Shropshire

{| border=1 cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" align="right" width=300 |- !colspan=2 align=center bgcolor="#ff9999"|Shropshire |- |colspan=2 align=center| |- !colspan=2 bgcolor="#ff9999"|Geography |- |width="45%"|Status:||Ceremonial counties of England & (smaller) Administrative counties of England County |- |Region:||West Midlands (region) |- |Surface area:
- Total
- Admin. council
- Admin. area||List of Ceremonial counties of England by Area
1 E9 m� square kilometre
List of Administrative shire counties of England by Area
3,197 km² |- |Admin HQ:||Shrewsbury |- |ISO 3166-2:GB:||GB-SHR |- |ONS coding system:||39 |- |Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics 3:||UKG22 |- !colspan=2 bgcolor="#ff9999"|Demographics |- |Population:
- Total (2003 est.)
- Density
- Admin. council
- Admin. pop.||List of Ceremonial counties of England by Population
447,033
128 / km²
List of Administrative shire counties of England by Population
286,745 |- |Ethnicity:||97.3% White
1.2% S.Asian |- !colspan=2 align=center|
Badge of Shropshire County Council'' |- !colspan=2 bgcolor="#ff9999"|Politics |- |colspan=2 align=center|Shropshire County Council
http://www.shropshire-cc.gov.uk/ |- |Executive:||Conservative Party (UK) |- |MPs elected in the UK general election, 2005:||Mark Pritchard, Philip Dunne, Daniel Kawczynski, Owen Paterson, David Wright (politician) |- !colspan=2 bgcolor="#ff9999"|Districts |- |colspan=2| #North Shropshire #Oswestry (borough) #Shrewsbury and Atcham #South Shropshire #Bridgnorth (district) #Telford and Wrekin (Unitary) |} Shropshire (abbreviated ''Salop'' or ''Shrops'') is a county in the West Midlands (region) region of England, bordering Cheshire, Staffordshire, Worcestershire, Herefordshire, and the Preserved counties of Wales of Powys and Clwyd. Shropshire is one of England's most rural counties. The county town is Shrewsbury, although the new town of Telford is the largest town. Also in this rural county is Coalbrookdale, where the Industrial Revolution started, Ironbridge, where the world's first iron bridge was constructed and Ditherington, where the world's first iron framed building was built. (See the "cradle of industry" section below). The ceremonial counties of England of Shropshire is now split up into the administrative counties of England of Shropshire and the unitary authority of Telford and Wrekin borough. Shropshire, the administrative county, is then split up into five districts - Shrewsbury and Atcham borough, Oswestry (borough) borough, North Shropshire district, South Shropshire district and Bridgnorth (district) district. The administrative county is then further sub-divided into Civil parish, except for the town of Shrewsbury. The area covered by the ceremonial county has not changed for centuries (other than the removal of several exclave in other counties) - see traditional counties of England. A 2005 estimate of the population of the administrative county of Shropshire was put at 286,400 - making the county the smallest two-tier administration in England. The county was called Salop in legal documents for some centuries, a name deriving from 'Salopesbiry', an older name for the county town, Shrewsbury. When a county council for the county was set up in 1888, it was called 'Salop County Council'. The name was never popular, and the council renamed itself 'Shropshire County Council' in 1980. However, the term "Salopian", derived from "Salop", is still used to mean "from Shropshire". ==Cradle of Industry== Quite why this remote, rural county on the Welsh border became the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution is mystifying to many people. The reason, however, is mainly due to Shropshire's diverse geology. Shropshire is the "geological capital" of the UK, as just about every rock type in Northern Europe is found within its borders, as are coal, lead, copper and iron ore deposits. In addition to this, the River Severn flows through the county and has been used for the transportation of goods and services for centuries. ==Geography== Geographically, Shropshire is divisible into two distinct halves - North and South. North Shropshire Politically - Oswestry district, North Shropshire