Tourist attractions Northampton

Northampton was a shoemaking centre for over 500 years and the rather cramped museum has an interesting collection of footwear of all kinds, ranging from the remnants of Romano-British sandals to 16C satin slippers and Queen Victoria's shoes.

The largest, almost complete Saxon church still standing. It was founded by Lindisfarne monks in the 7C and then rebuilt after it was sacked by the Danes in the 9C which explains the Defence Tower, a handy place of shelter during Viking raids. Note t..

Rebuilt after the fire in 1675 (the portico dates from 1701), All Saints Church is in Classical style with a dome and beautiful plastered ceiling.

The Town Hall , Victorian Gothic at its most confident, was built by Edward Godwin c 1860, when he was only 28. The exterior is ennobled with sculptures of kings and queens; the interior is invaded with local dignitaries, almost lost amid the imitat..

One of the four Norman round churches in England, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre , was founded by Simon de Senlis, veteran of the First Crusade, with a circular nave and ambulatory.

This 16C house, which was modified in the 18C, has already attracted a many people wishing to see the family home of Diana, Princess of Wales. Count Spencer has turned his property into a museum devoted to the memory of his sister.

The church (limited parking) west of Althorp contains the tombs of the Spencer family, except that of the Princess, who lies on a little island in the middle of the lake on the property (no access to the public).

The old mill standing by the lock of the Grand Union Canal today tells the history of the canals. See the boats passing through one of the seven locks (announced in the jargon of the locks) or walk along the towpath to the south of the Blisworth Tu..