Victoria Street
Route
Bristol Bridge - Victoria Street - St. Thomas Street, Temple - Redcliff Street - Guinea Street - Bathurst Basin - SS. Great Britain
Distance
3.5 km
Map
In 1240 the River Frome was diverted through Canon’s Marsh to join the Avon, close to the present Bathurst Basin, to provide a harbour close to the town centre. These works were carried out, under the command of Henry III, by men from the Redcliffe, also known as Redcliffe and Temple parishes. Although the river could be forded twice a day, these parishes were separated from Bristol by the Avon. The effect of incorporating these two parishes into the town was to double the size of Bristol.
Victoria Street started life in the 19th century and you will see evidence of this in the converted warehousing and rows of Bristol ‘Byzantine‘ shops. These are on the left opposite the first fifteen-storey office block which was built in 1964. Byzantine revival architecture was popular in the city between 1850 to 1880. Many have been destroyed but remaining notable examples include the Bristol Beacon – formerly Colston Hall, The Granary on Welsh Back and The Carriage Works on Stokes Croft. Further along to the right and just before you turn into St. Thomas Street, there are four fine examples of 17th-century houses, now occupied by shop owners and baristas.
St.Thomas Street and the Church of St. Thomas the Martyr were built in the 14th century. The church has retained a 14th-century tower, but the nave was rebuilt in 1791–93 by James Allen. The top of the tower was remodelled by Willian Venn Gough in 1896-97. The church is home to an altarpiece from 1716. This was a typical adornment for many parish churches; the most famous of these is Hogarth’s Tryptic, which is hosted at St. Nicholas Church on the city side of the Bristol Bridge …
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