Market Bosworth ( ) is a

market town A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rura ...

and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

in Leicestershire, England. At the 2001 Census, it had a population of 1,906, increasing to 2,097 at the 2011 census. It is most famously near to the site of the decisive final battle of the

Wars of the Roses The Wars of the Roses, known at the time and in following centuries as the Civil Wars, were a series of armed confrontations, machinations, battles and campaigns fought over control of the English throne from 1455 to 1487. The conflict was fo ...

. In 1974, Market Bosworth Rural District merged with

Hinckley Rural District The rural district of Hinckley was set up in 1894, covering the rural area around Hinckley, Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Derbyshire ...

to form the district of

Hinckley and Bosworth Hinckley and Bosworth is a Non-metropolitan district, local government district with borough status in Leicestershire, England. The council is based in Hinckley, the largest town. The borough also includes the town of Earl Shilton and numerous v ...

History

Building work here and at other sites has revealed evidence of a settlement on the hill since the

Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...

. Remains of a

Roman villa A Roman villa was typically a farmhouse or country house in the territory of the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire, sometimes reaching extravagant proportions. Nevertheless, the term "Roman villa" generally covers buildings with the common ...

have been found on the east side of Barton Road. Bosworth as an

Anglo-Saxon The Anglo-Saxons, in some contexts simply called Saxons or the English, were a Cultural identity, cultural group who spoke Old English and inhabited much of what is now England and south-eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. They traced t ...

village dates from the 8th century. Before the

Norman Conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Normans, Norman, French people, French, Flemish people, Flemish, and Bretons, Breton troops, all led by the Du ...

of 1066, there were two manors at Bosworth, one belonging to an Anglo-Saxon knight named Fernot, and some sokemen. Following the Norman conquest, as recorded in the ''

Domesday Book Domesday Book ( ; the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book") is a manuscript record of the Great Survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...

'' of 1086, both the Anglo-Saxon manors and the village were part of the lands awarded by

William the Conqueror William the Conqueror (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), sometimes called William the Bastard, was the first Norman king of England (as William I), reigning from 1066 until his death. A descendant of Rollo, he was D ...

to the Count of Meulan from Normandy, Robert de Beaumont, 1st Earl of Leicester. Subsequently, the village passed by marriage dowry to the English branching of the French House of Harcourt.

Edward I Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots (Latin: Malleus Scotorum), was King of England from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he was Lord of Ireland, and from 125 ...

gave a royal charter to Sir William Harcourt allowing a market to be held every Wednesday. The village took the name Market Bosworth from 12 May 1285 and on this day became a "town" by common definition. The two oldest buildings in Bosworth, St. Peter's Church and the Red Lion pub, were built during the 14th century. The

Battle of Bosworth The Battle of Bosworth or Bosworth Field ( ) was the last significant battle of the Wars of the Roses, the civil war between the houses of Lancaster and York that extended across England in the latter half of the 15th century. Fought on 22 ...

took place to south of the town in 1485 as the final significant battle in the

between the House of Lancaster and the

House of York The House of York was a cadet branch of the English royal House of Plantagenet. Three of its members became kings of England in the late 15th century. The House of York descended in the male line from Edmund of Langley, 1st Duke of York ...

, which resulted in the death of

King Richard III Richard III (2 October 1452 – 22 August 1485) was King of England from 26 June 1483 until his death in 1485. He was the last king of the Plantagenet dynasty and its cadet branch the House of York. His defeat and death at the Battle of Boswor ...

. Following the

discovery Discovery may refer to: * Discovery (observation), observing or finding something unknown * Discovery (fiction), a character's learning something unknown * Discovery (law), a process in courts of law relating to evidence Discovery, The Discovery ...

of the remains of

Richard III Richard III (2 October 1452 – 22 August 1485) was King of England from 26 June 1483 until his death in 1485. He was the last king of the Plantagenet dynasty and its cadet branch the House of York. His defeat and death at the Battle of Boswor ...

in Leicester during 2012, the funeral cortège for his reburial passed through the town on Sunday 22 March 2015 on its way to Leicester Cathedral. This event is now commemorated with a floor plaque in front of the war memorial in the town square. In 1509 the manor passed from the Harcourts to the Grey family. In 1554, following the beheading of Lady Jane Grey, the manor of Bosworth was among lands confiscated in the name of

Mary I Mary I (18 February 1516 – 17 November 1558), also known as Mary Tudor, was Queen of England and Ireland from July 1553 and Queen of Spain as the wife of King Philip II from January 1556 until her death in 1558. She made vigorous a ...

and her husband

Philip II of Spain Philip II (21 May 152713 September 1598), sometimes known in Spain as Philip the Prudent (), was King of Spain from 1556, King of Portugal from 1580, and King of Naples and List of Sicilian monarchs, Sicily from 1554 until his death in 1598. He ...

. They awarded the manor to the Catholic nobleman Edward Hastings. In 1567, his heirs sold it to Sir Wolstan Dixie, Lord Mayor of London, who never lived in Bosworth. The first Dixie to live in Bosworth was his grand-nephew, Sir Wolstan Dixie of Appleby Magna, who moved to the town in 1608. He started construction of a manor house and park, as well as establishing the free Dixie Grammar School. The modern Bosworth Hall was the work of Sir Beaumont Dixie, 2nd Baronet (1629–1692). In 1885 the 11th Baronet "Beau" Dixie was forced to auction Bosworth Hall to pay his gambling debts. It was bought by Lady Agnes Tollemache, whose husband Charles Tollemache Scott enlarged the estate, planted woodlands, and rebuilt the lodges and farms. Lady Agnes's daughter, Wenefryde Scott, sold the estate in 1913. The War Memorial in the town square honours nineteen local men who died in the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, and eleven men who died in the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. The town's historic cattle market operated until 1996.

