Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire (pronounced ;
GLOSS-ter-sher) is a county in
South West England. The county comprises part of the
Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the
River Severn, and the entire
Forest of Dean.
The county town is
Gloucester, and other principal towns include
Cheltenham,
Stroud,
Cirencester, and
Tewkesbury.
When considered as a
ceremonial county, Gloucestershire borders the
preserved county of
Gwent in
Wales, and in England the ceremonial counties of
Herefordshire,
Worcestershire,
Warwickshire,
Oxfordshire,
Wiltshire,
Somerset and
Bristol.
Gloucestershire's
county flower is the
Wild Daffodil[BBC News, http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3684291.stm, 5 May 2004, retrieved 8 April 2006.].
Historically, Gloucestershire has also included
Bristol, but Bristol is not part of the ceremonial or administrative county. The area of
South Gloucestershire was made part of the administrative
County of Avon in
1974. Upon the abolition of Avon in
1996, it became a
unitary authority, and returned to Gloucestershire for ceremonial purposes.
The official former postal county abbreviation was "Glos.", rather than the frequently used but erroneous "Gloucs." or "Glouc.".
This is a chart of trend of regional gross value added of Gloucestershire at current basic prices
published (pp.240-253) by
Office for National Statistics with figures in millions of British Pounds Sterling.
| Agriculture | Industry | Services |
|---|
| 1995 | 5,771 | 196 | 1,877 | 3,698 |
| 2000 | 8,163 | 148 | 2,677 | 5,338 |
| 2003 | 10,617 | 166 | 2,933 | 7,517 |
includes hunting and forestry
includes energy and construction
includes financial intermediation services indirectly measured
Components may not sum to totals due to rounding
*
Berkeley Castle, an example of a feudal stronghold.
*
Forest of Dean*
Hailes Abbey*
Sudeley Castle*
Tewkesbury Abbey*
Tyndale Monument*
Wildfowl and Wetland Trust, SlimbridgeThe cathedrals of
Gloucester and
Bristol, the magnificent
abbey church of
Tewkesbury, and the church of
Cirencester with its great
Perpendicular porch, are described under their separate headings. Of the abbey of
Hailes near
Winchcombe, founded by
Richard, Earl of Cornwall, in 1246, little more than the foundations are left, but these have been excavated with great care, and interesting fragments have been brought to light.
Most of the old market towns have fine parish churches. At
Deerhurst near Tewkesbury, and
Bishop's Cleeve near
Cheltenham, there are churches of special interest on account of the pre-Norman work they retain. The Perpendicular church at
Lechlade is unusually perfect; and that at
Fairford was built (c. 1500), according to tradition, to contain the remarkable series of stained-glass windows which are said to have been brought from the
Netherlands. These are, however, adjudged to be of English workmanship, and are one of the finest series in the country.
The great
Decorated Calcot Barn is an interesting relic of the monastery of
Kingswood near
Tetbury.
Thornbury Castle, in the same district, is a fine
Tudor ruin, the pretensions of which evoked the jealousy of
Cardinal Wolsey against its builder,
Edward Stafford, duke of Buckingham, who was
beheaded in 1521. Near Cheltenham is the fine 15th-century mansion of
Southam de la Bere, of timber and stone. Memorials of the de la Bere family appear in the church at Cleeve. The mansion contains a tiled floor from
Hayles Abbey. At Great Badminton is the mansion and vast domain of the Beauforts (formerly of the Botelers and others), on the south-eastern boundary of the county.
There are several
royal residences in Gloucestershire, including
Highgrove House,
Gatcombe Park, and
Nether Lypiatt Manor.
*In
Gerry Anderson's New Captain Scarlet,
Colonel White's family estate is in Gloucestershire.
*
The Severn Bore*
Annual Cheese Rolling Event*
West Country dialects*
Gloucester Old Spot*
Gloucester RFC*
Gloucester City A.F.C.*
Cheltenham Town F.C.*
UK topics*
Gloucester County Official Site*
Gloucester City Council website*
Visit Gloucester Site*
Gloucester jobs*
Gloucestershire County Council*
Gloucestershire Tourism Partnership*
Official site for Cotswolds tourism*
Yate and Chipping Sodbury Guide - A Guide to Yate and Chipping Sodbury in South Gloucestershire
Archaeological Handbook of Gloucestershire by George Witts
