About Northampton
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The historic town of Northampton lies on the river Nene, its name means 'North Home Town'. Settlement in the area dates back to the bronze age. The Romans built the town of Lactodorum nearby (what is now Towcester) and their main road of Watling Street passes through it, they also had a settlement in Duston (close to the St Luke's Centre). In Anglo-Saxon times, Northampton was part of the kingdom of Mercia, then when the Vikings invaded it became part of the Danelaw before being reclaimed from the Danes by King Edward the Elder, son of Alfred the Great, in 917.
The town's significance rose with the establishment of the castle, built by Simon de Senlis, the first Earl of Northampton, and the first town charter was granted in 1189. Two medieval Battles of Northampton were fought, the first in 1264 when Henry III of England besieged Simon do Montfort's supporters at the castle, the second in the Wars of the Roses when a Yorkist force under the Earl of Warwick captured the Lancastrian Henry VI.
By 1401, a local Guild of Shoemakers had been established, and by the 16th century Northampton had become an important centre for the industry, which grew up around an already thriving leather trade. In 1642 a consortium of local shoemakers won a contract to supply boots for use in the English Civil War, and the town gave its support to the Roundheads. Unfortunately this meant that in 1662, after the Restoration, Charles II had the town walls and the castle destroyed.
In 1675, sparks from an open fire in St Mary's street started the Great Fire of Northampton, devastating the town centre. Three quarters of the town was destroyed. Local people and businesses raised money to rebuild, including a donation of 1000 tons of timber from Salcey Forest by Charles II. In 1724 the rebuilt town was described by Daniel Defoe as the "handsomest and best built town in all this part of England…..finely rebuilt with brick and stone, and the streets made spacious and wide".
The town grew rapidly with industrial development and the arrival of the Leicester and Northamptonshire Union Canal (completed in 1810 and now part of the Grand Union Canal), and became even better known as a centre for footwear and leather manufacture. By 1831 a third of all men living in Northampton were shoemakers. By 1858 the railway had reached Northampton, but the new station was built on the site of the castle and its ruins were demolished to make way for a goods shed.
Having supplied over two-thirds of the 70 million pairs of boots needed for the First World War, changes in the latter half of the 20th century meant a decline in footwear manufacture in the area, as it could be done more cheaply abroad. A large number of Northampton's shoe factories have now been converted to offices or flats. However there are still around thirty manufacturers of footwear left in the area and they still produce some of the finest shoes in the world.
The town's significance rose with the establishment of the castle, built by Simon de Senlis, the first Earl of Northampton, and the first town charter was granted in 1189. Two medieval Battles of Northampton were fought, the first in 1264 when Henry III of England besieged Simon do Montfort's supporters at the castle, the second in the Wars of the Roses when a Yorkist force under the Earl of Warwick captured the Lancastrian Henry VI.
By 1401, a local Guild of Shoemakers had been established, and by the 16th century Northampton had become an important centre for the industry, which grew up around an already thriving leather trade. In 1642 a consortium of local shoemakers won a contract to supply boots for use in the English Civil War, and the town gave its support to the Roundheads. Unfortunately this meant that in 1662, after the Restoration, Charles II had the town walls and the castle destroyed.
In 1675, sparks from an open fire in St Mary's street started the Great Fire of Northampton, devastating the town centre. Three quarters of the town was destroyed. Local people and businesses raised money to rebuild, including a donation of 1000 tons of timber from Salcey Forest by Charles II. In 1724 the rebuilt town was described by Daniel Defoe as the "handsomest and best built town in all this part of England…..finely rebuilt with brick and stone, and the streets made spacious and wide".
The town grew rapidly with industrial development and the arrival of the Leicester and Northamptonshire Union Canal (completed in 1810 and now part of the Grand Union Canal), and became even better known as a centre for footwear and leather manufacture. By 1831 a third of all men living in Northampton were shoemakers. By 1858 the railway had reached Northampton, but the new station was built on the site of the castle and its ruins were demolished to make way for a goods shed.
Having supplied over two-thirds of the 70 million pairs of boots needed for the First World War, changes in the latter half of the 20th century meant a decline in footwear manufacture in the area, as it could be done more cheaply abroad. A large number of Northampton's shoe factories have now been converted to offices or flats. However there are still around thirty manufacturers of footwear left in the area and they still produce some of the finest shoes in the world.