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***Museum currently closed due to COVID restrictions. Provisional re-opening date is 20th May***
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Capturing the history of Malmesbury

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      • Robin Tanner
      • St Aldhelm
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      • Walter Powell
      • William of Malmesbury
      • William Stumpe
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      • Aerial View
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      • Silk Mills
      • Town Walls
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malmesbury abbey

Malmesbury Aerial View

Malmesbury architecture is indicative of its Cotswold heritage, beautiful Cotswold stone combined with monuments such as Market Cross and Malmesbury Abbey.

We have an enlarged reproduction of a Bird’s eye view of Malmesbury donated by the Warden and Freemen of Malmesbury dated April 1646. This illustrates the town defences from a hypothetical point to the south-west and several hundred feet up as they were on 23rd October 1646. This was the day work started to slight (demolish) the town walls under an order made in parliament dated 4th August 1646.

This painting is the only aerial view of the defences of any small town in the civil war and is remarkable for its detail. For example the section flags flown at various points are known to be correct and the cannon are colour coded. Look out for those on the Abbey roof.Various points are labelled and a key given. Among them are:-

Birds eye view of Malmesbury in October 1646
  • The river 10 or 12 foot dept, & in most places 18 fette over
  • The Shambles; called Kerfox
  • Mr Ivies house, the governours quarters
  • The Gibbett & Horse for the souldiers correction

And many others.

It is accompanied by a photograph taken from a light aircraft to echo the painting and it is remarkable how little the town has changed.

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Hannah Twynnoy is possibly the first person to be killed by a tiger in England, but why was this possible? What happened to cause her death?

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Athelstan Museum
Town Hall, Cross Hayes
Malmesbury
Wiltshire, SN16 9BZ

Tel: 01666 829258
Email: info@athelstanmuseum.org.uk

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