History of Rugby, Warwickshire
Encyclopedia
This is about the history of the town of Rugby
.
the Rugby area was settled. Rugby's site on a plateau at about 400 feet above sea level, overlooking the River Avon
made it an important strategic post overlooking the Avon, which was a natural barrier between the Dobunni
and the Corieltauvi tribes. Iron Age remains, probably lookout posts or forts, have been located on either side of the Avon.
In Roman
times, two major Roman road
s were built very close to the site of modern day Rugby: the Fosse Way
and Watling Street
. Twelve miles north of Rugby is High Cross
(Roman name Venonae), where the two roads cross.
Just outside modern day Rugby, remains have been found of a Roman town called Tripontium
, on the original Watling Street which is now known as the A5. Historians believe that the settlement was a kind of ancient service station, providing stabling
and accommodation to passing Roman armies and travellers.
Rugby got its name in Saxon times. It was first mentioned in the Domesday Book
in 1086 as a small farming settlement then called Rocheberie. One theory is that the name came from the Anglo-Saxon Hrōceburh = "Rook fort", where Rook may be the birds or may be a man's name. There is another theory that it is derived from an old Celtic name Droche-brig meaning "wild hilltop". Viking
influence in the area changed the ending to the Old Norse
-bý; in 1200 it was spelt Rokebi. The name later evolved into "Rokeby", and by the 18th century had become "Rugby".
In the 12th century Rugby was mentioned as having a castle
. However the 'castle' was probably little more than a defended manor house
. In any event the 'castle' was short lived. It was probably constructed during the reign of King Stephen
(1135–1154), and demolished in around 1157 on the orders of King Henry II
. According to local legend, the stones from the castle were used to construct the west tower of St Andrew's church, which bears strong resemblance to a castle.
Henry de Rokeby obtained a market charter for Rugby, which became a small rural market town
, which it remained until the 19th century. The layout of the streets in the town centre around the market place still follows the pattern set down in medieval times. Rugby's built-up area was only High Street and Sheep Street and North Street and the Market Place.
One of the most significant events in the town's history was the founding in 1567 of Rugby School
: Lawrence Sheriff
, a locally born grocer to Queen Elizabeth I
, left money in his will to establish a school in Rugby for local boys. The school needed to take some fee-paying pupils from outside the area, to help pay the bills, and gradually became a largely fee-paying school.
From medieval times until the late 18th century, the population of Rugby stayed at around 500–1000. It began to grow in the 1770s when the Oxford Canal
was constructed around the town and spurred some growth in local industries and in population.
.
The Rugby area has associations with the Gunpowder Plot
– On the eve of the plot on 5 November 1605, the plotters stayed at an inn in nearby Dunchurch
to await news of the plot. If it had been successful then they planned to kidnap the princess Elizabeth of Bohemia
, who was staying at nearby Coombe Abbey
, and install her as Queen.
During the English Civil War
in the 17th century, King Charles I
is said to have passed through Rugby on his way to Nottingham
with 120 Cavalier troops during 1642. The attitudes of the townsfolk were said to be too close to the Parliamentarian
cause for the king's liking. One of the most important battles of the war, the Battle of Naseby
was fought some 15 miles east of Rugby.
In April 1645 Oliver Cromwell
stayed in Rugby along with two regiments of Roundhead
troops. He is said to have stayed at the "Shoulder of Mutton Inn" (where the Marks and Spencers shop now stands).
, which contributed to a radical change in Public School
education in England. Most of the present school buildings, near the centre of the town, date from this period. In 1823 William Webb Ellis
is said to have invented Rugby Football
when he picked up the ball and ran with it.
The growing popularity of the school in the early 19th century led to an increase in population of the town. Many immigrants came to Rugby, many of whom were Rugby School pupils' parents, who preferred their sons to be able to go to a normal home life each night instead of having to endure school conditions (poor food, crowding, bullies) 24 hours every day; in Rugby such immigrants were called "sojourners". This caused Rugby to expand along Bilton Road and Dunchurch Road.
Rugby School during this period was imortalised by Thomas Hughes
in his semi-autobiographical novel Tom Brown's Schooldays
.
The major factor in the growth of Rugby was the arrival of railways. In 1835 Rugby was a small rural town with a population of around 2,500. However In 1838, one of the first trunk lines to be built in England, the London and Birmingham Railway
, an early part of what later became the West Coast Main Line
, was built around the town.
In 1840, the Midland Counties Railway
, which linked the East Midlands
with North East England
, formed a junction with the London and Birmingham, making Rugby the busiest and most important railway junction in Britain.
