By Tim Lambert
64 The Romans build a fort on the site of Gloucester
75 The Roman army moves on but the site of the fort is turned into a town for retired soldiers
407 The Roman army leaves Britain. Roman towns go into a steep decline.
577 The Saxons capture Gloucester
c. 680 The town of Gloucester revives
909 St Oswald’s remains are brought to Gloucester
915 Men from Gloucester defeat the Danes in battle
1085 William the Conqueror visits Gloucester
1155 The people of Gloucester are given a charter (a document granting them certain rights)
1200 Gloucester has a population of about 3,500. Gloucester is famous for its wool industry.
1223 A fire destroys part of Gloucester
1231 Franciscan friars (grey friars) arrive in Gloucester
1239 Dominican friars or black friars arrive in Gloucester
1275 All Jews are expelled from Gloucester
1327 Edward II is buried at Gloucester
1483 Richard III gives Gloucester a new charter. However, the town is in decline.
c. 1500 The Fleece Hotel is built
1540 A grammar school opens in Gloucester
1541 Gloucester is given a bishop and the Abbey Church is made a Cathedral
1555 The Bishop of Gloucester, John Hooper is burned to death for heresy
1565, 1573, 1577, 1580, 1593, 1637 Gloucester suffers outbreaks of plague
1643 During the Civil War the royalists lay siege to Gloucester but fail to capture it
1662 Charles II orders the destruction of the city’s walls
1680 Gloucester has a population of about 5,000
1761 An infirmary opens in Gloucester
1791 A prison is built on the site of Gloucester Castle. The wool industry has vanished.
1820 The streets of Gloucester are lit by gas. A pin-making industry in Gloucester flourishes.
1827 A ship canal is dug to Gloucester
1831 A dispensary where the poor can obtain free medicines opens
1840 The railway reaches Gloucester
1879 Horse drawn trams begin running in the streets of Gloucester
1849 Victoria Dock opens
1851 The population of Gloucester is 17,500
1862 A monument to Bishop Hooper is erected
1864 Addison’s Folly is built
1895 Smallpox kills 434 people in Gloucester
1900 The population of Gloucester is about 47,000. Gloucester gains an electricity supply.
1902 A museum opens in Eastgate
1904 Horse-drawn trams are replaced by electric trams
1915 Aircraft manufacture begins in Gloucester
1923 Smallpox kills 3 people in Gloucester
1929 Trams are replaced by buses
1933 Gloucester Folk Museum opens
1936 A municipal airport opens
1973 Eastgate Shopping Centre opens
1979 A Museum of Beatrix Potter opens
1984 A Museum of Advertising and Packaging opens
1988 Part of the Docks opens as a heritage centre
2011 The population of Gloucester is 116,000