GB-215288 England

I love this postcard from Exeter in the county of Devon. I've been to England myself but didn't make it to this region so was excited to get a card with a bit of the scenery and some local history on the back. The cathedral was built in the 12th century but has been refurbished multiple times since. Like most English cathedrals is suffered in the Dissolution of Monasteries when the king took papal authority and sought to turn ecclesiastic revenue to that of the state. The dissolution, which began in 1536 with over 800 monasteries, nunneries and friaries in England, displaced thousands and left the nation with none by 1541. Those who resisted like the abbots of Glastonbury, Colchester, and Reading where hanged, drawn and quartered for treason.

Because Exeter Cathedral was not of monastic foundation it did not suffer as heavily as other Cathedrals in the area, but the cloisters were destroyed in the English Civil War (1642-51). More recently, on 4 May 1942, an early morning air raid took place over Exeter and the cathedral sustained a direct hit by a large high-explosive bomb on the chapel of St James, completely demolishing it. Luckily it was repaired and now stands as is seen above.

The town itself was originally a Roman settlement  and was the southern starting point for the Fosse Way Roman Road which links Exeter to Lincoln via Ilchester, Bath, Cirencester, and Leicester. The last bit of historical information I'll offer is for those of you who find value in the study of words. The name Exeter is an anglicized version of the Old English Exanceaster or Escanceaster from the Lation Isca (taken from the Celtic Exe already in place during Roman occupation) and Old English ceaster to denote a 'Roman Town.'

On a more cheerful note it came with these great stamps of the Queen and Merlin, both very iconic of Britain.