district, Shrewsbury and Atcham borough and the unitary borough of Telford and Wrekin. The North Shropshire Plain is an extension of the flat and fertile Cheshire Gap. It is here that most of the county's large towns, and population in general, is to be found. Shrewsbury at the centre, Oswestry to the north west, Whitchurch to the north, Market Drayton to the north east and the Telford connurbation (Telford, Wellington, Newport, Oakengates, Donnington and Shifnal) to the east. The land is fertile and agriculture remains a major feature of the landscape and the economy. The River Severn runs through the lower half of the Northern area, through Shrewsbury and the Ironbridge Gorge, before heading south to Bridgnorth. The area around Oswestry has more rugged geography than the North Shropshire Plain and the western half is over an extension of the Wrexham Coalfield and there are also copper deposits on the border with Wales. Mining of stone and sand aggregate is still going on in North Shropshire, notably on Haughmond Hill, near Bayston Hill and around the village of Condover. Other primary industries, such as forestry and fishing, are to be found too. The A5 road and M54 motorway run from Wolverhampton (to the east of the county) across to Telford, around Shrewsbury and then north west to Oswestry, before heading north into Wales in the Wrexham area. This is an important artery and the corridor is where most of Shropshire's modern commerce and industry is found, notably in Telford new town. There are also a number of railway lines crossing over the area, which centre at Shrewsbury. To the south west of Telford, near the Ironbridge Gorge, is Buildwas Power Station. The new town of Telford is built on a former industrial area centred on the East Shropshire Coalfield. There are still many colliery heaps to be found in the area, as well as disused mine shafts. This industrial heritage is an important tourist attraction, as is seen by the growth of museums in the Ironbridge, Coalbrookdale and Jackfield area. Blists Hill museum and historical (Victorian era) village is a major tourist attraction as well as the Iron Bridge itself. South Shropshire Politically - South Shropshire district and Bridgnorth district. South Shropshire is more rural, with fewer settlements and no large towns, and its landscape differs greatly than that of North Shropshire. The area is dominated by hill ranges and valleys, forests and glens, and other natural features. Farming is more pastural than the arable found in the north of the county. The only substantial towns are Ludlow, Bridgnorth and Church Stretton. The A49 road is the main road through the area, running north to south, from Shrewsbury to Herefordshire. A railway line runs through the area on the same route as the A49 with stations at Church Stretton, Craven Arms and Ludlow. Infrastructure is generally quite poor in the south of the country, but this is due mainly because of the low population density. The Severn Valley Railway runs from Bridgnorth into Worcestershire. Church Stretton is known as "Little Switzerland" due to its valley location and character. Nearby are the old mining communities on the Clee Hills, notable geological features in the Onny Valley and Wenlock Edge and fertile farmland in the Corve Dale. The River Teme drains this part of the county, before flowing into Worcestershire to the South. South West Shropshire, or simply "Clun", is a little known and remote part of the county, with Clun Forest, Offa's Dyke and the River Clun. The small towns of Clun and Bishop's Castle are in this area. The countryside here is very rural and is in parts wild and forested. To the South of Clun is the Welsh town of Knighton, Wales. == Towns and villages == ''See the list of places in Shropshire.'' == Places of interest == *Attingham Park, (Atcham) *Blists Hill, (preserved 19th century industrial/victorian age community) *Boscobel House, (on border with Staffordshire) *Brown Clee Hill, (highest peak in Shropshire) *Burford House *Caer Caradoc, (near Church Stretton) *Cardingmill Valley, (Church Stretton) *Haughmond Hill, (forest park on the edge of Shrewsbury with the medieval Haughmond Abbey ruins) *Hawkstone Park, (large rural park and