Alcester () is a

market town A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rural ...

and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

origin at the junction of the

River Alne The River Alne is a tributary of the Arrow and has its headwaters to the north of Wootton Wawen. Course Its source is at Pink Green (just inside Worcestershire) near Wood End; it then flows east into Warwickshire, close to Tanworth-in-Arden ...

and River Arrow in the Stratford-on-Avon District in

Warwickshire Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Av ...

, England, approximately west of Stratford-upon-Avon, and 7 miles south of

Redditch Redditch is a town, and local government district, in north-east Worcestershire, England, approximately south of Birmingham. The district has a population of 85,000 as of 2019. In the 19th century, it became the international centre for the ...

, close to the

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see H ...

border. In 2020, the population of the parish was estimated at 6,202, with 7,146 in the built-up area.

Etymology

The

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems ( oral or wri ...

and antiquary John Leland wrote in his ''Itinerary'' (ca. 1538–43) that the name Alcester was derived from that of the

. The suffix 'cester' is derived from the

Old English Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlers in the mid-5th c ...

word 'ceaster', which meant a Roman fort or town, and derived from the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

'castrum', from which the modern word ' castle' also derives.

History

Alcester was founded by the

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

in around AD 47 as a walled

fort A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

. The walled town, possibly named ''Alauna'' developed from the military camp. It was sited on

Icknield Street Icknield Street or Ryknild Street is a Roman road in England, with a route roughly south-west to north-east. It runs from the Fosse Way at Bourton on the Water in Gloucestershire () to Templeborough in South Yorkshire (). It passes through ...

, a Roman road that ran the length of ''

Roman Britain Roman Britain was the period in classical antiquity when large parts of the island of Great Britain were under occupation by the Roman Empire. The occupation lasted from AD 43 to AD 410. During that time, the territory conquered wa ...

'' from south-west

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

to south

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other English counties, functions have ...

. The town was also just north of the Fosse Way, another important thoroughfare in Roman Britain. By the end of the

2nd century The 2nd century is the period from 101 ( CI) through 200 ( CC) in accordance with the Julian calendar. It is considered part of the Classical era, epoch, or historical period. Early in the century, the Roman Empire attained its greatest e ...

, Roman Alcester had developed into a bustling trading and market town: A small walled area in the centre of the town was surrounded by an extensive grid of roads serving a complex of workshops and their associated housing, which specialised in trades such as

tanning Tanning may refer to: *Tanning (leather), treating animal skins to produce leather *Sun tanning, using the sun to darken pale skin **Indoor tanning, the use of artificial light in place of the sun **Sunless tanning, application of a stain or dye t ...

, metal working and

pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other ceramic materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. Major types include earthenware, stoneware and ...

manufacture. Some of the houses of Roman Alcester appear to have been well endowed, with features such as heating, painted

plaster Plaster is a building material used for the protective or decorative coating of walls and ceilings and for moulding and casting decorative elements. In English, "plaster" usually means a material used for the interiors of buildings, while "re ...

and

mosaic A mosaic is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and were particularly pop ...

floors. Along with most Romano-British towns, it appears to have gone into decline in the 4th century when the Romans left Britain. Detailed archaeological work began in the 1920s. In the

Early Middle Ages The Early Middle Ages (or early medieval period), sometimes controversially referred to as the Dark Ages, is typically regarded by historians as lasting from the late 5th or early 6th century to the 10th century. They marked the start of the Mi ...

, ''Alencestre'' had become an Anglo-Saxon

in the

Kingdom of Mercia la, Merciorum regnum , conventional_long_name=Kingdom of Mercia , common_name=Mercia , status=Kingdom , status_text=Independent kingdom (527–879)Client state of Wessex () , life_span=527–918 , era=Heptarchy , event_start= , date_start= , ye ...

. Alcester was also the site of

Alcester Abbey Alcester Abbey was a Benedictine monastery in Alcester, Warwickshire in England, founded in 1138 by the Botellers of Oversley, Warwickshire.A History of the County of Warwick: Volume 2: Religious Houses, William Page ed 1908 pages 56-61 URL: http: ...

, a

Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone ( hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer whi ...

founded in 1138 by Ralph le Boteler. Richard de Tutbury, the last

abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the male head of a monastery in various Western religious traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not the head of a monastery. The ...

, resigned his office in 1467 and Alcester

Abbey An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christian monks and nuns. The con ...

was absorbed into the neighbouring

Evesham Abbey Evesham Abbey was founded by Saint Egwin at Evesham in Worcestershire, England between 700 and 710 following an alleged vision of the Virgin Mary by a swineherd by the name of Eof. According to the monastic history, Evesham came through the Nor ...

