The County of Somerset

Somerset is a real county – it has a fine cricket club with a good ground in Taunton. Most obviously it has Bath and Wells, two of the most enchanting cities in Britain. It has the Vale of Taunton, and four ranges of hills; the Mendips, the Quantocks and the Brendons, and it shares the Blackdowns with Devon as well as Exmoor which comes high on any list of ‘must sees’ in Britain. The lovely rolling pastureland of South Somerset produces the best examples of England’s most famous cheese – Cheddar, as well as the eponymous Gorge that is well worth a trip.

The Levels and Glastonbury are a world apart, one of mystery and legend. St Joseph of Arimathaea who is said to have put his stick in the ground, circa A.D. 38, whereupon hawthorn leaves sprouted from it; then King Arthur’s Camelot, King Alfred of the burnt cakes and now the Glastonbury Festival of mud and music. It is tempting to suppose the folks in the Vale of Avalon have been on a high for a millennium or so. The Abbey, however, and the Tor are man made evidence that some real work was done too. There are some great walks – my favourite starts and ends at Cadbury Castle, a Camelot contender, and takes in Corton Denham Beacon before returning to base without retracing any steps. It is about 7 miles with a good pub at the mid-point.

Despite its splendours, the county does not attract the crowds common in Devon and Cornwall, perhaps because its beach scene is not in the same class despite its lengthy coastline. The great ranges of hills and moorland plunge steeply into the Bristol Channel, giving marvellous views but poor bathing. If you warm to the quiet wonders of great vernacular architecture Somerset has few peers. The beautiful perpendicular towers of many of its churches are superb and the woodwork roofs of Somerton, Martock and Shepton Mallet are a delightful surprise. Bath stone, blue lias and England’s loveliest, Ham stone, are Somerset’s unique privilege and, as Simon Jenkins says, ‘they offer the perfection of English building set in the perfection of English countryside’.

For those bent on pleasure, Somerset is also the home of a modern British phenomenon – the re-invention of the ‘country house hotel’. This revolution began at Babington House, south of Bath, and its trademark informality, high style and space – the new luxury – set a template for a type of modern comfort that has become a significant British first in the world leisure market. It is not a restaurant unless you are a member, but it is a hotel. The county is in the top echelon for entries in The Good Food Guide and Good Pub Guide, so sustenance and refreshment of quality are ever close to hand – with a little help from this guide.

In a small area, Wells has more than you can quickly take in. The cathedral is rightly world-famous and its Chapter House is a revelation – even people normally uninterested in architecture stand in awe under the great stone ‘palm tree’ of its central pillar. The Vicars’ Close just beyond it is one of the oldest intact streets in Europe.

The richest period in Somerset’s houses was from the 15th to the 17th centuries, with Montacute and Cothay the outstanding examples; the latter also has a superlative garden, but it is by no means the only great one in the county. I have left the best till last; Bath – England’s only World Heritage City, (as Scotland has the other - Edinburgh). The great crescents of Bath are unique in the world - the Royal, the Lansdowne and Clarendon to mention but three. The Circus, an amazing creation of the great architect of 18th century Bath, John Wood is matched by the classical elegance of Great Pulteney Street - one of Europe’s finest. The Roman Baths are a strong contender for Northern Europe’s most impressive classical ruin while the new Thermae Spa baths are a place to be pampered (from £22 for two hours). Bath has a great shopping scene with many names you won’t find on the average High Street and with branches of some top London shops. The Theatre Royal gets more pre-West End performances than any other in the country and its museums, especially the Holburne, are the best in the West. Amongst all this choice, it may come as a surprise to find a beautiful garden of 11 acres only a short walk from the station – Crowe Hall – with a magnificent view of Prior Park, an 18th century Palladian gem, built by Ralph Allen, one of the most remarkable entrepreneurs of the age and the founder of the postal system. He was heirless and so it became a Catholic public school.

If ‘Georgian’ doesn’t fully float your boat, the splendid Abbey - 1499 and 1864 with the old part of town that abuts it, should finish the job.

There is so much to say about this remarkable city that space does not allow. I can only urge you to see it for yourself.

Ross Harvey