Long considered to be one of England’s most beautiful
smaller towns, Stamford, with well over a thousand years of history
behind it, occupies a hilly site astride the River Welland. It is
in the extreme south west corner of Lincolnshire immediately adjacent
to the counties of Northamptonshire and Rutland.
Always a place of importance in the country’s history, the
market-town of Stamford evolved around a natural stopping point
at a ford where the Great North Road crosses the River Welland.
For centuries that famous thoroughfare brought trade and prosperity
and provided convenient access to the rest of the country ensuring
a commercial importance that only declined with the advent of the
railways.
The vernacular buildings, mostly built of the local warm-tinted
Jurassic limestone that is so characteristic of this corner of the
country, give Stamford a distinguished Georgian appearance that
has few equals.
The town’s commercial importance dates back to the Saxons
and, by the 10th century, Stamford was a borough whose rights were
later confirmed by successive Royal Charters in 1462, 1481 and 1663.
Indeed, Stamford has very much the feeling of a small county town
and it has probably more in common with the adjacent county of Rutland
to the west than with Lincolnshire and Lincoln, its county town,
situated some distance to the north-east.
Stamford’s opportune situation and distance from London made
it a convenient stopover point for transiting kings and queens.
King Edward I was a frequent visitor, as were King  Henry
VIII, Queen Elizabeth I and Mary Queen of Scots who were all entertained
here. King Charles I was said to have spent his last night of freedom
here at the end of the Civil War. The town’s long and interesting
history is clearly reflected in Stamford’s many beautiful
churches, its historic commercial and domestic architecture, its
ancient hostelries with its fine squares and quaint alleyways that
draw today’s tourists from all over the world. Local industries
provide added prosperity and the town’s shops and weekly markets
serve a wide surrounding area. The town also has a fine, recently
refurbished theatre, a museum, good sports facilities including
a leisure centre and indoor swimming pool, a number of well-appointed
hotels and many good pubs often serving an admirable range of local
ales as well familiar national brands. Stamford, in short, is an
ideal place to visit whether for a day, a weekend or longer. With
its choice of fine, older town houses and excellent modern housing
estates and picturesque outlying villages, it is also makes an ideal
place in which to live, work and play.
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