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This Ancient Road - London to Holyhead: A Journey Through Time
Roads are a slice through history, a slice through landscape, and a slice through life.
We rarely consider the roads we travel; when and where they began, how they developed and where they end. They are the most basic and most-used part of the transport network but their fascinating stories are largely ignored.
In This Ancient Road, author and enthusiast Andrew Hudson looks at one of the oldest roads in Britain – the London to Holyhead Road, following largely the famous Roman road, Watling Street, now the A5. Stretching from Marble Arch in London to Holyhead in Wales, this road has a rich history of battles and pilgrimages, trade and exploration. It has carried generals and royalty, St Alban and Disraeli, Sir John Falstaff and Samuel Pickwick – plus millions of people going about their own daily business.
This Ancient Road is a truly fascinating journey through time, exploring not only the important events that have studded the history of the road, but also the effects on our society and our culture . Informative and charming, Andrew Hudson brings history to life in this marvellous book.
We rarely consider the roads we travel; when and where they began, how they developed and where they end. They are the most basic and most-used part of the transport network but their fascinating stories are largely ignored.
In This Ancient Road, author and enthusiast Andrew Hudson looks at one of the oldest roads in Britain – the London to Holyhead Road, following largely the famous Roman road, Watling Street, now the A5. Stretching from Marble Arch in London to Holyhead in Wales, this road has a rich history of battles and pilgrimages, trade and exploration. It has carried generals and royalty, St Alban and Disraeli, Sir John Falstaff and Samuel Pickwick – plus millions of people going about their own daily business.
This Ancient Road is a truly fascinating journey through time, exploring not only the important events that have studded the history of the road, but also the effects on our society and our culture . Informative and charming, Andrew Hudson brings history to life in this marvellous book.
- GenresTravel
211 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 21, 2017
4 people are currently reading
15 people want to read
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
November 7, 2017
A history of Watling Street from Marble Arch in London to Holyhead in Wales may not sound like a fascinating read, but 'This Ancient Road' (2017) is certainly a journey through time.
Author Andrew Hudson employs quotes and references from Tacitus, Bede, Sir Frank Stenton's excellent 'Anglo-Saxon England', Geoffrey Chaucer, Daniel Defoe, Charles Dickens and a vast host of other publications related to the modern A5 road.
The reader can follow in the footsteps, hoof prints and wheel tracks of great historical figures from Suetonius or Richard III to travellers on the mail coaches and modern day car drivers.
The only thing I found dull were the accompanying photographs.
Author Andrew Hudson employs quotes and references from Tacitus, Bede, Sir Frank Stenton's excellent 'Anglo-Saxon England', Geoffrey Chaucer, Daniel Defoe, Charles Dickens and a vast host of other publications related to the modern A5 road.
The reader can follow in the footsteps, hoof prints and wheel tracks of great historical figures from Suetonius or Richard III to travellers on the mail coaches and modern day car drivers.
The only thing I found dull were the accompanying photographs.
Displaying 1 of 1 review