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Evesham
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Evesham is a middle-sized, rural market town in Worcestershire, UK in the Local Authority District of Wychavon.
Roughly equidistant between Worcester, Cheltenham, and Stratford-upon-Avon, it was originally built within a loop of the River Avon, which flows through the Vale of Evesham. The surrounding area (the Vale of Evesham) is known for fruit growing and market gardening, due to its unusually fertile soil which, on a commercial level, has led to a large number of migrant temporary workers living in the Vale, but also means it is one of the country's most well-known production centres for fruit and vegetables.
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Encyclopedia
Evesham is a middle-sized, rural market town in Worcestershire, UK in the Local Authority District of Wychavon.
Roughly equidistant between Worcester, Cheltenham, and Stratford-upon-Avon, it was originally built within a loop of the River Avon, which flows through the Vale of Evesham. The surrounding area (the Vale of Evesham) is known for fruit growing and market gardening, due to its unusually fertile soil which, on a commercial level, has led to a large number of migrant temporary workers living in the Vale, but also means it is one of the country's most well-known production centres for fruit and vegetables. The Vale of Evesham at its height was second only to Kent as the Garden of England.
A decline in the second half of the 20th century in domestic agriculture and home cleaning led to the closing of Evesham garden market in the 1990s, and many orchards in the town's Greenhill area fell into disuse.
The distinctive local dialect, now declining in use but strong still in older generations of the town's inhabitants, has 'Asum' as a contraction of the town's name. Asum was the name given to the produce of a popular micro-brewery based at the historic Green Dragon public house (built 1510 and boasting fine Tudor architecture) - Asum Ale. The pub has since been relaunched and the micro-brewery closed.
Another quirk of local language gives rise to the debate as to the pronunciation of the town's name itself. 'Eve-shum' is the more common phonetic pronunciation, but the pronunciation 'Eve-er-shum' is not uncommon. Younger generations of the town's inhabitants give a pseudo-affectionate name, The Sham, to the town.
History
Evesham was the site of a major battle—the Battle of Evesham, in which Simon de Montfort was defeated and killed on 4 August 1265. It was also home to one of Europe's largest abbeys, of which only Abbot Lichfield's Bell Tower remains. Evesham Abbey was founded by Saint Egwin, third Bishop of Worcester, following the vision of the Virgin Mary by a local swineherd or shepherd named Eof (sometimes Eoves). Eof legendarily went straight to Egwin, who journeyed to the site and shared the vision. He was moved to establish a Benedictine abbey on the site.
While Egwin was beatified and later canonised (a local Church of England middle school is named after him), Eof arguably had the greater historical resonance and posterity. The name of Evesham is derived from "Eof's ham" ("ham" in English placenames meaning "homestead"). Evesham Abbey funded smaller abbeys and churches in Belgium, the Netherlands and France. A large source of income came from pilgrims to the abbey to celebrate both the vision and the tomb of de Montfort.
One historical quirk of Evesham is that the town consists of Evesham "proper" within the loop of the river and Bengeworth to the east on the other side of the river. Bengeworth at one stage had a castle vying for control with the abbey across on the other side. Unfortunately for Bengeworth, the knights went on a drunken spree and damaged a grave or two in the abbey graveyard, giving the monks an excuse to attack and level the castle. To prevent its rebuilding the site was sanctified as a graveyard. This historic imbalance is still visible in the distribution of shops and roads.
Also to the southern side of the town is the parish of Greater and Little Hampton, an independent village of the town until approximate 80 years ago. To celebrate the linking of the village to the town and improve access Abbey bridge, or "New Bridge" as it was often known was built. The bridge was also the first completely structural concrete bridge to be built in the UK. Hampton has come into a resurgence in recent years, thanks partly to redevelopment of Hampton and the redrawing of the electoral boundaries.
The presence of the abbey, its residents and the pilgrims coming to the site led to a growth in the town within the loop of the river. A model of the town in the middle ages is sited in the Almonry Museum in the town centre. With what is thought to have been the third biggest abbey in Britain and a strong agricultural economy, the town became well-known. Henry VIII's Dissolution of the monasteries saw the Abbey dismantled and sold as building stone, leaving little but Evesham's landmark Lichfield Bell Tower. Had the Abbey survived, its size would have been greater than that of St. Paul's Cathedral.
