Wells
Encyclopedia
Wells is a cathedral city and civil parish in the Mendip
district of Somerset
, England, on the southern edge of the Mendip Hills
. Although the population recorded in the 2001 census is 10,406, it has had city status since 1205. It is the smallest city in England excluding the City of London
.
The name Wells derives from the three wells
dedicated to Saint Andrew
, one in the market place and two within the grounds of the Bishop's Palace
and cathedral
. There was a small Roman
settlement around the wells, but its importance grew under the Saxons
when King Ine of Wessex
founded a minster church in 704, around which the settlement grew. Wells became a trading centre and involved in cloth making before its involvement in both the English Civil War
and the Monmouth Rebellion
during the 17th century. In the 19th century, transport infrastructure improved with stations on three different railway lines.
The cathedral and the associated religious and architectural history have made Wells a tourist destination, which provides much of the employment. The city has a variety of sporting and cultural activities and houses several schools including The Blue School
, a state coeducational comprehensive school
originally founded in 1654 and the independent
Wells Cathedral School
, which was founded in 909 and is one of the five established musical schools for school-age children in Britain. The historic architecture of the city has also been used as a location for several films and television programmes.
The city was a Roman
settlement but only became an important centre under the Saxons
when King Ine of Wessex
founded a minster church in 704. Two hundred years later, this became the seat of the local bishop; but in 1088, this had been removed to Bath. This caused severe arguments between the canons of Wells and the monks of Bath until the bishopric was renamed as the Diocese of Bath and Wells
, to be elected by both religious houses. Wells became a borough some time before 1160 when Bishop Robert
granted its first charter. Fairs were granted to the City before 1160.
Wells was listed in the Domesday Book
of 1086 as Welle, from the Old English wiells, which was not listed as a town, but included four manors with a population of 132, which implies a population of 500–600. Earlier names for the settlement have been identified which include Fontanetum, in a charter of 725 granted by King Ina to Glastonbury
and Fontanensis Ecclesia. Tidesput or Tithesput furlang relates to the area east of the bishops garden in 1245. An established market had been created in Wells by 1136, and it remained under episcopal control until its city charter from Elizabeth I in 1589.
During the English Civil War
, Parliamentarian troops used the cathedral to stable their horses and damaged much of the ornate sculpture by using it for firing practice. William Penn
stayed in Wells shortly before leaving for America, spending a night at The Crown Inn. Here he was briefly arrested for addressing a large crowd in the market place, but released on the intervention of the Bishop of Bath and Wells.
During the Monmouth Rebellion
the rebel army attacked the cathedral in an outburst against the established church
and damaged the west front. Lead from the roof was used to make bullets, windows were broken, the organ smashed and horses stabled in the nave. Wells was the final location of the Bloody Assizes
on September 23, 1685. In a makeshift court lasting only one day, over 500 men were tried and the majority sentenced to death.
There was a port at Bleadney on the River Axe in the 8th century that enabled goods to be brought to within 3 miles (5 km) of Wells. In the Middle Ages
overseas trade was carried out from the port of Rackley. In the 14th century a French ship sailed up the river and by 1388 Thomas Tanner from Wells used Rackley to export cloth and corn
to Portugal, and received iron
and salt
in exchange. Wells had been a centre for cloth making, however in the 16th and 17th centuries this diminished, but the town retained its important market focus.
Wells has had three railway stations. The first station, Priory Road
, opened in 1859 and was on the Somerset Central Railway (later the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway
) as the terminus of a short branch from Glastonbury
. A second railway, the East Somerset
, opened a branch line from Witham
in 1862 and built a station
to the east of Priory Road. In 1870, a third railway, the Cheddar Valley line
branch of the Bristol and Exeter Railway
from Yatton
, reached Wells and built yet another station, later called Tucker Street
. Matters were somewhat simplified when the Great Western Railway
acquired both the Cheddar Valley and the East Somerset lines and built a link between the two that ran through the S&DJR's Priory Road station. In 1878, when through trains began running between Yatton and Witham, the East Somerset station closed, but through trains did not stop at Priory Road until 1934. Priory Road closed to passenger traffic in 1951 when the S&DJR branch line from Glastonbury was shut, though it remained the city's main goods depot. Tucker Street closed in 1963 under the Beeching Axe
, which closed the Yatton to Witham line to passengers. Goods traffic to Wells ceased in 1964. A Pacific SR West Country, West Country Class steam locomotive no 34092 built by the British Railways Board
was named City of Wells following a ceremony in the city's Priory Road station in 1949. It was used to draw the Golden Arrow service between London and the Continent. It was withdrawn from service in 1964, and rescued from a scrapyard in 1971. It is now undergoing a complete restoration on the Keighley and Worth Valley Railway
in Yorkshire
.
During World War II, Stoberry Park in Wells was the location of a Prisoner of War camp, housing Italian prisoners from the Western Desert Campaign
, and later German prisoners after the Battle of Normandy
. Penleigh Camp on the Wookey Hole
Road was a German working camp.
City status was confirmed and formalised by Queen Elizabeth II
by letters patent
issued under the Great Seal
dated 1 April 1974.
Wells City Council has sixteen councillors, elected from three wards: Central, St.Thomas and St.Cuthbert. It was previously known as Wells Municipal Borough. The City Council has responsibility for local issues, including setting an annual precept (local rate) to cover the council's operating costs and producing annual accounts for public scrutiny. They also evaluate local planning applications and work with the local police, district council officers, and neighbourhood watch
groups on matters of crime, security, and traffic. This includes City Centre management including CCTV, an alcohol ban and regulating street trading permissions including the two funfairs held in the Market Place in May and November each year and the Wells In Bloom competition.
The city council's role also includes initiating projects for the maintenance and repair of city facilities, as well as consulting with the district council on the maintenance, repair, and improvement of highways, drainage, footpaths, public transport, and street cleaning. They are involved in the management of the Community Sports Development Centre at the Blue School, the skateboard
park and allotments in the grounds of the Bishop's Palace, Burcott Road and Barnes Close. Conservation matters (including trees and listed buildings) and environmental issues are also the responsibility of the council. The Wells city arms show an ash tree surrounded by three wells, with the Latin motto Hoc fonte derivata copia (the fullness that springs from this well).
The Town Hall was built in 1778, with the porch and arcade being added in 1861 and the balcony and round windows in 1932. It is a Grade II listed building. It replaced the former on the site of the Market and Assize Hall in the Market Place, and a Canonical House also known as 'The Exchequer', on the authority of an Act of Parliament dated 1779. The building also houses the magistrates courts and other offices. The Assize court last sat here in October 1970.
Wells elects five councillors to Mendip District Council
from the same three wards as are used for the City Council. The Mendip District was formed on April 1, 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972
. The district council is responsible for local planning
and building control, local roads, council housing, environmental health
, market
s and fairs, refuse collection and recycling
, cemeteries and crematoria, leisure services, parks, and tourism
.
Wells has one councillor on the Somerset County Council
, which is responsible for running the largest and most expensive local services such as education
, social services, libraries
, main roads, public transport
, policing
and fire services, trading standards
, waste disposal and strategic planning. Wells is part of the UK Parliament constituency of Wells
. The current Member of Parliament
is Tessa Munt
of the Liberal Democrats
. Wells is within the South West England constituency
of the European Parliament
which elects six Members of the European Parliament using the d'Hondt method
of party-list proportional representation
.
Wells is twinned
with Bad Dürkheim
in Germany and Paray-le-Monial
in the Burgundy region of France.
, The Rifles
and Harry Patch
have the Freedom of the City
.
where they meet the Somerset Levels
. The hills are largely made of carboniferous limestone
, which is quarried at several nearby sites. In the 1960s, the tallest mast in the region, the Mendip UHF television transmitter, was installed on Pen Hill
above Wells.
The water from the springs fills the moat around the Bishops Place and then flows into Keward Brook, which carries it for approximately a mile west to the point where the brook joins the River Sheppey
in the village of Coxley.
