70-699: The Ilmington Downs are a large open area situated in Warwickshire , just above the small village of Ilmington . It is the highest point in Warwickshire at 858 feet with good views of that part of the Cotswolds. 52°04′52″N 1°42′41″W / 52.0812°N 1.7113°W / 52.0812; -1.7113 This England location article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Warwickshire Warwickshire ( / ˈ w ɒr ɪ k ʃ ər , - ʃ ɪər / ; abbreviated Warks )
140-446: 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
210-416: 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
280-477: A division of the kingdom of Mercia in the early 11th century. The first reference to Warwickshire was in 1001, as Wæringscīr, named after Warwick . The prefix wara- is the genitive plural of the Old English noun waru , which means "those that care for, watch, guard, protect, or defend". It was used as an endonym by both Goths and Jutes. The suffix -wick is an Old English cognate ( -wic ) for
350-691: 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
420-724: A major cycling destination has been bolstered in recent years having hosted a stage of the Women's Tour since 2016 and the Men's Tour of Britain in 2018 and 2019. In 2022, St Nicholas Park in Warwick hosted the Elite Men's and Women's Road Race as part of the Commonwealth Games that took place in Birmingham. Warwickshire has no Football League clubs. As of the 2022–23 season, the highest-placed team
490-624: A mixture of verbal reasoning, numerical reasoning and non-verbal reasoning multiple-choice questions. Warwickshire contains four colleges of further education: North Warwickshire & Hinckley College , King Edward VI Sixth Form College (K.E.G.S) in Nuneaton, Stratford-upon-Avon College and the Warwickshire College Group an institution made up of six main separate colleges that have merged (Leamington Centre, Rugby Centre, Moreton Morrell Centre, Pershore College, Henley-in-Arden Centre and
560-841: 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
630-663: 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
700-423: A population of 571,010. After Nuneaton (88,813), the largest settlements are Rugby (78,125), Leamington Spa (50,923), Warwick (37,267), Bedworth (31,090) and Stratford-upon-Avon (30,495). For local government purposes, Warwickshire is a non-metropolitan county with five districts. The county historically included the city of Coventry and the area to its west, including Sutton Coldfield , Solihull and
770-693: 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
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#1732934477161840-526: 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
910-622: A significant part of Birmingham , including the city centre . Warwickshire is a flat, lowland county, but its far south contains part of the Cotswolds AONB . The River Avon , a major tributary of the Severn , flows through the south of the county. The region was part of Roman Britain and later the Roman road called Watling Street became the boundary between the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Mercia and
980-494: A single area and share a single Chamber of Commerce , Local Enterprise Partnership and BBC Local Radio Station ( BBC Coventry & Warwickshire ). Coventry was administered separately from the rest of Warwickshire between 1451 and 1842. It formed the County of the City of Coventry , a county corporate from 1451. In 1842 the county corporate of Coventry was abolished and remerged with
1050-479: A small campus near Wellesbourne which houses the Warwick Horticultural Research Centre and an Innovation Centre. Several major motorways run through Warwickshire; these are: Other major trunk routes in Warwickshire include: Two main railway lines pass through Warwickshire: Other railway lines in Warwickshire include: Between 1965 and 2018, the only major town in Warwickshire without
1120-495: A station was Kenilworth . The Leamington to Coventry line passes through the town, but the station was closed as part of the Beeching cuts . Kenilworth railway station was rebuilt and opened in April 2018, with an hourly service to Coventry and to Leamington provided by West Midlands Trains . The new High Speed 2 (HS2) line is a long-distance route that is being constructed through Warwickshire; however, there will be no stations in
1190-560: A strong and growing economy with the automotive industry being a major contributor. In the north, BMW's Hams Hall plant employs over 1,000 people, while Jaguar Land Rover and Aston Martin Lagonda have headquarters, including a giant advanced production creation centre, at Gaydon in the south. Warwickshire is also establishing a growing reputation as a global hub of the video game industry . One of Britain's oldest still-running game studios, Codemasters , has operated out of Southam for decades;
