(DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Europe

GREA T BRIT AIN  49
Orkney Isles
Durness Thurso Distance chart
Port of Ness
Wick
Isle of Lewis London Distance by road in kilometers
Outer Hebrides Ullapool A9 179 164 Cardiff
Distance by road in miles
Stornoway
Birmingham
111
241
150
102
Orkney Isles,
Lochmaddy Tarbert Uig A835 Shetland Isles 599 466 600 Edinburgh
290
373
372
North A890 A98
Uist Inverness A96 Spey 626 470 602 72 Glasgow
374
389
45
292
South Isle of A82 A9 A96 851 721 853 254 269
Uist Skye A87 Aviemore 529 448 530 158 167 Inverness
Cairngorms Aberdeen 296 130 278 343 344 597
Inner Hebrides Fort William A86 A9 A94 341 332 261 784 785 1038 451 532 York
Barra A93 184 81 173 213 214 371 Manchester
Plymouth
212
426
206
250
152
545
152
SCOTLAND
344
106
301
550
333
208
381
Mull A85 Dundee 207 129 237 187 214 342 66 331
Perth St. Andrews
Stirling M9 M90 A91
A82
M8
Glasgow Edinburgh
Jura A83
Islay
M77 A77 Tweed
Arran M74 A1
Amsterdam
A76
A77 A7 A696
Dumfries Tynemouth
A75 Carlisle Sunderland NOR TH
Stranraer A69 Newcastle-
upon-Tyne
Belfast, A595 Durham
Larne Tyne SEA
A66 A1(M) Middlesbrough
Lake District M6
Kendal
Isle of Man Swale A19 Scarborough
Douglas A65 A64
Leeds &
Heysham Bradford A1 York
IRISH M6 The haunting landscape of the Isle of Skye
Belfast, Blackpool Bradford Leeds M62 Kingston upon Hull
Dublin SEA Preston M62
Liverpool Huddersfield Grimsby
Anglesey Manchester
Dublin Holyhead Sheffield A16
Caernarfon A55 Chester A6 M1 A1 Lincoln Groningen
Snowdonia A5 Stoke-on-Trent Rotterdam,
Zeebrugge
Derby
Nottingham
A49 ENGLAND A47
A483 M54 M6 Leicester Peterborough Norwich Esbjerg NETHERLANDS
Cardigan Birmingham A11
Bay Severn A1 Amsterdam
Aberystwyth A49 Warwick Northampton A14 A12
Stratford- Cambridge The Hague A4 A12 Utrecht
A487 W ALES upon-Avon M1 Ipswich
M5
Rosslare Fishguard Blenheim Luton M11 Harwich Arnhem
A40 Palace M40 Stansted Hoek van Rotterdam
Gloucester Oxford M25 Holland Eindhoven
A470
Pembroke M4 Swindon Chelmsford
Swansea Cardiff M4 Thames
Bristol Windsor LONDON Ramsgate Zeebrugge
Castle
Bristol Channel M5 Salisbury Stonehenge M3 Heathrow Gatwick Dover Ostend N9 A14 Antwerp
A1
M2
Canterbury
Bath
M25
Taunton
A303 Southampton A27 A10
A361 Winchester Folkestone Dunkerque Brussels
A35 Portsmouth Newhaven Calais BELGIUM
A30 Brighton Liège
Devon and Cornwall A38 Exeter Bournemouth Isle of Wight Boulogne A25 Lille
Newquay Plymouth Weymouth A26
A39 Truro Engl is h C ha nn el FRANCE 0 kilometers
Penzance N1 75
Isles of Scilly Caen, Dieppe Amiens 0 miles 75
St. Malo, Le Havre
Santander Roscoff Channel Is. Rouen Paris
Cherbourg
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50  BRIT AIN AND IRELAND


1 London A1 Cambridge
Watford
Highgate Walthamstow
The largest city in Europe, London is home to more than seven A11
million people. Founded by the Romans in the first century AD A406 Hampstead Islington Hackney
as an administrative center and trading port, the capital is the Willesden A5 Camden City
A40 Airport
principal residence of British monarchs, as well as the center of Oxford A13
government and business, and is rich in historic buildings. In Thames
addition to its many museums and galleries, London is an Heathrow Hammersmith Southwark
Airport
exciting city, with a vast array of entertainments. In 2012, Windsor M4 Chelsea A2
London hosted the Olympic Games. Developments completed Kew Chiswick Fulham Camberwell
for the event, such as the Aquatics Centre, designed by the A316 Clapham
late Zaha Hadid, have added to the city’s attractions. Millennium Foot Bridge, leading to Tate Wandsworth A205
Modern on Bankside Richmond A2212
Wimbledon
Streatham
Thames
Kingston-upon- A23
REGENT'S Euston Thames A3 Mitcham
Square
PARK Great EUSTON RD WOBURN PLACE Guildford Brighton Gatwick
Airport
Baker Portland
MARYLEBONE RD CLEVELAND ST
Street Street GOWER STREET
Warren
Street
Regent's Park
SQ.
RUSSELL
Goodge SOUTHAMPTON ROW
Street BLOOMSBURY ST Barbican ALDERSGATE ST
MO RTIMER ST HIGH HOLBORN HOLBORN HOLBORN VIADUCT LONDON WALL
MARYLEBONE GREAT PORTLAND STREET
PORTLAND PL
TOTT ENHAM COURT ROAD
Tottenham
Chancery
Court Road
WIGMORE STREET S TR EE T SOHO NEW OXFORD ST KINGSWAY Holborn CHANCERY LANE Lane STREET FARRINGDON NEWGATE ST St Paul's CITY MOORGATE BISHOPSGATE HOUNDSDITCH
HARLEY STREET
BAKER STREET
GLOUCESTER ROAD
CHEAPSIDE POULTRY THREADNEEDLE ST
OX F OR D Oxford SQUARE BURY AVENUE Covent STRAND LUDGATE H ILL LEADENHALL ST ALDGATE
Circus
Summer relaxation along the banks of the MARBLE ARCH Bond WARDOUR STR EET CHARING CROSS RD Garden FLEET S TREET NEW BRIDGE ST VICT ORIA ST KING WILLIAM S GRACECHURCH ST FEN CHURCH ST M I N O R I E S
Bank
SOHO
Street
Thames at Richmond Lancaster Marble NEW BOND ST R EGENT STREE T ALDWYCH Temple QUEE N Mansion
Arch
Fenchurch
Gate BROOK STREET CONDUIT ST SHAFTES EMBANKMENT Blackfriars House CANNON ST TREET GREAT TOWER S T Street Tower Hill
Cannon
BAYSWATER ROAD HYDE PICCADILLY Leicester STRAND Waterloo Blackfriars Thames Street Monument T O WER HILL EAST SM ITHFIELD
Square
MOUNT STREET
Queensway PAR K LANE OLD BOND ST CIRCUS Charing Bridge Bridge Southwark London
MAYFAIR BERKELEY ST Piccadilly Cross Bridge
National
Circus
Theatre
KENSINGTON PARK Hayward STAMFORD STREET SOUTHWARK BR. RD BOROUGH H IGH ST Bridge London
THE RING
Bridge
Kensington S ERP ENTINE ROAD PALL MALL VICTORIA Hungerford Royal Gallery SOUTHW ARK STREE T The Shard
Palace PICCADILLY ST JAMES'S ST Foot Bridge Festival
Green
Serpentine Hyde Park Park WHITEHALL Hall ST THOMAS ST
Corner THE MALL
GARDENS ROTTEN ROW HYDE GREEN ST YORK ROAD T O OLEY STREET
PARK
CORNER PARK JAMES'S
KENSINGTON PALACE GDNS
BUCKINGHAM PARK Westminster
KENSINGT O N ROAD KNIGHTSBRIDGE Knightsbridge GARDENS St James's Westminster
PALACE
B R OMPTON ROAD KNIGHTSBRIDGE GRO SVENOR PLACE GROSVENOR BUCKIN GHAM GATE GREAT PETER ST MILLBANK Thames LAMBETH PALA C E R OAD
STREET
Bridge
Park
VICTORI A
LOWER
PLACE
EXHIBITI ON ROAD
South Victoria WEST MINSTER
Kensington ROCHESTER ROW HORSEFERRY ROAD Lambeth
Bridge
M I L LBA N K
Sights at a Glance 0 British Museum pp60–61 p Shakespeare’s Globe ROAD
VAU XHALL BRIDGE
1 Westminster Abbey pp54–5 q Madame Tussauds a The Shard Vauxhall
Bridge
2 Houses of Parliament w Regent’s Park s Tower of London pp68–9
3 Coca-Cola London Eye e Hyde Park d Tower Bridge
4 Buckingham Palace r Science Museum
5 Tate Britain t Natural History Museum Greater London (see inset map)
6 National Gallery y Victoria and Albert Museum f Greenwich
7 Trafalgar Square u St. Paul’s Cathedral g Notting Hill and Portobello Road
8 Piccadilly i Museum of London h Richmond and Kew
9 Covent Garden o Tate Modern j Hampton Court
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L ONDON  51


Greater London Cambridge
Getting Around A1
Watford
London’s subway system – Highgate Walthamstow A11
the “tube” or “underground” – Hampstead
runs from about 5:30am A406 A5 Camden Islington Hackney
City
until just after midnight A40 Willesden Airport
(some lines now operate a 24 Oxford A13
hour service on Fridays and Thames
Saturdays). Overground rail Heathrow Southwark
services are useful for trips Airport Hammersmith Chelsea A2
farther afield. London’s buses Windsor M4 Camberwell
are now much quicker, since Kew Chiswick Fulham
the introduction of the A316 Clapham
Congestion Charge (£11.50 Wandsworth A205
a day) to enter central Richmond A2212
London with a car. The Wimbledon Streatham
well-known black cabs are Thames
a safe and convenient way Kingston-upon- A23 0 kilometers 5
REGENT'S Euston to travel from door to door. Thames A3 Mitcham 0 miles 3
Square
PARK Great EUSTON RD WOBURN PLACE Guildford Brighton Gatwick
Airport
Baker Portland
Street Street GOWER STREET
MARYLEBONE RD CLEVELAND ST Key
Warren
Street
Regent's Park
SQ. Area of main map
RUSSELL
Goodge SOUTHAMPTON ROW
Street BLOOMSBURY ST Barbican ALDERSGATE ST
MO RTIMER ST HIGH HOLBORN HOLBORN HOLBORN VIADUCT LONDON WALL
MARYLEBONE GREAT PORTLAND STREET
PORTLAND PL
TOTT ENHAM COURT ROAD
Tottenham
Chancery
Court Road
WIGMORE STREET S TR EE T SOHO NEW OXFORD ST KINGSWAY Holborn CHANCERY LANE Lane STREET FARRINGDON NEWGATE ST St Paul's CITY MOORGATE BISHOPSGATE HOUNDSDITCH
HARLEY STREET
GLOUCESTER ROAD
BAKER STREET
CHEAPSIDE POULTRY THREADNEEDLE ST
SQUARE
OX F OR D Oxford WARDOUR STR EET BURY AVENUE Covent STRAND LUDGATE H ILL LEADENHALL ST ALDGATE
Circus
MARBLE ARCH Bond SOHO CHARING CROSS RD Garden ALDWYCH FLEET S TREET NEW BRIDGE ST VICT ORIA ST KING WILLIAM S GRACECHURCH ST FEN CHURCH ST M I N O R I E S
Bank
Street
Lancaster Marble NEW BOND ST R EGENT STREE T Temple QUEE N Mansion
Arch
Fenchurch
Gate BROOK STREET CONDUIT ST SHAFTES EMBANKMENT Blackfriars House CANNON ST TREET GREAT TOWER S T Street Tower Hill
Cannon
BAYSWATER ROAD HYDE PICCADILLY Leicester STRAND Waterloo Blackfriars Thames Street Monument T O WER HILL EAST SM ITHFIELD
Square
MOUNT STREET
Queensway PAR K LANE OLD BOND ST CIRCUS Charing Bridge Bridge Southwark London
MAYFAIR BERKELEY ST Piccadilly Cross Bridge
National
Circus
Theatre
KENSINGTON PARK Hayward STAMFORD STREET SOUTHWARK BR. RD BOROUGH H IGH ST Bridge London
THE RING
Bridge
Kensington S ERP ENTINE ROAD PALL MALL VICTORIA Hungerford Royal Gallery SOUTHW ARK STREE T The Shard
Palace PICCADILLY ST JAMES'S ST Foot Bridge Festival
Green
Serpentine Hyde Park Park WHITEHALL Hall ST THOMAS ST
Corner THE MALL
GARDENS ROTTEN ROW HYDE GREEN ST YORK ROAD T O OLEY STREET
PARK
CORNER PARK JAMES'S
KENSINGTON PALACE GDNS
BUCKINGHAM PARK Westminster
KENSINGT O N ROAD KNIGHTSBRIDGE Knightsbridge GARDENS St James's Westminster
PALACE
B R OMPTON ROAD KNIGHTSBRIDGE GRO SVENOR PLACE GROSVENOR BUCKIN GHAM GATE GREAT PETER ST MILLBANK Thames LAMBETH PALA C E R OAD
STREET
Bridge
Park
VICTORI A
LOWER
PLACE
EXHIBITI ON ROAD
South Victoria WEST MINSTER
Kensington ROCHESTER ROW HORSEFERRY ROAD Lambeth 0 meters
Bridge
M I L LBA N K 0 yards 750 750
VAU XHALL BRIDGE
Vauxhall
ROAD
Bridge
Key
Sight / Place of interest
Pedestrian street
Viewing Big Ben and Westminster Abbey from
the capsules of the London Eye
For keys to symbols see back flap
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52  BRIT AIN AND IRELAND

Street by Street: Whitehall
and Westminster

Westminster has been at the center of political and
religious power in England since the 11th century,
when King Canute built a palace here and Edward the Downing Street
Confessor founded Westminster Abbey. Whitehall is No. 10 has been the
synonymous with the ministries concentrated around prime minister’s official
residence since 1732,
it. On weekdays, the streets are crowded with civil when Sir Robert
servants going about their business, replaced at Walpole was given the
weekends by a steady house by George II.
flow of tourists.
The Cabinet War Rooms, DOWNING STREET
now open to the public,
were Winston Churchill’s
World War II headquarters.

St. Margaret’s Church K I N G C H A R L E S S T R E E T
is a favorite venue for
political and society
weddings.




. Westminster Abbey S T O R E Y  S G A T E G R E A T G E O R G E S T R E E T P A R L I A M E N T S T R E E T
The abbey (see pp54–5) is
London’s oldest and most
important church. The north
facade is a Victorian addition.
Central Hall was built in 1911 as a B R I D G E
Methodist meeting hall. In 1946, it
hosted the first General Assembly B R O A D S A N C T U A R Y PA R L I A M E N T S Q U A R E
of the United Nations.
S T . M A R G A R E T S T R E E T









T
E
E
G R E A T C O
L
L
E
G A B I N G D O N S T R
Dean’s Yard Statue of Richard the E S T R E E T
Lionheart (1860)
This secluded grassy square is
surrounded by picturesque
buildings from different periods, The Burghers of Calais is a
many used by Westminster School. cast of Auguste Rodin’s 1886
original sculpture in France.
For hotels and restaurants see pp104–6 and pp107–9

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L ONDON  53

The entrance to Horse Guards 1 Westminster
Parade is guarded by two Abbey
mounted cavalry troopers.
See pp54–5.
Trafalgar 2 Houses of
Square
Parliament
SW1. Tel 020-7219 3000.
1 Westminster. @ 3, 11, 12, 24,
53, 88, 148, 159, 211, 453. 8 tickets
for guided tours (Sat only) are avail-
able online, by calling 020 219 4114,
L or from the ticket office at the front of
L Portcullis House on Victoria Embank-
A ment. & ∑ parliament.uk
H
E
T The Cenotaph Since the 16th century, this site
DOWNING STREET
I (1920) is a war has been the seat of the two
H memorial by Sir Banqueting House Houses of Parliament: the House
W Edwin Lutyens. Inigo Jones designed this of Commons, made up of
elegant Palladian building in elected Members of Parliament
1622. It is famous for this ceiling (MPs), and the upper house,
painted by Rubens for Charles I.
the House of Lords. The latter,
formerly filled with hereditary
P A R L I A M E N T S T R E E T V I C T O R I A E M B A N K M E N T Westminster The present Neo-Gothic
peers, bishops, and life peers,
K I N G C H A R L E S S T R E E T
R I C H M O N D T E R R A C E
The Norman Shaw Buidings
was reformed in 2000.
were the site of the original
Scotland Yard, headquarters
building replaced the original
of the Metropolitan Police.
palace, which was destroyed
by fire in 1834.
To hear debates in either of
the houses from the visitors’
galleries, join the queue outside
the Cromwell Green visitor
Pier is the main
entrance. To attend Prime
starting point for
Minister’s Question Time, apply
river trips.
B R I D G E
for tickets to your local MP.
Visitors are unlikely to gain
entrance from the queue.
Westminster
station
3 Coca-Cola
S T R E E T
London Eye
South Bank SE1. Tel 0871-781 3000.
1 Waterloo, Westminster. @ 77,
. Houses of RV1, 381. Open daily. Closed Dec 25,
Parliament Jan 5–16. & (pick up tickets at
The seat of County Hall, next to the Eye, at least
government is 30 mins before boarding time).
dominated by the 8 7 ∑ londoneye.com
clock tower, holding
the 14-ton bell Big Ben, Reaching to a height of 135 m
hung in 1858. Its deep (443 ft) above the Thames River,
chimes are broadcast this is the world’s highest Ferris
daily on BBC radio. wheel, and was installed to mark
the Millennium. Its capsules offer
a gentle, 30-minute ride as the
wheel makes a full turn, with
Key breathtaking views over the city
0 meters 100 and for up to 42 km (26 miles)
Suggested route
0 yards 100 beyond. “Flights” are on the hour
or half-hour, and need to be
booked in advance.
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54  BRIT AIN AND IRELAND

1 Westminster Abbey

Westminster Abbey has been the burial place of Britain’s
monarchs since the 11th century and the setting for many
coronations and royal weddings, including the marriage of the
Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in 2011. It has an exceptionally
diverse array of architectural styles, ranging from the austere
French Gothic of the nave to the astonishing complexity of . Nave
Henry VII’s chapel. Half national church, half national museum, Built under the direction
of master mason Henry
the abbey is crammed with an extraordinary collection of tombs Yevele, the nave reaches to
and monuments honoring some of Britain’s greatest public a height of 31 m (102 ft).
figures, from politicians to poets.
North/Main
Entrance












The Coronation Chair has
been used at every coronation
since its construction in 1308.

KEY
1 Statesmen’s Aisle contains
monuments to some of the
country’s greatest political leaders.
2 The Sanctuary, built by
Henry III, has been the scene of
38 coronations.
3 The Pyx Chamber is where
the coinage was thoroughly tested
in medieval times.
4 The museum, closed until 2018
for extensive renovation, contains
the abbey’s rich hoard of treasures.
5 The Cloisters, built mainly
in the 13th and 14th centuries,
link the abbey church with the
other buildings.


Coronation
The coronation ceremony is more
than 1,000 years old and since 1066,
with the crowning of William the
Conqueror on Christmas Day,
Westminster Abbey has been its
sumptuous setting. The coronation Flying Buttresses
of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953 was the The massive flying buttresses help
first to be televised. transfer the great weight of the
31 m (102 ft) high nave.
For hotels and restaurants see pp104–6 and pp107–9


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L ONDON  55


. Henry VII Chapel VISITORS’ CHECKLIST
The Chapel, built in 1503–19,
has superb late Perpendicular Practical Information
vaultings and choir stalls Broad Sanctuary SW1. Tel 020-
dating from 1512. 7222 5152. Cloisters: Open
8am–6pm daily. Royal Chapels,
Poets’ Corner, Chapter House,
Choir, Statesmen’s Aisle & Nave:
Open 9:30am–3:30pm Mon–Fri
(until 6pm Wed), 9:30am–2pm
Sat. & free to cloisters, College
Garden and St. Margaret’s Church;
the rest has an admission charge.
8 7 limited. 5 Evensong:
5pm Mon–Fri, 3pm Sat & Sun. -
= ∑ westminster-abbey.org
Transport
1 St. James’s Park, Westminster.
@ 3, 11, 12, 24, 53, 88, 148, 159,
211, 453. 4 Westminster Pier.

















