92-767: The Coventry Canal is a navigable narrow canal in the Midlands of England. It starts in Coventry and ends 38 miles (61 km) to the north at Fradley Junction , just north of Lichfield , where it joins the Trent and Mersey Canal . It also has connections with the Ashby Canal , the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal and the Oxford Canal . Some maps show the canal as a northern and a southern section, connected by
184-547: A caisson of water in which boats float while being moved between two levels; and inclined planes where a caisson is hauled up a steep railway. To cross a stream, road or valley (where the delay caused by a flight of locks at either side would be unacceptable) the valley can be spanned by a navigable aqueduct – a famous example in Wales is the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct (now a UNESCO World Heritage Site ) across
276-510: A drainage divide atop a ridge , generally requiring an external water source above the highest elevation . The best-known example of such a canal is the Panama Canal . Many canals have been built at elevations, above valleys and other waterways. Canals with sources of water at a higher level can deliver water to a destination such as a city where water is needed. The Roman Empire 's aqueducts were such water supply canals. The term
368-415: A "cistern", or depressed area just downstream from the fall, to "cushion" the water by providing a deep pool for its kinetic energy to be diffused in. Vertical falls work for drops of up to 1.5 m in height, and for discharge of up to 15 cubic meters per second. The transport capacity of pack animals and carts is limited. A mule can carry an eighth-ton [250 pounds (113 kg)] maximum load over
460-496: A canal has a series of dams and locks that create reservoirs of low speed current flow. These reservoirs are referred to as slack water levels , often just called levels . A canal can be called a navigation canal when it parallels a natural river and shares part of the latter's discharges and drainage basin , and leverages its resources by building dams and locks to increase and lengthen its stretches of slack water levels while staying in its valley . A canal can cut across
552-413: A combination of the three, depending on available water and available path: Smaller transportation canals can carry barges or narrowboats , while ship canals allow seagoing ships to travel to an inland port (e.g., Manchester Ship Canal ), or from one sea or ocean to another (e.g., Caledonian Canal , Panama Canal ). At their simplest, canals consist of a trench filled with water. Depending on
644-487: A decline in the wearing of hats, the trade had declined substantially by the 1970s with just three companies remaining, Denham & Hargrave Ltd, Vero & Everitt Ltd and Wilson & Stafford Ltd. The production of felt hats in the town ceased altogether with the closure of the Wilson & Stafford factory in 1999. As of 2018 the factory received the go-ahead to be redeveloped into canalside residential apartments. However,
736-549: A journey measured in days and weeks, though much more for shorter distances and periods with appropriate rest. Besides, carts need roads. Transport over water is much more efficient and cost-effective for large cargoes. The oldest known canals were irrigation canals, built in Mesopotamia c. 4000 BC , in what is now Iraq . The Indus Valley civilization of ancient India ( c. 3000 BC ) had sophisticated irrigation and storage systems developed, including
828-495: A number of Barrow supporters. The ringleaders and other participants of the crowd trouble were subsequently arrested, charged and sentenced to various jail terms. Since this incident the club has established itself as a family and community orientated club. The rugby union team is Atherstone Rugby Football Club who play in the Warwickshire Two League. Their ground is situated on Ratcliffe Road. The same ground
920-452: A public highway with large crowds. The game celebrated its 800th anniversary in 1999. The game is a complete free-for-all played along Watling Street (the old Roman road ) at the point where it forms the main street of Atherstone town. The ball is decorated with red, white and blue ribbons that are exchanged for money by who ever is able to obtain one and is made of thick leather to make it too heavy to kick far. The match starts at 3:00pm when
1012-581: A rather low gradient for its time. The canal is still in use after renovation. In the Middle Ages , water transport was several times cheaper and faster than transport overland. Overland transport by animal drawn conveyances was used around settled areas, but unimproved roads required pack animal trains, usually of mules to carry any degree of mass, and while a mule could carry an eighth ton, it also needed teamsters to tend it and one man could only tend perhaps five mules, meaning overland bulk transport
