Thames Head is a group of seasonal springs that arise near the village of Coates in the

Cotswolds The Cotswolds (, ) is a region in central-southwest England, along a range of rolling hills that rise from the meadows of the upper Thames to an escarpment above the Severn Valley and Evesham Vale. The area is defined by the bedrock of Jur ...

, about three miles south-west of the town of

Cirencester Cirencester (, ; see below for more variations) is a market town in Gloucestershire, England, west of London. Cirencester lies on the River Churn, a tributary of the River Thames, and is the largest town in the Cotswolds. It is the home of ...

, in the county of

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. The spring water comes from the

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

aquifers An aquifer is an underground layer of water-bearing, permeable rock, rock fractures, or unconsolidated materials (gravel, sand, or silt). Groundwater from aquifers can be extracted using a water well. Aquifers vary greatly in their characterist ...

of the Cotswolds. One or more of these springs are traditionally identified as the

source Source may refer to: Research * Historical document * Historical source * Source (intelligence) or sub source, typically a confidential provider of non open-source intelligence * Source (journalism), a person, publication, publishing institute o ...

of the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, se ...

. In actuality, the source of the River Thames does not have a fixed location – rather, it changes according to the level of the

groundwater Groundwater is the water present beneath Earth's surface in rock and soil pore spaces and in the fractures of rock formations. About 30 percent of all readily available freshwater in the world is groundwater. A unit of rock or an unconsolidate ...

in the limestone. In dry periods, the groundwater level falls, causing the Thames Head springs to dry up and the river to begin lower down in its course. In wet conditions, the groundwaters rise and the river can begin at one of the Thames Head springs. During the

2022 United Kingdom heat wave The 2022 United Kingdom heatwaves were part of several heatwaves across Europe and North Africa. The United Kingdom experienced three heatwaves; the first was for three days in June, the second for three days in July, and the third for six days ...

, the source dried up completely, shifting downstream to

Somerford Keynes Somerford Keynes (, ) is a village and civil parish in Gloucestershire, England, close to the River Thames and about 5 miles (8 km) from its source. It lies on the boundary with Wiltshire, midway between Cirencester, Swindon and Malmesbury. The ...

. The highest springs of Thames Head are located north of the

A433 road The A433 road is an A road and primary route in Gloucestershire, England. Route It starts at a junction with the A46 at Dunkirk north of junction 18 of the M4 and northeast of Chipping Sodbury. It runs northeast for to a junction wit ...

(

Fosse Way The Fosse Way was a Roman road built in Britain during the first and second centuries AD that linked Isca Dumnoniorum (Exeter) in the southwest and Lindum Colonia (Lincoln) to the northeast, via Lindinis (Ilchester), Aquae Sulis ( Bath), Corini ...

section), in a

meadow A meadow ( ) is an open habitat, or field, vegetated by grasses, herbs, and other non-woody plants. Trees or shrubs may sparsely populate meadows, as long as these areas maintain an open character. Meadows may be naturally occurring or artifi ...

called Trewsbury Mead. The springs continue immediately south of the A433. The

Ordnance Survey , nativename_a = , nativename_r = , logo = Ordnance Survey 2015 Logo.svg , logo_width = 240px , logo_caption = , seal = , seal_width = , seal_caption = , picture = , picture_width = , picture_caption = , formed = , preceding1 = , di ...

identifies Thames Head as the source of the Thames on its maps and the UK's

Environment Agency The Environment Agency (EA) is a non-departmental public body, established in 1996 and sponsored by the United Kingdom government's Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with responsibilities relating to the protection and enha ...

follows their precedent. However, there is also a long-standing alternative view that the real source of the Thames is on a different headstream entirely: at

Seven Springs, Gloucestershire Seven Springs is a hamlet in the heavily wooded parish of Coberley in the Cotswold (district), Cotswold District of Gloucestershire in England, south of Cheltenham. Including the intersection of the A435 road, A435 and A436 road, A436 roads, it ...

, the source of the

River Churn The River Churn is a tributary of the River Thames in central England. It rises at Seven Springs in Gloucestershire and flows south for approximately to meet the Thames at Cricklade in Wiltshire. Its length from its source to the confluence wi ...

, which is officially a tributary of the Thames that joins the Thames at

Cricklade Cricklade is a town and civil parish on the River Thames in north Wiltshire, England, midway between Swindon and Cirencester. It is the first downstream town on the Thames. The parish population at the 2011 census was 4,227. History Cricklade ...

and which is longer than the course of the Thames from Thames Head to Cricklade.

Description

Thames Head is a group of seasonal springs which, when flowing, form the headstream of the River Thames, the major river which runs through the

South of England Southern England, or the South of England, also known as the South, is an area of England consisting of its southernmost part, with cultural, economic and political differences from the Midlands and the North. Officially, the area includes Gr ...

and the centre of

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. Their location is in fields near the villages of Coates and Kemble,Thames Pathway Ch1
Accessed 15 August 2015 on either side of the A433 road, about south-west of the town of Cirencester, in the Cotswolds, Gloucestershire. The field to the north of the A433, Trewsbury Mead, has the highest-located springs, which tend only to flow during a wet winter. One of these springs is marked with an inscribed stone marker. Below it, the springhead itself is in a hollow that has been lined with stones. Thames Head is above sea level, at grid reference ST980994. The actual start of the River Thames changes as the level of groundwater changes. The spring known as Lyd Well, located south of the A433 (grid reference ST989984), is often where the river starts. In 2011, the lowest recorded start of the Thames was just upstream of

Ashton Keynes Ashton Keynes is a village and civil parish in north Wiltshire, England which borders with Gloucestershire. The village is about south of Cirencester and west of Cricklade. At the 2011 census the population of the parish, which includes the ...

, which is over downstream from Thames Head.

Marker stone

The marker stone in Trewsbury Mead bears the inscription:

Thames source dispute

The source of the River Thames is disputed. The

, the

and other authorities have the source of the Thames as Thames Head. Others hold that the true source of the Thames is at

, some farther north, and east of

Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean to the west, east of Monmouth and east ...

. Seven Springs is officially the source of the

, which is a tributary of the Thames that joins at

. As it is further from the mouth of the Thames than Thames Head, the adoption of Seven Springs as its source would make the Thames the longest river in the UK.BBC News, Gloucestershire. 15 May 2012 Could the River Thames be longer than the River Severn? by David Bailey
/ref>

References

Springs of England SThamesHead {{Gloucestershire-geo-stub

Description

Marker stone

Thames source dispute

See also

References