Soon railways were being built into Rugby from several different directions. The main Trent Valley Line
from Stafford
was built into Rugby in 1847. A line to Market Harborough
and Peterborough
was opened in 1850, and a line to Leamington Spa
was opened in 1851. The Northampton loop line to Northampton
opened in 1881.
For nearly 30 years, nearly all rail traffic between London, the Midlands, the north of England, Scotland
, and north Wales
passed through Rugby junction, giving the town huge national importance.
By the 1860s the junction had become extremely congested, so much so that it was not uncommon for trains to have to queue for hours to pass through. This caused much anger and frustration amongst travellers, for whom Rugby became a byword for delays. Charles Dickens
lampooned it in his short story Mugby Junction
(1866). To relieve this congestion a new line, later called the Midland Main Line
, was built, taking a more direct route to London, avoiding Rugby. Much traffic was diverted onto the new line; Rugby remained one of the most important railway junctions in the country, but was no longer an all-important hub.
The first Rugby railway station
was opened in 1838 when the London & Birmingham opened, located to the west of the present station. When the Midland Counties line was opened in 1840, the original station was badly located to serve the new line, and so a second station was opened close to the present one. This station lasted for over 40 years but proved to be inadequate to cope with traffic. In 1885 the present station was opened.
In 1899 the Great Central Railway
was built into Rugby and the town gained a second station 'Rugby Central Station' which offered an alternative route to London and the north.
In 1862 the Rugby Lias Lime and Cement Co. Ltd was founded, although manufacture of cement
at the site began in 1855. Using the local Blue Lias
clay.
Rugby began to develop more industries from the 1880s onwards. In 1881 a corset
factory opened, employing local women. From the 1890s onwards Rugby began to attract engineering industry, due largely to its good transport links. The Willans & Robinson works opened in Rugby in 1893 which made steam engines. And in 1899 the British Thomson-Houston
works opened which made electrical equipment and later turbines. Engineering would dominate the town's economy for most of the following century.
, beating Croydon
by a matter of weeks. The board had powers to levy a rate to provide drinking water and sewage facilities. However several early schemes to provide adequate drinking water were unsuccessful. It was not until 1876 that a reliable supply was obtained from the River Avon.
Until the 1870s, the cattle market was still held in the town centre as it had been since the Middle Ages. However this became increasingly unpopular with local residents. In 1878 the cattle market was moved to its present location near the railway station.
In 1894 Rugby became an urban district
and gained its first elected council.
Due to its expansion Rugby became a municipal borough
in 1932, and the old Rugby Urban District Council was replaced with Rugby Borough Council. The nearby parishes of Bilton
, Brownsover
, Hillmorton
and Newbold-on-Avon
were incorporated into the new borough. Further local government reform in 1974 saw the borough expand to include the whole of the abolished Rugby Rural District
.
From 1926, near Rugby to its east was a large antenna farm for the Rugby VLF transmitter
. All but four of the twelve big radio masts (used to broadcast the MSF time signal) were demolished in June 2004 – delayed by rabbit
s chewing through the wires controlling detonation http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/coventry_warwickshire/3823335.stm.
In the late 1930s Frank Whittle
developed the jet engine
in Rugby. With his work taking place at the British Thomson-Houston works, and at Brownsover Hall
.
Unlike nearby Coventry
and Nuneaton
, Rugby was highly fortunate to avoid German bombing during World War II. This is perhaps somewhat surprising given the town's strategic importance as a railway junction and engineering centre. A few stray bombs landed on Dunchurch
however, but no other significant bomb damage occurred in the area.
In the postwar years Rugby became a centre of the national motorway network. Two of Britain's most important motorways, the M1
and M6
, as well as the M45
, run close to the town. Rugby expanded further, especially at Brownsover
and Cawston where new housing estates were built.
However during the 1960s several of the railway lines which radiated from Rugby were closed as part of the Beeching axe
. These included the once hugely important Midland Counties route to Leicester
, the lines to Leamington and Peterborough, and the Great Central Line. Rugby Central Station was closed in 1969, leaving the town with only one station. As of 2006, only the West Coast Mainline still serves the town.
From the 1950s, Rugby gained a substantial Afro-Caribbean community, and a sizable community from the Indian sub-continent, making Rugby a multi-cultural town. There is a small Hindu
temple in Rugby; it was converted from two adjacent terrace houses.
Moultrie Road in Rugby was named after the parish proest John Moultrie (hymn writer) or his son Gerard Moultrie
.
* From historical estimates. Figures from 1801 onwards taken from census
Rugby, Warwickshire
Rugby is a market town in Warwickshire, England, located on the River Avon. The town has a population of 61,988 making it the second largest town in the county...
.
