Great Britain is like a huge antique cabinet with expensive finishes and shelves from the strongest and most solid wood. We will open one of the caskets and get acquainted with the amazing places of Salisbury, a city with a long history, a witness to a variety of events, currently known in connection with the Skripals case, but time will pass, and this episode will sink into oblivion, leaving calm and wonderful city walls.
10. Parish Church of St. Thomas and St. Edmund
The church is the same age as the town, and for eight centuries now it has been gathering parishioners from the surrounding area.
At first, the building was made of wood, and there is an opinion that it was intended for the living of the workers who built the main cathedral of the city at that time - Salisbury. The main part of the building, preserved to this day, belongs to the 15th century, and the interior is made in Victorian style. The attention of visitors is primarily attracted to the canvas with the image of the Last Judgment, located above the altar arch. This is the main pearl of the temple, dates back to 1475. During the Reformation (at the end of the 16th century) it was hidden from people, but at the end of the 19th century it was regained as a result of restoration work. The fresco is considered the largest and most complete on this subject of those preserved in the country.
9. Salisbury Guildhall
Guildhall is an old building on Salisbury Square. The city hall burned and rebuilt several times. Initially, it was in the bishop's department, but subsequently passed into the hands of the city authorities. The last version of the building dates from 1795. Today, after a series of reconstruction works, offices and meeting rooms of the city council are located here, and a very effective combination of historical interiors and modern comfort allows us to provide part of the premises for exhibitions and ceremonial receptions and events.
8. House of Mompesson
A small mansion was built at the very beginning of the 18th century for the local deputy Thomas Mompesson. The house is made in the classical style of the Queen Anne period, Hilmark stone was used for cladding. The building was replaced by many owners from noble families and spiritual persons to artistic natures. Today there is a museum, and guests can plunge into the atmosphere of past centuries through the interiors of rooms with antique furniture and utensils, porcelain figurines and lamps. Visitors can take a walk in the garden and enjoy a cup of tea. Fans of Jane Austen’s works are also recommended to look here, because the shooting of one of her novels “Feeling and Sensitivity” took place here.
7. High Street Gate
Before visiting Salisbury's main cathedral, you need to pass the High Street Gate, which themselves are a magnificent architectural monument of the 14th century. The building was erected from 1327 to 1342 and initially housed a small prison. Nearby is the porter's house. In the Middle Ages, the work of the porter was in great demand and representatives of the nobility actively used their services. The gates themselves are decorated on one side by a coat of arms, and on the other side is a statue of King Edward VII, whose stone vestments correspond to the Middle Ages. Today, High Street Gate is the main entrance to the Salisbury Cathedral.
6. Great Euse Park
To visit the park, it is best to choose sportswear. The terrain here is rather gloomy, but majestic, and more like a forest.
Traveling along numerous trails, the traveler falls into the power of the main inhabitants of the territory - yew trees. Some specimens are of scientific interest, since they reach a millennium. Hundreds of old-timer yews will amaze guests with their unusual twisted shapes. Walking will be especially interesting for people who prefer the silence and pristine nature with minimal influence on the part of man. A good place to meditate.
5. Wilton House
The estate is located west of Salisbury and is a beautifully preserved specimen of a medieval manor. In the 8th century, the Wilton Abbey was located here. In the 16th century, the territory with the remains of buildings was transferred by the king to the Pembroke family. Since then, the estate has been rebuilt and modified many times from late Gothic to Palladian style. In the interiors of Wilton House there are many paintings by famous masters: Rubens, Rembrandt, van Dyck. The furniture was made by the most famous cabinetmakers. The most attractive for tourists are the rooms of one and two cubes, with chic stucco ceilings and antique furniture, as well as the picturesque Palladium Bridge located in the park adjacent to the mansion. By the way, a lot of costumed dramas were shot in Wilton House, and the area in front of the main entrance is annually occupied by the most luxurious cars in the world as part of the annual event.
The owners of the mansion is still the Pembroke dynasty.
4. Market
The territory of the market in the city was defined in the 13th century, when the new city had already measured its streets and built houses. At first, under the patronage of the church, and then the city council, there was a clear distribution of shopping arcades and temporary stalls, which were later replaced by permanent stores. The market had special places for trade in cheese, milk, fruits, vegetables, fish, herbs and poultry. The modern market square is an open space with many restaurants, bars and shops. Wooden and brick houses, preserved from the old times, as well as a large number of tourists, helps to plunge into the atmosphere of the noisy and bustling shopping arcade of the Middle Ages.
3. Old Sarum
Today, Old Sarum is only a hill located north of Salisbury, with a flat top and earthen ramparts around, as well as the remains of a hillfort, but a settlement was located on this site for a very long time. Archaeologists claim that signs of life appeared here about three thousand years BC. The city itself began its existence in the 11th century. Trade routes passed here, and it was repeatedly conquered by the Normans and Saxons. A fortress was built on the hill, first wooden, and then stone, a castle and a cathedral appeared. The latter was destroyed by a storm, and it was decided to build a new temple in a remote place due to conflicts of power and the clergy, as well as lack of water resources. And suddenly, the residents of Old Sarum also reached the territory near the built cathedral, moving their dwellings here to the settlement called New Sarum. Old Sarum slowly emptied and fell into decay, in the 19th century the town ceased to exist officially. Today, Old Sarum is a historical monument of England, and anyone can visit this place, which offers a beautiful view of New Sarum - Salisbury.
2. The military museum
Fans of military subjects are very encouraged by a trip to the Museum of the Infantry Regiments of Berkshire and Wiltshire. The building where it is located was built in 1254 and looks through all windows at the main cathedral of the city. The building was used for a long time to store the vestments of the bishop of Salisbury, for which it received the nickname "Closet" in the common people.
Today it houses the Museum of the Royal Regiments. Visitors can get acquainted with their history from the period of the 18th century to the present through a very extensive collection of exhibits, including documents, uniforms and weapons. Portraits of the most distinguished military, as well as royal persons, under whose patronage there were always these regiments, adorn the walls of the halls.
1. Salisbury Cathedral
The temple was erected in the 13th century, construction lasted about 40 years. The building is designed in a single Gothic style. Only one element, the spire, appeared a century later, but thanks to its height of 123 meters, it made the cathedral the tallest building of medieval architecture in the UK. The unique property of the cathedral is the existing mechanical watch, created in 1386.
In the middle of the 15th century, an annex, a library building appeared at the temple. Today you can see a perfectly preserved copy of the Magna Carta, the first legal document from medieval England.
The temple has a very vast territory, the Cathedral courtyard, with many lovely lawns and ancient buildings of different eras.