Lancaster, Lancashire
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Lancaster (, ) is a city in
Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...
, England, and the main cultural hub, economic and commercial centre of City of Lancaster district. The city is on the
River Lune The River Lune (archaically sometimes Loyne) is a river in length in Cumbria and Lancashire, England. Etymology Several elucidations for the origin of the name ''Lune'' exist. Firstly, it may be that the name is Brittonic languages, Brittonic ...
, directly inland from Morecambe Bay. Lancaster is the
county town In Great Britain and Ireland, a county town is usually the location of administrative or judicial functions within a county, and the place where public representatives are elected to parliament. Following the establishment of county councils in ...
, although
Lancashire County Council Lancashire County Council is the upper-tier local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Lancashire, England. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashire is smaller than the ceremonial county, which additionally includes Blackburn with Dar ...
has been based at County Hall in Preston since its formation in 1889. The city's long history is marked by Lancaster Roman Fort, Lancaster Castle, Lancaster Priory Church, Lancaster Cathedral and the Ashton Memorial. It is the seat of
Lancaster University Lancaster University (officially The University of Lancaster) is a collegiate public university, public research university in Lancaster, Lancashire, England. The university was established in 1964 by royal charter, as one of several new univer ...
and has a campus of the University of Cumbria. It had a population of 52,234 in the 2011 census, compared to the district, which had a population of 138,375. The
House of Lancaster The House of Lancaster was a cadet branch of the royal House of Plantagenet. The first house was created when King Henry III of England created the Earldom of Lancasterfrom which the house was namedfor his second son Edmund Crouchback in 1267 ...
was a branch of the English royal family. The
Duchy of Lancaster The Duchy of Lancaster is an estate of the British sovereign. The estate has its origins in the lands held by the medieval Dukes of Lancaster, which came under the direct control of the monarch when Henry Bolingbroke, the then duke of Lancast ...
still holds large estates on behalf of
Charles III Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. Charles was born at Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, and ...
, who is the
Duke of Lancaster The dukedom of Lancaster is a former Peerage of England, English peerage, created three times in the Middle Ages, which finally merged in the Crown when Henry V of England, Henry V succeeded to the throne in 1413. Despite the extinction of the ...
. The Port of Lancaster and the 18th-century Lancaster slave trade played a major role in the city's growth, but for many years the outport of Glasson Dock, downstream, has been the main shipping facility.


History


Toponymy

Lancaster was recorded in the ''
Domesday Book Domesday Book ( ; the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book") is a manuscript record of the Great Survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...
'' of 1086, as ''Loncastre'', where "Lon" refers to the
River Lune The River Lune (archaically sometimes Loyne) is a river in length in Cumbria and Lancashire, England. Etymology Several elucidations for the origin of the name ''Lune'' exist. Firstly, it may be that the name is Brittonic languages, Brittonic ...
and "castre" from the
Old English Old English ( or , or ), 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 developed from the languages brought to Great Britain by Anglo-S ...
''cæster'' and
Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
''castrum'' for "fort" to the Roman fort that stood on the site.


Roman and Saxon eras

A Roman fort was built by the end of the 1st century CE on the hill where Lancaster Castle now stands, possibly as early as the 60s, based on Roman coin evidence. Coin evidence also suggests that the fort was not continuously inhabited in its early years. It was rebuilt in stone about 102. The fort name is known only in a shortened form; the only evidence is a Roman milestone found outside Lancaster, with an inscription ending L MP IIII, meaning "from L – 4 miles, and that its name began with an L. The fort was perhaps named Calunium. Roman baths were found in 1812 and can be seen near the junction of Bridge Lane and Church Street. There was presumably a bath-house with the 4th-century fort. The Roman baths incorporated a reused inscription of the Gallic Emperor Postumus, dating from 262 to 266. The 3rd-century fort was garrisoned by the ''ala Sebosiana'' and ''numerus Barcariorum Tigrisiensium''. The ancient ''Wery Wall'' was identified in 1950 as the north wall of the 4th-century fort, which was a drastic remodelling of the 3rd-century one, while retaining the same orientation. The later fort is the only example in north-west Britain of a 4th-century type, with massive curtain-wall and projecting bastions typical of the ''Saxon Shore'' or Wales. Extension of the technique as far north as Lancaster shows that the coast between Cumberland and North Wales was not left defenceless after the west-coast attacks and the disaster in the Carausian Revolt of 296, which followed from those under Albinus in 197. The fort at its largest extent covered . Evidence suggests that it stayed in use until the end of
Roman occupation of Britain Roman Britain was the territory that became the Roman province of ''Britannia'' after the Roman conquest of Britain, consisting of a large part of the island of Great Britain. The occupation lasted from AD 43 to AD 410. Julius Caesa ...
. Church Street and some of St Leonard's Gate probably mark the initial course of the Roman road up the valley to the fort at Over Burrow. Little is known of Lancaster from the end of Roman rule to the early 5th century and the Norman Conquest of the late 11th century. Despite a lack of documentation for the period, it is thought that Lancaster remained inhabited. It lay on the fringes of the kingdoms of
Mercia Mercia (, was one of the principal kingdoms founded at the end of Sub-Roman Britain; the area was settled by Anglo-Saxons in an era called the Heptarchy. It was centred on the River Trent and its tributaries, in a region now known as the Midlan ...
and
Northumbria Northumbria () was an early medieval Heptarchy, kingdom in what is now Northern England and Scottish Lowlands, South Scotland. The name derives from the Old English meaning "the people or province north of the Humber", as opposed to the Sout ...
and over time may have passed from one to the other. Archaeological evidence suggests there was a monastery on or near the site of today's Lancaster Priory by the 700s or 800s. The Anglo-Saxon
runic Runes are the letters in a set of related alphabets, known as runic rows, runic alphabets or futharks (also, see '' futhark'' vs ''runic alphabet''), native to the Germanic peoples. Runes were primarily used to represent a sound value (a ...
"Cynibald's cross" found at the Priory in 1807 is thought to date from the late 9th century. Lancaster was probably one of several abbeys founded under
Wilfrid Wilfrid ( – 709 or 710) was an English bishop and saint. Born a Northumbrian noble, he entered religious life as a teenager and studied at Lindisfarne, at Canterbury, in Francia, and at Rome; he returned to Northumbria in about 660, and beca ...
.


