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Founding
Founding of Bridgnorth
town and civil parish in Shropshire, England, UK
- 1101
- Europe
Founding
town and civil parish in Shropshire, England, UK
Fetching the article from Wikipedia…
Bridgnorth is a market town and civil parish in Shropshire, England, named after a bridge over the River Severn. the town into High Town and Low Town, the upper town on its west bank and the lower on its east bank. The population at the 2011 Census was 12,079.
Bridgnorth is named after a bridge over the River Severn, which was built further north than an earlier bridge at Quatford. The earliest historical reference to the town is in 895, when it is recorded that the Danes created a camp at Cwatbridge; subsequently in 912, Æthelflæd constructed a mound on the west bank of the River Severn, or possibly on the site of Bridgnorth Castle, as part of an offensive against the Danes. Earliest names for Bridgnorth include Brigge, Brug and Bruges, all referring to its position on the Severn.
After the Norman conquest, William I granted the manor of Bridgnorth to Roger de Montgomerie. The town itself was not created until 1101, when Robert of Bellême, 3rd Earl of Shrewsbury, the son of Roger de Montgomerie, moved from Quatford, constructing a castle and a church on the site of the modern-day town. The town became a royal borough on Robert Bellême's attainder in 1102. The castle's purpose was to defend against attacks from Wales. The town was attacked and burnt by Roger Mortimer, 1st Earl of March during the Despenser War in 1322. A small Jewish community was established in the town in 1267, but was expelled in 1274; one of the community was arrested in a campaign against alleged Jewish coin clipping, a prelude towards Edward I's Edict of Expulsion in 1290.
Bridgnorth's town walls were initially constructed in timber between 1216 and 1223; murage grants allowed them to be upgraded to stone between the 13th and 15th centuries. By the 16th century, the antiquarian John Leland reported them in ruins and of the five gates, only one survives today.
It is probable that Henry I granted the burgesses certain privileges, for Henry II confirmed to them all the franchises and customs which they had had in the time of Henry I. King John in 1215 granted them freedom from toll throughout England except the city of London, and in 1227 Henry III conferred several new rights and liberties, among which were a gild merchant with a hanse. These early charters were confirmed by several succeeding kings, Henry VI granting in addition Assize of Bread and Ale and other privileges. The burgesses were additionally granted two fairs: a yearly fair on the feast of the Translation of St Leonard and the three following days was granted in 1359, and in 1630 Charles I granted them licence to hold another fair on the Thursday before the first week in Lent and two following days. The burgesses returned two members to parliament in 1295, and continued to do so until 1867, when they were assigned only one member. The town was disfranchised in 1885.
During the Civil War, Bridgnorth was one of the Midlands' main Royalist strongholds, and in 1642 many Royalist troops were garrisoned there. In 1646, Cromwell's Roundheads arrived with orders to take Bridgnorth for the Parliamentarians from the garrison led by Sir Robert Howard. After a three-week siege, Cromwell was successful and he ordered that the castle be demolished.
Bridgnorth had an ironworks in Low Town run by Hazledine and Company which in 1808 built the locomotive Catch Me Who Can designed and promoted by Richard Trevithick. A plaque on the foundry's site commemorates this association.
By 1824, the borough and liberties of Bridgnorth were well defined.
The population of the municipal borough in 1841 was 6,198, and that of the town was 5,770.
More than 255 men from the Bridgnorth area volunteered in the first months of the First World War. Their names were published in the Bridgnorth Journal on 26 December 1914 and those killed in action are remembered on the war memorial, sculpted by Adrian Jones, in the castle grounds.
Until 1961 the Royal Air Force's initial recruit training unit was at RAF Bridgnorth, a station opened in 1939. During the Second World War, two women were killed in a German air raid in August 1940 when bombs hit neighbouring houses in High Town. In 2005, unverified German papers dating from 1941 were found, outlining new details about Operation Sea Lion, the military plans of Nazi Germany for an invasion of Britain. Two quiet Shropshire towns were mentioned in the documentation: Ludlow and Bridgnorth. Some experts believe that it was Hitler's intention to make Bridgnorth his personal headquarters in Britain, due to its central position in the UK, rural location, rail connections and airfield.
In 1978, Bridgnorth was twinned with the French town of Thiers, and in 1992 it also twinned with the Bavarian town of Schrobenhausen, Germany that had already twinned with Thiers a few years earlier. On 21 August 2003 Bridgnorth was granted Fairtrade Town status.
The town is in the Severn Valley, where the river passes through a relatively narrow valley with largely-wooded slopes. High Town, the part of the town sited on the west side of the Severn, is built on a notable promontory, at the southern end of which the castle was constructed, and is known as Castle Hill. Low Town is on lower-lying ground on the banks of the river. High Town is at an elevation of 65–68 metres (213–223 feet) above sea level, whilst Low Town is at 32–33 metres (105 feet). The lie of the land of Low Town is less hilly but then rises steeply to its immediate east.
The West Midlands Green Belt covers the countryside to the east of the Severn and the settlement.
The civil parish includes Danesford, Oldbury and Quatford.
Bridgnorth is home to a funicular railway that links the High and Low towns, the Castle Hill Railway, which is the steepest and only inland railway of its type in England. Additionally, within the High Town is Bridgnorth railway station on the Severn Valley Railway, which runs southwards to Kidderminster. The ruins of Bridgnorth Castle, built in 1101, are present in the town. Due to damage caused during the English Civil War, the castle is inclined at an angle of 15 degrees.
