Newark-on-Trent
Encyclopedia
Newark-on-Trent is a market town
in Nottinghamshire
in the East Midlands
region of England. It stands on the River Trent
, the A1 (on the route of the ancient Great North Road
), and the East Coast Main Line
railway. The origins of the town are possibly Roman
as it lies on an important Roman road, the Fosse Way
. The town grew around Newark Castle
, now ruined, and a large marketplace, now lined with historic buildings. It was a local centre for the wool and cloth trade. During the English Civil War
it was besieged by Parliamentary forces, and had to be relieved by Prince Rupert in a battle known as the Relief of Newark
With its pleasant environment, including the surrounding villages, and its good transport links, the town is becoming a popular commuter town
for the expanding city of Nottingham
(around twenty miles (32 km) away) and increasingly for London (1 hour and 20 minutes by rail). Newark is the home of Newark Rugby Union
Football Club, which has produced past players such as Dusty Hare
and John Wells
.
Estimated population (Mid 2007, via NSDC Stats & Info) is 26,330 for the Newark Parish.
due to its position on an important Roman road, the Fosse Way
. In a document which purports to be a charter of 664, Newark is mentioned as having been granted to the Abbey of Peterborough
by Wulfhere
. An Anglo-Saxon pagan cemetery, used from the early 5th to the early 7th centuries, has been found in Millgate, in Newark, close to both the Fosse Way and the River Trent in which cremated remains were buried in pottery urns.
In the reign of Edward the Confessor
Newark belonged to Godiva and her husband Leofric, Earl of Mercia
, who granted it to the monastery of Stow
in 1055, who retained its incomes even after the Norman Conquest as came under the control of the Norman Bishop Remigius de Fécamp
. After his death it changed to, and remained in the hands of, the Bishops of Lincoln from 1092 until the reign of Edward VI
. There were burgesses in Newark at the time of the Domesday survey, and in the reign of Edward III
, there is evidence that it had long been a borough
by prescription. The Newark wapentake in the east of Nottinghamshire was established during the period of Anglo-Saxon
rule (10–11 centuries AD).
"was originally a Saxon fortified manor house
, founded by King Edward the Elder. In 1073, Robert Bloet
, bishop of Lincoln founded an earthwork
motte and bailey fortress on the site. From 1123–33, Bishop Alexander the Magnificent
completely rebuilt the castle, when founding a prominent stone structure of ornate construction." The river bridge was built about the same time under charter from Henry I
, also St. Leonard's Hospital. He also gained from the king a charter to hold a five-day fair at the castle each year. He gained a charter under King Stephen
to establish a mint in the town.
The town became a local centre for the wool and cloth trade, certainly by the time of Henry II
a major market was established. Wednesday and Saturday markets in the town were established during the period 1156–1329 when a series of charters granted to the Bishop of Lincoln
made them possible. King John
died of dysentery
in Newark in 1216. Following his death as Henry III
tried to bring order to the country the mercenary Robert de Gaugy refused to yield Newark Castle to the Bishop of Lincoln
, its rightful owner, leading to the Dauphin of France (later King Louis VIII of France
) laying an eight day siege on behalf of the king, ended by an agreement to pay the mercenary to leave. Around the time of Edward III
's death, and excluding beggars and clergy, in "1377 – Poll tax
records show adult population of 1,178 making Newark one of the biggest 25 or so towns in England".
In 1457 a flood swept away the bridge over the Trent and, although there was no legal requirement for anyone to replace it, the Bishop of Lincoln, John Chaworth, financed the building of a new bridge, built of oak with stone defensive towers at either end.
Following the break with Rome
in the 16th century, the subsequent establishment of the independent Church of England
, and the Dissolution of the Monasteries
, Henry VIII
had the Vicar of Newark, Henry Lytherland executed when he refused to acknowledge the king as head of the Church. The dissolution affected Newark's political landscape heavily, and even more radical changes came in 1547 when the Bishop of Lincoln
exchanged ownership of the town with the Crown. Newark was incorporated under an alderman
and twelve assistants in 1549, and the charter was confirmed and extended by Elizabeth I
.
Charles I
, owing to the increasing commercial prosperity of the town, reincorporated it under a mayor
and aldermen, and this charter, except for a temporary surrender under James II
, continued to be the governing charter of the corporation until the Municipal Corporations Act 1835
.
, Newark was a mainstay of the royalist cause, Charles I
having raised his standard in nearby Nottingham
. It was attacked in February 1643 by two troops of horsemen, but beat them back. The town fielded at times as many as 600 soldiers, and raided Nottingham
, Grantham
, Northampton
, Gainsborough
, and others with mixed success, but enough to cause it to rise to national notice. At the end of 1644 it was besieged by forces from Nottingham, Lincoln
and Derby
, the siege was only relieved in March by Prince Rupert.
Parliament commenced a new siege towards the end of January 1645 following more raiding, but this was relieved by Sir Marmaduke Langdale
after about a month. Newark cavalry
fought with the king's forces which were decisively defeated in the Battle of Naseby
, near Leicester
in June 1645.
The final siege began in November 1645, by which time the town's defences had been greatly strengthened. Two major forts had been constructed just outside the town, one, called the Queen's Sconce, to the south-west and another, the King's Sconce to the north-east, both close to the river, together with defensive walls and a water filled ditch 2¼ miles in length, around the town. In May 1646 the town was ordered to surrender by Charles I
, which was still only accepted under protest by the town's garrison. After the surrender most of the defences were destroyed, including the castle which was left in essentially the state it can be seen today.
Around 1770 the Great North Road
around Newark (now the A1) was raised on a long series of arches to ensure it remained clear of the regular floods it experienced. A special Act of Parliament
in 1773 allowed the creation of a town hall next to the Market Place. Designed by John Carr of York and completed in 1776, Newark Town Hall is now a Grade 1 listed building. In 1775 the Duke of Newcastle
, at the time the Lord of the Manor and a major landowner of the area, built a new brick bridge with stone facing to replace the dilapidated one next to the castle. This is still one of the major thoroughfares in the town today.
A noted advocate of reform in the late 18th century at Newark was the local-born printer and newspaper owner Daniel Holt (1766–1799). He was imprisoned for printing a leaflet advocating parliamentary reform and selling a Thomas Paine pamphlet. An account of his life by Alan Dorling is in the Nottinghamshire Historian journal, spring/summer 2000, pages 9–15 and further details in the autumn/winter edition of 2003, pages 8–12.
In the milieu of parliamentary reform the duke of Newcastle evicted over a hundred tenants at Newark whom he believed supported directly or indirectly the Liberal/Radical candidate (Wilde) rather than his candidate (Michael Sadler, a progressive Conservative)at the 1829 elections. See the report in Cornelius BROWN 1907, ii, 243 following; and the report in the Times for 7 October 1829. A report in the Times of 10 September 1832 lists ten of the evicted people by name and address.
J.S. Baxter, who was a schoolboy in Newark from 1830 to 1840, contributed to The hungry forties: life under the bread tax (London, 1904), a book about the Corn Laws
: "Chartists and rioters came from Nottingham into Newark, parading the streets with penny loaves dripped in blood carried on pikes, crying 'Bread or blood.'"
a lot of new buildings and industry were established, such as Independent Chapel (1822), Holy Trinity (1836–37), Christ Church (1837), Castle Railway Station (1846), Wesleyan Chapel (1846), The Corn Exchange (1848), Methodist New Connexion Chapel (1848), W.N. Nicholson Trent Ironworks (1840s), Northgate Railway Station (1851), North End Wesleyan Chapel (1868), St. Leonard's Anglican Church (1873), Baptist Chapel (1876), Primitive Methodist Chapel (1878), Newark Hospital (1881), Ossington Coffee Palace (1882), Gilstrap Free Library (1883), Market Hall (1884), Unitarian Chapel (1884), The Fire Station (1889), Waterworks (1898) and the School of Science and Art (1900). These changes and the other industrial expansion that went with them saw the population of the town grow from under 7,000 in 1800 to over 15,000 by the end of the century.
The clothing, bearings, pumps, agricultural machinery, pine furniture making and sugar refining were the main industries in Newark in the last 100 years or so. British Sugar still has one of its sugar beet
processing factories to the north of the town near the A616 (Great North Road). There have been several factory closures, especially since the 1950s. Breweries
in the town in the 20th century included James Hole and Warwicks-and-Richardsons.
also running through the town. Standing at the intersection of the Great North Road and the Fosse Way
, Newark originally grew around Newark Castle
– now ruined – and a large market place – now lined with historic buildings.
