 Church Street, Lacock | ||
| Lacock | ||
| county | Wiltshire | |
|---|---|---|
| Residents | approx. 1,000 | |
no value for residents on Wikidata:  | ||
| no tourist info on Wikidata: | ||
| location | ||
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Lacock is a village in Wiltshire. The medieval town center is completely listed, 86 of the 116 buildings belong to the National Trust. The Lacock Abbey mansion is on the outskirts. The nearest larger town is Melksham.
background
Already around 870 there was a settlement at the location of today's village. The buildings of this settlement stood on the banks of the Bide stream. The Saxon name of the village was "Lacuc", which means "little stream". The Bide runs through the village and flows into the Avon in the fields north of Lacock Abbey. In 1232 the Lacock Abbey nunnery was founded. At the end of the 15th century, Lacock was on the main road from London to Bath and was involved in the wool trade. You got the right to hold a weekly market and a fair. Most of the buildings that make up the village date from the 18th century, but some are significantly older. They are still inhabited today. Lacock has been used as a backdrop for films a number of times, including "Emma" and three parts of "Harry Potter".
getting there
By plane
- Bristol Airport. The closest airport, which is served by Berlin, Frankfurt am Main, Hamburg and Munich, among others.
- London Heathrow Airport. Approx. 145 km / 91 mi away, connections to e.g. Berlin, Dresden, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt am Main, Hamburg, Munich and Stuttgart.
- Birmingham Airport. Approx. 145 km / 91 mi away, connections to Berlin, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt am Main, Hamburg and Munich, among others.
By train
The nearest train stations are in Melksham (5 km / 3 mi) and Chippenham (3.5 mi). The trains are from First great western operated.
- from Melksham connection to Chippenham and Trowbridge, among others
- from Chippenham connection to Bath, among others
| Distances | |
| Avebury | 23 km / 14 mi |
|---|---|
| Bath | 22 km / 14 mi |
| Bradford on Avon | 14 km / 9 mi |
| Dover | 290 km / 181 mi |
| London Heathrow | 145 km / 91 mi |
| Stonehenge | 43 km / 27 mi |
By bus
The bus routes First 234 (Monday to Saturday) and Faresaver X34 (Monday to Friday) drive from Chippenham via Lacock to Frome. The stop is at the George Inn.
In the street
Lacock is on the A 350, which begins on the M 4 (London-Bristol-Swansea) and from here goes south (via Warminster and Shaftesbury to Poole). Bath can be reached via Chippenham and the A4.
By boat
The Dover ferry terminal is approx. 290 km / 181 mi away, at the moment (as of 2014) the following connections are available:
- With DFDS from Dover to Calais
- With P&O from Dover to Calais
- With My Ferry Link from Dover to Calais
- With DFDS from Dover to Dunkirk
mobility
Lacock is best explored on foot. There is a paid parking lot about 200 m from the Herrenhaus. Roadside parking for visitors is not allowed in the village.
Tourist Attractions
- 1 Lacock Abbey
- Lacock Abbey. Tel.: 44 (0)1249 730459. Open: until the end of October daily 10.30 a.m. to 5.30 p.m. (Tuesdays the rooms of the manor house are not accessible), November / December daily, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., the rooms of the abbey only Sat / Sun (as of 2013).Price: £ 10.80 (abbey rooms, cloister, garden, museum).
Lacock Abbey was founded in 1232 by the Countess of Salisbury in memory of her husband, William Longspee.
After the Reformation, King Henry VIII sold the abbey to Sir William Sharington, who turned the monastery into a mansion from 1539. His descendants have lived here ever since. What is unusual is the fact that most of the monastery buildings were intrigued into the manor house. Only nothing has survived from the monastery church. The cloister (the well-preserved bosses are worth seeing) with the chapter house now forms the ground floor of the house. Sir William had an octagonal tower added to the southeast corner of the building. With the exception of the Entrance Hall, which was added later in Gothic style, the appearance of the abbey has hardly changed since the 16th century.
In 1944 the abbey, village and land that was still owned by the family were given to the National Trust.
- 2 Talbot Museum
- Talbot Museum. Open: Daily 10.30 a.m. to 5.30 p.m.
The museum is located on the upper floor of the 16th century barn belonging to Lacock Abbey. The owner of the mansion was William Henry Fox Talbot (* 1800, † 1877), who was interested in various areas of the natural sciences and humanities. His outstanding discovery in 1834 was the principle of the negative-positive process in photography and thus its reproducibility. The museum is dedicated to this pioneering work.
Lacock is grouped around 4 streets: High Street, West Street, Church Street and East Street. The historic buildings in the village are well worth seeing:
- 3 Tithe Barn & Lock up (Corner of East and High Street)
The tithe barn dates from the 14th century. Next to the barn is a "lock up" from the 18th century. This is a tiny room in which drunks and troublemakers were locked in the dark.
