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Shrewsbury
*** Shopping-Tip: Shrewsbury
{{otherplaces}}
{{GBmap|Shrewsbury - Shropshire|SJ4912}}
Image:Shrewsbury.jpg thumb|300px|right|Porthill Bridge crossing the [[River Severn|Severn at Shrewsbury]]
Image:Old_Market_Hall.jpg thumb|300px|right|Shrewsbury's Old Market Hall and The Square
Image:Shrewsbury5.JPG thumb|300px|right|Market Street, behind the Old Market Hall, with the [[Music Hall, Shrewsbury|Music Hall on the left]]
'''Shrewsbury''' (
IPA chart for English pronounced either /ˈʃɹuË?zbɹiË?/ or /ˈʃɹəʊzbɹiË?/) is a town of 70,059 [http://www.world-gazetteer.com/wg.php?x=&men=gpro&lng=en&dat=32&geo=-1495&srt=pnan&col=aohdq&pt=c&va=x&geo=513773725 ] in
Shropshire,
England. It is the
county town of Shropshire and the seat of the borough of
Shrewsbury and Atcham. It lies on the
River Severn and is 9 miles east of the
Wales Welsh border and the town has a
Welsh (language) Welsh name too - ''Amwythig''.
Royal Mail postcodes for the town are SY1, SY2 and SY3.
History
''See main article
History of Shrewsbury.''
Shrewsbury is popularly known as a
medieval town, having been founded c.
800 and it was during the "late middle ages" (
15th Century 14th/15th Centuries) in which the town was at its height in terms of national importance and wealth. This was mainly due to the
wool trade, a major industry at the time, with the rest of Britain and Europe, especially with the River Severn as a trading route.
The town was little affected by the
industrial revolution, despite the proximity to
Coalbrookdale and
Ironbridge, commonly known as the birthplaces of industry.
Its name came from
Anglo-Saxon ''Scrobbesburh'' (
dative ''Scrobbesbyrig'') = "fort in the scrub-land region" or "Scrobb's fort". Its
Welsh (language) Welsh name ''Amwythig'' means "fortified place".
----
See also:
*
Battle of Shrewsbury (
1403) - fought a few miles north of the town centre, at
Battlefield, Shropshire Battlefield.
*
Wroxeter Roman City - 5 miles SW of the town lies the (now ruined) Roman city of
Viroconium.
Population
The population of the town of Shrewsbury is approx 70,000 although the population of the borough of Shrewsbury and Atcham is higher, at just under 96,000. Shrewsbury is Shropshire's second largest town, below
Telford and ahead of
Oswestry. In
2000 and again in
2002, Shrewsbury unsuccessfully applied for
city status in the United Kingdom city status.
Within the borough, but not part of the town of Shrewsbury, is the large village of
Bayston Hill. This was once a much smaller village but has grown up to become a suburb of the town. It remains, however, a separate entity to the town, with its own parish council, etc. Bayston Hill lies some 3 miles south of the town centre of Shrewsbury and on the A49 and near to the A5. The smaller village of
Battlefield, Shropshire Battlefield, this time to the north of the town, is also considered now as a suburb of the town due to recent growth in the surrounding area. It is covered by the unparished town area of the borough and is included in a town ward.
Attractions
The historic town centre still retains its medieval street pattern and many narrow streets and passages. Some of the passages, especially those which pass through buildings from one street to the next, are called “shuts� (a suggestion is that this is because they were once shut at night). Many specialist shops, traditional pubs and local restaurants can be found in the hidden corners, squares and lanes of Shrewsbury. Many of the
street names have also remained unchanged in centuries and there are some more unusual names, such as Butcher Row, Longden Coleham, Dogpole,
Mardol, Frankwell, Roushill,
Grope Lane, Gullet Passage, Murivance, The Dana, Portobello, Bear Steps, Shoplatch and Bellstone.
Image:Butcher_Row.jpg thumb|300px|right|Typical Shrewsbury architecture on Butcher Row
There are some very old public houses, which have been continuously open as pubs, such as the
Golden Cross (established
1428 - the oldest pub in the town), the
Dun Cow (public house) Dun Cow and the
King's Head, Shrewsbury King's Head.
In the centre of the town lies
The Quarry. This 29 acre (120,000 m²) riverside park attracts thousands of people throughout the year and is enjoyed as a place of recreation. The town is known as the "town of flowers" and this is the motto printed onto many of the signs as you enter the town on major roads.
