Minchinhampton

Minchinhampton is a market town sitting on a hilltop roughly 4 miles southeast of Stroud in Gloucestershire. The place has basic services including shops, a post office, a pharmacy, and coffee establishments, with a 17th-century Market House as its focal point.

The earliest written record of the place comes from the Domesday Book of 1086, where it was called Hantone and belonged to a monastery in Normandy. Its name means "high town of nuns" and reflects that connection to a French religious community.

The town center has a 17th-century Market House where regular markets are held, along with craft fairs and a country fair throughout the year. These gatherings shape community life and bring locals and visitors together.

The town is easy to explore on foot, with a central marketplace and paths that work well for walking. Those interested in the surrounding countryside can access open landscapes and walking routes across the Cotswolds.

Remains of one of the oldest known tyrannosaurs were discovered at a reservoir near this town and are now displayed at London's Natural History Museum. This discovery reveals that dinosaurs once roamed the region.