Chirk was a rural district in the administrative county of Denbighshire from 1894 to 1935.
70-543: The rural district was formed from parts of Oswestry and Corwen Rural Sanitary Districts . The district contained three civil parishes : Chirk Rural District was abolished by a County Review Order in 1935, becoming part of the new Ceiriog Rural District . Denbighshire Administrative County (Vision of Britain) [1] 52°56′N 3°02′W / 52.93°N 3.04°W / 52.93; -3.04 Oswestry Oswestry ( / ˈ ɒ z w ə s t r i / OZ -wəss-tree ; Welsh : Croesoswallt )
140-512: A Breton knight, was granted the feudal barony of Oswestry by King Henry I who, soon after his accession, invited Alan to England with other Breton friends, and gave him forfeited lands in Norfolk and Shropshire , including some which had previously belonged to Ernulf de Hesdin (killed at Antioch while on crusade) and Robert of Bellême . Alan's duties to the Crown included supervision of
210-485: A Briton called Meredus Fitz Beledyns ( Maredudd ap Bleddyn ). There is an alternative view that Oswestry was named after Oswy , Oswald's brother, who fought a battle here against King Penda in 655 AD. Oswy became King of Northumbria after Oswald's death in 642 AD. The battle of 655 AD was fought near to a river called the Winwead, which it is believed, was the nearby River Vyrnwy . Welsh folklore has it that this battle
280-572: A decisive victory at the Battle of the Winwaed , establishing Oswiu as one of the most powerful rulers in Britain. He secured control of Deira, with his son Alhfrith serving as a sub-king, and for three years, Oswiu's power extended over Mercia, earning him recognition as bretwalda over much of Great Britain. Oswiu was a devoted Christian, promoting the faith among his subjects and establishing
350-490: A later date is uncertain. Equally uncertain is the date of Oswiu's return to Northumbria. He may have returned with his brother Eanfrith on Edwin's death in 633, as Bede appears to write. Eanfrith apostatised and was killed by Cadwallon ap Cadfan , who was defeated and killed in turn by another brother, Oswald , who became king of Bernicia and probably succeeded to his father's old dominance of northern and central Britain. Oswald died in battle against Penda of Mercia at
420-576: A major assault on Bernicia by Penda, which reached the gates of Bamburgh , at some time before 651 and the death of Bishop Aidan of Lindisfarne . An entry in the Irish annals recording "[t]he battle of Oswy against Penda" circa 650 may refer to this campaign. D.P. Kirby suggests that the killing of Oswine may have led to an improvement in relations between Penda and Oswiu in the early 650s. Oswiu's son Ealhfrith married Penda's daughter Cyneburh , while his daughter Ealhflæd married Penda's son Peada . Peada
490-652: A major figure in Bernicia, could also have been significant. Bede summarises Oswiu's reign in this way: Oswald being translated to the heavenly kingdom, his brother Oswy, a young man of about thirty years of age, succeeded him on the throne of his earthly kingdom, and held it twenty-eight years with much trouble, being harassed by the pagan king, Penda, and by the pagan nation of the Mercians, that had slain his brother, as also by his son Alfred [i.e. Ealhfrith ], and by his cousin-german Ethelwald [i.e. Œthelwald of Deira],
560-455: A major figure in Britain. The newly appointed Archbishop of Canterbury , Theodore of Tarsus , came north to meet him in 669. Bede writes that Oswiu had intended to undertake a pilgrimage to Rome in the company of Bishop Wilfrid. However, he fell ill and died, aged 58, on 15 February 670. His elder son by Queen Eanflæd, Ecgfrith , succeeded him as King of Bernicia , while their younger son, Ælfwine , succeeded Ecgfrith as King of Deira . He
630-753: A modern 1970s building. Other Nonconformist churches include the Albert Road Evangelical Church, Hope Church, formerly Carreg Llwyd Church (Welsh for 'Grey Rock'), founded in 1964, and the Cabin Lane Church, established by members of the Hope Church in 1991 following the eastern expansion of Oswestry. Christ Church was opened by the Congregational Church in October 1972, but now shared by
700-667: A number of monasteries, including Gilling Abbey and Whitby Abbey . He was raised in the Celtic Christian tradition of much of the Irish world, rather than the Roman tradition practiced by the southern Anglo-Saxon kingdoms as well as some members of the Deiran nobility, including Oswiu's queen Eanflæd . In 664, Oswiu presided over the Synod of Whitby , where clerics debated over the two traditions, and helped resolve tension between
