GUILDFORD

:''There is also Guildford (borough) which is the administrative district.
'Guildford' is the county town of Surrey,^[1] England, as well as the seat for the borough of Guildford and the administrative headquarters of the South East England region. Surrey County Council, however, has its administrative base in Kingston upon Thames^[2] which, although formerly in Surrey, is now in Greater London.
The town is twinned with Freiburg in southern Germany,^[3] and linked with Mukono in central Uganda.^[4]
It is situated some 50 km (31 miles) southwest of London on the A3 national route linking the capital to Portsmouth.

Contents

History

Town

Sport

Education

Politics

Business

Transport

Rail

Road

Bus and coach

Notable residents (past and present)

Emergency Services

Guildford and the media

References

External links

History

It is believed that Guildford was founded by Saxon settlers shortly after Roman authority had been removed from Britain (which was c.410AD). The site was likely chosen because the Harrow Way (an ancient trackway that continues along Hog's Back) crosses the River Wey at this point, via a ford. This probably gives rise to the second half of Guildford's name. The root of the first part is gold rather than society or meeting place. It has been suggested that the gold may refer to golden flowers by the ford, or the golden sand, but this is not certain.
It has long been speculated that Guildford may have been the Astolat of Arthurian renown,Guildford- A Residential Centre. The official Guide of the Corporation of Guildford. 11th Ed. 1946 however the legendary city is more likely to have been Calleva (modern day Silchester), the capital of the Atrebates, which resisted the Anglo-Saxons for many years. Guildford's model railway club, the Astolat Model Railway Circle,^[5] and a local pub, the Astolat,^[6] are just a couple of the modern day reminders of the legend to be found in the town.
From 978 Guildford was the location of the Royal Mint.
Alfred Atheling, son of King Ethelred II, had been living in Normandy in France during the Danish invasion of Saxon England. After Canute died, around 1040, Alfred returned to England, where he was met and entertained in Guildford by the Earl Godwine. Godwine handed him to Harold Harefoot's men, who blinded and mutilated him to the extent that he died not long after.
Guildford castle may date back to Saxon times, if not much earlier. Its situation overlooks the pass through the hills taken by the Pilgrims Way, and also, presumably, once overlooked the ancient ford across the Wey, thus giving a key point of military control of this important East-West route way across the country; just as Windsor castle and the Tower of London once guarded the Thames.
Guildford appears in Domesday Book of 1086 as ''Geldeford'' and ''Gildeford''. It was held by William the Conqueror. Its domesday assets were: a town; the king held 75 hagæ (houses enclosed in fences'). It rendered £32. Stoke, a suburb within todays Guildford, appears in Domesday Book of 1086 as ''Stoch''. It was held by William the Conqueror. Its domesday assets were: 1 church, 2 mills worth 5s, 22 ploughs, 16 acres of meadow, woodland worth 40 hogs. It was in the King's park. It rendered £15.^[7]
William the Conqueror himself used the The Pilgrims Way when he sacked the countryside, including Guildford, after his victory at the Battle of Hastings. He then had the castle built, or maybe rebuilt, in the classic Norman style, the keep of which still stands. There can be no doubt that another major purpose of Norman castle building was to overawe the conquered population and at Guildford this also was the case. As the threat of invasion and insurrection declined the castle's status was demoted to that of a Royal hunting lodge as Guildford was, at that time, at the edge of Windsor Great Park. It was visited on several occasions by King John and King Henry III. The surviving parts of the castle were restored in Victorian times and then in 2004; the rest of the grounds are a pleasant public garden.^[8][9]
In 1995, a chamber was discovered in the High Street, which is considered to be the remains of a 12th century synagogue. While this remains a matter of contention, it is likely to be the oldest remaining synagogue in Western Europe.
Guildford elected two members to the Unreformed House of Commons. From the 14th century to the 18th century, it prospered with the wool trade.
In 1598, a court case referred to a sport called ''kreckett'' being played at the Royal Grammar School, Guildford around 1550. The Oxford English Dictionary gives this as the first recorded instance of cricket in the English language.
In 1619 George Abbot founded the Hospital of the Holy Trinity, now commonly known as Abbot's Hospital,A Guide to the Hospital of the Blessed Trinity Guildford. J.W.Penycate 1976 one of the finest sets of almshouses in the country. It is sited at the top end of the High Street, opposite Holy Trinity church. The brick-built, three-storey entrance tower faces the church; a grand stone archway leads into the courtyard. On each corner of the tower there is an octagonal turret rising an extra floor, with lead ogee domes.
One of the greatest boosts to Guildford’s prosperity came in 1653 with the completion, after many wrangles, of the Wey Navigation. This made it possible for Guildford businesses to access the Thames at Walton by boat and predated the major canal building program in Britain by more than a century. In 1764 the navigation was extended as far as Godalming and eventually to the sea at Arundel via the Arun Navigation. The Basingstoke canal also was built to connect with the Wey navigation, putting Guildford in the centre of a network of waterways. Although the Wey was never made navigable as far as Farnham, that town also benefited greatly from the existing navigation, being able to transport produce to and from Guildford via the Pilgrims' Way.
In the years from 1820 to 1865 Guildford was the scene of severe outbursts of semi-organised lawlessness commonly known as the “Guy Riots” The Guys would mass on the edge of the town from daybreak on November the fifth, wearing masks or bizarre disguises and armed with clubs and lighted torches. With the onset of nightfall, or maybe before, they would enter the town and avenge themselves on those who had crossed them in the preceding year by committing assaults and damaging property; often looting the belongings of victims from their houses and burning them on bonfires in the middle of the street.
In later years attempts to suppress the Guys led to the deaths of two police officers. In 1866 and 68 the Guys were dispersed by cavalry and this seems to have brought an end to the riots. Similar disorder surrounding the St Catherine’s Hill Fair, held just outside the town on the Pilgrims Way, was suppressed around the same time.
^[10]
[11]
The diocese of Guildford was created in 1927, and Guildford Cathedral was consecrated in 1961. Previously, Guildford had been part of the diocese of Winchester.
On October 5, 1974, bombs planted by the Provisional Irish Republican Army went off in two Guildford pubs, killing four off-duty soldiers and a civilian. The pubs were targeted because soldiers from barracks near Guildford were known to frequent them.^[12] The subsequently arrested suspects, who became known as the Guildford Four, were convicted and sentenced to long prison sentences in October 1975. They claimed to have been tortured by the police and denied involvement in the bombing. In 1989, after a long legal battle, their convictions were overturned and they were released.^[13]
A farm near the village of Flexford is the centre of a current foot and mouth disease crisis amongst livestock. A major operation is underway to prevent the spread of the highly contagious disease. [1]