folly in north Shropshire) *Hopton Castle, (scene of a English_Civil_War massacre) *Ironbridge, (the worlds first iron bridge) *Langley Chapel *Long Mynd, (means "long mountain", overlooks Church Stretton) *Ludlow Castle *Mitchells Fold, (a bronze age stone circle) *Moreton Corbet Castle *Offa's Dyke Path, a long distance footpath *Shropshire Hills AONB *Shropshire Union Canal *Snailbeach, (a historic lead mining village) *The Stiperstones, (mountainous ridge near Pontesbury, including the "Devil's Chair") *Stokesay Castle *Titterstone Clee Hill, (hill near Ludlow, ex-coalmining and famed for the unusual accent of the locals) *Wenlock Edge, (a long wooded ridge and the geology capital of the UK) *Whittington Castle *Wroxeter, (a ruined Roman Britain city and legionary fortress) ==Famous People== * Robert Clive "Clive of India" * Earl of Craven (of Stokesay Castle) * Abraham Darby * Charles Darwin * William Farr * George Jeffreys of Wem, (infamous judge) * Len Murray, (former head of the T.U.C) * Wilfred Owen * Edmund Plowden (1518-1585)—legal scholar and theorist * Sir Edmund Plowden (1590-1659)—Proprietor, Earl Palatine and Governor of New Albion * Barbara Pym * T'Pau (band), pop group * Sir Philip Sidney * Mary Webb (1881-1927), authoress * Matthew Webb, (first man to swim the English Channel) * Billy Wright (footballer) * Norton I, Emperor of the United States of America Also, British poet A.E. Housman used Shropshire as the setting for many of the poems in his first book, A Shropshire Lad. ==Politics== Shropshire has five constituencies, four of which returned Conservative MPs at the 2005 general election and one, Telford, returned a Labour MP. This is a marked change from the 2001 general election result, where the county returned only one Conservative, three Labour and a Liberal Democrat MP. *David Wright (politician), Labour, Telford (UK Parliament constituency) *Owen Paterson, Conservative, North Shropshire (UK Parliament constituency) (covering the North Shropshire district and Oswestry borough) *Philip Dunne, Conservative, Ludlow (UK Parliament constituency) (covering the South Shropshire and Bridgnorth districts) *Daniel Kawczynski, Conservative, Shrewsbury and Atcham (UK Parliament constituency) *Mark Pritchard, Conservative, The Wrekin (UK Parliament constituency) (covering Telford and Wrekin borough, minus Telford and including a small area of Bridgnorth district) In 2005 there was also a County Council election and the Conservatives gained overall control of the administrative county. Telford and Wrekin Unitary Authority remains under Labour control. ==Trivia== Oswestry Town F.C. play in the League of Wales. Shropshire holds the record for the coldest temperature recorded in England and Wales (weather wise). This was set on January 10, 1982, in Edgmond, Shropshire at -26.1 C. The following day the coldest daytime maximum temperature recorded in England occured in the county, at -11.3 C. Shrewsbury has the tallest town crier in the world, at 7ft 2in, and now also the tallest Member of Parliament in the United Kingdom - Daniel Kawczynski is 6ft 8.5in tall. The ceremonial county of Shropshire is the United Kingdom's largest inland (surrounded entirely by land) county. ==See also== Railways of Shropshire
Etymological_list_of_counties_of_the_United_Kingdom *[http://www.secretshropshire.org.uk Secret Shropshire] - Document archives relating to Shropshire are being made available online, over 10,000 images including maps, photographs of scenery, buildings, famous people and natural history, sketches, and writings. *[http://www.shropshirestar.com Shropshire Star] - Local newspaper. *[http://www.bbc.co.uk/shropshire/history/index.shtml BBC Shropshire history] - BBC Shropshire's history page. *[http://vamp.idlers.org/~jaffa/shropshire.htm Fords in Shropshire] - Listing of all fords in Shropshire, including photos. *[http://www.shropshirestar.com/features/whatson/diningout/public_houses.php Pubs in Shropshire] - A growing database on the public houses of the county, from the Shropshire Star. *[http://www.webbaviation.co.uk/shropshire_gallery.htm Shropshire aerial photos] - Fantastic website with many photos of places in Shropshire, taken from the air Shropshire

