Gloucestershire – an old map by John Speed

Old Map of Gloucestershire by John Speed

Gloucestershire is a richly detailed map incorporating town plans of Gloucester and Bristol with notes on each, famous battles and a collection of Coates of Arms. Note that a couple remain blank – some payment was required for their inclusion and on this particular map not all the spaces were sold!  The River Severn and the rich farming land in its floodplain dominated central Gloucestershire. To the West was the forest Dean with its great oak forests, where within the history of Gloucestershire Samuel Pepyes remarked whilst searching for sources of timber to build ships for the navy, “Speede’s map there showed how it lies”. In this area was also an abundance of iron ore, making it one of the major centres for iron production in Britain. On the western side lay the Cotswolds with its many sheep yielding the most highly prized wool in England. At the south of the county on the River Avon, lay Bristol, one of the largest towns in England. It was a truly international port trading with Spain and the Mediterranean and forging new links with the newly colonised America.

Detailed town plans of both Bristol and Bath feature with notations along with illustrations of local battles. Truly a most fascinating and absorbing old map.

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Available in two sizes: Large: 24″ x 31″ (78.7 x 61cms)   Medium: 18″ x 24″ (45.5 x 61cms)  Small: 19.5″ x 14″ (49.5 x 35.5cms)