1.
Edward I of England
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Edward I, also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England from 1272 to 1307. He spent much of his reign reforming royal administration and common law, through an extensive legal inquiry, Edward investigated the tenure of various feudal liberties, while the law was reformed through a series of statutes regulating criminal and property law. Increasingly, however, Edwards attention was drawn towards military affairs, the first son of Henry III, Edward was involved early in the political intrigues of his fathers reign, which included an outright rebellion by the English barons. In 1259, he sided with a baronial reform movement. After reconciliation with his father, however, he remained throughout the subsequent armed conflict. After the Battle of Lewes, Edward was hostage to the rebellious barons, Montfort was defeated at the Battle of Evesham in 1265, and within two years the rebellion was extinguished. With England pacified, Edward joined the Ninth Crusade to the Holy Land, the crusade accomplished little, and Edward was on his way home in 1272 when he was informed that his father had died. Making a slow return, he reached England in 1274 and was crowned at Westminster on 19 August, after suppressing a minor rebellion in Wales in 1276–77, Edward responded to a second rebellion in 1282–83 with a full-scale war of conquest. After a successful campaign, Edward subjected Wales to English rule, built a series of castles and towns in the countryside, next, his efforts were directed towards Scotland. Initially invited to arbitrate a dispute, Edward claimed feudal suzerainty over the kingdom. In the war followed, the Scots persevered, even though the English seemed victorious at several points. At the same there were problems at home. In the mid-1290s, extensive military campaigns required high levels of taxation and these crises were initially averted, but issues remained unsettled. When the King died in 1307, he left to his son, Edward II, Edward I was a tall man for his era, hence the nickname Longshanks. He was temperamental, and this, along with his height, made him an intimidating man, nevertheless, he held the respect of his subjects for the way he embodied the medieval ideal of kingship, as a soldier, an administrator and a man of faith. The Edict remained in effect for the rest of the Middle Ages, Edward was born at the Palace of Westminster on the night of 17–18 June 1239, to King Henry III and Eleanor of Provence. Among his childhood friends was his cousin Henry of Almain, son of King Henrys brother Richard of Cornwall, Henry of Almain would remain a close companion of the prince, both through the civil war that followed, and later during the crusade. Edward was in the care of Hugh Giffard – father of the future Chancellor Godfrey Giffard – until Bartholomew Pecche took over at Giffards death in 1246, there were concerns about Edwards health as a child, and he fell ill in 1246,1247, and 1251
2.
Eleanor of Castile
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Eleanor of Castile was an English queen, the first wife of Edward I, whom she married as part of a political deal to affirm English sovereignty over Gascony. The marriage was known to be close, and Eleanor travelled extensively with her husband. She was with him on the Eighth Crusade, when he was wounded at Acre, when she died, near Lincoln, her husband famously ordered a stone cross to be erected at each stopping-place on the journey to London, ending at Charing Cross. Eleanor was better educated than most medieval queens and exerted a strong influence on the nation. She was a patron of literature, and encouraged the use of tapestries, carpets and tableware in the Spanish style. She was also a businesswoman, endowed with her own fortune as Countess of Ponthieu. Eleanor was born in Burgos, daughter of Ferdinand III of Castile and Joan and her Castilian name, Leonor, became Alienor or Alianor in England, and Eleanor in modern English. She was named after her paternal great-grandmother, Eleanor of England, Eleanor was the second of five children born to Ferdinand and Joan. Her elder brother Ferdinand was born in 1239/40, her younger brother Louis in 1242/43, for the ceremonies in 1291 marking the first anniversary of Eleanors death,49 candlebearers were paid to walk in the public procession to commemorate each year of her life. Since the custom was to have one candle for each year of the life,49 candles would date Eleanors birth to the year 1241. The courts of her father and her half-brother Alfonso X of Castile were known for their literary atmosphere and she was at her fathers deathbed in Seville in 1252. Eleanors marriage in 1254 to the future Edward I of England was not the first marriage her family planned for her. To avoid Castilian control, Margaret of Bourbon in August 1253 allied with James I of Aragon instead, Henry III of England swiftly countered Alfonsos claims with both diplomatic and military moves. The young couple married at the monastery of Las Huelgas, Burgos, following the marriage they spent nearly a year in Gascony, with Edward ruling as lord of Aquitaine. During this time Eleanor, aged thirteen and a half, almost certainly gave birth to her first child and she journeyed to England alone in late summer of 1255. Edward followed her a few months later, Henry III took pride in resolving the Gascon crisis so decisively, but his English subjects feared that the marriage would bring Eleanors kinfolk and countrymen to live off Henrys ruinous generosity. A few of her relatives did come to England soon after her marriage and she was too young to stop them or prevent Henry III from supporting them, but she was blamed anyway and her marriage soon became unpopular. Interestingly enough, Eleanors mother had been spurned in marriage by Henry III and her great-grandmother, Alys of France, there is little record of Eleanors life in England until the 1260s, when the Second Barons War, between Henry III and his barons, divided the kingdom
3.