According to the 2001 census, it had a population of 25,376. The ONS Mid Year Population Estimates for 2007 indicate that the population had then increased to around 26,700.
However Newark forms a continuous built-up area with the neighbouring parish of Balderton
to the south. "The population of Newark is approximately 35,000 and the rural area of Newark and Sherwood to the west of the town has an additional population of 75,000 in the small towns of Southwell
and Ollerton
and the numerous villages of the district." To the south of the town, along the A46 road
, is Farndon
, and to the north is Winthorpe.
Newark's position as one of the few bridges on the River Trent in the area, its location along the Great North Road, (the A1), and later with the advance of rail transport being at the junction between the East Coast Main Line and the route from Nottingham
to Lincoln
, and situated on a man-made navigable section of the River Trent
, have all enhanced its growth and development. "Newark became a substantial inland port, particularly for the wool trade," though it industrialised to some extent during the Victorian era, and later with an ironworks, engineering, brewing, and a sugar refinery. It was a major town standing for the Royalist cause during the Civil War
, "Newark was besieged on three occasions and finally surrendered only when ordered to do so by the King
after his own surrender."
The A1 bypass was opened in 1964 by the then Minister of Transport, Ernest Marples
. The single-carriageway £34m A46 opened in October 1990. The junction with the A1 is very busy.
from 1673. It was the last borough to be created before the Reform Act. William Ewart Gladstone
, later Prime Minister
, was MP
for Newark in 1832, and re-elected in 1835, 1837 and 1841 (twice), but possibly due to his support of the repeal
of the Corn Laws
and other issues he stood elsewhere after that time. Recently, Newark elections have been central to two interesting legal cases. In 1945, a challenge to Harold Laski
, the Chairman of the National Executive Committee
of the Labour Party
, led Laski to sue the Daily Express
when it reported him as saying that Labour might take power through violence if defeated at the polls. Laski vehemently denied saying this but lost the libel action. In the 1997 general election
, Newark returned Fiona Jones
of the Labour Party. The defeated Liberal Democrat
candidate questioned her election expenses and the police investigated and eventually prosecuted. Jones and her election agent Des Whicher were convicted of submitting a fraudulent declaration of expenses, but the conviction was overturned on appeal. Had the conviction stood, Jones would have been disqualified from Parliament.
Newark's current MP is Patrick Mercer
, Conservative
. Mercer held the position of Shadow Minister for Homeland Security from June 2003 until March 2007, when he was forced to resign following racially contentious comments made to The Times
.
Newark is governed by Nottinghamshire County Council, and is in the Newark and Sherwood district, which returns ten councillors. The town has a locally elected council of eighteen members from five wards. Newark Town Council is responsible for local events such as the LocAle & Weinfest, as well as looking after the museum, and the allotments.
group) with around 200 employees. Another notable employer in the town is Laurens Patisseries, part of the food group Bakkavör
since May 2006 when bought for £130m, claims to be the largest cream cake manufacturer in Europe employing over 1000 people. It supplies desserts to Tesco
. Dessert Company on Brunel Drive closed in March 2000 with the loss of 700 jobs when Laurens received the Tesco order which they had supplied. In 2007, Currys
opened their £30m national distribution centre next to the A17 near the A46 roundabout, and Dixons moved its national distribution centre there in 2005, with over 1,400 staff employed at the site during peak times. PJ Smoothies used to be a main manufacturer in the town until 2007, when production was moved by new owners Pepsico
to Boxford
in Suffolk
to be made by Copella
. Ingersoll Dresser
have a pumps factory. Project Telecom on Brunel Drive was bought by Vodafone
in 2003 for a reported £163m. Since 1975 Newark has been host to the biggest antiques fair in Europe, the Newark International Antiques Fair, held bi-monthly at Newark showground. Although much of the pine furniture making has ceased in the last 10 years Newark is still known for its antiques shops and centres.
for the expanding city of Nottingham
(around twenty miles (32 km) away) and even increasingly for London (1 hour and 20 minutes by rail). Newark is also home of Newark Rugby Union
Football Club, which has produced past players such as Dusty Hare
, John Wells
, Greig Tonks
and Tom Ryder
. The leisure centre is out towards Balderton at the Grove School.
Newark's new police station opened in October 2006. The Palace Theatre is on Appletongate. The Market Place is the focal point of the town. The Queen's Head is an old pub.
torc
, the first in Nottinghamshire and very similar to those found at Snettisham
, was found in 2005 in what is now a field on the outskirts of Newark, and in 2008 was acquired by the town's museum.
. Other Church of England buildings include Christ Church, on Boundary Road
and St. Leonard's, on Lincoln Road
. The Catholic church, Holy Trinity, was consecrated in 1979. Other churches include the Baptist Church on Albert Street,
and a Christian church, the Church of Promise, which was formed in 2007.
runs through Newark North Gate railway station providing links to London, Leeds
, Newcastle upon Tyne
and Edinburgh
. The Newark Castle railway station lies on the Leicester
– Nottingham
– Lincoln
line providing cross-country regional links. These two lines cross on the level, which is one of a handful of flat crossings in Britain. A grade separation
has been proposed by Network Rail
.
There are several main roads around Newark. The A1 and A46
roads have bypasses around Newark. The A17 runs east from Newark to King's Lynn
in Norfolk
, and the A616
runs north from Newark to Huddersfield
in West Yorkshire
. The town is served by several bus companies, including Stagecoach in Lincolnshire
(branded as "Newark busabouttown"), Marshalls and Travel Wright, under the governance of Nottinghamshire County Council, and Newark and Sherwood
District Council.
, founded in 1854, is the town's weekly newspaper; it is owned by Newark Advertiser Co Ltd, who also publish local newspapers in Southwell
, Ollerton
and Bingham
.
Living Local Newspapers is the town's free, community newspaper, and is delivered in Newark, Fernwood and Balderton and is free in local and independent retails in the town centre.
Life&Style Magazine is also based in Newark, and provides editorial content on fashion, beauty, food and drink, tourism, politics and various other magazine-style topics.
, Germany; Saint-Cyr-sur-Loire
, France; and Sandomierz
, Poland. Emmendingen and Sandomierz are also formally twinned with each other.
Market town
Market town or market right is a legal term, originating in the medieval period, for a European settlement that has the right to host markets, distinguishing it from a village and city...
in Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire is a county in the East Midlands of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west...
in the East Midlands
East Midlands
The East Midlands is one of the regions of England, consisting of most of the eastern half of the traditional region of the Midlands. It encompasses the combined area of Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Rutland, Northamptonshire and most of Lincolnshire...
region of England. It stands on the River Trent
River Trent
The River Trent is one of the major rivers of England. Its source is in Staffordshire on the southern edge of Biddulph Moor. It flows through the Midlands until it joins the River Ouse at Trent Falls to form the Humber Estuary, which empties into the North Sea below Hull and Immingham.The Trent...
, the A1 (on the route of the ancient Great North Road
Great North Road (Great Britain)
The Great North Road was a coaching route used by mail coaches between London, York and Edinburgh. The modern A1 mainly follows the Great North Road. The inns on the road, many of which survive, were staging posts on the coach routes, providing accommodation, stabling for the horses and...
), and the East Coast Main Line
East Coast Main Line
The East Coast Main Line is a long electrified high-speed railway link between London, Peterborough, Doncaster, Wakefield, Leeds, York, Darlington, Newcastle and Edinburgh...
railway. The origins of the town are possibly Roman
Roman Britain
Roman Britain was the part of the island of Great Britain controlled by the Roman Empire from AD 43 until ca. AD 410.The Romans referred to the imperial province as Britannia, which eventually comprised all of the island of Great Britain south of the fluid frontier with Caledonia...
as it lies on an important Roman road, the Fosse Way
Fosse Way
The Fosse Way was a Roman road in England that linked Exeter in South West England to Lincoln in Lincolnshire, via Ilchester , Bath , Cirencester and Leicester .It joined Akeman Street and Ermin Way at Cirencester, crossed Watling Street at Venonis south...
. The town grew around Newark Castle
Newark Castle, Nottinghamshire
Newark Castle, in Newark, in the English county of Nottinghamshire was built by Alexander, consecrated Bishop of Lincoln in 1123, who established it as a mint. His rebuild here was probably the model for that at Sleaford Castle, also built by Alexander....