. Chapter House
This beautiful octagonal room,
remarkable for its 13th-century
tiled floor, is lit by six huge
stained-glass windows
showing scenes from the
abbey’s history.

Historical Plan of the Abbey
The first abbey church was established as early as the 10th century,
but the present French-influenced Gothic structure was begun in
1245 at the behest of Henry III. Because of its unique role as the
coronation church, the abbey escaped Henry VIII’s
dissolution of Britain’s monastic buildings
(1536–9) during the Protestant
Reformation.


Key
Built before 1400
Built in 1503–19
Poets’ Corner
Among the great poets Completed by 1745
honored here are Completed after 1850
Shakespeare (above),
Chaucer, and T.S. Eliot.




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56  BRIT AIN AND IRELAND


Valuable works of 5 Tate Britain
art, such as The Music Millbank SW1. Tel 020-7887 8888.
Lesson (c.1660) by 1 Pimlico. @ 77a, 88, 507, C10.
Dutch master Jan g between Tate Britain and Tate
Vermeer, are on Modern. Open 10am–6pm daily.
display in the Picture Closed Dec 24–26. & for major
Gallery. A selection exhibitions. 7 8 0 - =
of works from the ∑ tate.org.uk
monarch’s art
collection, one of Founded in 1897, the Tate Gallery,
the finest and most now called Tate Britain, focuses
valuable in the primarily on British art. Many of
world, is displayed in the modern works formerly kept
the Queen’s Gallery, here have been moved to the
a small building Tate Modern (see p67), further
located to one side down the Thames River.
of the palace. The Tate Britain shows the world’s
famous Changing of largest display of British art,
the Guard takes ranging from Tudor times to
place on the palace present day, in line with
forecourt. Crowds the original intention of the
gather to watch the gallery’s sponsor, sugar
colorful half-hour magnate Sir Henry Tate.
parade of guards, One of the most exquisite early
dressed in red works is a portrait of a bejeweled
The Victoria Monument, Buckingham Palace jackets and tall, furry Elizabeth I (c.1575), by Nicholas
hats called bearskins, Hilliard. The influence of the
4 Buckingham exchanging the palace keys. 17th-century Flemish artist Sir
Palace State coaches and other Anthony van Dyck on English
official vehicles may be viewed painters can be seen in William
SW1. Tel 020-7766 7300. 1 St. at the Royal Mews nearby. The Dobson’s Endymion Porter (1642–
James’s Park, Victoria, Green Park. star exhibit is the gold state 5) and the works of Thomas
@ C1, C10, 11, 16, 36, 38, 52, 73, 211. coach built for George III in Gainsborough (1727–88).
State Rooms: Open end Jul–end Sep: 1761, with fine panels by Among the collection are
daily. & 8 7 phone first. Queen’s Giovanni Cipriani. some fine examples of William
Gallery: & Changing of the Guard:
11:30am on alternate days (subject to Overlooking the forecourt, Hogarth’s sharply satirical
change). Tel 020-7321 2233. - the East Wing facade of the pictures. The famed horse
∑ royalcollection.org.uk palace was redesigned by paintings of George Stubbs
Aston Webb in 1913. He also include Mares and Foals in a
The Queen’s official London created the spacious, tree-lined Landscape (1760).
home is a very popular avenue known as the Mall, Tate Britain holds a large
attraction. Conversion of the which leads from the palace number of paintings by the
18th-century Buckingham to Trafalgar Square. Used for visionary poet and artist William
House was begun for George IV royal processions on special
in 1826, but the first monarch occasions, the Mall is closed
to occupy the palace was to traffic on Sundays. The
Queen Victoria, in 1837. When national flags of foreign heads
the monarch is in residence, of state fly from its flagpoles
the Royal Standard flag during official visits.
is flown. The avenue follows the edge
The palace tour takes visitors of St. James’s Park, a reserve
up the grand staircase and for wildfowl and popular
through the splendor of the picnic spot in the heart of the
state rooms. The royal family’s city. Originally a marsh, the
private apartments are not park was drained by Henry VIII
open to the public. and incorporated into his
In the Music Room, royal hunting grounds. Later,
babies are christened and Charles II redesigned it as a
state guests presented. The fashionable promenade, with
Queen carries out many an aviary along its southern
formal ceremonies in the edge (from which Birdcage
richly gilded Throne Room, and Walk takes its name). In
the Ballroom is used for state summer, concerts are held The portico of the Tate Britain building,
banquets and investitures. on the park bandstand. dating from 1897
For hotels and restaurants see pp104–6 and pp107–9


056-057_EW_Europe.indd 56 14/07/16 10:12 am

L ONDON  57


and Botticelli. Perhaps the most
famous of the Northern
European works is The Arnolfini
Marriage by Jan van Eyck (1434).
Most of the gallery’s other
exhibits are housed on the first
floor of the main building.
Among the 16th-century
paintings, The Adoration of the
Kings (1564) by Flemish artist
Pieter Brueghel the Elder is
notable. Christ Mocked (1490–
1500) by Hieronymus Bosch is
included in the Netherlandish
and German section. The superb
Dutch collection gives two
The Trafalgar Square facade of the National Gallery rooms to Rembrandt. Annibale
Carracci and Caravaggio are
Blake (1757–1827). His work collection was started in 1824 strongly represented among the
was imbued with a mystical when the House of Commons Italian painters. Spanish artist
intensity, a typical example agreed to purchase 38 major Diego Velázquez’s only surviving
being Satan Smiting Job with paintings. These became the female nude, The Rokeby Venus
Sore Boils (c.1826). England’s core of a national collection (1647–51), is one of the most
great 19th-century landscape of European art that now popular and well-known of
artists, Constable and Turner, ranges from Giotto in the 13th the 17th-century works of
are also well represented. century to the 19th-century art. The great age of 19th-
John Constable’s famous Impressionists. The gallery’s century landscape painting
Flatford Mill, painted in 1816–17, particular strengths are in is perhaps best represented
is one of his many depictions Dutch, Italian Renaissance, and by Constable’s The Hay Wain
of the Essex countryside. The 17th-century Spanish painting. (1821), a masterpiece of
Clore Galleries, open since The gallery’s paintings are changing light and shadow.
1987, house the works of hung in chronological order. In the Impressionist section,
J.M.W. Turner (1775–1851), In 1991, the modern Sainsbury Renoir’s Boating on the Seine
whose paintings were left to Wing was added to the main (1879–80) demonstrates the
the nation some years after his Neoclassical building (1834–8) free, flickering touch used by
death on condition that they to house the impressive Early the movement’s artists to
were kept together. His Renaissance collection (1260– capture the fleeting moment.
watercolor A City on a River at 1510). The Leonardo Cartoon Other 19th-century highlights
Sunset (1832) is a highlight. (c.1500), a chalk drawing by include Van Gogh’s Sunflowers,
The Tate also has on display Leonardo da Vinci of the Virgin Monet’s Waterlilies, Rousseau’s
many works by the 19th-century and Child, St. Anne, and John Tropical Storm with Tiger, and
Pre-Raphaelites, including J.E. the Baptist, has been moved Seurat’s Bathers at Asnières.
Millais’ Ophelia (1851–2), as well from here to a more prominent Lesser paintings of all periods
as the works of several modern position near the Trafalgar are displayed on the lower floor
and contemporary artists, such Square entrance. Other Italian of the main building. The better
as Henry Moore and David painters represented include of the gallery’s two restaurants
Hockney. The Tate’s exhibitions Masaccio, Piero della Francesca, is located in the Sainsbury Wing.
change frequently to explore as
much of the collection as possible.

6 National Gallery
Trafalgar Sq WC2. Tel 020-7747 2885.
1 Charing Cross, Leicester Sq,
Piccadilly Circus. @ 3, 6, 9, 11 & many
others. Open 10am–6pm daily (to
9pm Fri). Closed Jan 1, Dec 24–26.
7 via Sainsbury Wing entrance.
8 - ∑ nationalgallery.org.uk
London’s leading art museum,
the National Gallery has more
than 2,300 paintings, most
on permanent display. The Bathers at Asnières (1884), by Georges Seurat, in the National Gallery




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58  BRIT AIN AND IRELAND


The West End 8 Piccadilly
The West End is the city’s social and cultural center located W1. 1 Piccadilly Circus, Green Park.
@ 9, 14, 19, 22, 38.
right next to the London home of the royal family. Stretching
from the edge of Hyde Park to Covent Garden, the district The thoroughfare called Piccadilly
bustles all day and late into the night. Whether you are links Hyde Park Corner with
Piccadilly Circus, but the name
looking for art, history, or street- or café-life, it is the most also refers to the surrounding
rewarding area in which to begin an exploration of the city. area. Today, Piccadilly has two
Monuments, shops, cinemas, and restaurants radiate out from contrasting faces: a bustling
Trafalgar Square, and the entertainment scene is at its liveliest commercial district full of
in the busy streets around Chinatown, Soho, and Leicester shopping arcades, eateries, and
cinemas; and St. James’s, to the
Square. From the garish lights of boisterous Piccadilly Circus south, which still focuses on a
to genteel St. James’s Square, the West End embraces all wealthy, glamorous clientele.
aspects of London life, and caters to every budget. Piccadilly Circus, with its
dazzling neon lights, is a focal
point of the West End. It began
as an early 19th-century
crossroads between Piccadilly
and John Nash’s Regent Street.
Briefly an elegant space, edged
by curving stucco facades, by
1910 the first electric advert-
isements had been installed.
Crowds congregate beneath
the delicately poised figure of
Eros, the Greek god of love.
Erected in 1892 as a memorial
to the Earl of Shaftesbury, a
Victorian philanthropist, the
statue was originally intended
to represent an angel of mercy.
Trafalgar Square by night, with Nelson’s Column in the foreground Among the many notable
sights along Piccadilly, the
7 Trafalgar Square corner stands St. Martin-in-the- Royal Academy, founded
Fields. This 18th-century church in 1768, houses a permanent
WC2. 1 Charing Cross. @ 3, 6, 9, 11,
12, 13, 15, 23, 24, 29, 53, 88, 91, 139, by James Gibbs became a art collection, including a
159, 176, 453. model for the Colonial style of Michelangelo relief of the
church-building in the US. Madonna and Child (1505). Its
London’s main venue for Adjoining the National Gallery, annual summer exhibition is
rallies and outdoor public the National Portrait Gallery renowned for its clever
meetings, Trafalgar Square was depicts Britain’s history through juxtaposition of new and
conceived by John Nash and portraits, photographs, and established works.
mostly con structed during the sculptures. Subjects range from The tranquil St. James’s
1830s. The 50-m (165-ft) tall Elizabeth I to photographs of Church was designed by Sir
column com memorates politicians, actors, and rock stars.
Admiral Lord Nelson, Britain’s Further north, Leicester Square
most famous sea lord, and dates is at the heart of the West End’s
from 1842. Edwin Landseer’s entertainment district, with the
four lions were added 25 years city’s leading cinemas and lively
later. Today the square is very nightclubs, while London’s
popular with tourists. Chinatown attracts a steady
Admiralty Arch, designed in throng of diners and shoppers.
1911, separates courtly London Bordering it, Shaftesbury
from the hurly-burly of Trafalgar Avenue is the main artery of
Square. The central gate is London’s theaterland.
opened only for royal pro cessions.
The restored buildings on the E National Portrait Gallery
square’s south side were built in 2 St. Martin’s Place WC2. Tel 020-7306
1880 as the Grand Hotel. The 0055. Open 10am–6pm daily (to 9pm
north side is taken up by the Thu & Fri). Closed Dec 24–26. & for
National Gallery and its Sainsbury special exhibitions. 7 - = 8 Alfred Gilbert’s 1892 statue of Eros in
Wing (see p57). In the northeast audio guide. ∑ npg.org.uk Piccadilly Circus
For hotels and restaurants see pp104–6 and pp107–9


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L ONDON  59


new site and Covent Garden
was revamped. Today, only St.
Paul’s Church remains of Inigo
Jones’s buildings. Samuel Pepys
saw a Punch and Judy show
under the portico in 1662, and
street entertainment has been
a tradition here ever since.
The Royal Opera House
(see p103), designed in 1858 by
E.M. Barry, but totally renovated
A street performer in front of crowds in Covent Garden’s Piazza in 1997–9, is home to the Royal
Opera and Royal Ballet
Christopher Wren in 1684, and 9 Covent Garden Companies. Many of the
the 18th-century Spencer WC2. 1 Covent Garden. @ 1, 6, 9, world’s greatest dance
House contains fine period 13, 15, 23, 59, 68, 87, 91, 168, 171, 176. performers have appeared
furniture and paintings. This ( daily. on its stage.
Palladian palace was built for Covent Garden has many
an ancestor of Princess Diana. The buzzing open-air cafés, theatrical associations. The
Shopping in and around street entertainers, stylish site of the Theatre Royal,
Piccadilly is very expensive, shops, and markets make completed in 1812, has been
especially in Bond Street, where Covent Garden a magnet for occupied by a theater since
many famous designer labels visitors. The name derives from 1663. St. Martin’s Theatre is
have stores, and in the a medieval convent garden home to the world’s longest-
Burlington Arcade, which is which supplied Westminster running play, The Mousetrap.
patroled by beadles. On Abbey with produce. Other attractions include the
Piccadilly itself, Fortnum and At its center is the Piazza, London Transport Museum
Mason, founded in 1707, is one designed by 17th-century and an area of “alternative”
of London’s most pres tigious architect Inigo Jones as an shops around Neal Street and
food stores, while the grand Ritz elegant residential square, after Neal’s Yard. The Lamb and Flag
hotel is a popular afternoon-tea an example from the Tuscan (1623) in Rose Street is one of
venue for the suitably dressed. town of Livorno. For a time, London’s oldest pubs.
Jermyn Street is renowned for houses around the Piazza were
high-quality men’s clothing. highly sought-after, but decline E London Transport Museum
South of Piccadilly is St. James’s accelerated when a fruit and Covent Garden WC2. Tel 020-7379
Square, laid out in the 1670s vegetable market developed. 6344. Open daily. Closed Dec 24–26.
and dominated by a statue of In 1973, the market moved to a 8 & 7 - ∑ ltmuseum.co.uk
William III. It has long been the
most fashionable address in
London. Pall Mall, named after
the 17th-century game of palle-
maille (a cross between croquet
and golf) once played here, is
lined with gentlemen’s clubs,
which admit only members
and their guests. It leads to the
16th-century St. James’s Palace,
built for Henry VIII. The palace is
still the official headquarters of
the Court of St. James. Opposite
is the Queen’s Chapel, the first
Classical church in England.
E Royal Academy
Burlington House, Piccadilly W1.
Tel 020-7300 8000. Open daily.
Closed Good Fri, Dec 24–26. & for
exhibitions. 8 reserve in advance.
7 ∑ royalacademy.org.uk
P Spencer House
27 St. James’s Pl SW1. Tel 020-7514
1958. Open Sun. Closed Jan & Aug.
& 8 compulsory. 7
∑ spencer house.co.uk Statue of a resting ballerina facing the Royal Opera House




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60  BRIT AIN AND IRELAND

0 British Museum
Middle East
The oldest public museum in the world, the British Museum Numerous galleries at the
was established in 1753 to house the collections of the museum are devoted to the
physician Sir Hans Sloane (1660–1753). Sloane’s artifacts have Middle Eastern collections,
been added to by gifts and purchases from all over the world, covering 7,000 years of history.
The most famous items are the
and the museum now contains innumerable items stretching 7th-century BC Assyrian reliefs
from the present day to prehistory. Robert Smirke designed from King Ashurbanipal’s palace
the main part of the building (1823–50), but the architectural at Nineveh, but of equal interest
highlight is the modern Great Court, with its remarkable roof. are two large human-headed
The 94 galleries which run for more than 4 km (2 miles), cover bulls from 7th-century BC
Khorsabad, and an inscribed
civilizations from ancient Assyria to modern Japan.
Black Obelisk of Assyrian King
Shalmaneser III. Rooms 51–59,
on the upper floor, contain
pieces from ancient Sumeria,
Prehistoric and part of the Oxus Treasure (which
Roman Britain lay buried for over 2,000 years),
Relics of prehistoric Britain are and the museum’s collection
on display in this collection. The of clay cuneiform tablets. The
most impressive items include earliest of these are inscribed
the Mold gold cape made from with the oldest known
a sheet of decorated gold; an pictographs (c.3300 BC).
antlered headdress worn by
hunter-gatherers some 9,000 Ancient Egypt
years ago; and “Lindow Man,” a
1st-century AD sacrificial victim Egyptian sculptures can be
who lay preserved in a bog until found in Room 4 on the main
1984. Some superb Celtic floor. These include a fine red
metalwork is also on show, granite head of a king, thought
alongside the silver Mildenhall Reconstruction of the ceremonial helmet to be Amenophis III, and a
Treasure and other notable found at Sutton Hoo colossal statue of king Ramses II.
Roman pieces. The Hinton St. Also on show is the Rosetta
Mary mosaic (4th century AD) the famous 12th-century Lewis Stone, which was used by
features a roundel containing chessmen and a gold enameled Jean-Franćois Champollion
the earliest known British reliquary of the Holy Thorn (1790–1832) as a primer for
depiction of Christ. (Christ’s Crown of Thorns), deciphering Egyptian
dating from the 15th century hieroglyphs. An extraordinary
and said to have belonged to array of mummies, jewelry, and
Medieval, Renaissance, Jean, duc de Berry. Another Coptic art can also be found in
and Modern Objects
highlight is a Byzantine icon rooms 61–66 upstairs, including
The spectacular Sutton Hoo painted on a wooden tablet. a famous bronze cat with a gold
ship treasure, the burial hoard The museum’s modern nose-ring. The various
of a 7th-century Anglo-Saxon collection includes Wedgwood instruments used by embalmers
king, is on display in Room 41. pottery, glassware, and a series to preserve bodies before
This superb find, unearthed in of Russian revolutionary plates. entombment are all displayed.
Woodbridge, near Suffolk, in
1939, revolutionized scholars’
understanding of Anglo-Saxon
life and ritual. The artifacts
uncovered include a helmet
and shield, Celtic hanging
bowls, the remains of a lyre,
and gold and garnet jewelry.
Adjacent galleries contain
a collection of clocks and
watches. Some exquisite
timepieces are on view here,
including an over 400-year-old
clock from Prague, designed as
a model galleon; in its day, it
pitched, played music, and even
fired a cannon. Also nearby are Ancient Egyptian tomb painting, The Festival of Sekhtet (1410 BC)
For hotels and restaurants see pp104–6 and pp107–9


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L ONDON  61


VISITORS’ CHECKLIST
Oriental Art
Fine porcelain and ancient Practical Information
Shang bronzes (c.1500–1050 BC) Great Russell St WC1.
are highlights of the museum’s Tel 020-7323 8299.
Chinese collection. Particularly Open 10am–5:30pm daily
impressive are the ceremonial (to 8:30pm Fri). Closed Jan 1,
ancient Chinese bronze vessels, Dec 24–26. 8 7 0 - =
∑ thebritishmuseum.org
with their enigmatic animal-
head shapes. The fine Chinese Transport
ceramics range from delicate tea @ 7, 8, 10, 14, 19, 24, 25, 29, 30,
bowls to a model pond which 38, 55, 68, 134, 188.
is almost a thousand years old. 1 Tottenham Court Road,
The Portland Vase, depicting the betrothal Adjacent to these is one of the Holborn, Russell Square.
of Peleus and Thetis finest collections of Asian
religious sculpture outside India.
These include an assortment of Buddhist temple at Amarati,
Greece and Rome
sculpted reliefs which once and which recount stories
The Greek and Roman covered the walls of the from the life of the Buddha. A
collections include the Korean section contains some
museum’s most famous gigantic works of Buddhist art.
treasure, the Elgin Marbles. Islamic art, including a stunning
These 5th-century BC reliefs jade terrapin found in a water
from the Parthenon once tank, can be found in Room 34.
comprised a marble frieze Rooms 90–94 house temporary
which decorated Athena’s exhibitions for prints and
temple at the Acropolis in drawings from Asia.
Athens. Much of it was ruined in
battle in 1687, and half of what
survived was removed between Africa
1801 and 1804 by the British An interesting collection of
diplomat Lord Elgin, and sold African sculptures, textiles,
to the British nation. Other and graphic art can be found
highlights include the Nereid in Room 25, located in the
Monument, and sculptures and basement. Famous bronzes
friezes from the Mausoleum at from the Kingdom of Benin
Halicarnassus. The beautiful stand alongside modern
1st-century BC cameo-glass African prints, paintings,
Portland Vase is located in the The Young Prince with his Parents (c.1600), and drawings, plus an array
Roman Empire section. an Indian miniature of colorful fabrics.

