117-618: Fairmile may refer to: Fairmile, Blandford Forum , a neighbourhood/hamlet Fairmile, Cobham , a neighbourhood/hamlet Fairmile, Devon , a large, remote hamlet Fairmile, Dorset , a village/hamlet/suburb Fairmile, Henley-on-Thames , a neighbourhood/hamlet Fairmile Hospital , a former lunatic asylum Fairmile Marine , a British boat builder: Fairmile A motor launch Fairmile B motor launch Fairmile C motor gun boat Fairmile D motor torpedo boat Fairmile H landing craft Fairmile Engineering Company , manufacturer of
234-598: A Georgian country town in England", with the Market Place area in particular given the status of "An Area of National Importance" and described as "a brilliant master piece" [sic]. Buildings that have received Grade I listing by English Heritage are the parish church of St Peter and St Paul, the town hall and corn exchange, The Old House, Coupar House, Pump House, and several buildings in Market Place: numbers 18, 20 and 26, and
351-627: A church; so in 597 Augustine built the church and founded the See at Canterbury. Æthelberht was baptised by 601, and he then continued with his mission to convert the English. Most of the north and east of England had already been evangelised by the Irish church. However, Sussex and the Isle of Wight remained mainly pagan until the arrival of Saint Wilfrid , the exiled Archbishop of York , who converted Sussex around 681 and
468-515: A clear-cut or stable group of seven kingdoms. The number of kingdoms and sub-kingdoms fluctuated rapidly during this period as competing kings contended for supremacy. The four main kingdoms in Anglo-Saxon England were East Anglia , Mercia , Northumbria (originally two kingdoms, Bernicia and Deira ), and Wessex . Minor kingdoms included Essex , Kent , and Sussex . Other minor kingdoms and territories are mentioned in sources such as
585-515: A different parish ( Pimperne ) on the town's northern side. Previous census figures for the town's civil parish are shown in the table below: Important sectors in Blandford's economy include public administration, education and health (41% of non-agricultural employment), distribution, accommodation and food (25% of non-agricultural employment) and production and construction (19% of non-agricultural employment). In 2012 there were 3,900 people working in
702-603: A food hall. In 2005 there were 110 shops in the town, with a total floorspace of 9,800 square metres (105,000 square feet). Other national chains with a presence in the town include Iceland , Boots , Homebase and WHSmith . An outdoor market takes place every Thursday and Saturday, and there is a bi-weekly indoor market held in the Corn Exchange. Blandford's shopping catchment area (major food shopping), which extends about 8 miles (13 km) north-east and south-west and about 5 mi (8 km) north-west and south-east, had
819-512: A lower status than that of the Anglo-Saxons. Discussions and analysis still continue on the size of the migration, and whether it was a small elite band of Anglo-Saxons who came in and took over the running of the country, or mass migration of peoples who overwhelmed the Britons. An emerging view is that two scenarios could have co-occurred, with large-scale migration and demographic change in
936-676: A nation-state. It is certain that the concept of "Englishness" only developed very slowly. As the Roman occupation of Britain was coming to an end, Constantine III withdrew the remains of the army in reaction to the Germanic invasion of Gaul with the Crossing of the Rhine in December 406. The Romano-British leaders were faced with an increasing security problem from seaborne raids, particularly by Picts on
1053-584: A population of about 24,200 in 2001. In education, important employers in the area include Bryanston School , Clayesmore senior school at Iwerne Minster about 5 mi (8 km) north, and The Forum School at Shillingstone 5 mi (8 km) north-west. Other important employers in the town include Damory Coaches , the brewing company Hall and Woodhouse , Hospital Metalcraft, metal tube manipulators Iracroft Ltd, trolley maintenance company KJ Pike & Sons, Signpost Housing Association, Wessex Homes Park and Leisure Ltd. Blandford lies at
1170-660: A reduction in sheep numbers in the county. In the United Kingdom national parliament , Blandford is in the North Dorset parliamentary constituency whose current Member of Parliament (MP) is Simon Hoare of the Conservative party . At the top tier of local government Blandford ward is governed by Dorset Council , which provides all services apart from those provided by Blandford Forum Town Council, which has responsibilities that include outdoor fitness and play areas, CCTV ,
1287-523: A safe haven, and they provided a safe place for the king's moneyers and mints. A new wave of Danish invasions commenced in 891, beginning a war that lasted over three years. Alfred's new system of defence worked, however, and ultimately it wore the Danes down: they gave up and dispersed in mid-896. Alfred is remembered as a literate king. He or his court commissioned the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle , which
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#17328520636651404-449: A thriving market town. Wool spinning and button making were also significant, and the brewing and hostelry trades expanded. The turnpike road between Salisbury and Dorchester was made in 1756 and passed through the town, and the arrival of the coaching era increased the town's prosperity, though the built fabric of the town changed little until the first half of the 19th century, when houses for wealthier inhabitants were built to
1521-538: Is Cretaceous chalk bedrock that in places is overlain by Quaternary drift: alluvium in the river's flood plain , head deposits around the town's south-west, south and south-east borders, and clay with flints at the highest part of the town in the north. The town is almost surrounded by land that has been designated as having landscape value of national significance: the Dorset National Landscape (an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty , or AONB) to
1638-504: Is "... to prevent by a timely Supply of Water, (with God's Blessing) the fatal Consequences of FIRE hereafter". In 1768 Bastard provided an endowment of £600. The monument was repaired in 1858 and the pump was replaced by a fountain in 1897. To the south of the town a six-arch stone bridge spans the River Stour ; it is built mostly of greensand with some heathstone and was extensively restored in 1726. The water meadows between it and
