Cirencester

Cirencester is an ancient town on the river Churn with links back to Roman times when it was known as Corinium. It was a strategically important town for the Romans as it was where the Fosse Way (road from Exeter to Lincoln) crossed the Churn. Its location in the Cotswold hills led to it become an important trading centre for the wool trade.  

Corinium must have had a sizeable population as there was a Roman amphitheatre to the south west of the town known in an area known as the Querns, part of which is still visible today.

The Corinium Museum within the town has an interesting exhibition of the Roman history of the area. 

Cirencester did have an important abbey, that was adjacent to the current church, but some of it was destroyed during the dissolution and the the rest was turned into a mansion that was itself later destroyed by fire. The abbey grounds are now a picturesque park to enjoy.

Cirencester Church is a prestigious building that was probably funded by the flourishing wool trade, (known as a Wool church) . There are also a number of other merchants houses that are testimony to the wealth of the town and in recent years it grown in size absorbing other villages such as Stratton and Chesterton into its boundaries.

Cirencester is an interesting town to visit with a good selection of shops and hotels.

Hotels in Cirencester