Lincoln, England
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Lincoln is a cathedral city and the county town of Lincolnshire, within the East Midlands of England. The non-metropolitan district of Lincoln has a 2012 population of 94,600, the 2011 census gave the entire urban area of Lincoln a population of 130,200. Lincoln developed from the Roman town of Lindum Colonia, which developed from an Iron Age settlement, Lincolns major landmarks are Lincoln Cathedral, a famous example of English Gothic architecture, and Lincoln Castle, an 11th-century Norman castle. The city is home to the University of Lincoln and Bishop Grosseteste University. See Lincoln City F. C. for Lincoln City Football Club, the earliest origins of Lincoln can be traced to the remains of an Iron Age settlement of round wooden dwellings that have been dated to the 1st century BC. This settlement was built by a pool in the River Witham at the foot of a large hill. The extent of original settlement is unknown as its remains are now buried deep beneath the later Roman and medieval ruins. The Celtic name Lindon was subsequently Latinised to Lindum and given the title Colonia when it was converted into a settlement for army veterans, the conversion to a colonia was made when the legion moved on to York in AD71. It became a flourishing settlement, accessible from the sea both through the River Trent and through the River Witham. Subsequently, however, the town and its waterways fell into decline, by the close of the 5th century the city was largely deserted, although some occupation continued under a Praefectus Civitatis, for Saint Paulinus visited a man of this office in Lincoln in AD629. During this period the Latin name Lindum Colonia was shortened in Old English to become first Lindocolina, after the first destructive Viking raids, the city once again rose to some importance, with overseas trading connections. After the establishment of the Danelaw in 886, Lincoln became one of the Five Boroughs in the East Midlands, excavations at Flaxengate reveal that this area, deserted since Roman times, received new timber-framed buildings fronting a new street system in about 900. Lincoln experienced an explosion in its economy with the settlement of the Danes. By 950, however, the banks of the Witham were newly developed with the Lower City being resettled and the suburb of Wigford quickly emerging as a major trading centre. In 1068, two years after the Norman conquest, William I ordered Lincoln Castle to be built on the site of the former Roman settlement, for the strategic reasons. The rebuilt Lincoln Minster, enlarged to the east at each rebuilding, was on a magnificent scale, its crossing tower crowned by a spire reputed to have been 525 ft high, the highest in Europe. When completed the central of the three spires is widely accepted to have succeeded the Great Pyramids of Egypt as the tallest man-made structure in the world, when Magna Carta was drawn up in 1215, one of the witnesses was Hugh of Wells, Bishop of Lincoln. One of only four surviving originals of the document is preserved in Lincoln Castle, theologian William de Montibus was the head of the cathedral school and chancellor until his death in 1213
4.
