The City of Bath
The World Heritage City of Bath attracts thousands of visitors every year...The pictures above were kindly supplied by Stephen Bird, MBE - Head of Heritage Services for Bath & North East Somerset Council
The historic City of Bath in South West England attracts thousands of visits every year. It was founded in the 1st century AD by the Romans who used the natural hot springs as a thermal spa. It became an important Centre for the wool industry in the Middle Ages but in the 18th century under the reigns of George l, ll and III it developed into an elegant spa city, famed in literature and art.
The City of Bath is of Outstanding Universal Value for the following cultural attributes: The Roman remains, especially the Temple of Sulis Minerva and the baths complex (based around the hot springs at the heart of the Roman town of Aquae Sulis, which have remained at the heart of the City’s development ever since) are amongst the most famous and important Roman remains north of the Alps, and marked the beginning of Bath’s history as a spa town.
The Georgian city reflects the ambitions of John Wood Senior (1704-1754), Ralph Allen (1693-1764) and Richard “Beau” Nash (1674-1761) to make Bath into one of the most beautiful cities in Europe, with architecture and landscape combined harmoniously for the enjoyment of the spa town’s cure takers.
The Neo-classical style of the public buildings (such as the Assembly Rooms and the Pump Room) harmonises with the grandiose proportions of the monumental ensembles (such as Queen Square, Circus and Royal Crescent) and collectively reflects the ambitions, particularly social, of the spa city in the 18th century.
UNESCO added The City of Bath as a 'cultural site' to its World Heritage List in 1987. Bath is included because of its Roman Remains, 18th Century Architecture, 18th Century Town Planning, Social Setting, Hot Springs and Landscape Setting. A (retrospective) Statement of Bath's Outstanding Universal Value was adopted by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee in June 2013.
https://visitbath.co.uk/