Cirencester Overview

One of the larger towns in the Cotswolds and regarded as the capital of the region, Cirencester (SI-ruhn-ses-ter) is the site of Corinium, a Roman town founded in AD 49. Although only scraps of the amphitheater remain, the Corinium Museum, Park St., has a formidable collection of Roman mosaics as well as exhibits on the region’s Anglo-Saxon and wool-producing history. (☎01285 655 611. Open M-Sa 10am-5pm, Su 2-5pm. £4, concessions £2.50.) Cirencester’s Parish Church of Saint John the Baptist is Gloucestershire’s largest “wool church.” Although the church is undergoing extensive refurbishments until Easter 2010, it remains open. (☎01285 659 317; www.cirenparish.co.uk. Open in summer M-Sa 10am-5pm, Su noon-5pm; in winter M-Sa 10am-4pm, Su noon-5pm. Grounds close 9pm. 3 services per day. Donation suggested.) The world’s highest yew hedge bounds Lord Bathurst’s mansion at the top of Park St. Bear right and make a left on Cecily Hill to enter the 3000-acre Cirencester Park, whose stately central aisle was designed by Alexander Pope. (Open daily 8am-5pm.) An antique market takes place on Fridays in Corn Hall, near the TIC. (☎0171 263 6010. Open 10am-4:30pm.) A short walk south of town center, Apsley Villa Guest House , 16 Victoria Rd., rents affordable elegant ensuite rooms. (☎01285 653 489. Breakfast included. Singles £35; doubles and twins £50. Cash only.)