Bristol has a rich historical heritage dating back to the city’s beginnings in Anglo-Saxon times. For centuries, it was England’s second city and, as a thriving port, its past is steeped in its involvement in trade, whether of cloth, wine, pottery, glass – or slaves. As there is no commercial shipping now, much of Bristol’s past is hidden within the modern city, just out of sight, but waiting to be discovered.
In an informed and entertaining style, Victoria Coules uncovers events and episodes such as the 1793 bridge toll riots, the jurisdiction of the Knights Templar over certain areas in Bristol and the creation of the Floating Harbour. Lost Bristol also reveals how a thirteenth-century quay became a traffic roundabout, what happened to Bristol’s own hot water spa, and why Bristol merchants in search of cod may have pipped Christopher Columbus at the post. Many more surprising and remarkable stories about Bristol’s past, accompanied by maps, engravings and photographs, make this book essential reading to all those curious about the city’s hidden history. |
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