, now ruined, and a large marketplace, now lined with historic buildings. It was a local centre for the wool and cloth trade. During the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
it was besieged by Parliamentary forces, and had to be relieved by Prince Rupert in a battle known as the Relief of Newark
Relief of Newark
The Relief of Newark was a Royalist victory during the First English Civil War. It was a personal victory for Prince Rupert of the Rhine, and it resulted in the Royalists holding Newark-on-Trent until very near the end of the War.-Background:...
With its pleasant environment, including the surrounding villages, and its good transport links, the town is becoming a popular commuter town
Commuter town
A commuter town is an urban community that is primarily residential, from which most of the workforce commutes out to earn their livelihood. Many commuter towns act as suburbs of a nearby metropolis that workers travel to daily, and many suburbs are commuter towns...
for the expanding city of Nottingham
Nottingham
Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...
(around twenty miles (32 km) away) and increasingly for London (1 hour and 20 minutes by rail). Newark is the home of Newark Rugby Union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
Football Club, which has produced past players such as Dusty Hare
Dusty Hare
William Henry "Dusty" Hare MBE is a former international rugby union footballer, who played fullback.Hare currently holds the world record for points scored in a first class rugby career with 7,337 points....
and John Wells
John Wells (rugby)
John Wells is a former captain and coach of the Leicester Tigers rugby union team and presently forwards coach for England.Wells was born in Driffield, Yorkshire...
.
Estimated population (Mid 2007, via NSDC Stats & Info) is 26,330 for the Newark Parish.
Early history
The origins of the town are possibly RomanRoman Britain
Roman Britain was the part of the island of Great Britain controlled by the Roman Empire from AD 43 until ca. AD 410.The Romans referred to the imperial province as Britannia, which eventually comprised all of the island of Great Britain south of the fluid frontier with Caledonia...
due to its position on an important Roman road, the Fosse Way
Fosse Way
The Fosse Way was a Roman road in England that linked Exeter in South West England to Lincoln in Lincolnshire, via Ilchester , Bath , Cirencester and Leicester .It joined Akeman Street and Ermin Way at Cirencester, crossed Watling Street at Venonis south...
. In a document which purports to be a charter of 664, Newark is mentioned as having been granted to the Abbey of Peterborough
Peterborough Cathedral
Peterborough Cathedral, properly the Cathedral Church of St Peter, St Paul and St Andrew – also known as Saint Peter's Cathedral in the United Kingdom – is the seat of the Bishop of Peterborough, dedicated to Saint Peter, Saint Paul and Saint Andrew, whose statues look down from the...
by Wulfhere
Wulfhere of Mercia
Wulfhere was King of Mercia from the end of the 650s until 675. He was the first Christian king of all of Mercia, though it is not known when or how he converted from Anglo-Saxon paganism. His accession marked the end of Oswiu of Northumbria's overlordship of southern England, and Wulfhere...
. An Anglo-Saxon pagan cemetery, used from the early 5th to the early 7th centuries, has been found in Millgate, in Newark, close to both the Fosse Way and the River Trent in which cremated remains were buried in pottery urns.
In the reign of Edward the Confessor
Edward the Confessor
Edward the Confessor also known as St. Edward the Confessor , son of Æthelred the Unready and Emma of Normandy, was one of the last Anglo-Saxon kings of England and is usually regarded as the last king of the House of Wessex, ruling from 1042 to 1066....
Newark belonged to Godiva and her husband Leofric, Earl of Mercia
Leofric, Earl of Mercia
Leofric was the Earl of Mercia and founded monasteries at Coventry and Much Wenlock. Leofric is remembered as the husband of Lady Godiva.-Life and political influence:...
, who granted it to the monastery of Stow
Stow, Lincolnshire
Stow is a small village and civil parish within the West Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England. It is eleven miles northwest of the city of Lincoln and six miles southeast of Gainsborough, and has a total resident population of 355.Stow dates back to Roman times and in the...
in 1055, who retained its incomes even after the Norman Conquest as came under the control of the Norman Bishop Remigius de Fécamp
Remigius de Fécamp
Remigius de Fécamp was a Benedictine monk who was a supporter of William the Conqueror.-Early life:...
. After his death it changed to, and remained in the hands of, the Bishops of Lincoln from 1092 until the reign of Edward VI
Edward VI of England
Edward VI was the King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death. He was crowned on 20 February at the age of nine. The son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour, Edward was the third monarch of the Tudor dynasty and England's first monarch who was raised as a Protestant...
. There were burgesses in Newark at the time of the Domesday survey, and in the reign of Edward III
Edward III of England
Edward III was King of England from 1327 until his death and is noted for his military success. Restoring royal authority after the disastrous reign of his father, Edward II, Edward III went on to transform the Kingdom of England into one of the most formidable military powers in Europe...
, there is evidence that it had long been a borough
Borough
A borough is an administrative division in various countries. In principle, the term borough designates a self-governing township although, in practice, official use of the term varies widely....
by prescription. The Newark wapentake in the east of Nottinghamshire was established during the period of Anglo-Saxon
Anglo-Saxons
Anglo-Saxon is a term used by historians to designate the Germanic tribes who invaded and settled the south and east of Great Britain beginning in the early 5th century AD, and the period from their creation of the English nation to the Norman conquest. The Anglo-Saxon Era denotes the period of...
rule (10–11 centuries AD).
Medieval to Stuart period
Newark CastleNewark Castle, Nottinghamshire
Newark Castle, in Newark, in the English county of Nottinghamshire was built by Alexander, consecrated Bishop of Lincoln in 1123, who established it as a mint. His rebuild here was probably the model for that at Sleaford Castle, also built by Alexander....
"was originally a Saxon fortified manor house
Manor house
A manor house is a country house that historically formed the administrative centre of a manor, the lowest unit of territorial organisation in the feudal system in Europe. The term is applied to country houses that belonged to the gentry and other grand stately homes...
, founded by King Edward the Elder. In 1073, Robert Bloet
Robert Bloet
Robert Bloet was a medieval English bishop and a Chancellor of England. Born into a noble Norman family, he became a royal clerk under King William I of England. Under William I's son and successor King William II, Bloet was first named chancellor then appointed to the see of Lincoln...
, bishop of Lincoln founded an earthwork
Earthworks (engineering)
Earthworks are engineering works created through the moving or processing of quantities of soil or unformed rock.- Civil engineering use :Typical earthworks include roads, railway beds, causeways, dams, levees, canals, and berms...
motte and bailey fortress on the site. From 1123–33, Bishop Alexander the Magnificent
Alexander of Lincoln
Alexander of Lincoln was a medieval English Bishop of Lincoln, a member of an important administrative and ecclesiastical family. He was the nephew of Roger of Salisbury, a Bishop of Salisbury and Chancellor of England under King Henry I, and he was also related to Nigel, Bishop of Ely...
completely rebuilt the castle, when founding a prominent stone structure of ornate construction." The river bridge was built about the same time under charter from Henry I
Henry I of England
Henry I was the fourth son of William I of England. He succeeded his elder brother William II as King of England in 1100 and defeated his eldest brother, Robert Curthose, to become Duke of Normandy in 1106...
, also St. Leonard's Hospital. He also gained from the king a charter to hold a five-day fair at the castle each year. He gained a charter under King Stephen
Stephen of England
Stephen , often referred to as Stephen of Blois , was a grandson of William the Conqueror. He was King of England from 1135 to his death, and also the Count of Boulogne by right of his wife. Stephen's reign was marked by the Anarchy, a civil war with his cousin and rival, the Empress Matilda...
to establish a mint in the town.
