Chester Cross (junction)

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Chester Cross from the south, showing St Peter's Church St Peter's Church, Chester-2.jpg
Chester Cross from the south, showing St Peter's Church
The town crier on Chester High Cross Chester Town Crier.jpg
The town crier on Chester High Cross

Chester Cross is a junction of streets at the centre of the city of Chester, Cheshire, England (grid reference SJ405662 ).

Chester city in Cheshire, England

Chester is a walled city in Cheshire, England, on the River Dee, close to the border with Wales. With a population of 118,200 in 2011, it is the most populous settlement of Cheshire West and Chester, which had a population of 332,200 in 2014. Chester was granted city status in 1541.

Ordnance Survey National Grid System of geographic grid references used in Great Britain

The Ordnance Survey National Grid reference system is a system of geographic grid references used in Great Britain, distinct from latitude and longitude. It is often called British National Grid (BNG).

The streets meeting at the junction are Watergate Street, Eastgate Street, Bridge Street and Northgate Street. The junction consists of a staggered crossroads, with Watergate Street in continuity with Eastgate Street, and Bridge Street joining the junction to the west of Northgate Street. Watergate Street, Eastgate Street, Bridge Street were the main roads in Chester when it was a Roman fortress. To the north of the point where Bridge Street met the other streets was the Roman principia (headquarters building). [1] It is thought that Northgate Street was driven through the ruins of the Roman buildings in the 10th century. [2]

Roman Empire period of Imperial Rome following the Roman Republic (27 BC–395 AD)

The Roman Empire was the post-Roman Republic period of the ancient Roman civilization. An Iron Age civilization, it had a government headed by emperors and large territorial holdings around the Mediterranean Sea in Europe, North Africa, and West Asia. From the constitutional reforms of Augustus to the military anarchy of the third century, the Empire was a principate ruled from the city of Rome. The Roman Empire was then divided between a Western Roman Empire, based in Milan and later Ravenna, and an Eastern Roman Empire, based in Nicomedia and later Constantinople, and it was ruled by multiple emperors.

The centrepiece of Chester Cross is the Grade II listed building Chester High Cross, a medieval cross which was damaged in the Civil War, then removed elsewhere, and reinstated in its original position in 1975. [3] Immediately to the north of Chester Cross is St Peter's Church, a Grade I listed building. [4] At the southeast corner of the junction is 1 Bridge Street, a Grade II* listed building. [5] Today Chester Cross is a popular meeting point. During the summer months Chester's town crier makes a midday proclamation from the steps of the High Cross. [6]

Listed building Collection of protected architectural creations in the United Kingdom

A listed building, or listed structure, is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, Cadw in Wales, and the Northern Ireland Environment Agency in Northern Ireland.

Chester High Cross grade II listed high cross in the United kingdom

Chester High Cross is in Chester, Cheshire, England. It stands in front of St Peter's Church at the junction of Watergate Street, Eastgate Street and Bridge Street, a site known as Chester Cross. The cross is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II listed building.

Middle Ages Period of European history from the 5th through the 15th centuries

In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages lasted from the 5th to the 15th century. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and merged into the Renaissance and the Age of Discovery. The Middle Ages is the middle period of the three traditional divisions of Western history: classical antiquity, the medieval period, and the modern period. The medieval period is itself subdivided into the Early, High, and Late Middle Ages.

Related Research Articles

Thomas Harrison (architect) English architect

Thomas Harrison was an English architect and bridge engineer who trained in Rome, where he studied classical architecture. Returning to England, he won the competition in 1782 for the design of Skerton Bridge in Lancaster. After moving to Lancaster he worked on local buildings, received commissions for further bridges, and designed country houses in Scotland. In 1786 Harrison was asked to design new buildings within the grounds of Lancaster and Chester castles, projects that occupied him, together with other works, until 1815. On both sites he created accommodation for prisoners, law courts, and a shire hall, while working on various other public buildings, gentlemen's clubs, churches, houses, and monuments elsewhere. His final major commission was for the design of Grosvenor Bridge in Chester.

Eastgate and Eastgate Clock Grade I listed gate in the United Kingdom

Eastgate and Eastgate Clock in Chester, Cheshire, England, stand on the site of the original entrance to the Roman fortress of Deva Victrix. It is a prominent landmark in the city of Chester and is said to be the most photographed clock in England after Big Ben.

Old Dee Bridge Grade I listed bridge in the United Kingdom

The Old Dee Bridge in Chester, Cheshire, England, is the oldest bridge in the city. It crosses the River Dee carrying the road that leads from the bottom of Lower Bridge Street and the Bridgegate to Handbridge. A bridge on this site was first built in the Roman era, and the present bridge is largely the result of a major rebuilding in 1387. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building, and is a scheduled monument.

