Driving Through Georgian Britain: the great coaching routes for the modern traveller
Discover the classic coaching routes of Britain – The Great North Road, the Bath Road, the Dover Road and the Brighton Road
Despite motorways and by-passes the old routes can still be found and this book will take you on a time-travelling journey of discovery.
As you follow the directions for driving the old roads today you will discover historic inns, fascinating towns and picturesque villages. Where were the dangerous locations for highwaymen? Where might you find yourself snowed in or perched on the seat to avoid the flood waters? What were the lurid tales the coach drivers would tell? Where would the Prince Regent attend prize fights, Byron visit his publisher or a Transylvanian prince be in danger of his life?
Whether you are fascinated by the world of Jane Austen or simply prefer a more pleasant way of crossing the country, this book will guide you.
Please note…
The section on the Great North Road is a revised version of my ebook Following the Great North Road: a guide for the modern traveller which is no longer available.
Excerpt
The Bath Road
London to Kensington
Catch the number 9 bus from Green Park Underground station or, if travelling by car, take the A4 (Knightsbridge) from Hyde Park Corner, then A315 (Knightsbridge-Kensington Road-Kensington High Street).
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Before boarding your Number 9 bus, take a moment to imagine the scene where The Ritz now stands at the north-east corner of Green Park. This was the site of The White Horse Cellar where the stage coaches from the City stopped to pick up the last London passengers and the incoming western coaches set down passengers including, on occasion, Jane Austen. It was a chaotic scene of milling vehicles, shoving passengers, porters, food sellers and gawking sightseers with pickpockets and touts adding to the perils.
Pierce Egan wrote in 1819, ‘Whether the foot-step of the gay “set out” of the barouche or the more accommodating ladder to mount the roof of the Regent [coach], to the coachy’s “All right – ya-hip!” and the sounding of the bugle by the guard to quit the bustle of the White Horse Cellar, the journey to most minds commences with pleasure and delight.’
