Guildford
Guildford
Guildford is the county town of Surrey situated in a gap in the North Downs it grew in importance due to its location where the harrow Way forded the river Wey. On a direct route to London from the maritime cities of the south coast meant also that there was a flow of goods and people through the town.
Guildford dates back to Saxon times and its name Guildford is believed to derive from the Saxon for gold and ford and refers to the golden colour of the sand on the riverbanks.
The Normans built a castle here to subdue the population the remains of the keep can still be seen this was later used as a hunting lodge.
The town was also later connected by the Basingstoke and Wey navigation canal that gave the town access to the rivers and waterways.
The town has managed to retain some of its history with some fine Tudor buildings in particular the magnificent Guildhall complete with a bracket clock. The town museum is housed in a lovely 17th century building. On high street, the almhouses dating from 1619 can still be seen.
The Guildford grammar School is reputedly the first place cricket was played.
Nearby at Chawton Jane Austen’s house can be seen it was here that she wrote her most famous novels, Selborne also in the vicinity was home to the famous naturalist Gilbert white as well as Captain Oates who was a member of Scott’s ill-fated 1912 Antarctic expedition.
Activities in Guildford
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