Chester was founded in 79 AD as a "castrum" orRoman fort with the nameDeva Victrix during the reign ofEmperor Vespasian. One of the main army camps inRoman Britain, Deva later became a major civilian settlement. In 689,King Æthelred of Mercia founded the Minster Church of West Mercia, which later became Chester's first cathedral, and theAngles extended and strengthened the walls to protect the city against theDanes. Chester was one of the last cities in England tofall to theNormans, andWilliam the Conqueror ordered the construction of a castle to dominate the town and the nearby Welsh border. Chester was grantedcity status in 1541.
Thecity walls of Chester are some of the best-preserved in the country and haveGrade I listed status. Apart from a 100-metre (330 ft) section, the walls are almost complete.[5] It has several medieval buildings. However, many of the black-and-white buildings within the city centre areVictorian restorations, originating from theBlack-and-white Revival movement.[6] TheIndustrial Revolution brought railways, canals, and new roads to the city, which saw substantial expansion and development;Chester Town Hall and theGrosvenor Museum are examples ofVictorian architecture from this period. Tourism, the retail industry, public administration, and financial services are important to the modern economy. Chester signs itself asChester International Heritage City on road signs on the main roads entering the city.[7]
TheRomanLegio II Adiutrix during the reign of theEmperor Vespasian founded Chester in AD 79 as a "castrum" or Roman fort with the nameDeva Victrix. It was established in the land of the CelticCornovii, according to ancientcartographerPtolemy,[9] as afortress during the Roman expansion northward,[10] and was named Deva either after the goddess of the Dee,[11] or directly from the British name for the river.[12] The 'victrix' part of the name was taken from the title of theLegio XXValeria Victrix which was based at Deva.[13] Central Chester's four main roads, Eastgate, Northgate, Watergate and Bridge Street, follow routes laid out at this time.
A civilian settlement grew around the military base, which probably originated from trade with the fortress.[14] The fortress was 20% larger than other fortresses in theRoman province of Britannia built around the same time atYork (Eboracum) andCaerleon (Isca Augusta);[15] this has led to the suggestion that the fortress, rather than London (Londinium), was intended to become the capital of theRoman province ofBritannia Superior.[16] The civilianamphitheatre, which was built in the 1st century, could seat between 8,000 and 10,000 people.[17] It is the largest known military amphitheatre in Britain,[18] and is also aScheduled Monument.[19] TheMinerva Shrine in the Roman quarry is the only rock-cut Roman shrine stillin situ in Britain.[20]
The fortress was garrisoned by thelegion until at least the late 4th century.[21] Although the army had abandoned the fortress by 410 when the Romansretreated from Britannia,[22] theRomano-British civilian settlement continued (probably with some Roman veterans staying behind with their wives and children) and its occupants probably continued to use the fortress and its defences as protection from raiders from theIrish Sea.[21]
After the Roman troops withdrew, the Romano-British established several petty kingdoms. Chester is thought to have become part ofPowys.Deverdoeu was aWelshname for Chester as late as the 12th century (cfDyfrdwy, Welsh for the river Dee). Another, attested in the 9th-centuryHistory of the Britons traditionally attributed toNennius, isCair Legion[23][24][25] ("Fort" or "City of the Legion"); this later developed intoCaerlleon and then themodern WelshCaer. (The town's importance is noted by its taking the simpler form in each case, whileIsca Augusta inMonmouthshire, another important legionary base, was known first asCaerleon on the Usk, and now asCaerleon). King Arthur is said to have fought his ninth battle at the "city of the legions" (Caerlleon) and laterSt Augustine came to the city to try to unite the church, and held his synod with the Welsh Bishops.
In 616,Æthelfrith of Northumbria defeated a Welsh army at the brutal and decisiveBattle of Chester and probably established theAnglo-Saxon position in the area from then on.[citation needed] TheNorthumbrianAnglo-Saxons used anOld English equivalent of the British name,Legacæstir, which was current until the 11th century, when, in a further parallel with Welsh usage, the first element fell out of use and the simple name Chester emerged. In 689, KingÆthelred of Mercia founded the Minster Church of West Mercia on what is considered to be an early Christian site: it is known as the Minster of St John the Baptist, Chester (now St John's Church) which later became the first cathedral. Much later, the body of Æthelred's niece, St Werburgh, was removed from Hanbury in Staffordshire in the 9th century and, to save it from desecration by Danish marauders was reburied in the Church of SS Peter & Paul – later to become the Abbey Church (the present cathedral). Her name is still remembered in St Werburgh's Street, which passes alongside the cathedral, and near the city walls,[citation needed] and inSt Werburgh's Roman Catholic church in Grosvenor Park Road.
