83-647: Dorchester may refer to: Geography [ edit ] England [ edit ] Dorchester, Dorset , the county town of Dorset Dorchester (UK Parliament constituency) , a former parliamentary constituency in Dorset HM Prison Dorchester , a men's prison located in Dorchester in Dorset, England closed in December 2013 Dorchester on Thames , Oxfordshire,
166-422: A castle but it has not survived. A priory was also founded, in 1364, though this also has since disappeared. In the later medieval period the town prospered; it became a thriving commercial and political centre for south Dorset, with a textile trading and manufacturing industry which continued until the 17th century. In the time of Edward III (1312–1377), the town was governed by bailiffs and burgesses , with
249-548: A few men and sped to meet them thinking that they were merchants from another country. When he arrived at their location, he admonished them and instructed that they should be brought to the royal town. The Vikings then slaughtered him and his men. By 864, the area around Durnovaria was dominated by the Saxons who referred to themselves as Dorsaetas , 'People of the Dor' – Durnovaria. The original local name would have been Dorn-gweir giving
332-468: A fictionalised Dorchester as its setting. In the 2011 census , the population of Dorchester was 19,060. It is a centre for employment, education, retail, leisure and healthcare for the surrounding area, with six industrial estates, the Dorset County Hospital , a weekly market, and a high school and further education college. The town has a football club and a rugby union club, several museums and
415-1000: A former federal electoral district in Quebec Dorchester (provincial electoral district) , a former Quebec provincial electoral district Dorchester Boulevard, former name of part of René Lévesque Boulevard in Montreal, Quebec United States [ edit ] Dorchester, Illinois Dorchester, Iowa Dorchester, Boston , Massachusetts Dorchester Avenue (Boston) Dorchester Pottery Works , an historic site in Massachusetts Dorchester, Nebraska Dorchester, New Hampshire Dorchester, South Carolina Dorchester, Texas Dorchester, Wise County, Virginia Dorchester, Wisconsin Dorchester County, Maryland Dorchester County, South Carolina Military [ edit ] USS Dorchester ,
498-541: A gold ring, a bronze figure of the Roman god Mercury and large areas of tessellated pavement . The Dorset Museum contains many Roman artefacts. The Romans built an aqueduct to supply the town with water. It was rediscovered in 1900 as the remains of a channel cut into the chalk and contouring round the hills. The source is believed to be the River Frome at Notton , about 12 miles (19 km) upstream from Dorchester. Near
581-601: A motorcoach autobus made by Dennis See also [ edit ] All pages with titles containing Dorchester Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Dorchester . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dorchester&oldid=1256493230 " Categories : Disambiguation pages Place name disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description
664-533: A museum on the site. Dorchester remained a compact town within the boundaries of the old town walls until the latter part of the 19th century because all land immediately adjacent to the west, south and east was owned by the Duchy of Cornwall . The land composed the Manor of Fordington . The developments that had encroached onto it were Marabout Barracks, to the north of Bridport Road, in 1794, Dorchester Union Workhouse , to
747-513: A population of about 6,000. Charles was involved with the development's design. Dorchester became Dorset's first Official Transition Initiative in 2008 as part of the Transition Towns concept. Transition Town Dorchester is a community response to the challenges and opportunities of peak oil and climate change . Dorchester is represented by two tiers of government, Dorchester Town Council and Dorset Council , both of which are based within
830-820: A previous structure that had fallen into disrepair. A tablet commemorates the sentencing of the Tolpuddle Martyrs here in 1834. The building housed the Crown Court until 1955; Thomas Hardy was a magistrate here and his experience provided inspiration for his writing. The building has changed little since the 19th century, and in 2014 planning permission was granted to transform it into a heritage centre and tourist attraction, to open in 2017. Dorchester has thirteen first schools, three middle schools: St Osmund's Church of England Middle School , St Mary's Church of England Middle School, Puddletown and Dorchester Middle School and an upper school; The Thomas Hardye School which
