CIRENCESTER, Gloucestershire - Extract from National Gazetteer, 1868

"CIRENCESTER, a parish, market town, and parliamentary borough, in the hundred of Crowthorne and Minty, in the county of Gloucester, 95 miles distant from London by the Great Western railway, 16 from Stroud, and 23 from Gloucester. It is connected by a cut with the Thames and Severn canal, and has communication with all parts of England by means of a branch line connecting the Great Western and the Bristol and Birmingham railways.

Cirencester appears to have been a town of importance from a very remote antiquity. Previous to the Roman invasion it was, according to Henry of Huntingdon, a British city, called Caer-Cori, a contraction of Caer-Corin, "the Camp or Fort on the Corin". The Romans made it a military station, and from its situation at the intersection of the Fosse-way with the Ermine and Icknield Streets it soon became a place of considerable extent and importance.

The site of the present is not identical with that of the Roman town, as shown by the vestiges of the vallum and rampart yet visible on the south-eastern side of the town, and which in the last century could be traced from Chesterton Farm to Citely Hill, where Roman inscriptions, tesselated pavements, and various fragments of columns have been occasionally turned up. Ptolemy calls it Corinium; Richard of Cirencester, Corinum and Antoninus, in the Itinerary, Durocornovium. In all these names maybe traced the same root as in the name of the river which intersects the town - the ancient Corin, now Churn.

The Saxons added the name Ceaster, of which, and its Romano British name, the present is a corruption. When the Romans withdrew from this portion of their possessions, Cirencester fell once more into the hands of the Britons, And became the capital of the Dobuni, who held it probably until the year 577, when the West Saxons gained a great victory at Dyrham, near Chipping Sodbury. An unsuccessful attempt to obtain possession of the town was made by Penda, King of Mercia, in 626; but his son, also named Penda, succeeded in annexing it to the Mercian kingdom in 656.

Two centuries later the Danes got possession of it, and after their memorable defeat by Alfred, at the battle of Ethandune in 879, they entrenched themselves here for more than a year, pending the negotiations which led to their conversion to Christianity, and their settlement in the island. Canute held a great council here in 1020, when, according to the Saxon Chronicle, "Alderman Ethelward was outlawed, and Edwy, King of the Churls".

Cirencester was formerly celebrated for its abbey, which was founded by Henry I. in 1117. The seventh abbot was Alexander Nequam, or Neckam, a native of St. Alban's, who was renowned for his learning. The site of the church attached to the abbey is not now known; but on the site of the abbey itself is a mansion which takes its name. Cirencester Castle is mentioned as a fortress of some strength during and after the reign of Stephen.

In the reign of Henry IV. a very formidable conspiracy was thwarted by the inhabitants of Cirencester, who fell suddenly upon the army headed by the Duke of Surrey, the Earl of Salisbury, the Duke of Exeter, and the Earl of Gloucester. The troops fled in a panic, and the Duke of Surrey and the Earl of Salisbury were taken prisoners.

In the reign of Charles I. Cirencester took the side of the parliament. The town, being nearly surrounded by water and well fortified, was considered almost impregnable; but in the year 1642 the royalists, under Prince Rupert, succeeded in taking it. It was stormed in turn and retaken by the parliamentary forces under the Earl of Essex, in 1643. In the revolution of 1688 the inhabitants of Cirencester were as zealous in the cause of the Stuarts as they had previously been in the cause of the parliament. An engagement took place near the town, in which Lord Lovelace, who was on his way to join the Prince of Orange, was taken prisoner.

Cirencester has, since the reign of Elizabeth, returned two members to parliament. By the Reform Act the limits of the borough and of the parish, comprising 5,900 acres, are co-extensive, and include Wiggold, Spirringate, Oakley, Chesterton, and Barton. The town is unincorporated, but enjoys a charter granted to it by Henry IV. in consideration of its loyalty. The government was then placed in the hands of 2 high and 14 petty constables, and the town divided into 7 wards.

In 1861 the population was 6,336, against 6,096 in 1851, showing an increase of 240 in the decennial period. There has also been a proportionate increase in the number of inhabited houses: in 1861 there were 1,300, and in 1851, 1,211. The town, which is very healthy, is about 2 miles in circumference, and has eleven streets, four greater and seven lesser, besides several lanes. It has an excellent supply of water, is paved with stone, and lighted with gas.

The most conspicuous building is the savings-bank, which has been recently built, and is in the Italian style. The staple of the town was formerly wool, for which the Cotswold district was celebrated. The manufacture of curriers' knives was afterwards introduced and is still carried on, but is no longer peculiar to Cirencester. The principal trade is now in corn, but from the want of a market-building of adequate size, the sales are generally effected by sample.

County Court sittings are held monthly in the townhall, which is a portion of a building attached to St. John's church. Petty sessions are also held, and the North Gloucestershire militia have their headquarters here. Cirencester is the head of a Poorlaw Union, which includes several parishes not only in Gloucestershire but also in Wiltshire. The Duke of Portland takes the title of baron from this town.

The living of St. John the Evangelist is a vicarage*, value £443, in the gift of the Bishop of Gloucester and Bristol, within whose diocese Cirencester lies. The church dates from the 15th century, and is in the perpendicular style of architecture. At the W. end is a handsome embattled tower, 134 feet high, ornamented with pinnacles and statues. On the S. side is a richly decorated porch, 38 feet in length, and 50 feet in height. Under the parapet of the N. side of the nave, on the outside of the church, is a series of carved figures, representing the "Whitsun Ale" mummers, who hold musical instruments in their hands, and are in the costume of the 15th century.