. By 1515 Alcester Abbey was in ruins as a result of the neglect of various abbots, and later during the dissolution of the monasteries under Henry VIII it was largely demolished. The ruins were granted to the local Greville family, who used much of the stone to rebuild their family seat of Beauchamp Court. Alcester competed in the competition for

city status City status is a symbolic and legal designation given by a national or subnational government. A municipality may receive city status because it already has the qualities of a city, or because it has some special purpose. Historically, city status ...

as part of the

Platinum Jubilee Civic Honours As part of the Platinum Jubilee, Queen Elizabeth II awarded a number of civic honours, most notably the creation of new cities in a competition. Another competition for lord mayor or lord provost status was held. It was announced on 8 June 202 ...

Notable buildings

Today the town features architecture from the

Medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

, Tudor,

Georgian Georgian may refer to: Common meanings * Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country) ** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group ** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians **Georgian scripts, three scrip ...

, Victorian eras and the 20th century. The oldest house appears to be The Old

Malthouse A malt house, malt barn, or maltings, is a building where cereal grain is converted into malt by soaking it in water, allowing it to sprout and then drying it to stop further growth. The malt is used in brewing beer, whisky and in certain food ...

at the corner of Church Street and Malt Mill Lane, which probably dates from about 1500. The clock on St Nicholas's Church, a Grade II* listed building, is in an unusual position on the south-west corner of the 14th-century

tower A tower is a tall structure, taller than it is wide, often by a significant factor. Towers are distinguished from masts by their lack of guy-wires and are therefore, along with tall buildings, self-supporting structures. Towers are specifi ...

, so as to make it visible from the High Street. The church also houses the tomb of Fulke Greville, grandfather of

Fulke Greville Fulke Greville, 1st Baron Brooke, ''de jure'' 13th Baron Latimer and 5th Baron Willoughby de Broke KB PC (; 3 October 1554 – 30 September 1628), known before 1621 as Sir Fulke Greville, was an Elizabethan poet, dramatist, and statesman wh ...

. The church's Georgian

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

with Doric columns and plastered ceiling is believed to have been designed by

Francis Smith of Warwick Francis Smith of Warwick (1672–1738) was an English master-builder and architect, much involved in the construction of country houses in the Midland counties of England. Smith of Warwick may refer also to his brothers, or his son. Architectura ...

, supervisor of its rebuild by the Woodward brothers of

Chipping Campden Chipping Campden is a market town in the Cotswold district of Gloucestershire, England. It is notable for its terraced High Street, dating from the 14th century to the 17th century. ("Chipping" is from Old English ''cēping'', 'market', 'market- ...

in 1729. Alcester Town Hall was built between 1618 and 1641, and is a

grade I In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

listed building.

Transport

Alcester was previously served by Alcester railway station belonging to the

Midland Railway The Midland Railway (MR) was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844. The Midland was one of the largest railway companies in Britain in the early 20th century, and the largest employer in Derby, where it had its headquarters. It ama ...

(later part of the

LMS Railway The London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMSIt has been argued that the initials LMSR should be used to be consistent with LNER, GWR and SR. The London, Midland and Scottish Railway's corporate image used LMS, and this is what is generally ...

), on the

Gloucester Loop Line The Evesham branch line is a mostly disused English railway line running from via Redditch, Alcester and Evesham to . It was sometimes known as the Gloucester loop line of the Midland Railway. It opened in stages between 1859 and 1868, built b ...

, branching off the Birmingham and Gloucester Railway main line at , passing through , Alcester and and rejoining the main line at , near . The loop was built to address the fact that the main line bypassed most of the towns it might otherwise have served, but it took three separate companies to complete, Alcester being on the Evesham and Redditch railway prior to absorption by the Midland. In addition a branch line provided by the Alcester Railway Company (later part of the Great Western Railway) ran from to , thus giving access to . This line, however, was an early casualty, closing in September 1939. The Midland loop was due to close between and in June 1963 but the poor condition of the track led to all trains between and

being withdrawn in October 1962 and replaced by a bus service for the final eight months. Redditch to remains open on the electrified

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...

suburban network. Alcester is served by buses from Redditch, Evesham and Stratford-upon-Avon.

Current attractions

Alcester is also known for two nearby stately homes. To the north is

Coughton Court Coughton Court () is an English Tudor country house, situated on the main road between Studley and Alcester in Warwickshire. It is a Grade I listed building. The house has a long crenellated façade directly facing the main road, at the cen ...

