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Places in History: United Kingdom

Places in History: United Kingdom

This page is about places in the United Kingdom that have historical significance for one reason or another. It may be a place where some significant event occurred (e.g. Berkeley Castle), or it may have had a significance at some point or period in history that it no longer has (e.g. Coalbrookdale), or it may simply be somewhere that's of interest for historical reasons (e.g. South Crofty tin mine).

See also Places in History: Rest of the World.

Welsh village (in Mid Glamorgan) where 116 children and 28 adults lost their lives in October 1966, when a colliery spoil tip slipped, burying homes and part of a school Click to show or hide the answer
Fortress hiding place in the Somerset Levels, from which Alfred the Great went on to defeat the Danes at the Battle of Edington in May 878; it's while hiding here that he is supposed to have burnt the cakes Click to show or hide the answer
Jail in which John Bunyan wrote Pilgrim's Progress Click to show or hide the answer
Gloucestershire: Edward II was murdered at Click to show or hide the answer
Cheshire town (now in Merseyside) where Britain's first street tramway opened in 1860 Click to show or hide the answer
Camp Hill and Kings Norton (both the scenes of battles in the English Civil War) are areas of Click to show or hide the answer
Britain's last trolleybus service closed on 26 March 1972, in Click for more information Click to show or hide the answer
Britain's first casino opened in 1962, at the Metropole Hotel in Click to show or hide the answer
Britain's first nude bathing beach opened in 1979, in
English city where local people boycotted the buses for four months in 1963 in protest against the bus company's policy of not employing black or Asian staff on the buses Click for more information Click to show or hide the answer
William of Orange landed 1688 with an army of 12,000, to claim the throne from James II Click to show or hide the answer
Island in Poole Harbour: venue of the first Boy Scout camp, 1907 Click to show or hide the answer
Hertfordshire oil storage depot, scene of what was said to be Europe's biggest peace–time fire, 2005 – owned by Total (60%) and Texaco (40%) Click to show or hide the answer
English spa town, referred to by Mary, Queen of Scots (who spent seven summers there while under the charge of the Earl of Shrewsbury) as 'La Fontagne de Bogsby' Click to show or hide the answer
Street in the East End of London where anti-fascist demonstrators clashed with police protecting a march by the blackshirts of Oswald Mosley's British Union of Fascists, in 1936, in the so–called Battle of ... Click to show or hide the answer
Prince Charles's investiture as Prince of Wales (1969) took place in Click to show or hide the answer
A temperature of 38.7°C – a British record – was recorded in July 2019, in (English city) Click to show or hide the answer
Cornish town at the centre of a scandal over the pollution of its water supply in 1988 (when 20 tons of aluminium sulphate was poured into the wrong tank at a water treatment plant on Bodmin Moor) Click to show or hide the answer
Castle on the Isle of Wight, where Charles I was imprisoned from 1647 until January 1649 Click to show or hide the answer
Town on the River Medway (Kent): home to a Royal Navy dockyard for over 500 years until its closure in 1984; now a museum and heritage site Click to show or hide the answer
Confederation of coastal towns in Kent and Sussex, formed in late Anglo–Saxon times for military and trade purposes, but declined with the growth of other ports; surrendered their charters in 1685 and now entirely ceremonial Click to show or hide the answer
Shropshire village where Abraham Darby built the world's first iron smelting works, from 1709 Click to show or hide the answer
Town in Lincolnshire where the UK's highest ever temperature – 40.3° – was recorded on 19 July 2022 Click to show or hide the answer
Most southerly town (now a city) reached by Bonnie Prince Charlie and the Jacobites in 1745 Click to show or hide the answer
Region of ancient Italy, covering most of modern Tuscany (and parts of Lazio and Umbria): Josiah Wedgwood gave its name to the factory and site that he established in 1769, which is now a suburb of Stoke–on–trent Click to show or hide the answer
Derbyshire village that cut itself off in 1666 to prevent the spread of the plague Click to show or hide the answer
Pembrokeshire town: scene of the last (unsuccessful) invasion of Britain, in 1797 Click for more information Click to show or hide the answer
Chemical plant where 28 people died in an explosion, 1974 Click to show or hide the answer
Castle in Northants where Richard III was born and Mary Queen of Scots was executed Click to show or hide the answer
The so–called 'ice cream wars' took place in the 1980s, in (city) Click for more information Click to show or hide the answer
Scottish glen in which 38 members of Clan MacDonald were massacred by soldiers of the Earl of Argyll's Regiment of Foot, in February 1692 (for more details, see Events, Periods etc.) Click to show or hide the answer