The Anglo-Saxons extended and strengthened the walls of Chester to protect the city against the Danes, who occupied it for a short time untilAlfred seized all the cattle and laid waste on the surrounding land to drive them out. It was Alfred's daughterÆthelflæd, Lady of the Mercians, that built the new Anglo-Saxonburh.[citation needed] A new Church dedicated to St Peter alone was founded in AD 907 by the Lady Æthelfleda at what was to become the Cross. In 973, the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle records that, two years after his coronation at Bath,King Edgar of England came to Chester where he held his court in a palace in a place now known as Edgar's Field near the old Dee bridge in Handbridge. Taking the helm of a barge, he was rowed the short distance up the River Dee from Edgar's Field to the great Minster Church of St John the Baptist by six (the monk Henry Bradshaw records he was rowed by eight kings) tributary kings calledreguli.[citation needed]
In the English Civil War, Chester sided with the royalist cause of King Charles I but was subdued by the Parliamentarians in 1643. The Mayor of Chester, Charles Walley, was removed from office and replaced by Alderman William Edwards. Another alderman,Francis Gamull, a royalist MP and former Mayor, was ordered to surrender Dee Mills: they were to be demolished, and new mills built on city land.[29]
Chester played a significant part in theIndustrial Revolution, which began in the North West of England in the late 18th century. The city village of Newtown, located northeast of the city and bounded by theShropshire Union Canal, was at the very heart of this industry.[30] The large Chester Cattle Market and the two Chester railway stations,Chester General andChester Northgate Station, meant thatNewtown with its cattle market andcanal, andHoole with its railways were responsible for providing the vast majority of workers and in turn, the vast amount of Chester's wealth production throughout the Industrial Revolution.
Grosvenor is the Duke's family name, which explains such features in the city as theGrosvenor Bridge, theGrosvenor Hotel, and Grosvenor Park. Much of Chester's architecture dates from theVictorian era, many of the buildings being modelled on theJacobean half-timbered style and designed byJohn Douglas, who was employed by the Duke as his principal architect.[citation needed] He had a trademark of twisted chimney stacks, many of which can be seen on the buildings in the city centre.
Douglas designed, amongst other buildings, the Grosvenor Hotel and theCity Baths. In 1911, Douglas' protégé and city architect James Strong designed the then-active fire station on the west side of Northgate Street. Another feature of all buildings belonging to the estate of Westminster is the 'Grey Diamonds' – a weaving pattern of grey bricks in the red brickwork laid out in a diamond formation.[citation needed]
Towards the end ofWorld War II, a lack of affordable housing meant many problems for Chester. Large areas of farmland on the city's outskirts were developed as residential areas in the 1950s and early 1960s, producing, for instance, the suburb ofBlacon. In 1964, a bypass was built through and around the city centre to combat traffic congestion.[citation needed]
These new developments caused local concern as the physicality[clarification needed] and, therefore, the feel of the city was being dramatically altered. In 1968, a report by Donald Insall, in collaboration with authorities and government, recommended that historic buildings be preserved in Chester.[32] Consequently, the buildings were used in new and different ways instead of being demolished.[33]
The City Conservation Area was designated in 1969. Over the next twenty years, the emphasis was placed on saving historic buildings, such asThe Falcon Inn,Dutch Houses, and Kings Buildings.