To correspond with these there is another series of figures on the S. side representing the actors in the old mysteries or scriptural plays; among them may be noticed a monk, an abbot, a king, a gladiator (with sword and dagger), an angel, and a skeleton, intended to represent Death. The interior of the church is very handsome. The roof is supported by two rows of clustered columns, five in each cluster. The E. and W. windows are of painted glass.

St. Catherine's chapel, which appears to have been built somewhat later than the body of the church, bears the date 1508 on the roof, the central compartments of which are adorned with the arms of Henry VII. and of the Prince of Wales. Over a niche in the S. wall is a fresco-painting, which represents the martyrdom of St. Catherine. In an opposite niche is an effigy of Richard Osmund, the founder of the chapel. monuments. The church, both externally and internally, is one of the finest and most interesting in England.

A new church (Trinity) was built at Watermoor in 1850; it is in the early English style, and has a light and graceful spire. There is a Roman Catholic chapel, which has been recently erected, and several places of worship belonging to the different denominations of Protestant Dissenters. The deanery of Cirencester is included in the archdeaconry of Bristol, and in the diocese of Gloucester and Bristol. It contains all the benefices in the hundred of Crowthorne and Minty, besides several others.

There are several schools in Cirencester. The free grammar school was founded by Bishop Ruthall, a native of the town, and privy-councillor to Henry VI. Dr. Jenner, who introduced vaccination, was educated at this school; and Dr. Parry, the physician of Bath, and father of Sir Edward Parry, was also one of its scholars. The bluecoat school was founded in 1714, by Thomas Powell, Esq. The yellow-coat school was founded about the same time by Mrs. Powell; her object was to teach 20 boys of Cirencester reading, arithmetic, and the art of framework knitting, and to clothe and educate 20 girls and teach them to spin.

St. John's hospital was founded by Henry I.: its revenues are not large, and the foundation is only for eight poor persons. St. Lawrence's hospital, for three widows, was founded by Edith, lady of the manor of Wiggold. St. Thomas's hospital for four poor weavers, was founded by Sir William Nottingham in the reign of Henry IV. Like most of the charities of Cirencester, it allows but a very small sum to its pensioners. There are also almshouses known as Brydges' and George's.

The Royal Agricultural College, which is situated about 1½ mile from the town, was established and incorporated by royal charter in 1845. It is a handsome building in the Tudor style, and was founded with the view of making science a branch of agricultural education. It has a principal, and professors of chemistry, geology, veterinary surgery, and surveying. A farm is attached to the college, and the students are enabled to see scientific theories verified in practice. The institution met with much opposition at first, but its utility is now generally recognised. The town possesses a mechanics' institute and a temperance hall. The latter was erected in 1846 by Christopher Fowley, a member of the Society of Friends.

Many coins and altars have been found in the vicinity of the town: a small head, decorated with a mural crown, and apparently taken off a basso-relievo, was dug up in 1723; a tesselated pavement at the same time, and several others since. The remains of a Roman hypocaust were brought to light in 1780. A brass figure of Apollo, which is now in the Bodleian Library at Oxford, was also found here. In the Querus, or Cairns, a field adjoining the town on the W., is "The Bull-ring", which is supposed to be a Roman amphitheatre. Its area is of an elliptical form, enclosed by a mound of earth about 20 feet high, and measuring about 190 in its major axis by 140 in its minor. The seats cut in the earth may, with some difficulty, still be traced.

The seat of Earl Bathurst is at Oakley House, near Cirencester. The park is open to the public; its principal avenue is 5 miles in length, and about 50 yards wide. Monday is market day. Fairs for the sale of horses, cattle, and pigs are held on Easter Tuesday, the 18th July, and the 8th November: statute fairs, locally called "mops", on the Monday before and the Monday after October 10th. The races take place in August."

"BARTON, a tything in the parish of Cirencester, hundred of Crowthorne, and county of Gloucester, near Cirencester."

"CHESTERTON, a tything in the parish and borough of Cirencester, in the county of Gloucester. Here the Fosse Way, Ermine and Icknield Streets met. See CIRENCESTER."

"OAKLEY, a tything in the parish of Cirencester, hundred of Crowthorne, county Gloucester, 2 miles from Cirencester, and 16 S.E. of Gloucester. It is situated on the river Churn, or Corin, near the Thames and Severn canal. Here is the seat of Earl Bathurst, built after the model of Petworth, and containing a portrait gallery, with paintings by Lely and Kneller. In the immediate vicinity is the old market cross and the Cirencester Agricultural College."

"SPIRRINGATE, a tything in the parish of Cirencester, county Gloucester, near Cirencester."

"THE ABBEY, in the hundred and union of Cirencester, in the county of Gloucester, 1½ mile from Cirencester, near the ruins of the abbey built by Henry I."

"WIGGOLD, a tything in the parish of Cirencester, county Gloucester, 2 miles N.E. of Cirencester."

[Description(s) from The National Gazetteer of Great Britain and Ireland (1868)
Transcribed by Colin Hinson ©2003]