Early history
In the Iron AgeIron Age
The Iron Age is the archaeological period generally occurring after the Bronze Age, marked by the prevalent use of iron. The early period of the age is characterized by the widespread use of iron or steel. The adoption of such material coincided with other changes in society, including differing...
the Rugby area was settled. Rugby's site on a plateau at about 400 feet above sea level, overlooking the River Avon
River Avon, Warwickshire
The River Avon or Avon is a river in or adjoining the counties of Leicestershire, Northamptonshire, Warwickshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire in the Midlands of England...
made it an important strategic post overlooking the Avon, which was a natural barrier between the Dobunni
Dobunni
The Dobunni were one of the Celtic tribes living in the British Isles prior to the Roman invasion of Britain. There are seven known references to the tribe in Roman histories and inscriptions. The latter part of the name possibly derives from Bune, a cup or vessel...
and the Corieltauvi tribes. Iron Age remains, probably lookout posts or forts, have been located on either side of the Avon.
In Roman
Roman Britain
Roman Britain was the part of the island of Great Britain controlled by the Roman Empire from AD 43 until ca. AD 410.The Romans referred to the imperial province as Britannia, which eventually comprised all of the island of Great Britain south of the fluid frontier with Caledonia...
times, two major Roman road
Roman road
The Roman roads were a vital part of the development of the Roman state, from about 500 BC through the expansion during the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire. Roman roads enabled the Romans to move armies and trade goods and to communicate. The Roman road system spanned more than 400,000 km...
s were built very close to the site of modern day Rugby: the Fosse Way
Fosse Way
The Fosse Way was a Roman road in England that linked Exeter in South West England to Lincoln in Lincolnshire, via Ilchester , Bath , Cirencester and Leicester .It joined Akeman Street and Ermin Way at Cirencester, crossed Watling Street at Venonis south...
and Watling Street
Watling Street
Watling Street is the name given to an ancient trackway in England and Wales that was first used by the Britons mainly between the modern cities of Canterbury and St Albans. The Romans later paved the route, part of which is identified on the Antonine Itinerary as Iter III: "Item a Londinio ad...
. Twelve miles north of Rugby is High Cross
High Cross, Leicestershire
High Cross is the name given to the former crossroads of the Roman roads of Watling Street and Fosse Way in Leicestershire, England. It is located about a mile west of the village of Claybrooke Magna and was located in the hundred of Guthlaxton...
(Roman name Venonae), where the two roads cross.
Just outside modern day Rugby, remains have been found of a Roman town called Tripontium
Tripontium
Tripontium was a town in Roman Britain. It lay on the Roman road later called Watling Street at a site now chiefly within the civil parish of Newton and Biggin in the English county of Warwickshire and partly in Leicestershire, some 3.4 miles north-east of Rugby and 3.1 miles south of...
, on the original Watling Street which is now known as the A5. Historians believe that the settlement was a kind of ancient service station, providing stabling
Stable
A stable is a building in which livestock, especially horses, are kept. It most commonly means a building that is divided into separate stalls for individual animals...
and accommodation to passing Roman armies and travellers.
Rugby got its name in Saxon times. It was first mentioned in the Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
in 1086 as a small farming settlement then called Rocheberie. One theory is that the name came from the Anglo-Saxon Hrōceburh = "Rook fort", where Rook may be the birds or may be a man's name. There is another theory that it is derived from an old Celtic name Droche-brig meaning "wild hilltop". Viking
Viking
The term Viking is customarily used to refer to the Norse explorers, warriors, merchants, and pirates who raided, traded, explored and settled in wide areas of Europe, Asia and the North Atlantic islands from the late 8th to the mid-11th century.These Norsemen used their famed longships to...
influence in the area changed the ending to the Old Norse
Old Norse
Old Norse is a North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and inhabitants of their overseas settlements during the Viking Age, until about 1300....
-bý; in 1200 it was spelt Rokebi. The name later evolved into "Rokeby", and by the 18th century had become "Rugby".
In the 12th century Rugby was mentioned as having a castle
Castle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built in Europe and the Middle East during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars debate the scope of the word castle, but usually consider it to be the private fortified residence of a lord or noble...
. However the 'castle' was probably little more than a defended manor house
Manor house
A manor house is a country house that historically formed the administrative centre of a manor, the lowest unit of territorial organisation in the feudal system in Europe. The term is applied to country houses that belonged to the gentry and other grand stately homes...
. In any event the 'castle' was short lived. It was probably constructed during the reign of King Stephen
Stephen of England
Stephen , often referred to as Stephen of Blois , was a grandson of William the Conqueror. He was King of England from 1135 to his death, and also the Count of Boulogne by right of his wife. Stephen's reign was marked by the Anarchy, a civil war with his cousin and rival, the Empress Matilda...
