Tewkesbury

Tewkesbury lies at the meeting point of the Severn and Avon rivers and contains over 350 protected buildings from different centuries. The narrow lanes wind through rows of timber-framed houses and open onto several small squares with old pubs and shops.

A battle between the houses of York and Lancaster took place in 1471 on the fields south of town, now marked with information boards. The settlement grew as a market town and river port for wool trade and milling industries afterward.

The town name comes from Old English Theodechesberie, referring to an early Saxon settler. Many residents use the old timber-framed houses along High Street as shops and cafés today, keeping the medieval layout alive.

You can reach town via motorway M5 or from Ashchurch station, about 4 km (two and a half miles) to the north. Most historic buildings lie near the town center and are easy to explore on foot.

The 12th-century Norman abbey church survived because the parish bought it after the monastery closure and kept using it as a parish church. Its large square tower stands out across the surrounding meadows and serves as a landmark.