By Tim Lambert Truro in the Middle Ages Truro began as a Celtic village. The Normans built a castle by the settlement. The castle stimulated the growth of Truro. The castle’s garrison provided a market for goods made in the settlement and it grew into a town. At some point (the exact date is not… Continue reading A History of Truro
Category: Histories of British towns, villages and cities
A History of Tunbridge Wells
By Tim Lambert Tunbridge Wells in the 17th century The town of Tunbridge Wells began with a chalybeate spring. Chalybeate means it contains iron. Rainwater fell on the ground containing iron deposits, soaked through them then rose in a spring. The iron deposits in the spring water stained the ground around the spring a rusty… Continue reading A History of Tunbridge Wells
A History of Walsall
By Tim Lambert Early Walsall Walsall began as a small Anglo-Saxon village. It is first mentioned in the early 11th century. The name Walsall may be derived from the words Walh halh, which means Celt’s valley. In the 5th century AD, Celts lived in England but Angles and Saxons from Germany invaded. During the 6th… Continue reading A History of Walsall
A History of Wareham
By Tim Lambert Saxon Wareham Fifteen hundred years ago the Celts lived in the area of Wareham. However, the modern settlement was founded by the Saxons. They conquered east Dorset in the mid-7th century and about 700 AD a Saxon named St Aldhelm founded a nunnery on the site of Wareham. He also built a… Continue reading A History of Wareham
A History of Warminster
By Tim Lambert Early Warminster The remains of two Roman villas were found near Warminster. However, the modern town dates from the Saxon era. The origin of the name Warminster is not certain, but it’s probably derived from the name of the River Were and a minster (a minster was a monastery church). St Denys… Continue reading A History of Warminster
A History of Warnford
By Tim Lambert In the Bronze Age, people built burial chambers called barrows at Beacon Hill near Warnford. So human beings have lived and farmed in the area for thousands of years. However, in the 6th century AD, a people called the Jutes from Denmark settled in central Hampshire. A tribe called the Meon gave… Continue reading A History of Warnford
A History of Warrington
By Tim Lambert Early Warrington At the time of the Domesday Book in 1086 Warrington was only a small village but in time it grew larger and more important. St Elphin’s Church existed by 1086 and probably much earlier. Furthermore, the Normans built a wooden castle at Warrington around 1070 AD. By the beginning of… Continue reading A History of Warrington
A History of Warwick
By Tim Lambert Medieval Warwick Warwick began as a Saxon settlement. The name Warwick is derived from two Saxon words, wering, which meant weir, and wic, which meant houses or settlement. So it was wering wic the settlement by the weir. In the 10th century, Warwick was made into a fortified town or burh. The… Continue reading A History of Warwick
A History of Waterlooville
By Tim Lambert The Beginning of Waterlooville Waterlooville and Cowplain did not exist before the year 1815. Before then it was part of the Forest of Bere, which stretched from the border of Sussex to Winchester. Today Queens Inclosure is one of the last remnants of the forest. On the southern fringe of the forest… Continue reading A History of Waterlooville
A History of Wellingborough
By Tim Lambert Early Wellingborough Wellingborough began as an Anglo-Saxon settlement. It was once called Waendel’s burh, which means Waendel’s fortified settlement. At the time of the Domesday Book in 1086, Wellingborough probably had a population of about 250. By the standards of the time, it was a large village. (A typical village would be… Continue reading A History of Wellingborough