We Take a (Day in) Bath

Tuesday 28 May 1998. The staircase from the Roman Baths led Fran and I to the rooms above; the famous Pump Room of Georgian times where the likes of Beau Nash would gather to drink the mineral water from the same spring where the Romans had worshipped their goddess Minerva so long ago.

The room was a highly fashionable place to be and to be seen. Today it still retains its genteel character. It is possible to sit and take one's tea to the gentle sounds of chamber music being played live from one end of the room.

A glass of mineral water can be tasted for a modest fee and is served by elegant footmen dressed in the costume of the Georgian period. The water is high in various minerals and quite strong tasting.

I'm afraid I didn't find it to my taste, but reflected that no doubt it was doing me a world of good. One should drink the waters of Bath with a self-righteous air of superiority, as though it is an every day occurrence. The woman next to me says, in an indignant American accent: "Well! I don't know how they drink this stuff!" With a carefully schooled face, masking my own doubts, I drain my glass and smile... We left soon afterwards as I don't suppose up-chucking all over the place is encouraged. The water is vile. My opinion only of course. But vile...

Ah yes... and mindful of a few comments received recently from friends both here in the UK and across the Atlantic I thought I'd better show you Hands Dairy Cream Tea Rooms where you can order (and we did, we did!) clotted cream teas. Ah... just the thing! I've no idea why such a wonderfully tasting repast can cause such outpourings of shock and revulsion folks, but then again, if spreading clotted cream on scones was described as "spreading clabber on biscuits" as the Americans have it, then perhaps I'd think twice also. But what excuse Cathy has, Northamptonshire lass as she is, I just don't know... Get it down you, it'll do you good!

Once while I was down in Somerset running a workshop I bought 4 tubs of clotted cream and to keep them fresh, as it was a hot summer's day when I drove back north, I had to keep the aircon on in the car and I was freezing all the way back, but having phoned ahead, Fran got set to making some fresh scones for when I got home!

One of the must-see sights in Bath is this. Pulteney Bridge was completed in 1773 and designed by Robert Adam who was inspired by Ponte Vecchio of Florence and the Rialto Bridge in Venice. Rows of shops line the parapets of the bridge which is an elegant 3-arched bridge over the River Avon.

Sailing under it is a tricky if not dangerous undertaking because of the 3-stepped wier, but that feature gives this view another element of the unusual and pleasing.

Looking along Pulteney Bridge from road level. The shops are small. Perhaps sensibly Adam was not tempted to have them overhang the actual edge of the bridge as is the case in Florence. I was looking for a reference to our visit to Florence, but it was in 2006 and I have yet to blog about that particular holiday - a joy (whatever!) to come, then!

We had on a previous visit walked up to look at the great Georgian circus of town houses but I've never seen a better view of it than on this bought postcard image taken by a particularly tall photographer.

So that was Bath. The other place we were hoping to visit that day was Bristol. We have the afternoon left to get there. Next time!

Return to Wiltshire, Cotswolds and Avon 1998 Index

The Legions of Rome

Monday 27 May 1998. Now, for those of you who have stumbled here by accident and haven't a clue how you got here, Fran and I are on holiday in Wiltshire and on this particular public holiday are at Old Sarum, the fortified town that was abandoned in the 1200s at which point Salisbury was developed.

Those nice chappies at English Heritage had arranged a display of Roman Army tactics and equipment entitled The Might of the Roman Army.

No "might" about it - here they are! The performers for the day were members of four groups: the Ermine Street Guard, Gemina Project (from Holland), Vexillatio Legionis Geminae and The Troop.

They were representing Imperial Roman soldiers from the second half of the first century A.D. You would not want a Glasgow kiss from someone wearing a helmet like that! They are also carrying the Roman javelin. A volley or two of those would thin out the first couple of lines of mad marauding Celts and Picts. Please note that I have myself recognised the tendency of this blog to become a little bloodthirsty over the last couple of entries but we shall soon be back to normal!

The troupe were representing Imperial Roman soldiers from the second half of the first century A.D. This would be the conquering army of Britain, though they were hard pressed by the guerilla tactics of the native tribes. Their equipment and tactics were well fitted to each other though. On the face of it a great hairy Celt, dressed in nothing but a bit of blue paint and beard and swinging a long sword should have no problem dispatching a chap in a skirt with a short sword.

But long swords are best when swung and when two armies are pressed together by weight of numbers there is no room to swing a sword without lopping off your mates' heads... So the short stabbing swords of the Romans were apt to win the day as long as there were enough of them to keep the enemy in front of their shield wall.

We stood on the walls of Old Sarum as they marched around the inner sanctum. Here they are passing the foundations of Old Sarum's cathedral. Its replacement was Salisbury Cathedral but you can tell from this photograph that the original was an impressive size.

The chap in the middle of the front row was blowing away at his instrument, which was a relief as I thought for a moment he was going to suck and vacuum the grass... He didn't get much of a tune from it, but no doubt in its time there were plenty of hard pressed Romans who were glad to hear it announce the arrival of reinforcements!

Once in the arena, the various items of equipment were displayed and explained and demonstrations of tactics were given. One of the best displays that we saw was the use of the shields to form the testudo (the tortoise), with the men totally protected apart from their legs as they ran around the arena in close formation. Yes, you're right - I didn't get a picture of it as they were too far away at the time. But an image search on Google for roman testudo will give you ample example. (Nice bit of wordplay thrown in there for free!)

In the next entry we'll get away from all this warfare and take a look at a more modern Salisbury and cathedral and at what is perhaps the oldest mechanical clock in Europe.

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