- 4 King John's Hunting Lodge (Church Street)
The building is probably the oldest in the village. When it was built, it stood in Melksham Forest and was King John's hunting lodge. It was recently discovered that parts of the wooden roof structure date from the 13th century. A tea room is housed in an extension from the Tudor period.
- 5 St Cyriac's Church (Church Street)
The origins of the church go back to a building from Norman times. However, only a few stones have survived from him. Most of the current building, which was erected on a cross-shaped basement, dates from the late 14th and early 15th centuries. The Lady Chapel was built between 1420 and 1430. It has a beautiful vaulted ceiling, stone carvings and houses the tomb of Sir William Sharington, the first secular owner of Lacock Abbey. In the south aisle is the "Baynard Brass", a grave slab with brass portraits. It is reminiscent of Robert and Elizabeth Baynard, their 13 sons and 5 daughters and dates from 1501.
activities
- Walks in the park of Lacock Abbey or in the surrounding area of the village
- Concerts and theater visits in Bath
shop
There are a few small shops in the village:
- Wiltshire Crafts, Church Street. Tel.: 44 (0)1249 730226.
The next big supermarkets are in Melksham:
- Sainsbury's, Bath Road, Melksham. Tel.: 44 (0)1225 791727. Open: Mon to Sat 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., Sun 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
kitchen
Cheap
medium
- 1 The George Inn, 4 West Street. Tel.: 44 (0)1249 730263, Fax: 44 (0)1249 730186, Email: [email protected]. Open: Mon to Thu 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Fri / Sat 11 a.m. to 11 p.m., Sun 11 a.m. to 10.30 p.m. (bar).Price: starter from £ 4.50, main course £ 9.25.
- 2 Red Lion, 1 high street. Tel.: 44 (0)1249 730456, Email: [email protected]. Open: Mon to Fri 8 a.m. to 11 p.m., Sat / Sun 9 a.m. to 11 p.m.Price: starter from £ 5.00, main course from £ 10.00.
Upscale
- 2 The Sign of the Angel, Church Street. Tel.: 44 (0)1249 730230, Fax: 44 (0)1249 730527, Email: [email protected].
nightlife
The nightlife in Lacock is limited to the pubs. If you are looking for more, you should go for Bath drive.
accommodation
Cheap
- Piccadilly Caravan Park, 0.5 mi of Lacock. Tel.: 44 (0)1249 730260, Email: [email protected]. Open: April to October.Price: From £ 16.00.
medium
- 1 Red Lion ****, 1 high street. Tel.: 44 (0)1249 730456, Email: [email protected]. Price: Double from £ 80.00.
- Lacock Pottery B&B ****, The Tanyard, Church Street. Tel.: 44 (0)1249 730266. Price: Double from £ 89.00.
- The Old Rectory ****, Cantax Hill. Tel.: 44 (0)1249 730335. Price: from £ 80.00 per person per night.
Upscale
- 2 The Sign of the Angel, Church Street. Tel.: 44 (0)1249 730230, Fax: 44 (0)1249 730527, Email: [email protected]. Price: Double from £ 129.00.
Holiday home
- 2 high street, 2 high street. Tel.: 44 (0)844 8002070. Price: From £ 428.00 to £ 710.00 for 2 nights, up to 6 people.
health
In Lacock itself there is no doctor or pharmacy, the closest can be found e.g. in Melksham:
- Boots (drugstore and pharmacy), 19 High Street, Melksham. Tel.: 44 (0)1225 703139. Open: Mon to Sat 9:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Practical advice
There is no tourist information office. Information and a leaflet are available from the Lacock Abbey cash register or the National Trust Shop on High Street. There is an overview plan of the village here. Since Lacock consists of only four streets, it is not difficult to find your way around.
The post office is located in the Lacock stores.
Post code: SN 15
Area code: 01249, from abroad 44 1249
trips
- Avebury and Stonehenge. Avebury and Stonehenge belong to the world's most famous megalithic sites. They have been one since 1986 UNESCO World Heritage Site.
- Bath. The buildings of the city reflect its long history: from the baths of the Romans to the medieval abbey church to the elegant streets (e.g. the Royal Crescent) in the classical style. Bath has been one since 1987 UNESCO World Heritage Site.
- Bradford on Avon. The small market town has retained its historical appearance. The oldest building, the Church of St. Laurence, dates back to around 700 AD. In the Bradford area, Great Chalfield Manor and The Courts Gardens are worth seeing.
- Cotswolds. The AONB (Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty) Cotswolds is an agricultural, hilly region. Sheep have been raised here since the 12th century, and their wool made the area rich. This is reflected in the so-called "Wool Churches" (e.g. St. John the Baptist, Cirencester or St. Mary's, Fairford). Many meadows are still bordered by dry stone walls.
Typical are small towns and villages (e.g. Broadway, Chipping Campden or Painswick) that were built from the honey-colored limestone that is mined here. The highest point is Cleeve Hill (1,083 ft / 330 m) near Cheltenham.
