53-658: The Cirencester branch line was a five-mile-long single-track branch railway line in Gloucestershire , England that connected Cirencester to the main line at Kemble . It was opened by the Cheltenham and Great Western Union Railway in 1841. The main line was extended from Kemble to a junction near Gloucester in 1845, by the GWR which had taken over the C&;GWUR. The branch supported a busy passenger and goods business, but these declined in
106-446: A non-metropolitan county , with six districts, and the unitary authority area of South Gloucestershire . South Gloucestershire Council is a member of the West of England Combined Authority . Gloucestershire is bisected by the river River Severn , which enters the county near Tewkesbury and forms a wide valley down its centre before broadening into a large tidal estuary . The hills to
159-524: A buffer stop just before the station car park. In 2013, Cotswold District Council refused an application by Network Rail to demolish part of the Grade II listed Cirencester bay platform in connection with the redoubling of the line from Swindon. According to the Council, the platform was still in a good state of repair and any public benefit from the demolition would not outweigh the damage that would be caused to
212-416: A county in its own right, separate from Gloucestershire and Somerset, in 1373. It later became part of the administrative County of Avon from 1974 to 1996. Some northern parts of the county, including Long Marston and Welford-on-Avon , were transferred to Warwickshire in 1931. Upon the abolition of Avon in 1996, the region north of Bristol became a unitary authority area of South Gloucestershire and
265-743: A large part of the Cotswolds, the Royal Forest of Dean and the Severn Vale. The Cotswolds take up a large portion of the east and south of the county, The Forest of Dean taking up the west, with the Severn and its valley running between these features. The Daffodil Way in the Leadon Valley, on the border of Gloucestershire and Herefordshire surrounding the village of Dymock , is known for its many spring flowers, orchards, and woodland, which attracts many walkers. In
318-841: A much larger railway network than it does now with over 100 stations in the county, the vast majority of which were closed during the Beeching cuts . Nowadays, only 15 remain within the county, mostly concentrated on the CrossCountry NE-SW route and around the North Fringe of Bristol . Some stations have been re-opened in recent years; Cam and Dursley railway station opened in 1994, with Ashchurch for Tewkesbury opening three years later in 1997. Local campaign groups are also seeking to reopen several disused stations, including Charfield railway station in South Gloucestershire . There are
371-663: A number of Roman remains scattered across the county, including the Eastgate Viewing Chamber in Gloucester and Chedworth Roman Villa . There are a variety of religious buildings across the county, notably the cathedral of Gloucester , the abbey church of Tewkesbury (which is over 500 years old and has the tallest Norman tower in England), and the church of Cirencester . Of the abbey of Hailes near Winchcombe , founded by Richard, Earl of Cornwall , in 1246, little more than
424-693: A regional centre at the Gloucester Docks , Alexandra Warehouse, specialising in Adult and Mental Health Nursing; and Frenchay Campus in South Gloucestershire . Gloucestershire has one city and 33 towns: The towns in Gloucestershire are: Suburban town of Stroud : Town in Monmouthshire with suburbs in Gloucestershire: The county has two green belt areas, the first covers the southern area in
477-526: A series of stained-glass windows which are said to have been brought from the Netherlands . These are, however, adjudged to be of English workmanship. Other notable buildings include Calcot Barn in Calcot, a relic of Kingswood Abbey . Thornbury Castle is a Tudor country house, the pretensions of which evoked the jealousy of Cardinal Wolsey against its builder, Edward Stafford, duke of Buckingham , who
530-513: Is a ceremonial county in South West England . It is bordered by Herefordshire to the north-west, Worcestershire to the north, Warwickshire to the north-east, Oxfordshire to the east, Wiltshire to the south, Bristol and Somerset to the south-west, and the Welsh county of Monmouthshire to the west. The city of Gloucester is the largest settlement and the county town . The county
583-587: Is a railway station that serves the village of Kemble in Gloucestershire , England. The station is on the Swindon to Gloucester "Golden Valley" line, 90 miles 79 chains (146.4 km) from the zero point at Paddington . Despite its rural location, Kemble station has a high number of passengers, due mainly to the proximity of Cirencester . The station was opened by the Great Western Railway (GWR) as an exchange station on 12 May 1845 with