1755-635: Is Colin Stevens. Blandford is situated between Cranborne Chase and the Dorset Downs , to the south-east of the Blackmore Vale , 13 mi (21 km) northwest of Poole and 22 mi (35 km) south-west of Salisbury . It is sited in the valley of the River Stour , mostly on rising ground northeast of the river, but with some development south of the river at Blandford St Mary. The underlying geology
1872-628: Is by Sir Christopher Wren . The organ, dating from 1794, is by George Pike England and is the most intact of his surviving works; it allegedly had been intended for the Savoy Chapel in London, but was too big, so George III supposedly gave it to Blandford instead. In 1893 the church was enlarged by moving the apsidal sanctuary out on rollers onto new foundations and building a new chancel behind it. The Victorians did install galleries to accommodate an increasing congregation, though these were removed in
1989-460: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Blandford Forum Blandford Forum ( / ˈ b l æ n f ər d / BLAN -fərd ) is a market town in Dorset , England, on the River Stour , 13 miles (21 km) north-west of Poole . It had a population of 10,355 at the 2021 census . The town is notable for its Georgian architecture ,
2106-695: Is held in the town centre every year in the first week of May. The event includes cultural presentations, stalls, historical re-enactments, music and dancing, and a fun fair on the meadows along the banks of the River Stour. The town also hosts an annual carnival and the Great Dorset Steam Fair is held at nearby Tarrant Hinton . There are three museums in Blandford and its vicinity: Blandford Town Museum in Bere's Yard, Blandford Fashion Museum in The Plocks, and
2223-504: Is now gone – the train line to Blandford was removed in the 1960s – was mentioned in the 1963 song Slow Train by Flanders and Swann . Local radio stations are BBC Radio Solent on 103.8 FM, Greatest Hits Radio South (formerly Wessex FM ) on 96.6 FM and BFBS Radio , which broadcasts on 89.3 FM from a studio at the military base as part of its UK Bases network. Local news and television programmes are provided by BBC South and ITV Meridian . Television signals are received from
2340-579: Is now regarded as the traditional view of the Anglo-Saxon arrival in Britain. He suggested a mass immigration, with the incomers fighting and driving the sub-Roman Britons off their land and into the western extremities of the islands, and into the Breton and Iberian peninsulas. This view is based on sources such as Bede, who mentions the Britons being slaughtered or going into "perpetual servitude". According to Härke
2457-493: Is often used for Scandinavian culture in England. Edgar died in 975, sixteen years after gaining the throne, while still only in his early thirties. Some magnates supported the succession of his younger son, Æthelred , but his elder half-brother, Edward was elected, aged about twelve. His reign was marked by disorder, and three years later, in 978, he was assassinated by some of his half-brother's retainers. Æthelred succeeded, and although he reigned for thirty-eight years, one of
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#17328520636652574-425: Is the birthplace of three eighteenth-century bishops: William Wake (1657–1737), Archbishop of Canterbury ; Thomas Lindesay (1656–1724), Archbishop of Armagh ; and Samuel Lisle (1683–1749), Bishop of Norwich . Members of the influential aristocratic Pitt family were born in Blandford, including William Pitt , Thomas Pitt , Robert Pitt and his wife Harriet Villiers . Frederick Abberline (1843–1929),
2691-503: Is the home of Blandford Rugby Club. There are also local authority controlled football and rugby union pitches at The Blandford School in Milldown Road. Next to the main post office in the town centre is Woodhouse Gardens, a small public garden that contains a pavilion that can be hired for events. The Blandford fly ( Simulium posticatum ), a small (2–3 mm) biting fly belonging to the family Simuliidae or "blackflies" lives in
2808-750: The Groans of the Britons ), even though Honorius , the Western Roman Emperor, had written to the British civitas in or about 410 telling them to look to their own defence. There then followed several years of fighting between the British and the Anglo-Saxons. The fighting continued until around 500, when, at the Battle of Mount Badon , the Britons inflicted a severe defeat on the Anglo-Saxons. There are records of Germanic infiltration into Britain that date before
2925-456: The Battle of Dyrham ). This expansion of Wessex ended abruptly when the Anglo-Saxons started fighting among themselves, resulting in Ceawlin retreating to his original territory. He was then replaced by Ceol (who was possibly his nephew). Ceawlin was killed the following year, but the annals do not specify by whom. Cirencester subsequently became an Anglo-Saxon kingdom under the overlordship of
3042-508: The Battle of Ellendun by Egbert of Wessex . Christianity had been introduced into the British Isles during the Roman occupation. The early Christian Berber author, Tertullian , writing in the 3rd century, said that "Christianity could even be found in Britain". The Roman Emperor Constantine (306–337) granted official tolerance to Christianity with the Edict of Milan in 313. Then, in
3159-469: The Battle of Hatfield Chase in 633. Their success was short-lived, as Oswald (one of the sons of the late King of Northumbria, Æthelfrith) defeated and killed Cadwallon at Heavenfield near Hexham. In less than a decade Penda again waged war against Northumbria, and killed Oswald in the Battle of Maserfield in 642. Oswald's brother Oswiu was chased to the northern extremes of his kingdom. However, Oswiu killed Penda soon afterwards, and Mercia spent
3276-648: The Humber . His son, Æthelstan , annexed Northumbria in 927 and thus became the first king of all England. At the Battle of Brunanburh in 937, he defeated an alliance of the Scots, Danes, Vikings and Strathclyde Britons. Along with the Britons and the settled Danes, some of the other Anglo-Saxon kingdoms disliked being ruled by Wessex. Consequently, the death of a Wessex king would be followed by rebellion, particularly in Northumbria. Alfred's great-grandson, Edgar , who had come to
3393-497: The Roman Empire 's withdrawal from Britain at the beginning of the 5th century. Anglo-Saxon history thus begins during the period of sub-Roman Britain following the end of Roman control , and traces the establishment of Anglo-Saxon kingdoms in the 5th and 6th centuries (conventionally identified as seven main kingdoms : Northumbria , Mercia , East Anglia , Essex , Kent , Sussex , and Wessex ); their Christianisation during