The Great Court and the Reading Room
Surrounding the Reading Room of the former British Library, the £100-million Great Court opened to
coincide with the new millennium. Designed by Sir Norman Foster, the Court is covered by a wide-span,
lightweight roof, creating London’s first ever indoor public square. Originally completed in 1857, the
Reading Room soon became
a world-famous center of
learning. From the outside,
however, it is now scarcely
recognizable as the space that
was favored by the likes of Karl
Marx, Mahatma Gandhi, and
George Bernard Shaw. Following
the opening of the British Library
in 1997, the Reading Room was
used to stage temporary
exhibitions, but these are now
held inside the World
Conservation and Exhibition
Centre, a vast extension opened
in 2014. The future of the now
defunct Reading Room remains
the subject of intense debate. The Great Court and Reading Room of the British Museum





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62  BRIT AIN AND IRELAND


q Madame
Tussauds
Marylebone Rd NW1. Tel 0871-894
3000. 1 Baker St. Open from 9:30am
daily; closing times vary. Closed Dec
24 (afternoon) & Dec 25. & = -
7 ∑ madametussauds.co.uk
Madame Tussaud began her
wax-modeling career making
death masks of victims of the
French Revolution. In 1835,
after moving to England, she Wooden rowboats available to rent on Regent’s Park boating lake
set up an exhibition of her
work in Baker Street, near the garden suburb, dotted with 56 In 1730, the Westbourne
museum’s present site. villas in a variety of Classical styles. River was dammed by Queen
Traditional techniques are Eight villas were built inside the Caroline to create an artificial
still used to create the figures park (three survive round the lake – the Serpentine. Today,
of royalty, politicians, actors, edge of the Inner Circle). cafés, restaurants, and the
pop stars, and sporting heroes. The boating lake boasts Serpentine Gallery, which
In the renowned Chamber of many varieties of water has exhibitions of
Horrors, some of the original birds. In summer, Queen modern art, dot the
French Revolution death masks Mary’s Gardens are full of fringes of the lake, which
are displayed, and vivid scenes flowers and Shakes peare is a popular venue for
of murders are recreated: the productions are staged at the boating and swimming.
murderer Dr. Crippen, Vlad the Open Air Theatre nearby. At the southeast corner
impaler, and the chilly gloom Musical performances are of Hyde Park stands
of an east London Victorian also held at the Apsley House, the grand
street during Jack the Ripper’s bandstand on the former home of the
time in the late 19th century. weekend. Broad Walk Duke of Wellington.
In the final section – the Spirit provides a picturesque Now a museum of
of London – visitors travel in stroll north from Park memorabilia to the
stylized taxi-cabs and participate Square towards great politician and
in momentous events in the Primrose Hill. soldier, the lavish
city’s history, from the Great Fire London Zoo, interiors designed
of 1666 to the Swinging Sixties. with its vast animal Statue of Peter Pan in by Robert Adam are
enclosures, borders Kensington Gardens also worth seeing.
the park, and is also A law passed in
an important center of wildlife 1872 made it legal to
research and conservation work. assemble an audience and
address it on whatever topic
e Hyde Park you chose. Since then,
Speaker’s Corner, at the
W2. Tel 0300-061 2000. 1 Hyde Park northeast corner of the park,
Corner, Knightsbridge, Lancaster Gate, has been the established
Marble Arch. Open dawn–midnight venue for budding orators.
daily. 7 ∑ royalparks.org.uk Crowds gather on Sundays
to listen to lively speeches.
Making a model of singer Luciano Pavarotti The ancient manor of Hyde was Adjoining Hyde Park are
at Madame Tussauds part of the lands of Westminster Kensington Gardens, the
Abbey seized by Henry VIII at the former grounds of Kensington
Dissolution of the Monasteries in Palace, which were opened
w Regent’s Park 1536. James I opened the park to the public in 1841. A royal
to the public in the early 17th residence for centuries, the
NW1. Tel 0300-061 2300. 1 Regent’s
Park, Great Portland St, Camden Town. century, and it was soon one palace was Princess Diana’s
Open dawn–7pm daily. 7 London of the city’s most fashionable home until her untimely death.
Zoo: Tel 0844-225 1826. Open from public spaces. Unfortunately, Attractions in the gardens
10am daily; closing times vary. Closed it also became popular with include the bronze statue of
Dec 25. & ∑ royalparks.org.uk duelists and highwaymen, J. M. Barrie’s fictional Peter Pan
prompting William III to have (1912), by George Frampton,
This area of land was enclosed 300 lights hung along Rotten and the Round Pond where
as a park in 1812. John Nash Row, the first street in England to model boats are sailed. The
designed the scheme and be lit at night. Today, Rotten Row dignified Orangery (1704) is
originally envisaged a kind of is used for horseback riding. now an upscale café.
For hotels and restaurants see pp104–6 and pp107–9


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L ONDON  63

Street by Street: South Kensington

The numerous museums and colleges created in
the wake of the Great Exhibition of 1851 (see pp64–5)
continue to give this neighborhood its dignified
character. Visited as much by Londoners as tourists,
the museum area is liveliest on Sundays and on summer
evenings during the Royal Albert Hall’s famous season
of classical “Prom” concerts (see p102). The Royal Albert Hall
to Kensington Gardens Opened in 1871 and modeled
on a Roman amphitheater, this
The Memorial to magnificent concert hall hosts
the Great a range of events.
Exhibition is
surmounted by a
bronze statue of
its instigator, The Royal College of
Prince Albert. Music, founded in 1882,
exhibits historic musical
instruments from around
the world.

Imperial College,
P R I N C E

A L B E R T C O
part of London
U
. Natural History Museum T R University, is one of
This pterodactyl is part of a CO N S O R T R O A D the country’s leading
menagerie of sculptures scientific institutions.
that adorn the facade of
the great museum
(see p64).


I M P E R I A L C O L L E G E R O A D
0 meters 100 100
E X H I B I T I O N R O A D Key Suggested route
0 yards






C R O M W E L L R O A D





South Kensington
station (two entrances
on Exhibition Road)
. Science Museum
Fascinating exhibits, such as . Victoria and Albert Museum
this 18th-century steam engine, The museum has a fine collection
celebrate the history of science of decorative arts from around the
and technology (see p64). world (see p65).




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64  BRIT AIN AND IRELAND


experiment with aeronautical meet its future energy needs
concepts. through games and hands-on
“The Exploration of Space” exhibits. Our understanding of
exhibits the scarred Apollo 10 human identity is the subject
spacecraft which carried three of “Who Am I?,” where visitors
astronauts to the moon and can learn about genetics and
back in May 1969. There is also current biomedical discoveries.
a video of the Apollo 11 moon The wing also contains an
landing a few weeks later. IMAX® cinema, a 4D motion-
The “Making the Modern effects theater, and a café.
World” gallery displays objects
that have shaped the world as
Children exploring the “Pattern Pod” at the we know it. Among them are t Natural History
Science Museum Stephenson’s Rocket, the most Museum
advanced steam locomotive of
r Science Museum its day, and Crick and Watson’s Cromwell Rd SW7. 1 South
DNA model. Kensington. @ 14, 49, 70, 74, 345,
Exhibition Rd SW7. 1 South 360, 414, 430, C1. Tel 020-7942 5000.
Kensington. @ 14, 49, 70, 74, 345, Other popular sections Open 10am–5:50pm daily. Closed
360, 414, 430, C1. Tel 0870-870 4868. include “Optics,” which has Dec 24–26. 8 7 ∑ nhm.ac.uk
Open 10am–6pm daily. Closed Dec holograms, lasers, and
24–26. & for special exhibitions only. colormixing experiments, and
7 ∑ sciencemuseum.org.uk “Power and Land Transport,” This vast building, designed by
which displays working steam Alfred Waterhouse, is the most
Centuries of scientific and engines, vintage trains, cars, architecturally flamboyant of
technological development and motorbikes. the South Kensington
are illustrated and explained The Wellcome museums. Its richly
at the Science Museum – from Wing is devoted to sculpted stonework
Ancient Greek and Roman contemporary conceals an iron and
medicine to space exploration science and steel frame. This
and nuclear fission. technology. building
The massive and impressive “Antenna” is a technique was
collection, exhibited on five constantly revolutionary
floors, includes steam engines, updated when the museum
spacecraft, and early mechan- exhibition devoted to first opened in 1881.
ical computers. The museum the latest scientific The imaginative displays
aims to bring entertainment to breakthroughs. tackle fundamental
the process of learning, with “Pattern Pod” Triceratops skull, Natural issues, such as the
numerous interactive displays introduces younger History Museum ecology and
for children and staff on hand to children to the evolution of the
provide explanations. Of equal patterns of science in a fun and planet, the origin of species,
importance is the social context colorful way. “In Future” is a and the development of human
of science: how inventions have multi-user game in which beings – all explained through a
transformed day-to-day life, and participants decide how current dynamic combination of the
the process of discovery itself. scientific research could affect latest technology, interactive
One of the most popular the future. “Energy: Fuelling the displays, and traditional exhibits.
displays is “Flight,” which gives Future” challenges children to The museum is divided into
visitors the opportunity to think about how mankind will three sections: the Life and
Earth Galleries and the Darwin
Centre. In the Life Galleries, the
Ecology exhibition begins its
exploration of the complex
web of the natural world,
and man’s role in it, through
a convincing replica of a rain
forest. The most popular
exhibits are in the Dinosaur
section, which has real dinosaur
skeletons and life like
animatronics. “Creepy Crawlies,”
with specimens from the insect
and spider world, and the
Mammals exhibition, enable
visitors to see endangered
The colorful “Antenna” section in the Science Museum Wellcome Wing and dangerous creatures.
For hotels and restaurants see pp104–6 and pp107–9


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L ONDON  65


The Earth Galleries explore the
history of Earth and its wealth of
natural resources, and offer the
opportunity to experience the
rumblings of an earthquake.
In the state-of-the-art Darwin
Centre visitors can take an
interactive journey inside a vast
concrete cocoon that houses
millions of specimens. Here, too,
is the Attenborough Studio,
which features live shows, films,
and talks, many of them free.
y Victoria and
Albert Museum
Cromwell Rd SW7. 1 South
Kensington. @ 14, 74, C1. Tel 020-
7942 2000. Open 10am–5:45pm daily
(to 10pm Fri). Closed Dec 24–26. &
for special exhibitions. 8 7
∑ vam.ac.uk
Originally founded in 1852 as
a Museum of Manu facturing –
to inspire and raise standards
among students of design – the
V&A, as it is popularly known,
has 11 km (7 miles) of galleries
on four floors. The museum was
renamed by Queen Victoria in Facade of the Victoria and Albert Museum
1899, in memory of her late
husband, and contains one of 1590. The Victorian designers Tiger (c.1790), which mauls a
the world’s richest collections who decorated the plush European soldier when activated.
of fine and applied arts. Morris, Gamble, and Poynter Eight galleries devoted to the
Since 1909, the museum has Rooms recreated historic styles arts of the Far East display rare
been housed in a building with newer industrial materials. jade and ceramics, a giant
designed by Sir Aston Webb. The fully furnished interiors Buddha’s head from AD 700–900,
The museum has undergone a offer a vivid picture of social and a Ming canopied bed.
dramatic restructuring of much life through their displays of Among exhibits in the China
of its collection and gallery furniture and other domestic Gallery is a watercolor on silk
spaces, alongside a grand objects. Among exhibits in the from the Qing Dynasty (1644–
development of the central 20th-Century Gallery is Daniel 1912). The Toshiba Gallery
John Madejski Garden. Weil’s painting Radio in a Bag focuses on Japanese art,
Donatello’s marble relief (1983). The V&A has a wide including Samurai armor and
of The Ascension is collection of metalwork, woodblock prints. The world-
included in the Sculpture including a 16th-century salt renowned Fashion Court is
collection, along with cellar, the Burghley Nef. displayed on level 1. Spanning
sculptures from India and The Silver Gallery also more than four centuries, from
the Middle and Far East. explores the history the mid-1500s to the present
Craftsmanship in and techniques day, it is the world’s most
porcelain, glass, and of silvermaking. comprehensive collection of
pottery is displayed Gallery III is clothing. Highlights include rare
on levels 4 and 6, devoted to 17th-century gowns, 1930s
with rare pieces the making eveningwear, and post-war
by Picasso and of sculpture, couture, plus several key items
Bernard Leach, 18th-century wooden doll, Victoria ranging from from contemporary designers.
intricate Near and Albert Museum medieval ivories to The museum also houses
Eastern tiles, and a modern bronzes. valuable illustrated documents
wide selection of Chinese pieces. Among the textiles, weapons, in the National Art Library
The most celebrated item in jewelry, metalwork, glass, and and the Photographs Gallery
the vast array of furniture is the paintings of the South Asia with images from 1856 to
Great Bed of Ware, made around Gallery is the automated Tippoo’s the present.




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66  BRIT AIN AND IRELAND


The City and Southwark Memorials to famous figures,
such as Lawrence of Arabia
Dominated by gleaming office blocks, befitting its status as and Lord Nelson, can be seen
London’s financial and business center, the City is also the in the crypt. The inscription on
oldest part of the capital. The Great Fire of 1666 obliterated Wren’s tomb is fitting: “Reader,
if you seek a monument, look
many of its buildings, and much of the reconstruction was all around you.”
undertaken by Sir Christopher Wren. St. Paul’s Cathedral
is the most magnificent of his surviving works. Humming i Museum of
with activity in business hours, the City empties at night.
Southwark, on the south bank of the Thames, was a refuge London
for prostitutes and gamblers in the Middle Ages. Theaters, 150 London Wall EC2. Tel 0207-0019
including the Globe, where many of Shakespeare’s plays were 844. 1 Barbican, St. Paul’s. Open
performed, and other places of entertainment were built 10am–6pm daily. Closed Dec 24–26.
7 ∑ museumoflondon.org.uk
along the waterfront in the second half of the 16th century.
This fascinating museum
traces life in London from
prehistoric times to the 20th
century, through nine
permanent galleries.
Objects from Roman London
include a brightly colored
2nd-century fresco, while from
the Tudor city, an example of an
early English Delft plate, made
in 1602 at Aldgate, bears an
inscription praising Elizabeth I.
The 17th-century section
contains the shirt Charles I
wore on the scaffold, and an
Spacious interior of St. Paul’s Cathedral, in the City audio-visual display recreating
the Great Fire of 1666. A dress
u St. Paul’s Modifications to Wren’s original in Spitalfields silk, dating from
Cathedral plan include the towers of 1753, is among the many fine
the west front, the double costumes on display.
Ludgate Hill EC4. Tel 020-7246 8350. colonnade of the west portico, One of the most popular
£ City Thames Link. 1 St. Paul’s, and the balustrade – added exhibits is the lavishly gilded
Mansion House. @ 4, 11, 15, 17, 23, against his wishes in 1718. Lord Mayor’s State Coach, built
25, 76 & 172. Open 8:30am–4pm Pediment carvings on the in 1757 and still used for the
Mon–Sat; for services only Sun, west portico show the Lord Mayor’s Show, held in
Dec 25 & Good Fri. Check website
for partial or full closures. & 8 Conversion of St. Paul. November each year.
∑ stpauls.co.uk Wren created a cool and The Victorian Walk takes
majestic interior. The nave, visitors back to the time of
Rebuilt on the site of a medieval transepts, and choir are Charles Dickens, vividly
cathedral after the Great Fire of arranged in the traditional recreating the atmosphere of
1666, this magnificent Baroque shape of a cross. Its climax is in 19th-century London with
building, designed by Sir the great open space of the authentic shop interiors.
Christopher Wren, was crossing, below the main dome,
completed in 1710. which is decorated with mono-
St. Paul’s has been the setting chrome frescoes by Sir James o Tate Modern
for great ceremonial events, Thornhill, a leading architectural Bankside SE1. Tel 020-7887 8888.
including the funeral of Sir painter of the time. From the 1 Southwark, Blackfriars, Waterloo.
Winston Churchill in 1965 and south aisle, 259 steps ascend @ 45, 63, 100, 381, 344, RV1. 4 from
the wedding of Prince Charles to the circular Whispering Tate Britain. Open 10am–6pm Sun–
and Lady Diana in 1981. Gallery, so-called because Thu, 10am–10pm Fri & Sat. Closed
At 110 m (360 ft) high, the of the unusual acoustics. Dec 24–26. & special exhibitions.
dome is the second largest Much of the fine wrought 7 8 ∑ tate.org.uk/modern
in the world, after that of St. ironwork was created by Jean
Peter’s in Rome. Supported Tijou, a Huguenot refugee. One of the world’s main
by a brick cone, the lantern The intricate carvings of collections of 20th-century
weighs a massive 850 tonnes. cherubs, fruits, and garlands art is housed in this imposing
The dome’s gallery affords a on the choir stalls are the former power station, with its
splendid view over London. work of Grinling Gibbons. vast, cathedral-like spaces.
For hotels and restaurants see pp104–6 and pp107–9


066-067_EW_Europe.indd 66 09/08/2016 12:11

L ONDON  67


home to offices, top restaurants,
the five-star Shangri-La hotel,
and apartments. The main
indoor viewing gallery is on
floor 69 while floor 72 (the
building's last habitable floor)
has a partially outdoor
observation deck, with 360
degree panoramas covering
64 km (40 miles).

s Tower of London
See pp68–9.
d Tower Bridge
SE1. Tel 020-7403 3761. 1 Tower
Sculpture from the inaugural exhibition in the vast Turbine Hall, Tate Modern Hill, London Bridge. The Tower Bridge
Exhibition: Open 10am–5:30pm daily.
Originally designed by Sir Giles A detailed reproduction of an Closed Dec 24–26. & 7 e
Gilbert Scott, the architect of Elizabethan theater has been ∑ towerbridge.org.uk
London’s red telephone kiosks, built on the riverside close to
the huge Bankside building was the site of the original Globe, This flamboyant piece of
acquired by the Tate Gallery in Shakespeare’s “wooden O,” Victorian engineering,
2000; it had been disused since where many of his plays were completed in 1894, soon
1981. Swiss architects were first performed. Open to the became a symbol of London.
responsible for the building’s elements, the theater operates Its two Gothic towers contain
redesign, which allows the only in the summer. Seeing a the mechanism for raising the
works of art to be displayed in play here can be a lively roadway to permit large ships
a dynamic style. experience, with “groundlings” to pass through. The towers are
Unusually, the permanent (those with cheap standing- made of a supporting steel
collection is exhibited in four room tickets) in front of the framework clad in stone. When
themed groups: poetry and stage encouraged to cheer or raised, the roadway creates a
dream, idea and object, states jeer. An informative tour of the space 40 m (135 ft) high and
of flux and material gestures. theater is offered by “resting” 60 m (200 ft) wide. In its heyday,
The paintings and sculptures Globe actors, and visitors can it was raised and lowered five
embrace Surrealism, Abstract enjoy being center stage times a day.
Expressionism, Pop Art, and among them. Beneath the The bridge now houses
Minimal and Conceptual Art. theater is the Underglobe, The Tower Bridge Exhibition,
Major works include Picasso’s where every aspect of with displays which bring its
The Three Dancers, Dalí’s The Shakespeare’s work is vividly history to life. There are fine
Metamorphosis of Narcissus, brought to life through the river views from the walkways
and Andy Warhol’s Marilyn use of modern technology between the towers, and the
Diptych. There are also and traditional crafts. steam-engine room, which was
temporary exhi bitions of works in use until 1976, can be visited.
by lesser-known artists, and by
more controversial newcomers. a The Shard
At the top of the building are London Bridge St, SE1. Tel 0844-499
two floors enclosed in glass. 7111 (bookings). 1 London Bridge.
One is a restaurant with superb Open 9am–10pm daily. Closed Dec
views. Natural light filters down 25. & 7 ∑ theviewfromthe
to the upper galleries. shard.com
p Shakespeare’s Designed by the Italian architect
Renzo Piano, The Shard is the
Globe tallest building in the European
214 New Globe Walk SE1. Tel 020- Union at 310 m (1,016 ft). Its
7401 9919. 1 London Bridge, iconic shape dominates the
Mansion House, Southwark. London skyline, its appearance
Open daily. Closed Dec 24, 25. changing with the weather
Performances: Apr–Oct. thanks to the crystalline facade
& 7 8 every 30 mins. that reflects the sunlight and
∑ shakespearesglobe.com sky. The building’s 87 floors are Tower Bridge, a symbol of London




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68  BRIT AIN AND IRELAND

s Tower of London

Soon after he became king in 1066, William the
Conqueror built a fortress here to guard the entrance
to London from the Thames Estuary. In 1097, the White
Tower, which today occupies the center of the complex,
was completed in stone; other fine buildings have been
added over the centuries. The Tower has served as a Beauchamp Tower
royal residence, armory, treasury, and most famously as Many high-ranking prisoners were held
a prison for enemies of the Crown. Some were tortured, here, often with their own servants.
and among those who met their death here were the The tower was built by Edward I
“Princes in the Tower,” the sons and heirs of Edward IV. around 1281.
Today, the Tower is a popular attraction, housing the
Crown Jewels and other fine exhibits. Thirty seven
Yeoman Warders, known as “Beefeaters,” guard the
complex and live here. Its most celebrated residents
are seven ravens. Legend claims that the kingdom
will fall if they desert the Tower.












