HISTORIC BRITISH SPA TOWNS
LEEDS CASTLE
In this second article of the series devoted to Historic British Spa Towns, Travel Advice Pages looks at Royal Tunbridge Wells and Harrogate Spa.
Royal Tunbridge Wells.
This historic spa in the County of Kent, is 31 miles southeast of London and has attracted visitors since the discovery of spa waters in 1606. The prefix Royal was granted by King Edward VII in 1909 to mark the town’s popularity with members of the Royal Family.
It is one of only two towns in England with this prefix. The other being Royal Leamington Spa.
Early in the 17th Century, Chalybeate Water (mineral water containing iron and other elements such as Manganese, Magnesium and Potassium Chloride) was thought to have health-giving properties. In 1606, Lord Dudley North discovered the Chalybeate Spring in Tonbridge Wells and was convinced of its healing properties. His personal physician claimed it would cure the colic, the melancholy,and the vapours; it made the lean fat and the fat lean; it killed flat worms in the belly, loosened the clammy humours of the body and dried the over-moist brain.
North persuaded his rich friends in London to try the waters and after Queen Henriette Maria, wife of King Charles I, visited the town in 1630, Tonbridge was established as a spa retreat. Princess Victoria, later Queen Victoria, on a visit in 1834, drank the waters every day together with her mother, the Duchess of Kent, followed by a stroll on the Pantiles. Following a paper by Doctor Richard Russell in 1750 which advocated sea bathing as a treatment for glandular problems, the town’s popularity waned.
The Spring still flows on the Pantiles, a famous colonnaded walkway, and visitors can try the waters. The Pantiles also house high quality boutiques and more than 35 antique shops. Shopping is a major attraction in Tonbridge Wells with the Royal Victoria Place, in prime position.
The town contains many green spaces ranging from woodlands to formal grounds and parks. The Tonbridge Wells and Rusthall Commons are close to the city centre and cover 250 acres of wood and heathland. The guided walking tours are excellent ways to see and learn more of the town’s colourful history. Venturing further afield, there are many stately buildings in Kent including the wonderful Leeds Castle.
Tonbridge Wells is also famous for its Tonbridge Ware. This is a form of decoratively inlaid woodwork, usually in the form of boxes. The decoration consists of a mosaic of many very small pieces of different colored woods, forming a picture or a design. Tonbridge Ware was last manufactured commercially in 1939. You can see a collection in the town museum or bargain for a piece in the many antique shops. A wonderful souvenir of your visit to this historic town.
Harrogate Spa
Harrogate is a large, wealthy town in North Yorkshire and a popular tourist attraction. The first Mineral (Celybeate) Spring was discovered by William Slingsby in 1571. He found that the water from the Tillet Well possessed similar properties to those in the Belgian town of Spa - hence the name for all watering places. The Tillet Well exists today and is covered by a dome within The Stray. The latter is an area of open parkland of 200 acres in the centre of Harrogate and was created by an Act of Parliament in 1778.
Harrogate, being an inland resort has a large number of superb parks and gardens near the town centre. These have won both Britain in Bloom and the Entente Floriale competitions. They include the Royal Horticultural Society’s Harlow Carr Garden, with its walks, the Queen Mother’s Lake an arboretum and magnificent floral displays.
There are many fine examples of architecture in the town. Notable is The Royal Hall, a Grade II listed building by Frank Matcham. Matcham was also responsible for several London theatres, the Grand Opera House in Belfast and the Buxton Opera House. The Royal Hall is the only surviving example of a Kursaal in Britain. (A public hall for visitors to watering places.) The Hall was refurbished and re-opened by the Prince of Wales in January 2008. Less ancient is Betty’s Tea Rooms. A must for any tourist to sample Yorkshire Tea and delicious cakes.
Four miles to the east is the historic market town of Knaresborough and well worth a visit. The town is mentioned in the Domesday Book and its Castle dates from around 1100, it was rebuilt in 1301-7 by Edward I and completed by Edward II.
Perhaps the most interesting tourist attraction is Mother Shipton’s Cave. Ursula Southell (Mother Shipton) was an English soothsayer who is said to have made dozens of accurate predictions including the Great Plague of London and the Battle of the Spanish Armada. The Cave, her legendary birthplace is near the Petrifying Well, where its cascading waters turn articles into stone. You can leave your teddy bear or anything else for the treatment! Come back in a year or two and it will have turned to stone.
