This site was produced by: LOCAL AUTHORITY PUBLISHING
Publishers for local authorities throughout Great Britain. View more Official Guides at www.officialguides.co.uk

Welcome to Britain’s best loved market town situated in the heart of West Suffolk. For five centuries Bury St Edmunds was visited by pilgrims from all over the world, coming to worship at the shrine of the martyred Edmund, King of East Anglia. A powerful Abbey grew up here in mediaeval times, and it was here in 1214 that the English barons met to swear the oath that would eventually force King John to accept the Magna Carta.

Today the remains of the Great Abbey are situated in the picturesque and award winning Abbey Gardens.

Gaze across the gardens and you will see St Edmundsbury Cathedral which is the only cathedral in Suffolk. The oldest part dates back to 1503 and the newest part - the Millennium Tower was completed in 2004. The gothic tower dominates the Bury St Edmunds skyline as if it had always been there. Along the road from St Edmundsbury Cathedral you will find St Mary’s Church with it’s unique hammer-beam ‘angel’ roof and the tomb of Mary Tudor the sister of Henry VIII.

Bury St Edmunds is a great place to explore by foot, with delights and surprises around every corner. Its streets preserve in their names the trades of years gone by: Looms Lane, Buttermarket, Skinner Street and Cornhill. They still retain the grid pattern devised by the Abbots all those years ago.

A twice weekly market flourishes in the Buttermarket and Cornhill. Almost 100 stalls sell everything from feta cheese and olives to traditional fruit and vegetables picked and delivered from our neighbours in the fens. The hustle and bustle of the market is a social event as well as a shopper’s delight.

Bury St Edmunds boasts a wide range of independent shops offering traditional service and inspiration. Take a stroll down St John’s Street - fondly known as the ‘Bond Street of Bury’. Designer boutiques, a tempting chocolate shop and unusual gift shops are some of the many traders and cafés in this much loved street.

There is something for everyone to enjoy in Bury St Edmunds including theatres, art galleries and museums.