Henry II of England
Henry II ruled as King of England , Count of Anjou, Count of Maine, Duke of Normandy, Duke of Aquitaine, Duke of Gascony, Count of Nantes, Lord of Ireland and, at various times, controlled parts of Wales, Scotland and western France. Henry, the great-grandson of William the Conqueror, was the...
a major market was established. Wednesday and Saturday markets in the town were established during the period 1156–1329 when a series of charters granted to the Bishop of Lincoln
Bishop of Lincoln
The Bishop of Lincoln is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Lincoln in the Province of Canterbury.The present diocese covers the county of Lincolnshire and the unitary authority areas of North Lincolnshire and North East Lincolnshire. The Bishop's seat is located in the Cathedral...
made them possible. King John
John of England
John , also known as John Lackland , was King of England from 6 April 1199 until his death...
died of dysentery
Dysentery
Dysentery is an inflammatory disorder of the intestine, especially of the colon, that results in severe diarrhea containing mucus and/or blood in the faeces with fever and abdominal pain. If left untreated, dysentery can be fatal.There are differences between dysentery and normal bloody diarrhoea...
in Newark in 1216. Following his death as Henry III
Henry III of England
Henry III was the son and successor of John as King of England, reigning for 56 years from 1216 until his death. His contemporaries knew him as Henry of Winchester. He was the first child king in England since the reign of Æthelred the Unready...
tried to bring order to the country the mercenary Robert de Gaugy refused to yield Newark Castle to the Bishop of Lincoln
Bishop of Lincoln
The Bishop of Lincoln is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Lincoln in the Province of Canterbury.The present diocese covers the county of Lincolnshire and the unitary authority areas of North Lincolnshire and North East Lincolnshire. The Bishop's seat is located in the Cathedral...
, its rightful owner, leading to the Dauphin of France (later King Louis VIII of France
Louis VIII of France
Louis VIII the Lion reigned as King of France from 1223 to 1226. He was a member of the House of Capet. Louis VIII was born in Paris, France, the son of Philip II Augustus and Isabelle of Hainaut. He was also Count of Artois, inheriting the county from his mother, from 1190–1226...
) laying an eight day siege on behalf of the king, ended by an agreement to pay the mercenary to leave. Around the time of Edward III
Edward III of England
Edward III was King of England from 1327 until his death and is noted for his military success. Restoring royal authority after the disastrous reign of his father, Edward II, Edward III went on to transform the Kingdom of England into one of the most formidable military powers in Europe...
's death, and excluding beggars and clergy, in "1377 – Poll tax
Poll tax
A poll tax is a tax of a portioned, fixed amount per individual in accordance with the census . When a corvée is commuted for cash payment, in effect it becomes a poll tax...
records show adult population of 1,178 making Newark one of the biggest 25 or so towns in England".
In 1457 a flood swept away the bridge over the Trent and, although there was no legal requirement for anyone to replace it, the Bishop of Lincoln, John Chaworth, financed the building of a new bridge, built of oak with stone defensive towers at either end.
Following the break with Rome
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
in the 16th century, the subsequent establishment of the independent Church of England
Church of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
, and the Dissolution of the Monasteries
Dissolution of the Monasteries
The Dissolution of the Monasteries, sometimes referred to as the Suppression of the Monasteries, was the set of administrative and legal processes between 1536 and 1541 by which Henry VIII disbanded monasteries, priories, convents and friaries in England, Wales and Ireland; appropriated their...
, Henry VIII
Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
had the Vicar of Newark, Henry Lytherland executed when he refused to acknowledge the king as head of the Church. The dissolution affected Newark's political landscape heavily, and even more radical changes came in 1547 when the Bishop of Lincoln
Bishop of Lincoln
The Bishop of Lincoln is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Lincoln in the Province of Canterbury.The present diocese covers the county of Lincolnshire and the unitary authority areas of North Lincolnshire and North East Lincolnshire. The Bishop's seat is located in the Cathedral...
exchanged ownership of the town with the Crown. Newark was incorporated under an alderman
Alderman
An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council member chosen by the elected members themselves rather than by popular vote, or a council...
and twelve assistants in 1549, and the charter was confirmed and extended by Elizabeth I
Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...
.
Charles I
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
, owing to the increasing commercial prosperity of the town, reincorporated it under a mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
and aldermen, and this charter, except for a temporary surrender under James II
James II of England
James II & VII was King of England and King of Ireland as James II and King of Scotland as James VII, from 6 February 1685. He was the last Catholic monarch to reign over the Kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland...
, continued to be the governing charter of the corporation until the Municipal Corporations Act 1835
Municipal Corporations Act 1835
The Municipal Corporations Act 1835 – sometimes known as the Municipal Reform Act, was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in the incorporated boroughs of England and Wales...
.
The Civil War
During the English Civil WarEnglish Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
, Newark was a mainstay of the royalist cause, Charles I
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
having raised his standard in nearby Nottingham
Nottingham
Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...
. It was attacked in February 1643 by two troops of horsemen, but beat them back. The town fielded at times as many as 600 soldiers, and raided Nottingham
Nottingham
Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...
, Grantham
Grantham
Grantham is a market town within the South Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England. It bestrides the East Coast Main Line railway , the historic A1 main north-south road, and the River Witham. Grantham is located approximately south of the city of Lincoln, and approximately east of Nottingham...
, Northampton
Northampton
Northampton is a large market town and local government district in the East Midlands region of England. Situated about north-west of London and around south-east of Birmingham, Northampton lies on the River Nene and is the county town of Northamptonshire. The demonym of Northampton is...
, Gainsborough
Gainsborough, Lincolnshire
Gainsborough is a town 15 miles north-west of Lincoln on the River Trent within the West Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England. At one time it served as an important port with trade downstream to Hull, and was the most inland in England, being more than 55 miles from the North...
, and others with mixed success, but enough to cause it to rise to national notice. At the end of 1644 it was besieged by forces from Nottingham, Lincoln
Lincoln, Lincolnshire
Lincoln is a cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England.The non-metropolitan district of Lincoln has a population of 85,595; the 2001 census gave the entire area of Lincoln a population of 120,779....
and Derby
Derby
Derby , is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands region of England. It lies upon the banks of the River Derwent and is located in the south of the ceremonial county of Derbyshire. In the 2001 census, the population of the city was 233,700, whilst that of the Derby Urban Area was 229,407...
, the siege was only relieved in March by Prince Rupert.
Parliament commenced a new siege towards the end of January 1645 following more raiding, but this was relieved by Sir Marmaduke Langdale
Marmaduke Langdale
Sir Marmaduke Langdale was a Royalist commander in the English Civil War.He married Lenox , daughter of Sir John Rodes of Barlborough, Derbyshire, and his third wife Catherine, daughter of Marmaduke Constable of Holderness on 12 September 1626, at St Michael-le-Belfry in York...
after about a month. Newark cavalry
Cavalry
Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...
fought with the king's forces which were decisively defeated in the Battle of Naseby
Battle of Naseby
The Battle of Naseby was the key battle of the first English Civil War. On 14 June 1645, the main army of King Charles I was destroyed by the Parliamentarian New Model Army commanded by Sir Thomas Fairfax and Oliver Cromwell.-The Campaign:...
, near Leicester
Leicester
Leicester is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England, and the county town of Leicestershire. The city lies on the River Soar and at the edge of the National Forest...
in June 1645.
The final siege began in November 1645, by which time the town's defences had been greatly strengthened. Two major forts had been constructed just outside the town, one, called the Queen's Sconce, to the south-west and another, the King's Sconce to the north-east, both close to the river, together with defensive walls and a water filled ditch 2¼ miles in length, around the town. In May 1646 the town was ordered to surrender by Charles I
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
, which was still only accepted under protest by the town's garrison. After the surrender most of the defences were destroyed, including the castle which was left in essentially the state it can be seen today.
Georgian era and early 19th century
Great North Road (Great Britain)
The Great North Road was a coaching route used by mail coaches between London, York and Edinburgh. The modern A1 mainly follows the Great North Road. The inns on the road, many of which survive, were staging posts on the coach routes, providing accommodation, stabling for the horses and...
around Newark (now the A1) was raised on a long series of arches to ensure it remained clear of the regular floods it experienced. A special Act of Parliament
Act of Parliament
An Act of Parliament is a statute enacted as primary legislation by a national or sub-national parliament. In the Republic of Ireland the term Act of the Oireachtas is used, and in the United States the term Act of Congress is used.In Commonwealth countries, the term is used both in a narrow...
in 1773 allowed the creation of a town hall next to the Market Place. Designed by John Carr of York and completed in 1776, Newark Town Hall is now a Grade 1 listed building. In 1775 the Duke of Newcastle
Duke of Newcastle
Duke of Newcastle-upon-Tyne is a title which has been created three times in British history while the title of Duke of Newcastle-under-Lyne has been created once. The title was created for the first time in the Peerage of England in 1664 when William Cavendish, 1st Marquess of Newcastle-upon-Tyne...
