Cotham is an area of Bristol, England, about 1 mile north of the city centre. It is an affluent, leafy, inner city suburb situated north of the neighbourhoods of Kingsdown and St Paul’s and sandwiched between Gloucester Road (A38) to the east, and Hampton Road to the west. Cotham is closely related to the neighbourhood of Redland to the north, with the Severn Beach Railway Line broadly marking where Cotham ends and Redland begins, though Ward boundaries show Cotham extending to Redland Road. Redland’s boundaries is usually taken to extend to Coldharbour Road. To the north lies Bishopston and Westbury Park, and Durdham Down to the west. Cotham and Redland together make up the Bristol City Council's Cotham and Redland Conservation Area. It is also the name of a council ward of the city, which also includes other areas. The suburb Cotham is characterised by its individually developed urban streets, dominated by a high-quality victorian townscape, in conjunction with its spacious, leafy character as a product of the individual gardens and areas of public landscape, both larger than average for an inner city suburb, generally handed down from earlier estate layouts of parklands. Over-arching these two elements is a dramatic local topography, which contributes greatly to the quantity and quality of views and panoramas. The local architecture is typified by its use of Pennant and Brandon Hill stone and limestone in the form of Bath stone, with brick and render are also found. The hilly topography gives emphasis to roofs, bay windows and chimneys emphasising the scale and substance of victorian villa construction. The escarpments and hillside nature of development has also given rise to a variety of natural stone retaining walls, typical of the area. It is a cosmopolitan residential area with large old houses, many of which are used as hotels and bed and breakfast accommodation, or divided into flats, and a selection of small independent shops. It also contains the comprehensive Cotham School (formerly Cotham Grammar School). The top of Saint Michael's Hill in Cotham was one of the historical city limits of Bristol, and the traditional location for hangings. Between 1555 and 1557 three Marian martyrs were burned to death here for their religious beliefs. The gallows form one quarter of the badge of the local Rugby club, Cotham Park RFC. Cotham Church was built in 1842–43 by William Butterfield in a Gothic Revival style, as