Queen’s House
This Tudor building
is the sovereign’s
official residence
at the Tower.
KEY
1 Tower Green was the execution
site for aristocratic prisoners, away
from crowds on Tower Hill, where
many had to submit to public
execution. Seven people died here,
including two of Henry VIII’s six wives,
Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard.
2 Two 13th-century curtain walls
protect the tower. Main entrance from Tower Hill
(Middle Tower)

The Crown Jewels
The world’s best-known collection of precious objects, now
displayed in a splendid exhibition room, includes the gorgeous
regalia of crowns, scepters, orbs, and swords used at coronations
and other state occasions. Most date from 1661, when Charles II The Sovereign’s
commissioned replacements for regalia destroyed by Parliament Ring (1831)
after the execution of Charles I. Only a few older pieces survived,
hidden by royalist clergymen until the Restoration. These
included Edward the Confessor’s sapphire ring, now The Sovereign’s Orb
incorporated into the Imperial State Crown. The crown was (1661), a hollow gold
made for Queen Victoria in 1837 and has been used at the sphere encrusted
coronation of every monarch since. with jewels

For hotels and restaurants see pp104–6 and pp107–9


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L ONDON  69


. Jewel House VISITORS’ CHECKLIST
Among the
magnificent Crown Practical Information
Jewels is the Scepter Tower Hill EC3. Tel 0870-756
with the Cross 7070. Open 10am–5:30pm Sun
(1660), which & Mon; 9am–5:30pm Tue–Sat;
contains the world’s closes 4:30pm in winter. Last
largest diamond. adm: 30 mins before closing.
Closed Jan 1, Dec 24–26. &
7 limited, except Jewel House.
. White Tower Ceremony of the Keys: 9:30pm
When the tower was finished daily. ∑ hrp.org.uk
in 1097, it was London’s tallest
building at 27 m (90 ft) high. Transport
1 Tower Hill; Docklands Light
Railway to Tower Gateway;
London Bridge; Fenchurch St.
@ 15, 42, 78, 100.
4 from Westminster to
Tower Pier.


















. Chapel of St. John
This austere yet beautiful
Romanesque chapel is a
Thames particularly fine example
of Norman architecture.

Traitors’ Gate
The infamous entrance
was used for prisoners
brought from trial in
Westminster Hall.



Bloody Tower
Explored in a display here,
Edward IV’s two sons were
put in the Bloody Tower
by their uncle, Richard of
Gloucester, in 1483. The
princes, depicted here by
John Millais (1829–96),
disappeared mysteriously
and their uncle became King
Richard III later that year. In
1674, the skeletons of two
children were found nearby.




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70  BRIT AIN AND IRELAND

London: Farther Afield of nautical objects, including a
number of figureheads.
Over the centuries, London has steadily expanded to embrace
the scores of villages that once surrounded it. Although now E Royal Observatory Greenwich
linked in an almost unbroken urban sprawl, many of these Blackheath Ave. Tel 020-8858 4422.
Open daily. Closed Dec 24–26. 7 =
areas have managed to retain a strong individual character. ∑ rmg.co.uk/royal-observatory
Portobello Road has hosted a market since 1837, while Notting E Queen’s House and National
Hill, once farmland, is now covered with townhouses. Greenwich Maritime Museum
and Richmond recall the days when the Thames was an Romney Rd SE10. Tel 020-8312 6608.
important artery for transport and commerce. The riverside Open daily. Closed Dec 24–26. 7
around Richmond and Kew, to the southwest of London, was limited. & ∑ nmm.ac.uk
a favorite site for the great country retreats of the aristocracy.
Perhaps the grandest riverside residence of all is the royal
palace of Hampton Court, set in elaborate, luxuriant gardens.
The exquisite Queen’s House
has been restored to its late
17th-century glory. Highlights
are the unusually shaped main
hall and the intriguing spiral
“tulip staircase.”
The adjoining National
Maritime Museum has exhi bits
ranging from primitive canoes
through Elizabethan galleons
to modern ships. Nearby,
the Old Royal Naval College
View of the 17th-century Queen’s House was designed in two halves A colorful antique shop on London’s
at Greenwich so the Queen’s House could Portobello Road
f Greenwich retain its river view. The g Notting Hill and
chapel and the Painted Hall
SE10. £ Greenwich, Maze Hill, & are open to the public. Portobello Road
Docklands Light Railway to Cutty Sark, The Cutty Sark is the last
Greenwich. 4 from Westminster. surviving 19th-century clipper W11. 1 Notting Hill Gate, Ladbroke
ship. It is possible to walk the Grove. ( Fri & Sat.
Best known as the place from decks and explore the hold,
which the world’s time is which houses several collections Notting Hill and Portobello
measured, Greenwich also Road have been a focus for the
marks the historic eastern Caribbean community since
approach to London by land the peak years of immigration
and water. The area is steeped in the 1950s and 1960s. Today,
in maritime and royal history. this is a trendy residential
The meridian line that divides district, whose vibrant
the earth’s eastern and western cosmopolitan spirit is captured
hemispheres passes through the in the 1999 film starring Julia
Royal Observatory Greenwich Roberts and Hugh Grant.
(now housing a museum). The West Indian flavor is best
Designed by Christopher Wren, experienced during Europe’s
the building is topped by a ball largest street carnival. First held
on a rod, dropped at 1pm every in 1966, it takes over the entire
day since 1833 so that ships’ area on the August bank holiday
chronometers could be set by it. weekend. On the Sunday and
The Observatory also boasts the Monday, costumed parades
Peter Harrison Planetarium, the flood the crowded streets.
only one of its kind in London. Portobello Road market has
Because of its links with time, a bustling atmosphere with
Greenwich was chosen as the hundreds of stands and shops
site for Britain’s year 2000 selling a variety of collectables.
exhibition. Formerly the The southern end consists
Millennium Dome, the O2 almost exclusively of stands
Arena is now used as an A rare 24-hour clock at the Old Royal selling antiques, jewelry, and
entertainment complex. Observatory, Greenwich souvenirs popular with tourists.
For hotels and restaurants see pp104–6 and pp107–9


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L ONDON  71


h Richmond
and Kew
SW15. 1 Kew Gardens, Richmond.
4 to Kew Bridge, Richmond.
The attractive village of
Richmond took its name from a
palace built in 1500 by Henry VII
(formerly the Earl of Richmond),
the remains of which can be seen
off the green. The vast Richmond
Park was once Charles I’s royal
hunting ground. In summer,
boats sail from central London
to Richmond and Kew.
The nobility continued to An aerial view of the impressive Hampton Court Palace
favor Richmond after royalty
had left, and some of their P Ham House to the king. The palace was
mansions have survived. The Ham St, Ham. Tel 020-940 1950. extended by Henry, and again
Palladian villa, Marble Hill Open Apr–Oct: Sat–Thu. Gardens, at the end of the 17th century
House, was completed in 1729 shop & café: Open daily. & 8 by William III and Mary II, with
for the mistress of George II. Y Kew Gardens the help of Christopher Wren.
On the opposite side of the Kew. Tel 020-8332 5655. 1 Kew From the outside, the palace
Thames, Ham House, built in Gardens. @ 65, 237, 267, 391, 419. is a harmonious blend of Tudor
1610 for Sir Thomas Vavasour Open 10am–6:30pm daily. Closed and English Baroque. A
(Knight Marshal to James I), Dec 24, 25. & 7 0 ∑ kew.org remarkable feature is the
had its heyday later that Astronomical Clock, created
century when the aristocratic for Henry VIII in 1540.
Lauderdale family moved in. Inside, Wren’s Classical royal
Ham was extended and rooms, such as the King’s
refurbished as a palatial villa, Apartments, contrast with Tudor
reflecting the Duke of architecture, such as the Great
Lauderdale’s status as one of Hall. The stained-glass window
Charles II’s most powerful here shows Henry VIII flanked
ministers. Much of this luxurious Deer grazing in Richmond Park, a former by the coats of arms of his six
interior decor remains. royal hunting ground wives. Superb woodwork in the
On the riverbank to the south, Chapel Royal, including the
Kew Gardens, the most massive reredos by Grinling
complete botanic gardens in the j Hampton Court Gibbons, dates from a major
world, is flawlessly maintained, East Molesey, Surrey. Tel 0844-482 refurbishment by Queen Anne
with examples of nearly every 7777. £ 4 Hampton Court. (c.1711). In the Queen’s Gallery,
plant that can be grown in @ 111, 216, 411, 451, 461, R68. where entertainments were
Britain. Highlights are the Palm Open 10am–6pm daily (to 4:30pm often staged, the marble
House, with thousands of exotic in winter). Closed Dec 24–26. & chimneypiece is by John Nost.
tropical blooms, and the delicate 8 7 0 = ∑ hrp.org.uk Many of the state apartments
plants of the Temperate House. are decorated with furniture,
The Gardens became a UNESCO Cardinal Wolsey, chief minister paintings, and tapestries from
World Heritage Site in 2003. Near to Henry VIII, began building the Royal Collection. The King’s
the river, the London Museum Hampton Court in 1514. A few Staircase has wall paintings by
of Water and Steam is housed in years later, in the hope of Antonio Verrio. Nine canvases
an old water-pumping station. retaining royal favor, he gave it depicting the Triumph of Julius
Caesar (1490) are housed in the
Mantegna Gallery.
The restored Baroque privy
garden, originally created for
William and Mary, features
radiating avenues of majestic
limes and formal flowerbeds.
The Fountain Garden still has
a few yews planted during
their reign. Other attractions
are the maze and the Great
The distinctive Palm House at London’s famous Kew Gardens Vine, planted in 1768.




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72  BRIT AIN AND IRELAND

2 Canterbury
Kent. * 50,000. £ @ n The
Beaney House of Art & Knowledge,
18 High Street (01227-378 100).
( Wed & Fri.
Canterbury was an important
Roman town even before St.
Augustine arrived in 597, sent
by the pope to convert the
Anglo-Saxons to Christianity.
The town rose in importance,
soon becoming the center of
Christianity in England.
Under the Normans, the city
maintained its position as the The domes and minarets of the Royal Pavilion, Brighton
country’s leading archbishopric.
A new cathedral was built on England. Beneath Canterbury’s more lavish, George needed a
the ruins of the Anglo-Saxon streets lies the Roman Museum, suitably extravagant setting. In
cathedral in 1070. It was enlarged highlights of which include the 1815, he employed architect
and rebuilt many times; as a foundations of a Roman house. John Nash to transform the
result, it embraces examples of all house into the fantastic Oriental
styles of medieval architecture. R Cathedral palace that we see today.
The most poignant moment Christ Church Gate. Tel 01227-762 862. Completed in 1822, the exterior
in the cathedral’s history came Open daily. Closed during services & remains largely unaltered.
in 1170 when Thomas Becket, concerts, Good Fri, Dec 25. & 7 8 Traditional seaside fun is
the Archbishop of Canterbury ∑ canterbury-cathedral.org focused on Brighton’s pebble
and enemy of King Henry II, beach. Brighton Pier, a late-
was murdered here. Trinity 3 Brighton Victorian pleasure ground, is
Chapel was built to house now filled with amusement
Becket’s remains. Sussex. * 249,000. £ @ n 5 arcades. Also worth visiting is the
Until the Dissolution, the Pavilion Bldgs (01273-290 337). ( maze of shops and winding alleys
cathedral was one of the chief Mon– Sat. _ Brighton Festival (May). from the original village of Bright-
places of pilgrimage in all helmstone, called The Lanes.
Christendom. The Canterbury Tales As the nearest south-coast
by Geoffrey Chaucer (c.1345– city to London, Brighton is P Royal Pavilion
1400), one of the greatest works perennially popular. Old Steine. Tel 03000-290 900. Open
of early English literature, tells of The spirit of the Prince Regent daily. Closed Dec 25 & 26. & 8 -
a group of pilgrims who are (later George IV) lives on in the 7 limited. ∑ brightonmuseums.
traveling from London to magnificence of the Royal org.uk/royalpavilion
Becket’s shrine in 1387. Pavilion, where the prince
Adjacent to the ruins of St. resided with the Catholic widow 4 Windsor Castle
Augustine’s Abbey is St. Martin’s Mrs. Fitzherbert after their secret
Church, one of the oldest in marriage. As his parties became See pp74–5.
5 Winchester
Hampshire. * 36,000. £ @
n Guildhall, High Street (01962-840
500). ( Wed–Sat.
The capital of the ancient
kingdom of Wessex, the city
of Winchester was also the
headquarters of England’s
Anglo-Saxon kings.
William the Conqueror built
one of his first English castles
here. The only surviving part is
the Great Hall, erected in 1235
to replace the original. It is now
home to the legendary Round
Table of King Arthur, said to
Canterbury Cathedral, dominating the skyline have been built by the wizard
For hotels and restaurants see pp104–6 and pp107–9


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ENGLAND  73


Merlin, but actually made in the
13th century.
The Westgate Museum is one
of two surviving 12th-century
gatehouses in the city wall. The
room (once a prison) above the
gate has a glorious 16th-century
painted ceiling.
Winchester has been an
ecclesiastical center for centuries.
Its fine cathedral was begun in
1079. Originally a Benedictine The awe-inspiring megaliths of Stonehenge, Salisbury Plain
monastery, it has preserved
much of its Norman architecture makes a fine setting for Salisbury’s 7 Stonehenge
despite numerous alterations. cathedral. In the medieval King’s Off A303, Wiltshire. Tel 0870-333 1181.
The writer Jane Austen is buried House, the Salis bury and @ 3 from Salisbury. Open daily.
here. Built around 1110, Wolvesey South Wiltshire Muse um has Closed Dec 24 & 25. & 8 - 7
Castle, once home of the bishops displays on early man,
of Winchester, now lies in ruins. Stonehenge, and Old Sarum. Built in several stages from
Beyond the walls of the about 3000 BC onward,
P Great Hall Cathedral Close, Salisbury Stonehenge is Europe’s most
Castle Ave. Tel 01962-846 476. developed its chessboard famous prehistoric monument.
Open 10am–5pm daily. layout, with areas devoted to We can only guess at the rituals
Closed Dec 25, 26. 7 different trades, perpetuated that took place here, but the
in street names such as Fish alignment of the stones leaves
Row and Butcher Row. little doubt that the circle
The busy High Street leads to reflects the changing trajectory
the 13th-century Church of St. of the sun through the sky and
Thomas, which has a lovely the passing of the seasons.
carved timber roof (1450). Stonehenge’s monumental
Nearby, on Silver Street, scale is all the more impressive
Poultry Cross was built in the given that the only available
15th century as a covered tools were made of stone,
poultry market. In the bustling wood, and bone. To quarry,
Market Place, many of the brick transport, and erect the huge
and tile-hung Georgian facades stones, its builders must have
conceal medieval houses. had the command of immense
resources and pools of labor.
The 13th-century Round Table in the Great R Cathedral Stonehenge was completed
Hall, Winchester The Close. Tel 01722-555 120. in about 1250 BC; despite
Open daily. & donation. 8 7 popular belief, it was not built
6 Salisbury ∑ salisburycathedral.org.uk by the Druids, who flourished
Wiltshire. * 40,000. £ @ n Fish E Salisbury and South in Britain 1,000 years later.
Row (01722-342 860). ( Tue & Sat. Wiltshire Museum The spectacular visitor center,
_ Salisbury International Arts Festival The Close. Tel 01722-332 151. located 2.4 km (1.5 miles) from
(end May–mid-Jun). Open Mon–Sat (Jun–Sep: Sun pm). the stones, presents a history
Closed Jan 1, Dec 25 & 26. & 7 of the site and there is a museum
Salisbury was founded in 1220, limited. ∑ salisburymuseum.org.uk packed with priceless artifacts.
when the Norman hilltop
settlement of Old Sarum was
abandoned in favor of a site
amid lush water meadows,
where the Nadder, Bourne,
Avon, Ebble, and Wylye meet.
A cathedral was built here in
the early 13th century. It is a fine
example of the Early English style
of Gothic architecture, typified
by tall, pointed lancet windows.
The magnificent landmark spire
is the tallest in England.
The spacious and tranquil
Close, with its schools, alms-
houses, and clergy housing, Sculpture by Elisabeth Frink (1930–93) in Cathedral Close, Salisbury




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74  BRIT AIN AND IRELAND

4 Windsor Castle

The oldest continuously inhabited royal residence in Britain,
the castle, originally made of wood, was founded by William
the Conqueror in the late 11th century to guard the western
approaches to London. He chose the site because it was on
high ground and just a day’s journey from the Tower of
London. Successive monarchs have made alterations that
render it a remarkable monument to royalty’s changing
tastes. King George V’s affection for it was shown when he
chose Windsor for his family surname in 1917. The castle is
an official residence of the present Queen, who often stays Albert Memorial Chapel
here at weekends. First built in the 1240s, it was
rebuilt in 1485 and finally
converted into a memorial
King Henry for Prince Albert in 1863.
VIII Gate










Castle Hill
and main
entrance


. St. George’s Chapel
The architectural highlight
of the castle, this chapel was
built between 1475 and
1528 and is an outstanding
Late Gothic work. Ten
monarchs are buried here.

