Lydney is a town and civil parish in Gloucestershire, England. It is on the west bank of the River Severn in the Forest of Dean District, and is 16 miles (25 km) southwest of Gloucester. The town has been bypassed by the A48 road since 1995. The population was about 8,960 in the 2001 census, reducing to 8,766 at the 2011 census. Increasing to 10,043 at the 2021 Census. Lydney has a harbour on the Severn, created when the

Lydney Canal The Lydney Canal is a one-mile canal in Gloucestershire that runs inland from the River Severn to Lydney. It was opened in 1813 to trans-ship iron and coal from the Forest of Dean. It was once connected by a horse-drawn tramroad to Pidcoc ...

was built. Adjoining the town, Lydney Park gardens have a Roman temple dedicated to Nodens.

Etymology

According to Cook (1906) the toponym "Lydney" derives from the Old English *''Lydan-eġ'', "

Lludd Lludd Llaw Ereint, "Lludd of the Silver Hand", son of Beli Mawr, is a legendary hero from Welsh mythology. As Nudd Llaw Ereint (the earlier form of his name, cognate of the Irish Nuada Airgetlám, derived from the pre-Roman Celtic god Nodens) he i ...

's Island", which could connect it with the name Nudd/ Nodens. However, alternative etymologies of Lydney are offered in other sources. A. D. Mills suggests "island or river-meadow of the sailor, or of a man named *Lida", citing the forms "Lideneg" from c. 853 and "Ledenei" from the 1086 Domesday Book.

History

In the Iron Age a

promontory fort A promontory fort is a defensive structure located above a steep cliff, often only connected to the mainland by a small neck of land, thus using the topography to reduce the ramparts needed. Although their dating is problematic, most seem to da ...

was established at Lydney Park and later used for iron ore mining. In the late Roman period, a Roman temple to Nodens was built on the site of the fort. In 1588 the

Vice-Admiral of England The Vice-Admiral of the United Kingdom is an honorary office generally held by a senior Royal Navy admiral. The title holder is the official deputy to the Lord High Admiral, an honorary (although once operational) office which was vested in th ...

Sir William Winter was granted the manor of Lydney in recognition of his services against the

Spanish Armada The Spanish Armada (a.k.a. the Enterprise of England, es, Grande y Felicísima Armada, links=no, lit=Great and Most Fortunate Navy) was a Spanish fleet that sailed from Lisbon in late May 1588, commanded by the Duke of Medina Sidonia, an aris ...

White Cross Manor White Cross Manor was the manor house in Lydney, Gloucestershire, England, of the Wynter family. It was burnt to the ground in April 1645 on the orders of Sir John Wynter to avoid it being taken over by the Parliamentarians during the English C ...

, the house he built soon after he bought the manor, was burned down in 1645. In 1723 the Winter family sold their Lydney estate to the Bathurst family In 1810,

dock A dock (from Dutch language, Dutch ''dok'') is the area of water between or next to one or a group of human-made structures that are involved in the handling of boats or ships (usually on or near a shore) or such structures themselves. The ex ...

s were constructed to capitalise on the town's location, close to the River Severn. The River Lyd flows through the town and into the Severn. In 1935, Charles Bathurst was created

Viscount Bledisloe Viscount Bledisloe, of Lydney in the County of Gloucestershire, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1935 for the Conservative politician Charles Bathurst, 1st Baron Bledisloe, upon his retirement as Governor-Gener ...

of Lydney upon his retirement as

Governor-General of New Zealand The governor-general of New Zealand ( mi, te kāwana tianara o Aotearoa) is the viceregal representative of the monarch of New Zealand, currently King Charles III. As the King is concurrently the monarch of 14 other Commonwealth realms and li ...

. In 1940, the Pine End Works was built on Harbour Road, a Government run shadow factory producing plywood for the aircraft industry. On 31 August 1962, the Beatles played at

Lydney Town Hall Lydney Town Hall is a municipal structure in the High Street, Lydney, Gloucestershire, England. The structure, which is used as an events venue, is listed by the local authority as a "building of local architectural or historical interest". His ...