Town

Archbishop George Abbot

In the 21st Century Guildford is a bustling English town, with an attractive High Street made of granite setts (frequently referred to as cobbled), numerous shops and department stores. There is a Tourist Information Office^[14] and several hotels including the historic Angel Hotel which long served as a coaching stop on the main London to Portsmouth stagecoach route.^[15] According to Channel Four Television's "The Best and Worst Places to Live in the UK" TV show Guildford is the 9th best place to live in Britain.^[16] Guildford is the most attractive and safe shopping destination in the UK, according to the Eve Prime Retail Survey 2004^[17] and ranked 27th in the country overall^[18].
There is a small museum in the town centre and the University of Surrey is situated to the north-west of the town centre, about ten minutes' walk from Guildford main line train station. Guildford Cathedral is adjacent to the university's main campus and the Royal Surrey County Hospital is nearby.
Guildford has the most visited Art Gallery in Surrey - Guildford House Gallery with over 120,000 visitors per annum. The Gallery is situated in the High Street, in a 17th Century Grade I Listed Town House and is run by Guildford Borough. It is open Tuesdays to Saturdays and admission is free. Its own art collection includes works of Guildford and the surrounding area, and work by Guildford Artists, most notably John Russell R.A.
The town's principal commercial theatre is the ''Yvonne Arnaud Theatre'' which often shows productions before (and after) they have spent time in London's West End. ''The Electric Theatre'' [2] opened in 1997 to host performances by musicians and amateur drama groups. Guildford also has an Odeon cinema multiplex, which is as of June 2007 the only cinema in the world showing digital 4K films to the public ^[19].
A wide variety of cuisines are available in the many restaurants in Guildford. Additionally, there are numerous pubs and bars and several nightclubs.
Stoke Park is the venue for both the Guilfest music festival during the summer and the Surrey County Show (agricultural and general) on the last bank holiday Monday in May. Previous to 2007, the Ambient Picnic was held in Shalford Park, by the River Wey.^[20][21]
It is also home to several local radio stations including 96.4 The Eagle, County Sound Radio 1566 AM, GU2 Radio, and BBC Southern Counties Radio.
It is a market town with the market being held on Fridays and Saturdays. A farmers' market is usually held on the first Tuesday of each month.

