place is a Grade II late 19th century structure situated within the Bath conservation area and World Heritage Site  It forms the centrepoint of the Grade I terraced junction of Laura Place and is a critical feature in long views between the Grade I Pulteney Bridge and Grade I Great Pulteney Street down to the Grade I Holburne Museum and associated Grade II Sydney Gardens. 

Our coach dropped us off Royal. Victoria Park for our walk to see the Royal Crescent in Bath is a iconic 500-foot-long, 30-house, Grade I-listed Georgian terrace designed by John Wood the Younger and built between 1767 and 1774. It is famous for its 114 ionic columns, sweeping facade overlooking Royal Victoria Park, and historical significance in 18th-century, fashion, frequently appearing in films like Bridgerton.  It is among the greatest examples of Georgian architecture to be found in the United Kingdom.

We continued our walk along Brock Street to The Circus, a renowned ring of 30 large, Grade I listed Georgian townhouses designed by John Wood, the Elder, and built between 1754 and 1768. A masterpiece of British architecture, it features a unique circular design inspired by ancient Druidic stone circles and Roman, Palladian, and Baroque styles.

Royal Victoria Park, first opened in 1830 by Queen Victoria was the first park to be opened in Queen Victoria’s name, spanning 57 acres there are beautiful views towards Royal Crescent in the north and a scenic hilly landscape rolling away to the south.

Following this our coach took us to the location to start the second part of our walk at Pieroni’s Fountain originally sited at the junction of Bath Street and Stall Street, the fountain gave free mineral water to the public until 1978 and The Island Club, once a central figure in Bath’s nightlife, now stands as a forsaken relic at the heart of this vibrant city. 

We headed to the Jane Austen Centre and Regency Tea Rooms on Gay Street, designed by John Wood, the Elder, in 1735 and completed by his son John Wood, the Younger. 

Jane Austen Centre, Bath’s most famous resident getting a snapshot of what it would be like to live in the Regency times. Set in a classically decorated Georgian townhouse we had some insight into what would have inspired Austen’s timeless novels. The Centre also explores how the city of Bath impacted upon Jane Austen’s life and writing in much-loved books such as Northanger Abbey and Persuasion.  While there we enjoyed tea and scones in the tearooms.

Abbey Green is a grassed oval enclosed by listed buildings on three sides, an historic cobbled square that is home to a nineteenth-century London Plane tree.

A charming pedestrianised street, the North Parade Passage leading off Abbey Green is one of the few examples of Baths pre-Georgian architecture. Most of the buildings have been rebuilt over the centuries but Sally Lunns (4 North Parade Passage) had its timber-framework just hidden by a stone facade in 1720.  The Tudor building, dating from 1482, is said to be Baths oldest private house.

When Bath became a spa town for aristocrats starting in the late 16th century and extending into the 1700s, many of the buildings were timbered. In response to the city’s increased popularity, an urban renewal was launched with Georgian period architecture called Palladian Revival. The buildings on Broad Street are typical with their connected facades of beige limestone.

The Roman Baths are well-preserved public bathing facility built about 70 CE on the site of geothermal springs in Roman Britain.  The hot mineral springs bubble up from the ground at temperatures well above 104 °F (40 °C), and the main one produces more than 300,000 gallons (1.3 million liters) a day.

Church Street showcases the architectural beauty that Bath is famous for, Georgian buildings featuring intricate facades and a variety of shops, cafes, and local attractions.

The first sight most visitors have of the Bath Abbey is the west front, with its unique ladders of angels. After the dissolution of the monasteries in 1539 by order of King Henry VIII, the abbey lay in ruins for more than 70 years.  The abbey as we know it is the work of Sir George Gilbert Scott, who from 1864 to 1874, completely transformed the inside to conform with his vision of Victorian Gothic architecture. The King of All England, King Edgar was crowned on this site in 973 and the service set the precedent for the coronation of all future Kings and Queens of England including Elizabeth II.

Walking back towards where we started and venturing towards the Parade Gardens, a two-and-a-half acres of riverside gardens with views of the Pulteney Bridge and weir on the River Avon.

Pulteney Bridge, a unique landmark built by Robert Adam in 1769 is one of only four bridges in the world that has a throng of shops across its full span. Made from limestone, the Pulteney Bridge features overhead pilasters, pediments, and tiny leaded domes at either end. This picturesque horseshoe Pulteney Weir was built between 1968 and 1972 in order to control water level, regulate flow and prevent flooding.

Running through the heart of Bath is the scenic Avon River with boat trips and pleasant riverside walking trails along its banks.  The river’s source is up in the Cotswold hills and it flows through Bath and Bristol before meeting the Severn Estuary at Avonmouth.

Continuing our walk along Pierrepont Street to North Parade Bridge which is one of the newer bridges in the city. The eastern building contains a spiral staircase down to the riverside path, while the western one was the toll collectors booth.  The original structure was a typical early 19th century Iron span across the Avon and in 1936-7 the bridge was refaced with Ashlar Stone over the old Iron spans, otherwise the bridge remains as built.

Returning to our pick up spot along North Parade passing Duke Street which was built in 1748 by John Wood, the Elder. Several of the buildings have been designated as Grade I listed buildings. The street, which overlooks the River Avon, is pedestrianised with no vehicles permitted.

Our last stop before leaving the Cotswolds was the village of Lacock, believed to date from the early 14th century, though there is a documented settlement before then. Travelling back in time it is one of England’s prettiest villages with buildings mainly constructed in limestone with stone-tiled roofs, gabled roofs and Tudor, half-timbered ‘black and white’ buildings.  

Originally Saxon the village later grew alongside the abbey, flourishing as a wool producer conveniently located along the route between London and Bath.  Most of the houses are 18th century, or earlier; nothing new has been built in the last 200 years.    Lacock was established for the estate workers of the abbey in the 13th century and the village streets form a square with High Street, renowned for its 13th-century stone and timber-framed cottages, Church Street where the grey bricked home at the end of the Street was Harry’s parents house, East Street which was established for the estate workers of the abbey in the 13th century and West Street which is a perfect example of how the village has remained untouched by modern development. The four streets forming the four sides of the square. The village is owned and managed by the National Trust.

Among the productions that have included Lacock in their filing are Pride and Prejudice, Downton Abbey, Cranford, Harry Potter, Emma, The Mayor of Casterbridge, The Woman in Black, The Wolf Man, The Hollow Crown, The Other Boleyn Girl – the list is apparently endless.

Walking along East Street there is the Lacock Village Hall which is available for rental then the lock-up, probably late 18th Century built on the side of the 14th century tithe barn on the corner of High and East Streets.  The tithe barn, constructed in the cruck beam manner, retains its dirt floor and is where villagers would deposit their ‘tithes’, a tenth of their produce, donated to the relevant landowner, in this instance, the abbey. 

Towards the end of Church Street, probably one of the most picturesque streets in England stands the medieval parish church of Lacock, dedicated to St Cyriac. It is possible that a late Saxon church stood on this spot but the present building is largely a product of the 15th century, with some earlier stonework.