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Canterbury

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Geography of Great
Britain

                 Canterbury

   Image:dot4gb.svg
                 Statistics
   Population:          42,259 (2001)
              Ordnance Survey
   OS grid reference:   TR145575
               Administration
   District:            City of Canterbury
   Shire county:        Kent
   Region:              South East England
   Constituent country: England
   Sovereign state:     United Kingdom
                   Other
   Ceremonial county:   Kent
   Historic county:     Kent
                  Services
   Police force:        Kent Police
   Fire and rescue:     {{{Fire}}}
   Ambulance:           South East Coast
         Post office and telephone
   Post town:           CANTERBURY
   Postal district:     CT
   Dialling code:       01227
                  Politics
   UK Parliament:       Canterbury
   European Parliament: South East England

   Canterbury is a cathedral city in east Kent in South East England and
   is the seat of the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Primate of All
   England, head of the Church of England and of the worldwide Anglican
   Communion.

History

Early history

   There has been a settlement in Canterbury since prehistoric times.
   Bronze Age finds, and Neolithic round barrows have been discovered in
   the area; and before the Roman arrival Durovernon (British duro "fort",
   verno "swamp") was the most important settlement in Kent.

   Canterbury (known in Latin as Durovernum Cantiacorum) became a Roman
   administrative centre: it lay at the junction of three roads from their
   ports of Regulbium ( Reculver), Dubris (Dover) and Lemanis ( Lympne);
   and it stood on what has become known as Watling Street. The city walls
   and one of the city gates remain.

   The name Canterbury derives from the Old English Cantwarebyrig, meaning
   "fortress of the men of Kent". The bury element is a form of borough,
   which has cognates in words and place names in virtually every
   Indo-European and Semitic language, as well as others. For a fuller
   explanation, see under borough.

   A Motte and Bailey castle was constructed in Canterbury by the Normans
   soon after the Norman Conquest, but this was soon replaced by the stone
   keep of Canterbury Castle which still stands today.

Religious significance

   The gate which once led to Saint Augustine's Abbey now leads to part of
   the King's School.
   Enlarge
   The gate which once led to Saint Augustine's Abbey now leads to part of
   the King's School.
   Canterbury cathedral
   Enlarge
   Canterbury cathedral
   A tour of Canterbury by river.
   Enlarge
   A tour of Canterbury by river.

   In 596 Pope Gregory the Great sent Augustine to convert England to
   Christianity. This was the first ever papal mission, and Augustine
   built a priory on the site of the present cathedral precincts in AD
   597. He also built an abbey outside the city walls where he was buried:
   as were other early archbishops. Though St. Gregory had planned the
   division of England into two archbishoprics, one at London and one at
   York, Augustine's success at Canterbury explains how the southern
   archiepiscopal see came to be fixed there instead of at London. The
   first beginnings of the diocese are told by St. Bede (Hist. Eccl., I,
   xxxiii). "When Augustine, the first Archbishop of Canterbury, assumed
   the episcopal throne in that royal city, he recovered therein, by the
   King's assistance, a church which, as he was told, had been constructed
   by the original labour of Roman believers. This church he consecrated
   in the name of the Saviour, our God and Lord Jesus Christ, and there he
   established an habitation for himself and all his successors". The
   church was Saint Martin's, which is still in use today, and is
   considered the oldest church in England still in use. The Ancient
   Diocese of Canterbury was the Mother-Church and Primatial See of All
   England, from 597 till the death of the last Catholic Archbishop,
   Cardinal Pole, in 1558.

   In the 16th Century the Church of England split from Rome under Henry
   VIII.

   St Augustine's Abbey was destroyed during the Dissolution of the
   Monasteries ordered by Henry VIII, although ruins remain. During this
   time Canterbury became the centre of the new Church of England,
   although a Catholic shrine remains. At the same time, the ancient
   religious school was refounded as the King's School. Canterbury
   Cathedral is the burial place of King Henry IV and of Edward the Black
   Prince, but is most famous as the scene of the murder of Thomas Becket
   in 1170. As a result of this event, Canterbury became a major
   pilgrimage site, inspiring Geoffrey Chaucer to write The Canterbury
   Tales in 1387. The Hospital of St Thomas was a place of lodging for
   pilgrims in the city. The city is also associated with the family of
   Thomas More (his head is buried at the church of St. Dunstan's,
   Canterbury, and his body at St. Peter ad Vincula at the Tower of London
   ).