Sport

Guildford's Spectrum Leisure Centre is a national prizewinning^[22][23] sports centre that includes a variety of pools (for leisure and for serious swimming),^[24] Ten-pin bowling,^[25] a small inflatable Laser tag arena called Ice Station Zero^[26] (there is a full sized Laser Quest in the town centre^[27]), an ice rink (discos every weekend)^[28] and an athletics track, as well as general halls used for indoor sports including gymnastics and trampolining. The Spectrum, in Stoke Park, is home to several local sports teams, including the Guildford Flames^[29] of the English Premier Ice Hockey League.
Guildford is also home to Guildford United of the Combined Counties Football League, Guildford International of the National Volleyball League and the Guildford Heat of the British Basketball League who are the current League champions and holders of the BBL Cup.
Guildford Cricket Club play their home matches at the Woodbridge Road ground. Surrey County Cricket Club also play one or two matches a season there.
The town is home to two-time BCAFL Southern Conference, Southern Division Champions, and the Surrey Stingers American Football team.
Charlotteville Cycling Club is based in Guildford and named after one of the areas of the town. They promote the Guildford Town Centre Cycle Races that take place on the cobbled high street each July. There is also a martial arts and fitness centre, AJIMA located on Cabell Road in Park Barn.

Education

The Royal Grammar School, Guildford's 'old school' building which was constructed over the turn of the Tudor and Elizabethan periods and houses a chained library, lies towards the top of the High Street. The feeder school for the Royal Grammar School is Lanesborough preparatory school which is the choir school for Guildford Cathedral. The Academy of Contemporary Music, a school for rock and pop musicians, is in Guildford.
Other educational establishments in Guildford include Guildford College of Further and Higher Education, Guildford County School, George Abbot, Christ's College, Guildford High School, King's College, University of Surrey, Guildford School of Acting, St Peter's, Northmead Junior, Rydes Hill Preparatory School, Tormead School, Worplesdon Primary School, St Thomas of Canterbury Catholic Primary School and The College of Law.

Politics

In 2002 Guildford's latest application to be granted the status of a city was unsuccessful, losing out to Preston, the only English town being formally recognised as a city as part of the Queen's Golden Jubilee celebrations. This was all the more surprising given that Guildford is a cathedral town, harbours a well-regarded university, has a rich social history and is a significant economic hub in Surrey, a county which has no city.
Politically, the constituency of Guildford is thought of as a traditional conservative seat. However, for the first time in over ninety years, the 2001 general election returned a Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament, Sue Doughty. The 2003 Borough Elections returned a majority council for the Conservative party, replacing the Liberal Democrat-controlled council. In the 2005 general election Guildford returned a Conservative Party MP, Anne Milton – by a narrow margin (0.7% of the voting electorate, or 347 votes) and despite a 0.5% rise in the Liberal Democrat vote. The Conservatives also held the council majority in the local elections of 2007^[30].

Business

Guildford is a thriving commercial town with the 2006 Financial Times annual list of Top 500 Global Companies listing four major businesses with a significant presence in the town Financial Times top 500 Global Companies . Other notable companies include the games company Lionhead Studios, run by Guildford-born Peter Molyneux, and Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd. The bus and fire engine manufacturer Alexander-Dennis is also located in the town as well as military vehicle builders Automotive Technik.

Transport

Rail

There are two railway stations in Guildford:

★ The main station, entitled Guildford, is located near the original town bridge on the west side of the River Wey and serves the main line between London Waterloo and Portsmouth. There are also lines to Reading, Epsom, Gatwick airport, London Bridge and long distance services, operated by Virgin Trains, connect Guildford with Birmingham and Manchester.

★ London Road station is on the other side of the town centre to the main station. It serves stopping services running between the main station and Waterloo and London Bridge stations.

Road

The A3 links Guildford to Portsmouth, London and the M25. As well as town centre parking there are a number of 'Park and Ride' services.

