Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire, an inland, but partly maritime, county of England; bounded, on the northwest, by Herefordshire and Worcestershire; on the north by Worcestershire and Warwickshire; on the east, by Oxfordshire; on the southeast by Berks and Wilts; on the south by Wilts and Somerset; on the west by the Severn's estuary and by Monmouthshire. The ruins of Roman villas have been found at Woodchester, Great Witcombe, Cirencester, Rodmarton, Bisley, Chedworth, and other places. Chief mediaeval castles were at Berkeley, Beverstone, Brimpsfield, Bristol, Cirencester, Dursley, Gloucester, St Briavels, Sudeley, and Thornbury. Great abbeys were at Gloucester, Tewkesbury, Cirencester, Winchcombe, and Hayles; priories at Hasledon, Horsley, and Stanley St. Leonard, and interesting old churches at Bristol, Cirencester, Deerhurst, Elkstone, Fairford, Northleach, and Tewkesbury.
Barrows are abundant in Gloucestershire, having been found at Upper Swell, Rodmarton, Uley, Ablington, Nympsfield, &c. Roman camps occur at Bourton-on-the-Water, Aust Ferry, Lydney, North Cerney, Oldbury, Sapperton, Little Sodbury, Woodchester, and other places. Roman stations were at Cirencester and Gloucester, and the Roman roads, Icknield Street, Ermine Street, the Fosse Way, and the Julian Way, traversed the county. About 10 miles of its boundary, along the Severn, is coast. The surface comprises three parts or sections, eastern, central, and western, or hill, vale, and forest.
In about AD 900 Æthelflæd, daughter of Alfred the Great, and wife of Æthelred, Earl of Mercia, founded a free chapel royal here to house the remains of St Oswald. She probably also refounded the city as a burh and laid out the street pattern which largely survives in the centre.It is thought that she probably also built a palace at Kingsholm Gloucester, which was later used by several Saxon and Norman kings for councils and parliaments. In 909 St. Oswald's relics were moved to Gloucester by Alfred's daughter ’thelflaed and her husband AÆthelred, and a priory was erected in his name. Canute had the secular canons expelled in 1022 and on the advice of Wulstan I, Bishop of Worcester, had Benedictine monks brought in. Worcester continued to influence St. Peter's Abbey and Aldred, Bishop of Worcester, took charge in 1058 and rebuilt the Church on a more grand scale in 1052. Monastic reform in the Cluniac tradition had impact in England after the Norman invasion. Domesday Book showed that the King was Gloucester"s chief landowner and it became known as a "royal" or "King's demesne" borough.
Banbury stands at the junction of two ancient roads: Salt Way, still used as a bridle path to the west and south of the town, led from Droitwich, Worcestershire to London and the south east of England, its primary use being the transportation of salt; and Banbury Lane, which began near Northampton and fairly closely followed the modern 22-mile-long road before running through Banbury's High Street and on towards the Fosse Way at Stow-on-the-Wold. In the yeare 913AD a band of Danes, who had settled in Northampton, travelled along Banbury Lane and ravaged north Oxfordshire. For centuries the townspeople traded in wool, ale, cakes and cheese.
By 1072 the last Saxon Abbot died, and Serlo was brought from Normandy. At the time of Serlo's arrival, the Abbey had been reduced to two monks and eight novices. King Edward the Confessor held his Witan at Gloucester 9 times. Probably the most famous occasion was that in 1085 after which William the Conqueror ordered the Domesday Survey. In 1088, Aldred's building was destroyed by fire and Serlo supervised the construction of the new building which began with the crypt and main stone structure in 1089. The influences on the new building are Anglo-Saxon and Norman.
Worcester Cathedral was begun in 1084 on the grand Romanesque style, so after the fire that destroyed Gloucester in 1088, Worcester served as the most readily available model. The massive cylindrical piers that line the nave are distinctly west-country and can be compared to the near contemporary Abbey at Tewkesbury, but the re-construction of the Abbey at Gloucester was based partially on the Norman style as seen on the continent. The combination of ambulatory, radiating chapels and the inclusion of a crypt are distinct to Rouen, Sainte-Wandrille and Mont-St. Michel; however, the style was used on four English churches before Gloucester: St. Augustine's Abbey (1081), Winchester Cathedral (1079), Bury St. Edmunds Abbey (1081) and Worcester Cathedral (1084).
St. Peter's Abbey in Gloucester had been important during the Norman rule, particularly the reign of William I and before the coronation of Henry III. In 1085 William faced an invasion from Canute IV of Scandinavia, and moved his court to Gloucester: a city on the Welsh border. It has been said that it was at one such festivity at St. Peter's Abbey that the Domesday Book was ordered. Domesday Book was ordered by William I at Christmas, 1085, while he was staying in Gloucester. William I also called an Ecclesiastical council in Gloucester shortly after the announcement of the Domesday Survey. St. Peter's Abbey at Gloucester was not held by military tenure or in exchange for military service. The Abbey regained lost ground during the Investiture controversy and the during the Interdict of King John's reign.
The foundation stone of the current Cathedral was laid by Serlo in 1089. Until canals were developed, Gloucester was the most inland port. The position of the city is such that deep sea vessels can reach it due to the depth of the Severn River, but it is narrow enough to be bridged. Having arrived from Mont-St. Michel, one of the foremost monasteries on the continent, Serlo began to increase the prestige of the Abbey at Gloucester and attracted so many that further renovations were necessary. By the time of his death in 1104 the Abbey had gone from two monks and eight boys to more than 100 brethren.
This location made it easier to transport the iron ore that was mined in the nearby Forest of Dean. Gloucester was also an important centre of the wool trade. By the fourteenth century, the wool trade was so strong the city had money to put into church improvements. The city was also home to Kingsholm, a royal residence near the Abbey as well as a Norman castle. Gloucester remained an important city throughout the Saxon and Norman periods. Its importance declined somewhat after the Royal household became more sedentary, but it did not decline in its prestige, and remained an important market town: it is located on an important trade route. Hereford's military role was expanded following the Norman conquest in 1066 AD, when it became a royal demesne, attaining its greatest significance during the 13th century. During this time the castle was extended to occupy the entire southeast quarter of the city. A twelve foot high, sandstone perimeter wall with six gatehouses and semicircular bastions at intervals, replaced the existing earth and timber palisade.
Maintenance of the city walls was of paramount importance at the time. Henry III and Edward (his son) needed the defences of Gloucester to be in good repair as they were often engaged with power struggles with the barons. The East gate was built in the 1200s and the defences were generally transformed. A series if semi circular bastions were constructed along the east and south sides of the Roman walls. This "Murage" was toll on goods coming into the town for sale, and was the principle source of funds for wall building. It was levied by Gloucester bailiffs throughout the 1200s and into the 1300s. A small gate known as the Almesham Postern was constructed in the north east section of the wall and the limit of the northern suburbs was marked by a new outer north gate flanked by two small towers. On the north toad to Worcester was Alvin Gate. Alvin Gate and the outer north gate marked the city limits, but no line of defence ran between them. Near to St. Oswalds Priory was the Blind Gate and there was a gate on the new west bridge. Gloucester was involved in the Barons war (1263-1264).