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#17327722880021104-513: A set of 11 locks (Top Lock No. 1 to Atherstone Bottom Lock No. 11) lower the level of the canal 80 feet (24 m) towards Polesworth. The only other locks on the Coventry canal are the two Glascote locks which lower the level of the canal a further 13 feet 8 inches (4.2 m) about one mile (1.6 km) before Fazeley Junction . In a suburb of Tamworth , at Fazeley Junction , boaters can turn south towards Birmingham along
1196-515: A stretch of the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal , but others, including the Canal and River Trust show the through route as the Coventry Canal. This reflects a complicated period of ownership and re-leasing when the Coventry Canal company was in financial difficulties during construction. It runs through or past the towns of Bedworth , Nuneaton , Atherstone , Polesworth and Tamworth . It
1288-534: A superbly preserved iron bridge crosses the start of the Oxford Canal , which journeys southwards to join the River Thames at Oxford . At Hawkesbury Junction there are buildings from the working days of the canal, and the Greyhound pub is a traditional stop for boaters. Hawkesbury Junction is also known to regular boaters as Sutton Stop, though strictly this refers to the stop lock , a short distance along
1380-500: A typical Midlands market town, taking full advantage of its location and agricultural setting. The argument that Altherstone declined in favour of emerging cities in the 18th century has been challenged. In the 1750s, Altherstone was very much still a vibrant settlement, possessing both a book club and a bowling-green. It was regularly frequented by the leisure-seeking gentry, including Sir Roger Newdigate and his circle of friends. The Coventry Canal reached Atherstone in 1769, and
1472-459: A uniform altitude. Other, generally later, canals took more direct routes requiring the use of various methods to deal with the change in level. Canals have various features to tackle the problem of water supply. In cases, like the Suez Canal, the canal is open to the sea. Where the canal is not at sea level, a number of approaches have been adopted. Taking water from existing rivers or springs
1564-565: Is North Warwickshire Borough Council , which, since May 2023, has been under no overall control . As a civil parish , Atherstone also has a Town Council ; Atherstone Town Council has 15 councillors representing three wards. Atherstone is situated 6 miles (9.7 km) northwest of Nuneaton , 7 miles (11 km) southeast of Tamworth , 13 miles (21 km) north of Coventry , 16 miles (26 km) northeast of Birmingham , and 17 miles (27 km) east-southeast of Leicester . The village of Mancetter has become contiguous with Atherstone to
1656-422: Is a channel that cuts across a drainage divide , making a navigable channel connecting two different drainage basins . Both navigations and canals use engineered structures to improve navigation: Since they cut across drainage divides, canals are more difficult to construct and often need additional improvements, like viaducts and aqueducts to bridge waters over streams and roads, and ways to keep water in
1748-539: Is navigable for boats up to 21.9 m (72 ft) length, 2.1 m (7 ft) beam and 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) headroom. It forms part of the Warwickshire ring . The canal starts at Coventry Canal Basin. The basin was opened in 1769 and expanded in 1788. It is situated just north of Coventry City Centre and just outside the city's inner ring road. Many of the buildings and the site were restored between 1993 and 1995. The Canal Bridge, Canal House and
1840-401: Is not widely accepted. The main argument put in favour of this theory, is that financial reparations were made to Atherstone after the battle and not to Market Bosworth. The battle has now been definitively located around the 'Fenn Lanes', which run from near Atherstone to Sutton Cheney. The battle site is NW of Stoke Golding, roughly halfway between Atherstone and Market Bosworth, and near
1932-567: Is on the main A5 national route and close to the M42 motorway . The Coventry Canal and a series of eleven locks runs through the town, as does the West Coast Main Line railway. Atherstone has its railway station on this line, with an hourly service 7 days a week to both London and Crewe via Stafford . The current level of service was introduced in 2008, and is a big improvement on
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#17327722880022024-416: Is only one rule: players are not allowed to kill one another. Whoever is able to hang onto the ball at the end of the game not only wins the game but is allowed to keep the ball as well. The game is controlled by a number of "marshalls" some of whom are former winners. Police are present but for the two hours the game is in progress stand back and allow the action to continue. Legend has it that many an old feud
2116-701: Is presumed, introduced in Italy by Bertola da Novate in the 16th century. This allowed wider gates and also removed the height restriction of guillotine locks . To break out of the limitations caused by river valleys, the first summit level canals were developed with the Grand Canal of China in 581–617 AD whilst in Europe the first, also using single locks, was the Stecknitz Canal in Germany in 1398. In
