Visit Canterbury England

River Stour, Canterbury England
2023 Geoffrey Sutton

 Millions visit the ancient city of Canterbury in Kent England. I'll post some photos and links to illustrate this beautiful place to walk through history whilst enjoying the present.

I arrived in Canterbury from London's St Pancras Station where I had alighted from the Eurostar from Paris around midday Saturday 29 April 2023. Whilst waiting for my room to become available, I wandered about the historic streets.

St George's Tower is on St George's Street in the centre of Canterbury. It's what is left from an old church honouring St George the Martyr.

There are a plethora of old churches in the UK. First up, St Thomas.

And next, St Paul's

I prepare my own breakfast and most lunches so I headed into Waitrose where they were ready for the upcoming coronation of King Charles III.

After checking in my room, it was time for some British nourishment. 

I headed off to the Two Sawyers Pub and snapped a photo of King's School.

King's school is Britain's oldest continuously operating public school dating to 597. As such, it may be the oldest in the world.

Below- Steak and Ale at the Two Sawyers.

Sunday 30 April

I head out early and checked out the old royal couple, King Ethelbert and Queen Bertha who welcomed St Augustine when he arrived in May 597.

If you enjoy, history, I recommend  St Augustine's Abbey.  Despite the ruins, it's a fascinating look at early religious and cultural life. There's a child-friendly museum and a fine place for a picnic lunch. The audio guide is also in a family-friendly version.

Visit St Augustine's Abbey

           

In the afternoon, I walked over to Canterbury Cathedral. The cathedral is home to the Archbishop of Canterbury but I missed him because he was in London for the big Royal do. Check out my photos of this grand example of architecture, beautiful stained glass windows, the resting place of kings and princes (Black Prince) and the incredible pilgrimage site of Thomas Becket-- the priest who was murdered in the cathedral. See my Canterbury Cathedral blog for more.

Canterbury Cathedral 2023

Geoffrey Sutton

I ended another day with fish n chips at the Seafarer and a waffle at Kaspas.

Monday 1 May 2023

I took a break from history to enjoy the seaside, which is only a few miles away. If you are up for sand and surf, check out my posts on Herne Bay and Whitstable.

2 May, Tuesday

Today I head back some 2,000 years to peruse the treasures in the Roman Museum. I recommend it. I put my photos in a separate post. And it's very child-friendly--you could hear them laughing and playing at art projects linked to old Roman ways.

I couldn't resist a photo of  that other Geoffrey- - Chaucer holding his famous Canterbury tales.

Then a stop at some old shops and a look at the Old Weaver's House

and a look at the canal where tourists gather for a boat ride.

Another place worth at least a quick look is England's oldest church. According to the old story, Queen Bertha worshipped at St Martins in the 500s. See my separate post for photos of St Martin's Church.

In the afternoon, I visited Westgate Gardens and the River Stour where I took way too many photos. It's hard to convey the beauty-- well done Canterbury! On a sunny day I joined the locals in relaxing and having my picnic lunch.

Tonight's fare is another fish n' chips-- this time at the Thomas Ingoldsby Wetherspoon. Tom (pen name for Richard Harris Barham) lived across the street and wrote the Ingoldsby Legends (1840) edited by Charlie (Charles Dickens).

Wednesday, 3 May 2023

At the western edge of the old town is the western gate aptly named, Westgate.

By the western railway station is an old Goods Shed. It's a farmer's market- worth a look if you're in the market for local goods, speciality foods, and a coffee.

Later, I returned to the nearby Canterbury Cathedral to visit a few places I missed on the first visit- The fabulous Chapter House and a small collection of treasures. They are included in the Canterbury Cathedral post.

4 Thursday

I walked to the westside railway station for my return trip to London.

Sponsor

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Google Map of Canterbury

Please check out my webpage to see if any of my books on psychology topics might be of interest.

Geoffrey W. Sutton suttong.com

List of related Canterbury posts

Canterbury Cathedral

St Augustine's Abbey

St Martin's Church

Roman Museum - Canterbury

Herne Bay

Whitstable

Notes

Canterbury is an easy 1-2 day trip from London. Depending on the time and day, a train ride can take a little over one hour.

It was not very busy when I visited in early May.

I saved money on train travel using a Rail Card

I saved money on entrance fees with my English Heritage membership.

BritRail passes are available for Americans and include family plans.

St Martin's Church in Kent, England

St Martin's Church/ Geoffrey Sutton 2023

 St. Martin's Church is an ancient Church of England parish church in Canterbury, England. It is the oldest church in England still being used for its original purpose and is part of the Canterbury world heritage site³. 

St Martin's Church/ Geoffrey Sutton 2023

The church was first built during the Roman occupation. In the 500s, it was the place where Queen Bertha of Kent³ worshipped. Queen Bertha was a Christian married to the pagan King Ethelbert³. 

