The legacy of Spa gardens in Bath

This talk is organised by Avon Gardens Trust. For full details and booking please go to the Book Tickets button. Please direct all other enquiries via email to events@avongardenstrust.org.uk

Gardens have always been an essential attribute for European spa towns. This talk will explore how the principal spa gardens in Bath informed the architecture and development of the terraces and crescents in the city.

Eighteenth century doctors in Bath realised that leisure and exercise made an important contribution to restoring and maintaining health and so exercise in gardens and setting of the city were essential parts of the cure. Accordingly, all the gardens with other green spaces, woodlands, the fabric of the city and attractive surrounding countryside are held to be a ‘therapeutic landscape’. This is an essential attribute for the eleven spa towns in the recent UNESCO inscription of ‘The Great Spa Towns of Europe World Heritage Site’.

Christopher Pound