Chester city walls
Chester city walls | |
---|---|
General information | |
Status | Open to the public |
Type | Fortification |
Architectural style | Medieval |
Town or city | Chester |
Country | England |
Designations | Scheduled monument[1] with most of the walls, towers, and gates being Grade I listed |
Website | |
www.cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk |
Chester city walls consist of a defensive structure built to protect the city of
Maintenance of the structure of the walls was an ongoing concern. They were further fortified before the Civil War, and were damaged during the war. Following this they ceased to have a defensive purpose, and were developed for leisure and recreation. The walls are now a major tourist attraction, and form an almost complete circuit of the former medieval city, with a total walkway length of 2.95 kilometres (1.8 mi). Upkeep and repair of the walls continues to be a problem.
History
Military use
In about 74 or 75 AD the
Nothing is known about the condition of the walls between the end of the Roman occupation in the late 4th century and the refounding of Chester by Æthelflæd as a burgh in 907 as part of the reconquest of
The finance required for the upkeep of the walls was mainly by a series of murages granted by the king, duties levied on merchandise passing into and out of the city. The main gates were under the control of hereditary sergeants who collected tolls and organised watches on the walls. During the 15th century the granting of murages was delegated to the city authorities, but keeping up with the necessary repairs was a continuing problem. Breaches occurred in 1569, 1608 and 1629, and in both 1589 and in 1641 the walls were described as being "ruinous".[4] In the expectation of the coming Civil War, repairs were carried out in the early 1640s, and further fortifications were added to the walls and in the outer suburbs.[4] The walls were heavily damaged during the siege of the city by Parliamentarian forces in 1645, this included two major breaches.[4][13]
Recreational use
After the end of the Civil War, the walls ceased to have any military or defensive function, and increasingly became used for recreational purposes. In 1707 the City Assembly made a grant of £1,000 (equivalent to £180,000 in 2021)[14] to repair and re-flag the walls to make a walkway with an unfortified parapet. Notable people walking the walls in the early 18th century included John Wesley and Samuel Johnson. By this time the main gates were too narrow for the increasing traffic, so they were all rebuilt with wider arches. The gates had also prevented an unobstructed perambulation of the walls, and the opportunity was taken to carry the walkway over the new gates. Eastgate was replaced in 1768, Bridgegate in 1781, and Watergate in 1788.[4][15] Other measures were taken to improve the accessibility for walkers; these included the building of Recorder's Steps in 1720 on the southern part of the walls, and the Wishing Steps in 1785 on a steeply inclined section to the east of the Recorder's Steps.[4] Between 1808 and 1810 Northgate was rebuilt. This gate had contained the city gaol, and a new gaol was built in the south of the city. The gaol yard extended southwards towards the river and this necessitated removing Shipgate, thus creating a permanent breach in the wall.[16]
Improvements in transport in the 19th and 20th centuries have resulted in further alterations to the walls. Until the early 19th century the only bridge over the Dee had been the Old Dee Bridge immediately to the south of Bridgegate. In the 1820s Grosvenor Bridge was built, passing through the walls at the southwest corner.[4][17] In 1846 the Chester and Holyhead Railway was built, cutting the walls and passing through arches under the northwest corner.[4][18] By the 1930s road traffic had increased and was causing severe congestion in the middle of the city, particularly at Chester Cross. A new road was created to the south of the centre of the city, breaching the east wall to the west of the Amphitheatre. Newgate was built to allow the traffic to pass and to take the walkway over the road; this opened in 1938.[19] Following the Second World War traffic increased further and in the 1960s the Inner Ring Road was built to take traffic from Grosvenor Bridge to the west of the city centre. Where it breached the north wall a concrete footbridge, named St Martin's Gate, was built and opened in 1966.[4]
Conservation
Chester city walls comprise the most complete Roman and medieval defensive town walls in Britain.
