Prehistoric people probably were aware of the hot springs. Legend has it that King Bladud, a refugee from the fall of Troy and father of King Lear, founded the town some 2800 years ago. A bath in the muddy swamps supposedly cured his leprosy. In Celtic times the sacred spring was surrounded by an oak tree grove, where druids worshipped the guardian goddess Sul. Upon their conquest of Britain, the Romans established the town of Aquae Sulis in AD 44 and built the extensive baths complex and a temple to the goddess Sulis-Minerva. Long after the Romans had departed, the Anglo-Saxons arrived and in 944 a monastery was founded on the site of the present abbey. Throughout the Middle Ages, Bath was an ecclesiastical center and a wool trading town.

It wasn't until the early 18th century that Ralph Allen and Richard 'Beau' Nash made Bath the center of fashionable society. Ralph Allen developed the quarries at Coombe Down and employed the two John Woods, father and son, to build the glorious Georgian-style buildings one sees today. The life in Bath at the time is graphically depicted in the novels of Tobias Smollett and in the plays of Richard Brinsley Sheridan. Jane Austen's novels Northanger Abbey and Persuasion, both in 1817/18, portray with delicate satire and keen perception the fashionable life of Bath about 1800. In the 19th Century sea bathing started to draw visitors away from Bath to coastal resorts. By the mid-19th century the city was thoroughly out of fashion.

Bath was bombed during World War II and several buildings were damaged or destroyed. Fortunately, most of its grand architecture remains to delight the thousands of visitors who visit the city each year.

Bath Abbey

During the past twelve centuries, three churches have occupied the site of Bath Abbey. There was an Anglo Saxon church founded in 757 and destroyed in 1066 during the Norman Conquest. The Normans built a cathedral in 1090, but by the 15th Century it was in ruins due to neglect. The current Bath Abbey was built between 1499 and 1616, making it the last great medieval church raised in England. It was wrecked during Henry VIII’s dissolution of the monasteries, but was restored by subsequent generations.

The most striking feature of the abbey's exterior is the west façade, where angels climb up and down stone ladders, commemorating a dream of the founder of the abbey, Bishop Oliver King, to pull down the ruined Norman cathedral and raise the present building on its foundations. The nave's wonderful fan vaulting, which runs the whole length of the building, was erected in the 19th century. At the East end, above the altar, stained glass in the huge window illustrates the Biblical story of the life of Jesus Christ.

Beau Nash was buried in the nave and is honored by a simple monument quite out of keeping with his rather flamboyant character. The Bath Abbey Heritage Vaults opened in 1994 on the south side of the abbey. The Vaults contain a subterranean exhibition that traces the history of Christianity at the abbey site since Saxon times.

Jane Austen Center

For devotees of her novels, a visit to the Jane Austen Center, located in a 18th Century Georgian town house, is a must. It is an exhibit that depicts how living in Bath affected her life and her literary work. Austen was one of Bath’s most famous residents, having paid two long visits to the city towards the end of the eighteenth century, and from 1801 to 1806 making Bath her home. Displays include period costume, contemporary prints of the city and exhibits relating to the author's personal life, family and homes.

Roman Baths

The Roman Baths at Bath are the best preserved of its kind in the world. The Roman Baths are below ground level, with the Georgian era Pump Room on the ground floor.

One enters the Roman Baths through the reception hall, which has a ceiling decorated with images of the four seasons and covered by a dome. From there one goes to the terrace which overlooks the baths and is lined with statues of Roman governors of Britain, Emperors, and other military leaders.

The Sacred Spring

The very heart of the baths is the Sacred Spring. Hot water at a temperature of 460C rises here at the rate of 240,000 gallons every day and has been doing this for thousands of years. In the past this natural phenomenon was believed to be the work of the gods. In Roman times a great Temple was built next to the spring dedicated to the goddess Sulis Minerva, a deity with healing powers. The mineral rich water from the spring supplied the magnificent bath-house which attracted visitors from across the Roman Empire. Objects, such as coins and messages on sheets of lead or pewter, which were thrown into the spring as offerings to the goddess, are displayed nearby.

The Temple

Surviving from the temple is a great ornamental pediment. It has been re-erected in the Roman Baths Museum. It carries the image of a fearsome head carved in Bath stone and it is thought to be that of the Gorgon, which was a powerful symbol of the goddess Sulis Minerva. The temple courtyard, where people gathered to worship the goddess, is also open for visitors.

The Great Bath

The centerpiece of the Roman Bath is the Great Bath, a pool, lined with 45 sheets of lead, and filled with hot spa water. It once stood in an enormous barrel-vaulted hall that rose to a height of 40 meters. The bath is 1.6 meters deep, which was ideal for bathing and has steps leading down on all sides. Niches around the baths would have held benches for bathers and possibly small tables for drinks or snacks. To the east and west are further suites of baths and heated rooms.

The Georgian Pump Room

This salon, where spa water was drawn for drinking, was considered the center of social activity in the 18th Century. The pump room contains a number of artifacts, including the Tompion clock, given to the city in 1709 by Thomas Tompion, England’s best known clockmaker, as well as some sedan chairs from the period. A visitor will be able to “take the waters” just as 18th Century visitors did as well as unwind at a fine restaurant after a visit to the Roman baths below.

Royal Crescent

The Royal Crescent is a sweeping crescent of spectacular Georgian townhouses, which were built back in 1767-1774. The townhouses overlook a large private lawn and have a wonderful view of the hills and the river Avon. These were lodging houses for the gentry who visited Bath to take the waters and participate in the social scene. Royal Crescent has been redecorated and restored to show what it was like in the 18th Century.

Visiting Bath

Bath is accessible from London and other English cities by coach or train. Bath has a bus service, but the town suffers from the usual urban traffic snarls.