, at the time the Lord of the Manor and a major landowner of the area, built a new brick bridge with stone facing to replace the dilapidated one next to the castle. This is still one of the major thoroughfares in the town today.
A noted advocate of reform in the late 18th century at Newark was the local-born printer and newspaper owner Daniel Holt (1766–1799). He was imprisoned for printing a leaflet advocating parliamentary reform and selling a Thomas Paine pamphlet. An account of his life by Alan Dorling is in the Nottinghamshire Historian journal, spring/summer 2000, pages 9–15 and further details in the autumn/winter edition of 2003, pages 8–12.
In the milieu of parliamentary reform the duke of Newcastle evicted over a hundred tenants at Newark whom he believed supported directly or indirectly the Liberal/Radical candidate (Wilde) rather than his candidate (Michael Sadler, a progressive Conservative)at the 1829 elections. See the report in Cornelius BROWN 1907, ii, 243 following; and the report in the Times for 7 October 1829. A report in the Times of 10 September 1832 lists ten of the evicted people by name and address.
J.S. Baxter, who was a schoolboy in Newark from 1830 to 1840, contributed to The hungry forties: life under the bread tax (London, 1904), a book about the Corn Laws
Corn Laws
The Corn Laws were trade barriers designed to protect cereal producers in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland against competition from less expensive foreign imports between 1815 and 1846. The barriers were introduced by the Importation Act 1815 and repealed by the Importation Act 1846...
: "Chartists and rioters came from Nottingham into Newark, parading the streets with penny loaves dripped in blood carried on pikes, crying 'Bread or blood.'"
Recent history
During the Victorian eraVictorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
a lot of new buildings and industry were established, such as Independent Chapel (1822), Holy Trinity (1836–37), Christ Church (1837), Castle Railway Station (1846), Wesleyan Chapel (1846), The Corn Exchange (1848), Methodist New Connexion Chapel (1848), W.N. Nicholson Trent Ironworks (1840s), Northgate Railway Station (1851), North End Wesleyan Chapel (1868), St. Leonard's Anglican Church (1873), Baptist Chapel (1876), Primitive Methodist Chapel (1878), Newark Hospital (1881), Ossington Coffee Palace (1882), Gilstrap Free Library (1883), Market Hall (1884), Unitarian Chapel (1884), The Fire Station (1889), Waterworks (1898) and the School of Science and Art (1900). These changes and the other industrial expansion that went with them saw the population of the town grow from under 7,000 in 1800 to over 15,000 by the end of the century.
The clothing, bearings, pumps, agricultural machinery, pine furniture making and sugar refining were the main industries in Newark in the last 100 years or so. British Sugar still has one of its sugar beet
Sugar beet
Sugar beet, a cultivated plant of Beta vulgaris, is a plant whose tuber contains a high concentration of sucrose. It is grown commercially for sugar production. Sugar beets and other B...
processing factories to the north of the town near the A616 (Great North Road). There have been several factory closures, especially since the 1950s. Breweries
Brewery
A brewery is a dedicated building for the making of beer, though beer can be made at home, and has been for much of beer's history. A company which makes beer is called either a brewery or a brewing company....
in the town in the 20th century included James Hole and Warwicks-and-Richardsons.
Geography
Newark lies on the River Trent, with the River DevonRiver Devon, Nottinghamshire
The River Devon is a tributary of the River Trent, which rises in Leicestershire and joins the Trent at Newark in Nottinghamshire, England. In its upper reaches, it supplies Knipton Reservoir, which was built to supply water to the Grantham Canal, and Belvoir Lakes, designed by Capability Brown...
also running through the town. Standing at the intersection of the Great North Road and the Fosse Way
Fosse Way
The Fosse Way was a Roman road in England that linked Exeter in South West England to Lincoln in Lincolnshire, via Ilchester , Bath , Cirencester and Leicester .It joined Akeman Street and Ermin Way at Cirencester, crossed Watling Street at Venonis south...
, Newark originally grew around Newark Castle
Newark Castle, Nottinghamshire
Newark Castle, in Newark, in the English county of Nottinghamshire was built by Alexander, consecrated Bishop of Lincoln in 1123, who established it as a mint. His rebuild here was probably the model for that at Sleaford Castle, also built by Alexander....
– now ruined – and a large market place – now lined with historic buildings.
According to the 2001 census, it had a population of 25,376. The ONS Mid Year Population Estimates for 2007 indicate that the population had then increased to around 26,700.
However Newark forms a continuous built-up area with the neighbouring parish of Balderton
Balderton
Balderton is a village and civil parish in the Newark and Sherwood district of Nottinghamshire, England. The parish, which then included Fernwood had a population of 10,298 as of 2001....
to the south. "The population of Newark is approximately 35,000 and the rural area of Newark and Sherwood to the west of the town has an additional population of 75,000 in the small towns of Southwell
Southwell, Nottinghamshire
Southwell is a town in Nottinghamshire, England, best known as the site of Southwell Minster, the seat of the Church of England diocese that covers Nottinghamshire...
and Ollerton
Ollerton
Ollerton is a town in Nottinghamshire, England, on the edge of Sherwood Forest in the area known as the Dukeries. It forms part of the civil parish of Ollerton and Boughton....
and the numerous villages of the district." To the south of the town, along the A46 road
A46 road
The A46 is an A road in England. It starts east of Bath, Somerset and ends in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, but it does not form a continuous route. Large portions of the old road have been lost, bypassed, or replaced by motorway development...
, is Farndon
Farndon, Nottinghamshire
Farndon is a small village on the Fosse Way or A46 Roman road, 2.5 miles south-west of Newark-on-Trent, on the banks of the River Trent. The name Farndon means "Fern Hill". It is thought to be the site of the Roman fort Ad Pontem or "the place by the bridges." The parish church of St...
, and to the north is Winthorpe.
Newark's position as one of the few bridges on the River Trent in the area, its location along the Great North Road, (the A1), and later with the advance of rail transport being at the junction between the East Coast Main Line and the route from Nottingham
Nottingham
Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...
to Lincoln
Lincoln, Lincolnshire
Lincoln is a cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England.The non-metropolitan district of Lincoln has a population of 85,595; the 2001 census gave the entire area of Lincoln a population of 120,779....
, and situated on a man-made navigable section of the River Trent
River Trent
The River Trent is one of the major rivers of England. Its source is in Staffordshire on the southern edge of Biddulph Moor. It flows through the Midlands until it joins the River Ouse at Trent Falls to form the Humber Estuary, which empties into the North Sea below Hull and Immingham.The Trent...
, have all enhanced its growth and development. "Newark became a substantial inland port, particularly for the wool trade," though it industrialised to some extent during the Victorian era, and later with an ironworks, engineering, brewing, and a sugar refinery. It was a major town standing for the Royalist cause during the Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
, "Newark was besieged on three occasions and finally surrendered only when ordered to do so by the King
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
after his own surrender."
The A1 bypass was opened in 1964 by the then Minister of Transport, Ernest Marples
Ernest Marples
Alfred Ernest Marples, Baron Marples PC was a British Conservative politician who served as Postmaster General and Minister of Transport. After his retirement from active politics in 1974 Marples was elevated to the peerage...
. The single-carriageway £34m A46 opened in October 1990. The junction with the A1 is very busy.
Governance
Newark returned two representatives to the Unreformed House of CommonsUnreformed House of Commons
The unreformed House of Commons is the name generally given to the British House of Commons as it existed before the Reform Act 1832.Until the Act of Union of 1707 joining the Kingdoms of Scotland and England , Scotland had its own Parliament, and the term refers to the House of Commons of England...
from 1673. It was the last borough to be created before the Reform Act. William Ewart Gladstone
William Ewart Gladstone
William Ewart Gladstone FRS FSS was a British Liberal statesman. In a career lasting over sixty years, he served as Prime Minister four separate times , more than any other person. Gladstone was also Britain's oldest Prime Minister, 84 years old when he resigned for the last time...
, later Prime Minister
Prime minister
A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime...
, was MP
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for Newark in 1832, and re-elected in 1835, 1837 and 1841 (twice), but possibly due to his support of the repeal
Repeal
A repeal is the amendment, removal or reversal of a law. This is generally done when a law is no longer effective, or it is shown that a law is having far more negative consequences than were originally envisioned....
of the Corn Laws
Corn Laws
The Corn Laws were trade barriers designed to protect cereal producers in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland against competition from less expensive foreign imports between 1815 and 1846. The barriers were introduced by the Importation Act 1815 and repealed by the Importation Act 1846...
and other issues he stood elsewhere after that time. Recently, Newark elections have been central to two interesting legal cases. In 1945, a challenge to Harold Laski
Harold Laski
Harold Joseph Laski was a British Marxist, political theorist, economist, author, and lecturer, who served as the chairman of the Labour Party during 1945-1946, and was a professor at the LSE from 1926 to 1950....