Prince Charles Edward raised his standard in 1745 at Click to show or hide the answer
Brighton hotel bombed by the IRA 1984, during the Conservative Party Conference Click to show or hide the answer
Berkshire RAF base where a 'Women's Peace Camp' was set up in protest against the siting of Cruise missiles there, 1981–2000 (returned to common use in 1997) Click to show or hide the answer
Stadium at which a crowd of 149,415 – still the British record, and a record for an internatiional match in Europe – attended a football match in 1937 Click to show or hide the answer
1558: Princess Elizabeth was told of her accession to the throne while sitting under an oak tree at Click to show or hide the answer
Aerodrome near Hounslow, Middlesex, where Neville Chamberlain took off and landed for the Munich Conference in September 1938 and made his "Peace for our time" speech; closed in 1947, part of its land now belongs to the motorway service area that shares its name Click to show or hide the answer
Branch or inlet of the Firth of Clyde, used as a submarine base during WWII and as a base for US Polaris and Poseidon nuclear submarines 1961–92 (deemed unnecessary following the demise of the Soviet Union) Click to show or hide the answer
Berkshire town where Michael Ryan shot and killed 16 people, then himself, in August 1987 Click to show or hide the answer
Football ground where 66 people died, 2 January 1971 Click to show or hide the answer
Naval port on the Firth of Cromarty: gave its name to a 'mutiny' by sailors of the British Atlantic Fleet in 1931, in protest against proposed pay cuts, which caused a panic on the London Stock Exchange and a run on the pound, bringing Britain's economic troubles to a head and forcing it off the Gold Standard five days later Click to show or hide the answer
London building where 25 staff and visitors, and policeman Trevor Lock, were held hostage for 6 days in 1980 by gunmen demanding the release of Arab prisoners; after one of the hostages was killed by the gunmen, the building was stormed by SAS personnel who abseiled from the roof and forced entry through the windows (Operation Nimrod); they killed all but one of the gunmen; all hostages were rescued, except for one who was shot by the gunmen Click to show or hide the answer
Area of East Anglia, surrounded by fenland and an island until the 17th century: where Hereward the Wake, the Anglo–Saxon nobleman who led a revolt against the Norman conquest in 1070 (reputedly the last Saxon leader to hold out against the Normans) had his base Click to show or hide the answer
Came under Norwegian rule, after Viking raids from about 800 AD; sold to Scotland by Norway in 1266; came under English control in 1341; granted to Sir John Stanley in 1406; his family ruled it until 1736, refusing to be called kings but preferring the title Lords; passed to the dukes of Atholl in 1736, and sold to the British crown in 1765 for £70,000 Click for more information Click to show or hide the answer
Subjected to what's thought to have been the longest siege in English mediaeval history – in 1266, during the Second Barons' War Click to show or hide the answer
Mountain in the Peak District – the highest in the National Park, and in Derbyshire: scene of a mass trespass in 1932 in protest at the denial of access to areas of open country Click to show or hide the answer
England's most important port, in mediaeval times (and until the development of Atlantic trade in the 17th century): Hanse House and Marriott's Warehouse are the only surviving Hanseatic League buildings in the UK Click to show or hide the answer
Britain's first trolleybus service opened on 20 June 1911, in Click for more information Click to show or hide the answer
Lazar Houses were built in the reign of King Stephen in Burton Lazars, Leics, to house Click to show or hide the answer
Adolf Hitler's sister–in–law claimed in 1939 that he had lived with her (and her husband, his half–brother) for five months in 1912 and 1913, in (English city) Click for more information Click to show or hide the answer
Town in the Scottish Borders where Pan Am flight 103 landed after a bomb exploded on board, in 1988 Click to show or hide the answer
Name of the RAF station where the "H–blocks" of Maze Prison were built in 1976; the prison closed in 2000 as part of the peace process, and demolition began in 2006; as of 2019 the intention was to use the site as a showground Click for more information Click to show or hide the answer
Devonshire seaside town(s), devastated by floods August 1952 Click to show or hide the answer
Market town, in Powys: the seat of Owain Glyndwr's Welsh Parliament in 1404, where he was crowned Prince of Wales – on which grounds it claims to be the "ancient capital of Wales" Click to show or hide the answer
Tree near Edwinstowe, Notts – said to be the site of Robin Hood's headquarters – first recorded use of this name was in 1790 Click to show or hide the answer
Market town in Suffolk: gave its name to a major hoard of Roman silverware that was discovered in 1942 by a farmer in the nearby village of West Row Click to show or hide the answer