770-593: A revolt led by three Mercian noblemen—Immin, Eata, and Eadberht—installed Penda's son Wulfhere as ruler of the Mercians and drove out Oswiu's supporters. Oswiu remained a force to be reckoned with, and political settlement rather than open warfare appears to have resolved the crisis. Oswiu's kinsman Trumhere was named to be Wulfhere's bishop. While Wulfhere extended Mercian influence and authority in southern Britain, he apparently continued to recognise Oswiu's primacy. Welsh sources suggest that Oswiu campaigned in Wales in
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#1732802106571840-677: A well-known circuit. The camp was reactivated in July 1939 for Royal Artillery training and the Plotting Officers' School. Following World War II , Oswestry was a prominent military centre for Canadian troops, then for the British Royal Artillery, and finally a training centre for 15 to 17-year-old Infantry Junior Leaders. The camp closed in 1975. During the 1970s some local licensed wildfowlers discharged their shotguns at some passing ducks and were shot themselves by
910-581: A young military guard, who had mistaken them for an attacking IRA force. The area previously occupied by the Park Hall military camp is now mainly residential and agricultural land, with a small number of light industrial units. Park Hall Farm became a visitor attraction in 1998, it is home to the Museum of the Welsh Guards . The Park Hall Football Stadium (home of The New Saints FC ) and The Venue
980-686: Is a Health Centre on Thomas Savin Road, next to Shelf Bank and opposite the bus station. Within the Health Centre is the Oswestry Minor Injuries Unit, Cambrian Medical Centre and a range of services run by Shropshire Community Health NHS Trust . There are three other GP surgeries situated within the town, and numerous opticians, pharmacists and dentists. Oswestry is home to the second oldest 'free' (which in this context means not linked to any ecclesiastical foundation) school in
1050-678: Is a market town, civil parish and historic railway town in Shropshire , England, close to the Welsh border . It is at the junction of the A5 , A483 and A495 roads. The town was the administrative headquarters of the Borough of Oswestry until that was abolished in 2009. Oswestry is the third-largest town in Shropshire, following Telford and Shrewsbury . At the 2021 Census, the population
1120-605: Is a small Orthodox Christian community in Oswestry, which has increased in size over years due to the town's growing Bulgarian community. There is no Orthodox church in Oswestry, however, so congregants have to travel to the Greek Orthodox Community of the Holy Fathers of Nicaea, Shrewsbury, to worship. There used to be an Orthodox outreach at Holy Trinity Church for a few years, but a disagreement over
1190-562: Is also an independent co-educational preparatory school in Church Street, Bellan House, which is run by Oswestry School. Secondary education is provided by both Oswestry School and the state secondary school with academy status: The Marches School , Morda Road. Further education is provided by The Marches School's Sixth Form and the North Shropshire College which is situated in the town at Shrewsbury Road and at
1260-537: Is considered to have had a strong political component. Equally, 665 would be a year, as Bede writes, "that Easter was kept twice in one year, so that when the King had ended Lent and was keeping Easter, the Queen and her attendants were still fasting and keeping Palm Sunday ". In 660, Oswiu married his son Ecgfrith to Æthelthryth , daughter of the former East Anglian king Anna . Even in his final years, Oswiu remained
1330-537: Is divided into two Church of England parishes, which are part of the Diocese of Lichfield : Holy Trinity, which encompasses Oswestry East and eastern part of Oswestry Rural; and St. Oswald, which encompasses Oswestry South, Oswestry West and the western part of Oswestry Rural. Each parish has its own parish church. St Oswald's Church was first mentioned in the 1086 Domesday book and a tithe document in Shrewsbury
1400-548: Is notable for his role at the Synod of Whitby in 664, which ultimately brought the church in Northumbria into conformity with the wider Catholic Church . One of the sons of Æthelfrith of Bernicia and Acha of Deira , Oswiu became king following the death of his brother Oswald in 642. Unlike Oswald, Oswiu struggled to exert authority over Deira , the other constituent kingdom of medieval Northumbria , for much of his reign. Oswiu and his brothers were raised in exile in
