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North west View of Shrewsbury, Shropshire. Joseph Farington.
Or tour begins today with a scenic drive to visit Powis Castle near the little border town of Welshpool. The Castle was originally built as a simple stone fortress in 1200, and was transformed in the late 17th century by the 3rd Baron Powis. In 1784, Lord Clive (son and heir of Clive of India) married into the family, bringing the Clives’ vast fortune to the estate and transforming it into a very impressive 
country residence. Today Powis Castle contains one of the finest collections of paintings and furniture in Wales 
and has 26 acres of stunning internationally acclaimed gardens which include ornate Italian and French terraced gardens an orangery and aviary. Before leaving Powis we will take the opportunity of visiting Rowles Fine Art Gallery in the nearby town of Welshpool ,which contains many fine paintings and prints by Victorian artists as well as visiting the remains of Montgomery Castle perched high upon a hill above the nearby small historic town which bears its name. In 1267 Montgomery was the meeting place for treaty negotiations, where King Henry III granted Llywelyn ap Gruffydd the title of Prince of Wales. Later on in 1227, the town of Montgomery was granted a Royal Charter by the King in 1227, making it the oldest borough in Wales. Although destroyed during the English Civil War enough remains to give the visitor a good impression of the scale of this fortified the position of which commands exceptionally fine views over the surrounding countryside.
From Montgomery we travel north eastwards across the border into the English county of Shropshire, to visit the historic Market town of Shrewsbury. The town can rightly claim to be one of the best preserved market towns in England with Medieval streets such as Butcher’s Row, Fish Street, St Alkmund’s Place and the Bear Steps having been changed since the early 17th century. 
The River Severn winds its way around this historic town centre in a loop, access over which is afforded using one of the Town’s 6 distinctive bridges. Shrewsbury has many historical connections and whilst we explore the town we will find out more about it’s most famous son, Charles Darwin who’s childhood walks along the banks of the River looking for beetles created a lasting impression on the mind of the great naturalist. Amongst the many things to see in this beautiful border town are it’s Medieval Abbey, founded as a Benedictine monastery in 1083 by the Norman Earl of Shrewsbury and used as the basis of the “Brother Caedfael” novels by local authoress Ellis Peters, and the Norman Shrewsbury Castle restored by Thomas Telford in 1790, which guards the only landward approach to the town and today houses the Shropshire Regimental Museum.
Whilst in Shrewsbury we will take a cruise down the River Severn to get a closer perspective of it’s beautiful historic bridges as well as Shrewsbury School which was founded by Royal Charter in 
1552 and is one of the oldest private schools in the Country. The day is completed by a visit to the site of the Battle of Shrewsbury a mile north of the town and the small church of Saint Mary Magdelaine built in 1460 to replace an earlier chapel in honour of the many men who died in the battle. Fought on 21st July 1403 between an army led by the Lancastrian King Henry IV and a rebel army led by Henry “Hotspur” Percy from Northumberland. The Battle of Shrewsbury was one of the most bloody and important battles in English and Welsh history and many of the key people involved appear in Shakespeare’s play Henry IV, Part 1.
Day 3 Highlights:
- Powis Castle
- Rowles Fine Art Gallery
- Montgomery Castle
- Medieval town of Shrewsbury
- Shrewsbury Castle
- River Severn Cruise
- Medieval Abbey
- Battle of Shrewsbury Site