Lincoln Cathedral
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Lincoln Cathedral or the Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Lincoln, and sometimes St. Marys Cathedral in Lincoln, England is the seat of the Anglican bishop. Building commenced in 1088 and continued in phases throughout the medieval period. It was the tallest building in the world for 238 years, the central spire collapsed in 1549 and was not rebuilt. The cathedral is the third largest in Britain after St Pauls and York Minster and it is highly regarded by architectural scholars, the eminent Victorian writer John Ruskin declared, I have always held. That the cathedral of Lincoln is out and out the most precious piece of architecture in the British Isles, laid the foundations of his Cathedral in 1088 and it is probable that he, being a Norman, employed Norman masons to superintend the building. Though he could not complete the whole before his death, winkles, It is well known that Remigius appropriated the parish church of St Mary Magdalene in Lincoln, although it is not known what use he made of it. Up until then St. Marys Church in Stow was considered to be the church of Lincolnshire. However, Lincoln was more central to a diocese that stretched from the Thames to the Humber, Bishop Remigius built the first Lincoln Cathedral on the present site, finishing it in 1092 and then dying on 7 May of that year, two days before it was consecrated. In 1141, the roofing was destroyed in a fire. Bishop Alexander rebuilt and expanded the cathedral, but it was destroyed by an earthquake about forty years later. The earthquake was one of the largest felt in the UK, some have suggested that the damage to Lincoln Cathedral was probably exaggerated by poor construction or design, with the actual collapse most probably caused by a vault collapse. After the earthquake, a new bishop was appointed and he was Hugh de Burgundy of Avalon, France, who became known as St Hugh of Lincoln. He began a rebuilding and expansion programme. Rebuilding began with the choir and the eastern transepts between 1192 and 1210, the central nave was then built in the Early English Gothic style. Lincoln Cathedral soon followed other architectural advances of the time – pointed arches, flying buttresses and this allowed support for incorporating larger windows. There are thirteen bells in the south-west tower, two in the north-west tower, and five in the central tower, accompanying the cathedrals large bell, Great Tom of Lincoln, is a quarter-hour striking clock. The clock was installed in the early 19th century, the two large stained glass rose windows, the matching Deans Eye and Bishops Eye, were added to the cathedral during the late Middle Ages. The former, the Deans Eye in the transept dates from the 1192 rebuild begun by St Hugh
5.
Westminster Abbey
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It is one of the United Kingdoms most notable religious buildings and the traditional place of coronation and burial site for English and, later, British monarchs. Between 1540 and 1556, the abbey had the status of a cathedral, since 1560, however, the building is no longer an abbey nor a cathedral, having instead the status of a Church of England Royal Peculiar—a church responsible directly to the sovereign. The building itself is the abbey church. According to a tradition first reported by Sulcard in about 1080, a church was founded at the site in the 7th century, at the time of Mellitus, construction of the present church began in 1245, on the orders of King Henry III. Since the coronation of William the Conqueror in 1066, all coronations of English and British monarchs have held in Westminster Abbey. There have been at least 16 royal weddings at the abbey since 1100, two were of reigning monarchs, although, before 1919, there had been none for some 500 years. The first reports of the abbey are based on a tradition claiming that a young fisherman called Aldrich on the River Thames saw a vision of Saint Peter near the site. This seems to be quoted to justify the gifts of salmon from Thames fishermen that the abbey received in later years, in the present was, the Fishmongers Company still gives a salmon every year. The proven origins are that in the 960s or early 970s, Saint Dunstan, assisted by King Edgar, between 1042 and 1052, King Edward the Confessor began rebuilding St Peters Abbey to provide himself with a royal burial church. It was the first church in England built in the Romanesque style, the building was completed around 1090 and was consecrated on 28 December 1065, only a week before Edwards death on 5 January 1066. A week later, he was buried in the church, and, nine years later and his successor, Harold II, was probably crowned in the abbey, although the first documented coronation is that of William the Conqueror later the same year. The only extant depiction of Edwards abbey, together with the adjacent Palace of Westminster, is in the Bayeux Tapestry, construction of the present church was begun in 1245 by Henry III who selected the site for his burial. The abbot and monks, in proximity to the royal Palace of Westminster, the abbot often was employed on royal service and in due course took his place in the House of Lords as of right. The abbey built shops and dwellings on the west side, encroaching upon the sanctuary, the abbey became the coronation site of Norman kings. The Confessors shrine subsequently played a part in his canonisation. The work continued between 1245 and 1517 and was finished by the architect Henry Yevele in the reign of Richard II. Henry III also commissioned the unique Cosmati pavement in front of the High Altar, Henry VII added a Perpendicular style chapel dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary in 1503. Much of the came from Caen, in France, the Isle of Portland
6.
