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Colchester Audio Tour: Unsung Hands

Audioguida11 tappe

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.

Anteprima del tour

map

Informazioni su questo tour

  • schedule
    Durata 30–50 minsVai al tuo ritmo
  • straighten
    3.3 km di percorso a piediSegui il percorso guidato
  • location_on
  • wifi_off
    Funziona offlineScarica una volta, usa ovunque
  • all_inclusive
    Accesso a vitaRiascolta quando vuoi, per sempre
  • location_on
    Parte da Balkerne Gate, Colchester

Tappe di questo 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.

Domande frequenti

Come inizio il tour?

Dopo l'acquisto, scarica l'app AudaTours e inserisci il tuo codice di riscatto. Il tour sarà pronto per partire immediatamente – tocca play e segui il percorso guidato dal GPS.

Ho bisogno di internet durante il tour?

No! Scarica il tour prima di iniziare e goditelo completamente offline. Solo la funzione chat richiede internet. Ti consigliamo di scaricare tramite WiFi per risparmiare dati mobili.

È un tour guidato di gruppo?

No – è un tour audio autoguidato. Esplori in autonomia al tuo ritmo, con la narrazione audio riprodotta dal tuo telefono. Nessuna guida, nessun gruppo, nessun orario.

Quanto dura il tour?

La maggior parte dei tour richiede 60–90 minuti, ma sei tu a controllare il ritmo. Metti in pausa, salta le tappe o fai pause quando vuoi.

E se non riesco a finire il tour oggi?

Nessun problema! I tour hanno accesso a vita. Metti in pausa e riprendi quando vuoi – domani, la prossima settimana o il prossimo anno. I tuoi progressi vengono salvati.

Quali lingue sono disponibili?

Tutti i tour sono disponibili in oltre 50 lingue. Seleziona la lingua preferita quando riscatti il codice. Nota: la lingua non può essere cambiata dopo la generazione del tour.

Dove accedo al tour dopo l'acquisto?

Scarica l'app gratuita AudaTours dall'App Store o Google Play. Inserisci il codice di riscatto (inviato via email) e il tour apparirà nella tua libreria, pronto per essere scaricato e avviato.

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Se il tour non ti piace, ti rimborseremo l'acquisto. Contattaci a [email protected]

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Un ottimo modo per conoscere Brighton senza sentirsi un turista. La narrazione aveva profondità e contesto, senza esagerare.
Christoph
Christoph
Tour Brighton
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