We had a short amount of time to look about Lichfield. It was the birthplace of Samuel Johnson whose statue is in a square in the centre of town:-

Nearby is a statue of James Boswell, Johnson’s travelling companion and biographer:-

Johnson’s birthplace is free to enter (though a donation is welcomed.) For a photo of the exterior see here.  On its ground floor there is also a small bookshop. It’s a bit of a warren with several floors and lots to see. The room below is where he was born:-

Bench belonging to Johnson:-

Bureau originally belonging to Boswell:-

Pages of Johnson’s dictionary:-

Main entrance door and stained glass window:-

Model and floor plan of cathedral:-

Altar and stained glass:-

Stained glass windows:-

High altar:-

Spode Memorial Window:-

The Lichfield Angel, remnant of sculpture:-

On our trip down south last year we had always planned to stop at Lichfield to view the Cathedral. It’s an impressive building, the only mediæval Cathedral in the UK with three spires:-

The West Front (above) is adorned with statues of kings, queens and saints:-

South spire:-

The east spire was shrouded in scaffolding when we were there:-

Mediæval tomb to south side (possibly of a bishop?)-

The Cathedral was badly damaged during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms (once called the English Civil War.) After the Restoration of the Crown King Charles II was instrumental in having repairs done. His statue stands in this corner:-

There were also renovations carried out in Victorian times.

King’s Bromley (or Kings Bromley, the spelling is apparently variable) in Staffordshire is on the way south from Ashbourne to Lichfield. I spotted its War Memorial as we were passing through.

A granite cross on a stepped square plinth:-

Great War dedication and names:-

Second World War dedication and names:-