Dorchester Walk: Town Centre【4K】

Located in the county of Dorset, and around 55 miles south of Bristol, is the town of Dorchester.

Geographically Dorchester sits along the River Frome, around five miles inland from the south coast of England. The town was originally a Roman settlement from circa 70 AD, called Durnovaria - a name possibly derived from the Celtic Durotriges tribe whom the Romans displaced. It is the county town of Dorset.

By the late Medieval period Dorchester had become a prosperous wool-producing town. This industry continued up until the 18th century at which point competition from northern towns ushered its decline. Around this time industry in Dorchester turned towards brewing.

In 1630 a ship full of Puritans from Dorset led by a Dorchester rector named John White landed in America. As was popular at the time, the new settlement was named in homage to the origin of its settlers, thus Dorchester, Massachusetts was founded.

Dorchester was the location of a number of trials as part of the Bloody Assize of 1685. Following the Duke of Monmouth's unsuccessful rebellion against King James II, Judge George Jeffreys took up residence at 6 High West Street (visible around the 13-and-a-half minute mark on the right hand side) and presided over the trials of 312 rebels. Judge Jeffreys handed out 251 death sentences, to the shock of many at the time. Although only 74 of these sentences were carried out, Jeffreys gained infamy, and was dubbed 'The Hanging Judge'.

In 1840 Thomas Hardy was born in the neighbouring village of Stinsford, one mile east of Dorchester. Hardy would go on to become a leading author and poet of the late 19th and early 20th century. His novels typically took place in the semi-fictional region of Wessex - an approximation of southwest England. In Hardy's Wessex, Dorchester was called Casterbridge, which features in one of his most famous works - The Mayor of Casterbridge. A statue of Thomas Hardy can be seen on The Grove around the 10-minute mark.

A second statue is seen just after the 14-minute mark - this one depicts William Barnes. Born in 1801, Barnes was a polymath whose skill set included writer, poet, priest, mathematician and inventor. Born in the hamlet of Bagber in the north of Dorset, he lived in Dorchester for several years. Among his works are over 800 poems written in traditional Dorset dialect. It is said that Thomas Hardy visited William Barnes for authoritative opinions on grammar.

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Filmed: 14th July 2021

Link to the walk on Google Maps: https://goo.gl/maps/1fNMbUA2HJCjBWDY9

Filmed on a Sony FDR-AX700 with a Zhiyun Crane 2 and a Sony ECM-XYST1M Stereo Microphone.

TIMESTAMPS:

0:00 South Street
0:16 Dorchester Cenotaph
0:25 South Street
3:55 Cornhill
4:35 The Town Pump
4:42 St Peter's Church
4:50 Cornhill
5:20 Antelope Walk
6:16 Prince's Street
8:52 Albert Road
9:32 High West Street
9:52 The Grove
10:08 Thomas Hardy Statue
10:18 The Grove
10:34 High West Street
14:14 William Barnes Statue
14:18 High West Street
14:45 High East Street
18:07 London Road
18:54 River Frome