Our Heritage

Passers-by may, at first impression, consider this to be a somewhat uninspiring ruin. However, as Paul Hyde explains, these Roman remains help to define the size, shape and location of the legionary fortress of Deva - from which the present larger circuit of city walls evolved.

Presenter Paul Hyde encourages us to look up when passing this splendid example of a Victorian half-timber revival building by the renowned architect John Douglas.

Rusty or blood-stained - that is the question? This outcrop of rock in Chester’s Edgar’s Field Park has had a long journey from its origins in the Tropics of the Triassic. What’s more, it’s still moving! – albeit extremely slowly.

A Water Tower – but where is the water? Looking at it today there’s none stored inside and there’s none flowing around it. Discover the significance of this massive medieval sandstone structure that stands proudly at the end of a spur off the north-west corner of Chester’s famous City Walls.

When the Romans arrived almost 2000 years ago, they would have encountered a different landscape to what we see today, presenter Paul Hyde explains. However, it was a landscape that they decided was fit for a legionary fortress.

Both unique and old, The Rows have been two-tier thoroughfares of commerce since the Middle Ages. The buildings that form them have had many additions and modifications as well as replacements over the centuries. However, key features have remained.

Join presenter Paul Hyde as he uncovers some of the history of King Charles's Tower. Find out how magical birds and a doomed king are associated with this ancient tower on the north-east corner of Chester’s celebrated circuit of City Walls.