1260-465: A £130 million UK Battery Industrialisation Centre (UKBIC) based in Coventry. Tourism is also a key area of employment with country parks, rural areas and historic towns across the county. It generates a total business turnover of over £1 billion to the local economy and supports almost 20,000 jobs. Main Warwickshire towns: Smaller towns and large villages include: Warwickshire came into being as
1330-805: Is Leamington , who play in the National League North , the sixth tier of English football. A level below, in the Southern Football League Premier Division Central, are Nuneaton Borough and Stratford Town . Other clubs include Rugby Town , Bedworth United , Southam United , Racing Club Warwick , Coleshill Town , Atherstone Town and Nuneaton Griff ; all of these are affiliated to the Birmingham FA . Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( / ˈ ɡ l ɒ s t ər ʃ ər / GLOST -ər-shər , /- ʃ ɪər / -sheer ; abbreviated Glos. )
1400-513: 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
1470-493: Is a ceremonial county in the West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Staffordshire and Leicestershire to the north, Northamptonshire to the east, Oxfordshire and Gloucestershire to the south, and Worcestershire and the West Midlands county to the west. The largest settlement is Nuneaton and the county town is Warwick . The county is largely rural; it has an area of 763 sq mi (1,980 km ) and
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#17329344771611540-503: 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
1610-542: 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
1680-903: 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
1750-517: Is based in Edgbaston , in Birmingham, observe the historic county boundaries. The flag of the historic county was registered in October 2016. It is a design of a bear and ragged staff on a red field, which is long associated with the county. Coventry is effectively in the centre of the Warwickshire area, and still has strong ties with the county. Coventry and Warwickshire are sometimes treated as
1820-448: Is made of 57 councillors, who decide upon the budget and appoints the council leader. The council leader selects 8 councillors and together they form the cabinet. The Leader assigns portfolios on which cabinet members make decisions. Key decisions are made by the whole cabinet while others are made only by the portfolio holders for relevant areas. In addition many small towns and villages have their own town council or parish council as
1890-525: Is mildly undulating countryside (rising to 178m / 581 ft near Hartshill ) and the northernmost village, No Man's Heath , is only 34 miles (55 km) south of the Peak District National Park 's southernmost point. The south of the county is largely rural and sparsely populated, and includes a very small area of the Cotswolds , at the border with northeast Gloucestershire. The plain between
1960-530: 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,
2030-443: 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,
2100-433: 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
2170-588: 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
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2240-539: Is the headquarters of the North Warwickshire district, Nuneaton is headquarters of the Nuneaton and Bedworth District and Leamington Spa is the headquarters of the Warwick district. Warwickshire County Council , based in Warwick is elected every four years. The last election was the held on 6 May 2021 and resulted in a Conservative majority. The county council operates a cabinet-style council . The county council
2310-565: Is the likely school of William Shakespeare , Rugby School was founded in 1567 and Warwick School was founded c. 914 AD , which makes it the oldest surviving boys' school in the country. Rugby School is one of nine schools that were defined as the "great" English public schools by the Public Schools Act 1868 , and is a member of the Rugby Group . Rugby School , Princethorpe College and Warwick School are HMC schools, with
2380-582: 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
2450-691: The Danelaw . The county was relatively settled during the rest of the Middle Ages and Early Modern period; Coventry developed as a major centre of the textiles trade. The playwright William Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon in 1564, living much of his life there, and the Gunpowder Plot of 1605 was planned near Snitterfield . During the Industrial Revolution, the Warwickshire coalfield
2520-768: The Latin word for village, vicus . Near Warwick are the villages of Long Itchington and Bishop's Itchington along the River Itchen . During the Middle Ages Warwickshire was dominated by Coventry , at the time one of the most important cities in England because of its prominence in the textiles trade. Warwickshire played a key part in the English Civil War , with the Battle of Edgehill and other skirmishes taking place in
