Bridgnorth
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Bridgnorth | |
|
  |
|
| Population | 12,212 |
|---|---|
| OS grid reference | |
| District | Bridgnorth |
| Shire county | Shropshire |
| Region | West Midlands |
| Constituent country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | BRIDGNORTH |
| Postcode district | WV16 |
| Dial code | 01746 |
| Police | West Mercia |
| Fire | Shropshire |
| Ambulance | West Midlands |
| UK Parliament | Ludlow |
| European Parliament | West Midlands |
| List of places: UK • England | |
Bridgnorth is a town in Shropshire, England, at grid reference SO717929, along the Severn Valley. It is split into Low Town and High Town, named on account of their elevations relative to the River Severn. Bridgnorth is named after a bridge over the River Severn, built further north than an earlier bridge at Quatford. It is the seat of the Bridgnorth district. The population of the town of Bridgnorth was 11,891 at the 2001 Census and a more recent estimate puts it at 12,212 [1].
Low Town is home to Bridgnorth railway station on the Severn Valley Railway, which runs southwards to Kidderminster. Low Town is connected to the High Town by the steepest inland cliff railway in Britain, the Castle Hill Railway.
High Town is dominated by the two Anglican churches, St Mary's church and St Leonard's, the former having been designed by Thomas Telford. Other notable buildings in the town are the seventeenth century Bridgnorth Town Hall and a surviving town gate. Daniel's Mill, a watermill is situated a short distance along the River Severn from Bridgnorth.
Contents |
[edit] History
The Castle, originally built in 1101 by Robert de Belleme (later Earl of Shrewsbury) was besieged four times in its history, last by the Roundheads in 1646 during the English Civil War when Bridgnorth was a Royalists stronghold. Parliamentary forces used an artificial hill (Panpudding Hill) across from the castle in order to bombard it and also tunnelled deep into the cliff underneath Bridgnorth castle in order to plant explosives and blow it up. The threat from this tunnelling (along with dwindling supplies) caused the Royalists to surrender Bridgnorth. Although the castle survived the siege, it was blown up by the Roundheads in 1647 to prevent its future use by the Royalists should they have retaken the town. The only part that remains, part of the great tower, leans at an angle greater than the Leaning Tower of Pisa.
During the siege, a large part of high town was set on fire. As a result of the fire, there are no verified images or detailed accounts of the actual layout or even the appearance of Bridgnorth Castle before its destruction.
[edit] Other
On August 21, 2003, Bridgnorth was granted Fairtrade Town status.
In 1978 Bridgnorth twinned itself with the French town of Thiers, and later in 1992 it also twinned with the Bavarian town of Schrobenhausen, Since then each have twinned with each other.
There are a number of Primary Schools, including Castlefields CP, St Marys C of E, St Leonards C of E, Morville, Brown Clee and St Johns Catholic. The town has two Secondary schools: Oldbury Wells School and The Endowed School. These serve the town and its outlying villages (including Alveley and Highley).
It is popular with Black Country tourists and drinkers because of, amongst many other things, its 27 (mostly traditional) pubs, including 'The Fosters Arms' ,The Kings Head, 'The Apple Shed', 'The Golden Lion', The Bell & Talbot, 'The Railwayman's Arms', 'The Shakespeare', 'The Black Horse', 'The Bandon Arms' and 'The Black Boy'. It also has several popular wine bars and restaurants.
The design of the 18th century St.Mary's Church appears to have inspired two 19th century Dublin churches- St.Stephen's on Mount Street[2] and the presently closed St.Paul's on Arran Quay.[3] The latter 's cupola (dome) is similar to that of St.Mary's- but built some 40 years later.
Between 1638-1640, Richard Baxter (November 12, 1615 - December 8, 1691) the English Puritan church leader, divine scholar and controversialist, called by Dean Stanley "the chief of English Protestant Schoolmen". lived in Bridgnorth town centre.
[edit] Nazi HQ of Britain?
In 2005, unverified German papers from 1941 were discovered outlining a possible Nazi invasion of the United Kingdom. There is a lot of detail about two Shropshire towns in the documentation — Ludlow and Bridgnorth. Some experts now believe that it was Hitler's intention to make Bridgnorth his HQ in Britain, due to its central, but rural, location and its now disused airfield. [4]
[edit] External links
- About Bridgnorth Visitor Guide | Tourist Information
- Shropshire TourismThe official tourism website for Shropshire
- Bridgnorth Spartans Junior Football Club
- local guide bridgnorth-unlimited.org
- Bridgnorth Visitor Guide
- Bridgnorth Photo Gallery
- Shropshire Tourist Board article
- BBC Shropshire article
- Bridgnorth Folk Festival
- Haunted Bridgnorth
- The River Severn Tales of the River Severn
- A MySpace dedicated to the town
| Unitary authorities: | Telford and Wrekin |
| Boroughs/Districts: | Bridgnorth • North Shropshire • Oswestry • Shrewsbury and Atcham • South Shropshire |
| Cities/Towns: | Bishop's Castle • Bridgnorth • Broseley • Church Stretton • Cleobury Mortimer • Clun • Craven Arms • Dawley • Ellesmere • Ludlow • Madeley • Market Drayton • Much Wenlock • Newport • Oakengates • Oswestry • Shifnal • Shrewsbury • Telford • Wellington • Wem • Whitchurch See also: List of civil parishes in Shropshire |
| Towns on the River Severn, UK | edit | |
|
Heading downstream: Llanidloes | Newtown | Welshpool | Shrewsbury | Bridgnorth |
||
| Settlements on the River Severn between Ironbridge and Bewdley (heading downstream) | edit | |
|
Ironbridge | Jackfield | Coalport | Bridgnorth | Quatford | Quatt | Hampton & Hampton Loade (chain ferry) | Highley | Alveley | Upper Arley | Bewdley |
||
