Northampton

Traditionally Northampton has been a major centre of shoemaking and other leather related industries. Although shoemaking is still important, it has been overtaken as the main industry by engineering (bearings, vehicle components), distribution and finance.

Northampton the most populous district in England not to be a unitary authority. It is also one of the most populous urban districts not to be a London Borough, metropolitan borough or city; on this basis the council claims that it is the largest town in England. Medway and Milton Keynes could also claim this title, but these are often not seen as single towns.

Northampton's population has nearly doubled since the 1960s, largely due to it being declared a new town in the early 60s. Another factor is the direct rail-link and the busy M1 motorway that both lead direct to London. Northampton is around sixty-miles from London, and by car and train it takes approximately ninety-minutes to journey between the two. This transport link to the South East has proved attractive, with already high house prices in and around London rising rapidly since the 1990s causing many people to move further and further away from the area in order to commute. Most of Northampton's housing expansion has happened to the east of the town, and it also around that area that a major new junction on the M1 has recently been constructed.

Early History

The pre Norman town was known as Hamtun and was quite small, occupying only some 60 acres).

Remains have been found in the Northampton area dating back to Roman times. It is believed that farming settlement began in the Northampton area in around the 7th century. By the 8th century it had became an administrative centre for the kingdom of Mercia.

The town became significant in the 11th century, when the Normans built town walls and a large castle in Northampton. The town had one of the largest Jewish population in 13th century England centered around Gold Street. In 1277 three hundred Jews were executed for clipping the King's coin and the Jews of Northampton were driven out of the town.

Its original defence line is preserved in today's street pattern (Bridge St, The Drapery, Bearward St & Scarletwell Lane).

The town was originally controlled by officials acting for the King; these officials collected the taxes and upheld the law.

In 1189 King Richard 1 gave the town its first charter and in 1215 King John authorised the appointment of Willaim Tilly as the town's first Mayor. He also ordered that, "...twelve of the better and more discreet" residents of the town join him as a council to assist him.

Medieval period onwards

After the Normans arrived, the town grew rapidly and out beyond the early defences. By the time of Domesday, the town had a population of about 1500 residents, living in 300 houses.

In 1460, the Battle of Northampton took place - a decisive battle of the Wars of the Roses, and King Henry VI was captured in the town by Yorkists.

Northampton supported the parliamentarians during the English Civil War. For this reason the town walls and castle were later torn down on the orders of King Charles II as punishment. The railway station in Northampton stands on the site of the former castle, and for this reason is known as "Northampton Castle Station".

The town was destroyed by fire in both 1516 and 1675, and was re-built as a spacious and well-planned town. In the 18th century Northampton became a major centre of footwear and leather manufacture. The prosperity of the town was greatly aided by demand for footwear caused by the Napoleonic Wars of the late 18th and early 19th centuries..

Northampton's growth was accelerated in the 19th century first by the Grand Union Canal which reached the town in 1815 and later the coming of the Railways in the 1830s. A loop of the major West Coast Main Line was built into Northampton in the 1870s.

Over the coming centuries the town continued to grow rapidly; after 1850 the town spilled out beyond the old town walls and began the growth we see today. in 1800 the population was round 7,000 and this had grown to 87,000 a century later.

1900 - Today

Growth after 1900 was slower. The town's famous shoe industry ceased to grow and other industries arrived slowly.

In the 19th century Northampton acquired a reputation for political radicalism when the radical non-conformist Charles Bradlaugh was elected on several occasions as the town's MP.

Between the wars pressure on housing lead to new council built housing estates being erected. The Borough boundary first extended in 1900 was expanded again in 1932. In 1968 the Northampton Development Corporation (NDC) was set up as the town was designated a New Town . At this time the town also became linked to the M1 motorway.. By the time NDC was wound up twenty years later another 40,000 residents and 20,000 had been added.

At the turn of the millennium, Northampton applied unsuccesfully to be granted city status as a part of the "millennium cities" scheme. This distinction for the Midlands area, was instead granted to Wolverhampton.

