Last Sunday I landed in Winter Wonderland – London greeted me with a little snowstorm and it kind of stayed like that for the whole day. But I still made it to two of the villages in the Cotswolds I had planned. After spending some time on the motorway I arrived in the picturesque village Castle Combe.
The Cotswolds is a rural area in the south of England and was named an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Rolling hills and ancient villages where time seemed to have stood still.
An area to enjoy the unspoiled nature and the most beautiful towns and villages – often used as a location for film and TV. Castle Combe in County Wiltshire is said to be one of the prettiest villages in England.
The 14th-century market cross, erected when the privilege to hold a weekly market in Castle Combe was granted, stands where the three principal streets of the lower village converge. Next to the cross is one of Castle Combe’s two village pumps. Small stone steps near the cross were for horse riders to mount and dismount, and close by are the remains of the buttercross, built in the late 19th century from old masonry. (Castle Combe)
Tiny cake shop on a doorstep – the carrot cake was amazing!
Castle Combe got its name from a castle which was situated above today´s village. First a fort built by the Romans and then rebuilt into a castle by the Normans. In the Middle Ages Castle Combe became a centre for the wool industry with the river By Brook providing the power to run the mills.
The village houses are all of typical Cotswold type, constructed in stone with thick walls and roofs made from split natural stone tiles. The properties are many hundreds of years old and are listed as ancient monuments. Strict rules apply to preserve the beauty and character of Castle Combe for later generations to admire. (Castle Combe)
