UK - Cotswolds: Stow-on-the-Wold

Stow-on-the-Wold is a charming market town in Gloucestershire, England, situated atop an 800-foot (244 m) hill where several main roads in the Cotswolds converge, including the historic Fosse Way, dating back to Roman times. Norman lords set it up to tap into the trade passing through. Since 1330, the town has been hosting fairs with a horse fair happening near Oddington twice a year, in May and October. Originally called Stow St. Edward after its patron saint, Edward the Martyr, Stow likely started as an Iron Age fort on that hill. You can also find Stone Age and Bronze Age burial mounds in the area. Stow became the go-to marketplace. The local abbots had control over the area, and in 1107, Henry I initiated a weekly market.