3510-575: The Rowridge TV transmitter and the local relay transmitter situated in Winterborne Stickland . BBC West and ITV West Country can also be received from the Mendip TV transmitter. Blandford Forum has a Non-League football club, Blandford United F.C. , who play at Blandford Recreation Ground. Blandford Bowls Club play in several men's and women's leagues and have a six rinks green, also on
3627-466: The Royal Signals Museum at Blandford Camp military base. Blandford Town Museum has no admission charge but is not open on Sundays or during the winter. It has artefacts from the history of the town and the surrounding area, and a small Victorian garden that was created in 2008. Blandford Fashion Museum has collections of fashions between the early 18th century and the 1970s; it is also closed in
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3744-631: The Tribal Hideage : At the end of the 6th century the most powerful ruler in England was Æthelberht of Kent , whose lands extended north to the River Humber . In the early years of the 7th century, Kent and East Anglia were the leading English kingdoms. After the death of Æthelberht in 616, Rædwald of East Anglia became the most powerful leader south of the Humber. Following the death of Æthelfrith of Northumbria , Rædwald provided military assistance to
3861-558: The "great fire", which was the last of several serious fires that occurred in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries. The fire began in a tallow chandler's workshop on a site that is now The King's Arms public house . Within a few hours, almost 90% of the town's fabric had gone; all fire-fighting equipment had been lost to the fire and the church's lead roof had melted. Even properties west of the river in Blandford St Mary and Bryanston were burned, though notable buildings that survived in
3978-412: The 1970s, a change that Pevsner called "a visual blessing". Blandford Forum Town Hall occupies a site in the Market Place close to the site that was occupied by its predecessor. It dates from 1734 and has a two-storey three-windowed frontage of Portland stone ashlar . The ground floor has three semi-circular arches leading to an open portico or loggia , called The Shambles, that used to be part of
4095-519: The 5th century, until most of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms came under the overlordship of Egbert of Wessex in 829. This approximately 400-year period of European history is often referred to as the Early Middle Ages or, more controversially, as the Dark Ages . Although heptarchy suggests the existence of seven kingdoms, the term is just used as a label of convenience and does not imply the existence of
4212-599: The 7th century; the threat of Viking invasions and Danish settlers ; the gradual unification of England under the Wessex hegemony during the 9th and 10th centuries; and ending with the Norman Conquest of England by William the Conqueror in 1066. The Normans persecuted the Anglo-Saxons and overthrew their ruling class to substitute their own leaders to oversee and rule England. However, Anglo-Saxon identity survived beyond
4329-444: The 980s the kings of Wessex had a powerful grip on the coinage of the realm. It is reckoned there were about 300 moneyers, and 60 mints, around the country. Every five or six years the coinage in circulation would cease to be legal tender and new coins were issued. The system controlling the currency around the country was extremely sophisticated; this enabled the king to raise large sums of money if needed. The need indeed arose after
4446-509: The Anglo-Saxon kingdoms fell to the invaders: Northumbria in 867, East Anglia in 869, and nearly all of Mercia in 874–77. Kingdoms, centres of learning, archives, and churches all fell before the onslaught from the invading Danes. Only the Kingdom of Wessex was able to survive. In March 878, the Anglo-Saxon King of Wessex, Alfred , with a few men, built a fortress at Athelney , hidden deep in
4563-532: The Archbishop of Canterbury, was chosen to deliver the news to Godwin and his family. The Godwins fled rather than face trial. Norman accounts suggest that at this time Edward offered the succession to his cousin, William (duke) of Normandy (also known as William the Conqueror , William the Bastard, or William I), though this is unlikely given that accession to the Anglo-Saxon kingship was by election, not heredity –
4680-488: The Armorican peninsula ( Brittany and Normandy in modern-day France ): initially around 383 during Roman rule, but also c. 460 and in the 540s and 550s; the 460s migration is thought to be a reaction to the fighting during the Anglo-Saxon mutiny between about 450 to 500, as was the migration to Britonia (modern-day Galicia , in northwest Spain) at about the same time. The historian Peter Hunter-Blair expounded what
4797-592: The British automobile Railton See also [ edit ] All pages with titles containing Fairmile Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Fairmile . 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=Fairmile&oldid=1005483774 " Categories : Disambiguation pages Place name disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description
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4914-543: The Britons), while the Danes held East Anglia and the North. After the victory at Edington and resultant peace treaty, Alfred set about transforming his Kingdom of Wessex into a society on a full-time war footing. He built a navy, reorganised the army, and set up a system of fortified towns known as burhs . He mainly used old Roman cities for his burhs, as he was able to rebuild and reinforce their existing fortifications. To maintain
5031-579: The Danes, but the success was short-lived: at the Battle of Ashingdon , the Danes were victorious, and many of the English leaders were killed. Cnut and Edmund agreed to split the kingdom in two, with Edmund ruling Wessex and Cnut the rest. In 1017, Edmund died in mysterious circumstances, probably murdered by Cnut or his supporters, and the English council ( the witan ) confirmed Cnut as king of all England. Cnut divided England into earldoms : most of these were allocated to nobles of Danish descent, but he made an Englishman earl of Wessex. The man he appointed
5148-628: The Deiran Edwin in his struggle to take over the two dynasties of Deira and Bernicia in the unified kingdom of Northumbria. Upon the death of Rædwald, Edwin was able to pursue a grand plan to expand Northumbrian power. The growing strength of Edwin of Northumbria forced the Anglo-Saxon Mercians under Penda into an alliance with the Welsh king Cadwallon ap Cadfan of Gwynedd, and together they invaded Edwin's lands and defeated and killed him at
