The Cotswolds are a range of hills in central England, sometimes called the "heart of England", a hilly area reaching over 300 m or 1000 feet. The area has been designated as the Cotswolds Area of

The Cotswolds lie within the current ceremonial counties of Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire, Wiltshire, Somerset, Warwickshire, and Worcestershire. The county of Gloucestershire forms the largest area of the Cotswolds.

Description

The spine of the Cotswolds runs southwest to northeast through six counties (see note above), particularly Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, and southern Warwickshire. The northern and western edges of the Cotswolds are marked by steep escarpments down to the Severn valley and the Avon, the eastern boundary by the city of Oxford (the city of dreaming spires), the west by Stroud, and the south by the middle reaches of the Thames Valley and

The area is characterised by attractive small towns and villages built of the underlying rock, known as Cotswold stone (a yellow oolitic limestone). In the Middle Ages, the Cotswolds were prosperous from the wool trade, some of this money was put into the building of churches, so the area has a number of large, handsome Cotswold stone "wool churches". The area remains affluent and has attracted wealthy Londoners and others who own second homes in the area or have chosen to retire to the Cotswolds.

Typical Cotswold towns are Broadway, Burford, Chipping Norton, Cirencester, Moreton-in-Marsh and Stow-on-the-Wold. The Cotswold village of Chipping Campden is notable for being the home of the Arts and Crafts movement, founded by William Morris at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries. William Morris lived, occasionally, in Broadway Tower a folly now in country park. Chipping Campden is also well known for the annual Cotswold Games, a celebration of sports and games dating back to the early 17th century.

Area of



Outstanding Natural Beauty

The Cotswolds was designated as an Area of

The designation was made to conserve and enhance the unique landscape. In the early days of discussions about Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty the Cotswolds was not given priority for AONB status and it was only down to pressure from local members of the Campaign to Protect Rural England that the Cotswolds was considered early on in the designation programme. Without that pressure the Cotswolds may have had to wait for another 10 years for protected status.

The largest of 40 AONBs in England and Wales, the Cotswolds stretches from the border regions of South Warwickshire and Worcestershire, through West Oxfordshire and Gloucestershire and takes in parts of West Wiltshire and Bath and North East Somerset in the South.

The Cotswold Way is a long-distance footpath (approx 103 miles) running the length of the AONB.

The Cotswold Voluntary Wardens Service was established in 1968 to help conserve and enhance the area. There are now over 300 Wardens. In 2005 they gave over 36,000 hours of their time.

Transport

The M5 motorway and Cross Country rail line run north - south close to the western boundary of the area. The M4 motorway and Great Western Main Line cross the area in the south as do the A40 road and Cotswold Line in the north. Cheltenham is a hub for National Express coach services.

Note on counties

Between 1974 and 1995 parts of the AONB fell within the newly formed administrative and ceremonial County of Avon. After 1995 Avon was divided between four administrative unitary authorities with 'shadow county' status, the relevant ones for the AONB being South Gloucestershire and Bath and North-East Somerset. For ceremonial purposes these counties are returned to their pre-1974 lord-lieutenancies.

See also

• Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty in England
• Geology of the United Kingdom
• UK topics

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