1470-464: Is now closed. Old Oswestry , on the northern edge of the town, dominates the northern and eastern approaches. The 3,000-year-old settlement is one of the most spectacular and best preserved Iron Age hill forts in Britain , with evidence of construction and occupation between 800 BC and AD 43. Other attractions in and around Oswestry include: Cae Glas Park, Shelf Bank , Wilfred Owen Green, Saint Oswald's Well at Maserfield, Oswestry Castle , and
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#17328021065711540-535: Is the grave of a child Holocaust refugee. The Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Trust in Oswestry provides elective orthopaedic surgery and musculoskeletal medical services. The hospital is located towards Gobowen. The hospital is now home to the UK's first orthopaedic outpatient centre for British Armed Forces veterans following a fund-raising appeal by the RJAH League of Friends in 2018. There
1610-461: Is widely thought to have been fought at Oswestry in 641 or 642, between the Anglo-Saxon kings Penda of Mercia and Oswald of Northumbria . However, the location of the battle is debated among scholars. The Domesday Book (1086) records the castle being built by Rainald, a Norman Sheriff of Shropshire : L'oeuvre ( French for 'The work'). Alan fitz Flaad (died c.1120),
1680-518: The Battle of Degsastan . The Irish annals name one Oisiric mac Albruit, rigdomna Saxan — ætheling Osric—among the dead, alongside Connad Cerr , King of Dál Riata, and others of the Cenél nGabráin , at the Battle of Fid Eóin . Whether Oswiu's marriage with the Uí Néill princess Fín of the Cenél nEógain , and the birth of Aldfrith , should be placed in the context of his exile, or took place at
1750-451: The Battle of Maserfield in 641/642. The location of the battle is debated among scholars, but for much of the twentieth century was assumed to be at Oswestry. However, A. D. Mills's Dictionary of English Place Names concluded that 'the traditional connection with St Oswald, 7th-century king of Northumbria, is uncertain'. The name and the association with King Oswald have attracted more fanciful interpretations. According to legend, one of
1820-502: The Battle of Maserfield , dated by Bede to 5 August 642. Oswald's son Œthelwald may have been his preferred successor, but Œthelwald cannot have been an adult in 642. So, the kingship came to Oswiu. Unlike Eanfrith and Osric, Oswiu held to the Christian faith in spite of his brother's defeat by the pagan Penda. This may have been due to his more thoroughly Christian upbringing, but the influence of Bishop Aidan of Lindisfarne , by then
1890-700: The Stewart Royal family . The town changed hands between the English and the Welsh a number of times during the Middle Ages and still retains some Welsh-language street and place names . In 1972, ITV broadcast a television report asking residents if they thought the town should be English or Welsh, with mixed responses. In 1149 the castle was captured by Madog ap Maredudd during ' The Anarchy ', and it remained in Welsh hands until 1157. Occasionally in
1960-738: The United Reformed Church and the Presbyterian Church of Wales , was the home church of the composer Walford Davies , who sang in the choir. There is a Welsh-speaking church, the Seion Church, and the Holy Anglican Church, a Western Rite Anglican establishment. Coney Green has a Jehovah's Witness Kingdom Hall. The Religious Society of Friends also holds meetings in Oswestry. The Grade II* star Hermon Chapel, by chapel architect Thomas Thomas ,
2030-521: The battle of the River Idle . On Æthelfrith's death, his sons and their supporters fled Northumbria , finding sanctuary among the Gaels and Picts of northern Britain and Ireland . Here they would remain until Edwin's death at the Battle of Hatfield Chase in 633. In exile, the sons of Æthelfrith were converted to Christianity , or raised as Christians. In Oswiu's case, he became an exile at
2100-416: The fourth Lord Harlech, William Ormsby-Gore , in 1952. There is a range of arts related activities in the town. There have been the following royal visits to Oswestry: In the 2011 Census , 68.7% of the population of Shropshire stated that their religion was 'Christian'. The second largest group (22.8%) stated that they had 'no religion'. There are a number of places of worship in Oswestry. Oswestry