, the Chairman of the National Executive Committee
National Executive Committee
The National Executive Committee or NEC is the chief administrative body of the UK Labour Party. Its composition has changed over the years, and includes representatives of affiliated trade unions, the Parliamentary Labour Party and European Parliamentary Labour Party, Constituency Labour Parties,...
of the Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
, led Laski to sue the Daily Express
Daily Express
The Daily Express switched from broadsheet to tabloid in 1977 and was bought by the construction company Trafalgar House in the same year. Its publishing company, Beaverbrook Newspapers, was renamed Express Newspapers...
when it reported him as saying that Labour might take power through violence if defeated at the polls. Laski vehemently denied saying this but lost the libel action. In the 1997 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1997
The United Kingdom general election, 1997 was held on 1 May 1997, more than five years after the previous election on 9 April 1992, to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party ended its 18 years in opposition under the leadership of Tony Blair, and won the general...
, Newark returned Fiona Jones
Fiona Jones
Fiona Jones was a Labour Party politician in the United Kingdom. She was elected as a Member of Parliament for Newark in Labour's landslide victory in the 1997 general election....
of the Labour Party. The defeated Liberal Democrat
Liberal Democrats
The Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
candidate questioned her election expenses and the police investigated and eventually prosecuted. Jones and her election agent Des Whicher were convicted of submitting a fraudulent declaration of expenses, but the conviction was overturned on appeal. Had the conviction stood, Jones would have been disqualified from Parliament.
Newark's current MP is Patrick Mercer
Patrick Mercer
Patrick John Mercer OBE is a Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom, representing the constituency of Newark in Parliament. He is a frequent commentator on defence and security issues having served as infantry officer in the British Army and held the position of Shadow Minister for...
, Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
. Mercer held the position of Shadow Minister for Homeland Security from June 2003 until March 2007, when he was forced to resign following racially contentious comments made to The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
.
Newark is governed by Nottinghamshire County Council, and is in the Newark and Sherwood district, which returns ten councillors. The town has a locally elected council of eighteen members from five wards. Newark Town Council is responsible for local events such as the LocAle & Weinfest, as well as looking after the museum, and the allotments.
Economy
A major employer in the town is a bearings factory (part of the NSKNSK Ltd.
NSK Ltd. inaugurated its business in November 1916 and produced the first ball bearings made in Japan. Since then, NSK Ltd...
group) with around 200 employees. Another notable employer in the town is Laurens Patisseries, part of the food group Bakkavör
Bakkavör
Bakkavör Group hf. is an Icelandic international food manufacturing company specialising in fresh prepared foods and produce. The group operates 66 factories and employs over 20,000 people in nine countries with a pro-forma turnover in 2007 of £1.5 billion. The group’s head office is in Reykjavík...
since May 2006 when bought for £130m, claims to be the largest cream cake manufacturer in Europe employing over 1000 people. It supplies desserts to Tesco
Tesco
Tesco plc is a global grocery and general merchandise retailer headquartered in Cheshunt, United Kingdom. It is the third-largest retailer in the world measured by revenues and the second-largest measured by profits...
. Dessert Company on Brunel Drive closed in March 2000 with the loss of 700 jobs when Laurens received the Tesco order which they had supplied. In 2007, Currys
Currys
Currys is an electrical retailer in the United Kingdom and Ireland and is owned by Dixons Retail plc. It specialises in selling home electronics and household appliances, with 295 superstores and 73 high street stores...
opened their £30m national distribution centre next to the A17 near the A46 roundabout, and Dixons moved its national distribution centre there in 2005, with over 1,400 staff employed at the site during peak times. PJ Smoothies used to be a main manufacturer in the town until 2007, when production was moved by new owners Pepsico
PepsiCo
PepsiCo Inc. is an American multinational corporation headquartered in Purchase, New York, United States, with interests in the manufacturing, marketing and distribution of grain-based snack foods, beverages, and other products. PepsiCo was formed in 1965 with the merger of the Pepsi-Cola Company...
to Boxford
Boxford, Suffolk
Boxford is a large village and a civil parish in the Babergh district of Suffolk, England. Located around six miles east of Sudbury straddling the River Box and skirted by the Holbrook, in 2005 it had a population of 1,270.-History:...
in Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
to be made by Copella
Copella
Copella is a British fruit juice company based in Boxford, Suffolk. It was founded in the 1930s. Copella juices are made from 100% pure pressed apples. The brand is now owned by Tropicana...
. Ingersoll Dresser
Ingersoll Rand
Ingersoll-Rand plc is a $13 billion global diversified industrial company founded in 1871. The Ingersoll Rand name came into use in 1905 through the combination of Ingersoll-Sergeant Drill Company and Rand Drill Company...
have a pumps factory. Project Telecom on Brunel Drive was bought by Vodafone
Vodafone
Vodafone Group Plc is a global telecommunications company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the world's largest mobile telecommunications company measured by revenues and the world's second-largest measured by subscribers , with around 341 million proportionate subscribers as of...
in 2003 for a reported £163m. Since 1975 Newark has been host to the biggest antiques fair in Europe, the Newark International Antiques Fair, held bi-monthly at Newark showground. Although much of the pine furniture making has ceased in the last 10 years Newark is still known for its antiques shops and centres.
Culture
With its pleasant environment, including the surrounding villages, and its good transport links, the town is becoming a popular commuter townCommuter town
A commuter town is an urban community that is primarily residential, from which most of the workforce commutes out to earn their livelihood. Many commuter towns act as suburbs of a nearby metropolis that workers travel to daily, and many suburbs are commuter towns...
for the expanding city of Nottingham
Nottingham
Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...
(around twenty miles (32 km) away) and even increasingly for London (1 hour and 20 minutes by rail). Newark is also home of Newark Rugby Union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
Football Club, which has produced past players such as Dusty Hare
Dusty Hare
William Henry "Dusty" Hare MBE is a former international rugby union footballer, who played fullback.Hare currently holds the world record for points scored in a first class rugby career with 7,337 points....
, John Wells
John Wells (rugby)
John Wells is a former captain and coach of the Leicester Tigers rugby union team and presently forwards coach for England.Wells was born in Driffield, Yorkshire...
, Greig Tonks
Greig Tonks
Greig Tonks is an English rugby union center/fullback who plays for Northampton Saints – educated at Nottingham High School. He formerly played for Leicester Tigers, whom he joined aged 16...
and Tom Ryder
Tom Ryder
Thomas P. "Tom" Ryder is a rugby union footballer who plays at lock for Glasgow Warriors after signing from Saracens in the Summer of 2011...
. The leisure centre is out towards Balderton at the Grove School.
Landmarks
- The Church of St. Mary MagdaleneChurch of St. Mary Magdalene, Newark-on-TrentThe Church of St. Mary Magadalene, Newark-on-Trent is a parish church in the Church of England in Newark-on-Trent in Nottinghamshire.The church is Grade I listed by the Department for Culture, Media & Sport as a building of outstanding architectural or historic interest.-Building:It is notable for...
is a Grade I listed building, notable for the tower and the octagonal spire (236 ft. high), the highest in Nottinghamshire. It was heavily restoredVictorian restorationVictorian restoration is the term commonly used to refer to the widespread and extensive refurbishment and rebuilding of Church of England churches and cathedrals that took place in England and Wales during the 19th-century reign of Queen Victoria...
in the mid nineteenth century by Sir George Gilbert Scott. The reredos was added by Sir Ninian Comper.
- Newark Air MuseumNewark Air Museumright|thumb|200px|[[Handley Page Hastings]] T5 TG517 at the Newark Air Museum.Newark Air Museum is an air museum located on a former Royal Air Force station at Winthorpe, near Newark on Trent in Nottinghamshire, England. The museum contains a variety of aircraft...
is an air museum located on the former Royal Air Force station, RAF Winthorpe, at Winthorpe village, just north of the town. The airfield was mainly used for training LancasterAvro LancasterThe Avro Lancaster is a British four-engined Second World War heavy bomber made initially by Avro for the Royal Air Force . It first saw active service in 1942, and together with the Handley Page Halifax it was one of the main heavy bombers of the RAF, the RCAF, and squadrons from other...
crews.
