A busy rural market town located in the near to Reading in the county of Berkshire, United Kingdom, Wokingham has around 30,403 inhabitants. The history of the town harps back to Anglo-Saxon times, when it was a small settlement surrounded by oak trees. Wokingham still has some old Georgian houses and some pretty half-timbered cottages, if you search down some of the back streets, and the town itself is still quite attractive, and well worth a visit, if you are in the Berkshire area. At one time having a significant brick-making industry, and even longer ago, a bell foundry and silk manufacture, it now relies on more modern businesses such as computer software design. The St Paul’s parish church is not that old by English standards and was only built in the 1860’s. A nice place for a stroll when the weather is fine is the pretty Agates Meadow. Other nearby places include Crowthorne, Binfield and Bracknell.
April 29, 2011
April 21, 2011
Lyme Regis Dorset
A charming little coastal resort on Lyme Bay in West Dorset, Lyme Regis was a significant medieval port which became a holiday resort during the eighteenth century. It was awarded it royal title “Regis” by Edward I in the late 13th century. The harbour, which became a haven for vessels in stormy weather, it protected by a wall called “The Cobb”, which also allowed the port to build and launch ships. The ill-fated Monmouth Rebellion to overthrow James I, began here in 1685, after the Duke of Monmouth landed there. Lyme Regis was a popular area for smugglers during centuries past and later featured in two books, Jane Austen’s “Persuasion” and John Fowls “The French Lieutenant’s Woman” (later made into a film starring Jeremy Irons and Meryl Streep. Lyme Regis and neighbouring Charmouth are two of the best areas for fossils, this being part of the Jurassic Coast Heritage Coast of Dorset.
April 19, 2011
Andover Hampshire Early History
A sizeable town in the north-west of Hampshire, Andover has a population of 52,000, and it stands on the banks of the River Anton roughly equidistant from the city of Winchester and the town of Basingstoke. Like most English towns it dates from Anglo-Saxon times and was recorded in Saxon annals as a royal hunting lodge belonging to King Edred (this was in the tenth century), and even saw the holiding of a Saxon ‘Parliament’. Later also recorded in the Domesday Book, Andover even at this early time had six watermills. Plodding along as a little market town it became quite significant for producing wool, which was the main source of income for the town. At this time Andover had a church, a priory, a hostel and a lepers hostel, the priory being eventually closed by Henry VIII. Much later in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries is developed into an important stagecoach stopping off point being on the route between London and Exeter (via Salisbury).
April 16, 2011
Warminster Wiltshire
A small town standing on the River Were in the county of Wiltshire, Warminster (population 17,000), dates from Anglo-Saxon times, though there may well have been settlements in the area as far back as the Iron Age. During the Middle Ages, Warminster grew in size and wealth through the wool and cloth trade, and also due to its importance as a corn market (only surpassed in this region by Bristol). Warminster later became significant as the home of a bell foundry, which produced high quality bells for local churches throughout the 17th century. During WW1, many troops from various countries of the British Empire, were garrisoned in and around Warminster. When the weather is fine, take a pleasant stroll along the River Were, or visit the Minster Church of Saint Denys.
View a map of Wiltshire here: Wiltshire Street Map.
April 3, 2011
St Lucia Windward Islands Caribbean
An island country situated in the Windward Islands, Lesser Antilles, in the Caribbean Sea, St Lucia covers an area of about two hundred and thirty eight square miles, it has a resident population of just over one hundred and seventy three thousand. The first settlers in St Lucia came from France, and they found the native Carib people already on the island, control of St Lucia changed continually between France and England, until 1814, when the British finally took over total control of the island. St Lucia is a popular holiday destination and the most poplar time to visit is between January and April when the weather is at its best (this being the dry season). The capital of St Lucia is Castries.
History of Fuengirola Costa del Sol
Location of an early Iberian settlent, what is now known as Fuengirola was originally known as Suel. A little later the Phoenicians founded a trading post there, to serve their ships, which regularly plied their trade along this coast, on their way to Portugal and beyond. Subsequently occupied by the Romans, and noted by Pomponius, a Roman historian, a fortress was built in Fuengirola, together with spa baths and residential villas. Sohail Castle was built much later, and by another civilisation, namely the Moors, this was during the 10th century. The settlement was burnt to the ground in the Middle Ages, and became little more than a heap of ashes and rubble, its remaining residents fleeing to nearby Mijas. In the late 15th century Fuengirola was recaptured from the Arabs, by the Christians, it soon became depopulated, but eventually recovered to become the sizeable town that it is today. In the 20th century tourism arrived and saw the area grow considerably, attracted by the wonderful weather, excellent beaches, and good amenities, Fuengirola has continued to attract visitors up to the present day, becoming one of the most popular resorts on the Costa del Sol.