Some Towns Don’t Have A Castle, Sherborne In Dorset Has Two

Sherborne is a delightful market town ideally located in the north west corner of the county of Dorset. It has a lovely setting on the River Yeo, and is within touching distance of the Blackmore Vale, an area that was a great inspiration to the famous Dorset born author, Thomas Hardy, of Tess of the D'Ubervilles fame.

When tourists travel to Britain from abroad, they are often hoping to visit places that are pleasing to the eye, as well as having an interesting history. Sherborne certainly fits the bill in both those respects. There are many buildings in the old town which are constructed of an appealing ochre coloured ham stone, while as far as history goes, it is hard to better a town that has mentions going back to Saxon times, was once the capital of Wessex which was one of seven such kingdoms at the time, and has two kings buried in its abbey.

Sherborne Castle - the more "modern" version

As befits a town that wears its history well, the abbey and the manor house are joined by not one but two castles, Sherborne being one of the very few English towns that has this distinction. One is the remains of a twelfth century fortified palace-style building, while in true British fashion, the “new” castle dates from the sixteenth century, having been constructed by Sir Walter Raleigh. In truth it was intended more as an Elizabethan mansion, but bears the name Sherborne Castle.

Again, a little casually, Sherborne can rightly claim that it was home to its first educational establishment as far back as Saxon times, and indeed it is said that King Alfred was educated in the town. History was probably a popular subject as there was very little of it at the time! Now known simply as Sherborne School it is deemed to be one of the top independent schools in the country. There are a number of other well regarded education establishments in the area.

Sherborne is a popular area for those who are retired, with nearly a third of the population being of retirement age. This is probably because of the easy pace of life and the attractiveness of the environment, and in many ways this is why it has proved a popular destination with tourists.

Its location makes it easy to reach if you are holidaying in Dorset, Somerset, Wiltshire and north Devon, and there are many other family based attractions that will keep the whole family happy. The Fleet Air Arm Museum at Yeovilton has always been close to the top of any self respecting day tripping list, and Salisbury Plain, Stonehenge and Longleat will keep the family entertained. Slightly further away you have the excitement and vibrancy of south coastal resorts such as  Weymouth, Poole and Bournemouth, with Weymouth in particular having an increased popularity this year with the Olympic sailing events taking place there.

To the north of Sherborne you will come under the influence of the north Devon tourist fraternity, where brooding Exmoor National Park is another beautiful area that inspired a famous author, namely R.D. Blackmore who wrote Lorna Doone.

                                                        Sherborne Tourism Information