Medieval

After the
Norman conquest of England The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Normans, Norman, French people, French, Flemish people, Flemish, and Bretons, Breton troops, all led by the Du ...
in 1066, Lancaster fell under the control of William I, as stated in the
Domesday Book Domesday Book ( ; the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book") is a manuscript record of the Great Survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...
of 1086, which has the earliest known mention of Lancaster as such in any document. The founding Priory charter dated 1094 is the first known document specific to Lancaster.White, p. 57. By this time William had passed Lancaster and its surroundings to Roger de Poitou. The document also suggests the monastery was refounded as a parish church some time before 1066. Lancaster became a
borough A borough is an administrative division in various English language, English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History ...
in 1193 under
King Richard I Richard I (8 September 1157 – 6 April 1199), known as Richard the Lionheart or Richard Cœur de Lion () because of his reputation as a great military leader and warrior, was King of England from 1189 until his death in 1199. He also ru ...
. Its first
charter A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the ...
, dated 12 June 1193, was from John, Count of Mortain, who later became King of England. Lancaster Castle, partly built in the 13th century and enlarged by
Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was List of English monarchs, Queen of England and List of Irish monarchs, Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudo ...
, stands on the site of a Roman
garrison A garrison is any body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it. The term now often applies to certain facilities that constitute a military base or fortified military headquarters. A garrison is usually in a city ...
. During The Great Raid of 1322, damage was done to the castle by
Robert the Bruce Robert I (11 July 1274 – 7 June 1329), popularly known as Robert the Bruce (), was King of Scots from 1306 until his death in 1329. Robert led Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland during the First War of Scottish Independence against Kingdom of Eng ...
, though it resisted the attack and was restored and strengthened by
John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster (6 March 1340 – 3 February 1399), was an English royal prince, military leader and statesman. He was the fourth son (third surviving) of King Edward III of England, and the father of King Henry IV. Because ...
, who added much of the Gateway Tower and a turret on the keep or Lungess Tower, which has been named "John o' Gaunt's Chair". In 1322 the Scots burnt the town. It was rebuilt but removed from its position on the hill to the slope and foot. Again in 1389, after the Battle of Otterburn, it was destroyed by the Scots. Lancaster Castle is known as the site of the Pendle witch trials in 1612. It was said that the court based in the castle (the Lancaster
Assizes The assizes (), or courts of assize, were periodic courts held around England and Wales until 1972, when together with the quarter sessions they were abolished by the Courts Act 1971 and replaced by a single permanent Crown Court. The assizes ex ...
) sentenced more people to be hanged than any other in the country outside
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
, earning Lancaster the nickname, ''"the Hanging Town"''. It also figured prominently in the suppression of Catholicism during the Reformation – at least eleven Catholic priests were executed and a memorial to them as the Lancaster Martyrs stands by the city centre. The traditional emblem of the
House of Lancaster The House of Lancaster was a cadet branch of the royal House of Plantagenet. The first house was created when King Henry III of England created the Earldom of Lancasterfrom which the house was namedfor his second son Edmund Crouchback in 1267 ...
is the Red Rose of Lancaster, similar to that of the
House of York The House of York was a cadet branch of the English royal House of Plantagenet. Three of its members became kings of England in the late 15th century. The House of York descended in the male line from Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York ...
with a white rose. The names derive from emblems of the Royal Duchies of Lancaster and
York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...
in the 15th century. This erupted into a
civil war A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...
over rival claims to the throne during the
Wars of the Roses The Wars of the Roses, known at the time and in following centuries as the Civil Wars, were a series of armed confrontations, machinations, battles and campaigns fought over control of the English throne from 1455 to 1487. The conflict was fo ...
. More recently the term ''"Wars of the Roses"'' has been applied to rivalry in sports between teams from
Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...
and
Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...
. It is also applied to the annual Roses Tournament between Lancaster and York universities. Lancaster gained a first
charter A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the ...
in 1193 as 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 rura ...
and
borough A borough is an administrative division in various English language, English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History ...
, but had to await city status until 1937.


18th-century port

Many of the city's central buildings, including those lining St George's Quay date from the 18th century, as the Port of Lancaster became one of the UK's busiest and the Lancaster slave trade was the fourth most important in the UK slave trade. Among prominent Lancaster slavers were Dodshon Foster, Thomas Hinde and his namesake son. The last slave ship to be constructed in Lancaster was the 267-tonne ''Trafalgar'', built in 1806 at Brockbank’s shipyard for Samuel Hinderland and William Hinde. Lancaster's role as a major port diminished as the river began to silt up and Morecambe, Glasson Dock and Sunderland Point became preeminent for brief periods. Heysham Port has now eclipsed all others on the Lune.


Recent history

A permanent military presence was built up with the completion of Bowerham Barracks in 1880. The Phoenix Street drill hall was completed in 1894. Since the
Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution, sometimes divided into the First Industrial Revolution and Second Industrial Revolution, was a transitional period of the global economy toward more widespread, efficient and stable manufacturing processes, succee ...
, the city was home to many industries from the 18th century to the 20th century. The main industries in the city at the time were candle making, sailcloth making, rope making and shipbuilding. Since the decline of the industrial revolution, Lancaster suffered from economic decline and high unemployment rates like many parts of the north of England. The city underwent regeneration and is now a tourist destination. Lancaster is mainly a service-oriented city. Products include
animal feed Animal feed is food given to domestic animals, especially livestock, in the course of animal husbandry. There are two basic types: fodder and forage. Used alone, the word ''feed'' more often refers to fodder. Animal feed is an important input ...
,
textiles Textile is an Hyponymy and hypernymy, umbrella term that includes various Fiber, fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, Staple (textiles)#Filament fiber, filaments, Thread (yarn), threads, and different types of #Fabric, fabric. ...
,
chemicals A chemical substance is a unique form of matter with constant chemical composition and characteristic properties. Chemical substances may take the form of a single element or chemical compounds. If two or more chemical substances can be combin ...
,
livestock Livestock are the Domestication, domesticated animals that are raised in an Agriculture, agricultural setting to provide labour and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, Egg as food, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The t ...
,
paper Paper is a thin sheet material produced by mechanically or chemically processing cellulose fibres derived from wood, Textile, rags, poaceae, grasses, Feces#Other uses, herbivore dung, or other vegetable sources in water. Once the water is dra ...
, synthetic fibre, farm machinery, HGV trailers and mineral fibres. In recent years, a high-tech sector has emerged from
information technology Information technology (IT) is a set of related fields within information and communications technology (ICT), that encompass computer systems, software, programming languages, data processing, data and information processing, and storage. Inf ...
and telecommunications companies investing in the city. In March 2004, Lancaster was granted Fairtrade City status. Lancaster was home to the European headquarters of Reebok. After merging with
Adidas Adidas AG (; stylized in all lowercase since 1949) is a German athletic apparel and footwear corporation headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, Germany. It is the largest sportswear manufacturer in Europe, and the second largest in the ...
, Reebok moved to
Bolton Bolton ( , locally ) is a town in Greater Manchester in England. In the foothills of the West Pennine Moors, Bolton is between Manchester, Blackburn, Wigan, Bury, Greater Manchester, Bury and Salford. It is surrounded by several towns and vill ...
and
Stockport Stockport is a town in Greater Manchester, England, south-east of Manchester, south-west of Ashton-under-Lyne and north of Macclesfield. The River Goyt, Rivers Goyt and River Tame, Greater Manchester, Tame merge to create the River Mersey he ...
in 2007. In May 2015,
Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...
visited the castle for commemorations for the 750th anniversary of the creation of the
Duchy of Lancaster The Duchy of Lancaster is an estate of the British sovereign. The estate has its origins in the lands held by the medieval Dukes of Lancaster, which came under the direct control of the monarch when Henry Bolingbroke, the then duke of Lancast ...
.