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#1733106889182636-503: Is a chart of trend of regional gross value added of Gloucestershire at current basic prices published (pp. 240–253) by Office for National Statistics with figures in millions of Pounds Sterling. The following is a chart of Gloucestershire's gross value added total in millions of Pounds Sterling from 1997 to 2009 based upon the Office for National Statistics figures The 2009 estimation of £11,452 million GVA can be compared to
689-542: Is a historic county mentioned in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle in the 10th century, though the areas of Winchcombe and the Forest of Dean were not added until the late 11th century. Gloucestershire originally included Bristol, then a small town. Members of local rural communities moved to the port city (as Bristol was to become), and Bristol's population growth accelerated during the industrial revolution. Bristol became
742-903: Is a weekly paid-for newspaper based in Stroud. It is published in a tabloid format by Newsquest . Newsquest also produces the weekly Wilts and Gloucestershire Standard newspaper, which covers the southern and eastern parts of the county as well as the weekly Gloucestershire Gazette , which covers the south of the county and much of South Gloucestershire. Gloucester News Centre is an independent news website with news and information for Gloucestershire. Radio stations in Gloucestershire include BBC Radio Gloucestershire , BBC Radio Bristol (for South Gloucestershire ), Heart West , Sunshine Radio and Greatest Hits Radio Gloucestershire . There are also several community radio stations including Gloucester FM , Radio Winchcombe , Forest of Dean Radio , North Cotswold Community Radio , and Severn FM . Local TV for
795-530: Is mixed. There are 42 state secondary schools, not including sixth form colleges , and 12 independent schools, including Cheltenham Ladies' College , Cheltenham College and Dean Close School . All but about two schools in each district have a sixth form, but the Forest of Dean only has two schools with sixth forms. All schools in South Gloucestershire have sixth forms. Gloucestershire has two universities,
848-794: Is named for Gloucestershire and is historically associated with the county. Sheep roam widely in the Forest of Dean. The Forest of Dean and the Wye Valley also have wild boar . Gloucester cattle , a rare breed, can still be found in and around Gloucestershire. They can be recognised by the white stripe that runs down the centre of their backs to the tip of their tails. The cattle are famous for producing milk for both Single Gloucester and Double Gloucester cheeses. Rudder, Samuel . (1779) A New History of Gloucestershire . Reprint: Nonsuch Publishing, 2006. ISBN 1-84588-023-4 (Free download of original here: A New History of Gloucestershire ) Kemble railway station Kemble railway station
901-443: Is now part of the ceremonial county of Gloucestershire. In July 2007, Gloucestershire was subject to some of the worst flooding in recorded British history, with tens of thousands of residents affected. The RAF conducted the largest peacetime domestic operation in its history to rescue over 120 residents from flood-affected areas. The damage was estimated at over £2 billion. Gloucestershire has three main landscape areas,
954-433: Is predominantly rural, with an area of 3,150 square kilometres (1,220 sq mi) and a population of 916,212. After Gloucester (118,555) the largest distinct settlements are Cheltenham (115,940), Stroud (26,080), and Yate (28,350). In the south of the county, the areas around Filton and Kingswood are densely populated and part of Bristol built-up area . For local government purposes Gloucestershire comprises
1007-588: Is the Western Daily Press , while The Citizen , which covers Gloucester, Stroud and the Forest of Dean, and the Gloucestershire Echo , which covers Cheltenham, Tewkesbury and the Cotswolds, were published daily but since October 2017 have been weekly publications. All three, along with free weeklies The Forester , Stroud Life , The Gloucester News and The Cheltenham and Tewkesbury News , are published by Local World . The Stroud News & Journal
1060-582: The Avon Fire and Rescue Service . Since 2017, South Gloucestershire has been part of the West of England Combined Authority , which is under the directly elected mayor Dan Norris . There are six parliamentary constituencies in Gloucestershire , all of which are Conservative controlled as of the 2019 general election . Due to the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies , Gloucestershire will be combined with Wiltshire for parliamentary boundary purposes, allowing cross-county electoral divisions. This
1113-841: The University of Gloucestershire and the Royal Agricultural University , and four higher and further education colleges, Gloucestershire College , Cirencester College , South Gloucestershire and Stroud College and the Royal Forest of Dean College . Each has campuses at multiple locations throughout the county. The University of the West of England also has three locations in Gloucestershire; an associate faculty ( Hartpury College ) specialising in animal behaviour and welfare, agricultural and sports-related courses in Hartpury, Gloucestershire ;
