Ipswich

Ipswich is the county town of Suffolk in East Anglia, England, and a local government district on the estuary of the River Orwell.

History

Ancient Ipswich was successively a Stone Age, Iron Age, Roman, and Anglo-Saxon settlement known as "Gippeswick".

Related Topics:
Stone Age - Iron Age - Roman - Anglo-Saxon

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

King John granted it its first charter in 1200, and in the next four centuries it made most of its wealth trading Suffolk cloth with the Continent.

Related Topics:
King John - Charter - 1200 - Cloth - The Continent

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The area around Ipswich, or Gippeswick, was sparsely settled until the withdrawal of the Romans. Afterward, its position as a convenient harbour on the North Sea made it convenient to Saxon settlers, and it is claimed to be the first Anglo-Saxon town. The kingdom of East Anglia for a time centered around Ipswich.

Related Topics:
Gippeswick - Romans - North Sea - Saxon - Anglo-Saxon - East Anglia

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The Ipswich Museum houses replicas of the Mildenhall treasure and the Sutton Hoo treasure, as well as Saxon weapons and jewellery.

Related Topics:
Ipswich Museum - Replica - Mildenhall treasure - Sutton Hoo treasure - Saxon - Weapon - Jewellery

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

During the Middle Ages the Marian Shrine of Our Lady of Grace was a popular pilgrimage destination, and attracted a number of royal pilgrims. The statue was taken away to be burned, although it is now believed to have survived and still to exist in Nettuno, Italy.

Related Topics:
Marian - Our Lady of Grace - Pilgrimage - Nettuno

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Around 1380, Geoffrey Chaucer satirised the merchants of Ipswich in the Canterbury Tales.

Related Topics:
1380 - Geoffrey Chaucer - Canterbury Tales

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Thomas Cardinal Wolsey, the son of a wealthy landowner, was born in Ipswich about 1475. One of Henry VIII's closest political allies, he founded a college in the town in 1528, which is now known as Ipswich School. He remains one of the town's most famed figures.

Related Topics:
Thomas Cardinal Wolsey - 1475 - Henry VIII - College - 1528 - Ipswich School

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In 1555, the Ipswich Martyrs were burnt at the stake for their Protestant beliefs.

Related Topics:
1555 - Ipswich Martyrs - Protestant

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

From 1611 to 1634 Ipswich was a major centre for emigration to New England. This was organised by the Town Lecturer, Samual Ward. His brother Nathaniel Ward was first minister of Ipswich, Massachusetts.

Related Topics:
1611 - 1634 - New England - Samual Ward - Nathaniel Ward - Ipswich, Massachusetts

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The painters John Constable and Thomas Gainsborough lived and worked in Ipswich. In 1835, Charles Dickens stayed in Ipswich and used it as a setting for scenes in his novel The Pickwick Papers. The hotel where he resided first opened in 1518; it was then known as The Tavern and is now known as the Great White Horse Hotel. Dickens made the hotel famous in chapter XXI of The Pickwick Papers, vividly describing the hotel's meandering corridors and stairs.

Related Topics:
John Constable - Thomas Gainsborough - 1835 - Charles Dickens - The Pickwick Papers

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In 1797 Lord and Lady Nelson moved to Ipswich, and in 1800 Lord Nelson was appointed High Steward of Ipswich.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~