Governance

The former
City A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...
and
Municipal Borough A municipal borough was a type of local government Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of governance or public administration within a particular sovereign state. Local governments typically constitute a subdivision of ...
of Lancaster and the Municipal Borough of Morecambe and Heysham, along with other authorities, merged in 1974 to form the City of Lancaster
district A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...
within the
shire county A non-metropolitan county, or colloquially, shire county, is a subdivision of England used for local government. The non-metropolitan counties were originally created in 1974 as part of a reform of local government in England and Wales, and ...
of Lancashire. This was given
city status City status is a symbolic and legal designation given by a monarch, 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, ci ...
and Lancaster City Council became the governing body for the district. Lancaster is an
unparished area In England, an unparished area is an area that is not covered by a civil parish (the lowest level of local government, not to be confused with an ecclesiastical parish). Most urbanised districts of England are either entirely or partly unparis ...
and has no separate council. It is divided into wards (for elections to Lancaster City Council), such as Bulk, Castle, Ellel, John O'Gaunt (named after
John of Gaunt John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster (6 March 1340 – 3 February 1399), was an English royal prince, military leader and statesman. He was the fourth son (third surviving) of King Edward III of England, and the father of King Henry IV. Because ...
, the 1st
Duke of Lancaster The dukedom of Lancaster is a former Peerage of England, English peerage, created three times in the Middle Ages, which finally merged in the Crown when Henry V of England, Henry V succeeded to the throne in 1413. Despite the extinction of the ...
), Scotforth East, Scotforth West, Skerton East, Skerton West and University and Scotforth Rural. For elections to
Lancashire County Council Lancashire County Council is the upper-tier local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Lancashire, England. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashire is smaller than the ceremonial county, which additionally includes Blackburn with Dar ...
, Lancaster is split into the electoral divisions of Lancaster Central (the city centre and an area extending south including Cockerham and Glasson Dock), Lancaster East (south of the River Lune and east of the
Lancaster Canal The Lancaster Canal is a canal in North West England, originally planned to run from Westhoughton in Lancashire to Kendal in south Cumbria (Historic counties of England, historically in Westmorland). The section around the crossing of the River ...
), Lancaster South East (bordered by the River Conder with the University at its southern point) and Skerton (north of the River Lune). (Map)


Political representation

The city lies in the Lancaster and Wyre constituency for elections of Members of Parliament to the
House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...
, represented since
2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...
by Cat Smith of the Labour Party (as Lancaster and Fleetwood constituency before 2024). While the United Kingdom was in the
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...
, Lancaster was in the
North West England North West England is one of nine official regions of England and consists of the ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial counties of Cheshire, Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Lancashire and Merseyside. The North West had a population of 7,4 ...
European Parliamentary Constituency. In the late 1990s and early first decade of the 21st century, the city council was under the control of the Morecambe Bay Independents (MBIs), who campaigned for an independent Morecambe council. In 2003, their influence waned and Labour became the largest party on the council. They formed a coalition with the Liberal Democrats and Greens. At the May 2007 local elections, Labour lost ground to the
Green Green is the color between cyan and yellow on the visible spectrum. It is evoked by light which has a dominant wavelength of roughly 495570 nm. In subtractive color systems, used in painting and color printing, it is created by a com ...
s in Lancaster and the MBIs in Morecambe, resulting in
no overall control In the context of local authorities in the United Kingdom no overall control (NOC; ) is a situation in which no single political group achieves a majority of seats, comparable to a hung parliament. Of the 248 councils who had members up for elec ...
, with all parties represented in a PR administration. The 2011 elections saw Labour emerge as the largest party. They reached a joint administrative arrangement with the Greens. The 2019 Lancaster City Council election results put no party in overall control. The council was run by a coalition of Labour, Green, Eco-Socialist Independent and Liberal Democrat councillors, supported by the Independent Group, with Conservatives and MBIs in opposition. The cabinet consisted of 4 Labour, 4 Green, 1 Eco-Socialist, 1 Independent Group. At 10 seats, Lancaster had one of the country's largest Green Party representations. The 2023 Lancaster City Council election resulted in a council with Labour as the largest party but not in overall control, with 24 of the 61 seats. After the 2021 Lancashire County Council election, Lancaster East, Lancaster South East and Skerton were represented on the county council by Labour, while Lancaster Central was represented by the Green Party.


Geography

Lancaster is Lancashire's northernmost city, three miles () inland from Morecambe Bay. It is on the River Lune (from which comes its name), and the
Lancaster Canal The Lancaster Canal is a canal in North West England, originally planned to run from Westhoughton in Lancashire to Kendal in south Cumbria (Historic counties of England, historically in Westmorland). The section around the crossing of the River ...
. It becomes hillier from the Lune Valley eastwards, with Williamson Hill in the north-west a notable height at and recognised as a TuMP: a hill with "thirty and upwards metres prominence". The central area of the city can be roughly defined by the railway to the west, the canal to the south and east, and the river to the north.


Built-up area

Lancaster, Morecambe and Heysham have been identified by the
Office for National Statistics The Office for National Statistics (ONS; ) is the executive office of the UK Statistics Authority, a non-ministerial department which reports directly to the Parliament of the United Kingdom, UK Parliament. Overview The ONS is responsible fo ...
as forming the Lancaster/Morecambe Built-up area, with a population of 97,150 in the 2011 census. Within this, ONS identifies a Lancaster built-up area sub division with a 2011 population of 48,085.


Green belt

There is a small portion of green belt on the northern fringe of Lancaster, covering the area into Carnforth and helping to prevent further urban expansion towards nearby Morecambe, Hest Bank, Slyne and Bolton-le-Sands.