2208-599: Is rarely less than 30 metres (98 ft) wide. In the 5th century BC, Achaemenid king Xerxes I of Persia ordered the construction of the Xerxes Canal through the base of Mount Athos peninsula, Chalkidiki , northern Greece. It was constructed as part of his preparations for the Second Persian invasion of Greece , a part of the Greco-Persian Wars . It is one of the few monuments left by
2300-487: Is served by the local newspapers, Atherstone Herald and Tamworth Herald . The major football team in the town is Atherstone Town , known as 'the Adders'. This is after the tradition which has Atherstone being a corruption of the name "Adders – stone". Their ground is located on Sheepy Road. Atherstone's team started out as Atherstone Town Football Club in 1887 but folded in 1979, from 1979 to 2003 Atherstone's football team
2392-411: Is settled on Ball Game day. This Shrove Tuesday ball game has been held annually since the early 12th century and is one of Atherstone's claims to fame. The 2019 edition of the game was noted for being extremely violent with several videos of the event being uploaded to social media. Event organisers disputed the accounts of violence as "nothing new". The origin of the game, in the reign of King John ,
2484-565: Is shared by Atherstone Town Cricket Club, Atherstone Rangers Junior Football Club and is the home of Atherstone Adders Hockey Club, who play at the nearby Queen Elizabeth Academy. Atherstone Leisure Complex is at the north end of Long Street and consists of a swimming pool and gym. Atherstone Memorial Hall is also part of the leisure complex. An annual tradition in Atherstone is the Shrove Tuesday Ball Game played on
2576-418: Is steeper than the desired canal gradient. They are constructed so the falling water's kinetic energy is dissipated in order to prevent it from scouring the bed and sides of the canal. A canal fall is constructed by cut and fill . It may be combined with a regulator, bridge, or other structure to save costs. There are various types of canal falls, based on their shape. One type is the ogee fall, where
2668-452: Is the pound lock , which consists of a chamber within which the water level can be raised or lowered connecting either two pieces of canal at a different level or the canal with a river or the sea. When there is a hill to be climbed, flights of many locks in short succession may be used. Prior to the development of the pound lock in 984 AD in China by Chhaio Wei-Yo and later in Europe in
2760-538: Is thought to have been a "Match of Gold that was played between the Warwickshire Lads and the Leicestershire Lads on Shrove Tuesday" . The 'ball' used is specially made each year and is 'thrown out' by a prominent sporting or show business personality. Shop windows are boarded-up and traffic is diverted on the afternoon whilst the game, in which hundreds of people take part, progresses along
2852-564: Is to the southeast. The A5 road (former Watling Street ) historically ran through the town centre, but a dual carriageway bypass was opened in 1963. Atherstone is one of the closest towns to the geographic centre of England , which since 2002 has been recognised as being at Lindley Hall Farm , around 3 miles (4.8 km) east of Atherstone, across the county border in Leicestershire. Atherstone used to be known for its hatting industry. In part due to its central location in
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2944-484: The Birmingham & Fazeley Canal . The Coventry Canal continues northwards to end at Fradley Junction where it joins the Trent and Mersey Canal . From Fazeley to a point halfway to Fradley, some maps show the canal as the "Birmingham and Fazeley Canal" (see History). The Coventry Canal Company was formed by the Coventry Canal Act 1768 ( 8 Geo. 3 . c. 36). James Brindley was commissioned to build
3036-869: The British Transport Commission and then by the British Waterways Board, the forerunners of Canal & River Trust . In 1957, Coventry Canal Society was established to promote the proper use and maintenance of the canal, and to protect its interests. The canal acts as a base to Mercia Canoe Club, which is part of Coventry Canal Society. Canal Canals or artificial waterways are waterways or engineered channels built for drainage management (e.g. flood control and irrigation ) or for conveyancing water transport vehicles (e.g. water taxi ). They carry free, calm surface flow under atmospheric pressure , and can be thought of as artificial rivers . In most cases,
3128-658: The Elbe , Oder and Weser being linked by canals. In post-Roman Britain, the first early modern period canal built appears to have been the Exeter Canal , which was surveyed in 1563, and open in 1566. The oldest canal in the European settlements of North America, technically a mill race built for industrial purposes, is Mother Brook between the Boston, Massachusetts neighbourhoods of Dedham and Hyde Park connecting