Albert Memorial
Chapel (1485) The Round
Tower (1080)
Waterloo Chamber
(1820s)
St. George’s Hall
(1357–68)
Middle
Lower Ward Ward


St. George’s Chapel (1475–1528) Upper Ward

Key Windsor Castle’s History
Most of the work on the castle –
11th–13th centuries
founded in 1080 as a motte and
14th century bailey – was carried out by Henry II
15th–18th centuries and Edward III, before it was
19th–20th centuries remodeled by George IV in 1823.
For hotels and restaurants see pp104–6 and pp107–9


074-075_EW_Europe.indd 74 14/07/16 10:12 am

ENGLAND  75

Drawing Gallery VISITORS’ CHECKLIST
This chalk
etching of Christ Practical Information
by Michelangelo Castle Hill. Tel 020-7766 7300.
is part of the
Resurrection Series. Open 9:45am–5:15pm (Nov–Feb:
4:15pm) daily (last adm: 75 mins
It belongs to the
Royal Collection, a before closing). Closed see web-
site. & 7 5 St. George’s Chapel:
small selection of
which is shown here 5:15pm Mon–Sat; Sun (for worship-
pers). ∑ royalcollection.org.uk
at any one time.
Waterloo Chamber
Created as part of
Charles Long’s brief for
remodeling the castle
in 1823, the Waterloo
Chamber was previously
a mere space between
curtain walls.




The Fire of 1992
A devastating blaze began during
maintenance work on the State
Apartments. St. George’s Hall was
damaged but has been rebuilt.












KEY
1 The Round Tower was first built
in wood by William the Conqueror. In
1170, it was rebuilt in stone by Henry
II. It now houses the Royal Archives
and Photographic Collection.
2 Statue of Charles II
3 The Audience Chamber is
where the Queen greets her guests.
4 The Queen’s Ballroom
5 Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House
was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens
in 1924. Nearly every item was built
on a 1:12 ratio. The wine cellar
contains genuine vintage wine.
. State Apartments
These rooms hold many treasures, 6 Brunswick Tower
including this late 18th-century 7 The East Terrace Garden was
state bed in the King’s State created by Sir Jeffry Wyatville for
Bedchamber, used for the visit in King George IV in the 1820s.
1855 of Napoleon III.




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76  BRIT AIN AND IRELAND


in St. Austell was built in
1998–2000 in an old Cornish
china-clay pit. The aim of this
vast educational and research
center is to teach visitors about
the vital relationship bet ween
plants, people, and reso urces
in an informative and fun way.
Two bulbous “greenhouses,”
huge segmented geodesic
domes known as biomes,
dominate the site, which holds
some 4,500 species of plants.
The administrative capital of
Cornwall is Truro, a city of A wild Dartmoor pony, a familiar sight in
gracious Georgian buildings Devon’s national park
West front of the Cathedral Church of
St. Peter in Exeter, Devon and cobbled streets. Here, the 0 Bristol
Royal Cornwall Museum has
8 Devon and displays on mining, smuggling, Avon. * 450,000. k £ @
Cornwall and Methodism. n E Shed, 1 Canon’s Road (0906-711
Devon’s capital is Exeter,
2191). ( daily. _ Harbor Festival
£ @ Truro (Cornwall), Exeter a lively city with fine Roman (mid-Jul), International Balloon
(Devon). n Boscawen Street, Truro and medi eval relics. The mainly Fiesta (Aug).
(01872-274 555); Quay House, 14th- century Cathedral Church
Quayside, Exeter (01392-271 611). of St. Peter is one of the most The city of Bristol, at the mouth
superbly ornamented of the Avon, was once the main
Miles of stunning coastline cathedrals in Britain. British port for transatlantic
dominate this magical corner Devon’s most popular trade, pioneering the era of the
of Britain. Busy seaside resorts recreation area is Dartmoor steam liner. The city grew rich
alternate with secluded coves National Park. At its heart on the transportation of wine,
and fishing villages rich in is a bleak and windswept tobacco, and, in the 17th
maritime history. Inland, lush landscape, dotted with tors – century, slaves.
pastures contrast with stark out-crops of granite rock – and There is a covered market in the
and treeless moorland. grazed by herds of wild ponies. city center, part of which occupies
Britain’s most westerly point, the Corn Exchange, built by
Land’s End, is noted for its O Eden Project John Wood the Elder in 1743.
remote and wild landscape. St. Austell. Tel 01726-811 911. £ St. St. John’s Gate has colorful statues
Nearby, the former Benedictine Austell, then local bus. Open daily. of Bristol’s mythical founders, King
monastery of St. Michael’s Closed Dec 24 & 25. & 7 Brennus and King Benilus.
Mount rises dramatically from ∑ edenproject.com Bristol’s cathedral took an
the waters of Mount Bay off O Dartmoor National Park unusually long time to build.
Cornwall’s southern coast. On Devon. £ @ to Exeter, Plymouth, The choir was begun in 1298,
the north coast, St. Ives, with Totnes then local bus. n Visitor the transepts and tower were
its crescent of golden sands, is Centre, Princetown (01822-890414). finished in 1515, but the nave
internationally renowned for its took another 350 years to build.
two art museums, the Barbara 9 Bath Designed by Isambard
Hepworth Museum and the Tate Kingdom Brunel, the SS Great
Gallery St. Ives. The Eden Project See pp78–9. Britain was the world’s first large
iron passenger ship. Launched in
1843, it traveled 32 times round
the world. The ship is now in the
dock where it was originally built,
undergoing restoration.
Housed inside the former
goods shed of Temple Meads
station, At-Bristol is an
innovative science and
technology center, complete
with a 3D planetarium.
The Arnolfini Gallery is a
showcase for contemporary art,
dance, drama, and film. It is on
the harborside, which is lined
Cornwall’s wild and rugged southern coastline with cafés, bars, and galleries.
For hotels and restaurants see pp104–6 and pp107–9


076-077_EW_Europe.indd 76 14/07/16 10:13 am

ENGLAND AND W ALES  77

Wales

Wales is a country of outstanding natural beauty, with varied
landscapes. Visitors come to climb dramatic mountain peaks,
walk in the forests, fish in the broad rivers, and enjoy the miles
of untainted coastline. The country’s many seaside towns have
long been popular with British vacationers. As well as outdoor
pursuits, there is the vibrancy of Welsh culture, with its strong
Celtic roots, to be experienced. The Welsh have their own
language, which has survived despite the
pervasive use of the English tongue.

marina and waterfront. Here,
the Pier Head Building,
constructed in 1896, is a
reminder of the city’s heyday. Snowdonia National Park, popular with
climbers and hikers
+ Cardiff Castle e Caernarfon
Castle St. Tel 029-2087 8100. Open
daily. Closed Jan 1, Dec 25–26. & 8 Gwynedd. * 10,000. @ n Castle St
- 7 limited. ∑ cardiffcastle.com (01286-672 232). ( Sat.

w Snowdonia One of the most famous castles
in Wales looms over this busy
Gwynedd. £ Betws-y-Coed. town, created after Edward I’s
n Station Road, Barmouth defeat of the last native Welsh
(01341-280 787). prince, Llywelyn ap Gruffydd, in
1283. The town walls merge
Cardiff Castle’s clock tower, a 19th-century The scenery of Snowdonia with modern streets that spread
addition by architect William Burges National Park ranges from beyond the medieval center
q Cardiff rugged mountain country to and open into a market square.
Caernarfon Castle was built as
moors and beaches. The area is
Glamorgan. * 310,000. k £ @ well known as a destination for a seat of government for North
n The Hayes (029-2087 3573). _ hikers, and villages such as Wales. A UNESCO World Heritage
Cardiff Festival (Jul/Aug). Betws-y-Coed and Llanberis site, it contains several interesting
are busy hill-walking centers. displays, including the Royal
Cardiff was first occupied by the The main focus of this vast Welsh Fusiliers Museum and an
Romans, who built a fort here in area is Snowdon, which at exhibition tracing the history of
AD 75. In the 1830s, the town 1,085 m (3,560 ft) is the highest the Princes of Wales.
began to develop as a port, and peak in Wales. Hikers wishing to On the hill above the town
by 1913 it was the world’s explore Snowdonia’s peaks are the ruins of Segontium, a
leading coal exporter. should be wary of sudden Roman fort built around AD 78.
Confirmed as the Welsh capital weather changes. In summer,
in 1955, it is now devoted to less intrepid visitors can take the + Caernarfon Castle
commerce and administration. Snowdon Mountain Railway from Y Maes. Tel 01286-677 617. Open daily.
Cardiff Castle began as a Llanberis to Snowdon’s summit. Closed Jan 1, Dec 24–26. & 8
Roman fort. It was renovated in
the 19th century by William
Burges, who created an ornate
mansion rich in medieval
images and romantic detail.
Cardiff’s civic center is set
around Alexandra Gardens. The
Neoclassical City Hall (1905) is
dominated by its huge dome
and clock tower. Up on the first
floor, the Marble Hall is flush
with fine statues of prominent
Welsh figures.
To the south of the center, the
docklands have been trans-
formed by the creation of a Caernarfon Castle, one of the forbidding fortresses built by Edward I




076-077_EW_Europe.indd 77 14/07/16 10:13 am

78  BRIT AIN AND IRELAND

9 Street by Street: Bath

Bath owes its magnificent Georgian townscape The Circus
to the bubbling pool of water at the heart of the This is a daring departure
from the typical Georgian
Roman baths. The Romans transformed Bath square, by John Wood the
into England’s first spa resort and it regained Elder (1704–54).
fame as a spa town in the 18th century. At this
time, the two brilliant John Woods (Elder and
Younger) designed the city’s fine Palladian-style
buildings. Today, the traffic-free heart of this
lively town is full of street
musicians, museums,
and enticing shops.
B E N N E T T S T R E E T L A

R O Y A L C R E S C E N T N S D O


W
B R O C K S T R E E T
N

R
H E C I R C U S O A
T
No. 1 Royal Crescent D
is a museum which
provides a glimpse of G
18th-century aristocratic life. A Y
G E O R G E S T R E E T
No. 17 is where S T
the 18th-century R
E
painter Thomas E M
Gainsborough lived. T I L S
O
M

Assembly Rooms and S T
Fashion Museum R
E
Q U E E N E T
Milsom Street and S Q U A R E B A
. Royal Crescent New Bond Street R T
contain some of Bath’s
Hailed as the most majestic street in Britain, this most elegant shops. O
graceful arc of 30 houses (1769–75) is the N
masterpiece of John Wood the Younger. West S U P P E R B O R O U G H W A L L S
of the Royal Crescent, Royal Victoria Park (1830) is T
BEAUFORT SQ R E T
the city’s largest open space. E
Jane Austen
(1775–1817), the writer,
lived in various houses
during the five years she
spent in Bath. A center
Key 0 meters 100 devoted to the author W E S T G AT E S T R E E T
Suggested route 0 yards 100 is located on Gay Street.

Theatre Royal (1805)

For hotels and restaurants see pp104–6 and pp107–9


078-079_EW_Europe.indd 78 14/07/16 10:09 am

ENGLAND  79


VISITORS’ CHECKLIST
The Circus Practical Information
This is a daring departure Avon. * 85,000. k Bristol
from the typical Georgian Airport, 32 km (20 miles) W. n
square, by John Wood the The Building of Bath Abbey Chambers, Abbey Church
Elder (1704–54). Collection shows Yard (01225-322 442). ( daily.
how, in the 18th _ Intern ational Music Festival
century, the city was (May). Roman Baths Museum:
transformed from a Open daily. Closed Dec 25 & 26.
medieval wool town Pulteney Bridge & 7 limited. 0 =
into one of Europe’s This charming bridge (1769–74), Transport
most elegant spas. designed by Robert Adam, is lined with £ Dorchester St. @ Manvers St.
shops and links the center with the
magnificent Great Pulteney Street.
B E N N E T T S T R E E T L A N S D




O
W
N
N
O

G
R
A
O
R
A
A
D
P
. Roman Baths
Built in the 1st century, this
G E O R G E S T R E E T B R bathing complex is one of . Bath Abbey
The splendid abbey stands at the
Britain’s greatest memorials
heart of the old city in the Abbey
to the Roman era.
Church Yard, a paved piazza
O
enlivened by buskers. Its unique
A
facade features stone angels
D
M

I
L S O S R climbing Jacob’s Ladder to heaven.
T
M
E
E T
Parade
S
T
Gardens
R
Courting
E
E
couples came
T
Great to this pretty
Pulteney riverside park
for secret
W B O N D S T R E E T liaisons in the
N
E Street
18th century.
B
A
R
U P P E R B O R O U G H W A L L S H
T
O
I
A V O N
N
H G G R A N D PA R A D E
S
U
T

N
BEAUFORT SQ R E I O N S R
E
T
T
E Pump Room
These tearooms
E
S
once formed
T
T
R
the social hub of
C H E A P S T R E E T O R A N G E spa community.
E
the 18th-century
E
G R O V E
T
W E S T G AT E S T R E E T They contain this
decorative
drinking fountain.
Train Y O R K S T R E E T Sally Lunn’s House (1482) is one
station of Bath’s oldest houses.
078-079_EW_Europe.indd 79 14/07/16 10:09 am

80  BRIT AIN AND IRELAND


The colleges were designed Carfax Tower is all that remains
along the lines of monastic of the 14th-century Church of
buildings, but were surrounded St. Martin, demo lished in 1896.
by gardens. Watch the clock strike the
Christ Church, the largest of quarter hours, and climb to
the Oxford colleges, dates from the top for a panoramic view
1525 when Cardinal Wolsey of the city.
founded it as an ecclesiastical The Martyrs’ Memorial
college. It has produced 13 commemorates the three
British prime ministers in the Protestants burned at the stake
last 200 years. Other colleges on Broad Street – Bishops
worth visiting are All Souls, Latimer and Ridley in 1555, and
Magdalen, Merton, Lincoln, Archbishop Cranmer in 1556 –
and Corpus Christi. during the reign of Catholic
The university’s library, Queen Mary.
the Bodleian, was founded St. Mary the Virgin Church
in 1320. One of its most is the official church of
famous rooms is the the university, and is
Divinity School said to be the most
The massive dining hall at Christ Church (1488), which has a visited parish
College, Oxford University beautiful Gothic church in England.
r Oxford vaulted ceiling. The Two of Oxford’s
most interesting
Baroque rotunda
Oxfordshire. * 134,000. £ @ n named the Radc­ museums adjoin
15–16 Broad St (01865-686 430). liffe Camera (1748) each other. The
( Wed, Thu. _ St. Giles Fair (Sep). is a reading room. University
Oxford is more Museum of
Oxford has long been a strategic than just a uni- Natural History
point on the western routes into versity town and Radcliffe Camera, Bodleian contains fossils
London – its name describes there is a wealth of Library, Oxford of dinosaurs as
its position as a convenient spot interesting sights well as the
for crossing the river (a ford aside from the colleges. remains of a dodo. The Pitt
for oxen). One of the best British Rivers Museum has one of the
English students expelled museums outside London, world’s most extensive ethno-
from Paris founded the university the Ashmolean Museum was graphic collections – including
in 1167. The development of opened in 1683. The museum’s masks and tribal totems from
England’s first university created exceptional art collection Africa and the Far East – and
the spectacular skyline of tall includes works by Bellini, archaeological displays.
towers and “dreaming spires.” Raphael, Turner, Rembrandt, Completed in 1669, the
Many of the 38 colleges that Michelangelo, Picasso, and a Sheldonian Theatre was the
make up Oxford University large group of Pre-Raphaelites. first building designed by
were founded between the There is also the Alfred Jewel, Christopher Wren and was built
13th and 16th centuries and an Anglo-Saxon artifact that is as a place to hold university
cluster around the city center. more than 1,000 years old. degree ceremonies. The ceiling
depicts the triumph of religion,
art, and science over envy,
hatred, and malice.
E Ashmolean Museum
Beaumont St. Tel 01865-278 002.
Open 10am–5pm Tue–Sun & bank
holiday Mon. Closed Dec 24–26.
8 Tue, Fri, Sat. 7
E University Museum and
Pitt Rivers Museum
Parks Rd. Tel 01865-272 950/270 927.
Open University: 10am–5pm daily;
Pitt Rivers: 10am–4:30pm Tue–Sat,
noon–4:30pm Sun. Closed Easter, Dec
24–26. 7 limited.

t Blenheim Palace
The Great Quadrangle of All Souls College, Oxford University See pp82–3.
For hotels and restaurants see pp104–6 and pp107–9


080-081_EW_Europe.indd 80 14/07/16 10:13 am

ENGLAND  81

y Stratford-upon- from Oxford University after
Avon academic and religious
disputes, they came here.
Warwickshire. * 22,000. £ @ n Student life dominates the
Bridge Foot (01789-264 293). ( Fri. city, but it is also a thriving
_ Shakespeare’s Birthday (late Apr).
market center serving a rich
Situated on the west bank agricultural region.
of the River Avon, Stratford- Cambridge University has
upon-Avon attracts hordes 31 colleges, the oldest being
of tourists eager to see Peterhouse (1284) and the
buildings connected with newest Robinson (1979). Many
William Shakespeare, born here of the older colleges have
in 1564. The town is also the peaceful gardens backing
provincial home of the Royal onto the River Cam, which are
Shakespeare Company, whose known as “Backs.” An enjoyable
perform ances are staged at the way to view these is to rent a The awe-inspiring choir of King’s College
Royal Shakespeare Theatre. punt (a long narrow boat Chapel, Cambridge
The High Street turns into propelled using a pole) from
Chapel Street, the site of New one of the boatyards along in term time, but today the
Place. Shakespeare died here in the river – with a “chauffeur,” choir also gives concerts all
1616, and it is now a herb if required. The layout of the over the world.
garden. The play- older colleges, as St. John’s College, whose
wright is buried at at Oxford, derives alumni include the Romantic
Holy Trinity Church. from their early poet William Wordsworth,
Bought for the nation connections with spans the Cam and boasts one
in 1847, Shakes- religious institutions, of the town’s most beautiful
peare’s Birthplace although few bridges. Known as the Bridge
was restored to its escaped heavy- of Sighs, it was named after its
Elizabethan style. It is handed alterations Venetian counterpart.
regarded by many as in the Victorian era. One of Britain’s oldest public
a shrine to the great Henry VI founded museums, the Fitzwilliam
man, who lived here King’s College in Museum has works of
for many years, and 1441. Work on the exceptional quality and rarity,
offers a fascinating Shakespeare monument at chapel – one of the especially antiquities, ceramics,
insight into his life. Holy Trinity Church, Stratford most important paintings, and manuscripts. These
Another Stratford examples of late- include paintings by Titian and
native, John Harvard, emigrated medieval English architecture – the 17th-century Dutch masters,
to America and in 1638 left his began five years later, and took an impressive collection of works
estate to a new college, later 90 years to complete. Henry by the French Impressionists, and
renamed Harvard University. himself decided that the building most of the important British
Harvard House displays should dominate the city and artists of the past 300 years.
family mementos. gave specific instructions about
No tour of Stratford would be its dimensions. He also stipulated E Fitzwilliam Museum
complete without a visit to Anne that a choir of six lay clerks and Trumpington St. Tel 01223-332 900.
Hathaway’s Cottage. Before her 16 boy choristers – educated at Open Tue–Sun & public hols.
marriage to Shakespeare, Anne the College school – should sing Closed Jan 1, Good Fri, Dec 24–26, 31.
lived here, 1.5 km (1 mile) from daily at services. This still happens & donation. 7 limited.
the town. Des pite fire damage,
the cottage is still impressive,
with some original 16th-
century furniture.

u Cambridge
Cambridgeshire. * 120,000. £ @
n Peas Hill (0871-226 8006). ( daily.
_ Folk Festival (July).
Cambridge has been an
important town since Roman
times, being located at the first
navigable point on the River
Cam. When, in 1209, a group of
religious scholars broke away Bridge of Sighs, St. John’s College, Cambridge University




080-081_EW_Europe.indd 81 14/07/16 10:13 am

82  BRIT AIN AND IRELAND

t Blenheim Palace

After John Churchill, the 1st Duke of Marlborough, defeated
the French at the Battle of Blenheim in 1704, Queen Anne
gave him the manor of Woodstock and had this palatial house
built for him in gratitude. Designed by Nicholas Hawksmoor
and Sir John Vanbrugh, it is one of the country’s most
outstanding examples of English Baroque. The magnificent
palace grounds, at the center of which is a huge lake, owe
their present appearance to the great 18th-century landscape
designer, Lancelot (Capability) Brown. Blenheim Palace was
the birthplace, in 1874, of the wartime British prime minister,
Winston Churchill. Today, the palace is the home of the 11th . Long Library
Duke and Duchess of Marlborough. This 55 m (183 ft) long room
was designed by Vanbrugh as
a picture gallery. The stucco
work on the ceiling is by Isaac
Mansfield (1725).