2170-526: The synod of Whitby , Oswiu accepted the usages of the Roman Church, which led to the departure of Bishop Colmán of Lindisfarne . Bede writes that the dispute was brought to a head by Oswiu's son Ealhfrith, who had adopted Roman usages at the urging of Wilfrid . Ealhfrith had been brought up with Irish-Northumbrian usages, and his rejection of these, along with the expulsion of the future saints Cuthbert of Lindisfarne and Eata of Hexham from Ripon ,
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2240-539: The 13th century it is referred to in official records as Blancmuster (1233) or Blancmostre (1272), meaning "White Minster". Later, Oswestry was attacked by the forces of Welsh rebel leader Owain Glyndŵr during the early years of his rebellion against the English King Henry IV in 1400; it became known as Pentrepoeth or "hot village" as it was burned and nearly totally destroyed by the Welsh. The castle
2310-654: The Cambrian Railway Museum located near the former railway station. Oswestry Guildhall , the meeting place of Oswestry Town Council, was completed in 1893. A story incorporating the names of all of the many pubs once open in Oswestry can be found hanging on a wall inside The Oak Inn on Church Street. There is a tapestry of forty Oswestry pub signs on display in Oswestry Guildhall on the Bailey Head. The Stonehouse Brewery opened in 2007, on
2380-715: The Good of the East Saxons was Oswiu's ally. Oswiu's nephew, Eanfrith's son Talorcan , may have also been established as a leading king among the Picts at this time. Oswiu's total domination lasted only a short time, around three years. The proximate cause was the death of Peada, supposedly poisoned by his wife, Oswiu's daughter Eahlflæd. This probably occurred at Easter 656, and Oswiu proceeded to install governors or subject kings in Mercia. Probably in late 659, but perhaps in 657,
2450-542: The Irish kingdom of Dál Riata in present-day Scotland after their father's death at the hands of Edwin of Northumbria (not by Edwin but possibly by Rædwald and his son Rægenhere at the Battle of the River Idle ) only returning after Edwin's death in 633. Oswiu rose to the kingship when his brother Oswald was killed in battle against Penda of Mercia . The early part of his reign was defined by struggles to assert control over Deira and his contentious relationship with Penda, his overlord. In 655, Oswiu's forces killed Penda in
2520-566: The Newgate Pillar visible today. After the foot and mouth outbreak in the late 1960s the animal market was moved out of the town centre. In the 1990s, a statue of a shepherd and sheep was installed in the market square as a memorial to the history of the market site. Park Hall, a mile east of the town, was taken over by the Army during World War I in 1915 and used as a training camp and military hospital. On 26 December 1918 it burnt to
2590-524: The Walford Campus near Baschurch . Regional TV news is provided by BBC West Midlands and ITV Central . Television signals can be received from either The Wrekin or Sutton Coldfield TV transmitters. Local radio stations are BBC Radio Shropshire on 96.0 FM, Hits Radio Black Country & Shropshire on 103.1 FM and Greatest Hits Radio Black Country & Shropshire on 107.1 FM. The Border Counties Advertizer and Shropshire Star are
2660-482: The Welsh border. He also founded Sporle Priory in Norfolk. He married Ada or Adeline, daughter of Ernulf de Hesdin. Their eldest son William FitzAlan was made High Sheriff of Shropshire by King Stephen in 1137. He married a niece of Robert of Gloucester . Alan's younger son, Walter , travelled to Scotland in the train of King David I , Walter becoming the first hereditary Steward of Scotland and ancestor of
2730-562: The age of four, and cannot have returned to Northumbria until aged twenty-one, spending childhood and adolescence in a Gaelic milieu. Bede writes that Oswiu was fluent in the Old Irish language and Irish in his faith. As well as learning the Irish language and being thoroughly Christianised, Oswiu may have fought for his Gaelic hosts, perhaps receiving his arms—a significant event—from a King of Dál Riata , such as Eochaid Buide , son of that Áedán mac Gabráin whom his father had defeated at
2800-459: The army which he had assembled, and ordered all his men to return to their own homes, from the place that is called Wilfaresdun, that is, Wilfar's Hill, which is almost ten miles distant from the village called Cataract [i.e. Catterick ], towards the north-west. He himself, with only one trusty soldier, whose name was Tonhere, withdrew and lay concealed in the house of Earl [ comes ] Hunwald, whom he imagined to be his most assured friend. But, alas! it