2590-507: The Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government . In the state sector, children start school in the school year in which they turn five. They stay at primary school for seven years (although this varies even within the county, as some people have previously gone for four years and then spent another four years at a 'middle school') until they are eleven. Warwickshire is one of 36 local authorities in England to still maintain
2660-841: 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 ;
2730-662: The West Midlands County Council was abolished and Birmingham, Coventry, and Solihull became effective unitary authorities . However, the West Midlands county name has not been altogether abolished, and still exists for ceremonial purposes . Since 2016, it has been used as part of the West Midlands Combined Authority , with powers over transport, economic development and regeneration. Some organisations, such as Warwickshire County Cricket Club , which
2800-549: The grammar school system in two districts: Stratford-on-Avon and Rugby. In the final year of primary school, children are given the opportunity of sitting the 11-plus exam to compete for a place at one of the 5 grammar schools: Stratford-upon-Avon Grammar School for Girls ; King Edward VI School , a boys' school from year 7–11 with a mixed Sixth-Form; Lawrence Sheriff Grammar School for Boys ; Rugby High School for Girls and Alcester Grammar School (mixed). The Warwickshire 11+ selection test consists of two papers, each containing
2870-926: 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
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2940-512: 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
3010-612: 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,
3080-584: The Headmaster from each school attending the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference . There are no universities per se in Warwickshire, though the University of Warwick forms part of the border with Warwickshire on the southern edge of the city of Coventry. Some areas of the University of Warwick are within the boundaries of Warwickshire including Lakeside Village and Warwick Business School The university has
3150-731: The Lark Stoke or Sutton Coldfield TV transmitters. BBC Local Radio for the county is served by BBC CWR which broadcast from its studios in Coventry . However, the North Warwickshire area is served by BBC Radio WM . County-wide commercial radio stations are Capital Mid-Counties , Hits Radio Coventry & Warwickshire , Fresh (Coventry & Warwickshire) , Heart West Midlands and Greatest Hits Radio Midlands . Warwickshire's rural roads, canal towpaths and historic towns are increasingly popular with cycling enthusiasts. Its reputation as
3220-542: 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
3290-455: 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
3360-471: The Trident Centre in Warwick). There are also six independent senior schools within the county, namely: Rugby School , Warwick School , Princethorpe College , Kingsley School , Arnold Lodge School (both in Leamington Spa ), and the King's High School For Girls (in Warwick ). A number of the Warwickshire grammar and independent schools have historical significance. King Edward VI School, Stratford-upon-Avon still uses 13th century school buildings and
3430-438: The West Midlands county in 1974 and are now metropolitan authorities in themselves. According to the 2011 United Kingdom census , the largest towns (+20,000 pop.) in Warwickshire were: Nuneaton (pop. 81,900), Rugby (70,600), Leamington Spa (49,500), Bedworth (32,500), Warwick (30,100), Stratford (25,500) and Kenilworth (22,400) Much of western Warwickshire, including the area now forming part of Coventry, Solihull and Birmingham,
3500-405: 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
3570-456: 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
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#17329344771613640-582: The county. During the Industrial Revolution Warwickshire became one of Britain's foremost industrial counties, with the large industrial cities of Birmingham and Coventry within its boundaries. Like most English shire counties, Warwickshire has a two-tier local government of a county council , and five districts each having a district or borough council. These districts are: North Warwickshire , Nuneaton and Bedworth , Rugby , Stratford , and Warwick (see map). The county and district councils are responsible for providing different services. Atherstone
3710-419: The county. It will pass south of Southam , then between Kenilworth and Coventry, before running into the West Midlands towards Birmingham. Coventry Airport is located in the Warwickshire village of Baginton . Canals and navigable waterways in Warwickshire include: The county is covered by BBC West Midlands and ITV Central from its studios in Birmingham . Television signals are received from either
