Burford
Burford
The name Burford means a ford below a fort in Saxon times this was what the town was it has a beautiful main street that dips down to the river Windrush. These days you can drive over the river, as there is a fine three-arched medieval bridge at the bottom of the hill.
Burford was on the main coaching route from London to the west of England and wales, many of the old coaching buildings can still be seen. The town as well as being pretty is full of history in the English civil war Cromwell imprisoned 340 mutinous soldiers in the church of St John the Baptist one of them Anthony Sedley scratched his name on the font there are also three bullet holes.
This 15th century church is a magnificent example of a Cotswold wool church, inside there are numerous monuments and items of interest, there is a huge tomb to the Tanfield’s who were the lords of Burford this is squeezed into a little chapel on the northeast side of the church.
Charles II stayed at the George inn with his famous mistress and actress Nell Gwyn he visited the inn on several occasions, a weekend away obviously being just as popular then
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The main street is lined with picturesque Cotswold stone cottages and is a tourist magnet hallway down the hill is the Tolsey, which has an open ground floor with rooms above, market stalls would have occupied the lower part in Tudor times. Interspersed here and there are Georgian and Elizabethan buildings, local Cotswold stone was used to build the houses this glows in the evening sun giving a beautiful atmosphere to the town.
The town like most in the Cotswold prospered on the wool trade these days tourism provides the lifeblood and the town has several tearooms’ boutiques and antique shops to attract the visitors. Exploring the many quiet side streets it is easy to imagine what the place was like in past times.
The author Nancy Mitford lived in nearby Swinbrook with her sisters who all hated the place.
Activities in Burford
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