Along with the rest of South West England
, the Mendip Hills have a temperate climate
which is generally wetter and milder than the rest of England. The annual mean temperature is about 10 °C (50 °F) with seasonal and diurnal
variations, but due to the modifying effect of the sea, the range is less than in most other parts of the United Kingdom. January is the coldest month with mean minimum temperatures between 1 °C (34 °F) and 2 °C (36 °F). July and August are the warmest months in the region with mean daily maxima around 21 °C (70 °F). In general, December is the dullest month and June the sunniest. The south west of England enjoys a favoured location, particularly in summer, when the Azores High
extends its influence north-eastwards towards the UK.
Cloud
often forms inland, especially near hills, and reduces exposure to sunshine. The average annual sunshine totals around 1600 hours. Rainfall
tends to be associated with Atlantic depressions
or with convection. In summer, convection caused by solar surface heating sometimes forms shower clouds and a large proportion of the annual precipitation falls from showers and thunderstorms at this time of year. Average rainfall is around 800–900 mm (31–35 in). About 8–15 days of snowfall is typical. November to March have the highest mean wind speeds, with June to August having the lightest. The predominant wind direction is from the south west.
, is 10,406. Their average age is 44 years with 2,602 of the people being over the age of 65 years. 4,208 of the population are considered to be economically active. Within the 1,702 people living in the central ward 1,690 are white, and the predominant religion is Christian. Similar profiles are seen amongst the 4,577 people living in St Cuthberts Ward, and the 4,126 living in St Thomas's ward.
/A371
bypass, the centre of town has returned to being a quiet market city. It has all the modern conveniences plus shops, hotels and restaurants. Wells is a popular tourist destination, due to its historical sites, its proximity to Bath, Stonehenge
and Glastonbury
and its closeness to the Somerset coast. Also nearby are Wookey Hole Caves, the Mendip Hills
and the Somerset Levels
. Somerset cheese, including Cheddar
, is made locally. Wells is part of the Wells & Shepton Mallet Travel to Work Area
which also includes Glastonbury, Cheddar and surrounding areas.
goes north-east to Bath and south-west to Glastonbury
and Bridgwater
. The A371 goes north-west to Cheddar
and east to Shepton Mallet
. The B3139 goes west to Highbridge
and north-east to Radstock
. Wells is served by FirstGroup bus services to Bristol, Bath, Frome, Shepton Mallet, Yeovil, Street, Bridgwater, Taunton, Burnham on Sea and Weston-super-Mare, as well as providing some local service. Some National Express coach services call at Wells. The bus station is in Princes Road. The Mendip Way
and Monarch's Way
long-distance footpaths pass through the city, as does National Cycle Route 3.
The Blue School
, founded in 1654, is a state coeducational comprehensive school
and has been awarded Specialist science college status. It has 1,453 students aged 11–18 of both sexes and all ability levels.
Wells Cathedral School
, founded in 909, is an independent school
that has a Christian emphasis and is one of the five established musical schools for school-age children in Britain. The school teaches over 700 pupils
between the ages of 3 and 18. The school's boarding house
s line the northern parts of the city and the music school retains close links with Wells Cathedral. The primary schools in Wells are Stoberry Park School, St Cuthbert's Church of England Infants School, St Joseph and St Teresa Catholic Primary School, and Wells Central CofE Junior School.
includes many historical artefacts from the city and surrounding Mendip Hills
. Wells is part of the West Country Carnival
circuit.
The Wells Film centre shows current releases and, in conjunction with the Wells Film Society shows less well known and historical films. The previous cinema, The Regal in Priory Road, closed in 1993 and is now Kudos Nightclub. It was built in 1935 by ES Roberts from Flemish bond brickwork with Art Deco
features. It is a Grade II listed building, and was on the Buildings at Risk Register until its restoration which included the restoration and repair of the stained glass
façade. Wells Little Theatre is operated by a voluntary society which started in 1902. In 1989 they took over the old boy's building of Wells Blue School, where they put on a variety of operatic and other productions.
A walled precinct, the Liberty
of St Andrew, encloses the twelfth century Cathedral
, the Bishop's Palace
, Vicar's Close and the residences of the clergy who serve the cathedral. Entrances include the Penniless Porch
The Bishop's Eye
and Brown's Gatehouse
which were all built around 1450.
The cathedral is of the Church of England
Diocese of Bath and Wells
. Wells has been an ecclesiastical city of importance for hundreds of years. Parts of the building date back to the tenth century, and it is a grade I listed building. It is known for its fine fan vaulted ceilings, Lady Chapel and windows, and the scissor arches which support the central tower. The west front is said to be the finest collection of statuary in Europe, retaining almost 300 of its original medieval statues, carved from the cathedral's warm, yellow Doulting
stone. The Chapter House, at the top of a flight of stone stairs, leading out from the north transept is an octagonal building with a fan-vaulted ceiling. It is here that the business of running the cathedral is still conducted by the members of the Chapter, the cathedral's ruling body. Wells Cathedral clock
is famous for its 24-hour astronomical dial and set of jousting knights that perform every quarter hour. The cathedral has the heaviest ring of ten bells in the world. The tenor bell weighs just over 56 CWT (6,272 lb, 2,844 kg).
The Bishop's Palace has been the home of the bishops of the Diocese of Bath and Wells
for 800 years. The hall and chapel date from the 14th century. There are 14 acres (5.7 ha) of gardens including the springs from which the city takes its name. Visitors can also see the Bishop's private chapel, ruined great hall and the gatehouse with portcullis and drawbridge beside which mute swans
ring a bell for food. The Bishop's Barn
was built in the 15th century.
The Vicars' Close
is the oldest residential street in Europe. The Close is tapered by 10 feet (3 m) to make it look longer when viewed from the bottom. When viewed from the top, however, it looks shorter. The Old Deanery
dates from the 12th century, and St John's Priory
from the 14th.
The Church of St Cuthbert
(which tourists often mistake for the cathedral) has a fine Somerset stone tower and a superb carved roof. Originally an Early English building (13th century), it was much altered in the Perpendicular period (15th century). The nave's coloured ceiling was repainted in 1963 at the instigation of the then Vicar's wife, Mrs Barnett. Until 1561 the church had a central tower which either collapsed or was removed, and has been replaced with the current tower over the west door. Bells were cast for the tower by Roger Purdy.
, past winners of the Western League
. The oldest football club in Wells though is Belrose FC who play their football in the Mid-Somerset Football League at Haybridge Park. Wells Cricket Club runs eight sides across senior, junior and ladies cricket. Wells Wanderers Cricket Club are based in Meare
.
Mid Somerset Hockey
Club and Wells City Acorns Hockey Club both play on the Astroturf
pitches at the Blue School, where several other sports clubs are based. Wells Leisure Centre has a 25 metres (82 ft) swimming pool, gymnasium, sports hall, sauna, steam room, relaxation area and solarium. The 18 hole Wells Golf
Club is on the outskirts of the city and also has a driving range.
Elizabeth Goudge
used Wells as a basis for the fictional cathedral city of Torminster, in her book City of Bells
Wells has been used as the setting for several films including: The Canterbury Tales
(1973), A Fistful of Fingers
(1994), The Gathering (2002), The Libertine
(2005), The Golden Age (2007), and Hot Fuzz
(2007) The cathedral interior stood in for Southwark Cathedral
during filming for the Doctor Who
episode The Lazarus Experiment
.
Mendip
Mendip is a local government district of Somerset in England. The Mendip district covers a largely rural area of ranging from the Mendip Hills through on to the Somerset Levels. It has a population of approximately 110,000...
district of Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
, England, on the southern edge of the Mendip Hills
Mendip Hills
The Mendip Hills is a range of limestone hills to the south of Bristol and Bath in Somerset, England. Running east to west between Weston-super-Mare and Frome, the hills overlook the Somerset Levels to the south and the Avon Valley to the north...
. Although the population recorded in the 2001 census is 10,406, it has had city status since 1205. It is the smallest city in England excluding the City of London
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
.
