Description
Historic home of the poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge in Somerset near Bridgwater
As in the poets’ day, there is still wilderness, heathland and a rocky shoreline where you can lose yourself in thought. The mix of heath on the top is a characteristic of the Quantocks and includes heather, whortleberry, gorse, bracken and wavy-haired grass. There is woodland too, once prized as a source of timber for ship building and now by walkers for its tranquillity. The oaks here are Sessile with acorns that grow directly on the branch and twisted trunks.
Coleridge Cottage, National Trust
The National Trust owned Coleridge Cottage, Somerset is in the charming village of Nether Stowey, you can walk in the footsteps of the poet along the Coleridge Way as far as Lynmouth on Exmoor with a small diversion to visit the hilly mound which is all that remains of the Norman Stowey Castle.
One is the highest spots in Somerset is Wills Neck from where you can see Exmoor, the Mendips, Blackdowns and across the Bristol Channel to Wales. Look out for wild ponies. Below the summit lie steep wooded valleys with streams at the bottom, full of birdsong and villages with manor houses and fine churches.
The 17th-century cottage was home to Coleridge for three years, from 1797. It was during his time here in Somerset that Coleridge wrote his finest works, including The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Kubla Khan, Frost at Midnight, The Nightingale, Cristabel and This Lime Tree Bower my Prison. Both Coleridge and Wordsworth are seen as crucial in the development of the literary Romantic Movement.
Coleridge Cottage has a rich and fascinating history, from a humble Georgian home to its transformation into ‘Moore’s Coleridge Cottage Inn’ during the Victorian era. As a result of a major redevelopment project in 2011, you can now explore parts of the cottage never previously open to the public, and explore atmospheric cottage rooms which have been recreated as though the Coleridge family had just walked out.
Please note the cottage is unsuitable for wheelchairs due to small rooms and narrow corridors.
Image Gallery
Pricing
2023-24 |
Coleridge Cottage |
Adult |
Child |
Family |
Family (1 adult) |
|
£8.00 |
*£8.80 |
£4.00 |
*£4.40 |
£20.00 |
*£22 |
£12.00 |
*£13.40 |
|
*Gift Aid Price |
Facilities
ACCESSIBILITY
CATERING
ESTABLISHMENT FEATURES
KEY FEATURES
PARKING & TRANSPORT
SPECIALIST FEATURES
TOURS & DEMONSTRATIONS
TRAVEL & TRADE
Road Directions
From east and south: Leave the M5 at exit 23 and follow signs for Minehead (A39). Turn left into Nether Stowey and drive through the village, past the post office on your left. The cottage is 150 yards futher along the road on the left, opposite the pub. From west: Follow signs to Bridgwater (A39). Turn right into Nether Stowey at traffic lights. The cottage is 100 yards on the right, opposite the pub.
Parking: Pub car park opposite (The Ancient Mariner), or Castle Street car park, 500 yards (neither National Trust).
Sat-Nav: Sat nav postcode: TA5 1NQ
Public Transport Directions
Nearest station is Bridgwater. Daily occasional buses from bus station - 5 minutes from rail station.
Contact
Coleridge Cottage, National Trust
35 Lime Street
Nether Stowey
Bridgwater
TA5 1NQ
United Kingdom
T: 01278 732662
E: coleridgecottage@nationaltrust.org.uk
W: nationaltrust.org.uk/coleridge-cottage/
Facebook: @http://www.facebook.com/NTcoleridgecottage
Twitter: @ColeridgeNT