Salisbury is a cathedral city in the south east of Wiltshire on the outskirts of Salisbury Plain. Around the city run five rivers, Nadder, Ebble, Wylye and Bourne and these are tributaries of the Avon that flows into the sea on the south coast. Rivers that flowed through the city have been directed to flow through public gardens the amount of water is controlled by weirs. As Salisbury is situated in a valley the land often floods through the winter months and some paths and walkways become unpassable.
The early history of the city states that the site was chosen because there was plenty of water in the area and dates back to the Iron Age. The Romans called it Sorviodunum. The Normans built a castle and called the area Seresbin. In the Domesday Book of 1086 it was known as Salesberie. The site of the castle is now known as Old Sarum.
Salisbury’s first cathedral was built between 1075 and 1092 a larger building was erected in 1120 on the same site. The new cathedral building started in 1220 and took thirty-eight years to complete; local stones were used in the build. The 123metre spire was added later and is the tallest in the UK. The cathedral was built on foundations only 18inches deep on wooden faggots.
In 1386 a mechanical clock was added and it is now the oldest mechanical clock in Britain.
The cathedral library houses the better preserved copy of the Magna Carta.
The City wall surrounds the Close, it was built in the 14th century and it has five gates, four are original and the fifth was added at a later date. In a room over St. Ann’s Gate was where Handel lived for a while and composed some of his music. King Charles II held court in the Close during the Great Plague of London.
Salisbury holds a market on a Tuesday and Saturday and has held regular markets since 1227. In the 15th century stone crosses were markers for certain trades. Only the Poultry Cross remains in the market today.
Shopping centres in Salisbury are The Old George Mall, The Maltings and Winchester Street. With shops including, Next, TK Maxx, Woolworths, The Edinburgh Woollen Mill, and Marks and Spencer.
Rental properties are in abundance and prices are in the region of £525 for a l bed flat, £550 for a 2 bed flat and £750 for a 3 bed house.
The city has football and rugby teams and there is the Five Rivers Leisure Centre and Swimming Pool which opened in 2002 and this is located just outside the ring road.
The local Theatre is the Playhouse and the City Hall is also used as a venue for comedy and musical productions and well as business meetings.
Lying to the south west of the city is Salisbury Racecourse this is a popular course for flat racing.
Stonehenge lies to the north of Salisbury and is famous world wide, it attracts a large number of visitors adding to the economy of Salisbury and surrounding areas.
To the north and east of the city is a flat part of Salisbury Plain, this area is used for manoeuvres and weapon testing by the military.
The residents of Salisbury complain about not having enough roadways in and around the city adding to this fact there are no motorways linking Southampton and Bristol so vehicles have no option than to drive through the city.
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