ENGLAND TRIP: Day 8: Part 3: BATH: Architecture (3 short video tours)

The Royal Crescent

Architects John Wood the elder and his son John Wood the younger built some incredible buildings in the City of Bath. So famous, that while Tom was studying architecture in school that some of the buildings were highlighted, so we had to see them! The Woods laid out Bath in quarters in streets and squares,and did it in a manner of palatial scale and classical decorum. 

The fence that hides the "Ha-Ha" trench

THE ROYAL CRESCENT BUILDING -  The Royal Crescent is a residential road of 30 houses laid out in a crescent in the city of Bath, England. According to Wikipedia, it was designed by the architect John Wood the Younger and built between 1767 and 1774, it is among the greatest examples of Georgian architecture to be found in the United Kingdom and is a grade I listed building. The Royal Crescent now includes a hotel and museum with some of the houses being converted into flats and offices.
 In front of the Royal Crescent is a Ha-ha, a trench on which the inner side of which is vertical and faced with stone, with the outer face sloped and turfed, making the trench, in effect, a sunken fence or retaining wall. The ha-ha is designed not to interrupt the view from Royal Victoria Park, and to be invisible until seen from close by.

VIDEO #1: QUICK TOUR OF THE ROYAL CRESCENT BUILDING FROM OUTSIDE

GHOST AT THE ROYAL CRESCENT? Some people report seeing an elegant coach drawn by four horses come up to the Royal Crescent. According to http://www.articlesbase.com, it's supposedly a residual haunting and the re-enactment of the elopement of Elizabeth Linley of No. 11, with Irish playwright and politician Richard Brinsley Sheridan. The story goes that Captain Thomas Mathews (a married man) also wanted Ms. Lindley and the Captain and Lord Sheridan fought two duels--with swords. Sheridan won her hand in marriage. However, he later cheated on her and she wound up dying of tuberculosis and died at age 38. It's a haunting story in itself. A bronze plaque at number 11 Royal Crescent marks the address from which she eloped.

The Circus

THE CIRCUS - The Circus building was the masterpiece of John Wood the Elder. According to Wikipedia, The Circus is an example of Georgian architecture in the city of Bath, Somerset, England, begun in 1754 and completed in 1768. The name comes from the Latin 'circus', which means a ring, oval or circle. Divided into three segments of equal length, the Circus is a circular space surrounded by large townhouses. Each of the curved segments faces one of the three entrances, ensuring that whichever way a visitor enters there is a classical facade straight ahead.  Sadly, John Wood the Elder never got to see this completed. 


VIDEO #2: TOM EXPLAINS THE CIRCUS BUILDING

STOPPED IN THE JANE AUSTEN MUSEUM - Tom's favorite movie of all
time is "Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen, so we had to stop in this small museum!
Celebrating Bath’s most famous resident, The Jane Austen Centre offers a snapshot of life during Regency times and explores how living in this magnificent city affected Jane Austen’s life and writing. We found out that Jane Austen actually lived about 5 houses down, so this was not her original home (very disappointing), so we didn't opt for the tour.
Photo here is of Mr. Darcy, the handsome man who gets the girl. :) - Rob's words, not Tom's. 

VIDEO #3: QUICK PAN OF THE CIRCUS BUILDING