Harrogate and this area of NorthYorkshire are well worth a visit. The town has grown into an international conference and exhibition centre and is also great for the shopaholics.
HOLIDAYS IN ENGLAND - SPA TOWNS
Bath Spa
In this article, first of a series, Travel Advice Pages looks at some of the less conventional places, well worthy of a visit in the UK. Take a closer look at the historic British Spa Towns. Beginning two thousand years ago in Roman times and later in the 18th Century, ‘the taking of the waters,” in these towns became a passion of the aristocracy and the wealthy. The towns grew into elegant resorts with social activities, continuing to this day.
There are some 21 spa towns in England, 5 in Wales and 1 in Scotland. Here we feature the first two of a planned series.
Bath
116 miles west of London is the City of Bath designated by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. It is the only hot springs spa in the UK. The city has some of the finest architectural buildings in Europe. “The Royal Crescent” with its imposing sweep of 30 terraced Georgian houses was built by John Wood the Younger between 1767 and 1775.
“The Circus” in the centre of Bath is the masterpiece of John Wood the Elder. Wood is said to have taken his inspiration from Soloman’s Temple in Jerusalem.
“Pulteney Bridge,” together with the Ponte Vecchio in Florence is considered one of the world’s most beautiful bridges. It is one of a handful of bridges in the world with shops on it.
“The Roman Baths” are the heart of this Heritage Site and built around the UK’s only hot spring. This is a magnificent Roman Temple and bathing complex still fed with natural hot water.
“The Jane Austen Centre” is one of many city museums, celebrating Bath’s most famous resident. Quaint tea rooms, a modern shopping centre and a lively nightlife add to the many attractions of this spa city.
Buxton Spa
Buxton, in Derbyshire, is located close to the County boundary of Cheshire to the west and Staffordshire to the south. Built on the River Wye and overlooked by Axe Edge Moor, Buxton has a long history as a spa town. Each summer, the various wells are decorated in the tradition of “Well Dressing” and the Well Dressing Weekend has developed into a lively town carnival.
The Dukes of Devonshire have been closely involved in Buxton since 1780 when the 5th Duke used profits from his copper mines to develop the town in the style of Bath. There are few towns in the North of England with such a diversity of architecture, with the grandeur of the 18th Century, the Victorian opulence of Romanesque styles and early Northern Arts and Crafts.
“The Crescent“ built in 1780-84 by John Carr, was modelled on Bath’s Royal Crescent and housed two hotels, seven lodging houses, stables and a town house for the Duke of Devonshire. A slate dome was erected by Robert Rippon Duke in 1882 for the Royal Devonshire Hospital. Over 150 feet in diameter and larger than the one in St Paul’s Cathedral, London it is the largest unsupported dome in the UK.
Recently the spa, in the 18th Century Hydropathic Hospital has been re-opened offering treatments and training for therapists.
Much admired is the “Buxton Opera House,” designed by Frank Matcham in 1903 who was also responsible for The Coliseum, the Palladium and the Hackney Empire Theatres in London. It is attached to the Pavillion Gardens with its 23 acres of gardens and ponds opened in 1871.
“The Natural Baths” designed by Henry Currey sit on the site of the original Roman Baths and were opened in 1854. The building contains the largest stained glass window in Britain.
“The Pump Room“, also by Currey was built in 1884 and is situated opposite The Crescent. Visitors were able to “Take the Waters,” until 1981.
“The Old Hall Hotel,” is one of the oldest buildings in Buxton. It was owned by the 6th Earl of Shrewsbury. He and his wife were the “jailers” of Mary Queen of Scots who took the waters in Buxton until 1584. The present structure dates from 1670.
Known as “The Gateway to The Peak District,” Buxton is surrounded by the magnificent scenery of the Peak District National Park and is the highest spa in Britain. Two attractions are the stately home-”Chatsworth House“ Built in the 1550’s, this house became the “prison” of Mary, Queen of Scots in 1568. Her custodian being the 6th Earl Of Shrewsbury. “TheNational Tramway Museum” at Crich, houses many exhibits from the age of trams, including a horse-drawn tram from 1874 and a steam tram trailer which entered service in 1894.
Buxton also hosts four major festivals each year. Of these, the Buxton Festival, founded in 1979 runs for two weeks in mid-July.
We hope you will consider Spa towns on your next visit to England and not just take in all the delights of London. England has so much more to offer.
