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Historic Towns & Picturesque Villages

Norwich Cathedral

Norwich

a Historic City in the county of Norfolk

Dawlish Warren Railway, Devon 1969

Dawlish

a Seaside Town in the county of Devon

Pictures of Bristol

a Historic City in the county of Somerset

About Bristol

Bristol Zoo is not this great city's only claim to fame, although it is today an immensely popular tourist attraction for people from all over the Midlands and beyond, and parents driving down the motorways with children are often caused to alter their journey by the cries of a child who has spotted the 'Zoo' sign. No, the proud history of Bristol is firmly rooted in Anglo-Saxon times and coins show that in the reign of Ethelred the Unready, Bristol quite possibly had its own mint.

A settlement grew up around the harbour of the River Avon and trading began with the nearby ports of South Wales. From these early beginnings slow progress was made untill after the Norman Conquest when the little port grew more rapidly and developed into an important trading post bringing shared wealth and prosperity to the people of the town.

The distinguished explorer, John Cabot, together with his son, Sebastion set sail in the 'Matthew' in the year 1497. Together, they landed on the North American coast. This brave achievement was commemorated 400 years later by the building of the 150ft Cabot Tower on Brandon Hill. This discovery opened up opportunities for fresh trading with other parts of the world. Merchants left Bristol with wool and leather goods and returned laden with tobacco, sugar and wines. This upsurge in trade brought even more prosperity. The newly rich merchants built beautiful houses for themselves and their families. The clergy too, benefitted from handsome donations causing rich embellishments to church's of all denominations.

By the 17th-century, a Quaker Meeting House had been errected in Bristol and today the city still has strong links with the Quaker movement. John Wesley, leader of the Methodist church had a chapel built in 1739. This building is the oldest of its kind in the world.

Less happily, Bristol prospered from the slave trade during the 17th-century and the abrupt ending to this seedy period in an otherwise illustrious history during the 19th-century, caused a setback to the port. This setback was quite serious and came at the time when the Port of Liverpool was rising and able to offer stiff competition to Bristol. Fortunately, a reversal in fortunes came with the building of Isambard Kingdom Brunel's steamships, the Great Western in 1837 and the Great Britain in 1843. Brunel had a long association with Bristol, he designed the old Temple Meads Railway Station, re-designed the dock area and most famously, Brunel is responsible for the magnificent Clifton suspension bridge that spans the River Avon. The bridge was started by Brunel but work ceased owing to financial difficulties and the bridge was finally completed five years after Brunel's death by former collegues as a tribute to his great work in the City.

During the 19th-century new docks were built and just as merchant trade had developed and thrived so too did the industrial heartland of Bristol. The City is the home of the famed Rolls Royce company and over the decades many other world class companies have settled here.

Today, Bristol is a thriving cosmopolitan City offering visitors a rich diversity of activities. There are exceptional shopping areas, hotels and public houses. There are beautiful Churches to visit, and the town retains many fine properties from the Regency and Georgian periods, these can be seen at their best in the residential suburb of Clifton which is spread across the downs above the Avon Gorge. Nearby, of course, is the Zoo!

A visit to this famous city can be a cultural experience, there are theatres and concert halls. For those who wish it, there is plenty of night life. A visit to the newly regenerated harbourside and dockland area is a must, for it is here, several centuries ago, that the rythmic pulse of this great City first began to beat.
Information provided by Terri Walton

Recommended towns & villages near Bristol

St. Michael with St. Paul. Bath, Somerset

Bath (835 Pictures) a Historic City in the county of Somerset

(11.5 miles, 18.5 km, direction SE of Bristol)

Bath is an elegant city famous for its beautiful Georgian architecture and its Roman attractions from which it got it's name. The traveller James Boswell who visited the city.....

Castle Combe

Castle Combe (203 Pictures) a Picturesque Village in the county of Wiltshire

(15.0 miles, 24.1 km, direction E of Bristol)

Tucked away in the Cotswolds, Castle Combe is a quintessential English village with honey-colored stone houses, a medieval market cross, and a peaceful ambiance. It's an idyllic destination for a relaxing countryside getaway...

Berkeley Castle, Gloucestershire

Berkeley (29 Pictures) in the county of Gloucestershire

(15.6 miles, 25.0 km, direction N of Bristol)

The town is mostly Georgian, with the most dominant feature being its centuries old castle, surrounded by buttressed walls which are 14 ft-thick in parts...

Goughs cave Cheddar Gorge

Cheddar (132 Pictures) a Picturesque Village in the county of Somerset

(16.3 miles, 26.2 km, direction SW of Bristol)

Often called 'Englands Grand Canyon' Chedder Gorge was carved out by a river that now runs underground...

The Bishop's Palace, Wells

Wells (137 Pictures) in the county of Somerset

(18.8 miles, 30.2 km, direction S of Bristol)

Wells, situated at the foot of the picturesque mendip hills, is most certainly one of England's most delightful cathedral cities...

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Nearby attractions..

Bristol Cathedral

Bristol Cathedral (11 Pictures)

(1.9 miles, 3.0 km, direction SW)

The great, stirring building of Bristol Cathedral was initially given cathedral status by Henry VIII, at this time it was a.....

The At-Bristol planetarium. Bristol

At-Bristol (1 Pictures)

(2.2 miles, 3.5 km, direction SW)

..

Bristol - Cabot Tower

Cabot Tower, Bristol (8 Pictures)

(2.3 miles, 3.7 km, direction SW)

One of two towers dominating the Bristol skyline, and not far from Brunel's Suspension Bridge, Cabot tower stands 100ft high.....

View of the Clifton Suspension Bridge. Clifton, Bristol, Somerset. Summer 2004

Clifton Suspension Bridge (44 Pictures)

(2.9 miles, 4.7 km, direction SW)

Bristol's graceful Clifton Suspension Bridge was designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel. It spans the Avon Gorge some 245ft above.....

Dyrham Park,  National Trust owned house in Between Bristol and Chippenham

Dyrham Park (8 Pictures)

(8.5 miles, 13.7 km, direction E)

This engaging house sits serenely in a beautiful wooded Gloucestershire valley, surrounded by an old deer park. It is built of.....

Beckford's Tower, Bath

Beckford's Tower & Museum (3 Pictures)

(9.6 miles, 15.5 km, direction SE)

Designed by Henry Edmund Goodridge in 1825 for William Beckford, one of the nation's most accomplished and interesting characters.....

Assembly Rooms, Bath

Bath Assembly Rooms (2 Pictures)

(10.9 miles, 17.6 km, direction SE)

Bath's magnificent 18th century Assembly Rooms were opened in 1771. Known as the New or Upper Rooms they were designed by John.....


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