Transport


Road

The A6 road, one of the main historic north–south roads in England, passes through the city centre, with northbound and southbound traffic on separate streets, and crosses the Lune at Greyhound Bridge northbound and
Skerton Bridge Skerton Bridge is a road bridge carrying the southbound lanes of the A6 road (England), A6 road over the River Lune in Lancaster, Lancashire, Lancaster, Lancashire, England. The bridge is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a d ...
southbound (these are the two furthest-downstream road crossing points of the Lune). The road leads south to Preston,
Chorley Chorley is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Chorley in Lancashire, England, north of Wigan, south west of Blackburn, north west of Bolton, south of Preston and north west of Manchester. The town's wealth ca ...
and
Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...
and north to Carnforth,
Kendal Kendal, once Kirkby in Kendal or Kirkby Kendal, is a market town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Westmorland and Furness, England. It lies within the River Kent's dale, from which its name is derived, just outside the boundary of t ...
, Penrith and
Carlisle Carlisle ( , ; from ) is a city in the Cumberland district of Cumbria, England. Carlisle's early history is marked by the establishment of a settlement called Luguvalium to serve forts along Hadrian's Wall in Roman Britain. Due to its pro ...
. The
M6 motorway The M6 motorway is the longest motorway in the United Kingdom. It is located entirely within England, running for just over from the Midlands to the border with Scotland. It begins at Junction 19 of the M1 motorway, M1 and the western end of t ...
passes to the east of Lancaster with junctions 33 and 34 to the south and north. The Bay Gateway, a dual carriageway opened in 2016, links Heysham to the M6. Lancaster's main bus operator, Stagecoach Cumbria & North Lancashire, operates network of services from Lancaster bus station throughout the Lancaster District and services to more distant places such as
Kendal Kendal, once Kirkby in Kendal or Kirkby Kendal, is a market town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Westmorland and Furness, England. It lies within the River Kent's dale, from which its name is derived, just outside the boundary of t ...
, Keswick, Kirkby Lonsdale, Preston and
Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside town in Lancashire, England. It is located on the Irish Sea coast of the Fylde peninsula, approximately north of Liverpool and west of Preston, Lancashire, Preston. It is the main settlement in the Borough of Blackpool ...
. There are buses to
Lancaster University Lancaster University (officially The University of Lancaster) is a collegiate public university, public research university in Lancaster, Lancashire, England. The university was established in 1964 by royal charter, as one of several new univer ...
, the No. 1 and No. 1A services run every 10–15 minutes using double-deckers, with less frequent services 4, 41 and 42. Other routes are covered by Kirkby Lonsdale Coach Hire, including the 582 to Kirkby Lonsdale, Settle and
Skipton Skipton (also known as Skipton-in-Craven) is a market town and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England. Historically in the East Division of Staincliffe Wapentake in the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is on the River Aire and the Leeds ...
and the 89 to Knott End-on-Sea.


Rail

Lancaster is served by the
West Coast Main Line The West Coast Main Line (WCML) is one of the most important railway corridors in the United Kingdom, connecting the major cities of London and Glasgow with branches to Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool and Edinburgh. It is one of the busiest ...
from Lancaster railway station. The station was formerly named Lancaster Castle, to differentiate it from Lancaster Green Ayre on the Leeds–Morecambe line, which closed in 1966. There are train services to and from
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
,
Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...
,
Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...
,
Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...
,
Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...
,
Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...
and
Barrow-in-Furness Barrow-in-Furness is a port town and civil parish (as just "Barrow") in the Westmorland and Furness district of Cumbria, England. Historic counties of England, Historically in the county of Lancashire, it was incorporated as a municipal borou ...
, and a local service to Morecambe. The city council aims to open a railway station serving the university and south Lancaster, although this is not feasible in the short or medium term with current levels of demand. The Caton–Morecambe section of the former North Western railway is now used as a cycle path.


Water and air

The Port of Lancaster gained importance in the 18th century. In 1750 the Lancaster Port Commission was established to develop the port. However, in more recent years, shipping visits Glasson Dock, where the Port commission is now based. Heysham Port, about west of Lancaster, is used by ferry services to the
Isle of Man The Isle of Man ( , also ), or Mann ( ), is a self-governing British Crown Dependency in the Irish Sea, between Great Britain and Ireland. As head of state, Charles III holds the title Lord of Mann and is represented by a Lieutenant Govern ...
,
Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...
and
Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
. The
Lancaster Canal The Lancaster Canal is a canal in North West England, originally planned to run from Westhoughton in Lancashire to Kendal in south Cumbria (Historic counties of England, historically in Westmorland). The section around the crossing of the River ...
and River Lune pass through the city. The nearest airports are
Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...
and
Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...
.


Cycling

In 2005, Lancaster was one of six English towns chosen to be cycling demonstration towns to promote cycling as a means of transport. Lancaster has cycle routes to many nearby places, many are off-road using disused railways or canal towpaths.


Landmarks

* Ashton Memorial * The Dukes *
Custom House A custom house or customs house was traditionally a building housing the offices for a jurisdictional government whose officials oversaw the functions associated with importing and exporting goods into and out of a country, such as collecting ...
(Maritime Museum) * Grand Theatre * The Gregson Centre * Greaves Park * Judges' Lodgings * Lancaster Castle * Lancaster Cathedral * Lancaster City Museum * Lancaster Priory *
Lancaster Royal Grammar School Lancaster Royal Grammar School (LRGS) is an 11–18 boys grammar school in Lancaster, England, Lancaster, Lancashire, England. Old students belong to The Old Lancastrians. The school's sixth form opened to girls in 2019. LRGS is also in the Unit ...
* Lancaster Town Hall * Lune Millennium Bridge * Queen Victoria Memorial * The Ruskin - Library, Museum and Research Centre * The Storey * Westfield War Memorial Village * Williamson Park The city's main
war memorial A war memorial is a building, monument, statue, or other edifice to celebrate a war or victory, or (predominating in modern times) to commemorate those who died or were injured in a war. Symbolism Historical usage It has ...
is in a garden adjacent to the Town Hall, near Dalton Square, and commemorates those who died in the first and second world wars, Korea and the Falklands; it is grade II listed.


Listed buildings

There are more than 330
listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...
s in Lancaster (excluding those in nearby
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. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...
es such as the Lune Aqueduct in Halton-with-Aughton parish). They include four at grade I and 22 at grade II*, the others being at grade II. Those at grade I, the highest level, are the Ashton Memorial, the Judges' Lodgings, Lancaster Castle and Lancaster Priory.