The Lydney Murder, 1964

In 1964 the town was the site of the Lydney Murder, a significant case in the history of the use of

entomology Entomology () is the science, scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. In the past the term "insect" was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of animals in other arthropod groups, such ...

to assist criminal investigations. On 28 June 1964 a body was found in woods near

Bracknell Bracknell () is a large town and civil parish in Berkshire, England, the westernmost area within the Greater London Built-up Area, Greater London Urban Area and the administrative centre of the Bracknell Forest, Borough of Bracknell Forest. It l ...

. By studying the maggots found on the body, forensic

entomologist Entomology () is the scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. In the past the term "insect" was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of animals in other arthropod groups, such as arach ...

Professor Keith Simpson was able to establish a date of death of around 16 June 1964. Missing persons records for that date led the police to believe that the body was that of Peter Thomas, who had gone missing from his home in Lydney. Fingerprints confirmed the identification. William Brittle, a business partner of Thomas, was convicted of the murder. The Lydney Murder was the subject of an episode of the

Discovery Channel Discovery Channel (known as The Discovery Channel from 1985 to 1995, and often referred to as simply Discovery) is an American cable channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav. , Discovery Channe ...

documentary: "Crime Museum UK with Martin Kemp".

Transport

The Severn Railway Bridge crossed just north of Lydney from Purton to

Sharpness Sharpness ( ) is an English port in Gloucestershire, one of the most inland in Britain, and eighth largest in the South West. It is on the River Severn at , at a point where the tidal range, though less than at Avonmouth downstream ( typical sp ...

on the eastern bank. Built in the 1870s, it was damaged beyond repair by a pair of oil tanker barges in 1960. The barges hit Pier 17 bringing down two bowstring girders. There have been several plans to renew the link.

Lydney railway station Lydney railway station is a railway station serving the town of Lydney in Gloucestershire, England. It is located on the Gloucester-Newport line. The station is located a mile south of Lydney, and was originally called Lydney Junction, which ...

, run by Transport for Wales which serves the town, is located on the Gloucester to Newport Line, with connections from the town centre by the

Dean Forest Railway The Dean Forest Railway is a long heritage railway that runs between Lydney and Parkend in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire. The route was part of the former Severn and Wye Railway which ran from Lydney to Cinderford. The society that ope ...

was once an important harbour for shipping timber, coal and iron from the Forest of Dean. It is now a harbour for pleasure craft. Lydney map 1946

The original name of Mumford Body & Engineering Company Limited was changed to Lydney Coachworks Limited in 1947 to continue bus bodybuilding work. Orders came mainly from local companies such as Red & White, United Welsh and Newbury & District plus a surprise order from Leigh Corporation in Lancashire. After only a short time the coachworks closed down in March 1952, the uncompleted orders being transferred to Bristol TCC and Eastern Coach Works.

Government and politics

Lydney is covered by a three-tier system of local government. The upper authority is Gloucestershire County Council which is based in Shire Hall, Gloucester. The second tier being Forest of Dean District Council, based in Coleford which is a non-metropolitan district council. The lowest tier of local government is Lydney Town Council which covers an area of approximately 8 square miles. The council was awarded "Quality Gold" standard in September 2015 in a national award scheme for local councils.

Secondary education

* Lydney Grammar School (1903–1973) * Whitecross School (1973–2012) *

The Dean Academy The Dean Academy (formerly Whitecross School) is a mixed secondary school located in Lydney in the English county of Gloucestershire. Location The school is located on the edge of Lydney, a small river-side town in the Royal Forest of Dean ...

(2012 to present)

Sport, recreation and arts

The town's rugby football club plays rugby union and is based at Regentsholme. The club had successful runs in the John Player Cup during the 1980s, including a match against Sale F.C. which was televised on the BBC's Rugby Special. There is also a leisure centre which contains an indoor swimming pool, a gym and more. Lydney Cricket Club is an English amateur

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 striki ...

club that was founded in 1862 and has been based on The Bob Park Cricket Ground on Swan Road since 1949. Lydney CC have 3 Saturday senior XI teams. The 1st and 2nd XI compete in the Gloucestershire County Cricket League, the 3rd XI are in the Cheltenham, Gloucester and Forest of Dean League. They also have a Midweek senior XI team in the Forest of Dean Midweek League, a Sunday XI team that play the occasional friendly matches in and around the local district, and an established junior training section that play competitive cricket in the Leadon Vale Youth Cricket League. Former Glamorgan captain and England opening batsman Steve James began his career at the club. Lydney was also the club of first English club of England wicket-keeper Geraint Jones.