3220-543: The Naviglio Grande built between 1127 and 1257 to connect Milan with the river Ticino . The Naviglio Grande is the most important of the lombard " navigli " and the oldest functioning canal in Europe. Later, canals were built in the Netherlands and Flanders to drain the polders and assist transportation of goods and people. Canal building was revived in this age because of commercial expansion from
3312-645: The Norman Conquest , the manor of Atherstone was given to Hugh Lupus, Earl of Chester who bestowed it to the monks of Bec Abbey of Normandy . In 1246 the monks of the Abbey obtained a charter from Henry III to hold a weekly market at Atherstone, thus transforming the settlement into a market town . In the 14th century, the town flourished, and Ralph Basset founded a house of Augustinian friars here in 1375, although this never became very important. The ancient St Mary's Church in Atherstone dates from
3404-641: The North Warwickshire district of Warwickshire , England . Located in the far north of the county, Atherstone is on the A5 national route, and is adjacent to the border with Leicestershire which is here formed by the River Anker . It is situated between the towns of Tamworth and Nuneaton . Atherstone is the administrative centre of the North Warwickshire district, with the offices of North Warwickshire Borough Council located in
3496-545: The Phoenix metropolitan area was the most complex in ancient North America. A portion of the ancient canals has been renovated for the Salt River Project and now helps to supply the city's water. The Sinhalese constructed the 87 km (54 mi) Yodha Ela in 459 A.D. as a part of their extensive irrigation network which functioned in a way of a moving reservoir due to its single banking aspect to manage
3588-528: The River Brue at Northover with Glastonbury Abbey , a distance of about 1.75 kilometres (1,900 yd). Its initial purpose is believed to be the transport of building stone for the abbey, but later it was used for delivering produce, including grain, wine and fish, from the abbey's outlying properties. It remained in use until at least the 14th century, but possibly as late as the mid-16th century. More lasting and of more economic impact were canals like
3680-614: The Songhai Empire of West Africa, several canals were constructed under Sunni Ali and Askia Muhammad I between Kabara and Timbuktu in the 15th century. These were used primarily for irrigation and transport. Sunni Ali also attempted to construct a canal from the Niger River to Walata to facilitate conquest of the city but his progress was halted when he went to war with the Mossi Kingdoms . Around 1500–1800
3772-525: The Watling Street (most of which later became part of the A5 ) ran through what is now Atherstone, and an important defended Roman settlement named Manduessedum existed at Mancetter near the site of modern-day Atherstone. It is widely believed that the forces of the rebel Queen Boudica were defeated in their final battle against the Romans at a location near Manduessedum in around AD 60. This
Coventry Canal - Misplaced Pages Continue
3864-556: The reservoirs built at Girnar in 3000 BC. This is the first time that such planned civil project had taken place in the ancient world. In Egypt , canals date back at least to the time of Pepi I Meryre (reigned 2332–2283 BC), who ordered a canal built to bypass the cataract on the Nile near Aswan . In ancient China , large canals for river transport were established as far back as the Spring and Autumn period (8th–5th centuries BC),
3956-404: The stratum the canal passes through, it may be necessary to line the cut with some form of watertight material such as clay or concrete. When this is done with clay, it is known as puddling . Canals need to be level, and while small irregularities in the lie of the land can be dealt with through cuttings and embankments, for larger deviations other approaches have been adopted. The most common
4048-471: The 12th century. River navigations were improved progressively by the use of single, or flash locks . Taking boats through these used large amounts of water leading to conflicts with watermill owners and to correct this, the pound or chamber lock first appeared, in the 10th century in China and in Europe in 1373 in Vreeswijk , Netherlands. Another important development was the mitre gate , which was, it
4140-472: The 15th century, either flash locks consisting of a single gate were used or ramps, sometimes equipped with rollers, were used to change the level. Flash locks were only practical where there was plenty of water available. Locks use a lot of water, so builders have adopted other approaches for situations where little water is available. These include boat lifts , such as the Falkirk Wheel , which use
4232-437: The 1970s), while metalworkers , locksmiths and nailers fired their furnaces with local coal and the alemakers supplied thirsty palates on market days. The surviving inventories from 16th century Mancetter provide a fascinating glimpse into Atherstone's Elizabethan merchants and traders, before the town was economically overshadowed by the bustling cities of Coventry and Birmingham . They show Atherstone at this time as
4324-575: The Birmingham and Fazeley Canal, but others describe the complete route as the Coventry Canal. The Canal and River Trust who manage the canal describe the whole route from Coventry to the Trent and Mersey Canal as the Coventry Canal. The Coventry canal was a vital trade artery for many years. In particular, it was part of a Birmingham–London route via the B&;F Canal, Coventry Canal, Oxford Canal, and
4416-564: The Braunston–Fazeley route avoided the high tolls charged by the Oxford Canal company on its Braunston–Napton section (which was also part of the new route). The Coventry paid a dividend right up to 1947 and remained navigable to the present day. Today, the canal is also a popular route for narrowboat trips. Many tourists hire narrowboats to explore Coventry's industrial heritage. It was nationalised in 1948 being operated first by
4508-518: The Oxford Canal. A few miles north of Hawkesbury, just outside Bedworth , is Marston Junction , where the Ashby-de-la-Zouch Canal starts its meandering, rural and lock-free journey towards the former coal mines at Moira; although it is now navigable only for 22 miles (35 km) to Snarestone. From Marston Junction, the Coventry canal runs north-west through Nuneaton , Atherstone and Polesworth , to Tamworth . At Atherstone
4600-590: The Persian Empire in Europe . Greek engineers were also among the first to use canal locks , by which they regulated the water flow in the Ancient Suez Canal as early as the 3rd century BC. There was little experience moving bulk loads by carts, while a pack-horse would [i.e. 'could'] carry only an eighth of a ton. On a soft road a horse might be able to draw 5/8ths of a ton. But if
4692-785: The Southwest by 1300 CE. Archaeologists working at a major archaeological dig in the 1990s in the Tucson Basin, along the Santa Cruz River, identified a culture and people that may have been the ancestors of the Hohokam. This prehistoric group occupied southern Arizona as early as 2000 BCE, and in the Early Agricultural period grew corn, lived year-round in sedentary villages, and developed sophisticated irrigation canals. The large-scale Hohokam irrigation network in
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#17327722880024784-681: The Thames. When the Grand Junction Canal and some smaller companies (which much later merged to form the Grand Union Canal company) opened a direct rival route from Birmingham to London, via Warwick , Napton , Braunston , and Bletchley , trade still remained high on the Coventry. This was partly because of the work done by the Oxford company to shorten its route north of Braunston, and because Grand Junction traffic using
4876-515: The UK, Atherstone's economy has expanded rapidly since the 1980s, with several major companies such as 3M (1964) TNT (1987), Aldi (1990s) setting up their head office operations and/or national distribution centres in the town. The British Home Stores warehouse which had operated in the town for 40 years, closed in August 2016, It is now used by Royal Mail as a regional sorting office. Atherstone
4968-529: The approved but unbuilt section from Fazeley to Fradley. The B&F worked north from Fazeley, and the T&;M worked south from Fradley. The full length from Coventry to Fradley was opened in 1789. The Coventry Canal Company later bought the northern section, nowadays sometimes referred to as Coventry Canal (detached portion) , while the middle section remained under the ownership of the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal , and thus some maps show this middle section as
5060-444: The ball is thrown from the balcony of the local Conservative Club (since the closure of the local branch of Barclays Bank , from whose upper floor the ball was previously thrown, in 2019) and continues until about 5:00pm. However the ball may legitimately be deflated or hidden after 4:30pm. There are no teams and no goals, though in the last century the match was played between a team from Warwickshire and one from Leicestershire. There
5152-436: The canal pressure with the influx of water. It was also designed as an elongated reservoir passing through traps creating 66 mini catchments as it flows from Kala Wewa to Thissa Wawa . The canal was not designed for the quick conveying of water from Kala Wewa to Thissa Wawa but to create a mass of water between the two reservoirs, which would in turn provided for agriculture and the use of humans and animals. They also achieved
5244-418: The canal to form a dam. They are generally placed in pre-existing grooves in the canal bank. On more modern canals, "guard locks" or gates were sometimes placed to allow a section of the canal to be quickly closed off, either for maintenance, or to prevent a major loss of water due to a canal breach. A canal fall , or canal drop, is a vertical drop in the canal bed. These are built when the natural ground slope