5265-508: The Elder succeeded him. When Æthelred died in 911, Æthelflæd succeeded him as "Lady of the Mercians", and in the 910s she and her brother Edward recovered East Anglia and eastern Mercia from Viking rule. Edward and his successors expanded Alfred's network of fortified burhs, a key element of their strategy, enabling them to go on the offensive. When Edward died in 924 he ruled all England south of
5382-596: The English coast. The result was that the courts of England and Normandy became increasingly hostile to each other. Eventually, Æthelred sought a treaty with the Normans, and ended up marrying Emma , daughter of Richard I, Duke of Normandy in the Spring of 1002, which was seen as an attempt to break the link between the raiders and Normandy. Then, on St. Brice's day in November 1002, Danes living in England were slaughtered on
5499-510: The English pay a ransom, but the English commander Byrhtnoth refused; he was killed in the ensuing Battle of Maldon , and the English were easily defeated. From then on the Vikings seem to have raided anywhere at will; they were contemptuous of the lack of resistance from the English. Even the Alfredian systems of burhs failed. Æthelred seems to have just hidden, out of range of the raiders. By
5616-490: The Isle of Wight in 683. It remains unclear what "conversion" actually meant. The ecclesiastical writers tended to declare a territory as "converted" merely because the local king had agreed to be baptised, regardless of whether, in reality, he actually adopted Christian practices; and regardless, too, of whether the general population of his kingdom did so. When churches were built, they tended to include pagan as well as Christian symbols, evidencing an attempt to reach out to
5733-574: The Mercians, rather than Wessex. By 600, a new order was developing, of kingdoms and sub-kingdoms. The medieval historian Henry of Huntingdon conceived the idea of the Heptarchy , which consisted of the seven principal Anglo-Saxon kingdoms ( Heptarchy is a literal translation from the Greek: hept – seven; archy – rule). By convention, the Heptarchy period lasted from the end of Roman rule in Britain in
5850-549: The Norman Conquest, came to be known as Englishry under Norman rule , and through social and cultural integration with Romano-British Celts , Danes and Normans became the modern English people . Bede completed his book Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum ( Ecclesiastical History of the English People ) in around 731. Thus, the term for English people ( Latin : gens Anglorum ; Old English : Angelcynn )
5967-613: The Roman rites by force. Between the 8th and 11th centuries, raiders and colonists from Scandinavia, mainly Danish and Norwegian, plundered western Europe, including the British Isles. These raiders came to be known as the Vikings ; the name is believed to derive from Scandinavia, where the Vikings originated. The first raids in the British Isles were in the late 8th century, mainly on churches and monasteries (which were seen as centres of wealth). The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle reports that
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#17328520636656084-405: The adjacent villages of Bryanston and Blandford St Mary on the opposite side of the ford, and Langton Long Blandford further downstream. By the 13th century, the settlement on the north bank of the river had become a market town with a livestock market serving the nearby Blackmore Vale with its many dairy farms. At the start of the 14th century it returned two members of parliament and
6201-416: The age of 11 to The Blandford School, which is a secondary school lying in the west of Blandford; the school also has a sixth form. A number of private schools are also located near Blandford, such as Bryanston School , Canford School , Clayesmore School , Hanford School , Knighton House School and Milton Abbey School . Blandford Georgian Fayre, a one-day celebration of the town's Georgian heritage,
6318-547: The area. In recent years the weed beds in the river have been sprayed to reduce numbers. Blandford Elm ( Ulmus glabra Huds. 'Superba') is a (now rare) very large-leaved wych cultivar, first raised by nurseryman Gill of Blandford Forum in the early 1840s, and distributed by nurseries in the UK, Europe and the USA. Only one specimen is known to survive (2020), in Edinburgh. Blandford
6435-473: The army that live in that earldom". There are over 3,000 words in modern English that have Scandinavian roots, and more than 1,500 place-names in England are Scandinavian in origin; for example, topographic names such as Howe, Norfolk and Howe, North Yorkshire are derived from the Old Norse word haugr meaning hill, knoll, or mound. In archaeology and other academic contexts the term Anglo-Scandinavian
6552-438: The battle of Maldon, as Æthelred decided that, rather than fight, he would pay ransom to the Danes in a system known as Danegeld . As part of the ransom, a peace treaty was drawn up that was intended to stop the raids. However, rather than buying the Vikings off, payment of Danegeld only encouraged them to come back for more. The Dukes of Normandy were quite happy to allow these Danish adventurers to use their ports for raids on
6669-545: The burhs, and the standing army, he set up a taxation system known as the Burghal Hidage . These burhs (or burghs) operated as defensive structures. The Vikings were thereafter unable to cross large sections of Wessex: the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle reports that a Danish raiding party was defeated when it tried to attack the burh of Chichester. Although the burhs were primarily designed as defensive structures, they were also commercial centres, attracting traders and markets to
6786-471: The bypass road to the north-east of the town. In 2009 there were 370 firms providing employment in the town. Major government employers in the town include the Environment Agency and Dorset Council , whose offices on Salisbury Road were until 2019 the home of North Dorset District Council . Major employers that are funded by government include Dorset HealthCare University NHS Foundation Trust and
6903-421: The cemetery and allotments, venue hire, the indoor market, grass cutting and grit bins. For electoral purposes on the town level Blandford is divided into four electoral wards : Blandford Central, Blandford Hilltop, Blandford Langton St.Leonards and Blandford Old Town. A fifth ward, Riversdale and Portman, covers Bryanston and Blandford St Mary west of the river; these are not within the parish of Blandford, but
