Stay inside historic Chester.
An 1880s terrace inside Chester’s city walls.
Rome, at the end of the road.
The amphitheatre, built in the late first century, with the ruins of St John’s behind the trees.
A Georgian arch, a Victorian clock.
The sandstone arch dates from 1768 to 1769. John Douglas’s wrought-iron clock was added in 1899, above the city walls at Eastgate.
A thousand years of quiet.
Refounded as a Benedictine abbey in 1092; the cathedral of Chester since 1541.
Down to the river.
Chester’s oldest bridge, thought built from 1387, and rowing boats out from the Groves. The rest of the city’s story waits just below.
A hand-made miniature of real places. Every scene is modelled from a real photograph.
Historic Chester
2,000 years, all on foot.
Six ages of Chester. Every place is a short walk from your front door.
Read the facts behind Chester
Late 1st century to c. AD 400
Roman Chester
Deva, a Roman fortress, still lies under your feet.
5 min walk from your front door
Roman Amphitheatre
Late 1st century AD
The Roman arena beside St John's, built in the late first century AD and still cut into the ground.
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7 min walk from your front door
Minerva's Shrine
Early 2nd century
A shrine to Minerva cut into the rock of Edgar's Field, watching over the old river crossing.
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12 min walk from your front door
Roman Quay Wall
Probably 2nd century
Masonry by the Roodee from the days when ships still reached the fortress.
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3 min walk from your front door
Roman Gardens
Roman stones, 20th century garden
A garden created in the mid 20th century around repositioned Roman columns and stonework.
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c. 1066 to 1485
Medieval Chester
Castle, abbey, bridge and gates, built after the Normans arrived.
7 min walk from your front door
St Peter's Church
By about 1080
The church at Chester Cross, in the records by around 1080 and rebuilt more than once since.
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8 min walk from your front door
Chester Cathedral
An abbey from 1092, a cathedral since 1541
Refounded as a Benedictine abbey in 1092 and a cathedral since 1541; the great west front faces St Werburgh Street.
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5 min walk from your front door
Chester Weir
1093
Built for St Werburgh's Abbey to power the Dee Mills; the river still folds over it today.
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3 min walk from your front door
Falcon Inn
Oldest stonework about 1180
Stonework and reused roof timbers from around 1180 hide inside this much-altered house.
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11 min walk from your front door
King Charles Tower
Probably 13th century
A wall tower long before it earned its Civil War name; restored from 1612 and repaired after the siege.
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5 min walk from your front door
Chester Castle
Founded 1070
Founded by William I; the Agricola Tower, gatehouse and chapel are the oldest surviving parts.
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9 min walk from your front door
Kaleyard Gate
About 1275
A small gate cut through the walls for the monks of St Werburgh's, by permission of Edward I.
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11 min walk from your front door
Abbey Gateway
About 1300
The gateway into the abbey precinct off Northgate Street, altered around 1800 but medieval at heart.
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7 min walk from your front door
Leche House
Late 14th century
Its undercroft and lower chimney survive from the late 14th century, beneath a later town house.
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5 min walk from your front door
Old Dee Bridge
1387
Chester's oldest bridge, rebuilt under Richard II's Letters Patent of 1387 on a far older crossing.
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1485 to 1714
Tudor and Stuart Chester
The black and white city most visitors picture.
15 min walk from your front door
Chester Racecourse
First race 1539
The Roodee ran its first race on Shrove Tuesday in 1539, and still races today.
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16 min walk from your front door
Stanley Palace
1591
Built for Sir Peter Warburton in 1591; home to the Stanleys of Alderley from 1596.
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12 min walk from your front door
The Pied Bull
17th century
A 17th-century coaching inn, partly refronted later that century and still pouring today.
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3 min walk from your front door
Tudor House
Probably 1603
A Lower Bridge Street survivor, probably of 1603 despite the earlier date it likes to claim.
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3 min walk from your front door
Bear and Billet
Built in 1664
Raised in 1664 for the Earl of Shrewsbury. One of the last great timber framed town houses.
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8 min walk from your front door
Bishop Lloyd's House
Early 17th century
An early-17th-century rebuild over medieval undercrofts, heavily restored by T. M. Lockwood in the 1890s.
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1714 to 1837
Georgian Chester
Elegant new stone gates in the old walls.
14 min walk from your front door
Bluecoat School
1717
Founded in 1700 by Bishop Stratford; the present building followed in 1717.
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4 min walk from your front door
Bridgegate
1781 to 1782
Joseph Turner's arch replaced the old gate over Lower Bridge Street in 1781 and 1782.
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13 min walk from your front door
Northgate
1810
Thomas Harrison's clean neoclassical arch of 1810, on the site of the medieval gate and gaol.
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1837 to 1901
Victorian Chester
A great park by the river, and a museum of the city's past.
9 min walk from your front door
Grosvenor Park
Laid out from 1867
One of England's finest Victorian parks, laid out from 1867 above the Groves.
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10 min walk from your front door
Chester Town Hall
1869
W. H. Lynn's Gothic town hall, completed 1869 after fire destroyed the old Exchange.
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6 min walk from your front door
The Groves Bandstand
About 1880
The riverside bandstand of about 1880, paid for by Charles Brown of the Chester department store.
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5 min walk from your front door
Grosvenor Museum
1885 to 1886
Thomas Meakin Lockwood's museum of 1885 to 1886, keeper of Chester's Roman tombstones.
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1901 to today
Modern Chester
A new gate, a new bridge, and an Odeon reborn.
8 min walk from your front door
Queen's Park Bridge
Opened 1923
First bridged in 1852; the bridge you cross today opened on 18 April 1923.
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3 min walk from your front door
Newgate
1938
The newest gate in the old walls, built in 1938 to let traffic through gently.
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11 min walk from your front door
Storyhouse
1936 Odeon, reopened 2017
A 1936 Odeon that became Storyhouse in May 2017: cinema, theatre and library in one.
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History and culture
Every place, on one walking map.
Real walking routes and times from your front door.
Open the walking mapQuick answers
Is Chester a Roman city?
Yes. Chester began as Deva, a Roman legionary fortress, in the late 1st century AD. You can still stand in its amphitheatre and walk on walls the Romans began. The amphitheatre is 5 minutes from your front door.
English Heritage: the amphitheatre's history
How old is Chester?
Almost 2,000 years old. The Romans founded Deva in the AD 70s, the abbey that became the cathedral dates from 1092, and the Rows from the 13th century. Most of the old city still sits inside one ring of walls.
How far is the history from the house?
Every place on this page is between 3 and 16 minutes on foot from your front door, on real walking routes. The Roman Gardens are only 3 minutes away. With free parking at the house, the car can stay put all stay.
See every walk on the map
Each miniature is © PAUSEUK LIMITED, modelled from a verified photograph of the real place. See the sources, credits and licensing