The walk is approximately rectangular in plan, on a continuous elevated walkway, apart from a short section on the south of the city. It incorporates medieval structures, including
Upkeep and repair of the walls is an ongoing conservation project. In 2008 part of the wall collapsed near the Eastgate. After repairs, the section was reopened in 2010.[29][30][31] There have been several fatal accidents of people falling from the walls.[32] Since 2011, a section of wall between Morgan's Mount and Northgate Bridge has been closed because it was found to be moving and had to be propped up.[33] In January 2020 a SE section of wall collapsed while development work was being carried out nearby.[34]
See also
- List of sections of Chester city walls and associated structures
- Grade I listed buildings in Cheshire West and Chester
- Grade II* listed buildings in Cheshire West and Chester
- List of cities with defensive walls
- List of town walls in England and Wales
References
- ^ Historic England. "The walls, towers, gates and posterns of the City of Chester (1006785)". National Heritage List for England.
- ^ Ward 2009, p. 6.
- ^ a b Ward 2009, p. 7.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Thacker, A. T.; Lewis, C. P., eds. (2005), "Major buildings: City walls and gates", A History of the County of Chester, Victoria County History, vol. 5, no. 2, University of London & History of Parliament Trust, pp. 213–225, retrieved 15 July 2011
- ^ a b Ward 2009, p. 11.
- ^ Ward 2009, p. 12.
- ^ Ward 2009, p. 22.
- ^ a b Ward 2009, p. 31.
- ^ Ward 2009, pp. 31–33.
- ^ Ward 2009, p. 34.
- ^ Ward 2009, p. 37.
- ^ Ward 2009, p. 40.
- ^ Ward 2009, pp. 68–69.
- ^ UK Retail Price Index inflation figures are based on data from Clark, Gregory (2017). "The Annual RPI and Average Earnings for Britain, 1209 to Present (New Series)". MeasuringWorth. Retrieved 11 June 2022.
- ^ Ward 2009, p. 79.
- ^ Ward 2009, pp. 79, 81.
- ^ Ward 2009, pp. 83–85.
- ^ Ward 2009, p. 90.
- ^ Ward 2009, pp. 110–111.
- ^ a b Chester's Historic Walls, Discover Chester, archived from the original on 24 March 2012, retrieved 14 July 2011
- ^ City Gates and Walls, Chester City Council, retrieved 14 July 2011
- ^ Morris & Hoverd 1993, p. 43.
- ^ Howe, Steve, An Introduction to Chester, Chester: B&W Picture Place, retrieved 14 July 2011
- ^ Heritage Trails: Chester City Walls Trail, Cheshire West and Chester Council, archived from the original on 28 September 2011, retrieved 23 September 2011
- ^ a b Chester City Walls, Cheshire Historic Environment Record, retrieved 14 July 2011
- ^ Historic England, "The walls, tower, gates and posterns of the City of Chester (1006785)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 8 April 2012
- ^ Historic England, "Part of city wall from Bridgegate to County Hall, Chester (1376173)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 8 April 2012
- ^ Chester City Walls Trail, Cheshire West and Chester, archived from the original on 19 October 2011, retrieved 14 July 2011
- ^ City wall closed after collapse, BBC, 8 April 2008, retrieved 14 July 2011
- ^ Restoration of Roman walls begins, BBC, 29 September 2009, retrieved 14 July 2011
- ^ Holmes, David (25 May 2010), "Chester's ancient walls to reopen next week after repairs completed", Chester Chronicle, Trinity Mirror North West & North Wales, retrieved 14 July 2011
- ^ Porter, Garry (16 September 2011), "Woman dies after falling from Chester City Walls", Chester Chronicle, Trinity Mirror North West & North Wales, retrieved 20 May 2012
- ^ "Repairs to Northgate steps begin". www.chester.yourwestcheshire.co.uk. Retrieved 23 May 2020.
- ^ "City's Roman wall collapses after digging work". BBC News. 17 January 2020. Retrieved 17 January 2020.
Bibliography
- Ward, Simon (2009), Chester: A History, Chichester: Phillimore, ISBN 978-1-86077-499-7
- Morris, Richard; Hoverd, K (1993), The Buildings of Chester, Stroud: Alan Sutton, ISBN 0-7509-0255-8
External links
- 'Chester: a Virtual Stroll Around the Walls'
- 'Treasure Hunt taking you around the Chester City Walls'
- Media related to Chester city walls at Wikimedia Commons