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Barnaby's Tower

Buildings and structures in ChesterCheshire building and structure stubsGrade I listed buildings in ChesterGrade I listed towersTowers in Cheshire
United Kingdom listed building stubsUse British English from April 2017
BarnabysTower
BarnabysTower

Barnaby's Tower stands at the southeast corner of the city walls of Chester, Cheshire, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building. The tower probably dates from the 13th century, and it was damaged in 1644–46 during the Civil War. When the city walls were converted into a raised walkway between 1702 and 1708, the tower was converted to form a feature at this corner. It has been repaired on occasions since, and in 1879–80 was altered at the expense of one of the city councillors.The tower is constructed in coursed red sandstone rubble, and stands on a stony outcrop. It forms a three-sided projection from the walls, its top being level with the walkway, and is decorated with mock crenellation. There is no evidence of any chamber at a lower level.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Barnaby's Tower (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Barnaby's Tower
City Walls, Chester Handbridge

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N 53.18763 ° E -2.8875 °
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City Walls

City Walls
CH1 1AG Chester, Handbridge
England, United Kingdom
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Chester Weir
Chester Weir

Chester Weir is a weir which crosses the River Dee at Chester, Cheshire, England, slightly upstream from the Old Dee Bridge (grid reference SJ407658). The weir and the associated salmon leap are recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building.This was originally the site of a causeway across the River Dee. The weir was built in sandstone in 1093 for Hugh Lupus, 1st Earl of Chester, for the Benedictine Abbey of St Werburgh (now Chester Cathedral). It was designed to provide a head of water for the medieval mills on the river. The mills were demolished during the 20th century and the weir was restored to serve the Chester City Council's hydro-electric power station, which operated from 1913 to 1939 on the site of the former mills.The weir continues to provide three essential roles in maintaining the very substantial water abstractions from the River Dee. It prevents tidal water ingress up-river for all but the highest tides; it provides the water head for an abstraction immediately behind the weir and it holds back what is a long linear lake which enables that largest abstraction to be taken at Huntington for the United Utilities supply to the Wirral and surrounding areas.The weir can be navigated by crossing over the top during high spring tides. On the city-side of the weir is the United Kingdom's only example of a weirgate, a low height single lock gate that can be opened to provide extra draft once the water levels on each side of the weir have equalised. This allows carefully planned passage from the non-tidal River Dee, via the short tidal estuary section, onto the Dee Branch of the Shropshire Union Canal (originally the Chester Canal) at certain times of year.United Utilities vacated the turbine building in 2015, ending its use as a pump station, and allowing installation of a new hydro electric generating plant, planning for which is underway as of 2021, alongside a Green-Energy education centre and visitor attraction.

Chester Roman Amphitheatre
Chester Roman Amphitheatre

Chester Amphitheatre is a Roman amphitheatre in Chester, Cheshire. The site is managed by English Heritage; it is designated as a Grade I listed building, and a scheduled monument. The ruins currently exposed are those of a large stone amphitheatre, similar to those found in Continental Europe, and although it was long believed that a smaller wooden amphitheatre existed on the site beforehand, excavations since 1999 have shown that the wooden grillage is the base of the seating. Today, only the northern half of the structure is exposed; the southern half is covered by buildings, some of which are themselves listed.The amphitheatre is the largest so far uncovered in Britain, and dates from the 1st century, when the Roman fort of Deva Victrix was founded. It is a peculiarly English myth that the amphitheatre would have been primarily for military training and drill; all the evidence recovered from excavation shows that it was used for cock fighting, bull baiting and combat sports, including classical boxing, wrestling and, probably most importantly, gladiatorial combat. The poet Oppian wrote that the Romans inherited the Greek passion for the cockfight, which was held "on anniversaries . . . as a solemn rite", a consecration, in effect a sacred cockfight, to remind men that they should be "perpetual imitators of the cock".In use through much of the Roman occupation of Britain, the amphitheatre fell into disuse around the year 350. The amphitheatre was only rediscovered in 1929, when one of the pit walls was discovered during construction work. Between 2000 and 2006, excavation of the amphitheatre took place for Chester City Council and, after 2004, English Heritage.