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Ashton Court

1633 establishments in EnglandBuildings and structures in North SomersetCountry houses in SomersetGardens by Humphry ReptonGrade II* listed buildings in Bristol
Grade II* listed buildings in North SomersetGrade II* listed houses in SomersetGrade II* listed parks and gardens in BristolGrade II listed buildings in BristolGrade II listed buildings in North SomersetGrade I listed buildings in BristolGrade I listed buildings in North SomersetHistoric house museums in BristolHistory of BristolHistory of SomersetHouses completed in 1633Music venues in BristolParks and open spaces in BristolSites of Special Scientific Interest in AvonSites of Special Scientific Interest notified in 1998Structures on the Heritage at Risk register in SomersetUse British English from February 2023World War II prisoner-of-war camps in England
Ashton Court Estate
Ashton Court Estate

Ashton Court is a mansion house and estate to the west of Bristol in England. Although the estate lies mainly in North Somerset, it is owned by the City of Bristol. The mansion and stables are a Grade I listed building. Other structures on the estate are also listed. Ashton Court has been the site of a manor house since the 11th century, and has been developed by a series of owners since then. From the 16th to 20th centuries it was owned by the Smyth family with each generation changing the house. Designs by Humphry Repton were used for the landscaping in the early 19th century. It was used as a military hospital in the First World War. In 1936 it was used as the venue for the Royal Show and, during the Second World War as an army transit camp. In 1946 the last of the Smyth family died and the house fell into disrepair before its purchase in 1959 by Bristol City Council. The estate developed from the original deer park and is Grade II* listed on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens of special historic interest in England. It is the venue for a variety of leisure activities, including the now-defunct Ashton Court Festival, Bristol International Kite Festival and the Bristol International Balloon Fiesta. It is home to charity The Forest of Avon Trust.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Ashton Court (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Ashton Court
St Mary's Road,

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Latitude Longitude
N 51.4479 ° E -2.6446 °
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Ashton Court Golf Course

St Mary's Road
BS8 3PY
England, United Kingdom
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Ashton Court Estate
Ashton Court Estate
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Clifton Suspension Bridge
Clifton Suspension Bridge

The Clifton Suspension Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the Avon Gorge and the River Avon, linking Clifton in Bristol to Leigh Woods in North Somerset. Since opening in 1864, it has been a toll bridge, the income from which provides funds for its maintenance. The bridge is built to a design by William Henry Barlow and John Hawkshaw, based on an earlier design by Isambard Kingdom Brunel. It is a Grade I listed building and forms part of the B3129 road. The idea of building a bridge across the Avon Gorge originated in 1753. Original plans were for a stone bridge and later iterations were for a wrought iron structure. In 1831, an attempt to build Brunel's design was halted by the Bristol riots, and the revised version of his designs was built after his death and completed in 1864. Although similar in size and design, the bridge towers are not identical, the Clifton tower having side cut-outs, the Leigh tower more pointed arches atop a 110-foot (34 m) red sandstone-clad abutment. Roller-mounted "saddles" at the top of each tower allow movement of the three independent wrought iron chains on each side when loads pass over the bridge. The bridge deck is suspended by 162 vertical wrought-iron rods in 81 matching pairs. The Clifton Bridge Company initially managed the bridge under licence from a charitable trust. The trust subsequently purchased the company shares, completing this in 1949 and took over the running of the bridge using the income from tolls to pay for maintenance. The bridge is a distinctive landmark, used as a symbol of Bristol on postcards, promotional materials, and informational web sites. It has been used as a backdrop to several films and television advertising and programmes. It has also been the venue for significant cultural events such as the first modern bungee jump in 1979, the last Concorde flight in 2003 which flew over the bridge, and a handover of the Olympic Torch relay in 2012.