Bristol in the Middle Ages

Introduction

By 1066, when records and archaeological evidence become more plentiful, Bristol was clearly an important place. It was a major base in the war for the Crown following the death of Henry I in 1135 and King Stephen was imprisoned in Bristol castle in 1141.

The centre of medieval Bristol was the High Cross at the junction of Corn Street and Broad Street. The city spread between College Green in the west, Old Market to the east and Redcliffe to the south and was enclosed by massive stone walls. Bristol Bridge, lined with houses, carried traffic across the river Avon to Redcliffe. Outside the town walls were monasteries which extended from the Cathedral (then St. Augustine's Abbey) to Broadmead. The river Frome was diverted from its original course in the 1240s to create St. Augustine's Reach and this became the centre of Bristol's dockside until the nineteenth century.

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