Henry III of England
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Henry III, also known as Henry of Winchester, was King of England, Lord of Ireland and Duke of Aquitaine from 1216 until his death. The son of King John and Isabella of Angoulême, Henry assumed the throne when he was nine in the middle of the First Barons War. Cardinal Guala declared the war against the barons to be a religious crusade and Henrys forces, led by William Marshal, defeated the rebels at the battles of Lincoln. Henry promised to abide by the Great Charter of 1225, which limited royal power and his early rule was dominated first by Hubert de Burgh and then Peter des Roches, who re-established royal authority after the war. In 1230 the King attempted to reconquer the provinces of France that had belonged to his father. A revolt led by William Marshals son, Richard, broke out in 1232, following the revolt, Henry ruled England personally, rather than governing through senior ministers. He travelled less than previous monarchs, investing heavily in a handful of his palaces and castles. He married Eleanor of Provence, with whom he had five children, in a fresh attempt to reclaim his familys lands in France, he invaded Poitou in 1242, leading to the disastrous Battle of Taillebourg. After this, Henry relied on diplomacy, cultivating an alliance with Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II. Henry supported his brother Richard in his bid to become King of the Romans in 1256 and he planned to go on crusade to the Levant, but was prevented from doing so by rebellions in Gascony. The baronial regime collapsed but Henry was unable to reform a stable government, in 1263 one of the more radical barons, Simon de Montfort, seized power, resulting in the Second Barons War. Henry persuaded Louis to support his cause and mobilised an army, the Battle of Lewes occurred in 1264, where Henry was defeated and taken prisoner. Henrys eldest son, Edward, escaped captivity to defeat de Montfort at the Battle of Evesham the following year. Henry initially enacted a harsh revenge on the rebels, but was persuaded by the Church to mollify his policies through the Dictum of Kenilworth. Reconstruction was slow and Henry had to acquiesce to various measures, including suppression of the Jews, to maintain baronial. Henry died in 1272, leaving Edward as his successor and he was buried in Westminster Abbey, which he had rebuilt in the second half of his reign, and was moved to his current tomb in 1290. Some miracles were declared after his death but he was not canonised, Henry was born in Winchester Castle on 1 October 1207. He was the eldest son of King John and Isabella of Angoulême, little is known of Henrys early life
7.
Louis IX of France
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Louis IX, commonly known as Saint Louis, was King of France from 1226 until his death. Louis was crowned in Reims at the age of 12, following the death of his father Louis VIII the Lion, although his mother, Blanche of Castile, ruled the kingdom until he reached maturity. During Louiss childhood, Blanche dealt with the opposition of rebellious vassals, as an adult, Louis IX faced recurring conflicts with some of the most powerful nobles, such as Hugh X of Lusignan and Peter of Dreux. Simultaneously, Henry III of England tried to restore his continental possessions and his reign saw the annexation of several provinces, notably Normandy, Maine and Provence. Louis IX was a reformer and developed French royal justice, in which the king is the judge to whom anyone is able to appeal to seek the amendment of a judgment. He banned trials by ordeal, tried to prevent the private wars that were plaguing the country, to enforce the correct application of this new legal system, Louis IX created provosts and bailiffs. According to his vow made after an illness, and confirmed after a miraculous cure. He was succeeded by his son Philip III, Louiss actions were inspired by Christian values and Catholic devotion. He decided to punish blasphemy, gambling, interest-bearing loans and prostitution and he also expanded the scope of the Inquisition and ordered the burning of Talmuds. He is the only canonized king of France, and there are many places named after him. Much of what is known of Louiss life comes from Jean de Joinvilles famous Life of Saint Louis, two other important biographies were written by the kings confessor, Geoffrey of Beaulieu, and his chaplain, William of Chartres. The fourth important source of information is William of Saint-Parthus biography, while several individuals wrote biographies in the decades following the kings death, only Jean of Joinville, Geoffrey of Beaulieu, and William of Chartres wrote from personal knowledge of the king. Louis was born on 25 April 1214 at Poissy, near Paris, the son of Prince Louis the Lion and Princess Blanche, and baptised in La Collégiale Notre-Dame church. His grandfather on his fathers side was Philip II, king of France, while his grandfather on his mothers side was Alfonso VIII, tutors of Blanches choosing taught him most of what a king must know—Latin, public speaking, writing, military arts, and government. He was 9 years old when his grandfather Philip II died, a member of the House of Capet, Louis was twelve years old when his father died on 8 November 1226. He was crowned king within the month at Reims cathedral, because of Louiss youth, his mother ruled France as regent during his minority. Louis mother trained him to be a leader and a good Christian. She used to say, I love you, my son, as much as a mother can love her child
8.