Chester city walls Grade I listed building in the United Kingdom

Chester city walls consist of a defensive structure built to protect the city of Chester in Cheshire, England. Their construction was started by the Romans when they established the fortress of Deva Victrix between 70 and 80 AD. It originated with a rampart of earth and turf surmounted by a wooden palisade. From about 100 AD they were reconstructed using sandstone, but were not completed until over 100 years later. Following the Roman occupation nothing is known about the condition of the walls until Æthelflæd refounded Chester as a burgh in 907. The defences were improved, although the precise nature of the improvement is not known. After the Norman conquest, the walls were extended to the west and the south to form a complete circuit of the medieval city. The circuit was probably complete by the middle of the 12th century.

St Peters Church, Chester Church in Cheshire, England

St Peter's Church is in Eastgate Street in the centre of the city of Chester, Cheshire, England, immediately to the north of Chester Cross. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building. It is an active Anglican parish church in the diocese of Chester, the archdeaconry of Chester and the deanery of Chester. The ancient walls mark the boundaries of the parish.

Bridgegate, Chester Grade I listed arch bridge in the United Kingdom

Bridgegate in Chester, Cheshire, England, forms part of the city walls. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building.

Northgate, Chester Grade I listed arch bridge in the United Kingdom

The Northgate is in Chester, Cheshire, England, where it carries the city walls footpath over Northgate Street. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building.

Watergate, Chester city gate and bridge in Chester, England

The Watergate is in Chester, Cheshire, England and spans the A548 road between Watergate Street and New Crane Street. It forms part of the city walls and carries a footpath over the road. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building.

Chester Rows

Chester Rows consist of covered walkways at the first floor behind which are entrances to shops and other premises. At street level is another set of shops and other premises, many of which are entered by going down a few steps. The Rows, found in each of the four main streets of the city of Chester, Cheshire, England, are unique.

Black-and-white Revival architecture

The Black-and-white Revival was an architectural movement from the middle of the 19th century which re-used the vernacular elements of the past, using timber framing. The wooden framing is painted black and the panels between the frames are painted white. The style was part of a wider Tudor Revival in 19th-century architecture.

Bridge of Sighs, Chester bridge in Chester, United Kingdom

The Bridge of Sighs in Chester is a crossing that originally led from the Northgate gaol, across the Chester Canal, to a chapel in the Bluecoat School. It was built to allow condemned prisoners to receive the last rites before their execution. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II listed building.

1 Bridge Street, Chester

1 Bridge Street, Chester, is located at the junction of Bridge Street and Eastgate Street at Chester Cross in the centre of the city of Chester, Cheshire, England. Its architecture is that of the black-and-white revival, it incorporates part of the Chester Rows, and is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building. Because of its prominent position and its black-and-white architecture, the historian Simon Ward has described it as an "iconic" building.

3–31 Northgate Street, Chester grade II listed building in the United kingdom

3–31 Northgate Street is a terrace of shops, offices and a public house on the west side of Northgate Street, Chester, Cheshire, England. All the buildings have a set-back ground floor with a covered walkway, are timber-framed in their upper storeys, and are listed buildings, being graded II* or II. The part of the terrace comprising numbers 5–31 is known as Shoemakers' Row, or Sadler's Row.

Newgate, Chester grade II listed arch bridge in the United kingdom

Newgate is an arch bridge carrying the walkway of the city walls over Pepper Street in Chester, Cheshire, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II listed building. The bridge was built in 1938 to relieve traffic congestion in the city, especially at Chester Cross. This involved making a new breach in the city walls.

Shipgate sandstone arch standing in Grosvenor Park, Chester, Cheshire, England

The Shipgate is a sandstone arch standing in Grosvenor Park, Chester, Cheshire, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II listed building.

Chester is a city in Cheshire, England. It contains over 650 structures that are designated as listed buildings by English Heritage and included in the National Heritage List for England. Of these, over 500 are listed at Grade II, the lowest of the three gradings given to listed buildings and applied to "buildings of national importance and special interest". This list contains the Grade II listed buildings in the unparished area of the city to the north and west of the Chester city walls.

Chester is a city in Cheshire, England. It contains over 650 structures that are designated as listed buildings by English Heritage and included in the National Heritage List for England. Of these, over 500 are listed at Grade II, the lowest of the three gradings given to listed buildings and applied to "buildings of national importance and special interest". This list contains the Grade II listed buildings in the central unparished area of the city within Chester city walls or located adjacent to them.

References

Citations

  1. ↑ Ward (2009), p. 7
  2. ↑ Ward (2009), pp. 28–29
  3. ↑ Historic England, "Chester High Cross (1376246)", National Heritage List for England , retrieved 17 April 2013
  4. ↑ Historic England, "Church of St Peter, Chester (1376247)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 17 April 2013
  5. ↑ Historic England, "Number 1 Bridge Street and Row, Chester (1376055)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 17 April 2013
  6. ↑ Chester Cross Proclamation, Chester Town Criers, archived from the original on 7 January 2009, retrieved 13 September 2009

Sources

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Coordinates: 53°11′25″N2°53′30″W / 53.1903°N 2.8916°W / 53.1903; -2.8916

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