KEY
1 The Grand Bridge was built in 5 East Gate
1708. It has a 31 m (101 ft) main 6 Red Drawing Room
span and contains rooms within
its structure. 7 The Green Drawing Room has a
full-length portrait of the 4th Duke of
2 The Chapel holds a marble
. Water Terrace Gardens monument to the 1st Duke of Marlborough by George Romney
These splendid gardens Marlborough, sculpted in 1733. (1734–1802).
were laid out in the 1920s 8 The Italian Garden contains the
by French architect Achille 3 The lion sculptures (1709), Mermaid Fountain, dating from the
Duchêne in 17th-century which overlook the Great Court, late 19th century.
style, with detailed are by Grinling Gibbons.
patterned beds and 4 The Untold Story exhibition
fountains.



082-083_EW_Europe.indd 82 14/07/16 10:13 am

ENGLAND  83


Great Hall VISITORS’ CHECKLIST
The hall’s magnificent
ceiling, painted by Sir James Practical Information
Thornhill in 1716, shows Woodstock, Oxfordshire.
Marlborough presenting Tel 0800-849 6500.
his plan for the Battle of Palace & Gardens: Open mid-
Blenheim to Britannia. Feb–Dec 10:30am-5:30pm daily.
& 8 7 limited. Park: Open
9am–6pm (or dusk) daily.
∑ blenheimpalace.com
Transport
£ Oxford, then bus.

Other Notable
Stately Homes
Burghley House:
Lincolnshire. Tel 01780-752 451.
Open mid-Mar–Oct: 11am–5pm
daily. & 0 7 Built by Queen
Elizabeth I’s adviser, William Cecil,
1st Lord Burghley (1520–98).
Entrance Castle Howard:
Yorkshire. Tel 01653-648 333.
Open mid-Mar–Oct, end
Nov–mid-Dec: daily. & 0 8
7 Baroque mansion (1699–
1712) by John Vanbrugh and
Nicholas Hawksmoor.
Chatsworth House:
Derbyshire. Tel 01246-582 204.
Open 11am–5:30pm daily.
& = 0 7 limited.
Splendid Baroque palace built
in 1687–1707 by the 4th Earl
of Devonshire.
Hardwick Hall:
Derbyshire. Tel 01246-850 430.
. Saloon Open Apr–Oct: Wed–Sun. &
The murals and painted = 0 7 limited. Fine Tudor
ceiling of the state dining mansion begun in 1591 by
room are by French artist Bess of Hardwick, Countess
Louis Laguerre (1663–1721). of Shrewsbury.
The room is used once a
year on Christmas Day. Transport
Burghley House: £ Stamford
Castle Howard: £ York, then bus
Chatsworth House and Hardwick
Hall: £ Chesterfield.


Eighteenth-century Gardens
Styles of gardening in Britain expanded alongside archi tecture and other
fashions. The 18th century brought a taste for large-scale “natural” landscapes,
characterized by woods, lakes, and a seeming lack of boundaries. The pioneer
of this new style was the famous landscape designer Lancelot (Capability)
Brown (1715–83). His nickname came from his habit of telling clients that
their land had “great capabilities.” In 1764, he re-landscaped the grounds of
Blenheim Palace, creating the magnificent, huge lake. Today, his reputation
Capability Brown is controversial, because in creating his idyllic landscapes he swept away
(1715–83) many of the beautiful formal gardens previously in vogue.

For hotels and restaurants see pp104–6 and pp107–9


082-083_EW_Europe.indd 83 14/07/16 10:13 am

84  BRIT AIN AND IRELAND


o Liverpool early Italian and Flemish works
to 20th-century art.
Liverpool. * 450,000. k 11 km
(7 miles) SE. g £ @ n Albert Liverpool’s Gothic-style
Dock (0151-233 2008). ( Sun. Anglican Cathedral, com pleted
∑ visitliverpool.com in 1978 by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott,
is the world’s largest. The Roman
During the 17th and 18th Catholic Metropolitan Cathedral
centuries, Liverpool’s westerly of Christ the King (1962–7)
seaboard gave it a leading role is a striking circular building
Detail of a carving on the facade of Bishop in the Caribbean slave trade. surmounted by a stylized crown
Lloyd’s House, Chester After the city’s first ocean of thorns 88 m (290 ft) high.
steamer set sail from here in
i Chester 1840, would-be emigrants to E Tate Liverpool
Cheshire. * 125,000. £ @ the New World poured into Albert Dock. Tel 0151-702 7400.
n Town Hall, Northgate St the city, including a large Open daily. Closed Good Friday,
(0845-647 7868). ( Mon–Sat. number of Irish refugees Dec 24–26. 8 7
of the potato famine. E The Walker
First settled by the Romans in Liverpool’s waterfront is William Brown St. Tel 0151-478 4199.
AD 79, the main streets of overlooked by the well-known Open daily. Closed Jan 1, Dec 24 (from
Chester are now lined with Royal Liver Building. The 19th- 2pm), Dec 25 & 26. 8 by appt. 7
timber buildings, many dating century warehouses around
from the 13th and 14th Albert Dock have been
centuries. These are the redeveloped as museums, p Manchester
Chester Rows, which, with galleries, restaurants, and Manchester. * 2.5 million. k 18 km
their two tiers of stores and shops. Among these, the (11 miles) S. £ @ n Piccadilly
continuous upper gallery, Maritime Museum and Plaza, Portland Street (0871-222 8223).
anticipate today’s multistory Tate Liverpool, which ( daily.
shops by several centuries. houses one of the
Their oriel windows and best collections of Manchester is famous as a
decorative timber-work contemporary art pioneer of the industrial age,
are mostly 19th century. in England outside with its cotton-spinning
The facade of the of London, are well machines and early railways.
16th-century Bishop worth visiting. Among the city’s many fine
Lloyd’s House on Liverpool is famous 19th-century buildings are the
Watergate Street is as the home town Neo-Gothic cathedral, the Royal
the most richly carved of the phenomenally Exchange, now a theater and
in Chester. The Rows successful Beatles. restaurant, and the Free Trade
are at their most The Beatles Story Hall, now the Radisson Edwardian
attractive where is a walk-through Hotel, with only the original
Eastgate Street Clock tower of the Royal Liver exhibition which facade remaining. The Manch­
meets Bridge Street. Building, Liverpool charts their ester Ship Canal, opened in 1894,
A town crier calls meteoric rise is a magnificent engineering feat.
the hour and announces to fame in the 1960s. The Museum of Science and
news from the Cross – a One of the most prestigious Industry in Manchester captures
reconstruction of a 15th-century art galleries in the city is The the city’s spirit of industrial might
stone crucifix. South of here, the Walker. Paintings range from with a display of working steam
Grosvenor Museum explains
Chester’s history. To the north is
the cathedral. The choir stalls
have splendid misericords and
delicate spirelets on the
canopies. The cathedral is
surrounded on two sides by
high city walls, originally
Roman, but rebuilt at intervals.
Also worth seeing is the
Roman amphitheater just
outside town, built in AD 100.

E Grosvenor Museum
Grosvenor St. Tel 01244-972 197.
Open Mon–Sat, Sun pm.
Closed Jan 1, Good Fri, Dec 24–26.
7 limited. 8 Modern city blocks on the banks of the Manchester Ship Canal
For hotels and restaurants see pp104–6 and pp107–9


084-085_EW_Europe.indd 84 14/07/16 10:13 am

ENGLAND  85


(1774–1843) and Wordsworth.
To the east of the town lies the
ancient stone circle of Castlerigg.
North of Keswick is Skiddaw,
England’s fourth­highest peak
and a straightforward climb for
anyone reasonably fit.

d Durham
County Durham. £ @
n 03000­26 26 26. ( Sat.
Lush, green fields below the Skiddaw fells in the Lake District
Durham was built on a rocky
engines and an exhibition on the 18th­century Abbot Hall. peninsula in 995. The site was
the Liverpool and Manchester The nearest lake to Kendal is chosen as the last resting place
Railway. Another museum of Windermere, which is more for the remains of St. Cuthbert.
note is the Whitworth Art than 16 km (10 miles) The relics of the Venerable Bede
Gallery, with its splendid long. A year­round were brought here 27 years
collection of contem­ car ferry connects later, adding to the town’s
porary art, textiles, and the lake’s east and attraction to pilgrims.
prints. The Turner water­ west shores, and Durham’s cathedral, built
colors are a highlight. summer steamers between 1093 and 1274, is a
Housed in a 19th­ link the main towns striking Norman structure. The
century porticoed on the north­south vast dimensions of the ancient
building, the City Art axis. Among these, columns, piers, and vaults, and
Galleries contain an one of the most popular the lozenge, chevron, and
excellent selection of is Bowness, where the dogtooth patterns carved into
British art, as well as Windermere Steam­ them, are its main innovative
early Italian, Flemish, The Lakeland poet boat Museum has a features. The exotic Galilee
and French paintings. William Wordsworth collection of superbly Chapel, begun in 1170, was
restored watercraft. inspired by the mosque at
E Whitworth Art Gallery Ambleside, another attractive Córdoba, Spain (see pp316–17).
University of Manchester, Oxford Rd. lakeside town, is a good base for The Norman castle, begun
Tel 0161­275 7450. Open 10am–5pm walkers and climbers. Nearby is in 1072, served as an Episcopal
daily (to 9pm Thu). 7 - Hill Top, the 17th­century Palace until 1832, when Bishop
∑ whitworth.manchester.ac.uk farmhouse where the author William van Mildert gave it away
Beatrix Potter wrote many of her to found Britain’s third university
a York famous children’s stories. here. In the castle grounds,
The Lake District’s most Tunstal’s Chapel was built around
See pp86–7. famous son, the Romantic poet 1542 and has some particularly
William Wordsworth (1770– fine woodwork, including a
1850), lived for a while at unicorn misericord. The castle
s Lake District Grasmere, on the shores of the keep, sited on a mound, is now
Cumbria. £ Kendal; Windermere. lake of the same name, north of part of the university.
@ Kendal; Keswick; Windermere. Ambleside. His home, Dove
n Made in Cumbria, 48a Branthwaite Cottage, contains a museum + Durham Castle
Brow, Kendal (01539­735 891); dedicated to his life. Tel 0191­334 2932. Open for guided
Moot Hall, Market Sq, Keswick To the west of Windermere lie tours only. Term time: daily (pm);
(01768­772 645). Coniston Water and picturesque university hols: most days (am & pm);
Duddon Valley, popular call ahead for special closures. 8
The Lake District boasts some of walking country.
the country’s most spectacular In the northern part
scenery, with high peaks, lonely of the Lake District,
fells, and beautiful lakes. The Keswick, with its lake,
area constitutes Britain’s largest Derwent Water, has
national park and offers a range been a busy vacation
of outdoor activities, from hill destination since
walking to boating. Victorian days. The
Kendal is the southern Keswick Museum
gateway to the Lake District. Of and Art Gallery holds
interest here is the Museum of original manuscripts of
Lakeland Life and Industry, Lakeland writers, such Moorish-style arches in the 12th-century Galilee
housed in the stable block of as Robert Southey Chapel, Durham Cathedral




084-085_EW_Europe.indd 85 14/07/16 10:13 am

86  BRIT AIN AND IRELAND

a Street by Street: York
York’s medieval city walls still
The city of York has retained so much of its medi eval encircle the old city. It is possible
structure that walking into its center is like entering a to walk round them, although
there are large gaps. The gates
living museum. Many of the ancient timbered houses, are known as “bars.”
which overhang narrow, winding streets such as the
Shambles, are protected by a conservation order. At Monk Bar, the
Cars are banned from the center, so there are always gatehouse retains a
student bikes bouncing over cobbled streets. working portcullis.
The chief glory of York is its cathedral, the Minster.
The city also has 18 medieval churches, 5 km
(3 miles) of medieval city walls, and many
elegant Jacobean and Georgian buildings.
. York Minster G O O D R
The 15th-century
choir screen is lined A M G A T E
with statues of the kings MINSTER YARD
of England, from William I
to Henry VI. D E A N G A T E
Thirsk HIGH PETERGATE
DUNCOMBE PLACE L O W P E T E R G A T E COLLIERGATE





S T L E O N A R D S P L A C E
St. Mary’s Abbey B L A K E S T R E E T S T O N E G A T E THE SHAMBLES
The Yorkshire D A VY GA TE
Museum contains P A R L I A M E N T S T
a fine collection of L E N D A L S T R E E T
fossils, discovered M U S E U M S T R E E T
at Whitby in the
19th century. C O N E Y S T R E E T SPURRIERGATE HIGH OUSEGATE


Lendal Bridge
Train station, bus
station, National O U S E
Rail way Museum, OUSE BDG
and Leeds
In Coffee Yard,
look out for the
Ye Old Starre carved figure of
Inne is one of a red devil, relic
the oldest pubs of a medieval
in York. print shop.

Guildhall
This two-headed
medieval roof boss is
on the 15th-century
St. Olave’s Church Guildhall, situated
The 11th-century church, next to the gatehouse beside the River Ouse
of St. Mary’s Abbey, was founded by the Earl of and restored after
Northumbria in memory of St. Olaf, King of bomb damage during
Norway. To the left is the Chapel of St. Mary World War II.
on the Walls.

For hotels and restaurants see pp104–6 and pp107–9


086-087_EW_Europe.indd 86 14/07/16 10:44 am

ENGLAND  87


VISITORS’ CHECKLIST Exploring York
To the Romans, the city of York
Practical Information was Eboracum, to the Saxons it
was Eoforwic, and to the Vikings
* 120,000. n 1 Museum St
(01904-550 099). ( daily. Jorvik. Danish street names are a
_ Jorvik Festival (Feb); St. reminder that from 867, York was
Nicholas Fair (Nov). York Minster: a major Viking settlement.
Deangate. Tel 01904-557 216. Jorvik Viking Center, the Viking
Open daily. Jorvik Viking Center: museum, is built underground
Coppergate Walk. Tel 01904-543 on an archaeological site
400. Open daily. Closed Dec 25. excavated at Coppergate. The
∑ visityork.org latest technology brings the
Transport sights and smells of 10th-century
£ @ Station Rd. York dramatically to life.
Between 1100 and 1500, York
was England’s second city.
. Jorvik Viking Center Whip-Ma-Whop-Ma-Gate York Minster, the largest Gothic
The many artifacts on show is York’s tiniest street. The church in northern Europe,
G O O D R
here explore the time name means “neither one was begun in 1220. It has a
when York was a strategic thing nor the other street.”
Viking town. remarkable collection of medieval
A M G A T E
stained glass. The vast Great East
Merchant Adventurers’ Hall
Window (1405–8) depicts the
Creation. In 1984, a disastrous fire
ST SAVIOURGATE THE STONEBO W the roof and shattered its
in the south transept destroyed
L O W P E T E R G A T E
magnificent rose window.
This has since been restored.
COLLIERGATE
Much of York’s wealth in
the late Middle Ages came
from the cloth trade. The
Merchant Adventurers’ Hall,
THE SHAMBLES
the headquarters of a powerful
PAV E M E N T . York Castle Museum guild of traders, is a beautifully
F O S S G A T E
preserved timber-framed
building that dates from
Converted from two 18th-century
P A R L I A M E N T S T
prisons, the museum features the mid-14th century.
P I C C A D I L L Y
In the 19th century, York’s
HIGH OUSEGATE C O P P E R G AT E cell of the notorious highwayman Scotland made it a major rail
reconstructions of old York and the
position on the route to
Dick Turpin (1706–39).
center. Train enthusiasts should
head for the National Railway
SPURRIERGATE
Museum, the largest of its kind
in the world, where the rolling
C A S T L E G AT E
stock on show includes Queen
OUSE BDG C L I F F O R D S T R E E T Victoria’s royal carriage.
E National Railway Museum
Leeman Rd. Tel 08448-153 139.
St. Mary’s Open daily. Closed Dec 24–26. 7
Church
T O W E R S T R E E T
Clifford’s Tower
Hull (c.1250)
Key 0 meters 100 The square central tower of York Minster,
Suggested route 0 yards 100 rising above the city
For keys to symbols see back flap

086-087_EW_Europe.indd 87 14/07/16 10:44 am

88  BRIT AIN AND IRELAND

Scotland highlights here include dinosaur
skeletons, Egyptian artifacts
Scotland’s landscape is breathtaking, with sparkling lochs, and a real spit fire suspended
awesome mountains, and windswept isles. The ruggedness in the main hall.
of its climate and natural environment has helped to forge The Hunterian Art Gallery
a tough, self-reliant nation, whose history has been houses Scotland’s largest print
collection and paintings by major
characterized by resistance to English domination. Castles, European artists from the 16th
many in ruins, are found all over the country – a legacy of century to the present. A display
its turbulent past. Culturally, Edinburgh has always been of works by Glasgow’s most cele-
the country’s chief attraction, but the rival city of Glasgow brated designer, Charles Rennie
has much to offer too, with many great free attractions. Mackintosh (1868–1928), is supp-
lemented by a reconstru ction of
No. 6 Florentine Terrace, where
modern Glasgow, renowned for he lived from 1906 to 1914.
its free galleries and museums. South of the river, Pollok
The deprived East End stands Country Park is the site of the
side by side with the restored Burrell Collection, star of
18th-century Merchant City Glasgow’s renaissance.
and Victorian George Square. Highlights include examples
Glasgow’s cathedral was one of 15th-century stained glass
of the few to escape destruction and tapestries, a bronze bull’s
during the Scottish Reformation, head (7th century BC) from
and is a rare example of an Turkey, Matthijs Maris’ The Sisters
almost complete 13th-century (1875), and a self-portrait by
church. The crypt holds the tomb Rembrandt (1632). On the same
of St. Mungo. In the cathedral site, Pollok House is an attractive
precinct, the St. Mungo Museum Georgian building. It holds one
of Religious Life and Art is the of Britain’s best collections of
first of its kind in the world, 16th- to 19th-century Spanish
The imposing City Chambers in George illustrating religious paintings.
Square, Glasgow themes with a Other sights
superb range worth visiting are
f Edinburgh of artifacts. the Tenement
It is in the more House, a modest
See pp90–94.
affluent West End, apartment in a
where merchants tenement block
g Glasgow used to retreat from preserved from
industrial Clyde side, Stained glass by Charles Rennie Edwardian times,
* 593,000. k £ @ n 10
Sauchiehall St (0845-859 1006). that Glasgow’s most Mackintosh and Provand’s
( Sat, Sun. _ Jazz Festival (Jun). impo rtant galleries Lordship (1471),
∑ peoplemakeglasgow.com and museums can be found. The the city’s oldest-surviving house.
Kelvingrove Art Gallery and The House for an Art Lov er is a
Glasgow’s era of great prosperity Museum, housed in a striking showcase for the work of
was the industrial 19th century. red sandstone building dating Charles Rennie Mackintosh.
Coal seams in Lanarkshire fueled from 1901, is home to a splendid For a social history of the city
the city’s cotton mills and collection of art, with works by from the 12th to the 20th
ironworks, belying its Celtic Botticelli, Giorgione, Rembrandt, century, visit the People’s
name, Glas cu, meaning “dear Degas, Millet, and Monet, while Palace, a cultural mus eum
green place.” Relics of this the Scottish Gallery contains the located in the city’s East End.
manufacturing past contrast famous Massacre of Glencoe by
starkly with the glossy image of James Hamilton (1853–94). Other E Kelvingrove Art Gallery and
Museum
Argyle St, Kelvingrove. Tel 0141-276
9599. Open daily. Closed Jan 1–2,
Dec 25–26. 8 7
E Hunterian Art Gallery
82 Hillhead St. Tel 0141-330 4221.
Open Tue–Sun. Closed Dec 24–Jan 5
& public hols. 7 restricted.
E Burrell Collection
Pollok Country Park. Tel 0141-287
2550. Open daily. Closed Jan 1–2,
The Burrell Collection in Pollok Country Park on Glasgow’s outskirts Dec 25–26 & 31. 8 7 - =
For hotels and restaurants see pp104–6 and pp107–9