Cenotaph
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A cenotaph is an empty tomb or a monument erected in honour of a person or group of people whose remains are elsewhere. It can also be the tomb for a person who has since been reinterred elsewhere. The word derives from the Greek, κενοτάφιον kenotaphion Cenotaphs were common in the ancient world with many built in Ancient Egypt, Ancient Greece and across Northern Europe. The Basilica di Santa Croce in Florence, Italy, contains a number of cenotaphs including one for Dante Alighieri, a cenotaph is the focal point of the Voortrekker Monument in Pretoria, South Africa. It is situated below the main point of interest, a marble Historical Frieze in the Hall of Heroes. The Hall of Heroes itself has a dome from the summit of one can view the interior of the monument. At noon on 16 December each year the sun shines through another opening in the dome onto the middle of the cenotaph, the ray of sunshine symbolises Gods blessing on the lives and endeavours of the Voortrekkers. 16 December is the date in 1838 that the Battle of Blood River was fought, durban, South Africa, has a striking and unusual cenotaph made of granite and lavishly decorated with brightly coloured ceramics. Port Elizabeth, South Africa, has a cenotaph, on either side of the central sarcophagus are statues by Technical College Art School principal, James Gardner, who served in the trenches during the war. One depicts St George and the Dragon, the other depicts the sanctity of family life, surrounding the sarcophagus are a number of bas-relief panels depicting scenes and people during the First World War. It was unveiled by Mrs W F Savage and dedicated by Canon Mayo on 10 November 1929, a surrounding memorial wall commemorates the men and women killed during World War II. In Livingstone there is a cenotaph at the Eastern Cataract of The Victoria Falls with the names of the men of Northern Rhodesia who died during the Great War 1914–18 and it was unveiled by HRH Prince Arthur of Connaught on 1 August 1923. There is also a cenotaph in Lusaka at Embassy Park, opposite the Cabinet Office along Independence Avenue, the cenotaph was commemorated in 1977. A monument which has come to be known to as the Cenotaph was erected in Plaza San Martín, in downtown Buenos Aires, to commemorate the Argentinian soldiers who died during the Falklands War, in 1982. The monument consists of a series of plaques of marble with the names of the fallen, surrounding a flame. Another cenotaph, which is a replica of the Argentine Military Cemetery in Darwin on the Falkland Islands, exists in Campo de Mayo, a limestone replica of the Cenotaph at Whitehall in London was erected outside the Cabinet Building in Hamilton, Bermuda in 1920. In the United States, a cenotaph in Yale Universitys Hewitt Quad honours men of Yale who died in battle, the John Fitzgerald Kennedy Memorial in Dallas is often described as a cenotaph. It has an Egyptian Revival cenotaph base, surmounted by a fasces bound together with ribbons bearing the names of the dead and it was designed by French émigré architect Maximilian Godefroy in 1815, and construction was completed in 1827
9.