The name Wells derives from the three wells
Water well
A water well is an excavation or structure created in the ground by digging, driving, boring or drilling to access groundwater in underground aquifers. The well water is drawn by an electric submersible pump, a trash pump, a vertical turbine pump, a handpump or a mechanical pump...
dedicated to Saint Andrew
Saint Andrew
Saint Andrew , called in the Orthodox tradition Prōtoklētos, or the First-called, is a Christian Apostle and the brother of Saint Peter. The name "Andrew" , like other Greek names, appears to have been common among the Jews from the 3rd or 2nd century BC. No Hebrew or Aramaic name is recorded for him...
, one in the market place and two within the grounds of the Bishop's Palace
Bishop's Palace, Wells
The Bishop's Palace, Wells, Somerset, England, is adjacent to Wells Cathedral and has been the home of the Bishops of the Diocese of Bath and Wells for 800 years....
and cathedral
Wells Cathedral
Wells Cathedral is a Church of England cathedral in Wells, Somerset, England. It is the seat of the Bishop of Bath and Wells, who lives at the adjacent Bishop's Palace....
. There was a small Roman
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
settlement around the wells, but its importance grew under the Saxons
Saxons
The Saxons were a confederation of Germanic tribes originating on the North German plain. The Saxons earliest known area of settlement is Northern Albingia, an area approximately that of modern Holstein...
when King Ine of Wessex
Ine of Wessex
Ine was King of Wessex from 688 to 726. He was unable to retain the territorial gains of his predecessor, Cædwalla, who had brought much of southern England under his control and expanded West Saxon territory substantially...
founded a minster church in 704, around which the settlement grew. Wells became a trading centre and involved in cloth making before its involvement in both the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
and the Monmouth Rebellion
Monmouth Rebellion
The Monmouth Rebellion,The Revolt of the West or The West Country rebellion of 1685, was an attempt to overthrow James II, who had become King of England, King of Scots and King of Ireland at the death of his elder brother Charles II on 6 February 1685. James II was a Roman Catholic, and some...
during the 17th century. In the 19th century, transport infrastructure improved with stations on three different railway lines.
The cathedral and the associated religious and architectural history have made Wells a tourist destination, which provides much of the employment. The city has a variety of sporting and cultural activities and houses several schools including The Blue School
The Blue School, Wells
The Blue School is a coeducational, secondary school located in Wells, Somerset, England. It has 1,430 students aged 11 to 18 of both sexes and all ability levels. It is currently a Church of England voluntary controlled school. The school motto is "Recta Certa" meaning straight and true...
, a state coeducational comprehensive school
Comprehensive school
A comprehensive school is a state school that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude. This is in contrast to the selective school system, where admission is restricted on the basis of a selection criteria. The term is commonly used in relation to the United...
originally founded in 1654 and the independent
Independent school (UK)
An independent school is a school that is not financed through the taxation system by local or national government and is instead funded by private sources, predominantly in the form of tuition charges, gifts and long-term charitable endowments, and so is not subject to the conditions imposed by...
Wells Cathedral School
Wells Cathedral School
Wells Cathedral School is a co-educational independent school located in Wells, Somerset, England. The school is one of the five established musical schools for school-age children in the United Kingdom, along with Chetham's School of Music, the Yehudi Menuhin School, the Purcell School and St....
, which was founded in 909 and is one of the five established musical schools for school-age children in Britain. The historic architecture of the city has also been used as a location for several films and television programmes.
History
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
settlement but only became an important centre under the Saxons
Saxons
The Saxons were a confederation of Germanic tribes originating on the North German plain. The Saxons earliest known area of settlement is Northern Albingia, an area approximately that of modern Holstein...
when King Ine of Wessex
Ine of Wessex
Ine was King of Wessex from 688 to 726. He was unable to retain the territorial gains of his predecessor, Cædwalla, who had brought much of southern England under his control and expanded West Saxon territory substantially...
founded a minster church in 704. Two hundred years later, this became the seat of the local bishop; but in 1088, this had been removed to Bath. This caused severe arguments between the canons of Wells and the monks of Bath until the bishopric was renamed as the Diocese of Bath and Wells
Diocese of Bath and Wells
The Diocese of Bath and Wells is a diocese in the Church of England Province of Canterbury in England.The diocese covers the county of Somerset and a small area of Dorset. The Episcopal seat of the Bishop of Bath and Wells is located in the Cathedral Church of Saint Andrew in the tiny city of...
, to be elected by both religious houses. Wells became a borough some time before 1160 when Bishop Robert
Robert of Bath
Robert or sometimes Robert of Lewes was a medieval English Bishop of Bath.-Life:Robert was a native of England, but his ancestry was Flemish, probably of noble birth. His birthdate and when he became a monk are not known. He was a Cluniac and a monk of Lewes Priory and a protege of Henry of Blois...
granted its first charter. Fairs were granted to the City before 1160.
Wells was listed in the Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
of 1086 as Welle, from the Old English wiells, which was not listed as a town, but included four manors with a population of 132, which implies a population of 500–600. Earlier names for the settlement have been identified which include Fontanetum, in a charter of 725 granted by King Ina to Glastonbury
Glastonbury
Glastonbury is a small town in Somerset, England, situated at a dry point on the low lying Somerset Levels, south of Bristol. The town, which is in the Mendip district, had a population of 8,784 in the 2001 census...
and Fontanensis Ecclesia. Tidesput or Tithesput furlang relates to the area east of the bishops garden in 1245. An established market had been created in Wells by 1136, and it remained under episcopal control until its city charter from Elizabeth I in 1589.
During the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
, Parliamentarian troops used the cathedral to stable their horses and damaged much of the ornate sculpture by using it for firing practice. William Penn
William Penn
William Penn was an English real estate entrepreneur, philosopher, and founder of the Province of Pennsylvania, the English North American colony and the future Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. He was an early champion of democracy and religious freedom, notable for his good relations and successful...
stayed in Wells shortly before leaving for America, spending a night at The Crown Inn. Here he was briefly arrested for addressing a large crowd in the market place, but released on the intervention of the Bishop of Bath and Wells.
During the Monmouth Rebellion
Monmouth Rebellion
The Monmouth Rebellion,The Revolt of the West or The West Country rebellion of 1685, was an attempt to overthrow James II, who had become King of England, King of Scots and King of Ireland at the death of his elder brother Charles II on 6 February 1685. James II was a Roman Catholic, and some...
the rebel army attacked the cathedral in an outburst against the established church
State religion
A state religion is a religious body or creed officially endorsed by the state...
and damaged the west front. Lead from the roof was used to make bullets, windows were broken, the organ smashed and horses stabled in the nave. Wells was the final location of the Bloody Assizes
Bloody Assizes
The Bloody Assizes were a series of trials started at Winchester on 25 August 1685 in the aftermath of the Battle of Sedgemoor, which ended the Monmouth Rebellion in England....
on September 23, 1685. In a makeshift court lasting only one day, over 500 men were tried and the majority sentenced to death.
There was a port at Bleadney on the River Axe in the 8th century that enabled goods to be brought to within 3 miles (5 km) of Wells. In the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
overseas trade was carried out from the port of Rackley. In the 14th century a French ship sailed up the river and by 1388 Thomas Tanner from Wells used Rackley to export cloth and corn
Cereal
Cereals are grasses cultivated for the edible components of their grain , composed of the endosperm, germ, and bran...
to Portugal, and received iron
Iron
Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
and salt
Edible salt
Salt, also known as table salt, or rock salt, is a mineral that is composed primarily of sodium chloride , a chemical compound belonging to the larger class of ionic salts. It is essential for animal life in small quantities, but is harmful to animals and plants in excess...
in exchange. Wells had been a centre for cloth making, however in the 16th and 17th centuries this diminished, but the town retained its important market focus.
Wells has had three railway stations. The first station, Priory Road
Wells (Priory Road) railway station
Wells was a railway station on the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway at Wells in the county of Somerset in England. Opening on 15 March 1859 as Wells, on the Somerset Central Railway, at that time a broad-gauge line operated by the Bristol and Exeter Railway, it was the terminus of the branch from...
, opened in 1859 and was on the Somerset Central Railway (later the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway
Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway
The Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway – almost always referred to as "the S&D" – was an English railway line connecting Bath in north east Somerset and Bournemouth now in south east Dorset but then in Hampshire...