913-400: A second term. The catchment population for major food retail outlets in Dorchester is 38,500 (2001 estimate) and extends eight miles west, north and east of the town, and two miles south. The Brewery Square redevelopment project now includes retail outlets, residential units, bars, restaurants, hotel and cultural facilities. The regeneration of Dorchester South railway station will make it
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#1732844699306996-843: A variant of Chobham armour used on modern battle tanks People [ edit ] Troy Dorchester (born 1970) Canadian chuckwagon racer Alternate name [ edit ] The Duke of Dorchester a.k.a. Pete Doherty (born 1945), professional wrestler Guy Carleton, 1st Baron Dorchester , a military commander in the Seven Years' War and American Revolutionary War, later Commander-in-Chief, North America, Governor of Quebec, and Governor General of Canada Dudley Carleton, 1st Viscount Dorchester (1573–1632), English diplomat Titles [ edit ] Marquess of Dorchester Countess of Dorchester Earl of Dorchester Viscount Dorchester Baron Dorchester Religion [ edit ] Historic bishops of Dorchester: For
1079-719: A village The Dorchester , a luxury hotel in London Canada [ edit ] Dorchester, New Brunswick , shire town of Westmorland County Dorchester Penitentiary , a medium-security federal prison in New Brunswick Dorchester Parish, New Brunswick Dorchester, Ontario , a rural community in Middlesex County Saint-Prosper-de-Dorchester , a municipality in Quebec Dorchester (federal electoral district) ,
1162-512: Is commemorated with a plaque erected by the Dorchester Heritage Committee, but giving the date of his residence as 1936. Dorchester Arts, based in a former school building, runs a seasonal programme of music, dance and theatre events, participatory arts projects for socially excluded groups and the biannual Dorchester Festival. Dorchester Arts is an Arts Council 'National Portfolio organisation'. Dorchester Arts has been resident at
1245-503: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Dorchester, Dorset Dorchester ( / ˈ d ɔːr tʃ ɛ s t ər / DOR -ches-tər ) is the county town of Dorset , England. It is situated between Poole and Bridport on the A35 trunk route. A historic market town , Dorchester is on the banks of the River Frome to the south of
1328-564: Is in the West Dorset constituency . Historically it was in Dorchester constituency from 1295 to 1868, and then South Dorset constituency until 1918. The town's coat of arms depicts the old castle that used to stand on the site of the former prison. The royal purple background represents Dorchester's status as part of the monarch's private estate, a position held since before the Domesday Book
1411-616: The Amboyna massacre , commercial disputes between the two countries, and the tendency of James I to seek alliance with Spain. The religious situation in the Netherlands had become fraught, during the Twelve Years' Truce , with the Calvinist–Arminian debate that had taken the form of a clash between Remonstrants and Counter-Remonstrants . Carleton used Matthew Slade as informant, who
1494-456: The Battle of Antioch . The south aisle and the north part of the porch date from the 12th century. The Church of St Peter mostly dates from 1420 to 1421, with a 12th-century south doorway reset into it. There are many notable monuments , including two 14th-century effigies and a 14th-century tomb chest. Thomas Hardy contributed to the addition of the vestry and chancel in 1856–7. Max Gate
1577-558: The Commons was cut short by his elevation in May to the peerage as Baron Carleton of Imber Court. In the debate over Roger Maynwaring he put the argument that the book being complained of should not be burned, in case the king was offended. Shortly afterwards he was dispatched on another mission to The Hague, on return from which he was created Viscount Dorchester in July 1628. He was active in forwarding
1660-537: The Coniacian , Santonian and Campanian ages of the Late Cretaceous epoch, overlain in places by more recent Quaternary drift deposits. The bedrock is chalk of various formations. The drift deposits comprise a cap of clay-with-flints on the western edge of the town around Poundbury , alluvium in the river's floodplain, and several narrow ribbons of poorly stratified head deposits , found particularly around
