The Museum of Gloucester in Gloucestershire has announced its 2026 tour season, offering residents a chance to see hidden Roman and medieval ruins beneath the city from April to September. These guided visits will take groups underground to explore ancient city walls and defensive structures that are usually closed to the public. This year’s programme includes regular walking tours and special access to subterranean chambers located beneath modern city streets.
Guided walks through the city centre will take place from 17 April to 18 September 2026, focusing on the history of the area when it was known as Glevum. Visitors can also book tours of the Eastgate Chamber between 10 April and 25 September 2026 to see layers of history including Roman foundations discovered in the 1970s and a 16th-century pool used for horses. The chamber acts as a vertical museum, showing how the city has changed since it was first established as a Roman fort in AD 48.
The 2026 season marks the full return of tours to the King’s Bastion, which contains a Roman city wall from around 300 AD and a medieval tower likely built during the reign of King Henry III. This site, located under the King’s Walk Shopping Centre, was recently restored by the Gloucester City Council after being removed from a national register of heritage buildings at risk. Specific tours for the bastion are available on 14 April, 26 May, 16 June, 21 July, 28 July, and 18 August 2026, with visitors accessing the ruins through trapdoors in the shopping centre floor.
All tours are conducted by museum staff and expert volunteers from the Gloucester Civic Trust. To help bring the history to life, some sessions will be led by costumed characters including an auxiliary Roman soldier named Lucius Sita and a medieval mercenary known as Sir Miles Delaney. These experiences are designed to give the community a deeper understanding of Gloucester’s identity by showcasing the 1,900-year-old foundations that still stand today.
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