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#17331068891821166-475: The 1930s, and closure was threatened in the 1950s. To reduce costs and maintain the viability of the line, lightweight four-wheel diesel railbuses were introduced, and they proved popular. Nevertheless, the line's decline was inexorable, passenger service closed in 1964 and the goods service ending the following year. The route crossed the River Thames near its source and formed the highest rail crossing point on
1219-526: The 1960s the station was a junction, with services to the nearby market towns of Cirencester (to the northeast) and Tetbury (southwest). Both the Tetbury branch line and the Cirencester Branch Line were closed to traffic under The Reshaping of British Railways , the first day without service being 6 April 1964. British Rail reduced the line to Swindon to single track in 1968 but the second track
1272-926: The 2020 episode " Fugitive of the Judoon " was set and filmed at Gloucester Cathedral . A fictional Brimpsfield was the village, home of Peter and Abby Grant, in the 1970s BBC TV series Survivors , with a railway connection to London. Witcombe Festival is an annual music festival held in Brockworth . As well as music, the three-day festival has it roots deep in cider . The festival consists of four stages and has been headlined by Dizzee Rascal , Plan B , Sigma , Ella Eyre , Example , Wiley , Heather Small , Lethal Bizzle and Tinchy Stryder . The Romano/Celtic temple ruins in Lydney Park contributed to J.R.R. Tolkien 's description of The Shire in his Middle-earth Legendarium . The famous Gloucestershire Old Spots pig
1325-562: The Forest of Dean was also a major iron-producing region in this period. The city of Bristol became an independent county in 1373, by which point it was the third-largest city in England. Gloucestershire was not heavily industrialised during the Industrial Revolution , but the Port of Gloucester was expanded with new docks and the small Forest of Dean coalfield was exploited. Gloucestershire
1378-548: The GWR. The main line company was not yet ready to purchase, but after a delay the transfer was agreed in January 1843. The actual amalgamation took place on 1 July 1843; the GWR spent £230,000 in the acquisition of the line, which so far had cost the C&GWUR £600,000 to construct. The GWR did not hasten to complete the line, but it opened from Kemble to Standish Junction, joining the Bristol line there, on 12 May 1845. Kemble thus became
1431-652: The Great Western Railway, in which the GWR would pay £17,000 annually for the use of the (as yet unbuilt) line. The Bristol and Gloucester Railway was relying on timely completion of the C&GWUR at the Gloucester and Cheltenham end of the line, and obtained Parliamentary clauses in C&GWUR Acts pressuring the Cheltenham company to complete at the Gloucester end of the line, and the emphasis on early construction passed to that area. In November 1840 even that work proved impossible to finance, and attention reverted to
1484-612: The Harry Potter films and the BBC TV series Butterflies . " A Girl's Best Friend ", the pilot for the proposed Doctor Who spin-off K-9 and Company , was filmed in Gloucestershire. The setting is the fictional town of Moreton Harwood. The fictional town of Leadworth in Doctor Who is in Gloucestershire. It is the home of companions Amy Pond , Rory Williams and River Song in their childhoods and young adulthoods. Additionally,
1537-542: The South Gloucestershire district, to protect outlying villages and towns between Thornbury and Chipping Sodbury from the urban sprawl of the Bristol conurbation . The second belt lies around Gloucester, Cheltenham, and Bishop's Cleeve, to afford those areas and villages in between a protection from urban sprawl and further convergence. Both belts intersect with the boundaries of the Cotswolds AONB . Gloucestershire once had
1590-508: The South West regional average of £7,927 million. Gloucestershire has mainly comprehensive schools with seven selective grammar schools ; two are in Stroud, Stroud High School for girls and Marling School for boys, one in Cheltenham, Pate's Grammar , and four in Gloucester, Sir Thomas Rich's for boys (aged 11–18) and girls (aged 16–18, in the sixth form), and Denmark Road High School and Ribston Hall for girls and The Crypt which
1643-488: The Swindon end of the line. Progress was eventually made, and the line opened between Swindon and Cirencester on 31 May 1841. It was a single broad gauge line; stations were at Purton, Minety and Cirencester, so there was no intermediate station on what was to be the branch line. The line was leased to the GWR as arranged, for a period of seven years. In 1842 the C&GWUR obtained Parliamentary authorisation to sell their line to
Cirencester branch line - Misplaced Pages Continue
1696-480: The closure. The station originally had an overall roof, but this was removed in 1874. Kemble station was fully open to the public on 1 May 1882. In 1908, the Webb-Thompson electric train staff system was installed on the branch. The Cirencester line was controlled from Kemble East signalbox and Cirencester. During 1929 Kemble East signalbox was abolished, and a new 62 lever Kemble signalbox installed. Because of
1749-457: The county is provided by BBC West and ITV West Country from Bristol, although in the northern extremes of Gloucestershire, BBC Midlands and ITV Central (West) from Birmingham covers this area. Some eastern parts of the county (Cirencester and parts of the Cotswolds) receive BBC South and ITV Meridian from Oxford. There are two well-known accounts of childhood in rural Gloucestershire in
1802-456: The county, South Gloucestershire is governed by South Gloucestershire Council , which is a unitary authority council independent of the county council but the unitary authority is still part of the ceremonial county. Previously, the area of South Gloucestershire was part of the county of Avon. Although Avon was abolished in 1996, some services in South Gloucestershire are still provided in conjunction with other former parts of Avon county, such as
1855-404: The curvature of the platform at Kemble there was an auxiliary staff instrument on the platform. In 1936, there were eleven passenger trains each way daily, as well as three goods trains. By 1954, the passenger service was reduced to nine trains daily. In 1922, there were ten trains daily, but no Sunday service. In 1956, work was carried out towards renovation of Cirencester station, but the work
1908-558: The early 20th century, Laurie Lee 's Cider With Rosie and Winifred Foley 's A Child in the Forest . Part of Mrs. Craik's novel John Halifax, Gentleman is set in Enderley, a thinly disguised Amberley , where she lived at the time of writing. Most of the book is set in Nortonbury, easily recognisable as Tewkesbury . The county has also been the setting for a number of high-profile movies and TV series, including Die Another Day ,
1961-584: The east form the majority of the Cotswolds AONB , and the uplands to the west are part of the Forest of Dean and the Wye Valley AONB , which stretches into Wales. Gloucestershire was likely established in the tenth century, and expanded to approximately its current borders in the eleventh. The county was relatively settled during the late Middle Ages, and contained several wealthy monasteries such as Tewkesbury , Gloucester , Hailes , and Cirencester ;
2014-508: The foundations are left, but these have been excavated and fragments have been brought to light. Most of the old market towns have parish churches . At Deerhurst near Tewkesbury and Bishop's Cleeve near Cheltenham , there are churches of special interest on account of the pre-Norman work they retain. There is also a Perpendicular church in Lechlade , and that at Fairford was built ( c. 1500 ), according to tradition, to contain
2067-416: The historical significance of the station. The station has a ticket office and a small café. The limestone bridge, at the south end of the station, was Grade II listed from 5 November 2015 and the station and water tank from 27 February 1986. Great Western Railway operate all services at Kemble using mainly Class 800 bi-mode trains . The typical off-peak service in trains per hour is: The station
2120-485: The junction station for what was now the Cirencester branch. Robert Gordon's restrictive clauses prevented the opening of a public station there, and the GWR contented itself with an exchange station, not accessible for joining and leaving passengers or goods. Tetbury was served by a station named Tetbury Road, located on the main line immediately north of the Cirencester to Tetbury road, just outside Gordon's estate (and near
2173-614: The line as Priority 2 for reopening. Priority 2 is for those lines which require further development or a change in circumstances (such as housing developments). Two bids for feasibility study funding were made to the Department for Transport 's 'restoring your railway' fund in March and June 2020, and the second was successful. Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( / ˈ ɡ l ɒ s t ər ʃ ər / GLOST -ər-shər , /- ʃ ɪər / -sheer ; abbreviated Glos. )
Cirencester branch line - Misplaced Pages Continue
2226-459: The line opening from Swindon to Gloucester. Only on 1 May 1882 did it become a public station replacing the nearby Tetbury Road . The distance between the platforms and the large clearance between the remaining running lines is a legacy from when Kemble first opened because it originally accommodated Brunel's 7 ft 1 ⁄ 4 in ( 2,140 mm ) broad gauge tracks. These were changed to standard gauge tracks in 1892. Until
