Queen Square: Mini-Tour

Queen Square in Bath is one of the early achievements of Bath’s great architect John Wood the Elder.

Queen Square was named after the wife of King George II, Caroline of Ansbach. It was built as part of John Wood’s grand vision to reinvent Bath as the new version of Ancient Rome. But the buildings we see today, were not all constructed at the same time. Wood laid out the street plan and designed the facades, then he sub-leased the plots to developers. This was his preferred scheme of speculative building. The first phase of the square was completed in the late 1720s, only a few years before Queen Caroline passed away in 1738.

The garden in the centre was originally surrounded by a low stone wall which was eventually replaced. Today, it’s surrounded by iron railings which date from the 1970s. The square also contains 2 pitches for playing pétanque or boules. Pétanque is popular in the city so in June each year Bath’s annual boules festival takes place in the square.

Dominating the square is the obelisk designed as a memorial to the eldest son of George II and Caroline, Frederick Prince of Wales. Frederick’s untimely death before that of his father ensured he never became the King of England he’d been destined to be. So the lineage passed to his son who eventually became George III.

The square is a great place to sit while enjoying some of the take-out options from nearby food and drink artisans covered in our tour. We hope you enjoy it!

Locations mentioned during this mini-tour: