The history of Cheshire can be traced back to the Hoxnian Interglacial, between 400,000 and 380,000 years BP. Primitive tools that date to that period have been found. Stone Age remains have been found showing more permanent habitation during the Neolithic period, and by the Iron Age the area is known to have been occupied by the Celtic Cornovii tribe and possibly the Deceangli.
The Romans occupied Cheshire for almost 400 years, from 70 AD, and created the town and fort of Deva Victrix, now Chester. After the Romans withdrew, Cheshire formed part of Mercia, an Anglo-Saxon kingdom, that saw invasions from the Welsh and Danes. The Norman Conquest in 1070 saw Cheshire harshly ruled by the occupiers. Local people resented the invaders and rebelled. War again swept the county during the English Civil War in 1642, despite an attempt by local gentry to keep the county neutral.
The Industrial Revolution saw population changes in Cheshire as farm workers moved to the factories of Manchester and Lancashire. In the 18th and 19th centuries there was a resurgence in the country houses of Cheshire and canals and railways were built.
Contemporary Cheshire is now a ceremonial county administered by four unitary authorities; Cheshire East, Cheshire West and Chester, Halton, and Warrington. (Warrington, formerly in Lancashire, was added to Cheshire in 1974.) Cheshire retains the offices of Lord Lieutenant and High Sheriff for ceremonial purposes.
Toponymy Cheshire's name was originally derived from an early name for Chester, and was first recorded as Legeceasterscir in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, meaning the shire of the city of legions. Although the name first appears in 980, it is thought that the county was created by Edward the Elder around 920. In the Domesday Book, Chester was recorded as having the name Cestrescir (Chestershire), derived from the name for Chester at the time. A series of changes that occurred as English itself changed, together with some simplifications and elision, resulted in the name Cheshire, as it occurs today.
Prehistory Cheshire periodically lay under ice until the end of the Younger Dryas ice age about 11,500 years ago. However, primitive tools have been found that date to the Hoxnian Interglacial, between 400,000 and 380,000 years BP, showing that Cheshire was inhabited at that time, probably by Homo heidelbergensis.
There is evidence of Old Stone Age (Paleolithic) occupation with axe heads being found at Tatton dating to 10,000 B.C.
More permanent occupation of Cheshire occurred during the New Stone Age (Neolithic). For example, there is a chambered tomb known as the Bridestones, near Congleton. It belongs to the "megalithic culture" characterised by the practice of collective burial in stone-built chambers beneath mounds of earth and stone. It lies approximately three miles east of Congleton and is the oldest megalithic structure in the whole of Cheshire. Farming is also likely to have started to develop during the Neolithic period, with flint artefacts and burnt grain being found at Tatton dating to 2,600 B.C., and the Oversley Farm find.
During Bronze Age, occupation of upland hill sites at Beeston Castle and Eddisbury hill fort suggested a move to a more military society.
Into the Iron Age, Cheshire became occupied by the Celtic Cornovii, bordering the Brigantes to the North and the Deceangli and Ordovices to the West. The Cornovii tribe had their capital at The Wrekin, Shropshire and were known to trade in salt from mines at Middlewich and Northwich.
For the important Oversley Farm (near Manchester Airport) neolithic and Bronze Age longhouse find, see Oversleyford#Oversley Farm.
Roman
The Romans arrived in the lands of the Cornovii in 48 AD and defeated them at a battle at The Wrekin. By 70 AD the Romans had founded the fortress and town of Deva Victrix, now Chester, according to ancient cartographer Ptolemy, The fortress was 20% larger than other fortresses in Britannia built around the same time at York (Eboracum) and Caerleon (Isca Augusta); this has led to the suggestion that the fortress, rather than London (Londinium), was intended to become the capital of the Roman province of Britannia Superior. The civilian amphitheatre, which was built in the 1st century, could seat between 8,000 and 10,000 people. It is the largest known military amphitheatre in Britain, and is also a Scheduled Monument.
The Romans developed the settlements at Condate (Northwich) and Salinae (Middlewich) due to the importance as their salt mines Salt was very important in Roman society; and highly valued by the Roman occupation forces. Other Roman industries included smelting of lead at Runcorn and potteries at Wilderspool, though the county retained most of its rural character and native Britons tended more towards agriculture than industry.
Chester was garrisoned by the legion until at least the late 4th century. Although the army had abandoned the fortress by 410 when the Romans retreated from Britannia, the civilian settlement continued (probably with some Roman veterans staying behind with their wives and children) and its occupants probably continued to use the fortress and its defences as protection from raiders from the Irish Sea.
Mercian The Roman Empire fell in the 5th century, and the Romano-British established a number of petty kingdoms in its place. The region was on the boundary of Northumbria, Mercia and north Wales so turbulent times continued. In 616, Æthelfrith of Northumbria defeated armies from the kingdoms of Powys and Gwynedd at the Battle of Chester and probably established the Anglo-Saxon position in the area from then on.