(1135–1154), and demolished in around 1157 on the orders of King Henry II
Henry II of England
Henry II ruled as King of England , Count of Anjou, Count of Maine, Duke of Normandy, Duke of Aquitaine, Duke of Gascony, Count of Nantes, Lord of Ireland and, at various times, controlled parts of Wales, Scotland and western France. Henry, the great-grandson of William the Conqueror, was the...
. According to local legend, the stones from the castle were used to construct the west tower of St Andrew's church, which bears strong resemblance to a castle.
Market town
In 1255, lord of the manorLord of the Manor
The Lordship of a Manor is recognised today in England and Wales as a form of property and one of three elements of a manor that may exist separately or be combined and may be held in moieties...
Henry de Rokeby obtained a market charter for Rugby, which became a small rural market town
Market town
Market town or market right is a legal term, originating in the medieval period, for a European settlement that has the right to host markets, distinguishing it from a village and city...
, which it remained until the 19th century. The layout of the streets in the town centre around the market place still follows the pattern set down in medieval times. Rugby's built-up area was only High Street and Sheep Street and North Street and the Market Place.
One of the most significant events in the town's history was the founding in 1567 of Rugby School
Rugby School
Rugby School is a co-educational day and boarding school located in the town of Rugby, Warwickshire, England. It is one of the oldest independent schools in Britain.-History:...
: Lawrence Sheriff
Lawrence Sheriff
Lawrence Sheriff was an Elizabethan gentleman and grocer to Elizabeth I who founded Rugby School.Not much is known about Lawrence Sheriff's early life, but it thought that he was born near St. Andrew's Church in Rugby, Warwickshire...
, a locally born grocer to Queen Elizabeth I
Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...
, left money in his will to establish a school in Rugby for local boys. The school needed to take some fee-paying pupils from outside the area, to help pay the bills, and gradually became a largely fee-paying school.
From medieval times until the late 18th century, the population of Rugby stayed at around 500–1000. It began to grow in the 1770s when the Oxford Canal
Oxford Canal
The Oxford Canal is a narrow canal in central England linking Oxford with Coventry via Banbury and Rugby. It connects with the River Thames at Oxford, to the Grand Union Canal at the villages of Braunston and Napton-on-the-Hill, and to the Coventry Canal at Hawkesbury Junction in Bedworth just...
was constructed around the town and spurred some growth in local industries and in population.
Brushes with history
Rugby and its surrounding area had several brushes with some of the most important events in English historyHistory of England
The history of England concerns the study of the human past in one of Europe's oldest and most influential national territories. What is now England, a country within the United Kingdom, was inhabited by Neanderthals 230,000 years ago. Continuous human habitation dates to around 12,000 years ago,...
.
The Rugby area has associations with the Gunpowder Plot
Gunpowder Plot
The Gunpowder Plot of 1605, in earlier centuries often called the Gunpowder Treason Plot or the Jesuit Treason, was a failed assassination attempt against King James I of England and VI of Scotland by a group of provincial English Catholics led by Robert Catesby.The plan was to blow up the House of...
– On the eve of the plot on 5 November 1605, the plotters stayed at an inn in nearby Dunchurch
Dunchurch
Dunchurch is a civil parish and village on the south-western outskirts of Rugby in Warwickshire, England. The 2001 census recorded a population of 2,842 in the village.- History :...
to await news of the plot. If it had been successful then they planned to kidnap the princess Elizabeth of Bohemia
Elizabeth of Bohemia
Elizabeth of Bohemia was the eldest daughter of King James VI and I, King of Scotland, England, Ireland, and Anne of Denmark. As the wife of Frederick V, Elector Palatine, she was Electress Palatine and briefly Queen of Bohemia...
, who was staying at nearby Coombe Abbey
Coombe Abbey
Coombe Abbey is a hotel which has been developed from an historic grade I listed building and former country house. It is located roughly midway between Coventry and Brinklow in the countryside of Warwickshire, England...
, and install her as Queen.
During the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
in the 17th century, King Charles I
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
is said to have passed through Rugby on his way to Nottingham
Nottingham
Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...
with 120 Cavalier troops during 1642. The attitudes of the townsfolk were said to be too close to the Parliamentarian
Parliament of England
The Parliament of England was the legislature of the Kingdom of England. In 1066, William of Normandy introduced a feudal system, by which he sought the advice of a council of tenants-in-chief and ecclesiastics before making laws...
cause for the king's liking. One of the most important battles of the war, the Battle of Naseby
Battle of Naseby
The Battle of Naseby was the key battle of the first English Civil War. On 14 June 1645, the main army of King Charles I was destroyed by the Parliamentarian New Model Army commanded by Sir Thomas Fairfax and Oliver Cromwell.-The Campaign:...
was fought some 15 miles east of Rugby.