1743-729: The Council of Trent out for publication in London. Carleton as a diplomat had a wide general correspondence, as well as letters from George Abbot , the Archbishop of Canterbury , concerned with English apostates and possible conversions of Catholics. He exchanged information with intelligencers such as Sarpi who had a large network, and recruited informants, such as the Neapolitan jurist Giacomo Antonio Marta . Encouraged by Walter Cope , he began also to look for works of art for Charles, Duke of York and
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#17328446993061826-714: The Dorset Downs and north of the South Dorset Ridgeway that separates the area from Weymouth , 7 miles (11 km) to the south. The civil parish includes the experimental community of Poundbury and the suburb of Fordington . The area around the town was first settled in prehistoric times. The Romans established a garrison there after defeating the Durotriges tribe, calling the settlement that grew up nearby Durnovaria ; they built an aqueduct to supply water and an amphitheatre on an ancient British earthwork. During
1909-527: The Huguenots and to inspire a league against the House of Habsburg . On his return in 1626 he found the attention of Parliament, to which he had been elected for Hastings , completely occupied with the attack on Buckingham. Carleton endeavoured to defend his patron, and supported the king's exercise of royal prerogative . On 12 May he warned that the king if thwarted might follow "new counsels". His further career in
1992-559: The Romans arrived in Britain in 43 AD. The Romans defeated the local tribes by 70 AD and established a garrison that became the town the Romans named Durnovaria , a Brythonic name incorporating durn , "fist", loosely interpreted as 'place with fist-sized pebbles'. It appears to have taken part of its name from the local Durotriges tribe who inhabited the area. Durnovaria was recorded in
2075-481: The court where the Tolpuddle Martyrs were held and tried opened as a museum in 2018. The Durnovaria Silver Band is based in Fordington Methodist Church Hall. Within Dorchester parish there are 293 structures that are listed by Historic England for their historic or architectural interest, including five that are listed Grade I and sixteen that are Grade II*. The Grade I structures are
2158-485: The 4th-century Antonine Itinerary and became a market centre for the surrounding countryside, an important road junction and staging post, and subsequently one of the twin capitals of the Celtic Durotriges tribe. The remains of the Roman walls that surrounded the town can still be seen. The majority have been replaced by pathways that form a square inside modern Dorchester known as ' The Walks '. A small segment of
2241-558: The 9th century. The area remained in British hands until the mid-7th century and there was continuity of use of the Roman cemetery at nearby Poundbury . Dorchester has been suggested as the centre of a sub-kingdom of Dumnonia or other regional power base. One of the first raids of the Viking era may have taken place near Dorchester around 790. According to a chronicler, the King's reeve assembled
2324-641: The Bailiffs of Dorchester'. The mayor has a similar seal of office, but this has the inscription Dorcestriensis Sig: Maioris . In 2011, Dorchester was one of more than 20 towns across the country to apply for city status to mark the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II , although in March 2012 it was revealed that Dorchester's bid had been unsuccessful. Dorchester town centre is sited about 55 to 80 metres (180 to 262 ft) above sea-level on gently sloping ground beside
2407-516: The Church of St George on Fordington High Street, the Church of St Peter on High West Street, Max Gate on Syward Road, the Roman town house on Northernhay, and Shire Hall on High West Street. The Church of St George has a late-11th-century south door that has a Caen stone tympanum with a realistic carved representation of St George surrounded by soldiers, said to depict the miracle of his appearance at
2490-575: The Dorchester area form the Dorchester Area Schools Partnership (DASP). There is also a private school, Sunninghill Prep School. Dudley Carleton, 1st Viscount Dorchester Dudley Carleton, 1st Viscount Dorchester (10 March 1573 – 15 February 1632) was an English art collector, diplomat and Secretary of State . He was the second son of Anthony Carleton of Brightwell Baldwin , Oxfordshire, and of Joyce Goodwin, daughter of John Goodwin of Winchendon , Buckinghamshire . He
2573-777: The Earl of Salisbury; Carleton, like his predecessor in Venice Sir Henry Wotton , effectively promoted Italian aesthetics and the Grand Tour to the Stuart upper crust and looked for Venetian works of art that might be acquired by Charles I (then Duke of York) and other members of the Whitehall Group . Carleton returned home in 1615, and next year was appointed ambassador to the Netherlands. Anglo-Dutch relations were central to foreign policy and Carleton succeeded in improving these, through
