To 1090 AD

The legend of Bladud

Legend has it that Bladud, son of Ludhudibras, King of the Britons, contracted leprosy whilst travelling in the Classical Kingdom of Greece. Expelled from his father's court, he became a swineherd, tending his pigs in a valley where hot water bubbled up from the ground.

Noticing that his pigs became free of scabs after wallowing in the muddy mire, Bladud followed suit. Cured, he returned to court and, on his father’s death, became 9th King of the Britons. In gratitude Bladud founded the City of Bath around the hot springs in the year 863 B.C.