7 Best Sights in The South, England

Salisbury is dominated by the towering cathedral, a soaring hymn in stone. It is unique among cathedrals in that it was conceived and built as a whole in the amazingly short span of 38 years (1220–58). The spire, added in 1320, is the tallest in England and a miraculous feat of medieval engineering—even though the point, 404 feet above the ground, is 2½ feet off vertical. The excellent model of the cathedral in the north nave aisle, directly in front of you as you enter, shows the building about 20 years into construction, and makes clear the ambition of Salisbury's medieval builders. For all their sophistication, the height and immense weight of the great spire have always posed structural problems. In the late 17th century, Sir Christopher Wren was summoned from London to strengthen the spire, and in the mid-19th century Sir George Gilbert Scott, the leading Victorian Gothicist who designed the Houses of Parliament, undertook a major program of restoration. He also initiated a clearing out of the interior and removed some less-than-sympathetic 18th-century alterations, returning a more authentically Gothic feel. The spartan interior is enlivened by the remarkable lancet windows and sculpted tombs of crusaders and other medieval notables. Next to the cathedral model in the north aisle is a medieval clock—probably the oldest working mechanism in Europe, if not the world—made in 1386.

The cloisters are the largest in England, and the octagonal Chapter House contains a marvelous 13th-century frieze showing scenes from the Old Testament. Here you can also see one of the four original copies of the Magna Carta, the charter of rights the English barons forced King John to accept in 1215; it was sent here for safekeeping in the 13th century. There are bookable tours of the Tower, the Library (which dates from 1445 and has more than 10,000 books, some 800 years old), and the Stonemasonry Works.

Join a free one-hour tour of the cathedral, which leaves two or more times a day. For a peaceful break, the café in the cloister serves freshly baked cakes and pastries, plus hot lunches.

The imposing Norman exterior of the city's greatest monument, begun in 1079 and consecrated in 1093, makes the Gothic lightness within even more breathtaking. It's one of the largest cathedrals in Europe, and throughout it you will find outstanding examples of every major architectural style from the 11th to 16th century: the transepts and crypt are 11th-century Romanesque; the great nave, the longest in Europe, is 14th- and 15th-century Perpendicular Gothic; and the presbytery (behind the choir, holding the high altar) is 14th-century Decorated Gothic. Other notable features include the richly carved 14th-century choir stalls, the ornate 15th-century stone screen behind the high altar, and the largest surviving spread of 13th-century floor tiles in England. Little of the original stained glass has survived, except in the large window over the entrance. When Cromwell's troops ransacked the cathedral in the 17th century, locals hid away bits of stained glass they found on the ground so that it could later be replaced. Free tours are run year-round, Monday through Saturday, from 10 am to 3 pm. The Library's Winchester Bible, one of the finest remaining 12th-century illuminated manuscripts, is on display in an exhibition space in the South Transept. The patron saint of the cathedral is St. Swithun (died AD 862), an Anglo-Saxon bishop who is also buried here. He had requested an outdoor burial plot, but his body was transferred to the newly restored church in 971, accompanied by, legend has it, 40 days of rain. Since then, folklore says that rain on St. Swithun's Day (July 15) means 40 more days of wet weather.

Among the other well-known people buried here are William the Conqueror's son, William II ("Rufus"), mysteriously murdered in the New Forest in 1100, and Jane Austen, whose grave lies in the north aisle of the nave. The tombstone makes no mention of Austen's literary status, though a brass plaque in the wall, dating from 80 years after her death, celebrates her achievements, and modern panels provide an overview of her life and work. You can also explore the tower—with far-reaching views in fair weather—and other recesses of the building on a tour (£10, available July through September on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday). Special services or ceremonies may mean the cathedral, the crypt, and the Treasury are closed to visits, so call ahead. Outside the cathedral, explore the Close, the area to the south of the cathedral with neat lawns, the Deanery, Dome Alley, and Cheyney Court.

As much as the golden hamstone exterior, majestic tower, and fine flying buttresses impress, the glory of Sherborne Abbey is the delicate 15th-century fan vaulting that extends the length of the soaring nave and choir. Some features from the original 8th-century cathedral, like a Saxon doorway in the northwest corner, still remain. If you're lucky, you might hear "Great Tom," one of the heaviest bells in the world, pealing out from the bell tower. Guided tours are offered from April through September on Saturday (10:30 am) and Sunday (11:15 am), plus Tuesday (10:30 am) and Friday (2 pm) through November. Tours from December through March need to be made by prior arrangement.

Lyndhurst's High Street is dominated by this imposing redbrick Victorian Gothic church, notable for its stained-glass windows designed by Pre-Raphaelites William Morris and Edward Burne-Jones, as well as a large fresco of the Parable of the Wise and Foolish Virgins by Frederick Leighton. Fans of Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland should note that Alice Hargreaves (née Liddell), the inspiration for the fictional Alice, is buried in the churchyard.

This parish church is easily recognizable by its 200-foot-high tower and spire. Lewis Tregonwell, founder and developer of Bournemouth, is buried in the churchyard. Here, too, is the burial place of Mary Shelley, author of Frankenstein and wife of the great Romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, whose heart is buried with her in the elaborate Shelley family vault, as is the author's mother, the feminist philosopher Mary Wollstonecraft.

Dating back to 1226 and initially built as a chapel for the workmen who would go on to construct the cathedral, this still active church contains a rare medieval "Doom painting" of Judgment Day, a fresco that is considered to be one of the best preserved and most complete of the few such works left in Britain (it's also the largest). Created around 1475 and covering the chancel arch, the scenes of heaven and hell served to instill the fear of damnation into the congregation. It's best seen on a spring or summer evening when the light through the west window illuminates the details.

Although there has been a church here since the 8th century, the current building, with its crenellated and pinnacled twin towers, was built between 1120 and 1180. The nave reflects these Norman origins in its zigzag molding interspersed with carved heads. Several Gothic components were added later, as were fine Victorian geometric tiles and stained-glass windows. Don't miss the late-17th-century chained library (where books are chained to shelves), one of the first public libraries in Britain and still the country's second-largest chained library. Its collection includes a 14th-century manuscript and a 1522 book with a title page designed by Hans Holbein. Also look out for the pre-Copernican (it has a blue ball earth with the sun going around it) astronomical clock, which dates to before the 15th century. It's on the inside wall of the west tower.