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2656-618: The Old English Dornwary . The town became known as Dornwaraceaster or Dornwaracester , combining the original name Dor/Dorn from the Latin and Celtic languages with cester , an Old English word for a Roman station. This name evolved over time to Dorncester/Dornceaster and Dorchester. At the time of the Norman conquest , Dorchester was not a place of great significance; the Normans did build
2739-473: The Southampton railway, east of Weymouth Avenue and north of Maumbury Rings. The Duchy land was farmed under the open field system until 1874 when it was enclosed – or consolidated – into three large farms by the landowners and residents. The enclosures were followed by a series of key developments for the town: the enclosing of Poundbury hillfort for public enjoyment in 1876, the 'Fair Field' (new site for
2822-503: The Synod of Dort, and the correspondence was published in 1659. Carleton and Chamberlain belonged to an intellectual circle including also Thomas Allen , the physician William Gent, William Gilbert and Mark Ridley . Carleton's letters are considered, in particular, a major source for information on the patronage networks of the period, in terms of their actual functioning. When Carleton's family connection Henry Savile died in 1622, leaving
2905-605: The Top o' Town crossroads. John Cowper Powys 's novel Maiden Castle (1936) is set in Dorchester and Powys intended it to be "a Rival of the Mayor of Casterbridge . Powys had lived in Dorchester as a child, between May 1880 and Christmas 1885, when his father was a curate there. Then, after returning from America in June 1934, he had lived at 38 High East Street, Dorchester, from October 1934 until July 1935, when he moved to Wales . The building
2988-550: The UK's first solar powered railway station. The Charles Street development has had a first phase completed that includes a library, adult education centre and offices for Dorset Council . Proposals for the development have included 23 shops, an underground car park, hotel and affordable housing. In the 2011 census Dorchester civil parish had 8,996 dwellings, 8,449 households and a population of 19,060, with 48.35% of residents being male and 51.65% being female. 17% of residents were under
3071-479: The age of 16 (compared to 18.9% for England as a whole), and 22.4% of residents were age 65 or older (compared to 16.4% for England as a whole). Novelist and poet Thomas Hardy based the fictional town of Casterbridge on Dorchester, and his novel The Mayor of Casterbridge is set there. Hardy's childhood home is to the east of the town, and his town house, Max Gate , is owned by the National Trust and open to
3154-418: The biannual Dorchester Festival. Dorchester's roots stem back to prehistoric times. The earliest settlements were about 2 miles (3.2 km) southwest of the modern town centre in the vicinity of Maiden Castle , a large Iron Age hill fort that was one of the most powerful settlements in pre- Roman Britain . Different tribes lived there from 4000 BC. The Durotriges were likely to have been there when
3237-654: The bishops in Wessex, see Bishop of Winchester For the bishops in Mercia, see Bishop of Lincoln Bishop of Dorchester , modern episcopal title Dorchester Abbey , in Dorchester, Oxfordshire Dorchester Friary , in Dorset, England Other [ edit ] 3858 Dorchester , an asteroid Dorchester Publishing , a book publisher in the United States Dorchester Town F.C. , an association football club from Dorchester, Dorset Dennis Dorchester ,
3320-540: The conferences between Buckingham and Contarini for a peace with France on the eve of Buckingham's intended departure for La Rochelle , which was prevented by the Duke's assassination. In December 1628 Dorchester was made principal Secretary of State , making him a leading figure of the Personal Rule of Charles I. He worked with the efficient bureaucrat Sir John Coke , a master of the paperwork but deliberately excluded from
3403-785: The corn exchange since 2015. Dorchester museums include the Roman Town House, the Dinosaur Museum , the Terracotta Warriors Museum, the Dorset Teddy Bear Museum , the Keep Military Museum , Dorset Museum . and the Tutankhamun Exhibition . All of these museums took part in the "Museums at Night" event in May 2011 in which museums across the UK opened after hours. The Shire Hall which contains
