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Chepstow Plasterware

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About Chepstow - show infohide info

Chepstow is a border town straddling the Monmouthshire—Gloucestershire border, situated at the confluence of the River Wye and River Severn on the Severn's west bank. It is famous for its castle and racecourse, which hosts the Welsh Grand National. Chepstow sits upstream of the confluence of the River Wye and River Severn. There has been a settlement on the site since the early middle ages. After the Norman Invasion it was identified as an ideal site for a castle, as it not only controlled a crossing point on the River Wye, but also because the steep limestone gorge and castle dell afforded an excellent location for a castle. William the Conqueror ordered its construction in 1067, and it was designed by the master castle builder of the time, William FitzOsborne. The speed with which William the Conqueror committed to the creation of a castle in Chepstow is testament to its strategic importance. At the time, the kingdoms in the area were independent of the English crown and the castle in Chepstow provided a way to suppress the Welsh from attacking Gloucestershire. Offas Dyke, which begins on the east bank of the Wye and runs all the way to the Irish Sea in north Wales was also built (albeit a little earlier) to serve the same purpose. In the middle ages Chepstow was the largest port in Wales, this distinction was lost to the cities of Cardiff, Newport and Swansea during the industrial revolution, as they were more suitable for handling the export of coal and steel from the Glamorganshire and Monmouthshire valleys. The mediæval town wall (locally known as the port wall) still stands, and particularly good sections can be seen at the castle dell cark park, and near the A48 road. Chepstow is located near the old Severn Bridge which has the second longest span of any bridge in the UK. The town has a recently built a PFI funded community hospital and two new housing estates, as well as investing over £1 million on redevoping the town's commercial centre which has encountered considerable local criticism due to the high cost. There are a number of churches in Chepstow, including a variety of non-conformist demoninations. The most significant of these is The Priory Church located at the bottom of the town. It, like the castle, is Norman. In the vicinity of Chepstow are the Royal Forest of Dean and the Wye Valley, as well as the towns of Bristol, Newport, Gloucester, Cheltenham and Monmouth, as well as the villages of Sedbury, Tutshill, Woodcroft, Tidenham, Wibdon, St Arvans and Mathern.

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This page was last modified on October 08 2008 10:56

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