On 13 January 2002, Chester was granted the first UKFairtrade City status by theFairtrade Foundation. In 2011 this was extended to the entire borough.[34]
Chester was anancient borough, with its earliest known charters dating from the twelfth century. It was given the right to appoint its own sheriffs in 1506, making it acounty corporate, outside the jurisdiction of theSheriff of Cheshire.[39] The borough gained city status in 1541 following the creation of theDiocese of Chester. The borough was reformed to become amunicipal borough in 1836 under theMunicipal Corporations Act 1835, which standardised the way many boroughs operated across the country. As part of the 1836 reforms the borough was enlarged beyond its medieval boundaries to include theBoughton area.[40][41]
When elected county councils were created in 1889, Chester was considered large enough for its existing borough council to provide county-level services. It was therefore made acounty borough, independent fromCheshire County Council.[42] The borough was enlarged in 1936, when it absorbedBlacon, and again in 1954, when it absorbedHoole.[43] The county borough was abolished in 1974, merging with the formerChester Rural District andTarvin Rural District which covered the surrounding rural areas to create a newChester district, which was a district-level authority with Cheshire County Council providing county-level services.[44] Chester's city status was extended to cover the whole of the district created in 1974.[45] In 1992, Chester City Council was given the right to appoint aLord Mayor.[46]
Chester City Council was abolished in 2009 when local government across Cheshire was reorganised; Cheshire County Council was also abolished, and the three districts of Chester,Ellesmere Port and Neston andVale Royal merged to form a unitary authority called Cheshire West and Chester.Charter trustees were established to maintain Chester's city status and appoint the Lord Mayor.[47][48] Chester'scity status is now formally held by the area of the charter trustees, comprising the 15wards of Cheshire West and Chester which correspond to the area of the pre-2009 Chester City Council.[3] The official city therefore includes rural areas beyond Chester's built-up area, and had a total population of 138,875 at the 2021 census, compared to 92,760 for the built-up area.[2]
An aerial photograph of central Chester and the River Dee
Chester lies at the southern end of a 2-mile (3.2 km)Triassicsandstone ridge that rises to a height of 42 m within a natural S-bend in the River Dee (before the course was altered in the 18th century). The bedrock, also known as the Chester Pebble Beds, is noticeable because of the many small stones trapped within its strata. Retreating glacial sheet ice also deposited quantities of sand andmarl across the area where boulder clay was absent.
The eastern and northern parts of Chester consisted of heathland and forest. The western side towards theDee Estuary was marsh and wetland habitats.
Chester has anoceanic climate (Köppen:Cfb), typical of theBritish Isles but more susceptible to cold than the extreme south.[49] Despite its proximity to theIrish Sea, the temperature regime is similar to areas further inland, owing to the shelter provided by thePennines to the northeast and the Welsh Mountains to the southwest. The nearest official weather station is atHawarden Airport, about 4 miles (6.4 km) west of the city centre.
The absolute maximum temperature recorded was 37.1 °C (98.8 °F) on 18 July 2022, the highest temperature reported in Wales. In an average year, the warmest day should reach 29.3 °C (84.7 °F),[50] and 12.0 days[51] in total should attain a temperature of 25.1 °C (77.2 °F) or higher. Given the correctly aligned breezy conditions, aföhn effect will operate, meaning local temperatures are somewhat higher than the surrounding area.
The absolute minimum temperature recorded was −18.2 °C (−0.8 °F)[52] during January 1982. Annually, an average of 42.2 air frosts should be recorded.
Annual rainfall is barely over 700mm[53] due to arain shadow effect caused by the Welsh Mountains. Over 1mm of rain is reported on 135.5 days.[53]
The more unusual landmarks in the city are thecity walls, theRows and the black-and-white architecture. The walls encircle the bounds of the medieval city and constitute the most complete city walls in Britain,[5] the full circuit measuring nearly 2 miles (3 km).[62] The only break in the circuit is in the south-west section in front ofCounty Hall.[63] A footpath runs along the top of the walls, crossing roads by bridges over Eastgate,Northgate, St Martin's Gate,Watergate,Bridgegate,Newgate,[64] and the Wolf Gate, and passing a series of structures, namelyPhoenix Tower (or King Charles' Tower),Morgan's Mount, the Goblin Tower (orPemberton's Parlour) andBonewaldesthorne's Tower with a spur leading to theWater Tower andThimbleby's Tower.[65] On Eastgate isEastgate Clock, which is said to be the most photographed clock face in England after those that share the tower withBig Ben.[66]
The Rows are unique in Britain.[67][68] They consist of buildings with shops or dwellings on the lowest two storeys. The shops or dwellings on the ground floor are often lower than the street and are entered by steps, which sometimes lead to acrypt-likevault. Those on the first floor are entered behind a continuous walkway, often with a sloping shelf between the walkway and the railings overlooking the street.[69] Much of the architecture of central Chester looks medieval and some of it is, but by far the greater part of it, including most of the black-and-white buildings, isVictorian, a result of whatPevsner termed the "black-and-white revival" pioneered by architectsJohn Douglas andT.M. Lockwood.[70]
