Did You Know?

Sitting at the gateway to East Anglia, Colchester is one of Britain’s foremost historic towns, the first capital of Britain and ‘Britain’s Oldest Recorded Town’, as well as being home to some of England’s most fascinating and important heritage sites.

Colchester is home to Britain’s largest surviving Roman Gateway (The Balkerne Gate) and Europe’s largest surviving Norman Keep. The Colchester Castle Museum explains all of these facts in exemplary detail and gives visitors a real sense of town’s historical significance. The Castle was constructed on the foundations of the Temple of Claudius, later destroyed by Boudica, when Colchester (Camulodunum) was the first Roman capital of Britain.

The Oldest Hot Cross Bun in the world was baked in Wyre Street, Colchester, on Good Friday 1807 and is now rock hard. Owned by a couple in Wormingford, it beats one kept in the British Museum, baked in 1869.

Colchester is home to the 11th best Zoo in the world! Housing over 260 species across 60 acres of parkland and lakes, Colchester Zoo is fantastic example of a modern conservation park. in fact, their elephant Kito was the first ever elephant calf born via artificial insemination in Britain.

Colchester has Britain’s only military ‘glasshouse’, where, during National Service days (1946-1960), hard men did porridge before dismissal from the Army. Graduates included the Kray Twins, one of whom broke the jaw of a corporal who shouted at him.

Colchester’s fish and oyster industry is an important component of the town’s history and trade? The Colne oysterfishery dates to the Roman era, and the borough of Colchester obtained rights to the fishery in 1189. On the last Friday of October every year, the Mayor of Colchester holds a grand Oyster Festival at the Moot Hall. The festival dates back to 1845 and every year sees a host of special guests and invitees come together to celebrate.

Colchester was home to Britain’s only known Roman Chariot Racing Track that could seat 8,000 spectators?! The Roman Circus Centre explains the cultural and historical significance of this monumental structure which was only uncovered in 2005. The centre allows visitors to walk the outline of the circus site and examine the reconstructed stumps of the starting gates and central gateway