Bath, England - Bath Abbey - August 2024

The next morning (8/14/2024), we flew on an easyJet from Edinburgh to Bristol, England. Bristol is sort of "rough" for England, so riding the bus from Bristol to Bath was not our favorite part of the trip. However, it was super-cheap and I didn't need to worry about driving on the other side of the road - I have enough trouble driving as it is.

I am a crazy-huge an of Jane Austen, and A has joined me in enjoying several of my favorites. Jane lived in Bath for a small handful of years from 1801 to 1806. It's also the inspiration and partial setting for both Northanger Abbey and Persuasion, the latter of which is one of my favorites. We got to Bath by around 10am and put our suitcases in a temporary drop-off while we kept our reservations.

Our first stop of the day was the Bath Abbey. Our visit was both because Jane visited it many times, and because (as stated previously many times) I love old churches and cathedrals.

The Abbey is right across the Kingston Parade courtyard from the Roman Forums, so the entire area is breathtaking.

The architecture of Bath Abbey is Cruciform Gothic in style. I think the rough translation to modern day would be that it's "bad-ass." Edgar, the king of all of England, was crowned in the original building in 973 AD.

The Abbey is a parish church of the Church of England. It started as a convent and monastery in the 600s. There were various rises and falls of different buildings on the site, subject to setbacks like fire and Henry VIII closing it in 1539 during the second Dissolution of Monasteries. The building began to decay, until Queen Elizabeth I provided funds for its restoration in 1573. Restorations were completed in 1620, 1833, and 1960.

The fan vaulted ceiling is amazing. Rather than the darker wood seen in some gothic cathedrals, the light stone combined with the stained glass windows makes the room airy and light. The architect designed similar vaulting for Westminster Abbey. There are flying buttresses that transfer the weight to the columns - but I like to assume the Buttresses were from Windsor.

The chandeliers are all gas.

A little closer look at the main stained glass window. Located at the east end, it's square-framed and has seven lights (columns). It depicts the nativity and was created in the late 1800s.

The gas chandeliers are sort of awesome looking!

A and I made friends with this pastor after the service. We discussed Iowa, the history of the abbey, and more.

There are hallways on either side of the main nave, also exhibiting the fan vaulted ceiling.

This burial place stands in front of a few of the 617 wall memorials and 847 floor stones.

The wall memorials are truly beautiful. We could have lost ourselves in this for forever.

Even the banners gave big Bath vibes.

Some more of the wall monuments. Seriously, they were so fascinating.

A spent a lot of time looking at them, too. Many Bath notables are there.

One of the north/south transepts is shown here, which are the arms of the cruciform (see next photo's caption). It contains a side chapel with a gorgeous cross.

The Abbey is in a cruciform shape, with one main nave facing east, and two arms branching off to the north/south sides perpendicular.

I lit this candle for Madeleine. <3

The Bath Abbey isn't considered a premier cathedral or anything like that, there are so many better-known, but I loved it. I loved how light and airy it was, I loved how cozy it managed to feel, how it exuded the overall feel of Bath in the interior. The wall memorials and floor memorials were all incredible, and the pastor was lovely. The feel is so different from St. Giles in Edinburgh, or from the places we visited in London. But it's still so truly lovely.