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Colchester Audio Tour: Unsung Hands

Guía de audio11 paradas

Colchester has been Britain's oldest recorded town since a Roman centurion named Favonius Facilis had his tombstone raised here in AD 50. This tour is not about the Romans, Normans, or earls who commissioned the monuments. It is about the legionaries who mixed the mortar, the Flemish weavers who fled Alva's army and rebuilt a cloth trade in Maidenburgh Street, the monk who told Henry VIII to his face that he would not give up his abbey, the ordinary townspeople who ate cats and dogs through eleven weeks of Civil War siege, the maidservant Mary Last who kept nine Victorians fed and dressed, and the builder's men from Hythe Hill who laid 1.2 million bricks for a water tower their rector called an elephant.

Vista previa del tour

map

Sobre este tour

  • schedule
    Duración 30–50 minsVe a tu propio ritmo
  • straighten
    3.3 km de ruta a pieSigue el camino guiado
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  • wifi_off
    Funciona sin conexiónDescarga una vez, úsalo en cualquier lugar
  • all_inclusive
    Acceso de por vidaReprodúcelo en cualquier momento, para siempre
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    Comienza en Balkerne Gate, Colchester

Paradas en este tour

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Balkerne GateThe largest surviving Roman gateway in Britain, built into the west wall of Camulodunum around AD 70-90. Originally a monumental arch celebrating the Claudian conquest of AD 43, incorporated and expanded by the wall-gang that built Camulodunum's defences after the Boudican revolt. Four carriageways and two pedestrian arches; today the south pedestrian passage and guardroom survive. The tombstone of Marcus Favonius Facilis, centurion of the Twentieth Legion, was raised nearby around AD 50 — the monument was paid for and erected by his freed slaves, Verecundus and Novicius.
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Jumbo Water TowerThe 1882 water tower designed by Charles Clegg, Borough Engineer, and built by Everett & Sons of Hythe Hill. Stands 131 feet 5 inches; 1.2 million locally-produced bricks; cost £11,138. The tank — 230,000 gallons weighing 1,000 tons — was supplied by AG Mumford from the iron foundry on Culver Street. Named 'Jumbo' by Reverend John Irvine, rector of St Mary's at the Walls, who wrote to the Essex Standard complaining about 'such a huge building' being planned next to his garden, and compared it to the famous London Zoo elephant.
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English Heritage - St John's Abbey GateThe sole surviving remnant of the wealthy Benedictine abbey of St John, founded 1096. Built around 1400 in response to the Peasants' Revolt, its elaborate East Anglian flushwork makes it the most ornate medieval gatehouse in Essex. The last Abbot of St John's was John Beche (alias Thomas Marshall), who refused to surrender the abbey to Henry VIII. Found guilty of treason by a jury headed by the Earl of Essex, he was hanged on his own demesne lands in Colchester on 1 December 1539 — the last abbot in England to be executed for refusing dissolution.
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English Heritage - St Botolph's PrioryThe ruins of the first Augustinian priory in England, founded c.1093. The founding story names the people: a local priest called Ainulf and a companion sent Norman to France to learn the Rule of St Augustine from the abbey of Mont-Saint-Éloi, who returned and established the house under Archbishop Anselm's protection. The priory was dissolved in 1536; in 1648, Parliamentary cannon reduced the nave to its present ruinous state during the siege of Colchester. The west front, circular pillars and round arches remain, built in flint and reused Roman brick.
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Priory Street Car ParkThe best-preserved section of Colchester's Roman town wall — 2,800 metres of it survive, up to 6 metres high and 2.4 metres wide, built around AD 70-90 in five courses of septaria alternating with four courses of Roman tile. Britain's oldest substantial town wall. This section, running along Priory Street between the abbey ruins and the south gate, was the wall that Parliamentary artillery was firing past in 1648 when St Botolph's nave fell. The wall has been repaired, modified and built against in every century since its construction.
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Saint Helen's LaneA short medieval lane running south from the Dutch Quarter to High Street, named for the chapel of St Helen that once stood here — traditionally associated with Helena, daughter of Old King Cole and mother of Constantine. This is the threshold where the Dutch Quarter's working weaving households met the commercial High Street; the lane served as the route along which bays and says cloth moved from the weaver's workshop to the market.

Preguntas frecuentes

¿Cómo empiezo el tour?

Después de la compra, descarga la app AudaTours e ingresa tu código de canje. El tour estará listo para comenzar de inmediato - solo toca play y sigue la ruta guiada por GPS.

¿Necesito internet durante el tour?

¡No! Descarga el tour antes de empezar y disfrútalo completamente sin conexión. Solo la función de chat requiere internet. Recomendamos descargar en WiFi para ahorrar datos móviles.

¿Es un tour guiado en grupo?

No - esta es una audioguía autoguiada. Exploras de forma independiente a tu propio ritmo, con narración de audio reproduciéndose en tu teléfono. Sin guía, sin grupo, sin horario.

¿Cuánto dura el tour?

La mayoría de los tours toman 60–90 minutos para completar, pero tú controlas el ritmo completamente. Pausa, salta paradas o toma descansos cuando quieras.

¿Qué pasa si no puedo terminar el tour hoy?

¡No hay problema! Los tours tienen acceso de por vida. Pausa y continúa cuando quieras - mañana, la próxima semana o el próximo año. Tu progreso se guarda.

¿Qué idiomas están disponibles?

Todos los tours están disponibles en más de 50 idiomas. Selecciona tu idioma preferido al canjear tu código. Nota: el idioma no se puede cambiar después de generar el tour.

¿Dónde accedo al tour después de comprarlo?

Descarga la app gratuita AudaTours desde App Store o Google Play. Ingresa tu código de canje (enviado por email) y el tour aparecerá en tu biblioteca, listo para descargar y comenzar.

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