Publisher's Synopsis
The account, which extends from earliest times until the 1990s is divided into two parts; chronological chapters covering city government, economic and social life, and demographic and topographical development are followed by shorter sections offering detailed treament of selected institutions and topics. The site of a Roman legionary fortress, Chester became an important town in the 10th century. Although a major regional centre with a large hinterland, its dominant role was administrative; in pre-Conquest times the home of a shire court and an exceptionally productive mint, from the 1070s its castle housed the judicial, financial and administrative institutions of the great earldom of Chester. The city's apogee was in the reign of Edward I, when it became the principal base for the conquest of Wales, In 1541 its great Benedictine abbey was transformed into the cathedral of a new diocese. Chester suffered badly in the Civil war, when it was the site of a celebrated seige. Thereafter it developed as a county town, with a social season focused on the races.;This book is intended for local historians; professional and amateur, social, economic, architectural, ecclesiastical, landscape, and family historians.