088-089_EW_Europe.indd 88 14/07/16 10:13 am

SC O TLAND  89


k Aberdeen
* 220,000. k 13 km (8 miles) NW.
£ @ n 23 Union St (01224-269
180). ( Thu, Fri, Sat.
Europe’s offshore oil capital,
Aberdeen is also one of Britain’s
most important fishing ports,
and hosts Scotland’s largest
fish market.
Among its fine buildings is the
The 15th-century Stirling Castle, atop its rocky crag 16th-century home of a former
provost (mayor) of the city. Period
h Stirling St. Andrew’s Castle was built rooms inside Provost Skene’s
for the bishops of the town House span 200 years of design
* 90,000. £ @ n Old Town Jail,
St. John St (01786-475 019). in 1200. and include the 17th-century
∑ visitscotland.com The Royal and Ancient Golf Great Hall, a Regency Room,
Club, founded in 1754, has a and a Georgian Dining Room.
Located between the Ochil Hills magnificent links course and is The Painted Gallery holds one
and the Campsie Fells, Stirling the ruling arbiter of the game. of Scotland’s most important
grew up around its castle,, one The city has other golf courses, cycles of religious art, dating
of the finest examples of which are open to the public from the 17th century.
Renaissance architecture in the for a modest fee. These include Founded in 1495, King’s
country. Dating from the 15th the Old Course, which regularly College was the city’s first
century, it was last defended – hosts the British Open. St. university. The chapel has
against the Jacobites – in 1746, Andrews is also home to the stained-glass windows by
and stands within sight of no British Golf Museum. Douglas Strachan.
fewer than seven battlefields. St. Andrew’s Cathedral
One of these – Bannockburn – E British Golf Museum is the Mother Church of the
was where Robert the Bruce Bruce Embankment. Tel 01334-460 Episcopal Communion in the
defeated the English in 1314. 046. Open 9:30am–5pm daily (Nov– United States. Coats of arms
Stirling’s Old Town is still Mar: 10am–4pm daily). & 7 = on the ceiling depict the
protected by the original American states.
16th-century walls, built to keep Housed in a
out Henry VIII. Two buildings historic building
stand out among a number overlooking the
of historic monuments in the harbor, Aberdeen
town: the medieval Church of Maritime Museum
the Holy Rude and Mar’s Wark, traces the city’s long
with its ornate facade. seafaring tradition.
+ Stirling Castle P Provost Skene’s
Castle Wynd. Tel 01786-450 000. House
Open daily. Closed Dec 25 & 26. Guestrow. Tel 01224-
& 8 7 limited. - = 641 086. Open Mon–
An old railroad poster illustrating the lure of Sat. Closed Jan 1–2, Dec
St. Andrews for golfing enthusiasts 25–31. ∑ aagm.co.uk
j St. Andrews
Fife. * 17,000. £ Leuchars. @ Golf
n 70 Market St (01224 472 021).
∑ visitstandrews.com Scotland’s national game was pioneered on the sandy links around St.
Andrews. The earliest record dates from 1457, when golf was banned
Scotland’s oldest university by James II on the grounds
town and one-time ecclesias- that it was interfering with his
tical capital, St. Andrews is now subjects’ archery practice.
a shrine for golfers from all over Mary, Queen of Scots
the world. Its main streets and enjoyed the game and was
cobbled alleys, lined with berated in 1568 for playing
university buildings and straight after the murder
medieval churches, converge of her husband Darnley.
Scotland has several other
on the ruined 12th-century world-class golf courses,
cathedral. Once the largest in including Royal Troon, Victorian engraving of Mary,
Scotland, it was later pillaged Gleneagles, and Carnoustie. Queen of Scots at St. Andrews
for stones to build the town.



088-089_EW_Europe.indd 89 14/07/16 10:13 am

90  BRIT AIN AND IRELAND


f Edinburgh

It was not until the reign of James IV (1488–1513) that
Edinburgh gained its status as Scotland’s capital.
Overcrowding made the Old Town a difficult place to live,
and led to the construction of a Georgian New Town in
the late 1700s. Today, Edinburgh is second only to London
as a financial center in the British Isles, and houses the
new Scottish Parliament building, situated next to the old
Palace of Holyroodhouse. Edinburgh hosts a celebrated
annual International Festival every August. One of the
world’s premier arts jamborees, it features drama, dance,
opera, music, and ballet. The more eclectic “Fringe” View of Princes Street from the top
HILLSI DE CRE SCENT
developed in parallel with the official event, but has of Calton Hill FORTH ST L O N D O N R O A D
now exceeded it in terms of size. It is estimated that the St LEITH WALK RO Y A L TERRACE G A R D EN S
population of the city doubles from 400,000 to 800,000 ALBANY STREET St Paul George BLENH EI M P L ROYAL TERRACE MONTROSE
ABERCROMBY PLACE
every August. G A R D E N S DUBLIN ST LANE Playhouse GREENSIDE ROW CAL TON CARLTON TER TERRACE
Theatre
Q U E E N S T R E E T
R O W
St. Mary's
REGENT
Cathedral
S T R E E T
HILL
H E R I O T
MORA Y PLACE YORK PLACE Shopping ST R EET CAL TON National GARDENS R E G E N T R O A D ABBEY HILL
STREET
REGENT TERRACE
DUNDAS

St. James
ELDER ST
SAINT
Q U E E N
ANDREW
MULTREES WALK
City
Q U E E N S T R E E T T H I S T L E S T R E E T ST DAVID STREET ST ANDREW STREET Register LEIT H Observatory Nelson Monument CROFT-AN-RIGH
Centre
PL
Monument
WEMYSS
House
St. Andrew &
A I N S L I E P L A C E NTH CASTLE STREE NEW TOWN St. George SQUARE W REGISTER ST WATE R L OO PL ACE Burns AB BE Y H I L L Holyrood
FORRES
STREET
HILL STREET
Old Calton
S T R E E T
Abbey
Burial
Governor's
HANOVER ST
Georgian
and Music Hall
House STREET YOUNG ST G E O R G E Assembly Rooms Princes Mall Waverley Ground House C A L T O N R O A D Monument
CALTON ROAD
CHARLOTTE T Freemason's STREET Scott Shopping Centre Station
N.CHARLOTTE
CANONGATE (ROYAL MILE)
STREET
GLENFINLAS
The
Hall
The National Trust ROSE Monument WAVERLEY BRIDGE Fruitmarket Canongate
FREDERICK STREET
for Scotland HQ STH CASTLE ST THE Royal Scottish Gallery N E W S T R E E T People's Church New Scottish
The
Parliament
Academy
SQUARE STREET P R I N C E S S T R E E T STREET City Art JEFFREY ST John Knox Story Museum of
Edinburgh
EAST MARKET ST
Floral
Dungeon
QUEENSFERRY
The Weston
Clock
Link
Open Air
Theatre
Centre
House
STREET
S.CHARLOTTE
Earth
WEST PRINCES MOUN D Writers' MARKET The Real COCKBURN ST BRIDGE NORTH HIGH STREET (ROYAL MILE) ST JOHN STREET Edinburgh R O A D Our Dynamic Q U E E N ' S D R I V E
The
City
Mary King's
Museum of Childhood
STREET GARDENS
St John
Chambers
RUTLAND ST St Cuthbert The Tartan RAMSAY GRD Gladstone's LAWN Close St. Giles Festival STREET BLACKFRIARS STREET ST MARY'S H O LY R O O D THE MALL
Land
Museum BANK ST
Weaving Mill
Cathedral
& Exhibition Camera MARKET Parliament Fringe NIDDRY ST C O W G AT E CANONGATE
Office
Obscura
House
The Hub
CASTLE HILL Scotch Whisky VICTORIA STREET GEORGE IV BRIDGE Library OLD TOWN St. Cecilia's DU MBIEDYKES ROAD Arthur's
Hall
COWGATE
Heritage
National
STREE T Y
Traverse
CAMBRIDGE ST Usher Hall JOH N S T ON TERRACE Centre St. Patrick Greyfriars CHAMBERS INFIRMAR DRUMMOND STREET PL E AS A VIE WCRIAG G A RDENS Seat
Theatre
KING'S STABLES ROAD
STREET
Bobby
S O U T H B R
SPITTAL STREET WEST POR T GRASSMARKET CANDLEMAKER ROW BRISTO PL LOTHIAN Edinburgh ADAM ST NCE ST RE ET
CASTLE TE R RAC E
Royal
Lyceum College RICHMOND P
GRINDLAY ST
The Old I D G E
L O T H I A N R O A D
BREAD STREET KIER STREET FOREST RD NICOLSON
FOUNT AINBRIDGE LAURISTON ST of Art L A U R I S T O N P L A C E TEVIO T P L P O T T E R R O W NICOLSON ST DAVIE ST
SQUARE
Festival Theatre LACE
College
HIGH RIGGS
PL
LADY LAWSON STREET
HERIOT
Sacred
SEMPLE ST
University
Heart
ST

GEORGE
CHARLES
SQUARE
Getting Around
Central Edinburgh is compact, so walking or cycling is
an excellent way to explore the city. Other options
include tram system and a comprehensive bus service.
Avoid exploring the center by car, because the streets
tend to be congested with traffic, and parking may be
difficult. Car use is actively discouraged.
090-091_EW_Europe.indd 90 14/07/16 2:19 pm

EDINBURGH  91



Sights at a Glance
1 Edinburgh Castle
2 New Town
3 Royal Mile
4 National Gallery of Scotland
5 Greyfriars Kirk
6 National Museum of Scotland
7 Scottish National Portrait Gallery
8 Calton Hill
9 Palace of Holyroodhouse
An audience of thousands at the Military Tattoo at Edinburgh Castle,
held during August each year
HILLSI DE CRE SCENT
FORTH ST L O N D O N R O A D
LEITH WALK
ALBANY STREET St Paul St George Playhouse GREENSIDE ROW BLENH EI M P L RO Y A L TERRACE G A R D EN S CARLTON TER MONTROSE
ROYAL TERRACE
TERRACE
ABERCROMBY PLACE
DUBLIN ST LANE
CAL TON
G A R D E N S
Q U E E N S T R E E T
Shopping ST R EET
R O W
REGENT
Cathedral
S T R E E T
HILL
H E R I O T
MORA Y PLACE YORK PLACE St. Mary's Theatre CAL TON National GARDENS R E G E N T R O A D ABBEY HILL
STREET
REGENT TERRACE
DUNDAS
St. James

ELDER ST
SAINT
MULTREES WALK
ANDREW
Q U E E N
City
Q U E E N S T R E E T T H I S T L E S T R E E T ST DAVID STREET ST ANDREW STREET Register LEIT H Observatory Nelson Monument CROFT-AN-RIGH
Centre
PL
Monument
WEMYSS
House
St. Andrew &
A I N S L I E P L A C E NTH CASTLE STREE NEW TOWN St. George SQUARE W REGISTER ST WATE R L OO PL ACE Burns AB BE Y H I L L Holyrood
FORRES
STREET
HILL STREET
Old Calton
S T R E E T
Abbey
Burial
HANOVER ST
Governor's
Georgian
and Music Hall
House STREET YOUNG ST G E O R G E Assembly Rooms Princes Mall Waverley Ground House C A L T O N R O A D Monument
CALTON ROAD
CHARLOTTE T Freemason's STREET Scott Shopping Centre Station
N.CHARLOTTE
CANONGATE (ROYAL MILE)
STREET
The
GLENFINLAS
Hall
The National Trust ROSE Monument WAVERLEY BRIDGE Fruitmarket Canongate
FREDERICK STREET
for Scotland HQ STH CASTLE ST THE Royal Scottish Gallery N E W S T R E E T People's Church New Scottish
The
Parliament
Academy
Edinburgh
SQUARE STREET P R I N C E S S T R E E T STREET City Art JEFFREY ST John Knox Story Museum of
EAST MARKET ST
Floral
Dungeon
QUEENSFERRY
The Weston
Clock
Open Air
Link
Theatre
Centre
STREET
House
S.CHARLOTTE
Earth
WEST PRINCES MOUN D Writers' MARKET The Real COCKBURN ST BRIDGE HIGH STREET (ROYAL MILE) ST JOHN STREET Edinburgh R O A D Our Dynamic Q U E E N ' S D R I V E
The
City
Museum of Childhood
Mary King's
NORTH
STREET GARDENS
St John
RUTLAND ST St Cuthbert The Tartan RAMSAY GRD Gladstone's LAWN Close St. Giles Festival STREET BLACKFRIARS STREET H O LY R O O D THE MALL
Chambers
Museum BANK ST
Land
Weaving Mill
Cathedral
Office
& Exhibition Camera MARKET Parliament Fringe NIDDRY ST C O W G AT E CANONGATE
ST MARY'S
Obscura
House
The Hub
CASTLE HILL Scotch Whisky VICTORIA STREET GEORGE IV BRIDGE COWGATE TOWN St. Cecilia's DU MBIEDYKES ROAD Arthur's
Hall
Heritage
Library OLD
National
STREE T Y
Traverse
CAMBRIDGE ST Usher Hall JOH N S T ON TERRACE Centre St. Patrick Greyfriars CHAMBERS INFIRMAR DRUMMOND STREET PL E AS A VIE WCRIAG G A RDENS Seat
Theatre
STREET
KING'S STABLES ROAD
Bobby
S O U T H B R
SPITTAL STREET WEST POR T GRASSMARKET CANDLEMAKER ROW BRISTO PL LOTHIAN Edinburgh ADAM ST NCE ST RE ET
CASTLE TE R RAC E
Royal
Lyceum College RICHMOND P
The Old I D G E
GRINDLAY ST
L O T H I A N R O A D
BREAD STREET KIER STREET FOREST RD NICOLSON
FOUNT AINBRIDGE LAURISTON ST of Art L A U R I S T O N P L A C E TEVIO T P L P O T T E R R O W NICOLSON ST DAVIE ST
Festival Theatre LACE
SQUARE
College
HIGH RIGGS
PL
LADY LAWSON STREET
HERIOT
Sacred
University
SEMPLE ST
Heart
ST
0 meters 300
GEORGE 0 yards 300
CHARLES
SQUARE

Key
Sight / Place of interest
Railroad
Entrance to the Fringe information office,
located on the Royal Mile
For keys to symbols see back flap
090-091_EW_Europe.indd 91 14/07/16 2:19 pm

92  BRIT AIN AND IRELAND


















The battlements of Edinburgh Castle rising above Princes Street Gardens
1 Edinburgh Castle Other important buildings The most magnificent of the
include the 15th-century later developments is the Moray
Castle Hill. Tel 0131-225 9846.
Open summer: 9:30am–6pm daily; Great Hall, meeting place of Estate where a linked series of
winter: 9:30am–5pm daily. the Scottish parliament until large houses forms a crescent, an
Closed Dec 25 & 26. & 8 7 1639, and the Governor’s oval, and a twelve-sided circus.
∑ edinburghcastle.gov.uk House (1742). A 15th-century
Burgundian siege gun, known P Georgian House
Standing on the basalt core of as Mons Meg, is kept in the 7 Charlotte Sq. Tel 0844-493 2117.
an extinct volcano, the castle is vaults, where French graffiti Open Mar–Dec: daily. & 7 limited.
an assemblage of buildings recall the prisoners held here
dating from the 12th to the in the 18th- and 19th-century
20th centuries, reflecting its wars. The One o’ Clock Gun is 3 Royal Mile
changing role as fortress, palace, still fired at 1pm daily.
military garrison, and state Composed of four ancient
prison. The castle was a favorite streets which formed the main
royal residence until the Union 2 New Town thoroughfare of medieval
of 1603, after which monarchs Edinburgh, the Royal Mile linked
resided in England. The first phase of the “New the castle to the Palace of
The Scottish regalia are Town,” to the north of Princes Holyroodhouse. A walk starting
displayed in the 15th-century Street, was built in the 18th from the castle takes you past
palace where Mary, Queen of century to relieve the many of the city’s oldest
Scots gave birth to James VI. The congested and unsanitary buildings and a number of
castle also holds the Stone of conditions of the Old Town. interesting museums.
Destiny, a relic of ancient Scottish Charlotte Square, with its l The lower floors of the Tartan
kings seized by the English, and avish town houses, was the Weaving Mill & Exhibition date
returned in 1996. The castle’s climax of this phase. On the from the early 1600s and were
oldest existing building is the north side, the Georgian once the home of the Laird of
12th-century St. Margaret’s House, owned by the National Cockpen. The 19th-century
Chapel. A stained-glass window Trust of Scotland, has been Camera Obscura and World of
depicts the queen of Malcolm III, furnished to show the lifestyle Illusions is a popular attraction.
after whom it is named. of its 18th-century residents. A little further on, Gladstone’s
Land is a restored 17th-century
merchant’s house. Another fine
mansion, built in 1622, has been
converted into a Writers’
Museum, housing memorabilia
of Robert Burns, Sir Walter Scott,
and Robert Louis Stevenson.
St. Giles Cathedral, properly
known as the High Kirk of
Edinburgh, was the base from
which Protestant minister John
Knox led the Scottish
Reformation. His house, also
on the Royal Mile, is open to
the public. The cathedral’s
Charlotte Square in the New Town Thistle Chapel has impressive
For hotels and restaurants see pp104–6 and pp107–9


092-093_EW_Europe.indd 92 14/07/16 10:13 am

EDINBURGH  93


rib-vaulting and 5 Greyfriars Kirk
carved heraldic Greyfriars Place. Tel 0131-225 1900.
canopies. It honors Open Apr–Oct: Mon–Sat; Nov–Mar:
the knights of the Thu pm. 8 7
Most Ancient and
Most Noble Order of Greyfriars Kirk played a key
the Thistle. Just past role in Scotland’s history. In
St. Giles, the Italianate 1638, the National Covenant
Parliament House, was signed here, marking
built in the 1630s, has the Protestant stand against
housed the Scottish Charles I’s imposition of an
Courts since the 1707 Thistle Chapel, St. Giles Cathedral, Royal Mile episcopal church. Throughout
Act of Union with the wars of the 17th century,
England and Wales. behind a profusion of statues and the kirkyard was used as a
Farther east, opposite John period furniture. Some of the mass grave for executed
Knox’s House (1450), is the highlights among the Scottish Covenanters.
excellent Museum of Child­ works are the society portraits by The Martyrs’
hood, while The People’s Story Allan Ramsay and Henry Raeburn, Monument
(1591) tells the social history including the latter’s Reverend is a sobering
of Edin burgh. Robert Walker Skating on reminder of the
Duddingston Loch (c.1800), an many Scots who
P Gladstone’s Land image reproduced annually on lost their lives.
477B Lawnmarket. Tel 0844 493 2120. thousands of Christmas cards. Greyfriars is also
Open Apr–Oct: 10am–5pm daily (Jul– German works include Gerard known for its
Aug: 10am–6:30pm daily). & David’s almost comic-strip association with
treatment of the Three Legends of a faithful dog,
4 National Gallery St. Nicholas, dating from the early Bobby, who
of Scotland 16th century. Italian paintings lived beside
include a fine Madonna by
his master’s
The Mound. Tel 0131-624 6200. Raphael, as well as works by Titian grave from 1858
Open daily. Closed Dec 25 & 26. 8 and Tintoretto. From Spain there to 1872. Greyfriars Greyfriars
by appt. 7 ∑ nationalgalleries.org is a delightful genre painting of Bobby’s statue Bobby
An Old Woman Cooking Eggs by stands outside
One of Scotland’s finest art Velázquez (c.1620). Greyfriars Kirk.
galleries, the National Gallery An entire room is devoted
of Scotland has an impressive to The Seven Sacraments by 6 National Museum
collection of British and European Nicholas Poussin, dating from
paintings. Designed by William around 1640. Dutch and Flemish of Scotland
Henry Playfair, it was opened in painters represented include Chambers St. Tel 0300-123 6789.
1859. Many of the works of art are Rembrandt, Van Dyck, and Open 10am–5pm daily. Closed Dec
still exhibited as they were in the Rubens, while among the British 25. 8 7 - = ∑ nms.ac.uk
19th century. Serried ranks of offerings are important works
paintings hang on deep red walls by Reynolds and Gainsborough. A great Victorian glass palace,
completed in 1888, houses
the National Museum of
Scotland. It started life as an
industrial museum, but over
time acquired an eclectic array
of more than 20,000 exhibits,
ranging from stuffed animals
to ethnographic artifacts.
In 1993, work began on a site
next door, to display Scotland’s
impressive array of antiquities.
The resulting collection, opened
in 1998, tells the story of the
country, starting with its geology
and natural history, through to
later industrial developments.
Among its many stunning
exhibits is St. Fillan’s Crozier,
said to have been carried at
the head of the Scottish army
An Old Woman Cooking Eggs by Velázquez, National Gallery of Scotland at Bannockburn in 1314.




