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See also:BUCKINGHAMSHIRE (abbreviated Bucks)
a See also:south midland See also:county of See also:England, bounded N. by See also:Northamptonshire, E. by See also:Bedfordshire, Hertfordishire and See also:Middlesex, S_ for a See also:short distance by See also:Surrey, and by See also:Berkshire, and W. by See also:Oxfordshire
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Its See also:area is 943.2 sq. m
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The county is divided between the basins of the See also:rivers See also:Ouse and See also:Thames
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The first in its uppermost course forms See also:part of the See also:north-western boundary, passes the towns of See also:Buckingham, Stony See also:Stratford, See also:Wolverton, See also:Newport Pagnell and See also:Olney, and before quitting the county forms a short stretch of the north-eastern boundary
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The See also:principal tributary it receives within the county is the Ouzel
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The Thames forms the entire See also:southern boundary; and of its tributaries See also:Buckinghamshire includes the upper part of the Thames
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To the north-See also:west of Buckingham, and both See also:east and west of the Ouzel, the See also:land rises in See also:gentle undulations to a height of nearly 500 ft., and north of the Thames valley a few nearly isolated hills stand boldly, such as See also:Brill See also: 1585, supposed the county to take name from this feature (A.S. boc, beech) . In the south a remnant of See also:ancient See also:forest is preserved as public ground under the name of Burnham Beeches . The Chilterns reach a height of nearly 900 ft. within the county . See also:Geology.—The See also:northern See also:half of the county is occupied by See also:Jurassic strata, in the southern half Cretaceous rocks predominate except in the south-eastern corner, where they are covered by See also:Tertiary beds . Thus the See also:oldest rocks are in the north, succeeded continuously by younger strata to the south ; the general See also:dip of all the rocks is south-easterly . A few patches of Upper See also:Lias See also:Clay appear near the northern boundary near See also:Grafton Regis and See also:Castle See also:Thorpe, and again in the valley of the Ouse near Stoke Geldington and See also:Weston Underwood . The Oolitic See also:series is represented by the See also:Great Oolite, with limestones in the upper part, much quarried for See also:building stones at See also:Westbury, Thornborough, See also:Brock, Whittlewood Forest, &c.; the See also:lower portions are more argillaceous . The Forest See also:Marble is seen about See also:Thornton as a thin See also:bed of clay with an See also:oyster-bearing See also:limestone at the See also:base . Next above is the See also:Cornbrash, a series of rubbly and occasionally hard limestones and thin See also:clays . The outcrop runs by Tingwick, Buckingham, Berehampton and Newport Pagnell, it is quarried at Wolverton and elsewhere for road See also:metal. lnliers of these rocks occur at See also:Marsh See also:Gibbon and Stan Hill . The See also:Oxford Clay and Kimmeridge Clay, with the See also:Gault, See also:lie in the vale of See also:Aylesbury . The clay is covered by numerous outliers of See also:Portland, Purbeck and Lower See also:Greensand beds .