5336-567: The canal, and work started on it in December that year. Due to the high standards of construction demanded by Brindley, the canal company ran out of money by the time the canal had reached Atherstone in 1769, and Brindley was replaced by Thomas Yeoman . Thomas Dadford advised on the canal's aqueduct over the River Tame (now known as Tame Aqueduct) in 1784, and in June 1785 Thomas Sheasby
5428-462: The canal. Where large amounts of goods are loaded or unloaded such as at the end of a canal, a canal basin may be built. This would normally be a section of water wider than the general canal. In some cases, the canal basins contain wharfs and cranes to assist with movement of goods. When a section of the canal needs to be sealed off so it can be drained for maintenance stop planks are frequently used. These consist of planks of wood placed across
5520-469: The channel. There are two broad types of canal: Historically, canals were of immense importance to commerce and the development, growth and vitality of a civilization. In 1855 the Lehigh Canal carried over 1.2 million tons of anthracite coal; by the 1930s the company which built and operated it for over a century ceased operation. The few canals still in operation in our modern age are a fraction of
5612-580: The creation of burgage plots, a type of land tenure that provided them with special privileges. A manuscript discovered by Marjorie Morgan among the muniments of Cambridge's King's College (Ms. C9), refers to the creation of nine new burgage strips from land belonging to seven of the tenants in Atherstone vill . By the late Tudor period Atherstone had become a centre for leatherworking , clothmaking, metalworking and brewing . Local sheep farmers and cattle graziers supplied wool and leather to local tanners and shoemakers (an industry that continued until
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#17327722880025704-399: The drop follows an s-shaped curve to create a smooth transition and reduce turbulence . However, this smooth transition does not dissipate the water's kinetic energy, which leads to heavy scouring. As a result, the canal needs to be reinforced with concrete or masonry to protect it from eroding. Another type of canal fall is the vertical fall, which is "simple and economical". These feature
5796-416: The early 12th century. The chapel was granted to Henry Cartwright in 1542, then left abandoned and neglected until 1692 when Samuel Bracebridge settled a yearly sum for the parson of Mancetter to preach there every other Sunday in the winter season. After this, St. Mary's Chapel seems to have experienced something of a revival. Its square tower being rebuilt in the fashionable " Gothic " style in 1782, and then
5888-670: The first summit level canal to use pound locks in Europe was the Briare Canal connecting the Loire and Seine (1642), followed by the more ambitious Canal du Midi (1683) connecting the Atlantic to the Mediterranean. This included a staircase of 8 locks at Béziers , a 157 metres (515 ft) tunnel, and three major aqueducts. Canal building progressed steadily in Germany in the 17th and 18th centuries with three great rivers,
5980-462: The freedom to make deliveries well away from rail lined road beds or ditches in the dirt which could not operate in the winter. The longest extant canal today, the Grand Canal in northern China, still remains in heavy use, especially the portion south of the Yellow River . It stretches from Beijing to Hangzhou at 1,794 kilometres (1,115 miles). Canals are built in one of three ways, or
6072-723: The higher waters of the Charles River and the mouth of the Neponset River and the sea. It was constructed in 1639 to provide water power for mills. In Russia, the Volga–Baltic Waterway , a nationwide canal system connecting the Baltic Sea and Caspian Sea via the Neva and Volga rivers, was opened in 1718. Atherstone Atherstone / ˈ æ ð ər s t ən / is a market town and civil parish in
6164-417: The junction with the road running south from Market Bosworth. In Tudor times , Atherstone was a thriving commercial centre for weaving and clothmaking. The town's favourable location laid out as a long ‘ribbon development’ along Watling Street , ensured its growth as a market town . While it remained an agricultural settlement in medieval times, attempts were made to encourage merchants and traders through
6256-498: The load were carried by a barge on a waterway, then up to 30 tons could be drawn by the same horse. — technology historian Ronald W. Clark referring to transport realities before the industrial revolution and the Canal age . Hohokam was a society in the North American Southwest in what is now part of Arizona , United States, and Sonora , Mexico. Their irrigation systems supported the largest population in
6348-412: The longest canal in the world today and the oldest extant one. It is 1,794 kilometres (1,115 mi) long and was built to carry the Emperor Yang Guang between Zhuodu ( Beijing ) and Yuhang ( Hangzhou ). The project began in 605 and was completed in 609, although much of the work combined older canals, the oldest section of the canal existing since at least 486 BC. Even in its narrowest urban sections it