7020-695: The collapse of the Roman Empire. It is believed that the earliest Germanic visitors were eight cohorts of Batavians attached to the 14th Legion in the original invasion force under Aulus Plautius in AD ;43. There is a recent hypothesis that some of the native tribes , identified as Britons by the Romans, may have been Germanic-language speakers, but most scholars disagree with this due to an insufficient record of local languages in Roman-period artefacts. It
7137-578: The communications wing of the British Army , and the site of the Royal Signals Museum . Blandford has been a fording point on the River Stour since Anglo-Saxon times. The name Blandford derives from the Old English blǣge , and probably means ford where gudgeon or blay are found. The name Blaneford or Bleneford is recorded in the Domesday Book , referring not to Blandford Forum itself but to
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#17328520636657254-415: The communications wing of the British Army , the Royal Corps of Signals , based at Blandford Camp about 2 km ( 1 + 1 ⁄ 4 mi) north-east of the town. Blandford Camp incorporates a modern technology training college. Major retail employers in the town include the Co-op (previously Somerfield ) and Tesco , though in 2015 the Co-op site was sold to Marks & Spencer , which opened
7371-405: The core areas of the settlement and elite dominance in peripheral regions. According to Gildas , initial vigorous British resistance was led by a man called Ambrosius Aurelianus . From then on, victory fluctuated between the two peoples. Gildas records a "final" victory of the Britons at the Battle of Mount Badon in c. 500, and this might mark a point at which Anglo-Saxon migration
7488-425: The design of this frontage has been described as "curiously amateurish" with "little attention ... paid to rules of proportion". The Old House was probably built some time between 1650 and 1670 by a German doctor who practised in Blandford after graduating from The Queen's College, Oxford . Its unusual design, which includes a steep hipped roof with wide spreading eaves , has elements of artisan style popular at
7605-414: The designs of local architects John and William Bastard . Bottlenecks were removed and streets realigned in the new town plan, which also provided a wider market place. As well as residential and commercial property, new buildings included a new town hall , school and church. The redesigned town centre has survived to the present day virtually intact. After the post-fire reconstruction Blandford remained
7722-420: The earl's daughter. This arrangement was seen as expedient, however, as Godwin had been implicated in the murder of Alfred, the king's brother. In 1051 one of Edward's in-laws, Eustace, arrived to take up residence in Dover; the men of Dover objected and killed some of Eustace's men. When Godwin refused to punish them, the king, who had been unhappy with the Godwins for some time, summoned them to trial. Stigand,
7839-420: The east coast of England. The expedient adopted by the Romano-British leaders was to enlist the help of Anglo-Saxon mercenaries (known as foederati ), to whom they ceded territory. In about 442 the Anglo-Saxons mutinied, apparently because they had not been paid. The Romano-British responded by appealing to the Roman commander of the Western empire, Magister militium Aetius , for help (a document known as
7956-423: The faith to the Angles or Saxons. Pope Gregory I sent Augustine in 597 to convert the Anglo-Saxons, but Bede says the British clergy refused to help Augustine in his mission. Despite Bede's complaints, it is now believed that the Britons played an important role in the conversion of the Anglo-Saxons . On arrival in the south east of England in 597, Augustine was given land by King Æthelberht of Kent to build
8073-417: The former chief inspector for the London Metropolitan Police during the hunt for Jack the Ripper , was born in Blandford. The composer and organist Albert Mallinson (1878–1946) lived in Blandford. The music hall performer Sam Cowell (1820–1864) died in the town, and is buried there. The sculptor Alfred Stevens (1817–1875), who created the Duke of Wellington ' s monument in St Paul's Cathedral ,
8190-414: The holy island of Lindisfarne was sacked in 793. The raiding then virtually stopped for around 40 years; but in about 835, it started becoming more regular. In the 860s, instead of raids, the Danes mounted a full-scale invasion. In 865, an enlarged army arrived that the Anglo-Saxons described as the Great Heathen Army . This was reinforced in 871 by the Great Summer Army. Within ten years nearly all of
8307-406: The junction of the A350 and A354 main roads but is skirted by an eastern bypass . The main road running through the town is the B3082, connecting Blandford Forum to Wimborne Minster . Blandford Forum is around 33 miles (53 kilometres) southwest of junction 1 of the M27 motorway at Cadnam . Buses run from the town to locations including Poole , Bournemouth , Salisbury and Shaftesbury with
8424-421: The line terminated at the hamlet of Blandford St. Mary. Blandford Forum railway station , along with the whole line, closed to passengers in 1966. Located between Templecombe and Broadstone , the railway was still open until the closure of the Blandford's goods yard in 1969, after which the track was lifted. The station was immortalised in 1964 in the song " Slow Train " by Flanders and Swann . Blandford Camp
8541-535: The longest reigns in English history, he earned the name "Æthelred the Unready", as he proved to be one of England's most disastrous kings. William of Malmesbury , writing in his Chronicle of the kings of England about one hundred years later, was scathing in his criticism of Æthelred, saying that he occupied the kingdom, rather than governed it. Just as Æthelred was being crowned, the Danish Harald Gormsson
8658-438: The market. Toward the back of the building is the old corn exchange, a late 19th-century assembly hall with "interesting elliptical roof-trusses". Coupar House, dated around 1750, is the largest private house in Blandford that dates from the post-fire period. It has a richly decorated interior with a notable staircase, and is unique among the town's private dwellings for having Portland stone dressings to its brick façade, though