In April 1645 Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell was an English military and political leader who overthrew the English monarchy and temporarily turned England into a republican Commonwealth, and served as Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland....
stayed in Rugby along with two regiments of Roundhead
Roundhead
"Roundhead" was the nickname given to the supporters of the Parliament during the English Civil War. Also known as Parliamentarians, they fought against King Charles I and his supporters, the Cavaliers , who claimed absolute power and the divine right of kings...
troops. He is said to have stayed at the "Shoulder of Mutton Inn" (where the Marks and Spencers shop now stands).
19th-century development
Rugby for centuries was merely High Street, Sheep Street, North Street, and the Market Place. It only grew into an important settlement during the 19th century.Influence of Rugby School
Rugby School, one of England's oldest and most prestigious public schools, rose to national prominence in the 1820s through the teaching methods pioneered by its headmaster, Dr Thomas ArnoldThomas Arnold
Dr Thomas Arnold was a British educator and historian. Arnold was an early supporter of the Broad Church Anglican movement...
, which contributed to a radical change in Public School
Public School (UK)
A public school, in common British usage, is a school that is neither administered nor financed by the state or from taxpayer contributions, and is instead funded by a combination of endowments, tuition fees and charitable contributions, usually existing as a non profit-making charitable trust...
education in England. Most of the present school buildings, near the centre of the town, date from this period. In 1823 William Webb Ellis
William Webb Ellis
Rev. William Webb Ellis was an Anglican clergyman who is famous for allegedly being the inventor of Rugby football whilst a pupil at Rugby School....
is said to have invented Rugby Football
Rugby football
Rugby football is a style of football named after Rugby School in the United Kingdom. It is seen most prominently in two current sports, rugby league and rugby union.-History:...
when he picked up the ball and ran with it.
The growing popularity of the school in the early 19th century led to an increase in population of the town. Many immigrants came to Rugby, many of whom were Rugby School pupils' parents, who preferred their sons to be able to go to a normal home life each night instead of having to endure school conditions (poor food, crowding, bullies) 24 hours every day; in Rugby such immigrants were called "sojourners". This caused Rugby to expand along Bilton Road and Dunchurch Road.
Rugby School during this period was imortalised by Thomas Hughes
Thomas Hughes
Thomas Hughes was an English lawyer and author. He is most famous for his novel Tom Brown's Schooldays , a semi-autobiographical work set at Rugby School, which Hughes had attended. It had a lesser-known sequel, Tom Brown at Oxford .- Biography :Hughes was the second son of John Hughes, editor of...
in his semi-autobiographical novel Tom Brown's Schooldays
Tom Brown's Schooldays
Tom Brown's Schooldays is a novel by Thomas Hughes. The story is set at Rugby School, a public school for boys, in the 1830s; Hughes attended Rugby School from 1834 to 1842...
.
Coming of the railways
London and Birmingham Railway
The London and Birmingham Railway was an early railway company in the United Kingdom from 1833 to 1846, when it became part of the London and North Western Railway ....
, an early part of what later became the West Coast Main Line
West Coast Main Line
The West Coast Main Line is the busiest mixed-traffic railway route in Britain, being the country's most important rail backbone in terms of population served. Fast, long-distance inter-city passenger services are provided between London, the West Midlands, the North West, North Wales and the...
, was built around the town.
In 1840, the Midland Counties Railway
Midland Counties Railway
The Midland Counties Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom which existed between 1832 and 1844, connecting Nottingham, Leicester and Derby with Rugby and thence, via the London and Birmingham Railway, to London. The MCR system connected with the North Midland Railway and the...
, which linked the East Midlands
East Midlands
The East Midlands is one of the regions of England, consisting of most of the eastern half of the traditional region of the Midlands. It encompasses the combined area of Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Rutland, Northamptonshire and most of Lincolnshire...
with North East England
North East England
North East England is one of the nine official regions of England. It covers Northumberland, County Durham, Tyne and Wear, and Teesside . The only cities in the region are Durham, Newcastle upon Tyne and Sunderland...
, formed a junction with the London and Birmingham, making Rugby the busiest and most important railway junction in Britain.