Shrewsbury is home to one of the largest and oldest horticultural events in the UK - the annual
Shrewsbury Flower Show ([http://www.shrewsburyflowershow.org.uk Shrewsbury Flower Show website]). A two day event, the Flower Show takes place in mid August, has been running for more than 125 years, and attracts around 100,000 visitors each year. Set in the Quarry park, there are a multitude of events, exhibitions and displays, with a magnificent fireworks display at the end of each day. Some people dislike the fact that there is an admission charge to enter the park during the flower show, as there is usually no admission for entering the park.
The town is host to the
Shrewsbury International Music Festival, when musical groups from all over the world come to perform for about a week for local residents, and give a final concert in the Abbey. The festival is organized by
WorldStage Tours. In recent years, including
2005,
Northern Pines has participated.
2006 will also see the first Shrewsbury Folk Festival which used to be held in nearby Bridgnorth. Much of the event will be held in the Quarry, with other related festivities happening around the town. [http://www.shrewsburyfolkfestival.co.uk Shrewsbury Folk Festival]
A new annual arts festival - the Shrewsbury Summer Season - was established in 2004 and runs each year from June to August with an extensive programme of music, visual arts, theatre and spectacle. [http://www.shrewsburysummer.co.uk Shrewsbury Summer Season].
The
tourist information centre is at the
Music Hall, Shrewsbury Music Hall on The Square in the town centre. The three main museums are Shrewsbury Museum & Art Gallery (located at Rowley's House),
Shrewsbury Castle (which houses the Shropshire Regimental Museum) and the
Coleham Pumping Station. [http://www.shrewsburymuseums.com/ Shrewsbury Museums] Also there is the Gateway arts and drama centre and there are also various private galleries and art shops around the town.
Transportation
Shrewsbury is the county's
public transportation hub. Five railway lines connect the town to most corners of Shropshire and the town is regarded as the "Gateway to
Wales". Its
Shrewsbury railway station railway station is served by
Arriva Trains Wales and
Central Trains.
Bus services are operated by
Arriva and serve most parts of the town, congregating at the town's
bus station adjacent to the Darwin Shopping Centre and a short stroll from the railway station. Arriva also operate county services both independent of and on behalf of Shropshire County Council.
Shrewsbury has a
Park and Ride bus scheme in operation and three car parks on the edge of town are used by many who want to travel into the town centre. The three car parks are located at
Harlescott (to the north, coloured orange),
Oxon, Shropshire Oxon (to the west, coloured brown) and
Meole Brace (to the south, coloured green). It is proposed that a fourth one be built to the east of the town, at either
Emstrey, Shropshire Emstrey or
Preston, Shropshire Preston.
Major Routes
Many main roads meet at Shrewsbury, making it a regional hub for road transport.
The
A5 road A5 connects the town east towards
Telford and northwest to
Oswestry. The A5 once ran through the town centre, until a
bypass was built in the
1930s. The A5/A49 seventeen-mile £79m dual-carriageway
Telford-Shrewsbury Bypass was built further out of the town, opening in August 1992, and the A5 is now taken via this route. It runs to the south of the town. The
A49 road A49 south from
Ludlow and
Leominster now meets up with the new A5 north of
Bayston Hill (3 miles south of the town centre) and merges with it for 3 miles before separating again to the east of the town. From there it runs north, passing
Sundorne then
Battlefield, Shropshire Battlefield, before heading out towards
Whitchurch. At Battlefield the
A53 road A53 route begins and heads northeast towards
Shawbury and
Market Drayton then onwards towards
Newcastle-under-Lyme and
Stoke-on-Trent.
The
A458 road A458 (
Welshpool-
Bridgnorth) runs through the town centre though, entering in the west and leaving to the southeast. The
A528 road A528 begins in the town centre and heads north, heading for
Ellesmere. The
A488 road A488 begins just west of the town centre in
Frankwell and heads out to
Bishop's Castle and
Clun in the southwest of Shropshire.
The
A5112 road A5112,
A5191 road A5191 and
A5064 road A5064 are all internal roads of the town - the A5191 goes north-south via the town centre, the A5112 goes north-south to the east of the town centre and the A5064 is a short, 1 mile stretch of road to the southeast of the town centre, called "London Road". The
A5124 road A5124 is the most recently built section of the Shrewsbury bypasses and runs across the northern edge of the town at Battlefield (connecting the A49/A53 to the A528), though it did exist before as Harlescott Lane (which is now unclassified).
