A Timeline of Bath

By Tim Lambert

50 The Romans build a temple by the springs in Bath

c. 60-80 A town grows up at Bath. The Romans call it Aquae Sulis.

c.250 The Romans build stone walls around the flourishing town

407 The Roman army leaves Britain but town life limps on in Bath

577 The Saxons capture Bath

c. 885 Alfred the Great creates a network of fortified settlements across his kingdom including Bath

973 King Edgar is crowned in Bath

1088 Rebels burn Bath but it is soon rebuilt

1189 Bath is given a charter granting the townspeople certain rights

1499 The Bishop of Bath and Wells dreams he should rebuild Bath Abbey

1539 Henry VIII closes Bath Abbey

1590 Queen Elizabeth grants Bath a new charter

1604 The plague strikes Bath

1609 Almshouses are built in Bath

1615 A scavenger is appointed to clean the streets

1625 The plague strikes Bath again

1633 Thatched roofs are banned because of the risk of fire

1636 The plague strikes Bath once again

1643 The plague returns

1643 During the Civil War the Royalists capture Bath

1645 The Royalists surrender Bath to the Parliamentarians

1661 Bath water is bottled and sold

1706 The first Pump Room is built. (It was replaced in 1795).

1742 A hospital opens in Bath

1754-1760 The Circus is built

1767-1774 Royal Crescent is built

1768 The first bank opens in Bath

1771 Assembly Rooms are built

1774 Pulteney Bridge is built

1795 Sydney Gardens open

1801 The population of Bath is 33,000

1805 Theatre Royal is built

1810 The Kennet and Avon Canal opens

1830 Royal Victoria Park is opened

1835 Parade Bridge is built

1849 Cholera strikes Bath

1880 Horse drawn trams run in streets of Bath. The old Roman baths are rediscovered.

1890 The first electric streetlights are switched on in Bath

1897 Henrietta Park opens

1901 The population of Bath is about 65,000

1904 Electric trams begin to run in the streets

1907 The first council houses are built in Bath

1939 Trams are replaced by buses

1942 A bombing raid kills 21 people in Bath

1961 The American Museum opens

1963 The Museum of Costume opens

1964 Bath University is founded

1972 Bathgate Centre opens

1978 The Bath at Work Museum opens

1979 The Postal Museum opens

1981 The Herschel Museum opens in Bath. So does the National Centre of Photography.

1987 The Museum of English Naive Art opens

1989 The Podium Shopping Centre opens

1992 The Building of Bath Museum opens