Stratford-Upon-Avon

Stratford-upon-Avon, by English standards, is not an old city. The Romans may have constructed a road through Stratford, but it wasn’t until the Middle Ages that the town became inhabited permanently.

The earliest settlers in what is now Stratford-upon-Avon were members of the Germanic Hwicce tribe, who arrived in the area after the Romans had left. The Saxon etymology of “Stratford upon Avon” can be traced back to the time when the area was integrated into the Angelo-Saxon Kingdom, during the sixth century.

The name ‘Aet-Stratford the isles of the ford’ appears in writing for the first time between 693 and 717, referring to Stratford as a town. The founding of Holy Trinity Church probably garnered attention in print. Back then, there were only around 20 households living in Stratford, along with the church, the monastery, and the watermill. Danish raiders burned every house in Warwickshire in 1015, thus very little of the original Stratfordians survived.

Holy Trinity Church’s tower and spire can be seen across the river. A red-leafed sapling stands in the foreground on the left, while the bulk of the church is obscured by trees along the distant river bank.

In spite of the Norman Conquest, life continued relatively smoothly for the citizens of the town during the eleventh century, when the church was rebuilt in stone. However, Stratford had its greatest growth during the Middle Ages. As a result, the town became a “planned town” with a feudal structure.

Wide, uniform streets were laid out, and ‘burgage plots’ (houses on a long, narrow parcel of land with narrow street frontage) were built in a uniform pattern. Stratford’s 900-year-old street plan is still in use today.

The Guild of the Holy Cross assumed municipal authority somewhere about 1269 and ruled continuously until 1547. Around this period, in 1311, John De Stratford enrolled in college and eventually became the first Stratfordian to get a college degree. One of Stratford’s greatest benefactors, he became Archbishop of Canterbury and helped pay for the paving of streets and the restoration of Holy Trinity Church.

Stratford-Upon-Avon saw yet another wave of historical significance in the fifteenth century. Holy Trinity was made a ‘collegiate’ by King Henry V in 1415. The house that would become New Place, the Guild Chapel, and, most significantly, the bridge across the Avon were all constructed by Sir Hugh Clopton by the end of the fifteenth century and are still visible today. The construction of the bridge between the Avon region and the Cotswolds and Feldon stimulated commerce and advanced the growth of the sheep industry. By the century’s conclusion, Stratford had become a thriving market town that had attracted artisans and merchants.

Compared to other parishes, Stratford-Upon-Avon did not suffer as much from the Reformation. Although Catholicism had thrived in the area, the inhabitants were open to the many religious shifts that would characterize the next century. Religion-based animosity did not emerge until the 1600s. The citizens of Stratford were dismayed when the annual George and the Dragon pageant was cancelled. Originally created to pay for Clopton Bridge maintenance, the pageant was deemed profane during the Reformation, leading to a tax increase that paid for the necessary repairs.

In 1547, the Holy Cross Guild was disbanded, and their assets were sold. For six years, the town was governed by a vacuum. Eventually, the Corporation supplanted the guild system, and town residents acquired the guild’s property and assumed control of Stratford’s government.

Stratford-Upon-Avon was drastically altered with the advent of the wool trade. The demand for manual labor fell as more people took up sheep husbandry. The result was increased joblessness among the community’s poor. John Shakespeare and others in Stratford saw sheep farming as a boon to the town. Stratford’s proximity to the Cotswolds made it a hub for the production, sale, and distribution of sheepskin goods, creating a plethora of new economic options for the town’s residents. William Shakespeare was born in prosperous Stratford in 1564.

However, during the thirteenth and seventeenth centuries, despite a rise in trade, Stratford rarely expanded geographically. The effects of the English Civil War could hardly be understated. Apart from the Town Hall, Stratford’s physical structure survived the war almost unscathed. Lootings by passing soldiers, occasional clashes, and internal strife continued to cause hardship for the locals. They also saw fights break out at surrounding churches.

Stratford’s population didn’t really explode until the 1800s. After various Enclosure Acts were passed by parliament, land that had been publicly owned could be privately owned. John Payton’s work was the first and most significant addition.

Payton built many new streets on property he acquired to the north of the historic district. As Stratford expanded, so did its population and infrastructure. The Shakespeare Jubilee, the first event held in Shakespeare’s honor, was organized by David Garrick in 1769. By the century’s close, Stratford-Upon-Avon was a mecca for bardolatrous, and the Shakespeare tourism industry was born.

Numerous upgrades to Stratford’s infrastructure were made in the nineteenth century. Rother Market got its first drinking fountain in 1887 and a train station in 1859. The canal opened in 1816. Gaslight was first used in the area in 1834. Because of these new conveniences, both the standard of living and economic potential rose. Stratford-Upon-Avon is now one of the most popular destinations for visitors to the UK.