Our holiday cottage is very near Kendal, just 3 miles from the centre. Historically a part of Westmorland, Kendal today is known largely as a centre for tourism, as the home of Kendal mint cake, and as a producer of pipe tobacco and tobacco snuff. Its buildings, mostly constructed with the local grey limestone, have earned it the nickname the Auld Grey Town.
A chartered market town, the centre of Kendal is structured around a high street with fortified alleyways (known locally as yards) off to either side which allowed the local population to seek shelter from the Anglo-Scottish raiding parties known as the Border Reivers. The main industry in these times was the manufacture of woollen goods, the importance of which is reflected in the town's coat of arms and in its Latin motto "Pannus mihi panis", meaning wool (literally 'cloth') is my bread. "Kendal Green" was hard-wearing wool-based fabric specific to the local manufacturing process, and was supposedly sported by the Kendalian archers who were instrumental in the English victory over the French at the Battle of Agincourt.
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The site of several (ruined) castles, the most recent one constructed in the late-12th century, Kendal has a long history as a stronghold of one kind or another. Rumours still circulate that King Henry VIII's sixth wife Katherine Parr was born at Kendal Castle, but based on the evidence available this is very unlikely.
If you are thinking about coming to the Lakes and staying near Kendal you won't want to miss Mintfest from 31st Aug - 2nd September 2012. It is a festival of street performances which goes on for the whole weekend and after only three years it is one of the UK's leading international street arts festivals. Go Lakes describes it as "a mind-boggling array of (mostly free) performances from across the globe. From the dramatic to the daft, powerful to playful, or spectacular to downright silly, the sheer range and originality of the acts guarantees a jam-packed weekend of live, unpredictable fun to keep you amused, entertained and inspired."
Places of interest
- Kendal Museum of Natural History and Archaeology (one of the oldest in the country, it includes an exhibition on the geology of the Lake District, and a stuffed polar bear)
- Abbot Hall Art Gallery (housed in a Georgian villa, it mounts nationally important exhibitions, such as David Bomberg: Spirit in the Mass (17 July - 28 October 2006). Permanent collection includes George Romney, JMW Turner, John Ruskin, Ben Nicholson, Paula Rego, Lucian Freud, Stanley Spencer and Barbara Hepworth.
- Museum of Lakeland Life
- Castle Howe, Kendal’s undisputed first castle, lays on the hill side over looking the town. The earthwork remains are sandwiched between Gilling Gate and Beast Banks
- Kendal Castle, to the east of the earthworks, probably built while Castle Howe was still being used
- Friends' Meeting House, home of the Quaker Tapestry
- The Brewery Arts Centre (offering theatre, dance, exhibitions, cinemas, music, workshops, youth drama, dance and food and drink)
- Kendal Leisure Centre
- Kendal Parish Church (Holy Trinity)