Culture

Lancaster has a range of historic buildings and venues, having retained many fine examples of
Georgian architecture Georgian architecture is the name given in most English-speaking countries to the set of architectural styles current between 1714 and 1830. It is named after the first four Monarchy of the United Kingdom, British monarchs of the House of Han ...
. Lancaster Castle, the Priory Church of St Mary and the Edwardian Ashton Memorial are among the sites of historical importance. Its many museums include Lancaster City Museum,
Maritime Museum A maritime museum (sometimes nautical museum) is a museum specializing in the display of objects relating to ships and travel on large bodies of water. A subcategory of maritime museums are naval museums, which focus on navy, navies and the m ...
, the Cottage Museum and the Judges' Lodgings Museum. Lancaster Friends Meeting House, dating from 1708, is the longest continual
Quaker Quakers are people who belong to the Religious Society of Friends, a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations. Members refer to each other as Friends after in the Bible, and originally, others referred to them as Quakers ...
meeting site in the world, with an original building built in 1677.
George Fox George Fox (July 1624 Old Style and New Style dates, O.S. – 13 January 1691 Old Style and New Style dates, O.S.) was an English Dissenters, English Dissenter, who was a founder of the Quakers, Religious Society of Friends, commonly known as t ...
, founder of Quakerism, was near the site several times in the 1660s and spent two years imprisoned in Lancaster Castle. The meeting house holds regular Quaker meetings and a wide range of cultural activities including adult learning, meditation, art classes, music and political meetings. Lancaster Grand Theatre is another historic cultural venue, under its many names. It has played a major part in social and cultural life since it was built in 1782. Lancaster is known nationally for its Arts scene. There are around 600 business and organisations in the region involved directly or indirectly in arts and culture. In 2009, several major arts bodies based in the district formed a consortium called Lancaster Arts Partners (LAP) to champion strategic development of arts activities in Lancaster District. Notable partners include Ludus Dance, More Music and the Dukes. LAP curates and promotes "Lancaster First Fridays", a monthly multi-disciplinary mini-festival under its brand "Lancaster Arts City". Lancaster University has a public arts organisation, part of LAP, known as Lancaster Arts at Lancaster University. Its programmes include Lancaster's Nuffield Theatre, one of the largest professional studio theatres in Europe, the Peter Scott Gallery, with the most significant collection of Royal Lancastrian ceramics in Britain, and the Lancaster International Concerts Series, drawing nationally and internationally renowned classical and world-music artists. The gallery in the Storey Creative Industries Centre is now programmed and run by Lancaster City Council. In 2013 the previous incumbent organisation "The Storey Gallery" moved out of the building and reformed as "Storey G2". The Storey Creative Industries Centre is also home to Lancaster's Litfest, which runs an annual literature festival. In the summer months Williamson Park hosts outdoor performances, including a Dukes "Play in the Park", which over the past 26 years has attracted 460,000 people, as the UK's biggest outdoor walkabout theatre event. Lancaster is known as the Northern City of Ale, with almost 30 pubs serving cask ale. The pubs include the ''White Cross'', ''Three Mariners'', ''Borough'' and ''Water Witch''. There are two cask ale breweries: Lancaster Brewery and a microbrewery run by the Borough. There is a local CAMRA (
Campaign for Real Ale The Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) is an independent voluntary consumer organisation headquartered in St Albans, which promotes real ale, cider and perry and traditional British pubs and clubs. History The organisation was founded on 16 ...
) branch at Lunesdale. The Lancaster Grand Theatre and the Dukes are notable venues for live performance, as are the Yorkshire House (currently closed), Jailors Barrel, The John O' Gaunt and The Bobbin. Throughout the year events are held in and around the city, such as the Lancaster Music Festival, Lancaster Jazz Festival, and
Chinese New Year Chinese New Year, or the Spring Festival (see also #Names, § Names), is a festival that celebrates the beginning of a New Year, new year on the traditional lunisolar calendar, lunisolar Chinese calendar. It is one of the most important holi ...
celebrations in the city centre. Every November the city hosts a daylight and art festival entitled "Light Up Lancaster", which includes a prominent fireworks display. Lancaster still has two city-centre cinemas; Vue and the Dukes playhouse. The 1930s
art deco Art Deco, short for the French (), is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design that first Art Deco in Paris, appeared in Paris in the 1910s just before World War I and flourished in the United States and Europe during the 1920 ...
''Regal Cinema'' closed in 2006. The Gregson Centre is also known for small film screenings and cultural events.


Art and literature

John Henderson (c.1770–1853) painted many views of the town. One of these, together with a poetical illustration (which relates to the treacherous sands of Morecambe Bay) by Letitia Elizabeth Landon, was published in Fisher's Drawing Room Scrap Book, 1833.


Music

The city's semi-professional Haffner Orchestra has a reputation for classical music. It performs in the Ashton Hall in the city centre and at Lancaster University. During parades and festivals it is common to see two other long standing musical groups perform. Lancaster City Brass is the oldest remaining brass band in the city, founded in 1946. Batala Lancaster is a 60-strong
samba reggae Samba-reggae is a music genre from Bahia, Brazil. Samba reggae, as its name suggests, was originally derived as a blend of Brazilian samba with Jamaican reggae as typified by Bob Marley. History and background Samba-reggae arose in the context of ...
drumming band, established in 2004 and one of 45 bands in 17 countries in the Batala project; they have twice won Best Brazilian Band at
Notting Hill Carnival The Notting Hill Carnival is an annual Caribbean Carnival event that has taken place in London since 1966
. Lancaster has been producing successful bands and musicians since the 1990s, notably the drummer Keith Baxter of 3 Colours Red.The all-girl punk-rock band
Angelica ''Angelica'' is a genus of about 90 species of tall Biennial plant, biennial and Perennial plant, perennial herbaceous, herbs in the family Apiaceae, native to temperate and subarctic regions of the Northern Hemisphere, reaching as far north as ...
used the Lancaster Musicians' Co-operative, the main rehearsal and recording studio in the area. The city has also produced many other musicians, including singer and songwriter
John Waite John Charles Waite (born 4 July 1952) is an English rock singer and musician. As a solo artist, he has released ten studio albums and is best known for the 1984 hit single "Missing You (John Waite song), Missing You", which reached No. 1 on th ...
, who first became known as lead singer of The Babys and had a solo #1 hit in the US, " Missing You". As part of the band
Bad English Bad English was an American/British hard rock supergroup formed in 1987. It reunited Journey keyboardist Jonathan Cain with singer John Waite and bassist Ricky Phillips, his former bandmates in the Babys, along with Journey guitarist Ne ...
, John Waite also had a #1 hit in the Billboard top hundred in the 1970s called " When I See You Smile". Additionally, Paul James, better known as The Rev, former guitarist of English punk band Towers of London who is now in the band Day 21 and plays guitar live on tour for
The Prodigy The Prodigy are an English electronic music band formed in Braintree, Essex, in 1990 by producer, keyboardist, and songwriter Liam Howlett. The original line-up also featured Rapping, MC and vocalist Maxim (musician), Maxim, dancer and occasi ...
; Chris Acland, drummer of the early 1990s shoegaze band Lush; Tom English, drummer of North East indie band
Maxïmo Park Maxïmo Park are an English alternative rock band formed in 2000 in Newcastle upon Tyne. The band currently consists of Paul Smith (English singer), Paul Smith (lead vocals), Duncan Lloyd (guitar, bass, keyboards, backing vocals), and Tom Engli ...
and Steve Kemp, drummer of the indie band Hard-Fi. Lancaster continues to produce bands and musicians such as singer-songwriter Jay Diggins, and acts like The Lovely Eggs, receiving considerable national radio play and press coverage in recent years. More recently, Lancaster locals Massive Wagons signed to Nottingham-based independent label Earache Records. Since 2006, Lancaster Library has hosted regular music events under the ''Get it Loud in Libraries'' initiative. Musicians such as Clean Bandit, The Long Blondes, Ellie Goulding, Marina And The Diamonds, Jessie J, Wolf Alice,
The Wombats The Wombats are an English indie rock band formed in Liverpool in 2003, consisting of Matthew Murphy (lead vocals, guitar, keyboards), Tord Øverland Knudsen (bass, backing vocals, keyboards), and Dan Haggis (drums, backing vocals, keyboards). ...
, The Thrills, Kate Nash,
Adele Adele Laurie Blue Adkins (; born 5 May 1988) is an English singer-songwriter. Regarded as a British cultural icon, icon, she is known for her mezzo-soprano vocals and sentimental songwriting. List of awards and nominations received by Adele, ...
and Bat for Lashes have taken part. Get It Loud in Libraries has gained national exposure, featuring on The One Show on BBC1 and having gigs reviewed in ''Observer Music Monthly'', ''
NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...
'' and ''Art Rocker''. Notable popular music venues include The Dukes, The Grand Theatre, and The Gregson Centre.