The most prominent buildings in the city centre are thetown hall and thecathedral. The town hall was opened in 1869. It is inGothic Revival style and has a tower and a short spire.[71] The cathedral was formerly the church ofSt Werburgh's Abbey. Its architecture dates back to theNorman era, with additions made most centuries since. A series of major restorations took place in the 19th century, and in 1975, a separate bell tower was opened. The elaborately carvedcanopies of the choir stalls are considered to be among the finest in the country. Also in the cathedral is theshrine ofSt Werburgh. The formermonastic buildings are north of the cathedral.[72] The oldest church in the city isSt John's, which is outside the city walls and was at one time the cathedral church. The church was shortened after thedissolution of the monasteries, and ruins of the former east end remain outside the church. Much of the interior is in Norman style and this is considered to be the best example of 11th–12th-century church architecture in Cheshire.[73] At the intersection of the former Roman roads isChester Cross, to the north of which is the small church ofSt Peter's, which is in use as an ecumenical centre.[74] Other churches are now redundant and have other uses:St Michael's in Bridge Street is aheritage centre,[75]St Mary-on-the-Hill is an educational centre,[76] andHoly Trinity now acts as the Guildhall.[77] Other notable buildings include the preservedshot tower, the highest structure in Chester,[78] andSt Thomas of Canterbury Church.[79]
The north side of Eastgate Street painted byLouise Rayner. On the far right is the 17th-centuryBoot Inn.
Roman remains can still be found in the city, particularly in the basements of some of the buildings and in the lower parts of the northern section of the city walls.[80] The most important Roman feature is theamphitheatre just outside the walls, which underwent archaeological investigation in the early 21st century.[81] Roman artefacts are on display in the Roman Gardens which run parallel to the city walls from Newgate to the River Dee, where there's also a reconstructedhypocaust system.[82] An original hypocaust system discovered in the 1720s[83] can be seen in the basement of 39 Bridge Street, which is open to the public.[84]
Of the original medieval city, the most important surviving structure isChester Castle, particularly the Agricola Tower. Much of the rest of the castle has been replaced by theneoclassical county court and its entrance, the Propyleum.[85] To the south of the city runs the River Dee, with its 11th-centuryweir. The river is crossed by theOld Dee Bridge, dating from the 13th century, theGrosvenor Bridge of 1832, and Queen's Park suspension bridge (for pedestrians).[86] To the southwest of the city, the River Dee curves towards the north. The area between the river and the city walls here is known as the Roodee and containsChester Racecourse, which holds a series of horse races and other events.[87] The first recorded race meet in England at Roodee Fields was on 9 February 1540.[citation needed] The Shropshire Union Canal runs to the north of the city and a branch leads from it to the River Dee.[88]
The major museum in Chester is theGrosvenor Museum, which includes a collection of Roman tombstones and anart gallery. Associated with the museum is 20 Castle Street, which has rooms furnished in different historical styles.[89] The Deva Roman Experience has hands-on exhibits and a reconstructed Roman street. One of the blocks in the forecourt of the Castle houses the Cheshire Military Museum.[90]
The major public park in Chester isGrosvenor Park.[91] On the south side of the River Dee, inHandbridge, is Edgar's Field, another public park,[92] which containsMinerva's Shrine, a Roman shrine to the goddessMinerva.[93] Awar memorial to those who died in the world wars is in the town hall and it contains the names of all Chester servicemen who died in the First World War.[94]
There are cruises on the River Dee and the Shropshire Union Canal, as well as guided open-air bus tours. The river cruises and bus tours start from a riverside area known as the Groves, which contains seating and abandstand.[95] A series of festivals is organised in the city, includingmystery plays, a summer music festival and aliterature festival.[96] There is aTourist Information Centre at the town hall.[97]
The Cheshire Police Constabulary was historically based in the city from its foundation in 1857. Originally on Seller Street, its headquarters moved to Egerton Street (both since redeveloped), and then from 1870 to 113 Foregate Street, where Parker's Buildings now stand. In 1883, the police headquarters moved to142 Foregate Street, Chester, now preserved as a Grade II listed building. The county police headquarters has since moved again, in 1967, to Nuns Road before leaving the city in 2003 for Clemonds Hey,Winsford.[98]
According to the 2011 census, Chester had a largeWhite British proportion of around 110,000 or 90.9% of the population. 1.0% described themselves as Irish. 3.6% asOther White. 2.2% described themselves as Asian. 1.3% described themselves asMixed Race. 0.6% described themselves as Black orBlack British and 0.3% are classed as other.[99] Cheshire West and Chester also has a large number of Christians at 76.4%. 14% have no religion, and 8.2% are not stated. 0.7% are Muslim. 0.1% are Sikhs. 0.1% are Jewish. 0.2% are Buddhists.[100]
The population was forecast to grow by 5% from 2005 to 2021.[101] The resident population forChester District in the2001 Census was 118,200. This represents 17.5% of the Cheshire County total (1.8% of the North West population).[102]
The city is home to theUniversity of Chester. Formerly a teacher training college, it gained full university status in 2005 and is the county's main provider of tertiary education.
