Buildings and architecture of Bath
The buildings and architecture of Bath, a city in Somerset in the south west of England, reveal significant examples of the architecture of England, from the Roman Baths, to the present day. The city became a World Heritage Site in 1987, largely because of its architectural history and the way in which the city landscape draws together public and private buildings and spaces. The many examples of Palladian architecture are purposefully integrated with the urban spaces to provide "picturesque aestheticism". In 2021, the city was added to a second World Heritage Site, a group of historic spa towns across Europe known as the "Great Spas of Europe". Bath is the only entire city in Britain to achieve World Heritage status, and is a popular tourist destination.
Aerial view over northern Bath from a hot air balloon. The famous Royal Crescent is in the centre.
The Great Bath at the Roman Baths. The entire structure above the level of the pillar bases is a later construction.
A head of "Sulis-Minerva" found in the ruins of the Roman baths
Bath Abbey from the Roman Baths Gallery
Bath's city walls were a sequence of defensive structures built around the city of Bath in England. Roman in origin, then restored by the Anglo-Saxons, and later strengthened in the High medieval period, the walls formed a complete circuit, covering the historic core of the modern city, an area of approximately 23 acres (9.3 ha) including the Roman Baths and medieval Bath Abbey. In the mid 18th century most of the town walls and gatehouses were demolished to accommodate the Georgian development of the town. However, the line of the walls can still be traced in the town's street layout.
Remains of Bath's city walls
The East Gate
This surviving portion of the wall is hidden away by a loading bay off Old Orchard Street and shows the scale of the walls, three metres thick and six high