King Ethelbert of Kent

Queen Bertha of Kent

She welcomed St Augustine to England and he used the church as his the base for his missionary work in England, which included what would later be named St Augustine's Abbey and Canterbury Cathedral.

The church sign briefly notes the history and provides current information.

St Martin's Church/ Geoffrey Sutton 2023

St Martin's Church Graveyard 2023
Geoffrey Sutton/ suttong.com

St Martin's Church/ Geoffrey Sutton 2023

Short YouTube video of the church

Google Map

Sponsor

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Buy on AMAZON

Buy on Google Books

Please check out my website   www.suttong.com

   and see my books on   AMAZON       or  GOOGLE STORE

Also, consider connecting with me on    FACEBOOK   Geoff W. Sutton    

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Resource book for Canterbury England

Sources: 

Geoffrey W Sutton edited Conversation with Bing, 22/05/2023

(1) Canterbury: St Martin - CHR Church - Church of England. https://facultyonline.churchofengland.org/CHR/ChurchDetails.aspx?id=1571.

(2) . https://bing.com/search?q=summary+of+st+Martin%27s+church+kent+england.

(3) St. Martin's Church. http://www.martinpaul.org/stmartins.htm.

(4) St Martin's Church, Canterbury - Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Martin%27s_Church,_Canterbury.

(5) St. Martin’s Church of Canterbury is the oldest church in ... - Aleteia. https://aleteia.org/2019/10/29/st-martins-church-of-canterbury-is-the-oldest-church-in-the-entire-english-speaking-world/.

St Augustine's Abbey in Canterbury, Kent England

Walking the grounds of the ancient St Augustine's Abbey makes English history come alive thanks to the preservation of these historic structures and an onsite museum.

St Augustine's Abbey is part of the World Heritage site, which includes St Martin's Church and Canterbury Cathedral.

A short video clip showing the grounds of St Augustine's Abbey.

The Romans brought Christianity to Britain but the local Anglos-Saxon tribes worshipped other gods. According to the storyboards at St Augustine's Abbey, Pope Gregory I was influenced to send Augustine to England when he saw the plight of pagan English children sold in a slave market. Augustine arrived in 597.

Augustine was received by Queen Bertha who was a Christian and worshipping at nearby St Martin's church. She appears to have encouraged her husband, King Ethelbert, to donate the land, which became the first monastic site now known as St Augustine's Abbey. 

He also supported St Martin's church where St Augustine began his missionary efforts and 

provided the land for Canterbury Cathedral.

Following the Norman invasion of 1066, the abbey was modified in the Norman style. A wall and outline remains.

Normal church ruins in 2023
St Augustine's Abbey

Signs mark the locations where regional kings and religious leaders were buried.

In the 600s, St Mary's church was built near Augustine's original church. Around 1050, Abbot Wulfric began building a circular tower to join the two churches. The remains of this tower are depicted below.

Wulfric's Tower c 1050
Geoffrey Sutton 2023

The monks had their own burial site. Below are the ruins of their crypt, which was part of a new Norman church of 1091.

The Crypt

The site of the tombs for early archbishops is covered by a roof.

Other monastic structures are identified by informative signboards.

Outline of dining hall site
St Augustine's Abbey 2023
Geoffrey Sutton/ suttong.com

Cloister and Scriptorium site
St Augustine's Abbey 2023
Geoffrey Sutton/ suttong.com

Lady chapel and crypt
St Augustine's Abbey 2023
Geoffrey Sutton/ suttong.com

The experience is enhanced by a museum containing a history of the site on illustrated storyboards and some archaeological discoveries.

The following example describes the building of the abbey.

The glass-enclosed case includes finds from the burial of an abbot.

Dissolution

Following the divorce of King Henry VIII from Catherine of Aragon, the king made himself the head of the Church of England. Eventually, the monasteries became the property of the government (the crown).

Notes on St Augustine's Abbey

Based on my April 2023 visit

____________________

The site is maintained by English Heritage.

There is an entrance fee.

Entry is free for English Heritage members.

An audio guide is included with the entrance fee; however, it did not work for all of the sites.

The museum is small but informative and includes a gift shop and toilets.

The museum also includes child-friendly activities.

The grounds are well-maintained and provide a nice opportunity for a walk and a picnic lunch.

Google map of St Augustine's Abbey

Sponsor

Mind the Gap - A Fun and Informative Look at British Culture

Buy on AMAZON

Please check out my website   www.suttong.com

   and see my books on   AMAZON       or  GOOGLE STORE

Also, consider connecting with me on    FACEBOOK   Geoff W. Sutton    

   TWITTER  @Geoff.W.Sutton    

Related sites

Canterbury Cathedral

St Martin's Church - England oldest active church

A resource book on Canterbury