6440-419: The longest one of that period being the Hong Gou (Canal of the Wild Geese), which according to the ancient historian Sima Qian connected the old states of Song, Zhang, Chen, Cai, Cao, and Wei. The Caoyun System of canals was essential for imperial taxation, which was largely assessed in kind and involved enormous shipments of rice and other grains. By far the longest canal was the Grand Canal of China , still
6532-506: The numbers that once fueled and enabled economic growth, indeed were practically a prerequisite to further urbanization and industrialization. For the movement of bulk raw materials such as coal and ores are difficult and marginally affordable without water transport. Such raw materials fueled the industrial developments and new metallurgy resulting of the spiral of increasing mechanization during 17th–20th century, leading to new research disciplines, new industries and economies of scale, raising
6624-604: The pre-railroad days of the industrial revolution, water transport was the gold standard of fast transportation. The first artificial canal in Western Europe was the Fossa Carolina built at the end of the 8th century under personal supervision of Charlemagne . In Britain, the Glastonbury Canal is believed to be the first post-Roman canal and was built in the middle of the 10th century to link
6716-505: The railway station building is occupied by a local veterinary practice. Local news and television programmes are provided by BBC West Midlands and ITV Central . Television signals are received from the Sutton Coldfield TV transmitter. Local radio stations are BBC CWR , BBC Radio Leicester can also be received, Capital Midlands , Hits Radio Coventry & Warwickshire and Greatest Hits Radio Midlands . The town
6808-512: The railways arrived in 1847, with the opening of the Trent Valley Railway , upon which Atherstone has its station . These transport links helped the industrialisation of the town. Atherstone was once an important hatting town, and became well known for its felt hat industry. The industry began in the 17th century and at its height in the early 20th century there were seven firms employing 3,000 people. Due to cheap imports and
6900-471: The remains of the town's last hat manufacturing site, on Coleshill Road, were scheduled for demolition in 2022, after the local council decided it could not be safely redeveloped for residential use. Atherstone is part of the parliamentary constituency of North Warwickshire and Bedworth . The current Member of Parliament (MP) for the area being Rachel Taylor of the Labour Party . The local authority
6992-487: The service two decades earlier there were only five trains a day, just going between Stafford and Rugby. The historic station building, built in 1847, was under threat of demolition in the early 1980s. Thanks to a local group, the Railway and Steam Traction Society, listed status was obtained, with the building celebrating its 150th anniversary in 1997. Building work won a special Ian Allan conservation award. As of 2008,
7084-450: The southeast, although it remains a separate civil parish . Atherstone is close to the River Anker which forms the boundary between Warwickshire and Leicestershire . The village of Witherley is located on the opposite bank of the river in neighbouring Leicestershire. Other nearby villages include Sheepy Magna , Ratcliffe Culey , Fenny Drayton , Grendon , Dordon , Baxterley , Baddesley Ensor and Hartshill . The town of Coleshill
7176-480: The standard of living for any industrialized society. Most ship canals today primarily service bulk cargo and large ship transportation industries, whereas the once critical smaller inland waterways conceived and engineered as boat and barge canals have largely been supplanted and filled in, abandoned and left to deteriorate, or kept in service and staffed by state employees, where dams and locks are maintained for flood control or pleasure boating. Their replacement
7268-595: The subsequent battle. The battle, which is believed to have occurred eight miles (thirteen kilometres) away near Market Bosworth in Leicestershire , resulted in Tudor's forces defeating those of King Richard III , enabling Tudor to claim the throne and become King Henry VII, establishing the Tudor dynasty . A theory exists, that the battle actually took place in the fields of Merevale above Atherstone, although this
7360-583: The town's main streets. Atherstone has strong naval connections. Three Royal Navy ships have been named HMS Atherstone after the town: the vessels were commissioned in 1916 , 1939 , and most recently, 1985 . Primary age schools in Atherstone include the Outwoods Primary School, the Racemeadow Primary Academy, and St Benedict's RC Primary Academy. The Queen Elizabeth Academy is the state secondary school in
7452-453: The town. Atherstone has had its own local tradition of holding an annual Shrove Tuesday Ball Game in the streets, which has been played annually for over 800 years since 1199. In the 2021 census the population of the civil parish of Atherstone was at 9,212. The population of the larger built-up area which includes the adjoining village of Mancetter was 11,259. Atherstone has a long history dating back to Roman times: The Roman road,
