Everything you need to know about Bath's World Heritage status and World Heritage Day in 10 minutes

Heritage is our legacy from the past, which we consider important in the present, and what we want to pass along to future generations. World Heritage is a definition that is applied to places, buildings, or intangible objects that have been agreed upon as having an outstanding universal value. All over the world there are 962 sites that have the distinction of being a World Heritage site. Of those, only 28 sites are located in the UK.


So what does that mean? Of the 28 sites in the U.K., only a handful is important enough to protect an entire city, like the City of Bath.

For Bath, there are 6 main reasons why the city was made into a World Heritage Site in 1987. For more information visit Bath & North East Somerset Council World Heritage Site website

• Roman Archaeology- the Roman Baths and Temple thermal establishment.

• The Hot Springs- the only ones in Britain.

• Georgian Town Planning- its innovative and cohesive concept, harmonized with its green landscape setting.

• Georgian Architecture- neo-classical public buildings and set-piece developments such as terraces, crescents, squares and the Circus by Palladian-inspired Bath architects.

• The green setting of the City in the hollow of the hills.

• Georgian architecture reflecting 18th century social ambitions- its role as a destination for pilgrimage and the social aspirations of the fashionable spa culture that created the Georgian city.

It’s time to celebrate!

Thanks to the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), every year on 18th April, World Heritage Sites celebrate the International World Heritage Day.

This year to make it convenient to join in, the City of Bath is celebrating World Heritage Day on Sunday 21 April 2013; with the focus on the Georgian era and its influence around the city.

Events of the day include:
• 18th Century re-enactments of Pulteney’s 13th Regiment of Foot

• Guided tours of the ‘upper town’ and its architecture

• Enjoy a chat with a Georgian Lady and her butler

• Children can play Georgian games, dress in 18th century style clothing and learn to dance a minuet

• Investigate objects from the 18th century in a traditional Georgian Garden

• Listen to lively music at the bandstand with the Bath City Jubilee Waits

For more info: world heritage day 2013
Every activity on World Heritage Day is free.     So come along and experience history!


Jenn