2870-581: The battle, so gaining the epithet Cadomedd (the Battle-Shirker). The decisive battle is located at "Gaius's field". The surprising defeat of the hitherto dominant Penda, and the death of the East Anglian king Æthelhere left Oswiu as the dominant figure in Britain. Œthelwald's ambivalent stance during the campaign which led to the Winwæd appears to have led to his removal as he disappears from
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2940-583: The church layout brought this service to an end. Congregants also used to benefit from a Greek Orthodox priest at Weston Rhyn , who left the area in the 1990s. There is a very small Liberal Jewish community within Oswestry, who are served by the Welshpool Jewish Group, over 15 miles away. Oswestry's Jewish history is little known, but has had Jewish businesses and families since at least the 1850s. Located within Oswestry Cemetery
3010-466: The church, and to found a dozen monasteries if he was granted the victory, and assisted by Ealhfrith he engaged Penda with a small army in the Battle of the Winwæd , which took place in the region of Loidis , which is to say Leeds . He was successful, and Penda was killed, along with many of his allies, including King Æthelhere of the East Angles. Œthelwald had assisted Penda, but stood aside from
3080-867: The country, Oswestry School , which was founded in 1407. (The oldest, Winchester College , was founded in 1382.) Oswestry School's 15th century site, adjacent to St Oswald's Parish Church, is now a café restaurant. It used to house the Tourist Information Centre, now moved to Castle view. There are four state primary schools in Oswestry: The Meadows Primary School, Cabin Lane; Woodside Primary School, Gittin Street; Holy Trinity C.E. Primary Academy & Nursery, Beech Grove and Middleton Road; and Our Lady & St. Oswald's Catholic Primary School, Upper Brook Street. There
3150-659: The daughters Osthryth (died 697) and Ælfflæd (c. 654–714). The Irish princess Fín was the mother of Aldfrith (died 705). Finally, the British princess Rieinmelth of Rheged is named as a wife of Oswiu in the Historia Brittonum . It is thought that Ealhfrith was her son, and Eahlflæd may have been her daughter. The first half of Oswiu's reign was spent in the shadow of Penda, who dominated much of Britain from 642 until 655, seemingly making and breaking kings as it suited him. The future kingdom of Northumbria
3220-441: The dismembered Oswald's arms was carried to an ash tree by a raven. Miracles were subsequently attributed to the tree, and the legend has it that this was "Oswald's Tree", and gave its name to the town. A spring called 'Oswald's Well' is supposed to have originated where the bird dropped the arm from the tree, though one historian has suggested that it was likely to have had sacred associations long before Oswald's time. The water from
3290-438: The fighting. The Historia Brittonum gives a somewhat different account. Here, Oswiu's offer of treasure is accepted, and is associated with the siege of a place named Iudeu . It is assumed that Ecgfrith was given over as a hostage, into the keeping of Penda's queen Cynewise, at this time. The Historia suggests that many of Penda's allies were British kings, and notes that Cadafael ap Cynfeddw joined Œthelwald in avoiding
3360-591: The ground following an electrical fault. The ruined hall and camp remained derelict between the wars, the camp hospital, however, was still in use; the Baschurch Convalescent and Surgical Home moved there in February 1921 and it became known as the Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital . One of the main uses of the land from the 1920s was for motorcycle racing and it became quite
3430-495: The late 650s, imposing tribute on the Welsh kings who had previously been Penda's allies such as Cadafael , the battle-dodging King of Gwynedd . Elsewhere in the south, Oswiu's ally Sigeberht of the East Saxons was murdered and replaced by his brother Swithhelm , who remained a Christian, but distanced himself from Oswiu and the Irish-Northumbrian church. Switthelm was probably subject to the East Angles. In 664 at
3500-626: The parish of Our Lady Help of Christians and St Oswald, in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Shrewsbury . The single Catholic church is Our Lady and St Oswald's Catholic Church. There is an associated primary school. There are two Methodist churches: the Horeb Church on Victoria Road and the Oswestry Methodist Church. Cornerstone Baptist Church is on the corner of Lower Brook Street and Roft Street in