Soon railways were being built into Rugby from several different directions. The main Trent Valley Line
Trent Valley line
The Trent Valley Line is a railway line between Rugby and Stafford in England, forming part of the West Coast Main Line.The line was electrified on 25 kV AC system during the 1960s, in the wake of the 1955 British Rail modernisation plan....
from Stafford
Stafford
Stafford is the county town of Staffordshire, in the West Midlands region of England. It lies approximately north of Wolverhampton and south of Stoke-on-Trent, adjacent to the M6 motorway Junction 13 to Junction 14...
was built into Rugby in 1847. A line to Market Harborough
Market Harborough
Market Harborough is a market town within the Harborough district of Leicestershire, England.It has a population of 20,785 and is the administrative headquarters of Harborough District Council. It sits on the Northamptonshire-Leicestershire border...
and Peterborough
Peterborough
Peterborough is a cathedral city and unitary authority area in the East of England, with an estimated population of in June 2007. For ceremonial purposes it is in the county of Cambridgeshire. Situated north of London, the city stands on the River Nene which flows into the North Sea...
was opened in 1850, and a line to Leamington Spa
Leamington Spa
Royal Leamington Spa, commonly known as Leamington Spa or Leamington or Leam to locals, is a spa town in central Warwickshire, England. Formerly known as Leamington Priors, its expansion began following the popularisation of the medicinal qualities of its water by Dr Kerr in 1784, and by Dr Lambe...
was opened in 1851. The Northampton loop line to Northampton
Northampton
Northampton is a large market town and local government district in the East Midlands region of England. Situated about north-west of London and around south-east of Birmingham, Northampton lies on the River Nene and is the county town of Northamptonshire. The demonym of Northampton is...
opened in 1881.
For nearly 30 years, nearly all rail traffic between London, the Midlands, the north of England, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, and north Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
passed through Rugby junction, giving the town huge national importance.
By the 1860s the junction had become extremely congested, so much so that it was not uncommon for trains to have to queue for hours to pass through. This caused much anger and frustration amongst travellers, for whom Rugby became a byword for delays. Charles Dickens
Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...
lampooned it in his short story Mugby Junction
Mugby Junction
Mugby Junction was a set of short stories by Charles Dickens written in 1866. It was first published in a Christmas edition of the magazine All The Year Round....
(1866). To relieve this congestion a new line, later called the Midland Main Line
Midland Main Line
The Midland Main Line is a major railway route in the United Kingdom, part of the British railway system.The present-day line links London St...
, was built, taking a more direct route to London, avoiding Rugby. Much traffic was diverted onto the new line; Rugby remained one of the most important railway junctions in the country, but was no longer an all-important hub.
The first Rugby railway station
Rugby railway station
Rugby railway station serves the town of Rugby in Warwickshire, England. It opened during the Victorian era, in 1885, replacing earlier stations situated a little further west...
was opened in 1838 when the London & Birmingham opened, located to the west of the present station. When the Midland Counties line was opened in 1840, the original station was badly located to serve the new line, and so a second station was opened close to the present one. This station lasted for over 40 years but proved to be inadequate to cope with traffic. In 1885 the present station was opened.
In 1899 the Great Central Railway
Great Central Main Line
The Great Central Main Line , also known as the London Extension of the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway , is a former railway line which opened in 1899 linking Sheffield with Marylebone Station in London via Nottingham and Leicester.The GCML was the last main line railway built in...
was built into Rugby and the town gained a second station 'Rugby Central Station' which offered an alternative route to London and the north.
Growth of industry
With the railways, many wagon works, and engineering facilities were opened, and Rugby's population reached 10,000 by the 1880s, many employed by the railways. Because of its transport links, a number of industries developed in Rugby.In 1862 the Rugby Lias Lime and Cement Co. Ltd was founded, although manufacture of cement
Portland cement
Portland cement is the most common type of cement in general use around the world because it is a basic ingredient of concrete, mortar, stucco and most non-specialty grout...
at the site began in 1855. Using the local Blue Lias
Blue Lias
The Blue Lias is a geologic formation in southern, eastern and western England and parts of South Wales, part of the Lias Group. The Blue Lias consists of a sequence of limestone and shale layers, laid down in latest Triassic and early Jurassic times, between 195 and 200 million years ago...
clay.
Rugby began to develop more industries from the 1880s onwards. In 1881 a corset
Corset
A corset is a garment worn to hold and shape the torso into a desired shape for aesthetic or medical purposes...
factory opened, employing local women. From the 1890s onwards Rugby began to attract engineering industry, due largely to its good transport links. The Willans & Robinson works opened in Rugby in 1893 which made steam engines. And in 1899 the British Thomson-Houston
British Thomson-Houston
British Thomson-Houston was a British engineering and heavy industrial company, based at Rugby, Warwickshire, England. They were known primarily for their electrical systems and steam turbines. They were merged with the similar Metropolitan-Vickers company in 1928, but the two maintained their own...
works opened which made electrical equipment and later turbines. Engineering would dominate the town's economy for most of the following century.