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3486-708: The crown of Bohemia , was heavily defeated in the Battle of White Mountain and set off the Thirty Years' War , and lost the Palatinate. It was in Carleton's house at The Hague that Frederick and his queen Elizabeth of Bohemia took refuge in 1621. Carleton returned to England in 1625 with George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham , and was made Vice-Chamberlain of the Household and a privy councillor . Shortly afterwards he took part in an abortive mission to France in favour of
3569-538: The decision, with 84% voting in favour at the February 2008 ballot. The BID is funded by a levy on the businesses in the town. The BID lasts initially for five years, and between 2013 and 2018 the projects being undertaken include business support, security projects, town promotion, the provision of green spaces and making the town more visually attractive. In June 2018 the Dorchester BID was successful in being voted in for
3652-513: The destruction of 300 houses and two churches ( All Saints and Holy Trinity). Only a few of the town's early buildings have survived to the present day, including Judge Jeffreys ' lodgings and a Tudor almshouse . Among the replacement Georgian buildings are many, such as the Shire Hall , which are built in Portland stone . The municipal buildings , which incorporate the former corn exchange and
3735-540: The fishing fleet when the vessels returned the next year, tried to be self-sufficient. The land was unsuitable, the colony failed and was moved to what is now Salem . In 1628, the enterprise received a Royal Charter and the Massachusetts Bay Company was formed with three hundred colonists arriving in America that year and more the following year. For his efforts on behalf of Puritan dissenters, White has been called
3818-409: The former town hall, were erected in 1848 on the site of an earlier town hall, which was built in 1791 and had a marketplace underneath. In the 17th century the town was at the centre of Puritan emigration to America , and the local rector , John White , organised the settlement of Dorchester, Massachusetts . The first colonisation attempted was at Cape Ann , where fishermen who would rejoin
3901-507: The great limitations of the diplomatic line he had been pursuing and the influence he had: Maurice and James had quite different intentions concerning Frederick V, Elector Palatine , who was nephew (respectively son-in-law) to the two men. Maurice, in crude terms, was happy to have war over the border in Germany tying up the Spanish, while James wanted peace. Frederick did as Maurice wished in claiming
3984-439: The ground but providing the keystone to Maurice's control. Carleton at the same time continued his interests in the art trade. He exchanged marbles for paintings with Rubens , served as an intermediary for collectors like Lord Somerset , Lord Pembroke , Lord Buckingham and sent Lord Arundel paintings by Daniel Mytens and Gerard van Honthorst . As the build-up to the Palatinate campaign of 1620 began, Carleton realised
4067-463: The king pressed for the national Synod of Dort . His public intervention in the affair of the Balance (a Remonstrant pamphlet criticizing Carleton) represented a crucial escalation of the religious conflict, which strengthened the Contra-Remonstrant cause. A British delegation, which he helped to choose with Abbot, was led by George Carleton , a cousin. The Synod in 1618–9 resolved the theological issue, somewhat in arrears of political developments on
4150-400: The letter collection Cabala from the 17th century, and in Thomas Birch 's Court and Times of James I and Charles I , but most remained in manuscript among the state papers. His regular correspondent John Chamberlain kept up with Carleton from 1597 to the end of his life in 1628, and 452 of Chamberlain's letters survive. John Hales was employed by Carleton to report on the proceedings of
4233-426: The market, off Weymouth Avenue) in 1877, the Recreation Ground (also off Weymouth Avenue) opening in 1880, and the Eldridge Pope Brewery of 1881, adjacent to the railway line to Southampton. Salisbury Field was retained for public use in 1892 and land was purchased in 1895 for the formal Borough Gardens , between West Walks and Cornwall Road. The clock and bandstand were added in 1898. A permanent military presence
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#17328446993064316-469: The medieval period Dorchester became an important commercial and political centre. It was the site of the " Bloody Assizes " presided over by Judge Jeffreys after the Monmouth Rebellion , and later the trial of the Tolpuddle Martyrs . As well as having many listed buildings , a number of notable people have been associated with the town. It was for many years the home and inspiration of the author Thomas Hardy , whose novel The Mayor of Casterbridge uses