Bridges
The town has many bridges, old and new, pedestrian, traffic and rail, which cross the River Severn and the
Rea Brook. Here are listed the main ones, from upstream down:
*Frankwell Footbridge (see
Frankwell)
*
Welsh Bridge - built in the 1790s to replace
St George's Bridge
*
Porthill Bridge
*Kingsland Bridge
*Greyfriars Bridge
*
English Bridge - rebuilt in the 1930s, historically called "Stone Bridge"
Shrewsbury railway station is partially located above the River Severn too.
Future
Shrewsbury won the ''
West Midlands (region) West Midlands Capital of Enterprise'' award in 2004. The town has two expanding business parks - the
Shrewsbury Business Park and the
Battlefield Enterprise Park. There are many residential developments currently under construction in the town to cater for the increasing numbers of people wishing to live in the town and commute to
Telford,
Wolverhampton and
Birmingham. The borough council has also recently added to this building activity in the town, by building the new Guildhall and the council is currently building a large new theatre in Frankwell, a new livestock market at Battlefield and a sports village in Sundorne. A new 75-bed hotel - the Sleep Inn will be located on the site of the Shrewsbury Business Park. However, the hotel was set ablaze recently and the remainder of the site has been bulldozed to make way for its rebuilding.
The town centre has two large indoor shopping centres - the 'Pride Hill' and 'Charles Darwin' centres - and the company which owns them has announced plans to expand these two and link them together. Plans for the first phase of this work were approved by the borough council on the 1st February 2005. The approved scheme was for a new 6 storey building to be built on what is currently a surface car park, which will include a night club on the street and centre management offices at the top. On August 13, 2005, it was announced that the new combined shopping centre of Shrewsbury will be called the
Castle Gate Shopping Centre, after a public vote.
In February 2006
OFCOM the broadcasting regulator announced that [http://www.shrewsburyfm.net Shrewsbury FM] had been successful in its application to become Shrewsbury and Oswestry's brand new radio station. The station has now been renamed to [http://www.thesevern.co.uk "The Severn"] and will serve Oswestry and Shrewsbury on two frequencies. Each station will be run separately on their frequency although they will both share the name of “The Severn�.
Administrative functions
Shrewsbury is the administrative centre for both
Shrewsbury and Atcham Borough and
Shropshire County (which does not include the
Telford and Wrekin borough, which is now a unitary authority). The County Council have their headquarters in the Shirehall, on Abbey Foregate and the Borough Council have their headquarters in the new Guildhall, on
Frankwell Quay. The Borough Council have moved from their old Guildhall, now known as "Newport House" (as it was before it became the Guildhall), on March 19 2004. Shrewsbury has no town council, the Mayor of Shrewsbury and Atcham being also the mayor of the town.
The town also serves as the administrative headquarters of the
British Army's
British 5th Division 5th Division, which has their administrative HQ at the
Copthorne Barracks.
Two newspapers are published for Shrewsbury - the
Shrewsbury Chronicle and the local edition of the county's
Shropshire Star.
Suburbs of the town
Suburbs and districts surrounding the town centre:
'''North:'''
Ditherington - location of the first iron framed building in the world
Castlefields
Sundorne - location of the Shrewsbury Sports Village
Harlescott - location of the Shrewsbury Sunday Market
Mount Pleasant
Battlefield, Shropshire Battlefield - site of the
Battle of Shrewsbury 1403
Bagley, Shrewsbury Bagley
Coton Hill
'''East:'''
Underdale
Cherry Orchard
Abbey Foregate
Telford Estate
Monkmoor
Belvidere
'''South:'''
Sutton Farm
Reabrook
Sutton Park
Meole Brace
Meole Village
Belle Vue, Shrewsbury Belle Vue
Coleham
'''West:'''
Copthorne
Frankwell
Porthill
Kingsland - ''see also
Shrewsbury School''
Gains Park
Radbrook
Shelton, Shropshire Shelton
Famous residents
*
Charles Darwin, son of
Robert Darwin was born in Shrewsbury, at
The Mount, Shrewsbury The Mount House.
*
Robert Clive ("Clive of India") was Mayor and Member of Parliament for Shrewsbury.
*
John Gwynn,
architect (1713-1786), was born and died in Shrewsbury. The town's English Bridge and the bridge at
Atcham were both designed by him.
*
William Johnstone Pulteney, once Britain's richest man, was MP for Shrewsbury and lived in apartments at Shrewsbury Castle.
*The 80s pop group
T'Pau (band) T'Pau came from Shrewsbury.
*
Wilfred Owen,
poet, lived and worked in Shrewsbury until the
First World War.
