Swindon and its surrounding towns are a powerhouse of industry amidst a county of great beauty.

SWINDON and its surrounding communities together make up one of the most fascinating and diverse areas in the country.

A journey of as little as a few miles can take one from a high-tech industrial park to a village that would still be recognisable to a Victorian resident magically brought forward in time.

This is a part of the country whose economic activity ranges from devising technology for interplanetary probes to growing the raw ingredients for bread.

The first human beings to call this area of Britain home did so thousands of years before Britain existed as a nation.

Theirs was a very different world to the one we enjoy now, with life or death depending on something as simple as a harvest or managing to claim a piece of high ground as a base from which to repel attackers.

Swindon itself, or at least the part we now know as Old Town, would have been very attractive to those ancient tribes, as it offered a commanding overview of the surrounding area.

The Roman invasion and occupation of Britain brought even more activity to the area, including the establishment of Cirencester as a major town.

The extent of the Roman presence is still in the process of becoming apparent. Relics were discovered during the building of the M4, during the raising of districts such as Dorcan, and during the creation of the North Swindon expansion.

Swindon's economy has long been in robust health, making it statistically one of the most prosperous communities in Europe. It is a respected producer of goods ranging from cars to components for mobile telephones, and also the home of many service industries.

This economic success is partly due to geography. Being sited on the main road and rail links between London and all points west as far as Cornwall and Wales is undoubtedly beneficial.

However, much of the prosperity comes from a reputation that began to be established at the dawn of the railway era, and more than a century before the M4 was even thought of, let alone built.

After the coming of Brunel's railway, things were never the same for Swindon. As the engines and rolling stock made there became known throughout the world for their quality, so the town itself became known as an industrial and engineering powerhouse. It is a reputation that persists to this day, and which was untroubled by the end of the railway industry here more than 20 years ago.

Of course, Swindon has not always been the dominant town locally. Historically, for example, it was beaten in terms of wealth and influence by the important market town of Wootton Bassett, and was one of many modestly-sized communities in the area.

Most of those communities can be visited to this day, and often combine a modern outlook with a traditional atmosphere.

Many of the people who make their homes in these smaller towns and villages commute to work in larger places, while others work in thriving local industries and the local service sector.

Popular attractions include inns that first opened as welcome stops on the itineraries of weary coach travellers centuries ago, and which are now community centrepieces with gourmet menus.

The countryside of Wiltshire includes some of the most beautiful vistas in England, and the tourist industry thrives.

Visitors range from day-trippers seeking brief respite to sailing enthusiasts plying the prettier reaches of the Thames.

2:13pm Tuesday 29th April 2008

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