Pictures of Winchcombe

About Winchcombe

To experience the quintessentially English town of Winchcome, is to part-take of a miscellany of pure delights.

This is an ancient town that was once the capital of the Kingdom of Mercia, it can lay claim to a long and almost continuous occupation. The three main streets tumble together and teem with old and ancient buildings, some built of local stone and some of the charming tudor variety built of wattle and doub and structured around massive oak timbers that defy the passing of time. The individuality of the cottages and houses, some with creeper spreading up over old walls reaching for little dormer windows set beneath neatly tiled roofs, are what form the character of this pleasant little town where each and every building is an absolute joy.

Prosperity came to Winchcome with the development of the Wool trade and it is money from the rich wool merchants that built the Perpendicular church of St.Peter between 1456 and 1474. A fine weather cock is pinnacled above the west tower and gargoyles surround the entire building. The interior has amazing medieval glass to some of the windows and there is a beautiful brass candelarbrum which dates 1753. Other notable buildings in the town include the 700 year old George Inn, once used as a stopping place for pilgrims.

The romantic castle of Sudeley that once belonged to Ethelred the Unready is but a short distance from Winchcome. The castle was also the home of Henry VIII's last Queen, Catherine Parr. Following King Henry's death, Catherine married Lord Seymour of Sudeley, but sadly she died in childbirth the year after her marriage. Catherine is entombed in the castle chapel which dates from the year 1450. During the Civil War the castle was used as headquarters for Charles Ist, it was laid seige to in 1643 and in 1644. The castle houses fine paintings and exquisite old furniture. There are tapestries and many other antique objects. In the grounds of the castle, roses grow. The air is filled with the scent of fragrant, old, full blown roses that thrive in a peaceful garden setting, surrounded by yew hedges and known as the Queens Garden. As with the quaint town of Winchcome, this ancient castle and beautiful gardens are well worth a leisurely visit.

Other nearby attractions are; Stanway House and Water Garden, Chedworth Roman Villa at Yanworth and Whittington Court at Whittington.