3570-585: The parties by decreeing that Northumbria would follow the Roman style. Oswiu died in 670 and was succeeded by his son, Ecgfrith . His feast is 15 February in the East and in the West. Oswiu was born circa 612, as he was 58 at his death in 670, according to Bede . He was the third child of Æthelfrith , then King of Bernicia; his siblings included older brothers Eanfrith and Oswald and sister Æbbe . Oswiu's mother
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#17328021065713640-607: The previous king (apparently Æthelric ), married Acha, a member of the kingly line, and exiled Acha's brother Edwin . His authority ran from the lands of the Picts and the Dál Riata in modern Scotland to Wales and the Midlands in the south. Æthelfrith's power rested on his military success, and this success came to an end in 616, when the exiled Edwin of Northumbria with the support of King Rædwald , defeated and killed him in
3710-663: The record at this time. Oswiu installed his adult son Ealhfrith as king of Deirans in Œthelwald's place. Penda's son Peada was installed as king of southern Mercia, while Oswiu took the north of the kingdom. Other subject rulers seem to have been established elsewhere in Mercia. Further south, Æthelhere's brother Æthelwold may have been established with Oswiu's assistance, as well as that of his kinsman by marriage King Eorcenberht of Kent . Cenwalh of Wessex , who had been driven out of his lands by Penda for putting aside his marriage to Penda's sister, may also have returned to power in this period, again with Oswiu's assistance. King Sigeberht
3780-469: The same year. St Oswald's Church is Grade II* listed , having a tower dating from late 12th or early 13th century and later additions particularly in the 17th and 19th centuries. There is a new window in the east nave, designed by stained glass artist Jane Gray in 2004. In June 2022, it was announced that, from January 2023, oversight of traditional Catholics within the Anglican Church in
3850-402: The site of the former Weston Wharf railway station at Weston, in nearby Oswestry Rural; Stonehouse Brewery supplies many of the pubs with real ale. Brogyntyn Hall, which belonged to the Lords Harlech , lies just outside the town. Brogyntyn Park is five and a half acres of parkland occupying the southern slope of the Grade II listed Brogyntyn Estate. It was gifted to Oswestry Town Council by
3920-466: The son of his brother who reigned before him. Oswiu's first recorded action as king of Bernicia was to strengthen his position, and perhaps his claims to Deira, by marrying Edwin's daughter Eanflæd , then in exile in the Kingdom of Kent . This marriage took place between 642 and 644. Oswiu is known to have been married three times. Eanflæd, his Queen, bore him two sons and two daughters. The sons were Ecgfrith (644/645–685) and Ælfwine (c. 660–679),
3990-419: The town's local newspapers. Oswestry is at the junction of the A5 with the A483 and A495 . The A5 continues from Shrewsbury to the north, passing the town, before turning west near Chirk and entering Wales. Oswiu Oswiu , also known as Oswy or Oswig ( Old English : Ōswīg ; c. 612 – 15 February 670), was King of Bernicia from 642 and of Northumbria from 654 until his death. He
4060-418: The well was believed to have healing properties, particularly for curing eye trouble. Offa's Dyke runs near the well, to the west. This interpretation is supported by a passage in Fouke le Fitz Waryn (13th century romance ) which states that Oswaldestré was derived from Arbre Oswald (Oswald's tree), which in turn was changed from La Blanche Launde ( Welsh : y tir Gwyn ) which belonged to
4130-465: The west of Province of Canterbury (formerly the Bishop of Ebbsfleet 's area) would be taken by a new Bishop of Oswestry , suffragan to the Bishop of Lichfield. The Bishop of Oswestry serves the western 13 dioceses of the southern province ( Bath and Wells , Birmingham , Bristol , Coventry , Derby , Exeter , Gloucester , Hereford , Lichfield, Oxford , Salisbury , Truro , and Worcester ). The town of Oswestry and surrounding villages fall into
4200-452: The word trēow ('tree'). Thus the name seems once to have meant 'tree of a man called Ōswald'. However, the traditional Welsh name for the town, Croesoswallt (first attested in 1254), means 'Oswald's cross', and 'cross' is a possible meaning of Old English trēow . Thus the town's name may have meant 'Oswald's cross' in both English and Welsh. The Oswald mentioned is widely imagined to have been Oswald of Northumbria , who died at