7544-522: The valley of the River Dee . Another option for dealing with hills is to tunnel through them. An example of this approach is the Harecastle Tunnel on the Trent and Mersey Canal . Tunnels are only practical for smaller canals. Some canals attempted to keep changes in level down to a minimum. These canals known as contour canals would take longer, winding routes, along which the land was
7636-616: The warehouses are grade II listed buildings . All boats going in and out of Coventry Canal Basin have to pass through the Canal Bridge. From the canal basin, the canal meanders north through Coventry passing under many road bridges including prominent hump-back bridges under the Foleshill Road, Foleshill through Little Heath and the Longford Road, Longford . Five miles north of Coventry, at Hawkesbury Junction ,
7728-466: Was also expensive, as men expect compensation in the form of wages, room and board. This was because long-haul roads were unpaved, more often than not too narrow for carts, much less wagons, and in poor condition, wending their way through forests, marshy or muddy quagmires as often as unimproved but dry footing. In that era, as today, greater cargoes, especially bulk goods and raw materials , could be transported by ship far more economically than by land; in
7820-458: Was an option in some cases, sometimes supplemented by other methods to deal with seasonal variations in flow. Where such sources were unavailable, reservoirs – either separate from the canal or built into its course – and back pumping were used to provide the required water. In other cases, water pumped from mines was used to feed the canal. In certain cases, extensive "feeder canals" were built to bring water from sources located far from
7912-461: Was awarded the contract to connect the Coventry Canal to the Trent and Mersey Canal. Although the canal reached the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal at Fazeley, the final Parliament-approved stretch to the Trent and Mersey at Fradley was not finished until 1789. The Trent and Mersey company, and the Birmingham and Fazeley company, anxious to allow through traffic between Birmingham and the Trent and Mersey Canal, gained permission to complete and operate
8004-699: Was further redesigned in 1849 by Thomas Henry Wyatt and David Brandon. On 21 August 1485, Henry Tudor , and up to 11,000 troops stayed at Atherstone the day before the Battle of Bosworth . Tudor was said to have stayed at the Three Tuns Inn in Long Street, while his troops camped in a meadow north of the parish church. Reputedly, whilst in Atherstone, Tudor secretly met with the powerful noblemen Thomas Stanley and his brother William Stanley who pledged their support for Tudor, which would prove decisive in
8096-470: Was gradual, beginning first in the United States in the mid-1850s where canal shipping was first augmented by, then began being replaced by using much faster , less geographically constrained & limited, and generally cheaper to maintain railways . By the early 1880s, canals which had little ability to economically compete with rail transport, were off the map. In the next couple of decades, coal
8188-424: Was increasingly diminished as the heating fuel of choice by oil, and growth of coal shipments leveled off. Later, after World War I when motor-trucks came into their own, the last small U.S. barge canals saw a steady decline in cargo ton-miles alongside many railways, the flexibility and steep slope climbing capability of lorries taking over cargo hauling increasingly as road networks were improved, and which also had
8280-459: Was known as Atherstone United Football Club but folded again mid-season in 2003. The team then reverted to its previous name Atherstone Town Football Club. The club made the national headlines in October 2013 when during an FA Cup 3rd Qualifying round against Barrow A.F.C. crowd violence erupted during the first half when a small "minority" of Atherstone supporters ran across the pitch and attacked
8372-426: Was once used to describe linear features seen on the surface of Mars , Martian canals , an optical illusion. A navigation is a series of channels that run roughly parallel to the valley and stream bed of an unimproved river. A navigation always shares the drainage basin of the river. A vessel uses the calm parts of the river itself as well as improvements, traversing the same changes in height. A true canal
8464-482: Was suggested as the most likely location of the battle by among others, the eminent archaeologist Graham Webster , although no firm evidence has emerged to confirm this to be the case. The Domesday Book of 1086, records that Atherstone (then named Aderestone ) was held by Countess Godiva . The name likely originated from the Old English Aedelred's tun 'tun' meaning farmstead or town. After
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