Later in the 7th century, Cheshire formed part of the kingdom of Mercia. However, with increased invasions from Danes, the Anglo-Saxons extended and strengthened the walls of Chester for protection. Chester was the centre of several battles between the English and Danes until eventually King Alfred, of Wessex and eventually Mercia, drove them away from the city in 894–895 and a peace treaty was agreed granting the Danes settlements in the Wirral, which can be seen by their Danish place names, such as Thingwall (from thing meaning 'a meeting place').
Alfred's daughter Ethelfleda, Lady of the Mercians, built the new Anglo-Saxon 'burh' at Chester.
By the middle of the 7th century, Christianity had also become widespread, and one of the earliest churches was at Eccleston. Eccleston shows signs of Christian burials as early as 390 AD, the earliest known Christian burials in Cheshire. Towards the end of the 7th century, Saint Werburgh founded a religious institution on the present site of Chester's St John's Church which later became the first cathedral.
By this time, the River Mersey is likely to have formed the natural boundary between Mercia and Northumbria. The threat was now from the Danish kingdom based at York, so the Mercian kingdom built a fort at Eddisbury in 914 to serve as a defence for Chester. All along the length of the River Mersey as far as Manchester, fortified defensive settlements were created, including Rhuddlan, Runcorn, Thelwall, Bakewell and Penwortham.
During his reign of Edward the Elder parts of old Derbyshire were also added to the Mercian kingdom. These are now modern-day Longdendale and Macclesfield. By 930, relative peace reigned across the area until the Norman occupation.
In 973, the Anglo Saxon Chronicle records that, two years after his coronation at Bath, King Edgar of England, came to Chester where he held his court in a palace in a place now known as Edgar's field near the old Dee bridge in Handbridge. After the kings swore fealty and allegiance they rowed him back to the palace. As he entered he is reported to have said that with so many kings' allegiance his successors could boast themselves to be kings of the English.
Chester became headquarters of Eadric Streona in 1007,Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, 1007: the King's ealdorman of Cheshire, Staffordshire and Shropshire. This transferred to the governorship of the Earl of Mercia: firstly Leofric (c. 1030–1057); then Ælfgar (1057–1062); and finally Edwin (1062–1070).
Mercian place names can be seen throughout the county. They can be recognised by the suffix 'ham' (from the Saxon word 'hamm' meaning a settlement)-for example Frodsham, Eastham, Weaverham; and 'burgh' or 'bury' (meaning a fortified settlement or stronghold) such as Wrenbury and Prestbury.
Norman William I led the Norman Conquest of England in 1066. Confiscation of lands by the conquerors led to resistance and dissent for many years, and Cheshire, as a remote part of the kingdom, provided the Normans with stiff resistance. This led the Normans to treat Cheshire particularly harshly with land and villages being destroyed, crops burned and people made homeless.
In 1069 the final attempt at resistance was finally put down and Edwin and other Saxon landlords had their property confiscated and their land was passed to Norman lords. Edwin attempted another rebellion in 1071, but was betrayed and killed.
Proof of the devastation can be seen from the Domesday survey of 1086 most of the lands in Cheshire were recorded as "wasta", or wasteland, as "abandoned or useless lands". Prior to the conquest the lands had been fertile. Chester was sieged in 1070 and eventually sacked, largely demolished and devastated.
With control of the county, William built a castle in Chester at a defensive location overlooking the River Dee from where it could dominate and control the city and therefore administer the county. The old Roman walls were repaired making Chester probably one of the most heavily defended cities in Britain at that time.
William abolished the Earldom of Mercia and created a new Earldom of Chester. William made Hugh d'Avranches the first Earl.C. P. Lewis, 'Avranches, Hugh d', first earl of Chester (d. 1101)', Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 accessed 28 Oct 2007 Hugh was nicknamed Hugh Lupus, or wolf, and ruled almost autonomously and with the full authority of the King. Cheshire was therefore declared a County palatine, a title it still holds today.
The county continued to be ruled and administered by Norman earls and they imposed their own courts of law, civil service and independent powers, until the 7th Earl, John, died without a male heir in 1237. By that time King Henry III had declared the female line of inheritance to be invalid and took back the title, passing it to his son, Prince Edward - later to become King Edward I. Ever since that time the eldest son of all English monarchs has held the title of Earl of Chester and the title was created in conjunction with the Prince of Wales. By the 13th century, so important were the city and castle at Chester regarded, that extensions were built to include a royal apartment for King Edward I during the various wars with the neighbouring Welsh.
Many other Norman castles were subsequently constructed throughout the county of Cheshire in order to maintain the peace and to exert control over the disenchanted population of the region who bitterly hated their Norman overseers for many generations.
The Cheshire of 1086, as recorded in the Domesday Book, was a larger county than it is today. With minor variations in spelling across sources, the complete list of hundreds of Cheshire at this time are: Atiscross, Bochelau, Chester, Dudestan, Exestan, Hamestan, Middlewich, Riseton, Roelau, Tunendune, Warmundestrou and Wilaveston.