Bedford is a market town and unparished area in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of the Bedford built-up area was 106,940, making it the second-largest settlement in Bedfordshire, behind Luton, whilst the Borough of Bedford had a population of 157,479. Bedford is also the historic county town of Bedfordshire.
Toddington is a large village and civil parish in the county of Bedfordshire, England. It is situated 5 miles north-north-west of Luton, 4 miles (6 km) north of Dunstable, 6 miles (10 km) south-west of Woburn, and 35 miles north-north-west of London on the B5120 and B579. It is 0.5 miles from Junction 12 of the M1 motorway and lends its name to the nearby motorway service station. The hamlet of Fancott also forms part of the Toddington civil parish.
Great Barford is a village and civil parish in the Borough of Bedford, Bedfordshire, England, around 5 miles (8.0 km) north-east of Bedford town centre. It lies on the River Great Ouse at grid reference TL129523. It is twinned with Wöllstein, Germany. The village is bypassed by the busy A421 road on the way between the M1 near Milton Keynes and the A1 near St Neots.
Bedford Castle was a large medieval castle in Bedford, England. Built after 1100 by Henry I, the castle played a prominent part in both the civil war of the Anarchy and the First Barons' War. The castle was significantly extended in stone, although the final plan of the castle remains uncertain. Henry III of England besieged the castle in 1224 following a disagreement with Falkes de Breauté; the siege lasted eight weeks and involved an army of as many as 2,700 soldiers with equipment drawn from across England. After the surrender of the castle, the king ordered its destruction (slighting).
Northill is a village and civil parish in the Central Bedfordshire district of the county of Bedfordshire, England about 6.5 miles (10 km) southeast of the county town of Bedford.
Yelden or Yielden is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Melchbourne and Yielden, in the Bedford district, in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England, near the borders with Northamptonshire and Cambridgeshire. It lies on the River Til which feeds into the Great Ouse valley and is about 70 m (230 ft) above sea level. It is approximately 14 miles (23 km) north of Bedford, 3.75 miles (6.04 km) south-east of Higham Ferrers and 6.75 miles (10.86 km) west of Kimbolton and is in the Hundred of Stodden. The countryside around the village rises to about 90 m (300 ft) above sea level, is generally open and rolling in nature and is predominantly used for agricultural purposes. The centre piece of the village is the Castle Mound or Yielden Castle the site of a Norman motte-and-bailey castle. This is now a complex of grassed over earthworks dominated by a central mound. Other notable features include the church of St Mary, a Wesleyan Chapel built in 1884, the Chequers Public House and the Yelden Village Hall. It has a present population of roughly between 150 and 200 adults and between 50 and 100 children living in about 90 residences.
Eaton Socon Castle was a Norman fortification. It was constructed next to the River Great Ouse in what is now Eaton Socon, Cambridgeshire, England.
In archaeology, earthworks are artificial changes in land level, typically made from piles of artificially placed or sculpted rocks and soil. Earthworks can themselves be archaeological features, or they can show features beneath the surface.
Yielden Castle was a twelfth-century castle located in Yelden in the county of Bedfordshire, England.
Flitwick Castle was an 11th-century castle located in the town of Flitwick, in the county of Bedfordshire, England.
Renhold Castle also known as Howbury, earthwork at Water End Farm, was a medieval castle located in the village of Renhold, in the hundred of Barford, in the county of Bedfordshire, England.
Great Barford Castle, later known as "Creakers Manor", was a Norman castle located in the village of Great Barford, in the county of Bedfordshire, England.
De Parys is an electoral ward and area within the town of Bedford, Bedfordshire, England.
Goldington is a district, ward and unparished area of Bedford, Bedfordshire, England. It encompasses much of the historic village and parish of Goldington that was merged with Bedford in 1934, although some parts of the old village are within the neighbouring Newnham ward. It also includes two modern estates that are part of Renhold parish.
Castle is an electoral ward and area of Bedford, Bedfordshire, England.
Newnham is an electoral ward and area within the town of Bedford, Bedfordshire, England.
Totternhoe Knolls is a 13.1-hectare (32-acre) Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Totternhoe in Bedfordshire. It is also a local nature reserve, and part of the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The site is owned by Central Bedfordshire Council and leased to the National Trust. Most of the site is maintained jointly by the National Trust and the Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire (WTBCN), and is part of the WTBCN Totternhoe nature reserve, which also includes Totternhoe Chalk Quarry and Totternhoe Stone Pit. The SSSI also includes Totternhoe Castle, the earthworks of a Norman motte-and-bailey castle which is a Scheduled monument.
Down End Castle, also known as Downend Castle, Chisley Mount or Chidley Mount, was a motte-and-bailey castle at Down End, north of Dunball in the parish of Puriton, Somerset, England. It has been designated as a Scheduled Ancient Monument.
Thurleigh is a village and civil parish in the Borough of Bedford, north Bedfordshire, England, situated around 5 miles (8.0 km) north of Bedford town centre.
Snodhill Castle is a ruined motte-and-bailey castle, about 1 mi (1.6 km) south of the village of Dorstone, west Herefordshire, England. It is now recognized as one of the major castles of the Welsh Marches, being built in the 11th century to secure the border between Norman England and the Welsh Princes. Archaeological excavations have found that it was one of the first Norman castles in the country to receive stone defenses, with more sophisticated defenses being added in later centuries.