*
Percy Thrower, gardener and broadcaster who presented various gardening programmes, including the
BBC's Gardeners' World from 1969 until 1976.
Trivia
'''Proud Salopians'''
Story has it that when
Henry VIII of England King Henry VIII created the
Church of England he wanted a
diocese of Shropshire, with Shrewsbury as the
Cathedral City status in the United Kingdom City. However the town of Shrewsbury rejected the offer, claiming that it wanted to remain a "first of towns" rather than a second rate city. It is said that this is where the term "Proud Salopians" comes from; a term used for the people of Shrewsbury who are proud of it as it is.
'''HMP Shrewsbury'''
Shrewsbury (HM Prison) Shrewsbury prison is the most overcrowded prison in
England and Wales, according to a 2005 report on the UK prison population.
'''Pronunciation of "Shrewsbury"'''
The name of the town can be pronounced "Shrooz-bury" or "Shroze-bury". The latter pronunciation is older and is the one favoured by the BBC, although the former seems more logical. Both are heard widely in the town. The "bury" in Shrewsbury is often pronounced as one syllable by natives - "shrews-bree", and is difficult for many, especially Americans.
'''Shrewsbury and Shropshire'''
The name "Shrewsbury" comes from the Anglo-Saxon "Scrobbesbyrig". "Byrig" means "fortified place". "Scrobb" could mean shrubs or scrubland, or it could be the name of an Anglo-Saxon chieftain, so the meaning would be "scrubland fort" or "Scrobb's fort". Similarly, the name "Shropshire" evolved from "Scrobbesbyrigscire".
Both Shrewsbury and Shropshire have the same alternative name, Salop, which can be confusing. On some maps, Shropshire is recorded as "Salop", while on milestones in and near to the county, "Salop" refers to Shrewsbury.
'''Zutphen'''
Shrewsbury is twinned with
Zutphen in the Netherlands. The relationship between the two towns is very old and dates back to the
16th Century.
'''Simnel cake'''
The most popular and well known recipe for
Simnel cake is from Shrewsbury.
Fictional References
The
Brother Cadfael novels by
Ellis Peters, aka
Edith Pargeter, take
Shrewsbury Abbey for their setting. In the stories, Shrewsbury and other places in Shropshire are portrayed regularly. Local author Carol Ewels has two children's books, [http://www.jackthecat.org.uk/ "Jack the Cat"], set in Shrewsbury.
Shrewsbury Town
In 2004, the local football team,
Shrewsbury Town F.C., were promoted to the Football League Division 3 (now called League 2) from the Nationwide Conference. They were in the Conference for just one year and became the first team in 10 years to bounce straight back up just one year after relegation. The team's most notable victory in recent years was on Saturday 4th January 2003 when they knocked
Everton F.C out of the
F.A Cup 3rd round, winning 2-1 at their home stadium the Gay Meadow. Their current manager is Gary Peters.
Shrewsbury School
''See the main article
Shrewsbury School''
Shrewsbury School is a leading public school in the country, where
Sir Philip Sydney,
Charles Darwin,
Michael Palin,
John Peel and
Michael Heseltine were educated. It is located on a large commanding site ("Kingsland") just south of the town centre overlooking the loop of the Severn. The school was once located in the town centre, in the buildings that are now the main county library on Castle Street.
Coat of arms
Image:salop.gif The shield of the borough of Shrewsbury and Atcham
''Floreat Salopia'' - latin; "may Salop flourish"
(Salop can mean both Shrewsbury and Shropshire).
This shield is that of the
borough of
Shrewsbury and Atcham - Shrewsbury's town shield is the same but without the bridge (which is the
Atcham Bridge). Shrewsbury, Shrewsbury and Atcham, Shrewsbury Town FC and
Shropshire all use the same loggerheads and motto.
External links
-
Shrewsbury & Atcham Borough Council
-
Shrewsbury Photograph Album
-
Shrewsbury Photos & Ecards
-
Shrewsbury Visitors Guide
-
Shrewsbury Guide
-
Shrewsbury Forum
-
The Severn
-
Official STFC Website
-
Shrewsbury Air Training Corps
-
Images of Shrewsbury on Shropshire Gallery
{{River Severn towns}}
{{Severn between Llandrinio and Ironbridge}}
Category:Towns on the River Severn
Category:Towns in Shropshire
Category:Towns of the Welsh Marches
Category:English county towns
Category:Railway towns in England
bg:ШрюÑ?бъри
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de:Shrewsbury
es:Shrewsbury
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*** Shopping-Tip: Shrewsbury