Grantham
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Grantham is a market town within the South Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England. It bestrides the London to Edinburgh East Coast Main Line railway and the River Witham, Grantham is about 26 miles south of the city and county town of Lincoln, and about 24 miles east of the city of Nottingham. The resident population in 2014 was estimated as 43,117, the town is best known as the birthplace of former prime minister Margaret Thatcher, and the place where Isaac Newton went to school, at The Kings School. It is close to an ancient Roman road, and was the scene of Oliver Cromwells first advantage over Royalists during the English Civil War at Gonerby Moor, the origin of Grantham is uncertain, although the name is said probably to be Old English Granta+ham, meaning Grantas homestead. It appeared as early as 1086 in the Domesday Book in its present form of Grantham, the place name element grand could possibly mean gravel. The name of the town is the origin of the Scottish surname, now used as a given name. Late neolithic vessels from a burial were found at Little Gonerby, in the north of the town, a number of flint blades have been found, including from near Welham Street to the south-east of the town centre and from near Barrowby where a macehead has also been found. At Little Gonerby a neolithic settlement site was discovered with finds of pottery, Bronze Age flint scatters have also been found in several places, particularly on the higher ground near Barrowby. At Saltersford a Bronze Age ingot and a rapier were found, there are also several ring ditches on the higher ground above Saltersford. According to the Chronicles of Raphael Holinshed, Gorbonianus, a legendary King of the Britons built Grantham between 292 and 282 BC, the Domesday account notes Queen Edith having 12 carucates to the geld, with no arable land outside the village. She had a hall, two carucates and land for three ploughs without geld, and 111 burgesses, ivo had one church and four mills rendering 12 shillings, and eight acres of meadow without geld. The lands of Bishop Osmond were described, In Londonthorpe. is land for two ploughs and this land belongs to the church of Grantham. In Spittlegate, St Wulfram of Grantham has half a carucate of land to the geld, in Great Gonerby, St Wulfram of Grantham has 1 carucate of land. There is land for twelve oxen, on 4 December 1290, the funeral cortège of Eleanor of Castile, accompanied by her husband King Edward I, stopped at Grantham on its way from Lincoln to Westminster Abbey. An Eleanor Cross was later erected in the town, although its location has not been identified. In 1363 The Castles, Manors and towns of Stamford and Grantham were granted to Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York, the question has been raised as to whether Grantham House was the site of a castle, however, no such site has been reliably identified. The street name Castlegate cannot be traced further back than the 17th century, there are references to a Hospital in Grantham as early as the 1330s. Grantham received its Charter of Incorporation in 1463, the town developed when the railway came to the town
10.
Lincolnshire
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Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It also borders Northamptonshire in the south for just 20 yards, Englands shortest county boundary, the county town is Lincoln, where the county council has its headquarters. The ceremonial county of Lincolnshire is composed of the county of Lincolnshire. Therefore, part of the county is in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. The county is the second-largest of the English ceremonial counties and one that is predominantly agricultural in land use, the county is fifth largest of the two-tier counties, as the unitary authorities of North Lincolnshire and North East Lincolnshire are not included. The county can be broken down into a number of geographical sub-regions including, Lincolnshire derived from the merging of the territory of the ancient Kingdom of Lindsey with that controlled by the Danelaw borough of Stamford. For some time the county was called Lindsey, and it is recorded as such in the 11th-century Domesday Book. In 1888 when county councils were set up, Lindsey, Holland and these survived until 1974, when Holland, Kesteven, and most of Lindsey were unified into Lincolnshire. A local government reform in 1996 abolished Humberside, and the south of the Humber was allocated to the unitary authorities of North Lincolnshire. These two areas became part of Lincolnshire for ceremonial such as the Lord-Lieutenancy, but are not covered by the Lincolnshire police and are in the Yorkshire. The remaining districts of Lincolnshire are Boston, East Lindsey, Lincoln, North Kesteven, South Holland, South Kesteven and they are part of the East Midlands region. Lincolnshire is home to Woolsthorpe Manor, birthplace and home of Sir Isaac Newton and he attended The Kings School, Grantham and its library has preserved his signature, applied to a window sill when he was a teenager. Lincolnshire is an area, growing large amounts of wheat, barley, sugar beet. In South Lincolnshire, where the soil is rich in nutrients, some of the most common crops include potatoes, cabbages, cauliflowers. Most such companies are long gone, and Lincolnshire is no longer an engineering centre, however, as a result of the current economic climate some food production facilities have closed down, this has caused some reduction in the levels of migrant workers. The large number of people from Portugal is still obvious in the town of Boston. A coalition of Conservatives, Liberal Democrats and Independents currently controls Lincolnshire County Council, the Conservative Party comfortably controlled the County Council following the 2009 local elections, in which they increased their majority to 43 seats. The Labour Party lost a total of 15 seats including 7 in Lincoln, the Lincolnshire Independents gained a total of four seats, although one of their number moved to the Conservative group during 2010, increasing the number of Conservative seats to 61
11.