4399-415: The members swore an oath of allegiance , they were arrested and tried in the Shire Hall. Beneath the courtroom are cells where the prisoners were held while awaiting trial. Dorchester Prison was constructed in the town during the 19th century and was used for holding convicted and remanded inmates from the local courts until it closed in December 2013. Plans have since been made to erect 189 dwellings and
4482-505: The more arcane foreign negotiations. Dorchester came to full responsibility for matters of foreign policy. He died on 15 February 1632, and was buried in Westminster Abbey . His surviving letters cover practically the whole history of foreign affairs in the period 1610–1628. His letters as ambassador at The Hague, January 1616 to December 1620, were first edited by Philip Yorke , in 1757; his correspondence from The Hague in 1627 by Sir Thomas Phillipps in 1841; other letters are printed in
4565-399: The name of several United States Navy ships SS Dorchester , a War Shipping Administration troop transport ship torpedoed February 3, 1943, noted for four Army Chaplains that gave up their life vests to save others A fictional 'HMS Dorchester featured in the Norman Wisdom film The Bulldog Breed "Dorchester", a nickname for the AEC armoured command vehicle Dorchester armour,
4648-444: The names of Carleton and another member of the Northumberland household. Summoned to return, Carleton was detained for a month, but was released through the influence of Robert Cecil, 1st Earl of Salisbury . Cecil in fact knew well enough that Carleton had been held up in Paris from September, from letters detailing the treatment of Norreys who was a political ally. In 1610 he was knighted and sent as ambassador to Venice , where he
4731-434: The nomination had become a free-for-all. Murray's widow had the provostship for while to help support seven children; Robert Aytoun , rumour had it, might marry her. Carleton gave Buckingham a marble chimney for York House , while his colleague Wotton gave pictures. In the end the post went to Wotton in 1624 who had reversions of legal offices that could be manipulated to satisfy William Becher, another diplomat with his hat in
4814-420: The north of Damer's Road, in 1835, the Southampton and Dorchester Railway and its station east of Weymouth Avenue, in 1847, the Great Western Railway and its station to the south of Damer's Road, in 1857, the waterworks , to the north of Bridport Road, in 1854, a cemetery, to the west of the new railway and east of Weymouth Avenue, in 1856, and a Dorset County Constabulary police station in 1860, west of
4897-404: The number of burgesses increasing to fifteen by the reign of James I (1566–1625). In the 17th and 18th centuries Dorchester suffered several serious fires: in 1613, caused by a tallow chandler's cauldron getting too hot and setting alight; in 1622, started by a maltster ; in 1725, begun in a brewhouse; and in 1775, caused by a soap boiler. The 1613 fire was the most devastating, resulting in
4980-401: The original wall remains near the Top 'o Town roundabout. Other Roman remains include part of the town walls and the foundations of a town house near the county hall . Modern building works within the walls have unearthed Roman finds; in 1936 a cache of 22,000 3rd-century Roman coins was discovered in South Street. Other Roman finds include silver and copper coins known as Dorn pennies ,
5063-435: The position of Provost of Eton College vacant, Carleton took great interest in the post on his own behalf (he had expressed an interest to Chamberlain already in 1614). It was supposed to be for a cleric, but Savile was a layman. Thomas Murray became Provost; but he died in 1623. Buckingham would have the last word, and the Spanish match interfered; Carleton played the princess card of the favour of Elizabeth of Bohemia, but
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#17328446993065146-431: The position shortly, for one in the household of Henry Percy, 9th Earl of Northumberland . Carleton was returned to the parliament of 1604 as member for St Mawes . As a parliamentarian, Carleton was an apologist for the court line in unpopular causes, as in the debate over the "Apology" of 1604. Through his connection with the Earl of Northumberland, his name was associated with the Gunpowder Plot in 1605. Carleton