- Newark CastleNewark Castle, NottinghamshireNewark Castle, in Newark, in the English county of Nottinghamshire was built by Alexander, consecrated Bishop of Lincoln in 1123, who established it as a mint. His rebuild here was probably the model for that at Sleaford Castle, also built by Alexander....
was built alongside the Trent by Alexander of LincolnAlexander of LincolnAlexander of Lincoln was a medieval English Bishop of Lincoln, a member of an important administrative and ecclesiastical family. He was the nephew of Roger of Salisbury, a Bishop of Salisbury and Chancellor of England under King Henry I, and he was also related to Nigel, Bishop of Ely...
, the Bishop of LincolnBishop of LincolnThe Bishop of Lincoln is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Lincoln in the Province of Canterbury.The present diocese covers the county of Lincolnshire and the unitary authority areas of North Lincolnshire and North East Lincolnshire. The Bishop's seat is located in the Cathedral...
in 1123, who established it as a mintMint (coin)A mint is an industrial facility which manufactures coins for currency.The history of mints correlates closely with the history of coins. One difference is that the history of the mint is usually closely tied to the political situation of an era...
. Of the original NormanNorman architectureAbout|Romanesque architecture, primarily English|other buildings in Normandy|Architecture of Normandy.File:Durham Cathedral. Nave by James Valentine c.1890.jpg|thumb|200px|The nave of Durham Cathedral demonstrates the characteristic round arched style, though use of shallow pointed arches above the...
stronghold the most important remains are the gate-house, a cryptCryptIn architecture, a crypt is a stone chamber or vault beneath the floor of a burial vault possibly containing sarcophagi, coffins or relics....
and the tower at the south-west angle. King JohnJohn of EnglandJohn , also known as John Lackland , was King of England from 6 April 1199 until his death...
died at this castle on the night of 18 October 1216. In the reign of Edward IIIEdward III of EnglandEdward III was King of England from 1327 until his death and is noted for his military success. Restoring royal authority after the disastrous reign of his father, Edward II, Edward III went on to transform the Kingdom of England into one of the most formidable military powers in Europe...
it was used as a state prison. During the English Civil WarEnglish Civil WarThe English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
it was garrisoned for Charles ICharles I of EnglandCharles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
, and endured three sieges. Its dismantling was begun in 1646, immediately after the surrender of the king.
The Newark Torc
The Newark Torc, a major silver and gold Iron AgeIron Age
The Iron Age is the archaeological period generally occurring after the Bronze Age, marked by the prevalent use of iron. The early period of the age is characterized by the widespread use of iron or steel. The adoption of such material coincided with other changes in society, including differing...
torc
Torc
A torc, also spelled torq or torque, is a large, usually rigid, neck ring typically made from strands of metal twisted together. The great majority are open-ended at the front, although many seem designed for near-permanent wear and would have been difficult to remove. Smaller torcs worn around...
, the first in Nottinghamshire and very similar to those found at Snettisham
Snettisham Hoard
The Snettisham Hoard, Snettisham Treasure or Snettisham Torc, is a series of discoveries of Iron Age precious metal, found in the Snettisham area of the English county of Norfolk between 1948 and 1973....
, was found in 2005 in what is now a field on the outskirts of Newark, and in 2008 was acquired by the town's museum.
Churches
There are several churches in Newark, including the Grade I listed parish church, St. Mary MagdaleneChurch of St. Mary Magdalene, Newark-on-Trent
The Church of St. Mary Magadalene, Newark-on-Trent is a parish church in the Church of England in Newark-on-Trent in Nottinghamshire.The church is Grade I listed by the Department for Culture, Media & Sport as a building of outstanding architectural or historic interest.-Building:It is notable for...
. Other Church of England buildings include Christ Church, on Boundary Road
Christ Church, Newark
Christ Church, Newark is a parish church in the Church of England in Newark on Trent, Nottinghamshire.-History:The church was built in 1836 to 1837 by the architect J. D. Paine....
and St. Leonard's, on Lincoln Road
St. Leonard's Church, Newark
St. Leonard's Church, Newark is a parish church in the Church of England in Newark on Trent, Nottinghamshire.-History:The first church was built in Northgate in 1873 by the architect Evans and Jolly of Nottingham.. It cost £4,000 and was consecrated by Christopher Wordsworth, Bishop of Lincoln on...
. The Catholic church, Holy Trinity, was consecrated in 1979. Other churches include the Baptist Church on Albert Street,
and a Christian church, the Church of Promise, which was formed in 2007.
Transport
Newark has two railway stations linked to the national network. The East Coast Main LineEast Coast Main Line
The East Coast Main Line is a long electrified high-speed railway link between London, Peterborough, Doncaster, Wakefield, Leeds, York, Darlington, Newcastle and Edinburgh...
runs through Newark North Gate railway station providing links to London, Leeds
Leeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
, Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...
and Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
. The Newark Castle railway station lies on the Leicester
Leicester
Leicester is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England, and the county town of Leicestershire. The city lies on the River Soar and at the edge of the National Forest...
– Nottingham
Nottingham
Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...
– Lincoln
Lincoln, Lincolnshire
Lincoln is a cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England.The non-metropolitan district of Lincoln has a population of 85,595; the 2001 census gave the entire area of Lincoln a population of 120,779....
line providing cross-country regional links. These two lines cross on the level, which is one of a handful of flat crossings in Britain. A grade separation
Grade separation
Grade separation is the method of aligning a junction of two or more transport axes at different heights so that they will not disrupt the traffic flow on other transit routes when they cross each other. The composition of such transport axes does not have to be uniform; it can consist of a...
has been proposed by Network Rail
Network Rail
Network Rail is the government-created owner and operator of most of the rail infrastructure in Great Britain .; it is not responsible for railway infrastructure in Northern Ireland...
.
There are several main roads around Newark. The A1 and A46
A46 road
The A46 is an A road in England. It starts east of Bath, Somerset and ends in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, but it does not form a continuous route. Large portions of the old road have been lost, bypassed, or replaced by motorway development...
roads have bypasses around Newark. The A17 runs east from Newark to King's Lynn
King's Lynn
King's Lynn is a sea port and market town in the ceremonial county of Norfolk in the East of England. It is situated north of London and west of Norwich. The population of the town is 42,800....
in Norfolk
Norfolk
Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
, and the A616
A616 road
The A616 is a road which links Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire, to the M1 motorway at Junction 30, then reappears at Junction 35A and goes on to Huddersfield, West Yorkshire....
runs north from Newark to Huddersfield
Huddersfield
Huddersfield is a large market town within the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England, situated halfway between Leeds and Manchester. It lies north of London, and south of Bradford, the nearest city....
in West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....
. The town is served by several bus companies, including Stagecoach in Lincolnshire
Stagecoach in Lincolnshire
Stagecoach Lincolnshire is a bus company, formerly known as Lincolnshire RoadCar, which runs services throughout Lincolnshire.Stagecoach in Lincolnshire is the trading name of the Lincolnshire RoadCar Company Limited, which is a subsidiary of the Stagecoach Group, and part of its East Midlands...
(branded as "Newark busabouttown"), Marshalls and Travel Wright, under the governance of Nottinghamshire County Council, and Newark and Sherwood
District Council.
Media
The Newark AdvertiserNewark Advertiser
The Newark Advertiser is a British regional newspaper, owned by Advertiser Group Newspapers, for the town of Newark-on-Trent and surrounding areas.- History :...
, founded in 1854, is the town's weekly newspaper; it is owned by Newark Advertiser Co Ltd, who also publish local newspapers in Southwell
Southwell, Nottinghamshire
Southwell is a town in Nottinghamshire, England, best known as the site of Southwell Minster, the seat of the Church of England diocese that covers Nottinghamshire...
, Ollerton
Ollerton
Ollerton is a town in Nottinghamshire, England, on the edge of Sherwood Forest in the area known as the Dukeries. It forms part of the civil parish of Ollerton and Boughton....
and Bingham
Bingham, Nottinghamshire
Bingham is a market town in the Rushcliffe borough of Nottinghamshire, England.-Geography:With a population of around 9,000 people it lies about nine miles east of Nottingham, a similar distance south-west of Newark-on-Trent and west of Grantham. It is situated where the A46 intersects the A52...