Lydney Town F.C. Lydney Town A.F.C. are a football club based in Lydney, Gloucestershire, England. They are currently member of the . The club is affiliated to the Gloucestershire County FA. History The club was formed in 1911 and played in local leagues unti ...

is based at the town's recreation ground, they run a total of 4 sides playing

Hellenic Football League The Hellenic Football League, currently known as the Uhlsport Hellenic Football League for sponsorship reasons, is an English men's football league covering an area including the English counties of Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire, southern Buck ...

Gloucestershire Northern Senior League The Gloucestershire Northern Senior League is a football competition based in England founded in 1922. The league is affiliated to the Gloucestershire County FA. It has two divisions, Division One and Division Two, with Division One sitting at ...

and 2 sides in the North Gloucestershire Football League. Lydney Hockey Club ( Field Hockey) and Lyndean Netball Club play their home games at Whitecross School. Lydney Golf Club was a nine-hole course located off Lakeside Avenue. The club has built a new course on a site located on the opposite side of the Lydney Bypass. Lydney has an outdoor swimming pool, the Bathurst Swimming Pool built in the 1920s, open from May until early September. It is operated by volunteers (excluding the life guards). Freedom Leisure Lydney is located at the Dean Academy, the local secondary school. Lydney Twonkers Scrabble Club play their home games at the town's library. The Twonkers were Western Area Scrabble League champions in 2001 and 2005 and were twice runners-up in the National Scrabble Club Knockout Tournament in 1999 and 2003. Bathurst Park in the centre of the town (not to be confused with Lydney Park on the town's outskirts) is home to several senior and junior football and cricket teams. Lydney Town Band operates as a non-competitive training band. Lydney parkrun started on 2 January 2016 - the free 5k timed weekly run, starts near to the garage block at Lydney Boating Lake and comprises three laps.

Tourism

* Norchard is the home of the

. * Lydney Park is the site of a Romano-British Roman Temple and was an Iron Age hillfort. It also has gardens which are open to the public for a limited period each spring. * Taurus Crafts, which also occupies a section of the Lydney Park estate, is a Camphill community and popular visitor destination comprising a variety of craft shops and café.

Twinned towns

Bréhal Bréhal () is a commune in the Manche department in Normandy in northwestern France. Population International relations Bréhal is twinned with Lydney in Gloucestershire. Heraldry See also *Communes of the Manche department The followi ...

, Manche, northwest France

Organisations

* 614 (Lydney) Squadron Air Training Corps * 586 (Lydney)

Sea Cadet Corps Sea cadets are members of a sea cadet corps, a formal uniformed youth organisation for young people with an interest in waterborne activities and or the national navy. The organisation may be sponsored in whole or in part by the navy or a naval s ...

* Lydney and District Dramatic Society

Notable people

* Charles Bathurst, Lord Bledisloe (1867-1958),

from 1930 to 1935, who became

of Lydney in 1935 * Christopher Herbert (1944- ), Bishop of St Albans from 1996 to 2009 * Herbert Howells (1892-1983), composer * Steve James, England cricketer and captain of

Glamorgan CCC Glamorgan County Cricket Club ( cy, Criced Morgannwg) is one of eighteen first-class county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Glamorgan ( cy, Morgannwg). Founded in 1888, ...

Lisa Rogers Lisa Rogers (born 7 September 1971) is a Welsh television presenter. She has appeared in films, television programmes, theatre and radio. Early life While at school, she took jobs in a chocolate factory, as a farrier, and, while studying drama at ...

, television presenter * Sir William Winter (died 1589), Vice-Admiral of Queen Elizabeth I * Sir John Winter (died 1676), grandson of William, and prominent royalist during the English Civil War