Searching for Mr. Darcy in Bath

Sadly I did not find him, nor did I find my beloved Colonel Brandon.

But, as a certified Janeite (a Jane Austen enthusiast), I certainly tried! I did, however enjoy exploring the city which Jane Austen spent time in during the late 18th and early 19th centuries, and incorporated into many of her novels. While none of her Bath residences are open to the public (several no longer exist), The Jane Austen Centre is housed in a Georgian townhouse just doors down from one she lived in and is almost identical. It was interesting to learn more about the author, her family, and the role Bath played in the social lives of its visitors during the Regency period -- dancing, socializing, gossiping, card games, tea drinking, and of course taking the waters at The Pump Rooms.

Before I even began exploring the Bath of the Romans (the next post), there was so much else to see in Bath. Here are some of the highlights.

Built in 1767, the magnificent Royal Crescent is made up of 30 Georgian townhouses.

No. 1, out of the picture on the far right, is preserved as a museum,

but was sadly closed while we were visiting for renovations.

 

The Parade Gardens are a lovely Victorian public garden and park, overlooking the a river Avon and Pulteney Bridge.

What would an English park be without a bandstand and band concert?

And a proper floral tribute to the Queen's Diamond Jubilee. Long may she reign!

 

Pulteney Bridge is often compared to Florence's Ponte Vecchio. Crossing the Avon, it beautifully connects the city.

 

A view of the bridge, and...

 

...from the bridge of the weir.

 

 

Bath Abbey, completed in 1611, is on a site that has been occupied by various cathedrals and churches since 757 AD.

 

The Abbey was built in 1499, but lay in ruins for many years. The current exterior dates to 1616 and the interior to 1864.

The minute you walk through the door of the abbey, your eyes are drawn up to the beautiful fan vaulting of the nave ceiling.

 

The stunning Gothic nave.

Many battle-worn flags hang from the rafters. If only they could tell us their stories.

 

Fashionable members of Georgian society would come to the Assembly Rooms, completed in 1771, to socialize.

 

You might arrive in this, or...

 

...one of these.

The Card Room

The Great Octagon

The Tea Room

The Ball Room

 

We were fortunate that while we were there, Jubilee: Dressing the Monarchy on Stage and Screen had just opened in the Ball Room, featuring costumes from television, movie and stage productions featuring royalty.

 

Who can forget Helen Mirren...

as Queen Elizabeth I.

Here's a very young Kenneth Branagh as...

... Henry V.

and Mrs. Wyman as ...?

 

Located in the oldest house in Bath (c. 1482), afternoon tea at Sally Lunn's was a real treat. Instead of finger sandwiches, world famous Sally Lunn Bath Buns are served. I loved that Roman ruins were excavated on the site and are preserved and displayed in the basement museum.

Sally Lunn was a French Huguenot refugee, who settled in England in 1680. I've recently begun exploring my Hugenot ancestry in upstate New York, so I was interested by this connection.

Sally Lunn brioche-type buns are massive!

For afternoon tea, they are served with salmon.

What is afternoon tea without scones, jam, and clotted cream,

which Jennie and I elevated into its own food group!

At the end of a long day of walking all over this very hilly city, and having passed on lunch, we felt we had earned this gastronomic treat!

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