Festivals

The Lancaster Jazz and Lancaster Music Festivals are respectively held every September and October, at venues throughout the city. In 2013 the headline jazz act was The Neil Cowley Trio, performing at The Dukes, whilst one of the Lancaster Music Festival headline acts was Jay Diggins at the Dalton Rooms. The Highest Point Festival takes place in Williamson Park each summer, and is a successor to the A-Wing festival which was held in Lancaster Castle from 2014.


Media

Local radio stations include Heart North West (formerly "The Bay"), BBC Radio Lancashire, and Beyond Radio is a voluntary, non-profit community radio station for Lancaster and Morecambe. Lancaster University has its own student radio station, Bailrigg FM, an online student-run television station called LA1TV (formerly LUTube.tv) and a student-run newspaper named SCAN. Local TV coverage is provided by '' BBC North West Tonight'' and '' ITV Granada Reports''. The city was home to the film production company A1 Pictures, which founded the independent film brand Capture. Commercially available newspapers include ''The Lancaster Guardian'' and ''The Visitor'' (mainly targeted at residents of Morecambe). ''Virtual Lancaster'', founded in 1999, is a non-commercial volunteer-led resource website also featuring local news, events and visitor information.


Twinned cities

Lancaster is twinned with: *
Aalborg Aalborg or Ålborg ( , , ) is Denmark's List of cities and towns in Denmark, fourth largest urban settlement (behind Copenhagen, Aarhus, and Odense) with a population of 119,862 (1 July 2022) in the town proper and an Urban area, urban populati ...
, Denmark *
Lublin Lublin is List of cities and towns in Poland, the ninth-largest city in Poland and the second-largest city of historical Lesser Poland. It is the capital and the centre of Lublin Voivodeship with a population of 336,339 (December 2021). Lublin i ...
, Poland *
Perpignan Perpignan (, , ; ; ) is the prefectures in France, prefecture of the Pyrénées-Orientales departments of France, department in Southern France, in the heart of the plain of Roussillon, at the foot of the Pyrenees a few kilometres from the Me ...
, France *
Rendsburg Rendsburg (, also ''Rensborg'', , also ''Rensborg'') is a town on the Eider (river), River Eider and the Kiel Canal in the central part of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is the capital of the ''Kreis'' (district) of Rendsburg-Eckernfoerde, Rends ...
, Germany *
Växjö Växjö () is a city and the seat of Växjö Municipality, Kronoberg County, Sweden. It had 71,282 inhabitants (2020) out of a Municipalities of Sweden, municipal population of 97,349 (2024). It is the administrative, cultural, and industrial ce ...
, Sweden


Education


Higher education

At Bailrigg south of the city is Lancaster University, a research university founded in 1964 as one of the seven " plate glass universities". It has an annual income of about £325 million (2020/21), 3,000 staff and 16,403 Lancaster-based students in 2021/22. Its business school is one of two in the country to gain a six-star research rating. Its physics department rated #1 in the United Kingdom in 2008. InfoLab21 at the university is a Centre of Excellence for Information and Communication Technologies. LEC (Lancaster Environment Centre) has over 200 staff and shares premises with the government-funded CEH. In 2023 it was 10th, 12th and 14th out of 120 UK universities in "the three main UK league tables". In 2017 it was rated 21st nationally for research in The Times Higher league table. For teaching, it gained the highest Gold ranking for quality in the 2017 government TEF, and in 2018 was ranked 9th for its teaching by ''
The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
'' and 9th by ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
''. ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...
'' Higher placed it 137th worldwide for research and 58th worldwide for arts and humanities. Lancaster University was named International University of the Year by ''The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide'' in 2020. It has campuses in Malaysia, China and Ghana and plans one in
Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...
, Germany. Lancaster is also home to a campus of the University of Cumbria – more centrally located on the site of the former St Martin's College – which was inaugurated in 2007. It provides undergraduate and postgraduate courses in the arts, social sciences, business, teacher training, health care and nursing. St Martin's college was founded in 1962 as Lancaster College of Education, and took its name from
Martin of Tours Martin of Tours (; 316/3368 November 397) was the third bishop of Tours. He is the patron saint of many communities and organizations across Europe, including France's Third French Republic, Third Republic. A native of Pannonia (present-day Hung ...
, a Roman soldier who converted to Christianity, because its premises were a former barracks of the King's Own Royal Regiment. The college merged with Cumbria Institute of the Arts, in Carlisle, and parts of the University of Central Lancashire, having previously absorbed Charlotte Mason College in Ambleside, to become the University of Cumbria.


Further education

* Lancaster and Morecambe College


Secondary schools

*
Lancaster Royal Grammar School Lancaster Royal Grammar School (LRGS) is an 11–18 boys grammar school in Lancaster, England, Lancaster, Lancashire, England. Old students belong to The Old Lancastrians. The school's sixth form opened to girls in 2019. LRGS is also in the Unit ...
and Lancaster Girls' Grammar School are selective-entry grammar schools. In 2016 both were rated by the '' Sunday Times''in the top 50 UK schools based on student achievement. * Ripley St Thomas Church of England Academy * Our Lady's Catholic College * Central Lancaster High School * Skerton Community High School (now closed) * Jamea Al Kauthar Islamic College, in the former Royal Albert Hospital building on Ashton Road, is an independent girls' school, providing education in a Muslim tradition.


