DorchesterDorset

What locals in Dorchester are talking about — discussion, news and recommendations, plus places worth your time.

What's on in Dorchester

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About Dorchester

Known for

Thomas Hardy's Casterbridge (the county town of Dorset is the model for every Hardy novel), Maiden Castle (one of Europe's largest Iron Age hillforts), Judge Jeffreys and the Bloody Assizes, and a county town of extraordinary literary and historical significance

A little history

Thomas Hardy was born in a cottage nearby and set virtually all his novels in Dorchester as 'Casterbridge'. Judge Jeffreys presided over the Bloody Assizes here in 1685 after Monmouth's Rebellion — the Old Crown Court where he sat is preserved. Maiden Castle, a mile from the town, is one of the most impressive prehistoric monuments in Europe.

Local tip

Maiden Castle is extraordinary and free — walk the outer ramparts for the full sense of scale. The Dorset Museum for the Thomas Hardy collections. The Hardy Cottage at Higher Bockhampton for the birthplace. The Wednesday and Saturday markets.

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