The major museum in Chester is theGrosvenor Museum, which includes a collection of Roman tombstones and anart gallery. Associated with the museum is a building on 20 Castle Street that has rooms furnished in different historical styles.[89] The Dewa Roman Experience has hands-on exhibits and a reconstructed Roman street. One of the blocks in the forecourt of Chester Castle houses theCheshire Military Museum.[90]
The £37mStoryhouse arts centre opened in the city centre in 2017. It includes a theatre, cinema, restaurant and the city's main library. It is housed in the city's remodelled 1936 Odeon Cinema and replaces theGateway Theatre and the former library on Northgate Street.
Chester Little Theatre is based in Newtown and run by Chester Theatre Club. It generally stages 5 or 6 plays each year.[104] Chester Music Theatre is based in a converted church in Boughton. There was a multiplex cinema and a ten-pin bowling alley at Greyhound Retail Park on the city's edge, but these have closed. The cinema has moved to Broughton, just over the border in North Wales.[105] A newPicturehouse multi-screen cinema is being built in the city centre as part of the Northgate Project, due for completion in 2022. Chester has its own film society, several amateur dramatic societies and theatre schools.
The Grove area of Chester is home to a Grade II-listed bandstand built in 1913. A programme of afternoon performances runs every weekend and Bank Holiday from May to August each year, usually including brass bands, choirs, jazz, blues, and acoustic performers. The current Bandstand Coordinator is Luke Moore, who was appointed in 2018 and has expanded the programme to include a mixture of visual art, theatre, poetry, and community events alongside a variety of musical performances.
Grosvenor Park Open Air Theatre, founded in 2010, is the only site-specific professional open-air theatre company outside London. It has an eight-week annual summer repertory season.[106]
To the east side of the city isChester Zoo, the UK's largestzoo with over 11,000 animals in 110 acres of award-winning gardens.
Numerous pubs, nightclubs, and bars, some of which are located in medieval buildings, populate the city. One such example isQuaintways.
Chester has had a professional classical music festival – the Chester Summer Music Festival, beginning in 1967 and regularly since 1978. The festival went into liquidation[107] in 2012. A major new music festival was launched in March 2013 (previously known as Chester Performs[108]), running annually every summer. The Chester Music Festival features the professional music groupEnsemble Deva led by Giovanni Guzzo and Music Director Clark Rundell. Ensemble Deva regularly features soloists and section leaders from the country's leading symphony orchestras, including Liverpool Philharmonic, the Hallé and Manchester Camerata.[109]
Chester has a brass band that was formed in 1853. It was known as the Blue Coat Band and today as The City of Chester Band.[111] It is a third section brass band with a training band. Its members wear a blue-jacketed uniform with an image of the Eastgate clock on the breast pocket of the blazer.
Chester Music Society was founded in 1948 as a small choral society. It now encompasses four sections: The Choir has 170 members drawn from Chester and the surrounding district; The Youth Choirs support three choirs: Youth Choir, Preludes, and the Alumni Choir; Celebrity Concerts promote a season of six high-quality concerts each year; The club is a long established section which aims to encourage young musicians and in many cases offers the first opportunity to perform in public.
The Chester Philharmonic Orchestra (CPO) was founded in 1884 and is one of the premier non-professional orchestras in North West England. Formerly the Chester Orchestral Society, it performs music from a vast repertoire. The Orchestra is a registered charity and usually performs four or five concerts each year (including an annual carol concert) in the magnificent setting of Chester's ancient Cathedral under the direction of well-known professional conductors.
Telford's Warehouse, Alexander's Jazz Bar and The Live Rooms are the city's leading live music venues.
An annual popular music festival started in 2011 called Chester Rocks. It is held on the grounds of the Chester Racecourse.