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94  BRIT AIN AND IRELAND



















The view from the top of Calton Hill, Edinburgh
7 Scottish National the structure was started in 1822, remodeled in the 1670s for
Portrait Gallery but funds soon ran out and it Charles II. The Royal Apartments
was never finished. Nearby, the
(including the Throne Room and
1 Queen St. Tel 0131-624 6200. Open Nelson Monument commem- Royal Dining Room) are used for
10am–5pm daily. Closed Dec 25 & 26. orates the British victory at investitures and for banquets. A
7 - = ∑ nationalgalleries.org Trafalgar. The Classical theme chamber in the so-called James
continues with Duncan’s V tower is believed to have
The Portrait Gallery is housed in Monument and the old City been the scene of David Rizzio’s
a red-sandstone, Gothic-revival Observatory, designed by murder in 1566. He was the
building, which was restored William Playfair in 1818 and Italian secretary of Mary, Queen
between 2009 and 2011. It based on the Tower of the Winds of Scots. She witnessed the
owns a wonderful collection of in Athens. The Astronomical grisly act, which was authorized
paintings that details the history Society of Edinburgh arranges by her jealous husband, Lord
of 12 generations of Stuarts, from tours and free lectures here. Darnley. Bonnie Prince Charlie,
the time of Robert the Bruce to last of the Stuart pretenders
Queen Anne. It also houses to the English throne, also
portraits of famous Scots, 9 Palace of held court at Holyrood Palace,
including one of the country’s Holyroodhouse in 1745. The Queen’s Gallery
best-loved poet Robert Burns has an interesting program
(1759–96) by Alexander Nasmyth. East end of the Royal Mile. Tel 0131- of art exhibitions.
Others portrayed include Flora 556 5100. Open daily. Closed Dec 25 The adjacent Holyrood Park,
MacDonald, who helped Bonnie & 26. & 7 limited. a former royal hunting ground,
∑ royalcollection.org.uk
Prince Charlie escape after his is home to three lochs, a large
defeat by the English in 1745, number of wildfowl, and the
and Ramsay MacDonald, who Queen Elizabeth II’s official Salisbury Crags. Its high point is
became Britain’s first Labour Scottish residence was built the hill known as Arthur’s Seat,
prime minister in 1924. by James IV in the grounds of an extinct volcano and well-
The building also holds the an abbey in 1498. It was later known Edinburgh landmark.
Scottish National Photography the home of James V and his The name is probably a
collection, which has over wife, Mary of Guise, and was corruption of Archer’s Seat.
30,000 images dating from the
1840s to the present day.
8 Calton Hill
City center east, via Waterloo Pl.
Calton Hill, at the east end of
Princes Street, is a large open
space dotted with Neoclassical
monuments. It has one of
Edin burgh’s more memorable
land marks – a half-finished
“Parthenon”. Conceived as the
National Monument to the
dead of the Napoleonic Wars, The grand 17th-century facade of Holyrood Palace
For hotels and restaurants see pp104–6 and pp107–9


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SC O TLAND  95

The Highlands

The Scotland of your imagination – filled with clans and tartans,
whisky and porridge, bagpipes and heather – will come to life
in the Highlands. Gaelic-speaking Celts arrived from Ireland
before the 7th century, establishing small fishing and cattle-
raising communities. Nowadays the region has oil and tourist
industries. Inverness, the Highland capital, makes a good
starting point for exploring Loch Ness and the Cairngorms.
The Isle of Skye has some of Britain’s most dramatic scenery.

Inverness Castle, a Victorian Sea lochs on the Isle of Skye, dominated by
building of red sandstone. the Cuillin peaks
Below the castle, the Inverness x Isle of Skye
Museum and Art Gallery
provides a good introduct ion to * 11,500. g from Mallaig or
the region’s history. Its exhibits Glenelg. @ n Bayfield House,
include a fine collection of Portree (01478-612 137).
Inver ness silver. The Scottish
Kiltma ker Visitor Centre offers Skye, the largest of the Inner
an insight into the history, Hebrides, can be reached by the
Snow-covered peaks of the Cairngorms, culture, and tradition of the kilt. bridge linking Kyle of Lochalsh
viewed from Aviemore In summer, Jacobite Cruises and Kyleakin. The coast is shaped
l Cairngorms (call 01463-233 999 for by a series of dramatic sea lochs,
information) runs regular boat
while the landscape from the
£ @ Aviemore. n Grampian Rd, trips along the Caledonian Quiraing – a plateau of volcanic
Aviemore (01479-810 930). Canal and on famous Loch towers and spikes in the north –
Ness, southwest of Inverness. to the Cuillins – one of Britain’s
Rising to a height of 1,309 m The Loch is 39 km (24 miles) most spectacular mountain
(4,296 ft), the Cairngorm long and up to 305 m (1,000 ft) ranges – is majestic. Bonnie Prince
mountains form the highest deep. On the western shore, the Charlie (1720–88) escaped here
landmass in Britain. ruins of the 16th-century from the mainland disguised as a
Cairn Gorm itself is the site of Urquhart Castle can be seen. maidservant following the defeat
one of Britain’s first ski centers. The Official Loch Ness of his army at Culloden.
Transportation to the 28 ski runs Exhibition Centre, in nearby Skye’s main settlement is
is provided daily from Avie- Drumnadrochit, provides Portree, with its colorful harbor.
more. The chairlift that climbs information about the Loch Dunvegan Castle, on the
Cairn Gorm affords superb views and its mythical monster. island’s northwest coast, has
over the Spey Valley. Rothie- been the seat of the Clan
murchus Estate has a visitor E Museum and Art Gallery MacLeod chiefs for over seven
center offering guided walks. 1 Castle Wynd. Tel 01463-237 114. centuries. South of here, the
The Cairngorm Reindeer Open Tue–Sat. Closed Jan 1 & 2, Talisker distillery produces one
Centre organizes walks in the Dec 25 & 26. 7 of the best Highland malts.
hills among Britain’s only herd
of reindeer, and ospreys can be
observed at the Loch Garten
Nature Reserve.
Drivers can see bison, bears,
wolves, and boar in the Kincraig
Highland Wildlife Park.

z Inverness
* 60,000. £ @ n Castle Wynd
(01463-252 401).
∑ visitscotland.com
Inverness is the center of
communication, commerce,
and administration for the
Highlands. Dominating the high
ground above the town is The ruins of Urquhart Castle, on the western shore of Loch Ness




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96  BRIT AIN AND IRELAND


Practical Information Visa Requirements
and Customs
Colorful pageantry, ancient history, and a varied countryside A valid passport is needed to
attract millions of tourists to Britain each year. Facilities for enter Britain. Visitors from the
visitors have improved considerably in recent years, with European Union (EU), the
major urban centers offering a good variety of restaurants United States, Canada, New
Zealand, and Australia do not
and hotels. The affluent southern region is more expensive require a visa to enter the
than the rest of Britain. Telephone and postal systems are country. Anyone who arrives in
efficient, and violent crime is uncommon. Britain from a member country
of the EU can pass through a
stations, and at some sites of special channel at customs, but
When To Visit historical interest. These random checks are still made to
Britain’s temperate maritime bureaux offer general tourist detect any prohibited goods.
climate does not produce advice and will also reserve When entering from outside
extremes of heat or cold, accommodations. the EU, go through the green
but weather patterns shift Both the regional and customs channel if you have
constantly, and the climate can national tourist boards have nothing to declare, and the red
differ widely in places only a comprehensive lists of local channel if you have goods
short distance apart. The attractions, events, and which exceed allowances.
southeast is generally drier than registered accommodations;
elsewhere. Be sure to pack a mix all these details can be found Personal Security
of warm and light clothing, and on their excellent websites.
an umbrella. Walkers can be More detailed maps and Britain is not a dangerous place
surprised by bad weather. guidebooks can be purchased for visitors, and it is most unlikely
Britain’s towns and cities are from good bookshops. that your stay will be blighted
all-year destinations, but some For route planning, road by crime. Due to past terrorist
attractions open only between atlases and local maps and attacks, there are occasional
Easter and October. Some guidebooks are available in security alerts, notably on the
hotels are crammed at most bookstores. underground, but these are
Christmas and New Year. The mainly false alarms, often due
main family holiday months, Opening Hours to people accidentally leaving
July and August, and public a bag or parcel lying around.
holidays, are always busy. Many businesses and shops are
Spring and fall offer a good closed on Sundays, though
compromise: fewer crowds trading is now legal. Museums Police
and relatively fine weather. and galleries are generally The sight of a traditional British
open from 10am to 5 or 6pm, “bobby” patroling the streets in
with many opening later in the a tall hat is now less common
Tourist Information
day on Sundays. Those outside than the police patrol car with
The British Tourist Authority the capital are normally closed flashing lights and sirens.
(BTA) has offices in a number for one day or one afternoon a However, police on foot can
of major cities worldwide. In week. On public holidays, still be found, and are courteous
Britain, tourist information is known as bank holidays in and helpful. If you have
available in many towns and Britain, banks, offices, most anything stolen, you should
public places, including shops, and some restaurants report the theft at the nearest
airports, main train and bus will be closed. police station.

The Climate of LONDON EDINBURGH
Great Britain
The moderate British climate °C/ºF °C/ºF
rarely sees winter nights colder
than -15 °C (5 °F), even in the far 22/72 18/62
north, or summer days warmer 13/55 14/58 16/60 11/52 11/52 13/56
than 30 °C (86 °F) in the south. 7/44 10/50 7/45 4/39 7/44 16/61
Despite the country’s reputation, 3/38 0/32
annual rainfall is quite low – less 5 6 3.5 1.5 2.5 5.5 3 1.5
than 100 cm (40 in) – and heavy hrs hrs hrs hrs hrs hrs hrs hrs
rain is rare. The Atlantic coast, 39 45 50 44 38 70 58 47
warmed by the Gulf Stream, mm mm mm mm mm mm mm mm
gives the west a warmer, wetter month Apr Jul Oct Jan month Apr Jul Oct Jan
climate than the east.





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GREA T BRIT AIN  97


Emergency Services Facilities for the Disabled bureaux de change, which
In an emergency, dial 999 The facilities on offer for disabled are located in tourist areas
to reach police, fire, and visitors to Britain are improving: and operate longer hours
ambulance services, which are new buildings offer elevators than banks. Exchange rates
on call 24 hours a day. Calls are and ramps for wheelchair access, and commission charges
free. In coastal areas, this and adapted toilets. Many banks, can vary.
number also applies for calls to theaters, and museums provide Although credit cards are
the voluntary coastguard-rescue aids for the visually or hearing widely accepted in Britain,
service. You can also turn up at impaired. Given advance notice, smaller stores, guesthouses,
a hospital emergency room at rail, ferry, and bus personnel will and cafés may not have the
any time. Emergency medical help dis abled passengers. The facilities for card transactions.
treatment in a British National Disabled Person’s Railcard Britain uses the “chip and PIN”
Health Service (NHS) emergency provides discounted rail fares. system instead of a signature
room is free, but any kind of Most car rental firms offer hand- on a credit slip. You will need
additional medical care could controled vehicles for rental at a four-digit PIN, so ask your
prove to be very expensive if no extra cost. For more bank for one before you leave.
you don’t have insurance or information, contact Disability
your country does not have Rights UK, DisabledGo, Communications
a reciprocal agreement. Mobility International,
or Tourism For All. Public telephone booths are
available throughout Britain and
Health Issues may be card- or coin-operated.
Banking and Currency
You can buy a wide range of In major towns, some booths
medicines from pharmacies, Britain’s currency is the pound are able to accept credit cards
which in Britain are known as sterling (£), which is divided and offer Internet access. It is
chemists. Boots is the best- into 100 pence (p). Scottish cheaper to telephone in the
known chain store. If you are banknotes are also legal tender evenings and at weekends.
likely to need prescription drugs, in England and Wales, but not Post offices are usually open
either bring your own or get your all stores take them. from 9am to 5:30pm Monday
doctor to write out the generic Banking hours vary, but to Friday, and until 12:30pm on
name of the drug (as opposed most are open from 9am to Saturday. Sub-post offices are
to the brand name). Some phar- 5pm, Monday to Friday. Most located in local stores. Stamps
macies are open until midnight, banks cash traveler’s checks, can be purchased from any
while doctors’ offices (known as and have cash machines (ATMs) outlet which displays the sign
surgeries) are normally open that accept most cards. You can “Stamps sold here.” Mail boxes
during the day only. also change money at private are always painted red.
DIRECTORY
Tourist Embassies US Embassy DisabledGo
Information
Australian High 24 Grosvenor Sq, London Unit 7, Arlington Court,
VisitBritain Commission W1. Tel 020-7499 9000. Arlington Business Park,
∑ visitbritain.com Australia House, ∑ london.usembassy. Stevenage SG1 2FS.
Strand, London WC2. gov Tel 01438-842 710.
VisitEngland Tel 020-7379 4334.
∑ visitengland.com Emergencies ∑ disabledgo.com
∑ uk.embassy.gov.au/
Regional Tourist lhlh/home.html Numbers Mobility
Boards Canadian High Police, Ambulance, International
Commission North America
London MacDonald House, Coastguard, and Fire
Opposite Platform 8, 1 Grosvenor Square, services Tel 541-343 1284.
Victoria Railway Station, London W1K. Tel 999. ∑ miusa.org
London SW1 1JU. Tel 020-7004 6000.
∑ visitlondon.com Facilities for Tourism For All
∑ canadainternational. the Disabled 7a Pixel Mill,
Scotland gc.ca 44 Appleby Road,
Tel 0845-859 1006. New Zealand High Disability Rights UK
∑ visitscotland.com 49–51 East Rd, London N1. Kendal, Cumbria
Commission LA9 6ES.
Wales 80 Haymarket, London Tel 020-7250 8181.
Tel 0870-830 0306. SW1. Tel 020-7930 8422. ∑ disabilityrightsuk. Tel 0845-124 9971.
∑ visitwales.com ∑ nzembassy.com org ∑ tourismforall.org.uk





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98  BRIT AIN AND IRELAND

Travel Information and Victoria stations respectively
at regular intervals. The journey
Since it is an international gateway for air and sea traffic, time is 15 minutes to Heathrow,
Britain poses few problems for those arriving by air. Visitors and 30 minutes to Gatwick.
have a large choice of carriers serving Australasia, Europe, and When traveling by bus, you
must purchase a ticket before
North America. Bus travel is an inexpensive form of trans­ boarding, or use Oyster or
portation from Europe, while traveling by train is also easy, Contactless. The sightseeing
thanks to the Channel Tunnel. Traveling within Britain itself is buses that drive past London’s
fairly easy. There is an extensive road network reaching all parts historic sights are often run by
of the country. The national rail road network is excellent and private companies and will not
services to the smaller towns are good. Bus travel is the least­ accept bus passes or Travelcards.
All-night bus services are
expensive option; buses serve most areas but can be slow. available in London from about
11pm until early morning. Night
buses carry the letter N before
Flying to Great Britain The British Airways shuttle the route number, and most
London’s Heathrow Airport is flights between London and pass through Trafalgar Square.
served by many of the world’s cities such as Glasgow, Taxis are available at major
leading airlines, with direct Edinburgh, and Manchester are train stations, as well as at
flights from most major cities. popular with business travelers. stands near hotels and all over
Other international airports At peak times, flights leave every central London. All licenced
include London Gatwick, hour, while at other times there is cabs must carry a “For Hire” sign,
London Stansted, Manchester, usually a flight every two hours. which is lit up whenever they
Birmingham, and Edinburgh. are free. The famous black cabs
British Airways has flights to Traveling in London are the safest taxis to use in
destinations across the world. London. Most cab drivers
Other British airlines include In London, daily, weekly, and expect a tip.
Virgin Atlantic, with routes to monthly tickets called Travel- Sometimes, the best way to see
the US and Far East, and cards are valid on all public trans- London is on foot, but however
Thomas Cook Airlines, which portation, as are pre-pay Oyster you choose to get around, try to
flies to the US, Africa, and cards, which you can credit avoid the rush hours from 8 to
throughout Europe. Several no- before your journey. You can 9:30am, and 4:30 to 6:30pm.
frills airlines, such as Ryanair and also use your contactless debit/
easyJet, offer low-cost flights to credit card. Buses no longer
destinations all over Europe. accept cash payment, so if you London Underground
American airlines offering are only using buses, buy a daily The underground in London,
services to Britain include Delta or weekly bus pass. Passes are known as the tube, is one of the
Air Lines, American Airlines, and avail able at most newsagents largest systems of its kind in the
United; from Canada, the main and train or underground world. London tube trains run
carrier is Air Canada. From stations. every day, except December 25,
Australasia, Qantas and Air New Most travel services in London from about 5:30am until after
Zealand vie for passengers with operate across six zones, with midnight. Fewer trains run on
Far Eastern rivals, such as Emirates. the tube, overground trains, and Sundays. The 11 tube lines are
National Rail also operating in color-coded and maps are
zones 7–9. There is a standard available at every station, while
Charters and charge for travel within each maps of the central section are
Package Deals
zone and between zones, displayed on each train.
Charter flights are cheaper but regard less of the distance
have less-flexible departure traveled. The area covered by Rail Travel
times than standard scheduled each zone varies slightly
flights. Packages are also worth between buses and trains. Britain’s privatized railroad
considering, as airlines and tour If you are in London for less network covers the whole of
operators can offer flexible deals than a week, buy a two-zone the country. It consists of several
to suit your needs. These can weekly Travelcard. Alternatively, regional services, such as Great
include car rental or rail travel. choose a Visitor Oyster card, North Eastern Railways and
which can be topped up with Great Western Railways. Virgin
credit at tube stations, Oyster Trains operates the main West
Domestic Flights Ticket Stops, and Travel Coast and East Coast routes. The
Britain’s size means that internal Information Centres. system is generally reliable. The
air travel only makes sense over London also has express-train main stations in London all
long distances, such as from services to Britain’s two busiest serve different areas of the
London to Scotland, or to one airports, Heathrow and Gatwick, country; Euston serves the
of the offshore islands. which leave from Paddington Midlands and northwest, King’s




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