AROUND twenty club members and a few relatives enjoyed a guided walk around the lovely old market town of Bishop’s Waltham.
What a history the town has! Bishop’s Waltham Society stalwarts Alan Inder, president, and Tony Kippenberger, chairman, informed and entertained with their knowledge of its past.
It was a perfect sum
mer’s evening to amble along the old streets and footpaths and to be told of the events that had unfolded over the centuries. After the Battle of Trafalgar French prisoners were billeted around the town and Admiral Villeneuve was held in the Crown pub, marked today by a Blue plaque. He was later executed on Napoleon’s orders.
Many royal visitors were hosted at Bishop’s Waltham palace that was built as a residence for the bishops of Winchester. It’s now mainly a ruin housing the town museum in the grounds.
The walkers are pictured,left, in picturesque St Peter’s Street leading from the medieval church, though little of the original building remains, having undergone several restorations.
The evening ended with a meal at the Black Dog pub in nearby Waltham Chase, pictured below.
