Bøker av Martyn Taylor

With all new images depicting this historic market town, Bury St Edmunds Through Time Revisited will appeal to residents and visitors alike.

At the heart of the historic Suffolk market town of Bury St Edmunds is the ruined eleventh-century abbey. The magnificent abbey church, once one of the richest and most powerful Benedictine monasteries in England and among the largest in Europe, was built over several generations. The chosen material was flint encased with limestone, the bonding agent being lime mortar. Chalk, the necessary requirement for this, had to be mined deeply and therefore Bury has chalk mines to the east, west and in a central part of town. Centuries later, catastrophic consequences occurred when thirty houses that had been built above the chalk mines were affected by property blight and had to be demolished. With the closure of the abbey following the Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1539, there were stories of medieval ghostly figures traversing the town via secret tunnels, unable to rest. Some of their Anglo-Saxon ancestors were discovered in a cemetery when building works were underway on the edge of town. In Going Underground: Bury St Edmunds, local author Martyn Taylor offers a fascinating insight into this Suffolk town's heritage lying hidden beneath its surface. Different chapters focus on tunnels, burial sites, chalk mines, cellars, municipal works, military defences, parch marks and much more. Illustrated throughout, this book will reveal subterranean surprises from ancient cellars to Victorian sewers. Take an intriguing look underground and discover how much history lies beneath your feet in Bury St Edmunds.

Fully illustrated description of Bury St Edmund's well-known, and lesser-known, places that have been lost over the years.

During the 1,000-year history of Bury St Edmunds, the town has acquired a mix of unexpected, weird and wonderful examples of buildings and the people associated with them. The old adage of looking up when going round any town is as true to Bury St Edmunds as with anywhere; for it is 'up' where many interesting gems of architecture, embellishments and ornamentations will be found. While buildings are obviously a link to the past and the people connected with them, retelling some of their stories brings history to life. Secret Bury St Edmunds goes behind the faades of the familiar to discover the lesser-known stories of Bury St Edmunds' fascinating past, brought to life through revealing images of the past and the present.

Originally called Bedricesworth, pilgrims came to worship at the shrine containing the martyred King Edmund, thus lending his name to the town. The enormous Benedictine Abbey of St Edmundsbury, alas now in ruins, was one of the largest in the country, extending its influence over much of Suffolk. Its existence contributed to the affluence of the town - so much so that even kings held their Parliament here! The town's affinity with Magna Carta is something it is proud of. Bury received its first charter from James I in 1606, enabling it to prosper even further with a growth envied by other towns. The twentieth century saw the creation of the Diocese of St Edmundsbury and Ipswich. The parish church of St James became Suffolk's Cathedral; its millennium tower is magnificent inside and out. Today tourists come to enjoy the wealth of history and heritage.