Cheltenham became a spa town in 1716. According to tradition, the first medicinal waters were discovered when locals saw pigeons pecking at salty deposits which had formed around a spring. The town received Royal patronage in 1788 when King George III came to drink the waters.

This led to the rapid development of Cheltenham as a fashionable spa between 1790 and 1840. The heritage of those bygone times can be seen in the town's Regency architecture, with intricate ironwork a feature of distinctive townhouse facades. Cheltenham is the most complete Regency town in England.

Most of the town centre lies within a conservation area of outstanding importance. The town was patronised by a stream of noble and royal visitors including the Duke of Wellington and Princess (later Queen) Victoria. Distinguished literary figures who took the waters have included Lord Byron, Jane Austen and Charles Dickens.

Dickens even went so far as to write, "Rarely have I seen such a place that so attracted my fancy." Daniel Defoe predicted in the early 18th century that Cheltenham would become fashionable - "The mineral waters lately discovered . . . are what will make this place more and more remarkable and frequented."

Cheltenham is one of the few English towns in which traditional and contemporary architecture complement each other. The Neo-Gothic styled Victorian school buildings of Cheltenham College date from 1843 and Cheltenham Ladies' College from 1873.

Cheltenham also has many fine churches including the medieval St Mary's churchyard where John Wesley is said to have preached from the old cross. In the 19th century, through to the ending of British rule in India in 1947, Cheltenham became known as "the Anglo-Indian's Paradise". Those who had given a life of service to the empire in India sought to retire here. Cheltenham became identified with its population of retired curry-eating colonels.