The Beautiful West Country

The  Very Historic Rural Town of Wimborne-Minster East Dorset

Town of Wimborne-Minster

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Wimborne-Minster is a delightful busy bustling small Dorset market town situated in the very picturesque water meadows that lie between the River  Stour and the River Allen. Its history dates back to AD 705, For that is when twin towers of the magnificent Minster Church of St.Cuthburga, first saw the light of day. The Abbey and Monastery grew in size and importance. By 871 it had grown to such importance that King Alfred the Great buried his brother King Ethelred (not the Unready) in the Minster, that was built by Cuthburga who founded also an Abbey under the auspices of a Benedictine Nunnery at the site of the present day Minister

It was in the 12th Century when the Minster from which Wimbourne was to take it's name was constructed. 1496 Lady Margaret Beaufort, grand-daughter of John of Gaunt and mother of Henry VII, founded a small chapel in the Minster. With the reign of Henry VIII and the Protestant Reformation the remaining parts of the monastery were adopted into part of the Minster to avoid being destroyed. However much of the wealth of the Minster was confiscated by King Henry VIII. The Protestant Reformation which was sweeping Europe was used in a malevolent and selfish way by, Henry V111 for he broke with the catholic church due to the conflict with the pope over his attempt to divorce Catherine of Aragon (since 1527), came to a climax. The Pope duly excommunicated Henry, who retaliated by incorporating the Act of Supremacy, thus establishing the Church of England As stated above The central tower and nave were founded in Saxon times, but the surviving building is predominantly Norman in design and construction, with Gothic components from various periods.

Although the Minster is obviously the main visitor attraction Wimborne does offer the visitor more,If you need to relax then Deans Court In the center of Wimborne is the perfect place, For here you will find an oasis of peace and tranquility,Deans Court consists of an 13 acres garden surrounds an old house that once was home to the deanery of the Minster.Dean's Court's garden is certainly a peaceful haven near the center of this busy market town.

Then one has Kingston Lacy a beautiful 17th century house designed by the architect Sir Robert Pratt for Sir Ralph Bankes Kings was built to replace his ruined family seat at Corfe Castle; altered in the 19th century, the house contains an outstanding collection of paintings and an exhibition of Egyptian artifacts from 3,000BC and the beautiful gardens are a sea of colour with an abundance of various flowers and plants, there is also 250 acres of woodland nature trails and an area set aside for  children to play, the house and gardens are administered by the National Trust.

Wimbore folk festival this is held annually and next years festival will be on the 13-15 June, although a recent event it has proved to be very successful. The one attraction that will delight all the family is Wimborne model town , here are models of Wimborne as it was in the 1950s the lifelike models built to scale of 1/10 are truly amazing. With plenty of tourist accommodation available and restaraunts ranging from traditional English cuisine to Chinese and Indian and lively traditional pubs Wimborne has something to suit everyone.!

Town of Wimborne-Minster
West Country
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