8775-498: The marshes of Somerset. He used this as a base from which to harry the Vikings. In May 878 he put together an army formed from the populations of Somerset, Wiltshire, and Hampshire, which defeated the Viking army in the Battle of Edington . The Vikings retreated to their stronghold, and Alfred laid siege to it. Ultimately the Danes capitulated, and their leader Guthrum agreed to withdraw from Wessex and to be baptised. The formal ceremony
8892-404: The matter; Saint Wilfrid was an advocate for the Roman rites and Bishop Colmán for the Irish rites. Wilfrid's argument won the day and Colmán and his party returned to Ireland in their bitter disappointment. The Roman rites were adopted by the English church, although they were not universally accepted by the Irish church until Henry II of England invaded Ireland in the 12th century and imposed
9009-533: The more modern view is of co-existence between the British and the Anglo-Saxons. He suggests that several modern archaeologists have now re-assessed the traditional model, and have developed a co-existence model largely based on the Laws of Ine . The laws include several clauses that provide six different wergild levels for the Britons, of which four are below that of freeman. Although the Britons could be rich freemen in Anglo-Saxon society, generally it seems that they had
9126-548: The next few centuries to predominate throughout what is now England , at the expense of British Celtic and British Latin . The arrival of the Anglo-Saxons into Britain can be seen in the context of a general movement of Germanic peoples around Europe between the years 300 and 700, known as the Migration period (also called the Barbarian Invasions or Völkerwanderung). In the same period there were migrations of Britons to
9243-429: The north alongside the roads to Salisbury and Shaftesbury . Later in the 19th century, perhaps following the installation of piped water, more densely packed buildings were built to the northeast, replacing gardens and barracks for the poor (that had been erected following the fire) between the roads to Salisbury and Wimborne Minster . Rail transport arrived in Blandford in the 1860s, though this did not impact greatly on
9360-500: The old Greyhound Inn. All the listed structures in Market Place, including the church and another seventeen buildings with either Grade II or Grade II* status, form a group, together with several listed properties in West Street and East Street. The parish church of St Peter and St Paul was built between 1732 and 1739 and is a classical building with a cupola on top of the tower. The design by John Bastard originally specified that
9477-628: The orders of Æthelred. In mid-1013, Sven Forkbeard , King of Denmark, brought the Danish fleet to Sandwich, Kent. From there he went north to the Danelaw, where the locals immediately agreed to support him. He then struck south, forcing Æthelred into exile in Normandy (1013–1014). However, on 3 February 1014, Sven died suddenly. Capitalising on his death, Æthelred returned to England and drove Sven's son, Cnut , back to Denmark, forcing him to abandon his allies in
9594-469: The pagan Anglo-Saxons, rather than demonstrating that they were already converted. Even after Christianity had been set up in all of the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, there was friction between the followers of the Roman rites and the Irish rites, particularly over the date on which Easter fell and the way monks cut their hair. In 664, a conference was held at Whitby Abbey (known as the Whitby Synod ) to decide
9711-514: The period from the end of Roman Britain in the 5th century until the Norman Conquest in 1066. It consisted of various Anglo-Saxon kingdoms until 927, when it was united as the Kingdom of England by King Æthelstan (r. 927–939). It became part of the short-lived North Sea Empire of Cnut , a personal union between England , Denmark and Norway , in the 11th century. The Anglo-Saxons migrated to Britain from mainland northwestern Europe after
9828-480: The period of the Anglo-Saxon first rebellion of 442. If the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle is to be believed, the various Anglo-Saxon kingdoms which eventually merged to become England were founded when small fleets of three or five ships of invaders arrived at various points around the coast of England to fight the sub-Roman British, and conquered their lands. The language of the migrants, Old English , came over
9945-516: The primary operator being Wilts & Dorset . Blandford is 15 mi (24 km) from Bournemouth Airport and 15 mi (24 km) from Poole railway station . From 1860 to 1966, Blandford Forum was a stop on the Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway , which ran from Bath to Bournemouth , though until the bridge was built over the river Stour, opening in 1863, the Dorset Central section of
10062-450: The process. In 1015, Cnut launched a new campaign against England. Edmund fell out with his father, Æthelred, and struck out on his own. Some English leaders decided to support Cnut, so Æthelred ultimately retreated to London. Before engagement with the Danish army, Æthelred died and was replaced by Edmund. The Danish army encircled and besieged London, but Edmund was able to escape and raised an army of loyalists. Edmund's army routed
10179-1003: The recreation ground on Milldown Road. Blandford Cricket Club has three men's teams that play in divisions in a local county league, plus several youth teams that compete in the North Dorset Junior leagues. The club has its own cricket ground at the top of Whitecliff Mill Street. Blandford Rugby Football Club are based at Larksmead Recreational Ground. Blandford Community Hospital on Milldown Road provides minor and day surgery, occupational therapy, outpatient and community rehabilitation services, palliative care, community mental health services and physiotherapy. Blandford Library, located on The Tabernacle, has music and feature films for hire as well as books, and has internet access and reference works available. Public open spaces in Blandford include Park Road Recreation Ground, which has football and cricket pitches and associated pavilions, and Larksmead Playing Field, which has two rugby pitches, and
10296-495: The reign of Emperor Theodosius "the Great" (379–395), Christianity was made the official religion of the Roman Empire. It is not entirely clear how many Britons would have been Christian when the pagan Anglo-Saxons arrived. There had been attempts to evangelise the Irish by Pope Celestine I in 431. However, it was Saint Patrick who is credited with converting the Irish en masse . A Christian Ireland then set about evangelising