, the family seat of the Throckmorton baronets as well as a

National Trust The National Trust, formally the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and ...

property. To the south-west is

Ragley Hall Ragley Hall in the parish of Arrow in Warwickshire is a stately home, located south of Alcester and eight miles (13 km) west of Stratford-upon-Avon. It is the ancestral seat of the Seymour-Conway family, Marquesses of Hertford. History ...

, the home of the

Marquis of Hertford The titles of Earl of Hertford and Marquess of Hertford have been created several times in the peerages of England and Great Britain. The third Earldom of Hertford was created in 1559 for Edward Seymour, who was simultaneously created Baron B ...

, whose gardens contain a children's adventure playground. Kinwarton, which is just north of Alcester, contains a church of Anglo Saxon origin and a historic

dovecote A dovecote or dovecot , doocot ( Scots) or columbarium is a structure intended to house pigeons or doves. Dovecotes may be free-standing structures in a variety of shapes, or built into the end of a house or barn. They generally contain pige ...

, Kinwarton Dovecote, which is also a National Trust property. Alcester is also a significant town on the 100-mile-long

Heart of England Way The Heart of England Way is a long-distance walk of around through the Midlands of England. The walk starts from Milford Common on Cannock Chase and ends at Bourton on the Water in the Cotswolds linking south Staffordshire through Warwick ...

long-distance trail. Recent developments, carried out by a multi-agency partnership, include '

Alcester', a

museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make thes ...

exhibiting locally found archaeological artifacts from the 1st to 4th century.

Annual events

In early June, Alcester holds the Court Leet charity

street market A marketplace or market place is a location where people regularly gather for the purchase and sale of provisions, livestock, and other goods. In different parts of the world, a marketplace may be described as a ''souk'' (from the Arabic lang ...

with a procession and competitions for best stall and best fancy dress. On the first Monday and Tuesday in October, Alcester holds an annual

mop fair Hiring fairs, also called statute or mop fairs, were regular events in pre-modern Great Britain and Ireland where labourers were hired for fixed terms. They date from the time of Edward III, and his attempt to regulate the labour market by the ...

where amusement rides, side stalls and food booths line the High Street, Church Street and Henley Street. The mop fair has gradually decreased in size over a period of years, likely an external influence since the people of Alcester still flock to the streets during the two nights. The Alcester and

Forest of Arden Arden is an area located mainly in Warwickshire, England, with parts in Staffordshire and Worcestershire, and is traditionally regarded as extending from the River Avon to the River Tame. It was once heavily wooded, giving rise to the name 'F ...

Food Festival is held every May and October. The St Nicholas Night Fair is held on 6 December each year. The annual duck race takes place on the 2nd Saturday in July to raise funds for the summer bunting and Christmas lights.

Flooding

The

and Arrow, which join on the outskirts of Alcester, have occasionally

flood A flood is an overflow of water ( or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are an area of study of the discipline hydrol ...

ed and on a few occasions engulfed part of the town. The last occurrences were in 1956, 10 April 1998 (Maunday Thursday) and on 21 July 2007 when 200 homes were left uninhabitable. In response to the severe flooding of 2007 Alcester flood scheme completed an underground storage tank with a 3.25 million litre capacity in June 2011, costing just over £1 million. The scheme attracted funding from the Regional Flood and Coastal Committee's Local Levy with contributions from

Warwickshire County Council Warwickshire County Council is the county council that governs the non-metropolitan county of Warwickshire in England. Its headquarters are located at Shire Hall, Market Square, in centre of the county town of Warwick. Politically the county is ...

, Stratford-on-Avon District Council and Alcester Town Council. The scheme included work on the two

pumping station Pumping stations, also called pumphouses in situations such as drilled wells and drinking water, are facilities containing pumps and equipment for pumping fluids from one place to another. They are used for a variety of infrastructure system ...

s located at Bleachfield Street and Gas House Lane.

Sports

Alcester Town F.C. has teams from Under-6 to Under-18 and senior players. The town has a

rugby Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby league: 13 players per side *** Masters Rugby League *** Mod league *** Rugby league nines *** Rugby league sevens *** Touch (sport) *** Wheelchair rugby league ** Rugby union: 1 ...

club, and also used to have a

golf course A golf course is the grounds on which the sport of golf is played. It consists of a series of holes, each consisting of a tee box, a fairway, the rough and other hazards, and a green with a cylindrical hole in the ground, known as a "cup". ...

which closed and became the home of the football club. Alcester is also home to Alcester & Ragley Park

Cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by str ...

