Sherborne Guided Heritage Tour

This is a 2 day (2/3 night) guided walking tour based in Sherborne, Dorset’s most beautiful and historic town. We believe that the best way to do this tour is on foot, so that you can get the best possible appreciation not only of the sites themselves but also of the beautiful countryside, town or villages that surround them. On each of the two days, therefore, there will be a delightful walk of about 5 miles.

The town of Sherborne itself is a fascinating place to discover.

Its original stone and timber-faced buildings which date from the 15th century onwards, its small courtyards and alleys and, of course, its magnificent largely medieval Abbey Church, all give it the feel of a small cathedral town, which it once was – from about 700 AD to 1085.

The church is widely considered to be one of the finest in the country.

Sherborne has a variety of “old-fashioned”, specialist and artisanal shops, as well as several excellent antique shops, art galleries and, of course, busy markets on Thursdays and Saturdays.

The town also boasts one of England’s great public schools - Sherborne Boys School, originally King Edward's School, founded in 1550 and built on the remains of the first abbey buildings. 

There is a small museum, as well as an impressive, early 18th century mansion with an earlier Tudor wing, called Sherborne House, which featured in the BBC TV programme “Restoration”. The intention is to restore the house gradually to its former glory. The main attraction of Sherborne House, other than its series of exhibitions during the year, is its wonderful mural, which was painted by Sir James Thornhill shortly after the house was built.

Sherborne, however, is perhaps best known for its two castles and its connection with Sir Walter Raleigh. The “Old Castle”, which was a kind of fortified palace, was built in the early 12th century, and belonged to the Church until Raleigh spotted it one day and persuaded Queen Elizabeth to lease it to him. He started to transform it into a home, but then abandoned the scheme and decided to build a new residence in the castle’s Deer Park in 1594, calling it “Sherborne Lodge”, which is the main part of today’s (new) Sherborne Castle.

The Old Castle is now a very attractive ruin, and belongs to English Heritage. It withstood many attacks during the Civil War, but was eventually destroyed after a siege led by Cromwell himself, who described the place as “a malicious mischievous Castle, like the owner.”

In 1603, shortly after Queen Elizabeth’s death, Raleigh was imprisoned by King James I for treason in the Tower of London.

He was eventually executed with an axe in 1618. King James allowed Sir John Digby to buy Sherborne Castle in 1617, and his family have owned it ever since.

In 1753 the famous landscape gardener Capability Brown was brought in to create a lake beneath the castle and to design the gardens and attractive walks beside it.

Close to Sherborne is Cadbury Castle, an iron age hill fort believed by some to be the site of King Arthur’s Camelot. At the time when the real or legendary Arthur lived (late 5th, early 6th century), many hillforts were put back into use as they had been centuries before the Romans came.

In the 1960's the Camelot Research Committee did extensive excavations on the 18 acre hilltop, discovering that massive refortifications had taken place during the 5th century and were on such a vast scale that they must have been ordered by an important leader.

These findings and other relevant titbits of discovered information have led people to believe that Cadbury Castle is the most likely site of Camelot.

During this tour, you will be accommodated in a B&B, inn or hotel in Sherborne. On the first day your guide will walk with you to the key sites in the town, including a walk through Sherborne Castle’s Deer Park. At the start of day two, you will be driven to the foot of Cadbury Castle (hill fort), from where you will begin the day’s walking with your guide through beautiful countryside and villages to the Tudor Manor House at Sandford Orcas, with a lunchtime stop on the way at an exceptionally pleasant pub.

The highlights of the guided tour are:

• The historic and unspoilt town of Sherborne
• Sherborne Abbey (Church of St. Mary)
• Sherborne (new) Castle and gardens
• Sherborne Old Castle
• Sherborne School
• Sherborne Museum
• Sherborne House
• Cadbury Castle
• The Manor at Sandford Orcas

Please note that entrance fees to the different sites are not included in the price of the holiday. This is because some people are members of clubs or associations that offer reduced or free admission to historic houses and gardens, or else may be senior citizens or both.

Occasionally we may propose accommodation with a standard and price halfway between A1 and A2.

We can sometimes offer family rooms and special prices for children, depending on the accommodation that is available at the time, but early booking is advisable. Please give us details of your requirements.

For our full range of holidays and how we operate, go to holidays 2008 and why footscape?.