In May 1998 Evesham was one of the towns hit by record flooding along the River Avon. The river rose 19 feet in just a few hours, sinking tethered narrowboats, flooding areas of Bengeworth, and threatening the 19th century Workman Bridge as static homes from a riverside caravan site broke up and became wedged in the bridge's arches. In July 2007 the town came to national prominence when it suffered some of the worst flooding in recorded British history.
Education
As it is situated within Wychavon District Council Evesham's schools conform to the 3-tier model of First School (ages 5-10), Middle School (ages 10-13), High School (ages 13-18). This has been the situation since 1974, before then the model was primary school (ages 5-11), Secondary School (ages 11-18). Between 1974 and 1977 there was a period of transition between the two.
Primary Schools
The town has many First Schools including both Church of England and Roman Catholic as well as non-denominational.
- Honeybourne First School
- St Richards C Of E First School
- St Andrews First School (Hampton)
- Bengeworth C of E First School
- St Marys Catholic School
Middle Schools
- Simon de Montfort Middle School
- St Egwin's C. of E. Middle School
- Blackminster Middle School
High Schools
Further Education
Evesham and Malvern Hills College. The college caters mainly for students studying at the NVQ and BTEC level or undertaking practical vocational courses and courses in sewing. The college was formed by the merger of Evesham College and Malvern Hills College in September 2000 .
Travel
Road: Evesham is at the junction of the A46 and A44 trunk roads - the four-mile A46 £7m single-carriageway bypass to the east of the town opened in July 1987 as the A435. In a recent amateur survey, the majority of respondents felt the bypass has helped alleviate traffic congestion within the town.
Rail: Evesham Railway Station is about two hours from London Paddington on the Cotswold Line.
Water: The river Avon is a navigable waterway linking the River Severn at Tewkesbury to the Stratford-upon-Avon Canal at Stratford-upon-Avon. The ancient Hampton Ferry links the town to the nearby district of Hampton.
Sport & Leisure
The town is home to Evesham United Football Club which plays in the Southern Football League Premier Division.
Because of its situation on the river the town is home to various watersports activities:
The town also has a Petanque Team (Evesham Petanque Club).
Although both of Evesham's cinemas have now closed, the town does have a modern purpose built theatre in Evesham Arts Centre.
Famous People
- Bishop John Watson was born in Evesham, in 1520.
- Muzio Clementi (composer) died in Evesham, on March 10 1832
- Sir Henry Fowler, Chief Mechanical Engineer of the Midland Railway and subsequently the London, Midland and Scottish Railway was born in Evesham, on July 29 1870.
- Edward Righton was born in Evesham, on November 23 1884.
- Harry King (footballer) was born in Evesham, in 1886.
- Molly Badham (founder of Twycross Zoo) was born in Evesham, on May 18 1914.
- John Aldridge (cricketer) was born in Evesham, on March 13 1935.
- Jim Capaldi (singer-songwriter) co-founder of band Traffic was born in Evesham on August 24 1944.
- Robert Lanchbury (cricketer) was born in Evesham, on February 11 1950.
- Alistair McGowan (impressionist and actor) was born in Evesham, on November 24, 1964.
- Guy Whittingham (footballer) was born in Evesham, on November 10, 1964.
- Wilhelmina Baldwin (artist) was born in Evesham, in 1965.
- Andy Preece (footballer) was born in Evesham, on March 27 1967.
- Wrathchild (band) is a glam/heavy metal based in Evesham, formed in 1980.
- P J Proby (American pop singer) lives in Evesham.
- The Photos (band) is a new wave based in Evesham, formed in 1979.
- Satans Rats (band) were a punk based in Evesham, formed in 1977.
Twin Towns
- Dreux, France
- Melsungen, Germany
- Evesham Township, New Jersey, USA
External links
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- Local Evesham newspaper
- - a 1904 book about the town, by Edmund H. New, from Project Gutenberg
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