Notable residents

This includes people born, educated, or having lived in Market Bosworth. * William Bradshaw (1571–1618) – Puritan * Dr. John Charles Bucknill (1817 Market Bosworth – 1897) – asylum reformer, psychiatrist * Sir Charles Carter Chitham (1886–1972), policeman in British India * Richard Dawes (1708–1766) – Latin scholar * Lady Florence Dixie (1855–1905) – wife of the 11th baronet; travel writer, war correspondent, and feminist * Sir Wolstan Dixie of Market Bosworth (1597–1630) – founder of the grammar school * Sir Wolstan Dixie, 4th Baronet (1700–1767) – most colourful of the 13 Dixie baronets * Rev. Arthur Benoni Evans (1781–1854) – scholar, headmaster of the Dixie Grammar :* Sir John Evans (1823 Burnham – 1908) – his son, treasurer of the

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

:* Sebastian Evans (1830 Market Bosworth – 1909) – poet. Revised his father's book ''Leicestershire Words, Phrases, and Proverbs'', (1848, 1881) *

Davey Graham David Michael Gordon "Davey" Graham (originally spelled Davy Graham) (26 November 1940 – 15 December 2008) was a British nationality, British guitarist and one of the most influential figures in the 1960s British folk revival. He inspired many ...

(1940–2008) - influential folk guitarist, born at Bosworth Infirmary (now Bosworth Hall Hotel) and commemorated with a blue memorial plaque * James Holden (b. 1979) – electronic music producer * Thomas Hooker (1586 Markfield – 1647) – Puritan, founder of

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

Samuel Johnson Samuel Johnson ( – 13 December 1784), often called Dr Johnson, was an English writer who made lasting contributions as a poet, playwright, essayist, moralist, literary critic, sermonist, biographer, editor, and lexicographer. The ''Oxford ...

– essayist and lexicographer; in 1732 worked at the Dixie Grammar after leaving

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

because of debt, but left after four months, unable to bear the "boorish" 4th Baronet * Andy Morrell (b. 1974) – footballer * Colin Pitchfork (b. 1960) - First person convicted of murder using DNA Fingerprinting, attended school in Market Bosworth * Cliff Price (1900-1959) – footballer for Southampton F.C. in the 1920s * Thomas Simpson (1710–1760) – mathematician * Ollie Smith (b. 1982) - England international rugby player began his career with Market Bosworth RFC

Community

The Town entered into the Britain in Bloom competition on the 500th anniversary of the battle in 1985. Floral decorations were displayed around the town. The success of this entry caused the formation of the "Bosworth in Bloom Committee", to prepare for more displays. In 2012 – the Town reached the national finals for England and won a Gold Award. The town has two football teams, AFC Market Bosworth (playing mostly on Saturdays) and Market Bosworth FC (mostly Sundays). Both have teams across various age groups from under 5s to over 35s. The triathlon club and cricket club are based at the same ground as Market Bosworth FC, the sports and social club. The town also has a rugby club, tennis club & lawn bowls club.

Education

The town has three schools, Market Bosworth Primary and Junior School, The Market Bosworth School, and the private Dixie Grammar School.

Media

Television signals can only be received from the

Sutton Coldfield Sutton Coldfield or the Royal Town of Sutton Coldfield ( ), is a town and civil parish in the city of Birmingham, West Midlands County, West Midlands, England. The town lies around 8 miles northeast of Birmingham city centre, 9 miles south of L ...

TV transmitter which broadcast programmes from

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

. However, BBC East Midlands and ITV Central are also received through cable and satellite television such as

Freesat Freesat is a British free-to-air satellite television service, first formed as a joint venture between the BBC and ITV plc and now owned by Everyone TV (itself owned by all of the four UK Public broadcasting, public service broadcasters, BBC, ...

and

Sky The sky is an unobstructed view upward from the planetary surface, surface of the Earth. It includes the atmosphere of Earth, atmosphere and outer space. It may also be considered a place between the ground and outer space, thus distinct from ...

. Local radio stations are BBC Radio Leicester on 104.9 FM, Capital East Midlands on 105.4 FM, Greatest Hits Radio on 106.0 FM and Smooth East Midlands on 101.4 FM. The town is served by the '' Leicester Mercury'' and '' Hinckley Times'' newspapers.

Town centre

The town centre has many historic buildings. In the corner of the Market Place are two cottages, known as the Rose and Thistle Cottages, named to confirm the link of the Dixie family to England and Scotland. The town also has three churches, Anglican, Catholic and Free Churches.

Parks and recreation

Market Bosworth Country Park and Bosworth Water Park (Lakeside Lodges) offer outside recreation. The site of the

is a few miles south of the town. Market Bosworth was previously served by the Ashby and Nuneaton Joint Railway which is now the heritage Battlefield Line Railway and runs at weekends from Shackerstone, via Market Bosworth station to Shenton. The Ashby Canal runs adjacent to the railway and is served by Bosworth Marina with moorings for 150 boats. There is an hourly bus service to Leicester.

References

External links

*
Hinckley and Bosworth borough council

Market Bosworth parish council
{{authority control Towns in Leicestershire Civil parishes in Leicestershire Hinckley and Bosworth