The founder members of the bandRiver City People (guitarist Tim Speed and his drummer brother Paul Speed) are from Chester. They had a number of hits in the early 1990s. Later into the same decade,Mansun formed in the city after singer Paul Draper met guitarist Dominic Chad whilst working in the local former Fat Cat Bar. More recently,Shy and the Fight, featuring Chester-based musicians, has achieved national attention via airplay onRadio 1 andRadio 2, also appearing atWychwood andSwn festivals. Other bands that have gone on to achieve a degree of success outside of the city include The Suns, The Wayriders, Motion Empire, Casino and Face Of Christ and The Lovelies.
Lydia Sigourney gives her impressions of the city in her poemChester published inPleasant Memories of Pleasant Lands, 1842. These relate to her visit to this country from America in 1840.[113]
Bridge Street and the Rows at Chester, designed byT.M. Lockwood
Chester's primary industries are now the service industries, which are tourism, retail, public administration, and financial services. Many domestic and international tourists visit to view the city's landmarks and heritage, with a complementary benefit to hotels and restaurants.
The city's central shopping area includes its unique Rows or galleries (two levels of shops), which date frommedieval times and are believed to include the oldest shop front in England.[114] The city has many chain stores. Also, it features an indoor market and two main indoor shopping centres: The Grosvenor Shopping Centre and the Forum (a reference to the city's Roman past). There are retail parks to the west and south.Cheshire Oaks Designer Outlet andBroughton Retail Park are near the city.
Just over the Welsh border to the west,Broughton is home to a largeAirbus UK factory (formerlyBritish Aerospace), employing around 6,000 staff, where the wings of theAirbus aeroplanes are manufactured.[115] There are food processing plants to the north and west. TheIceland frozen food company is based in nearby Deeside.
In 2007, Chester City Council announced a 10-year plan to see Chester become a "must-see European destination". At a cost of £1.3 billion it was branded Chester Renaissance.[116]
The Northgate Development project began in 2007 with the demolition of St. Martin's House on the city's ring road. At a cost of £460 million, Chester City Council and developers ING hoped to create a new quarter for Chester. The development was intended see the demolition of the market hall, bus station, theatre and NCP car park. They were to be replaced with amulti-storey car park, bus exchange, performing arts centre, library, homes, retail space and a department store which will be anchored by House of Fraser.[117] There project was put on hold in 2008 due to the economic downturn.[118] However a number of Chester's other Renaissance projects continued, including a new health centre, offices and apartments in the Delamere Street development,[119] and a hotel and new headquarters for Cheshire West and Chester Council in the £60million HQ development.[120] Work on a new bus station started in October 2015 and it opened in June 2017.[121][122][123] The Northgate Project is now being led by the council and is due to include a new market hall, cinema, multi-storey car park and restaurant units on the site of the former bus exchange. Building work has begun and is due to be completed in 2022.[124]
The city formerly had two railway stations: Chester General remains in use (now named simplyChester), butChester Northgate closed in 1969 as a result of theBeeching cuts.[nb 1] Chester Northgate, which was north-east of the city centre, opened in 1875 as aterminus for theCheshire Lines Committee. Trains travelled via Northwich toManchester Central; later, services also went to Seacombe (Wallasey) andWrexham Central viaShotton. It was demolished in the 1970s and the site is now part of the Northgate Arena leisure centre.
Chester General opened in 1848 and was designed with anItalianate frontage. It now has seven designated platforms but once had fourteen. The station lost its original roof in the 1972Chester General rail crash. In September 2007, extensive renovations took place to improve pedestrian access and parking.[132] Chester General also had a sizeable marshalling yard and amotive power depot, most of which has now been replaced with housing.
Dee bridge disaster, May 1847
In late 1847, theDee bridge disaster occurred when a bridge span collapsed as a train passed over the River Dee by theRoodee. Five people were killed in the accident. The bridge had been designed and built by famed railway engineerRobert Stephenson for theChester and Holyhead Railway. ARoyal Commission inquiry found that thetrusses were made of cast iron beams that had inadequate strength for their purpose. A national scandal ensued and many new bridges of similar design were either taken down or heavily altered.
Potential schemes included a new pedestrian and cycling bridge across the River Dee, linking the Meadows withHuntington andGreat Boughton; an access route betweenCurzon Park and theRoodee; an extension to the existing greenway route fromHoole toGuilden Sutton andMickle Trafford; and an access route between the Millennium cycle route and Deva Link. However, following a reorganisation of the local authorities effective 1 April 2009, the Conservative-led administration of the newly establishedCheshire West and Chester council was not supportive, so comparatively little was actually achieved.