3780-437: The district and borough councils who commissioned their own report, which argued in favour of Warwickshire being split into two unitary authorities, one for the north of the county, covering the current districts of North Warwickshire, Nuneaton and Bedworth and Rugby, and one for the south of the county, covering Warwick and Stratford districts. In September 2020, it was agreed that both proposals would be sent for consideration to
3850-454: 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 ,
3920-471: 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 ;
3990-458: 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
4060-418: The greater " Silicon Spa " area, including Southam, Royal Leamington Spa and Warwick , is now home to dozens of game studios which employ a combined total of over 2,000 highly skilled people, equating to more than 10% of the UK's games development workforce. Increasingly the region is establishing itself as one of the leading areas in battery technology with major developments announced in 2021 that include
4130-410: The most local tier of local government. Warwickshire is policed by the Warwickshire Police . The force is governed by the elected Warwickshire Police and Crime Commissioner . In August 2020 Warwickshire County Council put forward proposals for the five district and borough councils in the county to be abolished and replaced with a single county-wide unitary authority . This prompted a backlash from
4200-415: The north and centre of the county. The market towns of northern and eastern Warwickshire were industrialised in the 19th century, and include Atherstone , Bedworth , Coleshill , Nuneaton , and Rugby . Major industries included coal mining , textiles , engineering and cement production, but heavy industry is in decline, being replaced by distribution centres, light to medium industry and services. Of
4270-443: The northern and eastern towns, Nuneaton and Rugby (as the birthplace of rugby football ) are best known outside of Warwickshire. The prosperous towns of central and western Warwickshire, including Leamington Spa , Warwick , Stratford-upon-Avon , Kenilworth , Alcester , Southam and Wellesbourne , harbour tourism, gaming and services as major employment sectors. The north of the county, bordering Staffordshire and Leicestershire,
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#17329344771614340-453: The outlying Cotswolds and the Edgehill escarpment is known as the Vale of Red Horse . The only town in the south of Warwickshire is Shipston-on-Stour . The highest point in the county, at 261 m (856 ft), is Ebrington Hill , again on the border with Gloucestershire, grid reference SP187426 at the county's southwest extremity. There are no cities in Warwickshire since both Coventry and Birmingham were incorporated into
4410-408: The rest of Warwickshire. The town of Tamworth was historically divided between Warwickshire and Staffordshire , but since 1888 has been fully in Staffordshire. Warwickshire contains a large expanse of green belt area, surrounding the West Midlands and Coventry conurbations, and was first drawn up from the 1950s. All the county's districts contain some portion of the belt. Warwickshire has
4480-541: The rivers Avon and Leam flow. Areas historically part of Warwickshire include Coventry , Solihull , Sutton Coldfield , and some of Birmingham including the city centre , Aston , Castle Bromwich , Digbeth , Edgbaston , Erdington , Hodge Hill , Ladywood , Nechells , Saltley , Shard End , Sheldon , Small Heath and Sparkbrook . These areas also became part of the metropolitan county of West Midlands (and Sutton Coldfield became part of Birmingham) following local government re-organisation in 1974 . In 1986
4550-536: 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
4620-405: The west, Northamptonshire to the east and southeast, Gloucestershire to the southwest and Oxfordshire to the south. The northern tip of the county is only 3 miles (5 km) from the Derbyshire border. An average-sized English county covering an area of 1,975 km (760 sq mi), it runs some 56 miles (90 km) north to south. The majority of Warwickshire's population live in
4690-481: 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
4760-432: 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
4830-452: Was covered by the ancient Forest of Arden (most of which was cut down to provide fuel for industrialisation). Thus the names of a number of places in the central-western part of Warwickshire end with the phrase "-in-Arden", such as Henley-in-Arden , Hampton-in-Arden and Tanworth-in-Arden . The remaining area, not part of the forest, was called the Felden – from fielden - and is now an undulating and agricultural landscape, through which
4900-400: Was exploited and Coventry and the west of the county became manufacturing centres; Leamington Spa developed as a tourist resort at the same time. The Victorian novelist Mary Ann Evans, better known as George Eliot , was born just outside Nuneaton in 1819. Warwickshire is bordered by Leicestershire to the northeast, Staffordshire to the northwest, Worcestershire and the West Midlands to
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