   The city is also the start/finish point for many pilgrimage routes,
   such as the Via Francigena to Rome, the Pilgrims' Way to Winchester and
   the route from Southwark taken in The Canterbury Tales.
     * A comprehensive article on the Abbey is here.

Later history

   The "Big Dig".
   Enlarge
   The "Big Dig".

   The city became a county corporate in 1461.

   French Protestant refugees settled in the city during the sixteenth
   century: here they introduced silk-making.

   As a historic county corporate, Canterbury was made a county borough
   under the Local Government Act 1888. It was the smallest such county
   borough, and never exceeded the 50,000 population limit initially
   required - the 1971 cenuss reported a population of 33,175. Under the
   Local Government Act 1972 it formed part of the larger Canterbury
   district of Kent.

   During World War II the city was severely damaged by bombing after it
   was targeted by the Luftwaffe in the Baedeker Blitz. There is footage
   of the devastated areas in the 1944 film A Canterbury Tale, by film
   directors Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. The film is a
   celebration of the city, the Pilgrim's Way, and the Chaucerian stories,
   not a re-telling of the original tales.

   Post-war large scale redevelopment of the city centre started quickly
   with the rebuilding of much of the bomb damaged east of the city,
   including what is now the Whitefriar's development. The ring-road was
   constructed some time after in stages to alleviate growing traffic
   problems in the city centre, which was then pedestrianised.

   Canterbury today is a major city for tourism with Canterbury Cathedral
   alone attracting 1.2 million visitors in 2001. It still contains many
   ancient buildings and modern building development within the medieval
   town centre is strictly regulated.

   During 2004-5 the Whitefriars area of the city underwent major
   redevelopment and the associated archeological research was called the
   " Big Dig". Canterbury now has a much larger shopping attraction due to
   the Whitefriars development, many of the shops have undergone major
   redevelopment, as has the city's bus station. Locally, however, the
   development has been criticised for causing empty buildings in other
   parts of the town, due to shop movement and the closure of several
   local shops under competition from the increased chain store presence.
   For example, the Boots the Chemist seen in the 1944 A Canterbury Tale
   remained at that high street location until 2005, when it moved to
   Whitefriars.

Demographics

     * Population (Census figures):
          + 1801: 9,500
          + 1861: 16,700
          + 1921: 18,900
          + 1961: 30,408
          + 2001: 42,258 Other statistics for 2001 include:
               o Ethnicity: 94% white. No other classification exceeds 2%
               o Area: 23.54 km²
               o Density: 1,795 / km²
                    # Figures for 1801-1961 taken from Kent History
                      Illustrated Frank W Jessup [KCC, 1966]

Government

   Canterbury City Council area (darkest shade) includes the City of
   Canterbury itself, in Kent
   Enlarge
   Canterbury City Council area (darkest shade) includes the City of
   Canterbury itself, in Kent

   The local government district City of Canterbury covers an area some 13
   times larger than the city of Canterbury itself, and includes Herne Bay
   and Whitstable. The city contains the district wards of Barton,
   Northgate, St Stephens, Westgate and Wincheap, plus part of the
   University of Kent (which straddles the city boundary) in the otherwise
   rural Blean Forest ward. Since October 7, 2004 the 5 wards entirely
   within the city have been represented by 9 Liberal Democrat, 3
   Conservative and 2 Labour councillors, out of the total 50 members of
   the district council.

   The south-western end of Canterbury comprises the parish of 'Thanington
   Without', the rest of the city is unparished.

   The parliamentary constituency of Canterbury is represented in
   Parliament by the Conservative MP Julian Brazier, the Shadow Transport
   Minister.