5229-412: The public. Hardy is buried in Westminster Abbey , but his heart was removed and buried in Stinsford . William Barnes , the West Country dialect poet, was Rector of Winterborne Came , a hamlet near Dorchester, for 24 years until his death in 1886, and ran a school in the town. There is a statue of Hardy and one of Barnes in the town centre; Barnes outside St. Peter's Church, and Hardy's beside
5312-554: The ring, and with a definite promise from Buckingham. Carleton married in November 1607 the widowed Anne, Lady Tredway (née Gerrard), daughter of George Gerrard and Margaret Dacres , Margaret married Henry Savile as her second husband. Anne died in 1627, leaving no living children. He then married in 1630 Anne (née Glemham), widow of Paul Bayning, 1st Viscount Bayning , and daughter of Sir Henry Glemham and Lady Anne Sackville ; she died in 1639, and their one child died young. The title Viscount Dorchester died with him. His heirs were
5395-480: The service sector. Significant employers for residents in the town include AEA Technology , BAeSEMA Ltd, Dorset County Council , Dorset County Hospital NHS Foundation Trust , Goulds Ltd, Henry Ling Ltd, Kingston Maurward College , Tesco , and Winterbourne Hospital. In 2008 the Dorchester BID, a business improvement district , was set up to promote the town and improve the trading environment for town centre businesses. Local traders were overwhelmingly in favour of
5478-429: The south bank of the River Frome . Measured directly, it is about 7 miles (11 km) north of Weymouth , 18 miles (29 km) SSE of Yeovil in Somerset , and 20 miles (32 km) west of Poole . The town's built-up area extends south, west and southeast of the town centre; to the north and northeast growth is restricted by the floodplain and watermeadows of the river. The land immediately south and west of
5561-409: The town centre is Maumbury Rings , an ancient British henge earthwork converted by the Romans for use as an amphitheatre , and to the north west is Poundbury Hill , another pre-Roman fortification. Little evidence exists to suggest continued occupation after the withdrawal of the Roman administration from Britain. The name Durnovaria survived into Old Welsh as Durngueir , recorded by Asser in
5644-434: The town is part of the Dorset National Landscape area. It is traversed by the South Dorset Ridgeway , part of the South West Coast Path . There are over five hundred ancient monuments along the chalk hills that form the ridgeway, including barrows , stone circles and hillforts ; many archaeological finds from the area are on view at the Dorset Museum in Dorchester. The geology of the town comprises bedrock formed in
5727-438: The town's northeastern and southwestern boundaries but also elsewhere. In 2012 there were 17,500 people working in Dorchester, 51% of whom were working full-time. 57% of jobs were in public administration, education and health, 18% were in professional and market services (including finance and ICT ), 17% were in distribution, accommodation and food, 4% were in production and 2% in construction. The unemployment rate in July 2014
5810-450: The town. Dorchester elects five councillors to Dorset Council from three wards ( Dorchester East , Dorchester Poundbury and Dorchester West ) There are four electoral wards for Dorchester Town Council (North, South, East and West). Historically, Dorchester was a municipal borough from 1836 to 1974, and then part of West Dorset district from its creation in 1974 to its abolition in 2019. For elections to parliament , Dorchester
5893-423: The unheralded founder of the Massachusetts Bay Colony . (Some observers have attributed the oversight to the fact that White, unlike John Winthrop , never went to America.) In 1642, just before the English Civil War , Hugh Green , a Catholic chaplain was executed here. After his execution, Puritans played football with his head. The town was heavily defended against the Royalists in the civil war and Dorset
5976-412: Was 0.9% of residents aged 16–64. Dorchester has six industrial estates: The Grove Trading Estate (7.1 ha or 18 acres), Poundbury Trading Estate (5 ha or 12 acres), Marabout Barracks (2 ha or 4.9 acres), Great Western Centre (1.4 ha or 3.5 acres), Railway Triangle (1.4 ha or 3.5 acres) and Casterbridge Industrial Estate (1.1 ha or 2.7 acres). The estates mostly house light industrial units, wholesalers and
6059-535: Was a Contra-Remonstrant partisan. Maurice of Nassau supported the Contra-Remonstrants and Calvinist orthodoxy, and was vying for dominance in all seven provinces, resisted by Johan van Oldenbarnevelt who backed the Remonstrants. Carleton was himself an orthodox Genevan Calvinist, who also saw the divisive quarrel as weakening an ally. He weighed in on Maurice's side, and in line with the thinking of Abbot and
