Cirencester
The largest market town in the Cotswolds, site of the Roman town of Corinium. The Wool Church and Corinium Museum are worth a visit.
Cirencester calls itself the 'Capital of the Cotswolds'. In the Roman period it was Corinium, the second-largest city in Britain after London. The Church of St John the Baptist on the market square was built with the wealth of the wool trade. It is a large Perpendicular Gothic church, and its south porch is particularly magnificent. Corinium Museum displays Roman mosaics and tombstones (admission charged). In the west of town, Cirencester Park, the estate of the Earl Bathurst, can be walked freely. Outside the town, the earthworks of a Roman amphitheatre are still visible.
The town has many cafés and antique shops. It is a convenient stopover and supply point for travellers heading north from Bath (about 50 km) or on to Bibury (about 12 km).
Opening hours
Open all day (museum about 10:00–17:00; Sundays from 14:00)
Nearby sights
- Bibury
- Sudeley Castle
- Bourton-on-the-Water
- Upper and Lower Slaughter
- Avebury
- Gloucester Cathedral
- Stow-on-the-Wold
- Broadway Tower