Domesday Plaque - Congleton, Cheshire, UK. - Community Commemoration on Waymarking.com

The green plaque to celebrate 900 years of Norman Heritage is located on the Town Hall in Congleton.

The green plaque is authorised by the National Domesday Committee and is inscribed as follows;

" ISSUED TO CELEBRATE NINE HUNDRED YEARS OF NORMAN HERITAGE
This Community
is recorded in the
DOMESDAY BOOK 1086
(Crown illustration)
Domesday
1086 - 1986
Authorised by the
NATIONAL DOMESDAY COMMITTEE"

Congleton had a recorded population of 6 households in 1086, putting it in the smallest 40% of settlements recorded in the Domesday Book.
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"William the Conqueror spent Christmas 1085 at Gloucester and there, according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, ‘he had much thought and deep discussion with his council about England [and] how it was occupied or with what sort of people.’ England was under threat of invasion from Denmark and the king needed an audit of the resources available to him and his barons. The findings of the inquiry he set in train were written up in Domesday Book. It is in this work that we find the first reference to Congleton in historical sources.
The settlement had been granted by William the Conqueror to the earl of Chester, as had almost all of the land of Cheshire. It was held of the king by Earl Hugh ‘the Fat’ of Avranches in 1086. He in his turn had granted Congleton to one of his men for service. It is this man, Bigot, who is named as the immediate lord in Domesday Book. His land is described thus:-
The same Bigot holds Congleton. Godwin held [it in 1066]. [There is] one hide gelding there. There is land for 4 ploughs. There are there 2 [ploughs] with 2 villagers and 4 bordars. [There is] wood there 1 league in length and 1 in width and there are 2 enclosures. It was waste and so he found it. Now it is worth 4 shillings (DB i, 266d)." SOURCE: (visit link)

"Congleton developed in Anglo-Saxon times and is mentioned in the Doomsday Book. It was granted a Charter in 1272 by Henry de Lacy, the Lord of the Manor. This allowed Congleton to appoint a Mayor, hold a market, regulate the sale of food and ale and to use its own corn mill. Disaster struck in 1452 when the river flooded and washed away half the timber built town, which was then rebuilt on higher ground, around the present day High Street. The plague ravaged the town from 1603-1641. In the early 17th Century, Congleton was accused of using money for a new Town Bible to pay for a new Town Bear instead, when the old one died just before the Wakes. This is the reason for Congleton’s nickname “Beartown”. During the later 18th Century, from being a market town serving the surrounding agricultural area, Congleton also became a centre for manufacturing textiles, especially silk. The River Dane and its tributaries supplied water power for the numerous mills." SOURCE: (visit link)
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Subject: Town Commemoration: Commemmoration of Congleton being recorded in the Domesday Book 1086 Date of Founding: 1086 Date of Commemoration: 1986 Address: On the Town Hall, Lawton Street, Congleton, Cheshire, UK. Overview Photograph: Yes Detail Photograph: Yes Web site if available: Not listed

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Date Logged Log   06/17/2019 Mike_bjm visited it