Club, situated in the grounds of

, the club has two Saturday teams who play in the Cotswold Hills League and two Sunday teams who play friendlies. There are also numerous junior teams (Up to U16), and a girls team. Alcester

Golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping ...

Club (now defunct) was founded in 1892. The club continued until the outbreak of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

."Alcester Golf Club, Warwickshire"
"Golf’s Missing Links". Alne Cricket Club (

Great Alne Great Alne is a small village in Warwickshire, England, north-west of Stratford-upon-Avon, north-east of Alcester and from Warwick, on the road to Wootton Wawen. It takes its name from the River Alne and was first chronicled in the charter ...

) is a cricke club about 2 miles from Alcester centre that play in local competitions and have a summer fun week for children. Adults can also play in their "Adult Team".

Education

The town has three secondary schools;

Alcester Grammar School Alcester Grammar School (AGS) is a co-educational 11-18 maintained selective grammar school, situated in Alcester, Warwickshire, England. On 1 April 2011, Alcester Grammar School became the first school in south Warwickshire to achieve Academy ...

, Alcester Academy, and St Benedict's Catholic High School.

Places of worship

* St Nicholas Church * Our Lady & St Joseph's

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

Church * Alcester

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compe ...

Church * Alcester

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's ...

Church *

Kingdom Hall A Kingdom Hall is a place of worship used by Jehovah's Witnesses. The term was first suggested in 1935 by Joseph Franklin Rutherford, then president of the Watch Tower Society, for a building in Hawaii. Rutherford's reasoning was that these bui ...

of Jehovah's Witnesses

Notable people

* Howard Bennett, cricketer * John Bridges,

English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of re ...

soldier and MP *

Russell Brookes Russell Brookes (16 August 1945 – 30 October 2019) was a British rally driver. He won the British Rally Championship with a Ford Escort RS1800 in 1977 and with an Opel Manta 400 in 1985. In 1978, he won the Rally New Zealand, a round of the F ...

, rally driver *

Gilbert Cox Gilbert Clifford Cox (5 July 1908 – 31 March 1974) was an English cricketer who played two first-class cricket, first-class games for Worcestershire County Cricket Club, Worcestershire, his career at that level lasting for a single week in 19 ...

, cricketer * Bernard Cuzner, silversmith and product designer * Francis James Davies,

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

flying ace *

(1554-1628), born at Beauchamp's Court, Alcester *

Frederick George Jackson Frederick George Jackson (6 March 1860 – 13 March 1938) was an English Arctic explorer remembered for his expedition to Franz Josef Land, when he located the missing Norwegian explorer Fridtjof Nansen. Biography Early life Jackson wa ...

Arctic The Arctic ( or ) is a polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm (Greenland), Finland, Iceland, N ...

Explorer, rescuer of Fridtjof Nansen * Edward Scriven, portrait engraver *

Nick Skelton Nicholas David Skelton (born 30 December 1957, Bedworth, Warwickshire) is a British former equestrian who competed in show jumping. He retired at the age of 59 years old, on 5 April 2017. He began riding at age 18 months and in 1975 took two t ...

Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece b ...

Gold Medallist *

Francis Summers Francis Theodore Summers (25 January 1887 – 27 October 1967) was an English first-class cricketer. He was a right-handed tail-end batsman and wicket-keeper who played 57 times for Worcestershire in the 1920s, making over 80 dismissals. He was ...

, cricketer *

Richard Waldron Major Richard Waldron (or Richard Waldern, Richard Walderne; 1615–1689) was an English-born merchant, soldier, and government official who rose to prominence in early colonial Dover, New Hampshire. His presence spread to greater New Hampshire ...

, former President of

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the nor ...

Council *

Tom Wilkes Thomas Edward Wilkes (July 30, 1939 – June 28, 2009) was an American art director, designer, photographer, illustrator, writer and producer-director. Life Wilkes was born in Long Beach, California and raised in southern California. Wilkes atte ...

, footballer

Town twinning

* Vallet, Loire-Atlantique,

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

References

Sources

* Cave, Lyndon F., ''Warwickshire Villages'', London, 1976. *

External links

*
Photos of Alcester and surrounding area on geograph

British History Online : Alcester

Alcester Community Portal

Alcester Minster Churches

Alcester Archives
- Our Warwickshire {{Authority control Towns in Warwickshire Market towns in Warwickshire Civil parishes in Warwickshire Stratford-on-Avon District