Leisure and culture

The town is noted for its many parks, which include Abington Park, The Racecourse (home to the annual Balloon Festival), Delapre Park, Bradlaugh Fields, Becket's Park (named after Thomas Becket, who also lends his name to the nearby Becket's Well) and Iron Age hill fort Hunsbury Hill. Leisure park Billing Aquadrome is situated on the town's outskirts, which incorporates a caravan site, marina and funfair.

As well as three modern indoor shopping centres, the town also claims to have Britain's largest market square, which dates back to 1235. The square and surrounding shopping streets host the annual St Crispin Street Fair, held during the October half-term school holiday since 1993.

The Derngate and Royal theatres are situated next door to each other in Guildhall Road, opposite Northampton Museum and Art Gallery. There is also a smaller museum in a former mansion within Abington Park. Roadmender is a leading venue for art and music in the region. Three cinemas are also located in the town: Vue at Sol Central, UGC at Sixfields and the Forum Cinema at Lings Forum.

Notable buildings

• Northampton's oldest standing building, the Church of The Holy Sepulchre is one of the largest and best preserved round churches in England. It was built in 1100 on the orders of the first Earl of Northampton, Simon de Senlis, who'd just returned from the first crusade. It is based on a plan of the original Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem.
• The current All Saints church (see picture right) was constructed mostly in the early 18th century, after the original was burnt down in 1675.
• The guildhall in Northampton (see picture at top) was constructed mostly in the 1860s in Victorian Gothic architecture, and extended in the 1890s. It is built on the site of the old town hall.
• Terry Wogan's 'Northampton Lighthouse', the 127.45 metre tall Express Lifts tower is a dominant feature in the area. It was built to facilitate the testing of new lifts at the Express Lifts factory. It is visible from most of the town, but is now redundant. The tower has however been listed as being of architectural importance in the town.
• Northampton Castle (now only remaining in the hill on which it stood) was for many years one of the country's most important castles. The country's parliament sat here many times and Thomas à Becket was imprisoned here until he escaped.
  

  Celebrity associations

• Scientist Francis Crick was born in the town in 1916, who along with James D. Watson discovered the structure of DNA, and went on to win a Nobel Prize.
• Actress Joan Hickman famous for playing Miss Marple comes from Kingsthorpe."Birds of a feather" actress Lesley Joseph grew up in the town.
• Nearby to Northampton is Althorp, the country estate where Diana, Princess of Wales is buried. In 1997, her funeral procession passed through the town.
• Journalist and broadcaster Andrew Collins originally hails from Northampton and wrote about growing up in the town in his memoir Where Did It All Go Right?.
• Des O'Connor lived in Northampton, worked at Church's for some years and played for the Cobblers (Northampton Town Football).
• Television presenter Michael Underwood lives in the town
• Composer Sir Malcolm Arnold was born in the town
• Actor Robert Llewellyn (Kryten from Red Dwarf) was also born in the town
• British writer Alan Moore, creator of Watchmen, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, and Voice of the Fire, a fictionalized history of Northampton lives in the town.
• Jo Whiley, the BBC Radio 1 DJ was born in the town in 1965.
• The late Delia Derbyshire (who was behind the original version of the Doctor Who theme tune) also spent her final years in the town.
• Blue Peter's Peter Purves lives in the nearby village of Cogenhoe - as did his one time girlfriend Catherine Zeta-Jones!
• BBC radio presenter Anna Murby comes from the county.
• Judy Carne (born Joyce Botterill on April 27, 1939 in Northampton, Northamptonshire, England) is an actress and may be best remembered for her introducing the phrase "Sock it to me!" while a regular on Laugh-In.

• Spencer Perceval was a local MP and Prime Minister. He is famous for having been killed in the House of Commons by John Bellingham in 1812.
• John Clare the poet was sectioned in the local madhouse where he remained until his death in 1836.
• Charles Bradlaugh the famous radical MP was a member for the town.
  

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