Many of the ideas generated at the time were captured in aCycle Chester Masterplan document.[135]
TheChester Canal was constructed with locks leading down to the River Dee. Canal boats could enter the river at high tide to load goods directly onto seagoing vessels. The port facilities at Crane Wharf, by Chester racecourse, made an important contribution to the commercial development of the North West region.[citation needed]
Map showing the proposed extensions of the Ellesmere Canal to Chester and Shrewsbury
The original Chester Canal was constructed to run from the River Dee nearSealand Road toNantwich in south Cheshire and opened in 1774. In 1805, the Wirral section of theEllesmere Canal was opened, which ran from Netherpool (now known asEllesmere Port) to meet the Chester Canal at Chester canal basin. Later, those two canal branches became part of the Shropshire Union Canal network. This canal, which runs beneath the northern section of the city walls of Chester, is navigable and remains in use today.
From about 1794 to the late 1950s, when the canal-side flour mills were closed,narrowboats carried cargo such as coal, slate, gypsum or lead ore as well as finished lead (for roofing, water pipes and sewerage) from the leadworks in Egerton Street (Newtown). The grain from Cheshire was stored in granaries on the banks of the canal at Newtown and Boughton, and salt for preserving food arrived fromNorthwich.
The original plan to complete the Ellesmere Canal was to connect Chester directly to the Wrexham coalfields by building abroad-gauge waterway with a branch to the River Dee atHolt. If the waterway had been built, canal traffic would have crossed thePontcysyllte Aqueduct heading north to Chester and the River Dee.
As the route was never completed, the short length of the canal north ofTrevor, nearWrexham, was infilled. TheLlangollen Canal, although designed to be primarily a water source from the River Dee, became a cruising waterway despite its inherent narrow nature.
However, although Wrexham itself was bypassed, the plan to join the riversSevern, Mersey, and Dee was completed, first by cutting the Wirral Arm from Chester to Ellesmere Port (Whitby wharf) and then by extending the Llangollen Arm viaEllesmere,Whitchurch and Bettisfield Moss through to theChester Canal at Hurleston. The network became theShropshire Union Canal.
Chester had a tram service during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It ran from Saltney, on the Welsh border in the west, to Chester General station and then to Tarvin Road and Great Boughton. It featured the narrowest gauge trams (3' 6") in mainland Britain, due to an act of Parliament that deemed they must have the least obstructive route possible.[citation needed]
The tramway was established in 1871 by Chester Tramways Company. It was horse-drawn until it was taken over by the council in 1903. Renamed asChester Corporation Tramways, it was reconstructed to the 3'6" gauge and electrified with overhead cables. The tramway was closed in February 1930, a fate experienced by most other systems in the UK. All that remains are small areas of uncovered track inside the former bus depot, and a few tram-wire supports attached to buildings on Eastgate/Foregate Street. However, substantial sections of the track remain buried beneath the current road surface.
Chester was home toChester City F.C., who were founded in 1885 and elected to theFootball League in 1931 and played at theirSealand Road stadium until 1990, spending two years playing inMacclesfield before returning to the city to the newDeva Stadium – which straddles the border of England and Wales – in 1992. The club first lost its Football League status in 2000, only to reclaim it four years later asConference champions. However, they were relegated again in 2009 and went out of business in March 2010 after 125 years in existence.[137]
The city also has a professional basketball team in the country's top competition, theBritish Basketball League.Cheshire Phoenix – formerly known as Cheshire Jets – play at the Cheshire Oaks Arena at nearby Ellesmere Port; and a wheelchair basketball team, Celtic Warriors, formerly known as the Chester Wheelchair Jets.[139]
Chester Rugby Club (union) plays in the English National League 2 North, having been promoted in 2012. It won the EDF Energy Intermediate Cup in the 2007–08 season and the Cheshire Cup several times.
The River Dee is home toGrosvenor Rowing Club,Royal Chester Rowing Club and the University of Chester Rowing Club, and two school clubs,The King's School Chester Rowing Club andQueen's Park High Rowing Club. According to the rowing historian Tim Koch, the city's annual rowing regatta dates back to at least 1814,[140] making it older thanThe Boat Race (1829) andHenley Royal Regatta (1839), although the regatta claims to date back even further to 1733.[141] Other annual rowing events include the Chester Long Distance Sculls and the Dee Autumn Head in autumn, and the North of England Head in March. The weir is used by a number of local canoe and kayak clubs. Each July, theChester Raft Race is held on the River Dee in aid of charity.