High Town has two prominent Church of England churches. Church of St. Mary Magdalene, Bridgnorth, a church built in the classic style of the late 18th century, was designed by Thomas Telford; and is still used for worship. St. Leonard's was formerly collegiate, and Bridgnorth was a Royal Peculiar until 1856. It was subsequently largely rebuilt but is no longer used for regular worship. It has many community uses and is in the care of the Churches Conservation Trust.
Bishop Percy's House on the Cartway was built in 1580 by Richard Forster and has been a Grade I listed building since 18 July 1949. It was one of the few properties of its type to survive the great fire of Bridgnorth in April 1646, and was the birthplace of Thomas Percy (Bishop of Dromore), author of 'Reliques of Ancient English Poetry'.
Other notable buildings in the town are the 17th century Bridgnorth Town Hall, a half-timbered building, and a surviving town gate the Northgate which houses the museum. Daniel's Mill, a well known watermill is situated a short distance along the River Severn from Bridgnorth.
The remains of an old hermitage can be seen from the high town, they are commonly called The Queens Parlor by locals. One local legend tells of its occupation in AD 925 by a hermit called Ethelred or Ethelwald, a grandson to Alfred the Great. This may not be such an unlikely story as Bridgnorth was founded in 912 by Alfred the Great's daughter Aethelflaed.
There are a number of primary schools in Bridgnorth, including: Castlefields County Primary School, two Church of England schools, St Mary's and St Leonard's; the Roman Catholic St John's school; and, in addition, the Morville and Brown Clee schools in Morville and Ditton Priors.
The town has two secondary schools: Oldbury Wells School and Bridgnorth Endowed School (previously named Bridgnorth Grammar School). These serve the town and its outlying villages, including Alveley and Highley.
There is no sixth form in Bridgnorth, with provision at Bridgnorth Endowed School and Oldbury Wells School fully phased out by 2025. In September 2023, Telford College partnered with both Bridgnorth secondary schools to develop new joint post-16 courses and learning pathways. Along with Telford College, Shrewsbury Sixth Form College and Thomas Telford School now provide the majority of post-16 education.
There is a theatre, the Theatre on the Steps, and a 1930s cinema, the Majestic. The Northgate Museum contains many artefacts connected with the town and surrounding area. It was the first independent museum in Shropshire to be accredited by the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council. The town has an orchestra, Bridgnorth Sinfonia, which performers regular concerts in St Mary's Church in East Castle Street.
Bridgnorth Town F.C. was the football club based in Bridgnorth. They joined the Worcestershire Combination in 1938 and twice reached the 5th round of the FA Vase. They won the championship of the West Midlands (Regional) League Premier Division in 2008. Affiliated to the club was the junior section known as "Bridgnorth Town Juniors". The teams ranged from under 8s to under 16s and competed in the Telford Junior League. After folding in 2013, the club was effectively replaced by "phoenix club" A.F.C. Bridgnorth. Bridgnorth Spartans Juniors Football Club run junior and adult teams. These teams include boys' teams, ranging from Under-8s to Under-15s, girls' teams and women's teams. Home games are played at Oldbury Wells School.
The Bridgnorth and District Football League was played in the area from 1925 to 2001.
Bridgnorth Rowing Club occupies 'The Maltings' building on the edge of Severn Park, which was purchased by the club in 1983. Work to convert the malting building into the boat house started in 1993. It competes in events in the local region and further afield, including attending the annual Head of the River Race on the Thames in London, and hosts an annual regatta with racing along the length of the Severn Park.
Bridgnorth Army Cadets is the oldest Army Cadet detachment in Shropshire. The Army Cadet Force (ACF) in 2010 celebrated 150 years.
In 2007, Bridgnorth hosted the UK Downhill Street Race in cycling.
In January 2010, the Kidderminster branch of Stagecoach Theatre Arts expanded to Bridgnorth, providing the town with a part-time performing arts school for people of ages between 6 and 18. The Kidderminster School is now named "Stagecoach Kidderminster & Bridgnorth".
Local news and television programmes are provided by BBC West Midlands and ITV Central. Television signals are received from the Wrekin and the local relay TV transmitters.
Local radio stations are BBC Radio Shropshire, Heart West Midlands, Capital North West and Wales, Smooth West Midlands, Hits Radio Black Country & Shropshire, Greatest Hits Radio Black Country & Shropshire, and Severnvalley Radio, an independent local radio station for South Shropshire & North Worcestershire .
The town is served by the local newspaper, Shropshire Star (formerly Bridgnorth Journal).
Bridgnorth grew initially as a market town at the centre of a system of local radial roads linking it with more rural, smaller settlements. Many of these roads crossed Bridgnorth at the point on the High Street where the town hall now stands. The River Severn historically also played a major role as a trading connection for the town, but is no longer generally navigable this far upstream.
Bridgnorth is connected to Shrewsbury and Stourbridge by the A458 road, Telford and Kidderminster by the A442 road, and Wolverhampton via the A454 road. The town is 11 miles (18 km) from the M54 motorway, at Telford.
The A458 passes to the south of the town centre on a by-pass, construction of which was started in 1982 and now serves to relieve the town centre of the congestion that once plagued it. The bypass also provided a second bridge across the Severn at Bridgnorth, which remains the only local alternative to the historic bridge that connects Low and High towns.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Bridgnorth”, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.