In the early 1850's, whilst staying with friends in Cheltenham, Diana Maria Craik visited Tewkesbury. She was enchanted by the medieval town and decided to make
it the heart of her next novel which became the 'rags to riches' story of John Halifax, Gentleman. Set against a background
of world events, and at the time of the Industrial Revolution, its moral message of success achieved through hard work and high principals hit exactly the right note with the Victorians. By 1863 it
was second only to Uncle Tom's Cabin in a list of the era's most popular books.
The life story of this young vagabond's rise takes place largely in and around Tewkesbury (Craik's Norton Bury). Craik had lunched at the timber-framed Bell and was told by the landlady that the
building had formerly belonged to a tanner. In that moment, so legend has it, the Bell became Abel Fletcher's home and his tannery business was established at the Abbey Mill - which stands a few
yards down the lane by the Avon.
The book was equally popular across the Atlantic and in 1904 the American travel writer Josephine Tozier arrived in Tewkesbury on a literary tour/pub - crawl. In her Among English Inns she wrote: "Tewkesbury has changed but little since Miss Mulock's time inside the Bell the low, square
rooms with high, plain oak wainscoting, where we eat our lunch, the countless queer cupboards in the corners, the dark, winding staircase and the uneven floors and we enjoy our lunch much better for
feeling sure we are in that room where, "to Jack's great wrath, and my (Phineas) great joy, John Halifax was bidden, and sat down to the same board as his master."
In the centre of Tewkesbury is the magnificent Norman Abbey, built between 1087 and 1121. The three gabled Bell, rebuilt after a fire of 1696 is situated immediately opposite the north gate and
occupies the site of the earliest Guest House of the Monastery. The cellars of the hotel are believed to be the original cellars of the Guest House. The 16th century Frescos or tapestries on the wall
of the lounge were discovered under many layers of wallpaper. Today a wide selection of modern and traditional British dishes is on offer, complimented by a choice of real ales and world
wines.
Copyright T.W. Townsend - the opinions expressed herein are those of the author and any observations were correct at the time of the
review.