10413-493: The rest of the 7th and all of the 8th century fighting the Welsh kingdom of Powys . The war reached its climax during the reign of Offa of Mercia, who is remembered for the construction of a 150-mile-long dyke which formed the Wales/England border. It is not clear whether this was a boundary line or a defensive position. The ascendency of the Mercians came to an end in 825, when they were soundly beaten under Beornwulf at
10530-556: The rest of the British Isles, and Columba founded a religious community in Iona , off the west coast of Scotland. Then Aidan was sent from Iona to set up his see in Northumbria, at Lindisfarne , between 635 and 651. Hence Northumbria was converted by the Celtic (Irish) church . Bede is very uncomplimentary about the indigenous British clergy: in his Historia ecclesiastica he complains of their "unspeakable crimes", and that they did not preach
10647-471: The result of rebuilding after a major fire in 1731; it was assisted by an Act of Parliament and a donation by George II , to designs by local architects John and William Bastard . The town's economy is based on a mix of the service sector and light industry. Blandford Camp , a military base, is on the hills two mi (three km) north-east of the town. It is the base of the Royal Corps of Signals ,
10764-425: The throne in 959, was crowned at Bath in 973 and soon afterwards the other British kings met him at Chester and acknowledged his authority. The presence of Danish and Norse settlers in the Danelaw had a lasting impact; the people there saw themselves as "armies" a hundred years after settlement: King Edgar issued a law code in 962 that was to include the people of Northumbria, so he addressed it to Earl Olac "and all
10881-418: The throne was disputed between Ælfgifu's son, Harald Harefoot , and Emma's son, Harthacnut . Emma supported her son by Cnut, Harthacnut, rather than a son by Æthelred. Her son by Æthelred, Edward, made an unsuccessful raid on Southampton, and his brother Alfred was murdered on an expedition to England in 1036. Emma fled to Bruges when Harald Harefoot became king of England, but when he died in 1040 Harthacnut
10998-408: The time, though it was described by John Hutchins as "an architectural graft from the 'fatherland' planted by the worthy doctor on the soil of his adopted country". The Pump House fire monument was built by John Bastard in classical style to commemorate the fire. It dates from 1760, is of Portland stone and stands adjacent to the churchyard wall. The inscription on its rear wall states its purpose
11115-609: The tower would have a steeple, but lack of money resulted in the wooden cupola instead, a decision that disgusted Bastard, who stated that "it will not keep the wett nor the weather out". Sir Frederick Treves was not a fan of the church's appearance, describing it in his 1906 Highways & Byways in Dorset as "ugly, and only tolerable from a distance". The interior remains relatively unaffected by Victorian interference and retains its font , pulpit , box pews and Mayoral seat. The pulpit, originally designed for St Antholin's in London,
11232-471: The town are crossed by a causeway and two smaller bridges. The 2021 census recorded a parish population of 10,355. At the 2011 census , Blandford Forum civil parish and the small neighbouring parish of Langton Long Blandford had a combined population of 10,325. The built-up area of Blandford extends south of the River Stour into the civil parish of Blandford St Mary ; in 2013 the population of Blandford St Mary and Blandford Forum civil parishes combined
11349-584: The town include the Ryves Almshouses and Dale House in Salisbury Street, Old House in The Close, and much of East Street, including Stour House. An Act of Parliament was introduced that stated that rebuilding work must be in brick and tile and should begin within four years. With assistance from the rest of the country—including £1,000 given by King George II —the town was rebuilt over the next ten years to
11466-578: The town's built-up area extends into Blandford St Mary parish. In national parliamentary elections these five wards are joined with 22 others that together elect the Member of Parliament for the North Dorset constituency. In town council elections Blandford's four wards together elect thirteen councillors to Blandford Forum Town Council; Blandford Central ward elects seven councillors, and the other three wards each elect three. The mayor of Blandford for 2022 - 2023
11583-415: The town's economy. Blandford's weekly animal market disappeared in the 20th century, perhaps a casualty of motorised transport that enabled larger markets to be held in fewer centres (the market at nearby Sturminster Newton increased significantly). By the middle of the 20th century Blandford Fair, a seasonal sheep fair held in summer and autumn, had also disappeared, due to changes in animal husbandry and
11700-623: The town, 55% of whom worked full-time and 45% part-time. Between July 1997 and July 2013 the unemployment rate for residents of working age varied between 0.5% and 2.5%. There are five industrial estates and business parks in and around the town: Blandford Heights Industrial Estate (9.47 hectares or 23.4 acres), Holland Way Industrial Estate (7.32 hectares or 18.1 acres), Sunrise Business Park (5.6 hectares or 14 acres), Uplands Industrial Park (1.34 hectares or 3.3 acres) and Clump Farm Industrial Estate (1.30 hectares or 3.2 acres). These are sited mostly toward
11817-440: The two sons he had with Ælfgifu, he had a further son with Emma, who was named Harthacnut . When Cnut's brother, Harald II, King of Denmark , died in 1018, Cnut went to Denmark to secure that realm. Two years later, Cnut brought Norway under his control, and he gave Ælfgifu and their son Svein the job of governing it. One result of Cnut's marriage to Emma was to precipitate a succession crisis after his death in 1035, as
11934-490: The west and the Cranborne Chase and West Wiltshire Downs AONB to the north and east. Most of the buildings in Blandford's centre are Georgian , due to the rebuilding after the 1731 fire and the absence of subsequent change. Pevsner stated that "hardly any other town in England can be compared with it". A 1970 report by Donald Insall Associates described Blandford as "the most complete and cohesive surviving example of
12051-619: The winter. The Royal Signals Museum contains items relating to the history of the Royal Corps of Signals and military communication since the Napoleonic Wars . In 1590, Edmund Spenser mentioned the Stoure flowing through the town in The Faerie Queene . Blandford features in Thomas Hardy 's novels as the Wessex town of Shottesford Forum. Blandford Forum railway station which