2279-403: The present-day Thames Head public house). The Cirencester branch had been opened as a broad gauge line. The GWR undertook a widespread conversion to narrow (standard) gauge in the general area in 1872, and the Cirencester branch was closed on 22 May for the conversion work and reopened as a standard gauge line on 27 May. Passengers were conveyed by omnibus to and from Tetbury Road station during
2332-405: The railbus was overcrowded. The original intention was to run railbuses through to Swindon to avoid a change of trains at Kemble, but this proved impossible as the lightweight vehicles did not reliably operate the signalling track circuits on the main line. Nevertheless, despite the initial success, the passenger service was not financially viable, and it was withdrawn on 6 April 1964. Goods traffic
2385-450: The river. The Great Western Railway opened its main line between London and Bristol in 1841. During the construction period, an independent company called the Cheltenham and Great Western Union Railway obtained authorisation on 21 June 1836 to make a line from the GWR at Swindon, to Cheltenham by way of Stroud and Gloucester . The estimated cost of construction was £750,000. As well as the main line between Swindon and Cheltenham, there
2438-592: The ruins of Witcombe Roman Villa at Great Witcombe are also notable heritage features. There are several royal residences in Gloucestershire, including Highgrove House , Gatcombe Park , and (formerly) Nether Lypiatt Manor . An annual " cheese-rolling " event takes place at Cooper's Hill, near Brockworth and the Cotswold Games occurred within the county. Places of interest in Gloucestershire include: Areas of countryside in Gloucestershire include: Scenic Railway Line: Gloucestershire's only daily newspaper
2491-703: The west, the Wye valley borders Wales. Gloucestershire is a ceremonial county in South West England. Gloucestershire County Council 's 53 seats are majority-controlled by the Conservatives, though the Liberal Democrats have a sizeable presence on the council. The Council Leader is Mark Hawthorne. The County Council shares responsibility with six district councils: Tewkesbury, Forest of Dean, City of Gloucester, Cheltenham, Stroud and Cotswold. The southernmost part of
2544-535: Was beheaded in 1521. Near Cheltenham is the 15th-century mansion of Southam de la Bere , of timber and stone. Memorials of the de la Bere family appear in the church at Cleeve. The mansion contains a tiled floor from Hailes Abbey . At Great Badminton is the mansion and vast domain of the Beauforts (formerly of the Botelers and others), on the south-eastern boundary of the county. Berkeley Castle at over 800 years old and
2597-411: Was extremely depressed in the period following authorisation of the line, and subscriptions could not be secured to make material progress on construction. In desperation, the directors determined to construct between Swindon and Cirencester only for the time being, for that would give the best chance of getting an income that would pay a dividend on the outlay. The company arranged a provisional lease with
2650-410: Was reinstated in 2014. The station has two platforms in use. The former Tetbury bound platform remains but the track has been lifted. The building on the down platform (no. 2) has been out of use for several years, containing toilets and a waiting room, which are still in situ . On the former Cirencester platform, a short stub of track remains for the occasional stabling of track machines. This ends at
2703-499: Was suspended, leaving the buildings in a partly completed state. In an attempt to save the line from closure, diesel railbuses were introduced on the line in February 1959 to reduce costs. The train service was increased to fourteen trains per day and halts were opened at Chesterton Lane and, in January 1960, at Park Leaze . Results were encouraging: 130,000 passengers yearly, an average of about 13 per train. Particularly on Saturdays,
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#17331068891822756-431: Was to be a branch to Cirencester, terminating at a place there referred to as Botany Bay. A landowner at Kemble, named Robert Gordon, was evidently hostile to the railway, and he secured clauses in the authorising Act requiring a tunnel, not needed for engineering purposes, near Kemble. Moreover, the railway was forbidden to open a public station on Gordon's estate. The new line was to be on the broad gauge. The money market
2809-468: Was withdrawn on 4 October 1965. Cirencester's ring road was built on part of the railway in the mid 1970s, which has made reopening a railway to Cirencester Town station unlikely and costly. In 2016, discussions took place regarding the potential of relaying 5 km of track from Kemble station to the edge of Cirencester at Chesterton Halt. In January 2019, the Campaign for Better Transport identified
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