Welcome to Visit Waltham Abbey Places
The Walkfo guide to things to do & explore in Waltham Abbey
Visit Waltham Abbey places using Walkfo for free guided tours of the best Waltham Abbey places to visit. A unique way to experience Waltham Abbey’s places, Walkfo allows you to explore Waltham Abbey as you would a museum or art gallery with audio guides.
Visiting Waltham Abbey Walkfo Preview
When you visit Waltham Abbey, Walkfo brings Waltham Abbey places to life as you travel by foot, bike, bus or car with a mobile phone & headphones.
Waltham Abbey Places Overview: History, Culture & Facts about Waltham Abbey
Visit Waltham Abbey – Walkfo’s stats for the places to visit
With 62 audio plaques & Waltham Abbey places for you to explore in the Waltham Abbey area, Walkfo is the world’s largest heritage & history digital plaque provider. The AI continually learns & refines facts about the best Waltham Abbey places to visit from travel & tourism authorities (like Wikipedia), converting history into an interactive audio experience.
Waltham Abbey history
Early history
The name Waltham derives from weald or wald “forest” and ham “homestead” or “enclosure” The name of the ancient parish was Walthim Holy Cross, but the use of the name Waltham Abbey for the town seems to have originated in the 16th century .
Abbey as main landowner
Waltham began during the reign of Canute in the early 11th century when his standard-bearer Tovi or Tofig the Proud founded a church here to house the miraculous cross discovered at Montacute in Somerset . After Tovi’s death around 1045, the town reverted to the King (Edward the Confessor), who gave it to the Earl Harold Godwinson (later king) in 1060 .
Post-Reformation
In the 17th century there were four churchwardens, one each for Holyfield, Upshire, and Sewardstone . Joseph Hall, curate from 1608, was later Bishop successively of Exeter and Norwich . Thomas Fuller, author of The Worthies of England and of the first History of Waltham Abbey, was curate 1649–58 .
Post-Industrial Revolution
The factory was sold to the government in 1787 and was greatly expanded during the next century . Guncotton was developed here by Frederick Abel, starting in 1863 . Cordite production began in 1891 and the site was enlarged several times . The site was an obvious target during World War II, and a German V-2 rocket landed near the factory in 1945 .
Waltham Abbey landmarks
Abbey Church
The medieval Waltham Abbey Church was kept as it was close to a town and is still used as a parish church . The grounds are notable for the reputed grave of Harold II or “Harold Godwinson”, the last Anglo-Saxon King of England .
Local museum
Epping Forest District Museum is housed in a building dating back to 1520 . It tells the story of the people who have lived and worked in south Essex from the earliest times to the present .
Royal Gunpowder Mills
The Royal Gunpowder Mills is an Anchor Point of ERIH, The European Route of Industrial Heritage . The site hosts living history and battle re-enactment events most summer weekends . A self-guided nature walk shows visitors the ecology that has reclaimed much of the remaining 175 acres .
Regional park
The former gravel pits in the Lea Valley and parts of the former Abbey Gardens are now in the care of the Lee Valley Regional Park Authority for recreational use and nature conservation .
Tourism Centre
Epping Forest Conservation Centre in High Beach provides information, maps, books, cards, displays and advice for visitors to the area . The centre is located in the High Beach area of High Beach .
Why visit Waltham Abbey with Walkfo Travel Guide App?
You can visit Waltham Abbey places with Walkfo Waltham Abbey to hear history at Waltham Abbey’s places whilst walking around using the free digital tour app. Walkfo Waltham Abbey has 62 places to visit in our interactive Waltham Abbey map, with amazing history, culture & travel facts you can explore the same way you would at a museum or art gallery with information audio headset. With Walkfo, you can travel by foot, bike or bus throughout Waltham Abbey, being in the moment, without digital distraction or limits to a specific walking route. Our historic audio walks, National Trust interactive audio experiences, digital tour guides for English Heritage locations are available at Waltham Abbey places, with a AI tour guide to help you get the best from a visit to Waltham Abbey & the surrounding areas.
“Curated content for millions of locations across the UK, with 62 audio facts unique to Waltham Abbey places in an interactive Waltham Abbey map you can explore.”
Walkfo: Visit Waltham Abbey Places Map
62 tourist, history, culture & geography spots
Waltham Abbey historic spots | Waltham Abbey tourist destinations | Waltham Abbey plaques | Waltham Abbey geographic features |
| Walkfo Waltham Abbey tourism map key: places to see & visit like National Trust sites, Blue Plaques, English Heritage locations & top tourist destinations in Waltham Abbey | |||
Best Waltham Abbey places to visit
Waltham Abbey has places to explore by foot, bike or bus. Below are a selection of the varied Waltham Abbey’s destinations you can visit with additional content available at the Walkfo Waltham Abbey’s information audio spots:
bVisit Waltham Abbey plaques
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plaques
here Waltham Abbey has 1 physical plaques in tourist plaque schemes for you to explore via Walkfo Waltham Abbey plaques audio map when visiting. Plaques like National Heritage’s “Blue Plaques” provide visual geo-markers to highlight points-of-interest at the places where they happened – and Walkfo’s AI has researched additional, deeper content when you visit Waltham Abbey using the app. Experience the history of a location when Walkfo local tourist guide app triggers audio close to each Waltham Abbey plaque. Explore Plaques & History has a complete list of Hartlepool’s plaques & Hartlepool history plaque map.
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