GENERAL FEATURES

Bath is the largest city in the county of Somerset, England, known for and named after its Roman-built baths. In 2011, the population was 88,859.Bath is in the valley of the River Avon, 97 miles (156 km) west of London and 11 miles (18 km) southeast of Bristol. The city became a World Heritage site in 1987.

Bath is the Avon Valley near the southern edge of the Cotswolds, a range of limestone hills designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The hills that surround and make up the city have a maximum altitude of 238 metres on the Lansdown plateau. Bath has an area of 28 squarekilometres.  

One of Bath's principal industries is tourism, with annually more than one million stayingvisitors and 3.8 million day visitors. The visits mainly fall into the categories of heritage tourism and cultural tourism. An inhabitant of Bath is known as a Bathonian. 

THE STORY OF THE CITY

Legend has it that the city of Bath was founded by King Bladud, who recovered from leprosy after bathing in its muddy waters. However, it was only with the Romans, who called the city Aquae Salis, that the area where today's Bath stands, truly became a famous spa resort. Bath has therefore always been a spa of considerable importance. Archaeological finds, in fact, have led scholars to believe that the sulphurous waters that flow under the city have been used for over 2500 years. So thespas built by the Romans around 40 BC were not the first: in all probability the Celts had already built them in today's Bath territory.  

 In 577, after passing under various dominations, the city - which had distinguished itself for the processing of wool - was conquered by the Saxons who erected the first religious building here (right where the abbey now stands). In the eighteenth century it was decided to economically exploit the therapeutic qualities of the waters of Bath, and the city was rebuilt and modernized: it was the beginning of a new golden age: the architects Wood (father and son) designed the semi-circular buildings and the unmistakable terraces.

Bath is thus configured as a worldly and elegant holiday resort, visited above all by the English aristocracy. But in the mid-nineteenth century the Baths of Bath decayed, only to regain vigor inthe course of the twentieth century, although during the Second World War it was heavily borbarded. The city today is a famous and appreciated spa and tourist center. 

TOP ATTRACTIONS TO VISIT IN BATH

ROMAN BATHS: The Roman baths of Bath were built at the time of the emperor Vespasian, in 75AD, in the city then called Aquae Sulis. In fact, it seems that in this area, as far back as 10000 BC,water emerged from the subsoil, which is still visible today.They were known throughout the Roman Empire and frequented by people of all social classes. Thecomplex also included a temple dedicated to Sulis, an ancient Celtic goddess of water, and to theRoman goddess Minerva. 

BATH ABBEY: Bath Abbey was formerly a Benedictine monastery in the city of Bath, Somerset.Today it is the parish church of the city. The church, with a Latin cross plan, can hold about 1200people and is used, as well as for religious ceremonies, for civil ceremonies, concerts and readings.  

PULTENEY BRIDGE: The Pulteney bridge spans the Avon River in Bath. It was completed in 1774 and
connects the city with the newer town of Bathwick built in the Georgian style. Realized by Robert
Adam in Palladian style, it is an exceptional structure having shops built on both sides. 

THE JANE AUSTEN CENTRE: The Jane Austen Centre at 40 Gay Street in Bath, Somerset, England, is a permanent exhibition which tells the story of Jane Austen's Bath experience - the effect that visiting and living in the city had on her and her writing.

PRIOR PARK LANDSCAPE: Prior Park Landscape Garden surrounding the Prior Park estate south of
Bath, Somerset, England, was designed in the 18th century by the poet Alexander Pope and the
landscape gardener Capability Brown, and is now owned by the National Trust. The garden was
influential in defining the style known as the "English landscape garden" in continental Europe. 

THE ROYAL CRESCENT: The Royal Crescent is an important residential complex, consisting of 30
terraced housing units arranged in a crescent shape, in the city of Bath, United Kingdom. It was
conceived and developed by John Wood the Younger and built between 1767 and 1774. It is the
most important example of Georgian architecture that can be encountered in the UK and includes "listed buildings", a list of prestigious buildings protected by the state  

SOMETHING ABOUT CULTURE

Bath became the centre of fashionable life in England during the 18th century when its Old Orchard Street Theatre and architectural developments such as Lansdown Crescent, the Royal Crescent, The Circus, and Pulteney Bridge were built. The city is home to the Victoria Art Gallery, the Museum of East Asian Art, and Holburne Museum, numerous commercial art galleries and antique shops, as well as a number of other museums, among them Bath Postal Museum, the FashionMuseum, the Jane Austen Centre, the Herschel Museum of Astronomy and the Roman Baths. 

Person/ writers/ films: During the 18th century Thomas Gainsborough and Sir Thomas Lawrence livedand worked in Bath. John Maggs, a painter best known for coaching scenes, was born and lived in Bath with his artistic family. Jane Austen lived there from 1801 with her father, mother and sister Cassandra, and the family resided at four different addresses until 1806. Jane wrote here Cassandra, Bath has honoured her name with the Jane Austen Centre and a city walk. Austen's Northanger Abbey and Persuasion are set in the city and describe taking the waters, social life, and music recitals. Satirist and Political journalist William Hone was born in Bath in 1780.  

Many films and television programmes have been filmed using its architecture as the backdrop, including the 2004 film of Thackeray's Vanity Fair, The Duchess (2008),The Elusive Pimpernel (1950) ] and The Titfield Thunderbolt (1953). In 2012, Pulteney Weir was used as a replacement location during post production of the film adaptation of Les Misérables. Stunt shots were filmed in October 2012 after footage acquired during the main filming period was found to have errors. 

Parks: Royal Victoria Park, a short walk from the city centre, was opened in 1830 by the 11-year-old
Princess Victoria, and was the first park to carry her name. The public park is overlooked by the Royal
Crescent and covers 23 hectares. It has a skatepark, tennis courts, a bowling green, a putting green and a 12- and 18-hole golf course, a pond, open-air concerts, an annual travelling funfair at Easter and a children's play area. Other parks include Alexandra Park on a hill overlooking the city; Parade Gardens, along the river near the abbey in the city centre; Sydney Gardens, an 18th-century pleasure garden; Henrietta Park; Hedgemead Park; and Alice Park.

CURIOSITIES ABOUT THE CITY

Bath is an artistically and culturally vibrant city. Every month there is a different event including a Christmas market outside of Bath Abbey, but it is especially during the summer season that theaters, squares and city parks are characterized by various concerts and exhibitions ,like the International Music Festival in May, and the Bath Fringe Festival in June. 

The Jane Austen festival: Bath houses the literary legend Jane Austen and for this reason in the autumn, in the elegant British city, the streets and clubs are filled with hundreds of cylinders, caps, sun umbrellas, waistcoats, empire-cut dresses. They are worn by the numerous participants of the Jane Austen Festival, which usually takes place in September. For 10 days, Bath dresses up to celebrate the beloved English writer, author of literary masterpieces such as Pride and Prejudice or Reason and Sentiment.

GASTRONOMY

Looking at the gastronomic culture of Bath we have identified 5 typical foods / dishes. These are: the Bath Buns ( a sweet milk-based roll with crushed sugar sprinkled on top after cooking, inside the bun, a sugar cube or candied fruit zest is placed) , the Bath Oliver Biscuits ( is a hard, dry biscuit or cracker often eaten with cheese) , the Bath Chaps ( is the lower portion of a long-jawed pig's cheeks, skinned and commonly now rolled in breadcrumbs) , the Sally Lunn's Buns ( is a large bun or teacake similar to the sweet brioche breads, it is served warm and sliced with butter) and finally the Bath Soft Cheese (it is a soft cream cheese for bath has a delicious mushroom flavor and is served with a pinch of lemon).