Salisbury, Wiltshire's Cathedral City

Ditch and Bank Fortifications at Old Sarum

The first settlement was on the nearby hill of Old Sarum, two miles from the present city. It is a cold, windy and unfriendly place but a good defensive position at 240 feet above the River Avon.

There is evidence of human habitation going back to Neolithic times, more than 5000 years ago. Stone tools found there indicate that it was used by Neolithic hunters and later by farmers. It continued to be inhabited in the Iron Age when a fort was built of steep banks and ditches around the hill.

Later the Romans used it as a military stronghold and called it Sorviodunum, believed to come from the Celtic for The Fort by the Gentle River. In their turn, the invading Saxons in the 6th century AD took Old Sarum. Under the Saxons it became a town of considerable importance and it was here that, in the 10th century, King Edgar held a council to plan how to resist the Viking invasion from the north.

Woodcut of Old Sarum

The Normans built a motte and bailey castle on the hill in the late 11th century and a cathedral around the same time.

On the approach to Old Sarum you can still see the Iron Age defensive banks and inside these are the ruins of the Norman castle and cathedral.

In the 13th century, the clerics decided they had had enough of this miserable, windy, waterless hill especially as there were arguments between clergy and military in the castle and so they relocated in the cathedral in the valley below. Gradually the townspeople moved close the the cathedral again, using the material from their old houses to build the new ones. For a while the new site was called New Sarum until it eventually became known as Salisbury.

In the 19th century, Old Sarum became notorious as a 'rotten borough', i.e. one that sent an MP to Parliament even though only eleven people were entitled to vote there.

You can visit Old Sarum, now owned by English Heritage. Take the A345 north for two miles out of Salisbury.

Salisbury Cathedral from the air
A view of the cathedral and surroundings from a light aircraft.
© Copyright Barry Deakin and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.

In less than 40 years the magnificent Early English Gothic cathedral that we know today was built. The foundation stones were laid in 1220 by Bishop Richard Poore who later became Bishop of Durham where he continued his interest in great cathedral building. Salisbury Cathedral was dedicated in 1258 making 2008 its 750th anniversary.

Unfortunately, due to a high water table, the foundations of the cathedral, at four feet, are relatively shallow. The world-famous 400 foot spire, the tallest in England, was completed in 1320. Unfortunately, such a tall tower added considerable weight to the shallow foundations and so, to prevent probable collapse, strainer arches had to be built to support the weight in the next century. Over succeeding centuries, further supports have had to be added to prevent the collapse of the tower which now leans to the south and west.

Salisbury Cathedral's Dial-less Clock
© Copyright Jason Hopwood and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.

Surprisingly perhaps, because the Bell Tower was demolished during changes made by architect James Wyatt in 1790, making Salisbury one of only three English cathedrals that doesn't have bells.

Salisbury Cathedral Major Attractions
These include the famous dial-less clock dating from the 14th century, making it one of the oldest clocks in the country. How can you use a clock without a dial? Simple, it rang out the time on a bell so it people relied on hearing the time, not seeing it.

There is also an original copy of Magna Carta, one of only four surviving copies. This is kept in the octagonal Chapter House which also has a decorative frieze going right round the walls illustrating stories from Genesis and Exodus like Noah and the Flood and The Tower of Babel.

There is a modern stained glass window at the East End of the Cathedral entitled Prisoners of Conscience. It was designed and installed in 1980 by Gabrielle Loire from Chartres in France.

Salisbury Cathedral has largest and oldest complete set of canon stalls in the country dating from the 13th century and made with oak given by King. The misericords (tip-up seats) are decorated with carved foliage. The front row of seats have been repaired and half replaced in the 17th century.

Between 1860 and 1875 Sir George Gilbert Scott carried out some restoration work and the musical angels, grotesque figures and animals date from this period.

The cathedral close is reputed to be one of the finest in England and contains buildings ranging from the 14th to 18th centuries. Here in the close Anthony Trollope conceived the idea for his Barchester series of novels.


View Map Showing the Location of the Cathedral

Mompesson House
© Copyright Seb Ballard and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence

The fact that Salisbury was a new town built on a green field site, albeit seven centuries ago, can be seen from the regular grid pattern of streets rather than the more usual haphazard jumble seen in cities that have grown gradually through the centuries. Some historic buildings from the 13th century onwards still survive in the city today, particularly in the Cathedral Close.

The Medieval Hall is one of these in the Close. Built in the 13th century, with its timber framed roof, large hearth and minstrels' gallery, it is just what you expect in a hall from the period.

Also in the Cathedral Close, Mompesson House is owned by the National Trust. It is a Georgian building and was used for the film of Sense and Sensibility. Its major attractions are its fine plasterwork and oak staircase and the Turnbull collection of 18th century drinking glasses.

Salisbury & South Wiltshire Museum is located in King's House, Cathedral Close, a Grade 1 listed building. It has a famous Stonehenge Gallery and the Pitt Rivers Collection-displays of archaeological finds from many prehistoric and Roman sites in the area. It also has galleries devoted to costume, ceramics and glass, medieval, art and social history.

The Wardrobe - The Rifles (Berkshire and Wiltshire) Museum also in the Cathdral Close, this museum tells the story of these regiments over the last 250 years.

Wilton House, Wiltshire, England Photographic Print
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Wilton House and Wilton
The village of Wilton, once the Saxon capital of Wessex, has one of the most famous stately homes in Southern England, Wilton House. The home of the Earls of Pembroke, this house was rebuilt in the mid 17th century to a design by Inigo Jones after a fire had destroyed the earlier building. The Cube Room and the Double Cube Room are said to be the most perfectly proportioned rooms in the country. It contains a superb collection of paintings and other works of art.

A family of influence and power, it was the eighth Earl of Pembroke who introduced carpet weaving to the area and 'Wilton Carpets' became synonymous with fine quality carpets. Later the half-brother of the twelfth Earl, Sidney Herbert, was Secretary of War during the Crimean War and was instrumental in enabling Florence Nightingale and her nurses to go to the Crimea. Her portrait can be seen in Wilton House.

Farmer Giles Farmstead
Children will enjoy Farmer Giles Farmstead, situated about 10 miles west of Wilton on the B3089. It a real 38 acre farm where all the family can feed and groom animals and learn about modern and historic farming methods. You can bottle feed lambs or learn to milk a cow by hand. If you don't fancy that, there is an adventure playground, miniature tractor circuit or you can walk through the farm's vineyard or just enjoy eating in the scenic picnic area.

Fovant Regimental Badges
About 8 miles west of Wilton, at the village of Fovant there is a layby where you can stop to look at the Fovant Regimental Badges carved into the chalk.

During World War I, Fovant and the neighbouring village of Sutton Mandeville were the sites of transit camps for troops going to or returning from the battlefields of France. In memory of their comrades who had been killed, they carved regimental cap badges into the hillside. During World War II, the badges were allowed to disappear through growth of plants and the passage of grazing livestock so as not to give enemy planes a distinctive landmark. At the end of the war, the local Home Guard units formed the Old Comrades Association, much later renamed the Fovant Badges Society, and set about trying to restore the badges.

After many years of effort, the Society finally managed to persuade English Heritage to make the site an Ancient Monument. Unfortunately, some of the badges were beyond repair but eight have now been restored.

Fovant Regimental Badges
Copyright Michael Ely used under Creative Commons Licence