Primary schools

*Lancaster Steiner School *Scotforth St Pauls CofE Primary School *Moorside Primary School *St Bernadette's Catholic Primary School *Bowerham Primary School *The Cathedral Catholic Primary School *Dallas Road Community Primary School *Willow Lane (formerly Marsh) Community Primary School *Castle View (formerly Ridge) Community Primary School *Lancaster Christ Church CofE Primary School *St Joseph's Catholic Primary School *Skerton St Lukes CofE Primary School *Lancaster Ryelands Primary School Special Educational Needs (SEN) Schools *The Loyne *Morecambe Road School


Religious sites

Lancaster is home to many churches and other places of worship. Notable churches in the city include the grade II*- listed Lancaster Cathedral (
Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
), which is located on the brow of the hill beside the canal to the east of the city centre. Its spire can be seen on the cityscape. It was built in 1798 originally as a mission church for the city before it was rebuilt between 1857 and 1859 on a different site with the spire and tower. It is an active place of worship. Lancaster Priory (
Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...
) is a grade I
listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...
on the high ground adjacent to Lancaster Castle. It dates largely from about 1430, with a 1754-55 tower and later work. The Friends Meeting House, near the station, dates from 1708 and is grade II* listed. Other notable churches in the city include: *Active: * Christ Church (Grade II listed parish church) * Ripley School Chapel (Part of the
Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...
school) * St Thomas' Church (Grade II listed and active parish church) * St Paul's Church, Scotforth (Grade II listed and parish church) * St Luke's Church, Skerton (Grade II listed and parish church) *Redundant: * Lancaster Cemetery Chapels * St John the Evangelist's Church (Closed in 1981; now in the Churches Conservation Trust) *Converted: * St Michael's Chapel, Lancaster Moor Hospital (now flats) The city has places of worship for
Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
,
Baptist Baptists are a Christian denomination, denomination within Protestant Christianity distinguished by baptizing only professing Christian believers (believer's baptism) and doing so by complete Immersion baptism, immersion. Baptist churches ge ...
, Jehovah's Witness, Latter Day Saints and
Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...
s, as well as the
Salvation Army The Salvation Army (TSA) is a Protestantism, Protestant Christian church and an international charitable organisation headquartered in London, England. It is aligned with the Wesleyan-Holiness movement. The organisation reports a worldwide m ...
and community churches. Lancaster is also home to several mosques. Notable mosques are: Moorlands Islamic Centre, Lancaster Islamic Society, Raza Mosque Lancaster and prayer rooms in the University of Cumbria in Lancaster and University of Lancaster.


Sport

Lancaster City F.C. plays in the Northern Premier League Premier Division, having won promotion as champions of Division One North in 2016–2017. The club plays home matches at the Giant Axe, which has a capacity of 3,500 (513 seated) and was formed in 1911 as Lancaster Town F.C. The club has been seven-times Lancashire FA Challenge cup winners and in 2010–11 won the Northern Premier League President's Cup for a second time. Lancaster John O' Gaunt Rowing Club is the fifth-oldest surviving rowing club in the UK, outside the universities. It competes nationally at regattas and heads races run by British Rowing. The clubhouse stands next to the weir at Skerton. It is one of the cities that rotates hosting the ''International Youth Games'', a multi-sport Olympics-style event featuring competitors from Lancaster's
twin towns A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties. While there are early examples of inte ...
:
Rendsburg Rendsburg (, also ''Rensborg'', , also ''Rensborg'') is a town on the Eider (river), River Eider and the Kiel Canal in the central part of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is the capital of the ''Kreis'' (district) of Rendsburg-Eckernfoerde, Rends ...
(Germany),
Perpignan Perpignan (, , ; ; ) is the prefectures in France, prefecture of the Pyrénées-Orientales departments of France, department in Southern France, in the heart of the plain of Roussillon, at the foot of the Pyrenees a few kilometres from the Me ...
(France), Viana do Castelo (Portugal),
Aalborg Aalborg or Ålborg ( , , ) is Denmark's List of cities and towns in Denmark, fourth largest urban settlement (behind Copenhagen, Aarhus, and Odense) with a population of 119,862 (1 July 2022) in the town proper and an Urban area, urban populati ...
(Denmark),
Almere Almere () is a Planned community, planned List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of Flevoland, Netherlands across the IJmeer fro ...
(Netherlands),
Lublin Lublin is List of cities and towns in Poland, the ninth-largest city in Poland and the second-largest city of historical Lesser Poland. It is the capital and the centre of Lublin Voivodeship with a population of 336,339 (December 2021). Lublin i ...
(Poland) and
Växjö Växjö () is a city and the seat of Växjö Municipality, Kronoberg County, Sweden. It had 71,282 inhabitants (2020) out of a Municipalities of Sweden, municipal population of 97,349 (2024). It is the administrative, cultural, and industrial ce ...
(Sweden). The games were cancelled at the start of the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
, but Lancaster resumed participation in 2022 when the games re-started. Lancaster Cricket Club is sited near the
River Lune The River Lune (archaically sometimes Loyne) is a river in length in Cumbria and Lancashire, England. Etymology Several elucidations for the origin of the name ''Lune'' exist. Firstly, it may be that the name is Brittonic languages, Brittonic ...
. It has two senior teams that participate in the Palace Shield.
Rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...
is a popular sport in the area, with the local clubs being Vale of Lune RUFC and Lancaster CATS. Lancaster is home to the Golf Centre, Lansil Golf Club, Forest Hills and Lancaster Golf Club. Lancaster Amateur Swimming and Waterpolo Club competes in the north-west. It trains at Salt Ayre and at Lancaster University Sports Centre. Lancaster is home to a senior UK team.
Water polo Water polo is a competitive sport, competitive team sport played in water between two teams of seven players each. The game consists of four quarters in which the teams attempt to score goals by throwing the water polo ball, ball into the oppo ...
is also popular in the area. The local athletics track near the Salt Ayre Sports Centre is home to Lancaster AC and Morecambe AC. It fields athletes across disciplines including track and field, cross country, road and fell running. It competes in several local and national leagues including the Young Athletics League, the Northern Athletics League and the local Mid Lancs League (Cross-Country in Winter, and Track and Field in Summer).


