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Glastonbury
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Glastonbury's early history is linked with it's dominant landmark, the Tor. In days gone by, when the Somerset plain was a watery wilderness, this island refuge attracted settlers; first primitive peoples, then Romans, then Saxons - as recalled in the town's original name, Glaestingaburgh, meaning "hill-fort of the Glaestings." Meanwhile the Isle was also developing as a religious center; legend claims Joseph of Arimathea - with the Holy Grail - and later St. Patrick, both came to Glastonbury. Fact shows there was a Celtic monastery here by 500AD which, during the next 1000 years evolved into one of England's wealthiest and most influential abbeys. The town itself grew up alongside the Abbey, and inevitable suffered hardship at the time of the Dissolution. It survived however, and by the 18th century had received a charter and set up industries such as tanning and making stockings. During the 1800s the construction of a canal and then a railway temporarily boosted Glastonbury as a trading center. Today it is both a thriving market town and a major tourist venue, welcoming thousands of visitors each year. |