Challenges of growth
By the middle of the 19th century Rugby's infrastructure had not kept pace with the increase in population. Most notably, there was not an adequate supply of drinking water which was mostly sourced from wells and street pumps, nor was there adequate sewerage. These problems caused Rugby's growth to stall. In 1849 Rugby became the first town in England to have a Local board of healthLocal board of health
Local Boards or Local Boards of Health were local authorities in urban areas of England and Wales from 1848 to 1894. They were formed in response to cholera epidemics and were given powers to control sewers, clean the streets, regulate slaughterhouses and ensure the proper supply of water to their...
, beating Croydon
Croydon
Croydon is a town in South London, England, located within the London Borough of Croydon to which it gives its name. It is situated south of Charing Cross...
by a matter of weeks. The board had powers to levy a rate to provide drinking water and sewage facilities. However several early schemes to provide adequate drinking water were unsuccessful. It was not until 1876 that a reliable supply was obtained from the River Avon.
Until the 1870s, the cattle market was still held in the town centre as it had been since the Middle Ages. However this became increasingly unpopular with local residents. In 1878 the cattle market was moved to its present location near the railway station.
In 1894 Rugby became an urban district
Urban district
In the England, Wales and Ireland, an urban district was a type of local government district that covered an urbanised area. Urban districts had an elected Urban District Council , which shared local government responsibilities with a county council....
and gained its first elected council.
20th century
The engineering works in Rugby attracted many workers to the town, and in the early decades of the 20th century the population grew rapidly and Rugby's built-up area spread fast in all directions. In 1901 the population of Rugby was 16,950, by the 1930s it had reached 40,000.Due to its expansion Rugby became a municipal borough
Municipal borough
Municipal boroughs were a type of local government district which existed in England and Wales between 1835 and 1974, in Northern Ireland from 1840 to 1973 and in the Republic of Ireland from 1840 to 2002...
in 1932, and the old Rugby Urban District Council was replaced with Rugby Borough Council. The nearby parishes of Bilton
Bilton, Warwickshire
Bilton is an area of Rugby in Warwickshire and a ward of the Borough of Rugby. It comprises much of the western half of the town.Historically a village in its own right , Bilton's name is derived from the Anglo-Saxon Beolatun , and it was mentioned in the Domesday Book as both Beltone and...
, Brownsover
Brownsover
Brownsover is a small village about 1½ miles north of Rugby, Warwickshire in England. Since 1960, it has been further absorbed by the suburban expansion of Rugby.-'Old' Brownsover:...
, Hillmorton
Hillmorton
Hillmorton is an area of the town of Rugby, Warwickshire, it comprises most of the eastern half of the town.Hillmorton was historically a village in its own right, and was mentioned in the Domesday Book as land that belonged to Hugh de Grandmesnil, at one time a market was held in Hillmorton, and...
and Newbold-on-Avon
Newbold-on-Avon
Newbold-on-Avon is an area of Rugby in Warwickshire, England, located around 1½ miles north-west of the town centre. Newbold was historically a village in its own right, but was incorporated into Rugby in 1932....
were incorporated into the new borough. Further local government reform in 1974 saw the borough expand to include the whole of the abolished Rugby Rural District
Rugby Rural District
The Rugby Rural District was a former rural district in Warwickshire, England. The district covered the rural areas surrounding the town of Rugby, where the district council was based, but did not include Rugby itself which was administered separately....
.
From 1926, near Rugby to its east was a large antenna farm for the Rugby VLF transmitter
Rugby VLF transmitter
Rugby radio station was a radio transmission facility at Hillmorton near the town of Rugby, Warwickshire in England, situated just west of the A5 trunk road and in later years junction 18 of the M1 motorway...
. All but four of the twelve big radio masts (used to broadcast the MSF time signal) were demolished in June 2004 – delayed by rabbit
Rabbit
Rabbits are small mammals in the family Leporidae of the order Lagomorpha, found in several parts of the world...
s chewing through the wires controlling detonation http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/coventry_warwickshire/3823335.stm.
In the late 1930s Frank Whittle
Frank Whittle
Air Commodore Sir Frank Whittle, OM, KBE, CB, FRS, Hon FRAeS was a British Royal Air Force engineer officer. He is credited with independently inventing the turbojet engine Air Commodore Sir Frank Whittle, OM, KBE, CB, FRS, Hon FRAeS (1 June 1907 – 9 August 1996) was a British Royal Air...
developed the jet engine
Jet engine
A jet engine is a reaction engine that discharges a fast moving jet to generate thrust by jet propulsion and in accordance with Newton's laws of motion. This broad definition of jet engines includes turbojets, turbofans, rockets, ramjets, pulse jets...
in Rugby. With his work taking place at the British Thomson-Houston works, and at Brownsover Hall
Brownsover Hall
Brownsover Hall is a 19th century mansion house in the old village of Brownsover, Rugby, Warwickshire which has been converted for use as a hotel. It is a Grade II listed building.-Early History :...
