THE COTSWOLDS

The Cotswolds are a range of hills in central England, sometimes called the "heart of England", a hilly area reaching over 300 m or 1000 feet. The area has been designated as the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Their highest point is Cleeve Hill at 330m/1083ft.

The Cotswolds lie within the current ceremonial counties of Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire, Wiltshire, Somerset, Warwickshire, and Worcestershire. The county of Gloucestershire forms the largest area of the Cotswolds.


DESCRIPTION OF THE COTSWOLDS

The spine of the Cotswolds runs southwest to northeast through six counties, particularly Worcestershire. The county of Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, and southern Warwickshire. The northern and western edges of the Cotswolds are marked by steep escarpments down to the Severn valley and the Avon, the eastern boundary by the city of Oxford (the city of dreaming spires), the west by Stroud, and the south by the middle reaches of the Thames Valley and towns such as Cirencester, Lechlade and Fairford. However, key features of the area, including the characteristic uplift of the 'Cotswold Edge' can be clearly seen as far south as Bath.

The area is characterised by attractive small towns and villages built of the underlying rock, known as Cotswold stone (a yellow oolitic limestone). In the Middle Ages, the Cotswolds were prosperous from the wool trade, some of this money was put into the building of churches, so the area has a number of large, handsome Cotswold stone "wool churches". The area remains affluent and has attracted wealthy Londoners and others who own second homes in the area or have chosen to retire to the Cotswolds.

Typical Cotswold towns are Broadway, Burford, Chipping Norton, Cirencester, Moreton-in-Marsh and Stow-on-the-Wold. The Cotswold village of Chipping Campden is notable for being the home of the Arts and Crafts movement, founded by William Morris at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries.

William Morris lived, occasionally, in Broadway Tower a folly now in country park. Chipping Campden is also well known for the annual Cotswold Games, a celebration of sports and games dating back to the early 17th century.


AREA OF OUTSTANDING NATURAL BEAUTY

The Cotswolds were designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in 1966, with an expansion on 21 December 1990 to 2046 square kilometres. The AONB runs from the high Cotswolds, around Bredon Hill and Chipping Campden in the north, then south along the spine of high ground to the 'Bristol' Avon at Bath. The Cotswold Way is a long-distance footpath (approx 103 miles) running the length of the AONB.


TRANSPORT TO THE COTSWOLDS

The M5 motorway and Cross Country rail line run north - south close to the western boundary of the area. The M4 motorway and Great Western Main Line cross the area in the south as do the A40 road and Cotswold Line in the north. Cheltenham is a hub for National Express coach services.


COTSWOLD WAY

The Cotswold Way is a long-distance footpath, running along the escarpment of the Cotswold Hills in England. The hundred-mile long trail runs northeast from Bath to Chipping Campden, through or near to the following towns; Old Sodbury, near Chipping Sodbury, Wotton-under-Edge, Dursley, Stroud, Painswick, Cranham, Leckhampton, Cheltenham, Winchcombe and Broadway.

It passes numerous places of interest, including the Tyndale Monument, Sudeley Castle, Cleeve Hill, Hailes Abbey, and the Broadway Tower. In total the walk is 166km long (103 miles). With the exception of a small stretch around Broadway (which is in Worcestershire), the entire walkway is within Gloucestershire (including South Gloucestershire) and Somerset (including Bath & North East Somerset).

Besides being popular with walkers, it is presently run annually as a 10-stage relay (Cotswold Way Relay) from North to South, usually in early July. The winning team typically takes an aggregate time of about 12 hours. It is run under Fell Runners' Association rules.

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