6142-501: Was born on 10 March 1573, and educated at Westminster School and Christ Church, Oxford , where he graduated B.A, in 1595, M.A. in 1600. After graduating he took employment with Sir Edward Norreys at Ostend , as secretary. In 1598 he attended Francis Norreys , nephew of Sir Edward, on a diplomatic mission to Paris led by Charles Howard, 1st Earl of Nottingham . In 1603 he became secretary to Thomas Parry , ambassador in Paris, but left
6225-459: Was bought in 1896 and building began in 1897, Queen Victoria 's Diamond Jubilee year. The lime trees in Queen's Avenue were planted in February 1897. Poundbury is the western extension of the town, constructed since 1993 according to urban village principles on Duchy of Cornwall land owned by Charles III . Being developed over 25 years in four phases, it will eventually have 2,500 dwellings and
6308-534: Was designed by Thomas Hardy in the Queen Anne style, and was his home until his death in 1928. It was built in 1885. The remains of the Roman house north of county hall date from the early 4th century, with later 4th-century enlargements. It has a hypocaust heating system and mosaic pavements. It is the only visible Roman town house in Britain. The current Shire Hall building was designed by Thomas Hardwick and built in Portland stone ashlar in 1797. It replaced
6391-757: Was established in the town with the completion of the Depot Barracks in 1881. The High West Street drill hall was created, by converting a private house, around the same time. Land was developed for housing outside the walls including the Cornwall Estate, between the Borough Gardens and the Great Western Railway from 1876 and the Prince of Wales Estate from 1880. Land for the Victoria Park Estate
6474-772: Was eventually recaptured by the Puritans. In 1685 the Duke of Monmouth failed in his invasion attempt, the Monmouth Rebellion , and almost 300 of his men were condemned to death or transportation in the " Bloody Assizes " presided over by Judge Jeffreys in the Oak Room of the Antelope Hotel in Dorchester. In 1833, the Tolpuddle Martyrs founded the Friendly Society of Agricultural Labourers . Trade unions were legal but because
6557-427: Was founded in 1569 and endowed by Thomas Hardye, a merchant in 1579. A free school "one of the most striking achievements of puritan Dorchester" operated here in the 1600s. The Thomas Hardye School was expanded and reopened in 1888 and in February 2023 it had 2,103 pupils enrolled. The author Thomas Hardy, a distant relative, was a school governor here from 1909 until shortly before his death. The nineteen schools in
6640-454: Was known as "the southern capital of coat-turning", as the county gentry found it expedient to change allegiance and to swap the sides they supported on several occasions. In 1643, the town was attacked by 2,000 troops under Robert Dormer, 1st Earl of Carnarvon . Its defences proved inadequate and it quickly surrendered but was spared the plunder and punishment it might otherwise have received. It remained under Royalist control for some time, but
6723-566: Was out of the country in November 1605; Francis Norreys (by now Earl of Berkshire) had gone to Spain earlier in the year with the Earl of Nottingham who was Ambassador in Madrid; and Carleton had accompanied him. Norreys fell ill in Paris on the journey home, and Carleton was in Paris when it was discovered that the plotters' house, adjacent to the vault that had contained the gunpowder under Parliament, had been sublet, by Thomas Percy in May 1604, by using
6806-451: Was published. The shield is divided into quarters, two depicting lions and two fleur-de-lis , copied from the shields of the troops from Dorset who took part in the Battle of Agincourt in 1415. The fleur-de-lis have a scattered arrangement which shows that permission for the armorial bearings was given before 1405, after which date the rights were varied by King Henry VI . The inscription 'Sigillum Bailivorum Dorcestre' translates as 'Seal of
6889-554: Was the means of concluding the Treaty of Asti . Much of his work was tied up with religious affairs. While there he sent the ex-Carmelite Giulio Cesare Vanini to England; he also helped Giacomo Castelvetro out the Inquisition's prison in 1611. For the king he commissioned in 1613 a report from Paolo Sarpi on the theology of Conrad Vorstius . On his staff were Isaac Wake , and Nathaniel Brent who would later smuggle Sarpi's history of
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