) as the terminus of a short branch from Glastonbury
Glastonbury
Glastonbury is a small town in Somerset, England, situated at a dry point on the low lying Somerset Levels, south of Bristol. The town, which is in the Mendip district, had a population of 8,784 in the 2001 census...
. A second railway, the East Somerset
East Somerset Railway
The East Somerset Railway is a heritage railway in Somerset, running between Cranmore and Mendip Vale. Prior to the Beeching Axe, the railway ran from Witham to Wells, meeting both the Cheddar Valley line and Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway at the latter station.- History :The line was...
, opened a branch line from Witham
Witham (Somerset) railway station
Witham railway station was a station serving the Somerset village of Witham Friary and was located on the Frome to Yeovil section of the Wilts, Somerset and Weymouth Railway that opened in 1856...
in 1862 and built a station
Wells East Somerset railway station
Wells station in the Somerset city of Wells was the terminus of the East Somerset Railway line from Witham and opened when the line was extended from Shepton Mallet in 1862....
to the east of Priory Road. In 1870, a third railway, the Cheddar Valley line
Cheddar Valley line
The Cheddar Valley line was a railway line in Somerset, England, opened in 1869 and closed in 1963. It became known as The Strawberry Line because of the volume of locally-grown strawberries that it carried....
branch of the Bristol and Exeter Railway
Bristol and Exeter Railway
The Bristol & Exeter Railway was a railway company formed to connect Bristol and Exeter.The company's head office was situated outside their Bristol station...
from Yatton
Yatton
Yatton is a village and civil parish within the unitary authority of North Somerset, which falls within the ceremonial county of Somerset, England. It is located south-west of Bristol. Its population in 2001 was 9,176...
, reached Wells and built yet another station, later called Tucker Street
Wells (Tucker Street) railway station
Wells railway station was the second terminus station on the Bristol and Exeter Railway's Cheddar Valley line in Somerset after the extension from the first terminus at Cheddar was opened...
. Matters were somewhat simplified when the Great Western Railway
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
acquired both the Cheddar Valley and the East Somerset lines and built a link between the two that ran through the S&DJR's Priory Road station. In 1878, when through trains began running between Yatton and Witham, the East Somerset station closed, but through trains did not stop at Priory Road until 1934. Priory Road closed to passenger traffic in 1951 when the S&DJR branch line from Glastonbury was shut, though it remained the city's main goods depot. Tucker Street closed in 1963 under the Beeching Axe
Beeching Axe
The Beeching Axe or the Beeching Cuts are informal names for the British Government's attempt in the 1960s to reduce the cost of running British Railways, the nationalised railway system in the United Kingdom. The name is that of the main author of The Reshaping of British Railways, Dr Richard...
, which closed the Yatton to Witham line to passengers. Goods traffic to Wells ceased in 1964. A Pacific SR West Country, West Country Class steam locomotive no 34092 built by the British Railways Board
British Railways Board
The British Railways Board was a nationalised industry in the United Kingdom that existed from 1962 to 2001. From its foundation until 1997, it was responsible for most railway services in Great Britain, trading under the brand names British Railways and, from 1965, British Rail...
was named City of Wells following a ceremony in the city's Priory Road station in 1949. It was used to draw the Golden Arrow service between London and the Continent. It was withdrawn from service in 1964, and rescued from a scrapyard in 1971. It is now undergoing a complete restoration on the Keighley and Worth Valley Railway
Keighley and Worth Valley Railway
The Keighley and Worth Valley Railway is a long branch line that served mills and villages in the Worth Valley and is now a heritage railway line in West Yorkshire, England. It runs from Keighley to Oxenhope. It connects to the national rail network line at Keighley railway station...
in Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
.
During World War II, Stoberry Park in Wells was the location of a Prisoner of War camp, housing Italian prisoners from the Western Desert Campaign
Western Desert Campaign
The Western Desert Campaign, also known as the Desert War, was the initial stage of the North African Campaign during the Second World War. The campaign was heavily influenced by the availability of supplies and transport. The ability of the Allied forces, operating from besieged Malta, to...
, and later German prisoners after the Battle of Normandy
Operation Cobra
Operation Cobra was the codename for an offensive launched by the First United States Army seven weeks after the D-Day landings, during the Normandy Campaign of World War II...
. Penleigh Camp on the Wookey Hole
Wookey Hole
Wookey Hole Caves is a show cave and tourist attraction in the village of Wookey Hole on the southern edge of the Mendip Hills near Wells in Somerset, England.Wookey Hole cave was formed through erosion of the limestone hills by the River Axe...
Road was a German working camp.
City status was confirmed and formalised by Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
by letters patent
Letters patent
Letters patent are a type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order issued by a monarch or president, generally granting an office, right, monopoly, title, or status to a person or corporation...
issued under the Great Seal
Great Seal of the Realm
The Great Seal of the Realm or Great Seal of the United Kingdom is a seal that is used to symbolise the Sovereign's approval of important state documents...
dated 1 April 1974.
Governance
Neighbourhood Watch (UK)
The Neighbourhood Watch scheme in the United Kingdom is a partnership where people come together to make their communities safer. It involves the Police, Community Safety departments of local authorities, other voluntary organisations and, above all, individuals and families who want to make their...
groups on matters of crime, security, and traffic. This includes City Centre management including CCTV, an alcohol ban and regulating street trading permissions including the two funfairs held in the Market Place in May and November each year and the Wells In Bloom competition.
The city council's role also includes initiating projects for the maintenance and repair of city facilities, as well as consulting with the district council on the maintenance, repair, and improvement of highways, drainage, footpaths, public transport, and street cleaning. They are involved in the management of the Community Sports Development Centre at the Blue School, the skateboard
Skateboarding
Skateboarding is an action sport which involves riding and performing tricks using a skateboard.Skateboarding can be a recreational activity, an art form, a job, or a method of transportation. Skateboarding has been shaped and influenced by many skateboarders throughout the years. A 2002 report...
park and allotments in the grounds of the Bishop's Palace, Burcott Road and Barnes Close. Conservation matters (including trees and listed buildings) and environmental issues are also the responsibility of the council. The Wells city arms show an ash tree surrounded by three wells, with the Latin motto Hoc fonte derivata copia (the fullness that springs from this well).
The Town Hall was built in 1778, with the porch and arcade being added in 1861 and the balcony and round windows in 1932. It is a Grade II listed building. It replaced the former on the site of the Market and Assize Hall in the Market Place, and a Canonical House also known as 'The Exchequer', on the authority of an Act of Parliament dated 1779. The building also houses the magistrates courts and other offices. The Assize court last sat here in October 1970.
Wells elects five councillors to Mendip District Council
Mendip
Mendip is a local government district of Somerset in England. The Mendip district covers a largely rural area of ranging from the Mendip Hills through on to the Somerset Levels. It has a population of approximately 110,000...
from the same three wards as are used for the City Council. The Mendip District was formed on April 1, 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972
Local Government Act 1972
The Local Government Act 1972 is an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974....
. The district council is responsible for local planning
Planning permission
Planning permission or planning consent is the permission required in the United Kingdom in order to be allowed to build on land, or change the use of land or buildings. Within the UK the occupier of any land or building will need title to that land or building , but will also need "planning...
and building control, local roads, council housing, environmental health
Environmental health
Environmental health is the branch of public health that is concerned with all aspects of the natural and built environment that may affect human health...
, market
Market
A market is one of many varieties of systems, institutions, procedures, social relations and infrastructures whereby parties engage in exchange. While parties may exchange goods and services by barter, most markets rely on sellers offering their goods or services in exchange for money from buyers...
s and fairs, refuse collection and recycling
Recycling
Recycling is processing used materials into new products to prevent waste of potentially useful materials, reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, reduce energy usage, reduce air pollution and water pollution by reducing the need for "conventional" waste disposal, and lower greenhouse...
, cemeteries and crematoria, leisure services, parks, and tourism
Tourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...
.
Wells has one councillor on the Somerset County Council
Somerset County Council
Somerset County Council is the county council of Somerset in the South West of England, an elected local government authority responsible for the most significant local government services in most of the county.-Area covered:...