.
Living Local Newspapers is the town's free, community newspaper, and is delivered in Newark, Fernwood and Balderton and is free in local and independent retails in the town centre.
Life&Style Magazine is also based in Newark, and provides editorial content on fashion, beauty, food and drink, tourism, politics and various other magazine-style topics.
Literature
- Cornelius BrownCornelius BrownCornelius Brown was a British journalist and historian.In 1874, 22-year-old Cornelius Brown was appointed editor of the Newark Advertiser in nearby Newark-on-Trent....
(1852–1907) - journalist and historian, Newark AdvertiserNewark AdvertiserThe Newark Advertiser is a British regional newspaper, owned by Advertiser Group Newspapers, for the town of Newark-on-Trent and surrounding areas.- History :... - Winifred GalesWinifred GalesWinifred Marshall Gales was a novelist and memoirist. Gales was born in 1761 in Newark-upon-Trent, England, the daughter of John Marshall...
(1761–1839) - novelist and memoirist - T. W. RobertsonThomas William RobertsonThomas William Robertson , usually known professionally as T. W. Robertson, was an Anglo-Irish dramatist and innovative stage director best known for a series of realistic or naturalistic plays produced in London in the 1860s that broke new ground and inspired playwrights such as W.S...
(1829–1871) - playwright
Music
- John BlowJohn BlowJohn Blow was an English Baroque composer and organist, appointed to Westminster Abbey in 1669. His pupils included William Croft, Jeremiah Clarke and Henry Purcell. In 1685 he was named a private musician to James II. His only stage composition, Venus and Adonis John Blow (baptised 23 February...
(1649–1708) - composer and organist born in Newark - Ian BurdenIan BurdenIan Charles Burden was a keyboard player with the English synthpop band, The Human League, from 1981 up to 1989....
(born 1957) - keyboard player, The Human LeagueThe Human LeagueThe Human League are an English electronic New Wave band formed in Sheffield in 1977. They achieved popularity after a key change in line-up in the early 1980s and have continued recording and performing with moderate commercial success throughout the 1980s up to the present day.The only constant... - Jay McGuinessThe WantedThe Wanted are a British-Irish boy band based in London, England. The band consists of Max George, Siva Kaneswaran, Jay McGuiness, Tom Parker and Nathan Sykes. Their debut single, "All Time Low", was released in July 2010 and reached number one in the United Kingdom for one week...
(born 1990) - singer, boyband The WantedThe WantedThe Wanted are a British-Irish boy band based in London, England. The band consists of Max George, Siva Kaneswaran, Jay McGuiness, Tom Parker and Nathan Sykes. Their debut single, "All Time Low", was released in July 2010 and reached number one in the United Kingdom for one week...
Politics
- Richard Alexander (1934–2008) - Conservative politician
- Robert HeronSir Robert Heron, 2nd BaronetSir Robert Heron, 2nd Baronet was a British Whig politician. He sat in the House of Commons from 1812 to 1847, with a break in 1818–1819.-Early life:...
(1765–1854) - Whig politician - Fiona JonesFiona JonesFiona Jones was a Labour Party politician in the United Kingdom. She was elected as a Member of Parliament for Newark in Labour's landslide victory in the 1997 general election....
(1957–2007) - Labour politician, MP for Newark.
Science and technology
- Godfrey HounsfieldGodfrey HounsfieldSir Godfrey Newbold Hounsfield CBE, FRS, was an English electrical engineer who shared the 1979 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine with Allan McLeod Cormack for his part in developing the diagnostic technique of X-ray computed tomography .His name is immortalised in the Hounsfield scale, a...
(1919–2004) - electrical engineer, Nobel Laureate in medicine, inventor of the CT scanner - Rupert SheldrakeRupert SheldrakeRupert Sheldrake is an English scientist. He is known for having proposed an unorthodox account of morphogenesis and for his research into parapsychology. His books and papers stem from his theory of morphic resonance, and cover topics such as animal and plant development and behaviour, memory,...
(born 1942) - biochemist and author - Frederick Smeeton WilliamsFrederick Smeeton WilliamsFrederick Smeeton Williams was a minister in the Congregational Church, but is best known for his books on the early history of the railway....
(1829–1886) - writer on railways
Sports
- Steve BainesSteve BainesStephen John "Steve" Baines is an English former footballer and later a referee in the Football League. Born in Newark, Nottinghamshire, during his refereeing career he resided in Chesterfield, Derbyshire...
(born 1954) - League footballer and referee - Dusty HareDusty HareWilliam Henry "Dusty" Hare MBE is a former international rugby union footballer, who played fullback.Hare currently holds the world record for points scored in a first class rugby career with 7,337 points....
(born 1952) - rugby union international - Phil JoslinPhil Joslin (referee)Philip J. Joslin is an English association football referee who operates in the Football League...
(born 1959) - League football referee - Mary King (equestrian)Mary King (equestrian)Mary Elizabeth King is a British Olympic equestrian sportswoman who has represented Great Britain at five Olympics from 1992 to 2008, winning one silver and one bronze medal in the team eventing...
(born Thomson, 1961) - Olympic equestrian sportswoman - Shane NicholsonShane NicholsonShane Michael Nicholson is an English retired professional footballer who played as a left back. He is now the rehabilitation and fitness coach at Chesterfield, after he announced his retirement from professional football in 2007.In his 21-year career Nicholson played for 8 clubs, played in 523...
(born 1970) - League footballer - William StreetsWilliam StreetsWilliam Streets was an English professional cricketer who made 4 known appearances in major cricket matches from 1792 to 1803.-External sources:*...
(born 1772, fl. 1792-1803) - cricketer
Stage and screen
- Toby KebbellToby KebbellTobias Alistair P. "Toby" Kebbell is a British actor.-Life and career:Kebbell, the fourth of five children, was born in South Elmsall, on the A638 between Doncaster and Wakefield, Yorkshire, but grew up in Nottinghamshire...
(born 1982) - actor, raised in Newark - Norman PaceNorman PaceNorman Pace is an English actor and comedian, best known as one half of the comedy duo Hale and Pace with his friend and comic partner Gareth Hale...
(born 1953) - actor and comedian - Terence LongdonTerence LongdonTerence Longdon was an English actor. Longdon, born in Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire was best known for his lead role in the 1950s-1960s British TV series Garry Halliday where he played a Biggles-like pilot who flew into various adventure situations. In film he was Drusus, Messala's personal...
(1922–2011) - screen actor - Donald WolfitDonald WolfitSir Donald Wolfit, KBE was a well-known English actor-manager.-Biography:Wolfit, who was "Woolfitt" at birth was born at New Balderton, near Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire and attended the Magnus Grammar School and made his stage début in 1920...
(1902–1968) - Shakespearean actor
Twin towns
Since 1984 Newark has been twinned with three European towns: EmmendingenEmmendingen
Emmendingen is a town in Baden-Württemberg, capital of the district Emmendingen of Germany. It is located at the Elz River, north of Freiburg im Breisgau...
, Germany; Saint-Cyr-sur-Loire
Saint-Cyr-sur-Loire
Saint-Cyr-sur-Loire is a commune in the department of Indre-et-Loire in central France.It is located northwest of Tours on the other side of the Loire. , the town's population was 15,975. It is the third largest city in the Tours department, behind only Tours and Joué-lès-Tours.-Twin towns — Sister...
, France; and Sandomierz
Sandomierz
Sandomierz is a city in south-eastern Poland with 25,714 inhabitants . Situated in the Świętokrzyskie Voivodeship , previously in Tarnobrzeg Voivodeship . It is the capital of Sandomierz County . Sandomierz is known for its Old Town, a major tourist attraction...
, Poland. Emmendingen and Sandomierz are also formally twinned with each other.
External links
- Newark Town Council
- Thoroton Society bibliography
- Newark Carnival Community carnival for Newark
- Living Local Newspapers, Newark's free, community newspaper.
- Life&Style Magazine, Glossy magazine for the East Midlands, based in Newark.
- Virtual Newark, Panoramic tour of Newark-on-Trent.
- Heartof Newark, Guide to Newark's niche retailers and independent shops.
- Venues & Events, A Comprehensive list of local attractions.
- Newark Bands Newark's online music community.
- This is Newark A website containing information about Newark including latest news, sport, travel and maps.