All through Medieval times and the Early Modern Age, Norwich was the second largest city in England after London. All through that time this city on the River Wensum prospered through the wool trade and a lucrative weaving industry, bolstered by immigrants from the Low Countries. Then, because of its isolation in East Anglia, Norwich …
At the head of Plymouth Sound, one of the world’s great natural harbours, Plymouth is a city with a rich maritime past. For hundreds of years this has been a naval base, and the cliffs along the harbour are armed with coastal forts and batteries from the 17th century to the Second World War. You …
Since the Middle Ages Portsmouth has been an assembly point for campaigns by sea. Portsmouth was made to be a naval base for its natural harbour and the protection given by the Isle of Wight, just across the strait known as the Solent. It has the distinction of being the only island city in the …
England’s first seaside resort first pulled in holidaymakers in the 17th century after a curative spring was discovered in the cliffs in the south of the town. Up to that time Scarborough had been a fishing port in the shadow of fearsome castle built by Henry II, and hosted the Scarborough Fair, a six-week market …
The gorgeous harbour town of Weymouth was one of England’s first modern resorts. King George III chose it as his summer holiday destination, and came down 14 times between 1789 and 1805. Weymouth has one of the sunniest climates in the country and one of its best beaches, tracked by an esplanade with a long …
A proper maritime town, Whitby was fuelled for hundreds of years by its fishing, shipbuilding and whaling trades. In the 18th century Britain’s greatest explorer Captain James Cook served his apprenticeship in the cosy old quarter east of the harbour. That natural harbour is in a mighty crack between cliffs, and because the harbour entrance …
England’s ecclesiastical capital, Canterbury is a city with two universities, lots of preserved Medieval architecture and the oldest operating school in the world. For hundreds of years Canterbury has been dominated by the Bell Harry Tower of the UNESCO World Heritage cathedral, which is still the tallest landmark in the city. It was in the …
One of the largest settlements in the UK without city status, Reading is a university town 20 minutes west of London. And despite being in the capital’s orbit, Reading is an economic powerbase of its own, with companies in the insurance and IT sectors. The town is on the Thames, at the very end of …
On the English Riviera in Devon, Torquay has had a lofty reputation since it came into fashion with high society at the start of the 1800s. The resort is at the north end of Tor Bay, amid sharp hills and cliffs made up of red breccia and sandstone. There are enticing beaches under these cliffs …
On a limestone escarpment to the north of the River Witham, Lincoln is a Medieval city built over a Roman fort. That escarpment drops sharply to the river, and to get to get from the railway station to the historic cathedral quarter you have to battle up the aptly named Steep Hill. Once you make …