, which is responsible for running the largest and most expensive local services such as education
Local Education Authority
A local education authority is a local authority in England and Wales that has responsibility for education within its jurisdiction...
, social services, libraries
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
, main roads, public transport
Public transport
Public transport is a shared passenger transportation service which is available for use by the general public, as distinct from modes such as taxicab, car pooling or hired buses which are not shared by strangers without private arrangement.Public transport modes include buses, trolleybuses, trams...
, policing
Police
The police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...
and fire services, trading standards
Trading Standards
Trading Standards is the name given to local authority departments in the UK formerly known as Weights and Measures. These departments investigate commercial organisations that carry out trade in unethical ways or outside the scope of the law.-History:...
, waste disposal and strategic planning. Wells is part of the UK Parliament constituency of Wells
Wells (UK Parliament constituency)
Wells is a county constituency centred on the city of Wells in Somerset. It elects one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, by the first past the post voting system...
. The current Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
is Tessa Munt
Tessa Munt
Tessa Jane Munt is a British Liberal Democrat politician. She is the Member of Parliament for Wells in Somerset.-Political career:...
of the Liberal Democrats
Liberal Democrats
The Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
. Wells is within the South West England constituency
South West England (European Parliament constituency)
South West England is a constituency of the European Parliament. For 2009 it elects 6 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation, reduced from 7 in 2004.-Boundaries:...
of the European Parliament
European Parliament
The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...
which elects six Members of the European Parliament using the d'Hondt method
D'Hondt method
The d'Hondt method is a highest averages method for allocating seats in party-list proportional representation. The method described is named after Belgian mathematician Victor D'Hondt who described it in 1878...
of party-list proportional representation
Party-list proportional representation
Party-list proportional representation systems are a family of voting systems emphasizing proportional representation in elections in which multiple candidates are elected...
.
Wells is twinned
Town twinning
Twin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...
with Bad Dürkheim
Bad Dürkheim
Bad Dürkheim is a spa town in the Rhine-Neckar urban agglomeration, and is the seat of the Bad Dürkheim district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.- Location :...
in Germany and Paray-le-Monial
Paray-le-Monial
Paray-le-Monial is a commune in the Saône-et-Loire department in the region of Burgundy in eastern France.-History:Paray existed before the monks who gave it its surname of Le Monial, for when Count Lambert of Chalon, together with his wife Adelaide and his friend Mayeul de Cluny, founded there in...
in the Burgundy region of France.
, The Rifles
The Rifles
The Rifles is the largest regiment of the British Army. Formed in 2007, it consists of five regular and two territorial battalions, plus a number of companies in other TA battalions, Each battalion of the Rifles was formerly an individual battalion of one of the two large regiments of the Light...
and Harry Patch
Harry Patch
Henry John "Harry" Patch , known in his latter years as "the Last Fighting Tommy", was a British supercentenarian, briefly the oldest man in Europe, and the last surviving soldier to have fought in the trenches of the First World War...
have the Freedom of the City
Freedom of the City
Freedom of the City is an honour bestowed by some municipalities in Australia, Canada, Ireland, France, Italy, New Zealand, South Africa, Spain, the United Kingdom, Gibraltar and Rhodesia to esteemed members of its community and to organisations to be honoured, often for service to the community;...
.
Geography
Wells lies at the foot of the southern escarpment of the Mendip HillsMendip Hills
The Mendip Hills is a range of limestone hills to the south of Bristol and Bath in Somerset, England. Running east to west between Weston-super-Mare and Frome, the hills overlook the Somerset Levels to the south and the Avon Valley to the north...
where they meet the Somerset Levels
Somerset Levels
The Somerset Levels, or the Somerset Levels and Moors as they are less commonly but more correctly known, is a sparsely populated coastal plain and wetland area of central Somerset, South West England, between the Quantock and Mendip Hills...
. The hills are largely made of carboniferous limestone
Carboniferous limestone
Carboniferous Limestone is a term used to describe a variety of different types of limestone occurring widely across Great Britain and Ireland which were deposited during the Dinantian epoch of the Carboniferous period. They were formed between 363 and 325 million years ago...
, which is quarried at several nearby sites. In the 1960s, the tallest mast in the region, the Mendip UHF television transmitter, was installed on Pen Hill
Pen Hill
Pen Hill forms part of the Mendip Hills plateau in Somerset, England. The hill is located in St Cuthbert Out civil parish in Mendip district.The name Pen is believed to be Celtic for hill or tor....
above Wells.
The water from the springs fills the moat around the Bishops Place and then flows into Keward Brook, which carries it for approximately a mile west to the point where the brook joins the River Sheppey
River Sheppey
The River Sheppey has its source in a group of springs west of the village of Doulting, near Shepton Mallet in Somerset, England. It flows through the wetlands to the north of the Polden Hills and ultimately joins the River Brue.- Route :...
in the village of Coxley.
Along with the rest of South West England
Climate of south-west England
The climate of south-west England is classed as oceanic according to the Köppen climate classification. The oceanic climate is typified by cool winters with warmer summers and precipitation all year round, with more experienced in winter. Annual rainfall is about and up to on higher ground...
, the Mendip Hills have a temperate climate
Temperate
In geography, temperate or tepid latitudes of the globe lie between the tropics and the polar circles. The changes in these regions between summer and winter are generally relatively moderate, rather than extreme hot or cold...
which is generally wetter and milder than the rest of England. The annual mean temperature is about 10 °C (50 °F) with seasonal and diurnal
Diurnal motion
Diurnal motion is an astronomical term referring to the apparent daily motion of stars around the Earth, or more precisely around the two celestial poles. It is caused by the Earth's rotation on its axis, so every star apparently moves on a circle, that is called the diurnal circle. The time for...
variations, but due to the modifying effect of the sea, the range is less than in most other parts of the United Kingdom. January is the coldest month with mean minimum temperatures between 1 °C (34 °F) and 2 °C (36 °F). July and August are the warmest months in the region with mean daily maxima around 21 °C (70 °F). In general, December is the dullest month and June the sunniest. The south west of England enjoys a favoured location, particularly in summer, when the Azores High
Azores High
The Azores High is a large subtropical semi-permanent centre of high atmospheric pressure found near the Azores in the Atlantic Ocean, at the Horse latitudes...
extends its influence north-eastwards towards the UK.
Cloud
Cumulus cloud
Cumulus clouds are a type of cloud with noticeable vertical development and clearly defined edges. Cumulus means "heap" or "pile" in Latin. They are often described as "puffy" or "cotton-like" in appearance. Cumulus clouds may appear alone, in lines, or in clusters...
often forms inland, especially near hills, and reduces exposure to sunshine. The average annual sunshine totals around 1600 hours. Rainfall
Precipitation (meteorology)
In meteorology, precipitation In meteorology, precipitation In meteorology, precipitation (also known as one of the classes of hydrometeors, which are atmospheric water phenomena is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls under gravity. The main forms of precipitation...
tends to be associated with Atlantic depressions
Low pressure area
A low-pressure area, or "low", is a region where the atmospheric pressure at sea level is below that of surrounding locations. Low-pressure systems form under areas of wind divergence which occur in upper levels of the troposphere. The formation process of a low-pressure area is known as...
or with convection. In summer, convection caused by solar surface heating sometimes forms shower clouds and a large proportion of the annual precipitation falls from showers and thunderstorms at this time of year. Average rainfall is around 800–900 mm (31–35 in). About 8–15 days of snowfall is typical. November to March have the highest mean wind speeds, with June to August having the lightest. The predominant wind direction is from the south west.
Demography
The population of the civil parish, recorded in the 2001 censusUnited Kingdom Census 2001
A nationwide census, known as Census 2001, was conducted in the United Kingdom on Sunday, 29 April 2001. This was the 20th UK Census and recorded a resident population of 58,789,194....
, is 10,406. Their average age is 44 years with 2,602 of the people being over the age of 65 years. 4,208 of the population are considered to be economically active. Within the 1,702 people living in the central ward 1,690 are white, and the predominant religion is Christian. Similar profiles are seen amongst the 4,577 people living in St Cuthberts Ward, and the 4,126 living in St Thomas's ward.