Notable people


Arts and entertainment

* Joe Abercrombie (born 1974) – fantasy writer and film editor, was born in Lancaster and attended LRGS. * Cherith Baldry (born 1947) – children's and fantasy writer, was born in Lancaster. * Jim Bowen (1937–2018) – comedian, was formerly deputy headteacher of Caton Primary School, died at Royal Lancaster Infirmary *
Laurence Binyon Robert Laurence Binyon, Member of the Order of the Companions of Honour, CH (10 August 1869 – 10 March 1943) was an English poet, dramatist and art scholar. Born in Lancaster, Lancashire, Lancaster, England, his parents were Frederick Binyon, ...
(1869–1943) – poet and dramatist, was born in Lancaster. * Hubert Henry Norsworthy (1885–1961) – organist and composer, died in Lancaster. * Mabel Pakenham-Walsh (1937–2013) – artist, was born in Lancaster. * Jon Richardson (born 1982) – comedian, grew up in Lancaster and attended LRGS. * Thomas Thompson (1880–1951) – writer and broadcaster. *
John Waite John Charles Waite (born 4 July 1952) is an English rock singer and musician. As a solo artist, he has released ten studio albums and is best known for the 1984 hit single "Missing You (John Waite song), Missing You", which reached No. 1 on th ...
(born 1952) – rock musician, was born in Lancaster. * Dustin Demri-Burns (born 1978) – actor, writer and comedian. * Frankie Vaughan (1928–1999) – singer and actor, attended Lancaster College of Art * Keith Wilkinson – television news reporter, was born in Lancaster


Business

*
Henry Cort Henry Cort (c. 1740 – 23 May 1800) was an English ironware producer who was formerly a Navy pay agent. During the Industrial Revolution in England, Cort began refining iron from pig iron to wrought iron (or bar iron) using innovative productio ...
(c. 1741–1800) – English ironmaster and inventor, was probably born in Lancaster. * James Crosby (born 1956) – chief executive of
HBOS HBOS plc is a banking and insurance company in the United Kingdom, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Lloyds Banking Group, having been taken over in January 2009. It was the holding company for Bank of Scotland, Bank of Scotland plc, which ...
until 2006, attended Lancaster Royal Grammar School. * Thomas Edmondson (1792–1851) – businessman and inventor of the Edmondson railway ticket, was born in Lancaster. * Robert Gillow (1704–1772) was the founder of Gillows of Lancaster, an English furniture manufacturer. * Sir Ronald Halstead (1927–2021) – chair and Chief Executive of the
Beecham Group The Beecham Group plc was a British pharmaceutical company. It was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. Founded by Thomas Beecham who opened the first factory in St Helens, Lancashire in 1859, Beecham focused on marketing the business b ...
in 1984–1985 and Deputy Chair of British Steel in 1986–1994 was born in Lancaster and attended Lancaster Royal Grammar School. * James Williamson (1842–1930) – businessman and politician who created Williamson Park and Ashton memorial, was born in Lancaster and attended Lancaster Royal Grammar School.


Crime

* Lauren Jeska (born 1974) – an athlete who was convicted of the attempted murder of an official, Ralph Knibbs. * Buck Ruxton (1899–1936) – marital murderer, resided and practised medicine at 2 Dalton Square.


Politics and journalism

* Henry D. Gilpin (1801–1860) –
Attorney General of the United States The United States attorney general is the head of the United States Department of Justice and serves as the chief law enforcement officer of the federal government. The attorney general acts as the principal legal advisor to the president of the ...
, was born in Lancaster. * Erik de Mauny (1920–1997) – foreign correspondent, died in Lancaster. *Sir Lancelot Sanderson (1863–1944) – Conservative MP and judge, died in Lancaster.


Science and humanities

* J. L. Austin (1911–1960) – philosopher and developer of the theory of speech acts, was born in Lancaster. * John Ambrose Fleming (1849–1945) – electrical engineer and physicist, was born in Lancaster. * Edward Frankland (1825–1899) – chemist who originated the concept of valence, was born near Lancaster and educated at LRGS. * Jaroslav Krejčí (1916–2014) – Czech-British sociologist, was a professor at the University of Lancaster and died in Lancaster. * Geoffrey Leech (1936–2014) – linguistics researcher, was a professor at the University of Lancaster and died in Lancaster. *
Richard Owen Sir Richard Owen (20 July 1804 – 18 December 1892) was an English biologist, comparative anatomy, comparative anatomist and paleontology, palaeontologist. Owen is generally considered to have been an outstanding naturalist with a remarkabl ...
(1804–1892) – biologist who coined the term "dinosaur", lived in Brock Street. * William Turner (1832–1916) – anatomist and academic, was born in Lancaster. * Paul Wellings (born 1953) – ecologist, served as a professor and Vice-Chancellor of Lancaster University. * Emily Williamson (1855–1936), English philanthropist and co-founder of the RSPB, was born in Lancaster. * Gavin Wood (born 1980) – co-founded and headed Ethereum.


Sport

* Michael Allen (1933–1995) – international cricketer, died in Lancaster. *
Arthur Bate Arthur Bate (14 October 1908 – February 1993) was an English professional association football, footballer who played predominantly as a centre forward and occasionally as an outside forward, outside right. Born in Little Hulton, he began his ...
(1908–1993) – professional
footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...
, died in Lancaster. * James Beattie (born 1978) – professional footballer, was born in Lancaster. * Harold Douthwaite (1900–1972) – first-class cricketer, was born and died in Lancaster. * Scott Durant (born 1988) – Olympic gold medal-winning rower, was a pupil at Lancaster Royal Grammar School. * Trevor Glover (born 1951) – first-class cricketer and rugby union player, was born in Lancaster. * William Gregson (1877–1963) – first-class cricketer, died in Lancaster. * Sarah Illingworth (born 1963) – international cricketer (
New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
), was born in Lancaster. * Edward Jackson (1849–1926) – first-class cricketer, was born in Lancaster. * John Jackson (1841–1906) – first-class cricketer, was born in Lancaster. * Scott McTominay (born 1996) – professional footballer, was born in Lancaster. * John Pinch (1870–1946) – international rugby union player, was born and died in Lancaster. *
Jason Queally Jason Paul Queally (born 11 May 1970) is an English track cyclist. He won a gold medal at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney. Early years Born at Great Haywood, Staffordshire, Queally spent his childhood in Caton, a village near Lancaster. He a ...
(born 1970) – Olympic gold medal-winning cyclist, was a pupil at Lancaster Royal Grammar School. * Matt Rogerson (born 1993) – professional Rugby Union player currently with
London Irish London Irish RFC is a professional rugby union club that most recently competed in the Premiership Rugby, Premiership, the top division of rugby union in England. The club also participated in the European Rugby Champions Cup, European Champion ...
, was born in Lancaster. * Fred Shinton (1883–1923) – professional footballer, died in Lancaster. * Alan Warriner-Little (born 1962) – champion darts player, was born in Lancaster.


See also

* Lancaster power stations


References


Bibliography

* *


External links


Lancaster City Council
– Homepage of Lancaster City Council
Regional Europe - LancasterVisit Lancaster Website
– Tourism Website for Lancaster

- from Lancaster Archaeological and Historical Society * {{Authority control County towns in England Towns in Lancashire Roman fortifications in England Unparished areas in Lancashire Former civil parishes in Lancashire Geography of the City of Lancaster