Ashton Memorial

Lancaster’s Taj Mahal for the love of a woman

Lancaster’s Ashton Memorial and India’s Taj Mahal may be architectural opposites, but they were both built for the love of a woman. The baroque-style Ashton Memorial was constructed on top of a commanding hill above Lancaster as a tribute to local industrialist, Lord Ashton’s late wife, Jesse; the Taj Mahal was built by Moghul Emperor Shah Jahan as a token of love for his beloved Mumtaz, in a style that reflected Indian, Persian and Mogul architecture. Both buildings still impress, and both are focal points in their respective cities of Lancaster and Aggra. In Lancaster, the 54-acre Williamson Park that surrounds the Ashton Memorial is used by Lancastrians as a playground, to take in the commanding views from the memorial’s 360-degree viewing arena, to visit the Butterfly House and the Mini Zoo, or to relax over tea and buns in the Pavilion Café.

The Grade I-listed building, finished in 1909, is built from the finest Portland Stone, with Cornish granite steps, and a huge copper dome that can be seen from afar, even from the passing M 6. It is 150 feet high, and offers magnificent views of the city, the surrounding countryside, and of Morecambe Bay and the Lakeland fells and mountains.

It’s pleasing to know that the man behind the memorial, industrialist James Williamson II, was a shy and private individual, who was not without his human frailties. He grew his father’s textile-related business to become a leading producer of linoleum, leather cloth and coated fabrics, employing a quarter of all working men in Lancaster. He was known as the ‘Lino King of Lancaster’, and became the city’s Liberal MP, on a platform of free trade and Home Rule for Ireland. He had a strong philanthropic nature, but was obsessed with time-keeping. The local joke was that he built the memorial as a vantage point to see that his workers arrived on time at his factory down below.

Address Quernmore Road, Lancaster, LA1 1UX, +44 (0)1524 33318, williamsonpark@lancaster.gov.uk | Getting there

From the Lune Bridge, travel south on the A 6, taking a left up Moor Lane, which becomes Wyresdale Road; parking available at top of hill for £2 a day; bus 18 from Lancaster station | Hours Park open summer 10am – 5pm, winter 10am – 4pm | Tip Golgotha, the evocative Biblical name of an area on the edge of Williamson Park, was the spot where Lancaster’s many hangings took place prior to 1800. Today, the old stone stocks that were clamped on miscreants’ legs remain in situ.