Economy
Following construction of the A39A39 road
The A39 is an A road in south west England. It runs south-west from Bath in Somerset through Wells, Glastonbury, Street and Bridgwater. It then follows the north coast of Somerset and Devon through Williton, Minehead, Porlock, Lynmouth, Barnstaple, Bideford, Stratton, Camelford, Wadebridge and St...
/A371
A371 road
The A371 is a primary road in England running from Wincanton in Somerset, to Weston-super-Mare in North Somerset.The A371 starts at the A303, then passes Castle Cary, Ansford, Cannard's Grave , Shepton Mallet, Croscombe, Wells, Easton, Somerset, Westbury-sub-Mendip, Rodney Stoke, Draycott, Cheddar,...
bypass, the centre of town has returned to being a quiet market city. It has all the modern conveniences plus shops, hotels and restaurants. Wells is a popular tourist destination, due to its historical sites, its proximity to Bath, Stonehenge
Stonehenge
Stonehenge is a prehistoric monument located in the English county of Wiltshire, about west of Amesbury and north of Salisbury. One of the most famous sites in the world, Stonehenge is composed of a circular setting of large standing stones set within earthworks...
and Glastonbury
Glastonbury
Glastonbury is a small town in Somerset, England, situated at a dry point on the low lying Somerset Levels, south of Bristol. The town, which is in the Mendip district, had a population of 8,784 in the 2001 census...
and its closeness to the Somerset coast. Also nearby are Wookey Hole Caves, the Mendip Hills
Mendip Hills
The Mendip Hills is a range of limestone hills to the south of Bristol and Bath in Somerset, England. Running east to west between Weston-super-Mare and Frome, the hills overlook the Somerset Levels to the south and the Avon Valley to the north...
and the Somerset Levels
Somerset Levels
The Somerset Levels, or the Somerset Levels and Moors as they are less commonly but more correctly known, is a sparsely populated coastal plain and wetland area of central Somerset, South West England, between the Quantock and Mendip Hills...
. Somerset cheese, including Cheddar
Cheddar cheese
Cheddar cheese is a relatively hard, yellow to off-white, and sometimes sharp-tasting cheese, produced in several countries around the world. It has its origins in the English village of Cheddar in Somerset....
, is made locally. Wells is part of the Wells & Shepton Mallet Travel to Work Area
Travel to Work Area
A Travel to Work Area or TTWA is a statistical tool used by UK Government agencies and local authorities, especially by the Department for Work and Pensions and Job Centres, to indicate an area where the population would generally commute to a larger town, city or conurbation for the purposes of...
which also includes Glastonbury, Cheddar and surrounding areas.
Transport
Wells is situated at the junction of three numbered routes. The A39A39 road
The A39 is an A road in south west England. It runs south-west from Bath in Somerset through Wells, Glastonbury, Street and Bridgwater. It then follows the north coast of Somerset and Devon through Williton, Minehead, Porlock, Lynmouth, Barnstaple, Bideford, Stratton, Camelford, Wadebridge and St...
goes north-east to Bath and south-west to Glastonbury
Glastonbury
Glastonbury is a small town in Somerset, England, situated at a dry point on the low lying Somerset Levels, south of Bristol. The town, which is in the Mendip district, had a population of 8,784 in the 2001 census...
and Bridgwater
Bridgwater
Bridgwater is a market town and civil parish in Somerset, England. It is the administrative centre of the Sedgemoor district, and a major industrial centre. Bridgwater is located on the major communication routes through South West England...
. The A371 goes north-west to Cheddar
Cheddar
Cheddar is a large village and civil parish in the Sedgemoor district of the English county of Somerset. It is situated on the southern edge of the Mendip Hills, north-west of Wells. The civil parish includes the hamlets of Nyland and Bradley Cross...
and east to Shepton Mallet
Shepton Mallet
Shepton Mallet is a small rural town and civil parish in the Mendip district of Somerset in South West England. Situated approximately south of Bristol and east of Wells, the town is estimated to have a population of 9,700. It contains the administrative headquarters of Mendip District Council...
. The B3139 goes west to Highbridge
Highbridge, Somerset
Highbridge is a small market town situated on the edge of the Somerset Levels near the mouth of the River Brue. It is in the County of Somerset, and is approximately north west of Taunton, the county town of Somerset. Highbridge is in the District of Sedgemoor, being situated approximately north...
and north-east to Radstock
Radstock
Radstock is a town in Somerset, England, south west of Bath, and north west of Frome. It is within the unitary authority of Bath and North East Somerset and had a population of 5,275 according to the 2001 Census...
. Wells is served by FirstGroup bus services to Bristol, Bath, Frome, Shepton Mallet, Yeovil, Street, Bridgwater, Taunton, Burnham on Sea and Weston-super-Mare, as well as providing some local service. Some National Express coach services call at Wells. The bus station is in Princes Road. The Mendip Way
Mendip Way
The Mendip Way is an long-distance footpath across the Mendip Hills from Weston-super-Mare to Frome. It is divided into two sections.The West Mendip Way was opened in 1979 and starts at the Bristol Channel at Uphill Cliff. It climbs the Mendip escarpment affording views over the Somerset Levels....
and Monarch's Way
Monarch's Way
The Monarch's Way is a long-distance footpath in England that approximates the escape route taken by King Charles II in 1651 after being defeated in the Battle of Worcester.Most of the footpath is waymarked...
long-distance footpaths pass through the city, as does National Cycle Route 3.
Education
The Blue School, Wells
The Blue School is a coeducational, secondary school located in Wells, Somerset, England. It has 1,430 students aged 11 to 18 of both sexes and all ability levels. It is currently a Church of England voluntary controlled school. The school motto is "Recta Certa" meaning straight and true...
, founded in 1654, is a state coeducational comprehensive school
Comprehensive school
A comprehensive school is a state school that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude. This is in contrast to the selective school system, where admission is restricted on the basis of a selection criteria. The term is commonly used in relation to the United...
and has been awarded Specialist science college status. It has 1,453 students aged 11–18 of both sexes and all ability levels.
Wells Cathedral School
Wells Cathedral School
Wells Cathedral School is a co-educational independent school located in Wells, Somerset, England. The school is one of the five established musical schools for school-age children in the United Kingdom, along with Chetham's School of Music, the Yehudi Menuhin School, the Purcell School and St....
, founded in 909, is an independent school
Independent school (UK)
An independent school is a school that is not financed through the taxation system by local or national government and is instead funded by private sources, predominantly in the form of tuition charges, gifts and long-term charitable endowments, and so is not subject to the conditions imposed by...
that has a Christian emphasis and is one of the five established musical schools for school-age children in Britain. The school teaches over 700 pupils
Student
A student is a learner, or someone who attends an educational institution. In some nations, the English term is reserved for those who attend university, while a schoolchild under the age of eighteen is called a pupil in English...
between the ages of 3 and 18. The school's boarding house
Boarding house
A boarding house, is a house in which lodgers rent one or more rooms for one or more nights, and sometimes for extended periods of weeks, months and years. The common parts of the house are maintained, and some services, such as laundry and cleaning, may be supplied. They normally provide "bed...
s line the northern parts of the city and the music school retains close links with Wells Cathedral. The primary schools in Wells are Stoberry Park School, St Cuthbert's Church of England Infants School, St Joseph and St Teresa Catholic Primary School, and Wells Central CofE Junior School.
Culture
Wells and Mendip MuseumWells and Mendip Museum
The Wells and Mendip Museum is a small museum next to Wells Cathedral in the city of Wells. It is a registered charity and an accredited member of the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council. The exhibits include items of local history and archaeological finds...
includes many historical artefacts from the city and surrounding Mendip Hills
Mendip Hills
The Mendip Hills is a range of limestone hills to the south of Bristol and Bath in Somerset, England. Running east to west between Weston-super-Mare and Frome, the hills overlook the Somerset Levels to the south and the Avon Valley to the north...
. Wells is part of the West Country Carnival
West Country Carnival
The West Country Carnival is an annual celebration featuring a parade of illuminated floats , in the English West Country. The celebration dates back to the Gunpowder Plot of 1605. The purpose is to raise money for local charities....
circuit.