Shropshire

In response to "What a mess!" - Shropshire does not need more than one page as the traditional and ceremonial counties are the same thing and the administrative county is simply the traditional/ceremonial one minus Telford. It's not that hard to comprehend!! Keep it as it is. David. ---- 195.92.168.169 on the 16th of October, was me, but I was logged out because I went offline. User:Alun Ephraim Although none of the other edits done by 195.92.168.169, were done by me...I'm confused. User:Alun Ephraim ---- Why "Salops"? It doesn't resemble "Shropshire" much. It seems like some German said it, and then he repeated it to a Chinese, and then to an Egyptian. How did this weird abbreviation occur? --User:Menchi (User talk:Menchi)� 10:15, 14 Dec 2003 (UTC) :It comes from ''Salopia'' the Latin name for Shrewsbury. Hence "Salops" = "the county based at Shrewsbury". For a time after the 1974 reorganisation "Salop" was the official name of the county, but it was much disliked and was changed back before too long. User:Arwel Parry 15:11, 14 Dec 2003 (UTC) ::So why is is Salops and not Salop in this article? I don't recall seeing it as Salops before User:Mintguy 20:25, 20 Dec 2003 (UTC) :::You know how archaeologists always describe something which they don't know what it is as "a ritual object"? Well, I shall merely say that it's "traditional". :) User:Arwel Parry 00:16, 22 Dec 2003 (UTC) ::::Salops has often been used as an abbreviation for the county on letters. Maybe somebody mixed things up. User:Timrollpickering 21:16, 19 Mar 2004 (UTC) ---- ==What a mess!== This article is a mess! It's trying to refer to 3 different things simultaneously, and failing miserably. Let me demonstrate, going through, sentence by sentence: Opening: ''Shropshire (abbreviated Salop) is an county in the West Midlands of England, bordering Cheshire, Staffordshire, Telford and Wrekin, Worcestershire, Herefordshire, Powys, and Wrexham.'' - obviously refering to the current, two-tier administrative county. ''It is one of England's most rural counties. The current county town is Shrewsbury, but was traditionally Ludlow, '' - ''' if the county town ''was traditionally Ludlow'', then we are now refering to the traditional county, and different entity. ''' ''[...] and the largest town is by far the major industrial centre and New Town of Telford. '' - '''here, we are obviously refering to either the traditional county or the ceremonial county; not, in any event, what the article's opening sentence refered to, which ''bordered Telford and Wrekin'' and obviously can't also contain Telford!''' ''The county is sub-divided into districts - Bridgnorth, North Shropshire, Oswestry, Shrewsbury and Atcham, South Shropshire. It used to contain Telford and Wrekin, which is now a separate unitary authority. '' - '''Now we're back with the administrative county which ''used to contain Telford'' - even though only a sentence ago the same "county" ''contained Telford''!''' ''Quite why a remote, rural county on the Welsh border, was the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution, mystifies many people. '' - '''Now we're back to the traditional county, since neither administrative nor ceremonial shropshire was around at the time the industrial revolution was beginning.''' ''Geographically, Shropshire is divisible into several distinct areas: [...] Telford and the Wrekin Unitary Authority, is in the east of the county...'' '''...and we is being refered to here? Traditional? Cerremonial? The aritlce opened by saying that Telford and the Wrekin Unitary Authority ''bordered'' Shropshire, and now it's saying that the same authority is in the east of the "county"! And then the map shows only the administrative county! What an utter mess! And it goes on... (e.g. at the base of the article we are then told that this is actually an article on one of the 'Ceremonial counties of England'!)''' Therefore, the following should be done to resolve this: 1) Create a much-needed seperate page for the traditional county (Shropshire (traditional)) 2) Move information pertaining to the administrative entity to Shropshire (administrative) with reference to the creation of the ceremonial county in combination with Telford "county". 3) On the main Shropshire page, include maps of all three "shropshire"s, provide non-specific information, and link to the other two articles. User:80.255 23:23, 12 Apr 2004 (UTC) :Actually, all that is needed is to make clear which areas are administratively independent, and when discussing stats compare the ceremonial and administrative areas, as is done succesfully on Dorset and Hampshire. User:Steinsky User talk:Steinsky 11:32, 16 Jun 2005 (UTC) ::But I've already done this - about a year ago! User:dpaajones :::Ooops, didn't spot the year in the timestamp, thought it was current as somebody else left the reply (the spam) below. User:Steinsky User talk:Steinsky 18:52, 16 Jun 2005 (UTC) ---- And I'm amazed no-one has mention - Morris Telford - A Salopian Odyssey, the BBC book about the Shropshire man's quest to tell the world how good Shropshire really is - http://www.cafepress.com/morristelford ==How to visit shropshire== A relative of mine has studied Shropshire for some years. I therefore refer to is excellent article on tourism in the Shropshire region entitled "How to visit shropshire". Enjoy. http://csteinbach.com/steve User:ChrisSteinbach 08:13, 22 Dec 2004 (UTC) ---- Can someone please clarify the reference to 'the Shropshire Regiment' burning the White House - which regiment was this please?? User:Saga City 21:05, Feb 4, 2005 (UTC) :I have answered my own question and, as a result, removed the reference. In 1814, when the burning took place the Shropshire county regiment - the 53rd of Foot - was in Europe. The regiment involved was the 85th Regiment of Foot, this was raised in Buckinghamshire. The contributer must have picked up the fact that in 1881, a long time after the incident, the two regiments were amalgamated to become, in the fullness of time, the KSLIs - the King's Shropshire Light Infantry - but this was 67 years after the event, so isn't relevant to this page.

Shropshire

This category contains articles relating to the county of Shropshire, England. Counties of England

See other meanings of words starting from letter:

S

SB | SC | SD | SE | SF | SG | SH | SI | SJ | SK | SL | SM | SN | SO | SP | SR | SS | ST | SU | SW | SX | SY | SZ |

Words begining with Shropshire:

Shropshire
Shropshire
Shropshire
Shropshire,_England
Shropshire_&_Montgomeryshire_Railway
Shropshire_and_Montgomeryshire_Railway
Shropshire_Hills_AONB
Shropshire_North_(UK_Parliament_constituency)
Shropshire_Union_Canal
Shropshire_Wildlife_Trust