12168-569: Was Godwin, who eventually became part of the extended royal family when he married the king's sister-in-law. In the summer of 1017, Cnut sent for Æthelred's widow, Emma, with the intention of marrying her. It seems that Emma agreed to marry the king on condition that he would limit the English succession to the children born of their union. Cnut already had a wife, known as Ælfgifu of Northampton , who bore him two sons, Svein and Harold Harefoot . The church, however, seems to have regarded Ælfgifu as Cnut's concubine rather than his wife. In addition to
12285-526: Was a Royalist centre; most inhabitants supported the king. In the 18th century Blandford was one of several lace -making centres in the county; Daniel Defoe stated that lace made in the town was "the finest bonelace in England... I think I never saw better in Flanders, France or Italy". In the 17th and 18th centuries Blandford was also a malting and brewing centre of some significance. Almost all of Blandford's buildings were destroyed on 4 June 1731 by
12402-474: Was able to take over as king. Harthacnut quickly developed a reputation for imposing high taxes on England. He became so unpopular that Edward was invited to return from exile in Normandy to be recognised as Harthacnut's heir, and when Harthacnut died suddenly in 1042 (probably murdered), Edward (known to posterity as Edward the Confessor ) became king. Edward was supported by Earl Godwin of Wessex and married
12519-464: Was also known as Cheping Blandford , where Cheping or Chipping refers to a market. The Latin translation Forum was first recorded in 1540. In Survey of Dorsetshire , written by Thomas Gerard of Trent in the early 1630s, Blandford was described as "a faire Markett Towne, pleasantlie seated upon the River ... well inhabitted and of good Traffique". In the 17th-century English Civil War Blandford
12636-567: Was born in Blandford, as were Reginald Heber Roe (1850–1926), the first vice-chancellor of the University of Queensland , and the surgeon Sir Alfred Downing Fripp . Sir Roy Welensky (1907–1991), Prime Minister of the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland from 1956 until 1963, lived in Blandford from 1981 until his death. Blandford Forum is twinned with: Anglo-Saxon England Anglo-Saxon England or Early Medieval England covers
12753-547: Was completed a few days later at Wedmore . There followed a peace treaty between Alfred and Guthrum, which had a variety of provisions, including defining the boundaries of the area to be ruled by the Danes (which became known as the Danelaw ) and those of Wessex. The Kingdom of Wessex controlled part of the Midlands and the whole of the South (apart from Cornwall, which was still held by
12870-435: Was estimated as 12,110. Previous census returns for the town show that it had a population of less than 4,000 until 1981, after which it increased rapidly; in the 2001 census, the town had 4,524 dwellings and a population of 8,760, of whom 96.5% were White British. Some of the population increase however can be accounted for by a boundary change which incorporated housing estates that already existed but were previously within
12987-539: Was in use by then to distinguish Germanic groups in Britain from those on the continent (Old Saxony in Northern Germany). The term ' Anglo-Saxon ' came into use in the 8th century (probably by Paul the Deacon ) to distinguish English Saxons from continental Saxons ( Ealdseaxan , 'old' Saxons). The historian James Campbell suggested that it was not until the late Anglo-Saxon period that England could be described as
13104-458: Was quite common for Rome to swell its legions with foederati recruited from the German homelands. This practice also extended to the army serving in Britain, and graves of these mercenaries, along with their families, can be identified in the Roman cemeteries of the period. The migration continued with the departure of the Roman army, when Anglo-Saxons were recruited to defend Britain; and also during
13221-528: Was served by a short-lived three-mile branch line, which left the main line just north of the river bridge. This operated intermittently from 1918 to 1928. Blandford Forum has two primary schools: Archbishop Wake and Milldown. A new Archbishop Wake school, built on the old St Leonards Middle School site at the bottom of Black Lane, opened in November 2008. The other feeder schools for The Blandford School are Blandford St Mary, Downlands, Dunbury and Durweston, Pimperne, and Spetisbury Primary Schools. Pupils move at
13338-584: Was temporarily stemmed. Gildas said that this battle was "forty-four years and one month" after the arrival of the Saxons, and was also the year of his birth. He said that a time of great prosperity followed. But, despite the lull, the Anglo-Saxons took control of Sussex, Kent, East Anglia and part of Yorkshire; while the West Saxons founded a kingdom in Hampshire under the leadership of Cerdic , around 520. However, it
13455-454: Was to be 50 years before the Anglo-Saxons began further major advances. In the intervening years the Britons exhausted themselves with civil war, internal disputes, and general unrest, which was the inspiration behind Gildas's book De Excidio Britanniae (The Ruin of Britain). The next major campaign against the Britons was in 577, led by Ceawlin , king of Wessex, whose campaigns succeeded in taking Cirencester, Gloucester and Bath (known as
13572-542: Was trying to force Christianity onto his domain. Many of his subjects did not like this idea, and shortly before 988, Sweyn , his son, drove his father from the kingdom. The rebels, dispossessed at home, probably formed the first waves of raids on the English coast. The rebels did so well in their raiding that the Danish kings decided to take over the campaign themselves. In 991 the Vikings sacked Ipswich, and their fleet made landfall near Maldon in Essex. The Danes demanded that
13689-735: Was written in Old English (rather than in Latin, the language of the European annals). Alfred's own literary output was mainly of translations, but he also wrote introductions and amended manuscripts. From 874 to 879, the western half of Mercia was ruled by Ceowulf II , who was succeeded by Æthelred as Lord of the Mercians. Alfred the Great of Wessex styled himself King of the Anglo-Saxons from about 886. In 886/887 Æthelred married Alfred's daughter Æthelflæd . On Alfred's death in 899, his son Edward
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