The town of Stratford upon Avon is located north of the Cotswold limestone belt and beside the River Avon. The town does not pretend to be a Cotswold town but it is an important gateway to the Cotswolds.
Stratford means 'street across the ford' and was a river crossing in Roman times. Two Anglo-Saxon settlements later joined to to be come a market town in 1196.
At the time Shakespeare was a child his father the Mayor welcomed groups of actors to entertain the townspeople. This may have started Shakespeare's interest in the theatre, which led him to London to work, but he returned to Stratford upon Avon near the end of his life.
The five houses connected with Shakespeare in and around Stratford-upon-Avon offer the visitor an authentic experience of the Stratford world in which the famous dramatist was born, lived, and died. The houses are now owned and looked after by the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust.
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Map of Stratford-upon-Avon Town Centre
ATTRACTIONS IN STRATFORD-UPON-AVON
Mary Arden's tudor house where the Bard's mother was brought up.
Ann Hathaway's cottage where she lived until Shakespeare married her in 1582.
Shakespeare's childhood house where he was born in 1564.
Hall's Croft is one of the finest half-timbered gabled houses in Stratford-upon-Avon. It was named after Dr John Hall who married Shakespear's daughter Susanna in 1607.
Nash's House was owned by Thomas Nash first husband of Shakespeare's grand-daughter Elizabeth. Shakespeare spent his last years in New Place next door to Nash's house.
Theatres - Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Swan Theatre.
Boat trips on the River Avon, shopping in the thriving retail centre, dining in the wide variety of pubs and restaurants.
The American Fountain - This large Gothic clock tower once had a built-in fountain now given over to flower planting. It was presented to the town of Stratford-upon-Avon by George W. Childs of Philadelphia to mark Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee in 1897. Actor Henry Irving carried out the unveiling. You will see not only American Eagles but also English Lions and a fairy from A Midsummer Night's Dream as part of the stonework.
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Centres in the Cotswolds and the six counties of Worcestershire, Gloucestershire, Wiltshire,
Somerset, Warwickshire and Oxfordshire:-
