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Chester

ChesterCities in North West EnglandCounty towns in EnglandFormer civil parishes in CheshireFortified settlements
Incomplete lists from September 2019Populated places established in the 1st centuryRally GBTowns in CheshireTowns of the Welsh MarchesUnparished areas in CheshireUse British English from August 2013
Chester Shops in city centre 2005 10 09
Chester Shops in city centre 2005 10 09

Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England, on the River Dee, close to the England-Wales border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011, it is the most populous settlement of Cheshire West and Chester (a unitary authority which had a population of 329,608 in 2011) and serves as its administrative headquarters. It is also the historic county town of Cheshire and the second-largest settlement in Cheshire after Warrington. Chester was founded in 79 AD as a "castrum" or Roman fort with the name Deva Victrix during the reign of Emperor Vespasian. One of the main army camps in Roman Britain, Deva later became a major civilian settlement. In 689, King Æthelred of Mercia founded the Minster Church of West Mercia, which later became Chester's first cathedral, and the Angles extended and strengthened the walls to protect the city against the Danes. Chester was one of the last cities in England to fall to the Normans, and William the Conqueror ordered the construction of a castle to dominate the town and the nearby Welsh border. Chester was granted city status in 1541. The city walls of Chester are some of the best-preserved in the country and have Grade I listed status. It has a number of medieval buildings, but many of the black-and-white buildings within the city centre are Victorian restorations, originating from the Black-and-white Revival movement. Apart from a 100-metre (330 ft) section, the walls are almost complete. The Industrial Revolution brought railways, canals, and new roads to the city, which saw substantial expansion and development; Chester Town Hall and the Grosvenor Museum are examples of Victorian architecture from this period. Tourism, the retail industry, public administration, and financial services are important to the modern economy. Chester signs itself as Chester International Heritage City on road signs on the main roads entering the city.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Chester (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Chester
Newgate Street, Chester Handbridge

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Wikipedia: ChesterContinue reading on Wikipedia

Geographical coordinates (GPS)

Latitude Longitude
N 53.19 ° E -2.89 °
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Address

Newgate Street
CH1 1DE Chester, Handbridge
England, United Kingdom
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Chester Shops in city centre 2005 10 09
Chester Shops in city centre 2005 10 09
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Browns of Chester
Browns of Chester

Browns was a department store in Chester established in 1780 by Susannah Brown. The store traded from its site on Chester's Eastgate Street from 1791 until 2021. Once regarded as the "Harrods of the North", the building interior contains many ornate features such as glass-domed roofs and elaborate plasterwork surrounding small chandeliers in the main entrance area. Some of the glass roof on the second floor has been concealed as it has been covered by the construction of the third-floor extension which contained the main café and Kalmora Spa. The oldest part of the store is housed in the Grade I listed Crypt Chambers, designed by T. M. Penson incorporating Georgian, Tudor and Gothic facades. Construction was completed in 1858. The building incorporates part of the Chester Rows. On the front of the tower at Row level is a blank scroll, on the east face is a recessed panel containing the initials W. B. (for William Brown), on the west face the initials are C. B. (for Charles Brown) and on the rear face is a scroll inscribed AD 1858: Crypt Chambers. The Gothic facade frontage is built over a medieval undercroft dating from the twelfth century. The undercroft most recently contained 'The Tea Press' tea room. Another extension to the building was completed in 1965 to link Browns to the nearby Grosvenor Shopping Centre. A new three-story extension was built in 2002 on the site formerly occupied by the offices of the Chester Chronicle. It was acquired by Debenhams in 1976. Browns was the only store in the group to retain its own trading name alongside the standard 'Debenhams' branding. Debenhams entered liquidation in early 2021 and all remaining stores closed during May that year. The building was owned by British Land. It was bought by Martin Property Group in 2022, along with the neighbouring Grosvenor Shopping Centre.