The Portland beds are sandy below, calcareous above; the outcrop follows the normal direction in the county, from south-west to north-east, from Thame through Aylesbury; they are quarried at several places for building See also: On the lower lands, especially in the Vale of Aylesbury, about the headwaters of the Thame, it is extremely fertile; while on the hills it is usually poor and thin . The See also:pro-portion of cultivated land is high, being about 83 % of the whole . Of this a large and growing portion is in permanent pasture; See also:cattle and See also:sheep being reared in great See also:numbers for the London markets, to which also are sent quantities of ducks, for which the district round Aylesbury is famous . See also:Wheat and oats are the principal See also:grain crops, though both decrease in importance . Turnips and swedes for the cattle are the chief green crops; and See also:dairy-farming is largely practised . There is no general manufacturing See also:industry, but a considerable amount of See also:lace-making and See also:straw-plaiting is carried on locally; and at High Wycombe and in its neighbourhood there is a thriving See also:trade in various articles of turnery, such as chairs and See also:bowls, from beech and other hard woods . The introduction of lace-making in this and neighbouring counties is attributed to Flemish, and later to729 See also:French immigrants, but also to Catharine of See also:Aragon during her See also:residence (c . 1532) at See also:Ampthill . Down to the later part of the . 19th See also:century a general See also:holiday celebrated by lace-makers on the 25th of See also:November was known as " Cattarn's See also:Day." Communications.—The See also:main line of the London & North-Western railway crosses the north-east part of the county . Bletchley is an important junction on this system, branches diverging east to Fenny Stratford, See also:Bedford and See also:Cambridge, and west to Oxford and See also:Banbury, Buckingham being served by the western See also:branch . There is also a branch from Cheddington to Aylesbury . The See also:Metropolitan-Great Central See also:joint line serves See also:Amersham, Chesham (by a branch), and Aylesbury, joining the North-Western Oxford branch at See also:Verney Junction; this line is used by the Great Central railway, the main line of which continues north-westward from Quainton Road . A See also:light railway connects this station with the large See also:village of Brill to the south-west . The Great Central and the Great Western companies jointly own a line passing through See also:Beaconsfield, High Wycombe, and Prince's Risborough, which is connected northward with the Great Central system . Before the opening of this line in 1906 the Great Western branch from See also:Maidenhead to Oxford was the only line serving High Wycombe and Prince's Risborough, from which there are branches to Watlington and Aylesbury . The main line of this See also:company crosses the extreme south of the county by See also:Slough and Taplow . The See also:Grand Junction See also:Canal, reaching the valley of the Ouse by way of the Ouzel valley from the south, has branches to Aylesbury and to Buckingham . Except the Thames none of the rivers in the county is continuously navigable . See also:Population and See also:Administration.—The area of the ancient county is 475,682 acres, with a population in 1891 of 185,284, and in 1901 of 195,764 . The area of the administrative county is 479,358 acres . The county contains eight hundreds, of which. three, namely Stoke, Burnham and See also:Desborough, form the " Chiltern Hundreds " (q.v.) . The See also:hundred of Aylesbury retains its ancient designation of the " three hundreds of Aylesbury." The municipal boroughs are Buckingham, the county See also:town (pop . 3152), and Wycombe, officially Chepping Wycombe, also Chipping or High Wycombe (15,542) .
The other See also:urban districts are Aylesbury (9243), Beaconsfield (1570), Chesham (7245), See also:Eton (3301), Fenny Stratford (4799), Linslade, on the Ouzel opposite to See also:Leighton See also:Buzzard in Bedfordshire (2157), See also:Marlow (4526), Newport Pagnell (4028), Slough (11,453)
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Among the lesser See also:market towns may be mentioned Amersham (2674), Ivinghoe (8o8), Olney (2684), Prince's Risborough (2189), Stony Stratford (2353), Wendover (2009) and See also:Winslow (1703)
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At Wolverton (5323) are the See also:carriage See also:works of the London & North-Western railway
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Several of the villages on and near the See also:banks of the Thames have become centres of residence, such as Taplow, Cookham and See also:Bourne End, Burnham and Wooburn
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Buckinghamshire is in the midland See also:circuit, and assizes are held at Aylesbury
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It has one See also:court of See also:quarter sessions, and is divided into thirteen See also:petty sessional divisions
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The boroughs of Bucking-See also:ham and Wycombe have See also:separate commissions of the See also:peace
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The administrative county contains 230 See also:civil parishes
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Buckinghamshire is almost entirely within the See also:diocese of Oxford, and 215 ecclesiastical parishes are situated wholly or in part within it
