|
Reading,
was established in the 8th century as a market town and
river port, with its centre set on a low ridge between the
rivers Thames and Kennet.
When
Henry I founded an abbey in Reading in 1121, the settlement
soon became a place of pilgrimage. Reading Abbey was destroyed
in 1538 during Henry VIII's Dissolution of the Monastries
and its ruins, located beside Forbury Gardens, are now a popular
attraction for visitors.
In Medieval
and Tudor times Reading grew wealthy with its cloth trade
and by the end of the 16th century it was the largest town
in Berkshire. In the 18th century the town was known for
its iron works and breweries.
Reading
was also an important staging post on the major coaching routes
from London and Oxford to the West Country.
River
traffic increased after 1723, when the Kennet Navigation enabled
boats to travel as far as Newbury. In 1810 the opening of
the Kennet & Avon Canal meant that barges could navigate from
Reading to the Bristol Channel.
During
the 19th century Reading grew rapidly as a manufacturing centre
and was famous for its 'Three Bs' - beer, bulbs and biscuits.
Only the brewing of beer has survived to the present day.
The
town also became a major railway junction, with the Great
Western Railway arriving in 1841, the South Eastern Railway
in 1849 and the London and South Western Railway in 1856.
In the
20th century the town continued to expand, absorbing neighbouring
settlements including Caversham across the river in Oxfordshire.
The urban area of Reading has now spread a far as the M4,
which acts as the southern boundary of the town.
Lying
beside the M4 and on major rail routes Reading serves as an
important hub for commuter traffic in and out of London.
The town
has developed as a significant business centre, housing the
UK offices of a significant number of IT companies including
Microsoft and Sage.
Reading
is also a good regional shopping centre, set around the pedestrianised
Broad Street. The Oracle and Broad Street Mall shopping centres
lie at either end of Broad Street. Reading boasts a wide
range of restaurants, cafés and bars.
The town
has a number of arts centres with concert halls, general use
spaces and galleries. Recently the town has become famous
for two annual music festivals: the Reading Festival, first
held in 1971, and WOMAD (World of Music, Arts and Dance) which
found a home in the town in 1990.
Reading
is home to the Thames Valley University and the University
of Reading.
The
town is associated with the writer Oscar Wilde, who was imprisoned
at Reading (HM Prison) from 1895 - 97. After his release
Wilde lived in exile in Paris where he wrote 'The Ballad
of Reading Gaol' (published in 1908).
Visitors
can enjoy a stroll along the Thameside Promenade and admire
the many swans that gather near Caversham Bridge. There are
also attractive walks along the towpaths of the River Thames
and the Kennet & Avon Canal.
Narrow
boats can be hired at Reading to travel along the canal or
Thames.
Lying
at the junction of several road and rail transport routes
Reading is a great base for exploring the beautiful valleys
of the Thames and Kennet. Much of the surrounding area lies
in the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
The town
has several museums.
The
Museum of Reading, located in the splendid Victorian Town
Hall, illustrates the history of the town and its industries.
Highlights include the Huntley & Palmer Gallery, relating
the history of the town's once famous biscuit industry, and
the UK's only copy of the Bayeux Tapestry, dating from 1885.
Many of the galleries have hands-on activities and there is
also an art gallery and café.
Riverside
Museum at Blakes Lock, is set in a picturesque location
beside the River Kennet. Housed in two former industrial
buildings, the museum of industrial heritage also tells the
story of Reading's two rivers: the Thames and the Kennet.
Museum
of Berkshire Aviation is located off Mohawk Way in a small
surburb of Woodley. Standing on the edge of the former Woodley
Airfield, the museum traces the history of aviation in the
county. Many of the exhibits relate to Miles Aircraft Ltd,
based at Woodley Airfield between 1932 and 1947. Other aircraft
displayed were produced by Fairey Aviation at White Waltham
to the east of Reading.
Thames
Valley Police has a small museum
at the White House, Salhamstead near Reading. As well as
illustrating the history of the Thames Valley Police, the
museum has a facintating collection which includes uniforms,
equipment and items relating to the Great Train Robbery of
1963. (Note: open by appointment only, Tel: 0118 932 5748).
A number
of museums in the town are owned by the University of Reading.
The
Museum of English Rural Life is located in Redlands Road
opposite the Royal Berkshire Hospital. Founded in 1951, this
intriguing museum illustrates the changing face of agriculture,
rural crafts and the countryside.
The
Ure Museum of Greek Archaeology is located on the Whiteknights
Campus of the University. This musuem contains one of the
largest collections of Greek ceramics in the UK.
Cole
Museum of Zoology, also on the Whiteknights Campus, is
part of the School of Biological Sciences. Specimens, arranged
in a taxonomic sequence, illustrate the diversity of the animal
kingdom.
Reading
Football Club (known as 'The Royals') has played in the town
since 1871, based at the Madejski Stadium since 1998. Reading
is also known as a centre for rugby union football with the
team the London Irish, also based at the Madejski Stadium.
As a
Thames-side town Reading boasts several rowing clubs. Dorney
Lake, the internationally rowing venue set 17 miles east of
Reading, will host some of the rowing events of the 2012 Summer
Olympics.
Several
sailing lakes, also popular with water-skiers and jet-skiing
enthusiasts, are located to the south and south-west of Reading.
The largest is Theale Lake, lying close to Junction 12 on
the M4.
There
is a velodrome at Palmer
Park and the town is also home to the Reading Bulldogs
Speedway and Reading Greyhound Racing.
Reading
has seven sport and leisure venues including the South
Reading Leisure Centre (due to reopen in December 2006,
following major refurbishment, as the AcademySport Leisure
Centre).Yippee's
Yard, an exhiliarting labyrinth of play structures and interactive
zones for children, can be found here.
At Lower
Basildon, north-west of Reading, lies Beale
Park home to an amazing collection of birds including
swans, pheasants, flamingoes, owls, and parrots. In addition
there are ponies, goats, a pets corner, piggery and deer park.
Beale Park also has a narow-gauge railway with a steam engine,
trips on the River Thames in the summer, river and lake fishing,
nature trails and extensive gardens. The park holds the National
Collection of Model Boats, which can be viewed on request.
Several
historic houses lie within easy reach of Reading.
Englefield
House, located in the small village of Englefield near
Reading, is a beautiful Tudor mansion is set within one of
the last remaining deer parks in Berkshire. The privately
owned Elizabethan E-plan house (with additions in the 18th
and 19th centuries) is only open by appointment, but the 9
acre gardens, surrounded by woodlands and with fine views,
are open to the public.
At Swallowfield
stands Swallowfield Park and just north-west of Reading is
Basildon Park
Nestling
on the Thames at Mapledurham in Oxfordshire lies Mapledurham
House and Watermill. This late-16th century house has been
the home of the Blount family for 500 years. Inside, visitors
can see the great oak staircase, a private chapel in Strawberry
Hill Gothic, plaster ceilings, a collection of paintings and
furniture. On the banks of the Thames stands a 15th century
watermill. Flour and bran produced at this full-restored
watermill are on sale in the gift shop.
From
Easter to the end of September visitors can cruise on a boat
from Reading to Mapledurham House (ring Thames Rivercruise
on 0118 948 1088).
Out and
about between Reading and Basingstoke, in Hampshire, lies
Stratfield Saye House.
|
the internet holiday and travel guide to the UK
Reading