4270-457: Was baptised at Ad Murum —in the region of Hadrian's Wall —by Aidan's successor Finan . Peada and Ealhflæd took a missionary group, including Cedd and Diuma , to establish a church in their lands. In 655 Bede reports that Penda invaded Bernicia at the head of a large army. Bede states that Oswiu offered "an incalculable quantity of regalia and presents as the price of peace", but that Penda refused. Oswiu vowed to give his daughter Ælfflæd to
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#17328021065714340-418: Was 17,509. The town is five miles (8 km) from the Welsh border and has a mixed English and Welsh heritage. Oswestry is the largest settlement within the Oswestry Uplands , a designated natural area and national character area . The name Oswestry is first attested in 1191, as Oswaldestroe . This Middle English name transparently derives from the Old English personal name Ōswald and
4410-537: Was a Welsh-speaking Congregational church and is now an arts and community centre. A small Muslim community exists in the town. A plan to transform a 19th-century former Presbyterian church on Oswald Road into a permanent base for meetings and prayer services fell through in March 2013 due to cost. New plans were submitted to Shropshire Council for approval in 2019, to convert the former Salvation Army citadel in King Street into an Islamic Prayer Centre. These plans were eventually approved by Shropshire Council. There
4480-524: Was buried at Whitby Abbey , alongside Edwin of Deira . His widow and their daughter Ælflæd were later Abbess of Whitby and were also buried there. Alcuin , writing about a century after Oswiu's death, describes him as "very just, with equitable laws, unconquered in battle but trustworthy in peace, generous in gifts to the wretched, pious, equitable to all". Oswy and his wife Eanflæd were gifted relics of several saints from Pope Vitalian around 665: Saint Peter , Saint Paul , Saint Laurentius , John
4550-474: Was called the battle of Pengwern and in it their leader Cynddylan was also killed. The earliest known human settlement in Oswestry is Old Oswestry , one of the best-preserved Iron Age hill forts in Britain, with evidence of construction and occupation between 800 BC and 43 AD. The site is known in Welsh as Caer Ogyrfan , meaning 'City of Gogyrfan', referring to the father of Guinevere in Arthurian legend. The Battle of Maserfield
4620-464: Was likely Æthelfrith's only recorded wife, Acha , a princess of Deira's royal line who is known to have been Oswald's mother. Regardless, his heritage did nothing to endear him to the Deiran nobility; while they accepted Oswald as king apparently on account of his mother, they resisted Oswiu throughout his reign. At the time of Oswiu's birth, Æthelfrith was at the height of his power. In 604 he had taken control of Deira, evidently by conquest; he killed
4690-494: Was otherwise; for the earl betrayed him, and Oswy, in a detestable manner, by the hands of his commander [ praefectus ], Ethilwin, slew him... In order to expiate the killing of Oswine, who was later reckoned a saint , Oswiu established Gilling Abbey at Gilling , where prayers were said for Oswine and for Oswiu. Oswine was followed as king of the Deirans by Oswald's son Œthelwald. Oswiu's relations with Penda were not entirely peaceful between 642 and 655. Bede appears to place
4760-423: Was reduced to a pile of rocks during the English Civil War . The town is now the home of the Shropshire libraries ' Welsh Collection. In 1190 the town was granted the right to hold a market each Wednesday. The town built walls for protection, but these were torn down in the English Civil War by the Parliamentarians after they took the town from the Royalists after a brief siege on 22 June 1644, leaving only
4830-510: Was ruled by an independent king, Oswine , son of the apostate Osric , who belonged to the rival Deiran royal family. Oswine and Oswiu came into conflict circa 651. Bede blames Oswiu for the troubles and writes: For when they had raised armies against one another, Oswin perceived that he could not maintain a war against one who had more auxiliaries than himself, and he thought it better at that time to lay aside all thoughts of engaging, and to preserve himself for better times. He therefore dismissed
4900-434: Was still composed of two distinct kingdoms in Oswiu's lifetime. The northerly kingdom of Bernicia , which extended from the River Tees to the Firth of Forth , was ruled by Oswiu. The kingdom of Deira , lying between the North York Moors and the Humber , was ruled by a series of Oswiu's kinsmen, initially as a separate kingdom, later as a form of appanage for Oswiu's sons. For the first decade of Oswiu's reign, Deira
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