William Stukeley
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William Stukeley FRS, FRCP, FSA was an Anglican clergyman and English antiquarian who pioneered the archaeological investigation of the prehistoric monuments of Stonehenge and Avebury. He was friends with Isaac Newton and was among Newtons first biographers, Stukeley was also involved with Freemasonry and instrumental in British scholarships acceptance of Charles Bertrams forged Description of Britain. Despite his Anglican faith and church offices, he was obsessed with the idea of Druidry and he has been remembered as probably. The most important of the forerunners of the discipline of archaeology for his habit of going out personally to examine. William Stukeley was the son of a lawyer at Holbeach in Lincolnshire on the site of Stukeley Hall, after taking his M. B. degree at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, Stukeley went to London and studied medicine at St Thomas Hospital. In 1710, he started in practice in Boston, Lincolnshire, becoming a member of Spalding Gentlemens Society, before returning in 1717 to London. In the same year, he became a Fellow of the Royal Society and, in 1718, joined in the establishment of the Society of Antiquaries, acting for nine years as its secretary. In 1719 Stukeley took his M. D. degree, and in 1720 became a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians, Stukeley was one of the first learned gentlemen to be attracted to speculative Freemasonry, newly fashionable after the appointment of the first noble Grand Master. His Diary and Commonplace Book of 6 June 1721 says I was made a Freemason at the Salutation Tav, tavistock Street, with Mr. Collins, Capt. Rowe, who made the famous diving Engine. His diary and papers are among the earliest sources on the subject of the new Grand Lodge, Stukeleys principal works, elaborate accounts of Stonehenge and Avebury, appeared in 1740 and 1743. These were supposed to be the first of a universal history. Stukeley proposed that an ancient patriarchial religion was the religion of mankind. This had subsequently degenerated as idol-worship had emerged, Stukeley believed that the Druids and the early Christians were examples of this religion. He wrote copiously on other supposed Druid remains, becoming known as the Arch-Druid. Stukeleys work on Stonehenge was one of the first to attempt to date the monument, working with the renowned astronomer Edmund Halley, he proposed that the builders of Stonehenge knew about magnetism, and had aligned the monument with magnetic north. Stukeley used some data about the variation of the North Magnetic Pole. Today it is known that the North Magnetic Pole wanders in an irregular fashion, however, Stukeley inferred that Stonehenge was completed in 460 B. C. which as we now know is several thousand years too late. In 1729 he took Holy Orders and he became a priest in the Church of England
12.
Stamford, Lincolnshire
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Stamford is a town on the River Welland in Lincolnshire, England,92 miles north of London on the A1. The population at the 2001 census was 21,800 including the adjacent parish of St Martins Without, the town has 17th and 18th-century stone buildings, older timber-framed buildings and five medieval parish churches. In 2013, Stamford was rated the best place to live by the Sunday Times, in AD61 Boudica followed the Roman 9th Legion across the river. The Anglo-Saxons later chose Stamford as their town, being on a more important river than the Gwash. In 972 King Edgar made Stamford a borough, the Anglo-Saxons and Danes faced each other across the river. The town originally grew as a Danish settlement at the lowest point that the Welland could be crossed by ford or bridge, Stamford was the only one of the Danelaw Five Burghs not to become a county town. Stamford was a town but only a very small portion of the walls now remain. Stamford became a port on the Great North Road, the latter superseding Ermine Street in importance. Notable buildings in the include the mediaeval Brownes Hospital, several churches and the buildings of Stamford School. A Norman castle was built about 1075 and apparently demolished in 1484, the site stood derelict until the late twentieth century when it was built over and now includes a bus station and a modern housing development. A small part of the wall survives at the junction of Castle Dyke. Stamford has been hosting a fair since the Middle Ages. Stamford fair is mentioned in Shakespeares Henry IV part 2, the mid-Lent fair is the largest street fair in Lincolnshire and one of the largest in the country. On 7 March 1190, crusaders at the fair led a pogrom, for over 600 years Stamford was the site of the Stamford Bull Run festival, held annually on 13 November, St Brices day, until 1839. According to local tradition, the custom was started by William de Warenne, 5th Earl of Surrey, some butchers came to part the combatants and one of the bulls ran into the town. Stamford Museum was in a Victorian building in Broad Street from 1980 to 2011, in June 2011 it closed because of Lincolnshire County Council budget cuts. Some of the exhibits have been relocated to the Discover Stamford area at the towns library. Stamford is part of the Parliamentary constituency of Grantham and Stamford, the incumbent Member of Parliament is the Conservative, Nick Boles