Ancient forest in Hampshire, declared a royal hunting ground by William I in 1097; designated a National Park in 2005 Click to show or hide the answer
Model industrial community set up on Clydeside, early 19th century, by the Welsh industrialist and social reformer Robert Owen Click to show or hide the answer
Site of the earliest settlement of Salisbury: one of the most notorious of the rotten boroughs that existed before the Reform Act of 1832; served as a pocket borough of the Pitt family Click to show or hide the answer
During the Civil War (1641–5) and the Great Plague of London (1665–6), the royal courts (of Charles I and II respectively) moved to Click to show or hide the answer
North Sea oilrig that exploded in 1988 with the loss of 167 lives Click to show or hide the answer
Public space where Francis Drake was (according to popular tradition) playing bowls when the Spanish Armada was sighted Click to show or hide the answer
Street in Liverpool, known as "the Harley Street of the North", because of the number of doctors that have private practices there; the Anglican cathedral stands at one end of it; birthplace of W. E. Gladstone (1809) and poet Arthur Clough (1819); No. 59 is owned by the National Trust and is a museum to the Irish–born photographer (Edward) Chambré Hardman, who lived and worked there (active 1920–50; died 1988) Click to show or hide the answer
Site in the New Forest that commemorates the death of King William II Click to show or hide the answer
Thames–side meadow where King John put his seal to the Magna Carta (1215) Click to show or hide the answer
Group of islands in the Atlantic, some 40 miles west of the Outer Hebrides, whose last 36 inhabitants were evacuated in 1930 following years of declining population, with poor harvests and (particularly latterly) disease related to increased contact with the mainland Click to show or hide the answer
Became Scotland's first UNESCO World Heritage site in 1986, for its natural features; this was extended in 2005 to recognise its cultural status
Ancient forest in Wiltshire, location of the seat of the Seymour family in Tudor times – Wulfhall, which inspired the 2009 Booker prize–winning novel by Hilary Mantel Click to show or hide the answer
Capital of the Kingdom of Alba (900–1286) – near Perth – famous today as the site of the Abbey where Scottish kings were crowned, and home of the famous Coronation Stone Click to show or hide the answer
West Sussex town hit by a tornado in January 1998 Click to show or hide the answer
English city: flooded in 1864, when Dale Dyke Dam (Bradfield Reservoir) burst as it was being filled for the first time Click to show or hide the answer
Royal forest in Nottinghamshire, famous through its historical association with Robin Hood Click to show or hide the answer
Street in Stepney, east London; scene of a gun battle in 1911 when police besieged a Latvian anarchist gang after three constables were shot dead; leader Peter Piatkov (Peter the Painter) was never caught; home secretary Winston Churchill caused a major political row by taking personal charge Click to show or hide the answer
The last Cornish tin mine to close (1998) Click to show or hide the answer
Lincolnshire town, left largely untouched by the Industrial Revolution: its "old town" area was designated as England and Wales's first conservation area in 1967 Click to show or hide the answer
London underground station at which 27–year–old Brazilian national Jean Charles de Menezes was shot by police in 2005 Click to show or hide the answer
Scene of a riot in 1990, that lasted for 25 days and was the longest prison riot in British history Click to show or hide the answer
Scene of Elizabeth I's famous speech ("I know I have the body of a weak, feeble woman ... ") to the troops assembled by the Earl of Leicester to fight the Armada Click to show or hide the answer
Inner city area of Liverpool, also known (from its postcode) as Liverpool 8: scene of violent riots in 1981 Click to show or hide the answer
Kellingley Colliery – Britain's last deep coal mine, closed in December 2015 – was just outside the town of Knottingley, which is part of the city of Click to show or hide the answer
Prison that Ronnie Biggs escaped from in 1965 Click to show or hide the answer
Cheshire town: two IRA bombs exploded on 20 March 1993, killing two children – one (Johnathan Ball, aged 3) at the scene, the other (Tim Parry, aged 12) five days later when his life support machine was switched off Click to show or hide the answer
Area of London's east end that saw the murders of 11 prostitutes between 1888 and 1891 – all of which have been ascribed at various times to "Jack the Ripper" Click to show or hide the answer
Uffington (Oxfordshire, prehistoric), Westbury (Wiltshire, earliest record 1742), and Kilburn (North Yorkshire, 1857) are the sites of Click to show or hide the answer
Commonly described as the ancient capital of Wessex; capital of England in the 11th and 12th centuries – superseded by London Click to show or hide the answer

© Haydn Thompson 2017–24