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There are three See also:parliamentary divisions, Northern or Buckingham, See also:Mid or Aylesbury, and Southern or Wycombe, each returning one member; and the county contains a small part of the parliamentary See also:borough of See also:Windsor (chiefly in Berk-See also:shire)
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The most notable institution within the county is Eton See also:College, the famous public school founded by See also:
With the grouping of the settlements into kingdoms and the consolidation of See also:Mercia under See also:Offa, Buckinghamshire was included in Mercia until, with the submission of that See also:kingdom to the Northmen, it became part of the Danelaw
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In the loth century Buckinghamshire suffered frequently from the ravages of the Danes, and numerous barrows and earthworks See also:mark the scenes
of struggles against the invaders., These See also:relics are especially abundant in the vale of Aylesbury, probably at this See also:time one of the richest and best protected of the Saxon settlements
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The Chiltern district, on the other See also:hand, is said to have been an impassable forest infested by hordes of robbers and See also:wild beasts
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In the reign of See also:Edward the See also:Confessor, Lcofstan, 12th See also:
The shire of Buckingham originated with the See also:division of Mercia in the reign of Edward the See also:Elder, and was probably formed by the See also:aggregation of pre-existing hundreds round the county town, a fact which explains the curious irregularities of the boundary line
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The eighteen hundreds of the Domesday survey have now been reduced to eight, of which the three Chiltern hundreds, Desborough, Burnham and Stoke, are unaltered in extent as well as in name
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The See also:remainder have been formed each by the See also:union of three of the ancient hundreds, and Aylesbury is still designated " the three hundreds of Aylesbury." All, except Newport and Buckingham, retain the names of Domesday hundreds, and the shire has altered little on its See also:outer lines since the survey
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Until the time of See also:Queen See also: Many became annexed by religious establishments, while others reverted to the See also:crown and were disposed of by various grants . The See also:family of See also:Hampden alone claim to have held the See also:estate from which the name is derived in an unbroken line from Saxon times . Buckinghamshire has always ranked as an. agricultural rather than a manufacturing county, and has long been famed for its See also:corn and cattle . See also:Fuller mentions the vale of Aylesbury as producing the biggest bodied sheep in England, and " Buckingham-shire See also:bread and See also:beef " is an old See also:proverb . Lace-making, first introduced into this county by the See also:Fleming refugees from the See also:Alva persecution, became a very profitable industry . The monopolies of James I. considerably injured this trade, and in 1623 a See also:petition was addressed to the high sheriff of Buckingham-shire representing the See also:distress of the See also:people owing to the decay of See also:bone lace-making . Newport Pagnell and Olney were especially famous for their lace, and the See also:parish of Hanslape is said to have made an See also:annual profit of £S000 to £9000 from lace manufacture . The straw-See also:plait industry was introduced in the reign of George I., and formerly gave employment to a large number of the population . The county was first represented in parliament by two members in 1290 . The See also:representation increased as the towns acquired representative rights, until in 1603 the county with its boroughs made a See also:total return of fourteen members . By the Reform See also:Act of 1832 this was reduced to eleven, and by the Redistribution of Seats Act of 1885 the boroughs were deprived of representation and the county returned three members for three divisions . Antiquities.—Buckinghamshire contains no ecclesiastical buildings of the first See also:rank .
Monastic remains are scanty, but two former abbeys may be noted
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At Medmenham, on the Thames above Marlow, there are fragments, incorporated into a residence, of a Cistercian See also:abbey founded in 1201; which became notorious in the See also:middle of the 18th century as the See also:meeting-See also:place of a convivial See also:club called the " See also:Franciscans " after its founder, See also:Sir See also:Francis Dashwood, afterwards See also:Lord le Despencer (1708-1781), and also known as the" See also:Hell-See also:Fire Club," of which John Wilkes, Bubb Dodington and other See also:political notorieties were members
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The See also:motto of the club, See also:fay ce que voudras (do what you will), inscribed on a See also:doorway at the abbey, was borrowed from See also:Rabelais' description of the abbey of Thelema in Gargantua
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The remains of the Augustinian Notley Abbey (1162), incorporated with a See also:farm-See also:house, deserve mention rather for their picturesque situation by the river Thame than for their architectural value
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Turning to churches, there is workmanship considered to be of pre-Norman date in Wing See also: |