Chester Racecourse hosts severalflat race meetings from the spring to the autumn. The races take place within view of the City walls and attract tens of thousands of visitors. The May meeting includes several nationally significant races, such as theChester Vase, which is recognised as a trial forThe Derby.
A successful hockey club, Chester H.C., plays at the County Officers' Club on Plas Newton Lane, and ahandball team, Deva Handball Club, boasts of being the largest handball team in the country. Deva's handball club plays in National League 1 of handball. There is also anAmerican football team, theChester Romans, part of theBritish American Football League.
Chester Golf Club is near the banks of the Dee, and there are numerous private golf courses near the city, as well as a 9-hole municipal course at Westminster Park.
The Northgate Arena is the city's main leisure centre; smaller sports centres are in Christleton and Upton. The Victorian City Baths are in the city centre.
December 2011 saw the firstChester Santa Dash. A 4 km (2.5 mi) running event whose route winds around the streets of Chester in aid of local charities; the Santa Dash is a festive event open to everyone of all ages and abilities.
^abLewis, C.P.; Thacker, A.T. (2003)."Roman Chester".A History of the County of Chester: Volume 5 Part 1: The City of Chester: General History and Topography. British-History.ac.uk:9–15.Archived from the original on 5 August 2011. Retrieved15 March 2008.
Emery, G (1998).Chester inside out. Chester, United Kingdom: Gordon Emery.ISBN1-872265-92-8.
Emery, G; Penney, M (1999).Curious Chester: Portrait of an English city over two thousand years. Chester, United Kingdom: Gordon Emery.ISBN1-872265-94-4.
Emery, G (2002).Chester electric lighting station: From steam and hydro–The illuminating story of Chester streetlighting and Britain's first rural electricity supply. Chester, United Kingdom: Gordon Emery.ISBN1-872265-48-0.
Emery, G (2003).The Chester guide: England's walled city, Roman remains, museums, attractions, River Dee, shopping on the mediaeval rows, cathedral, access. Chester, United Kingdom: Gordon Emery.ISBN1-872265-89-8.
Emery, G; Shuttleworth, S.; Kavanagh, T.; Taylor, G.; Buss, R.; Stephens, R. (1999).The old Chester canal: A History and Guide. Chester, United Kingdom: Gordon Emery.
Lewis, P.R. (2007).Disaster on the Dee: Robert Stephenson's Nemesis of 1847. Stroud, United Kingdom: Tempus Publishing.ISBN978-0-7524-4266-2.
Marshall, A. E. (1966).Myths and Legends of Chester. Chester, United Kingdom: Chester blind welfare society.ISBN0-9511783-0-X.
Mason, David J.P. (2001).Roman Chester: City of the Eagles. Stroud: Tempus Publishing Ltd.ISBN0-7524-1922-6.
Morriss, Richard K. (1993).The Buildings of Chester. Stroud: Alan Sutton.ISBN0-7509-0255-8.
Place, G.W. (1994).The Rise and Fall of Parkgate, Passenger Port for Ireland, 1686–1815 (Chetham Society). Lancaster, United Kingdom: Carnegie Publishing Limited.ISBN1-85936-023-8.
Wall, B. (1992).Tales of Chester. Shropshire, United Kingdom: S. B. Publications.ISBN1-85770-006-6.
Ward, Simon (2009).Chester: A History. Chichester: Phillimore.ISBN978-1-86077-499-7.
Wilding, R. (1997).Miller of Dee: The story of Chester mills and millers, their trades, and wares, the weir, the water engine and the salmon. Chester, United Kingdom: Gordon Emery.ISBN1-872265-95-2.
Wilding, R. (2003).Death in Chester: Roman Gravestones, Cathedral Burials, Martyrs, Witches, the Plague, Horrible Hangings, Gruesome Deaths and Ghostly Goings-on. Chester, United Kingdom: Gordon Emery.ISBN1-872265-44-8.
Historic England."Monument No. 1503685".Research records (formerly PastScape). Retrieved8 October 2015. – a detailed historical record about the Fortress Baths, Chester
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
