Norman Bath
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The Norman invasion of 1066 brought a change of
ruler and a change of fortune for the town. In 1088, Bath was involved in a
revolt against the rule of King William II. Using Bristol as a base, rebel
Norman bishops, led by Odo, ravaged Bath and the surrounding area. The town and
countryside were plundered and little remained of the once thriving community
that had lived there.
In the same year, William Rufus appointed John of Tours (de Villula) Bishop of Wells. A few years later, for £500 in silver, de Villula bought the Town of Bath from the King and moved his See (seat of power) from Wells to Bath. This reduced Wells to the level of a simple collegiate church, causing rifts between the monks of Bath and the canons of Wells that were to last until the 13th Century. He then set about building a Cathedral on the site of the former monastery. This was to be three times the size of the present day Abbey and occupied a quarter of the town.
How the Norman Cathedral
once looked.
(Image Courtesy of the
Bath Archaeological Trust).
The town now became a City by prescription. In 1157,
Bishop Robert persuaded the Pope to formally acknowledge that Bath was the seat
of the Bishopric. This was later confirmed by the Charter of 1256 from Henry II
who referred to the “City of Bath”. The
Charter of Incorporation granted by Elizabeth I in 1590, made Bath a City in
its own right.
The fourth Bishop, Reginald Fitzjocelyn, founded the Hospital of St John
the Baptist to cater for the poor and sick who used the baths in 1180. It is the
City’s oldest charity and is still going strong today. Other baths were built
around the City to cater for the ever-increasing population of lepers who were
attracted to Bath in hope of a cure from the waters.