The Wells Film centre shows current releases and, in conjunction with the Wells Film Society shows less well known and historical films. The previous cinema, The Regal in Priory Road, closed in 1993 and is now Kudos Nightclub. It was built in 1935 by ES Roberts from Flemish bond brickwork with Art Deco
Art Deco
Art deco , or deco, is an eclectic artistic and design style that began in Paris in the 1920s and flourished internationally throughout the 1930s, into the World War II era. The style influenced all areas of design, including architecture and interior design, industrial design, fashion and...
features. It is a Grade II listed building, and was on the Buildings at Risk Register until its restoration which included the restoration and repair of the stained glass
Stained glass
The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works produced from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant buildings...
façade. Wells Little Theatre is operated by a voluntary society which started in 1902. In 1989 they took over the old boy's building of Wells Blue School, where they put on a variety of operatic and other productions.
Religious sites
Liberty (division)
Originating in the Middle Ages, a liberty was traditionally defined as an area in which regalian rights were revoked and where land was held by a mesne lord...
of St Andrew, encloses the twelfth century Cathedral
Wells Cathedral
Wells Cathedral is a Church of England cathedral in Wells, Somerset, England. It is the seat of the Bishop of Bath and Wells, who lives at the adjacent Bishop's Palace....
, the Bishop's Palace
Bishop's Palace, Wells
The Bishop's Palace, Wells, Somerset, England, is adjacent to Wells Cathedral and has been the home of the Bishops of the Diocese of Bath and Wells for 800 years....
, Vicar's Close and the residences of the clergy who serve the cathedral. Entrances include the Penniless Porch
Penniless Porch, Wells
The Penniless Porch in Wells, Somerset, England is an entrance gateway into a walled precinct, the Liberty of St Andrew, which encloses the twelfth century Cathedral, the Bishop's Palace, Vicar's Close and the residences of the clergy who serve the cathedral....
The Bishop's Eye
The Bishop's Eye, Wells
The Bishop's Eye in Wells, Somerset, England is an entrance gateway into a walled precinct, the Liberty of St Andrew, which encloses the twelfth century Cathedral, the Bishop's Palace, Vicar's Close and the residences of the clergy who serve the cathedral....
and Brown's Gatehouse
Brown's Gatehouse, Wells
Brown's Gatehouse in Wells, Somerset, England is an entrance gateway into a walled precinct, the Liberty of St Andrew, which encloses the twelfth century Cathedral, the Bishop's Palace, Vicar's Close and the residences of the clergy who serve the cathedral.The Brown's Gatehouse was built around...
which were all built around 1450.
The cathedral is of the Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
Diocese of Bath and Wells
Diocese of Bath and Wells
The Diocese of Bath and Wells is a diocese in the Church of England Province of Canterbury in England.The diocese covers the county of Somerset and a small area of Dorset. The Episcopal seat of the Bishop of Bath and Wells is located in the Cathedral Church of Saint Andrew in the tiny city of...
. Wells has been an ecclesiastical city of importance for hundreds of years. Parts of the building date back to the tenth century, and it is a grade I listed building. It is known for its fine fan vaulted ceilings, Lady Chapel and windows, and the scissor arches which support the central tower. The west front is said to be the finest collection of statuary in Europe, retaining almost 300 of its original medieval statues, carved from the cathedral's warm, yellow Doulting
Doulting
Doulting is a village and civil parish east of Shepton Mallet, on the A361, in the Mendip district of Somerset, England.-History:The parish of Doulting was part of the Whitstone Hundred....
stone. The Chapter House, at the top of a flight of stone stairs, leading out from the north transept is an octagonal building with a fan-vaulted ceiling. It is here that the business of running the cathedral is still conducted by the members of the Chapter, the cathedral's ruling body. Wells Cathedral clock
Wells Cathedral clock
The Wells Cathedral clock is an astronomical clock in the north transept of Wells Cathedral, England.The clock is one of the group of famous 14th to 16th century astronomical clocks to be found in the West of England....
is famous for its 24-hour astronomical dial and set of jousting knights that perform every quarter hour. The cathedral has the heaviest ring of ten bells in the world. The tenor bell weighs just over 56 CWT (6,272 lb, 2,844 kg).
Diocese of Bath and Wells
The Diocese of Bath and Wells is a diocese in the Church of England Province of Canterbury in England.The diocese covers the county of Somerset and a small area of Dorset. The Episcopal seat of the Bishop of Bath and Wells is located in the Cathedral Church of Saint Andrew in the tiny city of...
for 800 years. The hall and chapel date from the 14th century. There are 14 acres (5.7 ha) of gardens including the springs from which the city takes its name. Visitors can also see the Bishop's private chapel, ruined great hall and the gatehouse with portcullis and drawbridge beside which mute swans
Mute Swan
The Mute Swan is a species of swan, and thus a member of the duck, goose and swan family Anatidae. It is native to much of Europe and Asia, and the far north of Africa. It is also an introduced species in North America, Australasia and southern Africa. The name 'mute' derives from it being less...
ring a bell for food. The Bishop's Barn
The Bishop's Barn, Wells
The Bishop's Barn in Silver Street, Wells, Somerset, England was built as a tithe barn in the 15th century. It has been designated as a Grade I listed building....
was built in the 15th century.
The Vicars' Close
Vicars' Close, Wells
Vicars' Close, in Wells, Somerset, England is claimed to be the oldest purely residential street with its original buildings all surviving intact in Europe.John Julius Norwich calls it "that rarest of survivals, a planned street of the mid-14th century"....
is the oldest residential street in Europe. The Close is tapered by 10 feet (3 m) to make it look longer when viewed from the bottom. When viewed from the top, however, it looks shorter. The Old Deanery
The Old Deanery, Wells
The Old Deanery of Wells Cathedral in Wells, Somerset, England dates from the 12th century. Along with the gatehouse and boundary walls has been designated as a Grade I listed building....
dates from the 12th century, and St John's Priory
St John's Priory, Wells
St John's Priory in Wells, Somerset, England from the 14th century. Along with its boundary walls and railings it has been designated as a Grade I listed building....
from the 14th.
The Church of St Cuthbert
Church of St Cuthbert, Wells
The Church of St Cuthbert is an Anglican parish church in Wells, Somerset, England dating from the 13th century. It is often mistaken for the cathedral. It has a fine Somerset stone tower and a superb carved roof. It is a Grade I listed building....
(which tourists often mistake for the cathedral) has a fine Somerset stone tower and a superb carved roof. Originally an Early English building (13th century), it was much altered in the Perpendicular period (15th century). The nave's coloured ceiling was repainted in 1963 at the instigation of the then Vicar's wife, Mrs Barnett. Until 1561 the church had a central tower which either collapsed or was removed, and has been replaced with the current tower over the west door. Bells were cast for the tower by Roger Purdy.
Sport
The city has two football clubs, one being Wells City F.C.Wells City F.C.
Wells City F.C. are a football club based in Wells, Somerset, England. The club is affiliated to the Somerset County FA.They joined the Western League Division Two in 1929 and won the Western League title in 1950...
, past winners of the Western League
Western Football League
The Western Football League is a football league in the south west of England, covering Bristol, Cornwall, Devon, Somerset, western Dorset, parts of Gloucestershire and Wiltshire and parts of South Wales...
. The oldest football club in Wells though is Belrose FC who play their football in the Mid-Somerset Football League at Haybridge Park. Wells Cricket Club runs eight sides across senior, junior and ladies cricket. Wells Wanderers Cricket Club are based in Meare
Meare
Meare is a village and civil parish north west of Glastonbury on the Somerset Levels, in the Mendip district of Somerset, England. The parish includes the village of Westhay.-History:...
.
Mid Somerset Hockey
Hockey
Hockey is a family of sports in which two teams play against each other by trying to maneuver a ball or a puck into the opponent's goal using a hockey stick.-Etymology:...
