Ipswich, Suffolk Guide, Meaning , Facts, Information and Description
- For other places and usages with this name, see Ipswich.
| Borough of Ipswich | |
|---|---|
Shown within Suffolk | |
| Geography | |
| Status: | Borough |
| Region: | East of England |
| Admin. County: | Suffolk |
| Area: - Total | Ranked 320th 39.42 km² |
| Admin. HQ: | Ipswich |
| ONS code: | 42UD |
| Demographics | |
| Population: - Total (2002 est.) - Density | Ranked 166th 117,298 2,976 / km² |
| Ethnicity: | 93.4% White 1.8% S.Asian 1.8% Afro-Carib. |
| Politics | |
| Ipswich Borough Council http://www.ipswich.gov.uk/ | |
| Leadership: | Leader & Cabinet |
| Executive: | |
| MPs: | Sir Michael Lord, Chris Mole |
It was successively a Stone age, Iron age, Roman and Anglo-Saxon settlement known as "Gippeswic".
King John granted it its first charter in 1200, and in the next four centuries it made a living trading Suffolk cloth with the Continent.
Ipswich is still a flourishing port today, handling several million tons of cargo each year. The town used to also feature a small grass-runway airpoart (ICAO code: EGSE) with regular flights to the Netherlands, but this is now being developed as housing.
The area around Ipswich, or Gippeswick was sparsely settled until the withdrawal of the Romans. After that time its position as a harbour convenient on the North Sea meant that it proved convenient to Saxon settlers, and is claimed to be the first Anglo-Saxon town. The kingdom of East Anglia for a time centered around Ipswich.
The Ipswich Museum houses replicas of the Mildenhall treasure and the Sutton Hoo treasure, as well as Saxon weapons and 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 exist in Nettuno in Italy.
Thomas Cardinal Wolsey, the son of a butcher, was born in Ipswich in about 1475. He founded a college in the town in 1528, which is now known as Ipswich School.
In 1555, the Ipswich Martyrs were burnt at the stake for their Protestant beliefs.
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.
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. In ca. 1380, Geoffrey Chaucer satirised the merchants of Ipswich in the Canterbury Tales.
Modern figures with Ipswich connections include the musician Nick Kershaw, the children's TV presenter Brian Cant and the cartoonist Carl Giles.
Tolly Cobbold Brewery, built in the 19th century and rebuilt 1894-1896, is one of the finest Victorian breweries in Britain. There has been a Cobbold Brewery in the town since 1746. Felix Thornley Cobbold presented Christchurch Mansion to the town in 1896
Ipswich is the last place in the area to have an independent bus company which has the unusual practice of naming its buses.
Truly Open Directory Listing of sites with an Ipswich interest
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