.
Unlike nearby Coventry
Coventry
Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city in the English Midlands, after Birmingham, with a population of 300,848, although...
and Nuneaton
Nuneaton
Nuneaton is the largest town in the Borough of Nuneaton and Bedworth and in the English county of Warwickshire.Nuneaton is most famous for its associations with the 19th century author George Eliot, who was born on a farm on the Arbury Estate just outside Nuneaton in 1819 and lived in the town for...
, Rugby was highly fortunate to avoid German bombing during World War II. This is perhaps somewhat surprising given the town's strategic importance as a railway junction and engineering centre. A few stray bombs landed on Dunchurch
Dunchurch
Dunchurch is a civil parish and village on the south-western outskirts of Rugby in Warwickshire, England. The 2001 census recorded a population of 2,842 in the village.- History :...
however, but no other significant bomb damage occurred in the area.
In the postwar years Rugby became a centre of the national motorway network. Two of Britain's most important motorways, the M1
M1 motorway
The M1 is a north–south motorway in England primarily connecting London to Leeds, where it joins the A1 near Aberford. While the M1 is considered to be the first inter-urban motorway to be completed in the United Kingdom, the first road to be built to motorway standard in the country was the...
and M6
M6 motorway
The M6 motorway runs from junction 19 of the M1 at the Catthorpe Interchange, near Rugby via Birmingham then heads north, passing Stoke-on-Trent, Manchester, Preston, Carlisle and terminating at the Gretna junction . Here, just short of the Scottish border it becomes the A74 which continues to...
, as well as the M45
M45 motorway
The M45 is a motorway in Northamptonshire and Warwickshire, England and is long. It runs from Junction 17 of the M1 motorway south east of Rugby and ends with a junction with the A45 road southwest of Rugby...
, run close to the town. Rugby expanded further, especially at Brownsover
Brownsover
Brownsover is a small village about 1½ miles north of Rugby, Warwickshire in England. Since 1960, it has been further absorbed by the suburban expansion of Rugby.-'Old' Brownsover:...
and Cawston where new housing estates were built.
However during the 1960s several of the railway lines which radiated from Rugby were closed as part of the Beeching axe
Beeching Axe
The Beeching Axe or the Beeching Cuts are informal names for the British Government's attempt in the 1960s to reduce the cost of running British Railways, the nationalised railway system in the United Kingdom. The name is that of the main author of The Reshaping of British Railways, Dr Richard...
. These included the once hugely important Midland Counties route to Leicester
Leicester
Leicester is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England, and the county town of Leicestershire. The city lies on the River Soar and at the edge of the National Forest...
, the lines to Leamington and Peterborough, and the Great Central Line. Rugby Central Station was closed in 1969, leaving the town with only one station. As of 2006, only the West Coast Mainline still serves the town.
From the 1950s, Rugby gained a substantial Afro-Caribbean community, and a sizable community from the Indian sub-continent, making Rugby a multi-cultural town. There is a small Hindu
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
temple in Rugby; it was converted from two adjacent terrace houses.
Moultrie Road in Rugby was named after the parish proest John Moultrie (hymn writer) or his son Gerard Moultrie
Gerard Moultrie
Gerald Moultrie was a Victorian public schoolmaster and Anglican hymnographer born in England September 16, 1829, at Rugby Rectory, England. His father, John Moultrie was also a hymn writer. He was educated at Rugby and Exeter College...
.
Historic population
| Year | Population |
|---|---|
| 1562 | c 350* |
| 1634 | c 650* |
| 1730 | c 900* |
| 1801 | 1,486 |
| 1811 | 1,805 |
| 1821 | 2,300 |
| 1831 | 2,501 |
| 1841 | 4,008 |
| 1851 | 6,851 |
| 1861 | 7,818 |
| 1871 | 8,585 |
| 1881 | 9,891 |
| 1891 | 11,262 |
| 1901 | 16,950 |
| 1911 | 21,758 |
| 1921 | 25,008 |
| 1931 | 35,100 |
| 1951 | 45,428 |
| 1961 | 51,651 |
| 1971 | 59,372 |
| 1991 | 61,100 |
| 2001 | 61,988 |
* From historical estimates. Figures from 1801 onwards taken from census