Club and Wells City Acorns Hockey Club both play on the Astroturf
AstroTurf
AstroTurf is a brand of artificial turf. Although the term is a registered trademark, it is sometimes used as a generic description of any kind of artificial turf. The original AstroTurf product was a short pile synthetic turf while the current products incorporate modern features such as...
pitches at the Blue School, where several other sports clubs are based. Wells Leisure Centre has a 25 metres (82 ft) swimming pool, gymnasium, sports hall, sauna, steam room, relaxation area and solarium. The 18 hole Wells Golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
Club is on the outskirts of the city and also has a driving range.
In popular culture
Elizabeth Goudge
Elizabeth de Beauchamp Goudge was an English author of novels, short stories and children's books as Elizabeth Goudge...
used Wells as a basis for the fictional cathedral city of Torminster, in her book City of Bells
Wells has been used as the setting for several films including: The Canterbury Tales
The Canterbury Tales (film)
The Canterbury Tales is a 1972 Italian film directed by Pier Paolo Pasolini and based on the medieval narrative poem The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer. It is the second film in Pasolini's 'Trilogy of Life'...
(1973), A Fistful of Fingers
A Fistful of Fingers
A Fistful of Fingers is a 1994 British film written and directed by Edgar Wright.It is a homonymous remake of an earlier, and even lower-budget, movie by Wright and starring Graham Low which had been made while they were still at school...
(1994), The Gathering (2002), The Libertine
The Libertine (2005 film)
The Libertine is a 2004 film starring Johnny Depp, John Malkovich, Samantha Morton and Rosamund Pike. Directed by Laurence Dunmore in his first outing and adapted by Stephen Jeffreys' from his play of the same name, the film stars Johnny Depp as John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester, a notorious rake...
(2005), The Golden Age (2007), and Hot Fuzz
Hot Fuzz
Hot Fuzz is a 2007 British action dark comedy film written by Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright, and starring Pegg and Nick Frost. The three had previously worked together on the 2004 film Shaun of the Dead as well as the television series Spaced...
(2007) The cathedral interior stood in for Southwark Cathedral
Southwark Cathedral
Southwark Cathedral or The Cathedral and Collegiate Church of St Saviour and St Mary Overie, Southwark, London, lies on the south bank of the River Thames close to London Bridge....
during filming for the Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
episode The Lazarus Experiment
The Lazarus Experiment
"The Lazarus Experiment" is an episode of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was broadcast on BBC One on 5 May 2007 and is the sixth episode of Series 3 of the revived Doctor Who series. It stars David Tennant as the Tenth Doctor and Martha Jones as his companion, played...
.
Notable people
- Herbert E. BalchHerbert E. BalchHerbert Ernest Balch MA FSA was an English archaeologist, naturalist, caver and geologist who explored the Mendip Hills' underground labyrinths and pioneered many of the techniques used by modern cavers...
– cave explorer and founder of Wells Museum. His name was given to Balch Road, a council estateCouncil houseA council house, otherwise known as a local authority house, is a form of public or social housing. The term is used primarily in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland. Council houses were built and operated by local councils to supply uncrowded, well-built homes on secure tenancies at...
that was built in the 1950s. - Mary Bignall-RandMary RandMary Denise Rand, MBE, is a former English track-and-field athlete. She won the gold medal in the long jump at the 1964 Summer Olympics by breaking the world record, becoming the first-ever British female to win an Olympic gold medal in a track and field event.-Early life:She is the daughter of...
– Gold medalist and world record breaker in the long jump at the 1964 Summer Olympics1964 Summer OlympicsThe 1964 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XVIII Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event held in Tokyo, Japan in 1964. Tokyo had been awarded with the organization of the 1940 Summer Olympics, but this honor was subsequently passed to Helsinki because of Japan's...
. - Harry George CrandonHarry George CrandonHarry George Crandon VC was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces.- Details :...
– awarded the Victoria CrossVictoria CrossThe Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
during the Boer War. - Sir Chris ClarkeChris Clarke (politician)Sir Christopher James Clarke OBE , usually known as Chris Clarke, was a British Liberal Democrat politician, leader of Somerset County Council and of his party's group in the Local Government Association.-Life:...
– county councillor for Wells from 1985 to 2005. - Alexander DavieAlexander Edmund Batson DavieAlexander Edmund Batson Davie, QC who is usually referred to as A. E. B. Davie, was a British Columbia politician and lawyer, and was premier of British Columbia from 1887 until his death.Called to the bar in 1873 he was the first person to receive his entire law education in British...
– born in Wells 1847, became 7th Premier of British ColumbiaPremier of British ColumbiaThe Premier of British Columbia is the first minister, head of government, and de facto chief executive for the Canadian province of British Columbia. Until the early 1970s the title Prime Minister of British Columbia was often used...
. - Roger HollisRoger HollisSir Roger Henry Hollis, KBE, CB was a British journalist and secret-service agent, who was Director General of MI5 from 1956 to 1965.-Early years:...
– Director General of MI5MI5The Security Service, commonly known as MI5 , is the United Kingdom's internal counter-intelligence and security agency and is part of its core intelligence machinery alongside the Secret Intelligence Service focused on foreign threats, Government Communications Headquarters and the Defence...
. - John HollowayJohn Holloway (governor)John Holloway was an officer of the Royal Navy who saw service during the American War of Independence, and the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, serving as Governor of Newfoundland between 1807 and 1809....
– Governor of Newfoundland (1807–1809) and Admiral of the Blue. - John KeateJohn KeateJohn Keate was an English schoolmaster, and headmaster of Eton College.He was born at Wells, Somerset, the son of Prebendary William Keate, D.D., rector of Laverton, Somerset, and brother of Robert Keate FRCS , Serjeant-Surgeon to King William IV and Queen Victoria.He was educated at Eton and...
– born in Wells 1773, went on to become headmaster at EtonEton CollegeEton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....
where he restored discipline with the birchBirchingBirching is a corporal punishment with a birch rod, typically applied to the recipient's bare buttocks, although occasionally to the back and/or shoulders.-Implement:...
, and once flogged 80 boys in one day. - James Keene – professional footballer formerly of Portsmouth FC, playing for IF ElfsborgIF ElfsborgIF Elfsborg is a Swedish football club located in Borås. The club has won five national championship titles, the latest in 2006, and two national cup titles. Currently playing in the highest Swedish league, Allsvenskan. Elfsborg is based at Borås Arena...
in Sweden. - Harry PatchHarry PatchHenry John "Harry" Patch , known in his latter years as "the Last Fighting Tommy", was a British supercentenarian, briefly the oldest man in Europe, and the last surviving soldier to have fought in the trenches of the First World War...
– last trenchTrench warfareTrench warfare is a form of occupied fighting lines, consisting largely of trenches, in which troops are largely immune to the enemy's small arms fire and are substantially sheltered from artillery...
veteran of World War I, and at 111, briefly the oldest man in Europe and 3rd oldest man in the world. He was born in the nearby village of Combe DownCombe DownCombe Down is a village suburb of Bath, England in the Bath and North East Somerset unitary authority within the ceremonial county of Somerset. Combe Down sits on a ridge above and about 1.5 miles to the south of Bath city centre. "Combe" or "coombe" is a West Country word meaning a steep-sided...
and at the time of his death in July 2009 he was living in local care home Fletcher House. - Hugh of Wells – native of Wells, Bishop, elder brother of Jocelin of Wells.
- Jocelin of WellsJocelin of WellsJocelin of Wells, also known as Jocelinus Thoteman or Jocelin Troteman, was a medieval Bishop of Bath and Wells. He was the brother of Hugh de Wells, who became Bishop of Lincoln. Jocelin became a canon of Wells Cathedral before 1200, and was elected bishop in 1206...
– native of Wells, Bishop, aided in creation of Magna CartaMagna CartaMagna Carta is an English charter, originally issued in the year 1215 and reissued later in the 13th century in modified versions, which included the most direct challenges to the monarch's authority to date. The charter first passed into law in 1225...
and largely responsible for the construction of the cathedral. - Edgar WrightEdgar WrightEdgar Howard Wright is an English film and television director and writer. He is most famous for his work with Simon Pegg and Nick Frost on the films Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz, the TV series Spaced, and for directing the film Scott Pilgrim vs...
– film and television director. Directed Hot Fuzz, which was filmed in the city.
See also
- Visitor attractions in Somerset