Transport

   St Peter's St, Canterbury, from the West Gate, 1993
   Enlarge
   St Peter's St, Canterbury, from the West Gate, 1993
   The River Great Stour runs through Westgate Gardens in Canterbury's
   city centre.
   Enlarge
   The River Great Stour runs through Westgate Gardens in Canterbury's
   city centre.

Railway

   Canterbury has two railway stations, Canterbury West and Canterbury
   East. The services from these are operated by Southeastern. Canterbury
   West is served primarily from London Charing Cross with limited
   services from Victoria as well as by trains to Ramsgate and Margate.
   Services from London Victoria stop at Canterbury East (journey time
   around 88 minutes) and continue to Dover.

   Canterbury West station was the earliest to be built. It was opened by
   the South Eastern Railway from Ashford on 6 February 1846; on 13 April
   the line to Ramsgate was completed. Canterbury East is the more central
   of the two stations, although it came later, being opened by the
   London, Chatham and Dover Railway on 9 July 1860.

   Canterbury was also the terminus of the Canterbury and Whitstable
   Railway which was a pioneer line, opened in 1830, and finally closed in
   1953. Despite claims by the Stockton and Darlington Railway, the
   Canterbury and Whitstable was the first regular passenger steam railway
   in the world. It included the first significant railway tunnel in the
   world, which is located at the Archbishop's School and the first
   railway bridge in the world. The locomotive which originally worked the
   line, Invicta, is displayed at the museum at Canterbury.

Road

   Canterbury is now by-passed by the A2 London to Dover Road. It is about
   45 miles from the M25 London orbital motorway, and 61 miles from
   central London. The other main road through Canterbury is the A28 from
   Ashford to Ramsgate and Margate.

   The hourly National Express coach service to and from Victoria Coach
   Station, which leaves from the main bus station is typically scheduled
   to take 110 minutes.

Rivers

   Rectory of Blackfriars and the River
   Enlarge
   Rectory of Blackfriars and the River

   The city is on the River Great Stour, flowing from Ashford to the
   English Channel at Sandwich, but is currently navigable only on the
   tidal section from Sandwich to Fordwich, north east of Canterbury.

Educational establishments

   The city has many students as it is home to several Higher Education
   institutions and other colleges. The University of Kent at Canterbury
   stands on a hill about two miles outside the city centre. Chaucer
   College is an independent graduate college for Japanese students within
   the campus of the University. Near the University of Kent is the
   Franciscan International Study Centre , a place of study for the
   worldwide Franciscan Order. Canterbury Christ Church University is
   located in the city as is one of the campuses of the University College
   for the Creative Arts. There is also the Further Education institution,
   Canterbury College. There was also the St Augustine's College,
   Canterbury (1848-1976), a Church of England theological college.

   Independent secondary schools include St Edmund's School, Kent College,
   and what may be the world's oldest extant school The King's School.

   State secondary schools include Archbishop's School, Barton Court
   Grammar School, Chaucer Technology School, Simon Langton Grammar School
   for Boys, Simon Langton Grammar School for Girls, The Canterbury High
   School and St Anselm's Catholic School.

Trivia

   The city gave its name to a musical genre known as the Canterbury Sound
   or Canterbury Scene (a subgenre of Progressive Rock). Shortly after
   there was a decline in the music scene and it is only just starting to
   pick itself back up again due to students running live music nights
   within the city.

   The homeless charity the Scrine Foundation is based in Canterbury.

   Some of Canterbury's famous offspring include: Christopher Marlowe,
   Michael Powell, Sir Freddie Laker, Orlando Bloom and Rupert Bear.

   Canterbury has three World Heritage sites: Canterbury Cathedral, St
   Augustine's Abbey and St. Martin's.

Affiliations

   Canterbury is twinned with the following cities:
     * France Reims, France

   The district also participates in the Sister Cities programme, with
   links to:
     * Bloomington-Normal, Illinois, USA
     * Vladimir, Russia
     * Esztergom, Hungary

   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canterbury"
   This reference article is mainly selected from the English Wikipedia
   with only minor checks and changes (see www.wikipedia.org for details
   of authors and sources) and is available under the GNU Free
   Documentation License. See also our Disclaimer.