Bus and coach

Bus services in Guildford are primarily operated by Arriva with some additional services provided by Safeguard and Stagecoach. Most routes are centred on the bus station which is attached to the Friary shopping centre. Many internal bus services within Guildford are loop shaped (starting and ending at the bus station) with different numbers for the clockwise and anticlockwise services. There are also services to many surrounding towns and villages including Woking and Aldershot. Due to the location of the main railway station on the other side of the river from the bus station, only a small proportion of bus services stop at the railway station leading to poor integration between bus and rail services.
National Express operate coach services between London Victoria Coach Station and Portsmouth Southsea via Guildford.^[31]

Notable residents (past and present)

:''See also: ''
Lewis Carroll (1832-1898), author of
''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' and ''Through the Looking-Glass'',
had a house in Guildford and is buried in the Mount Cemetery.^[32] Other authors from the town include: P. G. Wodehouse, who was born in Guildford in 1881;^[33] Gerald Seymour, who wrote ''Harry's Game'';^[34] and Albert Jack who was born in Guildford and remains a resident.^[35][36]
The gay socialist poet and activist, Edward Carpenter, moved to the town after the First World War and lived there until his death in 1929. He is buried in Mount Cemetery.
The rock group The Stranglers were based in the town in the early 1970s and were briefly known as "The Guildford Stranglers". Drummer Jet Black ran an off-licence^[37] called The Jackpot, which was demolished to make way for the Friary shopping centre. The bass player Jean Jacques Burnel attended the Royal Grammar School.
Drum and bass producers Cause 4 Concern are from Guildford. Rolldabeats listing
Several actors and actresses live in the area, including: Edward Kelsey, who plays Joe Grundy in The Archers; Stuart Wilson^[38], Fiz Marcus and Paul Grunert. Daily Record Yvonne Arnaud, singer and actress, lived in the town for many years before she died.^[39] Terry Jones, the Monty Python writer, went to the Royal Grammar School from 1953-61.^[40]
From the world of sport and entertainment, Guildford has been home to Katherine Legge, female ChampCar driver,^[41] and Paul Burchill, WWE professional wrestler.^[42] Holly Samos – radio researcher and presenter, and former member of Chris Evans'
Zoo Squad – was born in the town, and Bonnie Langford – star of Dancing on Ice – has lived in and around Guildford for some years.
Mathematician, logician and cryptograper, Alan Turing had his family home in Guildford.^[43]
Other notable residents include: Michael Buerk, BBC newsreader;^[44] Roger Fry, the English artist, critic and member of the Bloomsbury Group who lived in the house (Durbins) he designed and built in the town from 1909 to 1919; ^[45]; Sir John Rose, former Canadian Minister of Finance; and Alex Fryer, writer and illustrator of Disco Junkies, who currently lives in the town.
The fictional Ford Prefect, from ''The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy'' by Douglas Adams, claimed to be from Guildford, though in fact he was born near Betelgeuse.^[46]
Also the birthplace of Mike Rutherford, the bassist and founding member of the prog rock band Genesis. Another prog rock legend born here was Andrew Latimer of the band Camel.

Emergency Services

Guildford is served by these Emergency Sevices:

★ 'Surrey Police'

★ 'South East Coast Ambulance Service' as of 1 July 2006. (Formed by a merger of the 'Surrey Ambulance Service', Sussex, and Kent ambulance services.)

★ 'Surrey Fire & Rescue Service'

Guildford and the media

Guildford was mentioned by Edward Hitler in the 1990s episode "Parade" of the BBC comedy show, Bottom.
Singer/songwriter Robyn Hitchcock has sung about the town with a song in his 1999 album entitled "No, I Don't Remember Guildford".^[47].
In January 2003, Girls Aloud singer Cheryl Tweedy was arrested for the assault and racial abuse of a toilet attendant in Guildford at The Drink (now Harpers) nightclub.^[48] Four years later in April 2007, Sugababes singer Amelle Berrabah was arrested following a dance floor brawl in Bar Med.^[49][50]

References

1. Guildford Borough Council Website--"Henry III confirmed Guildford's status as the county town of Surrey in 1257"
2. Surrey County Council Website: County Hall
3. Guildford Borough Council Meeting Minutes 7 Oct 2004 "As part of the 25th anniversary of the twinning with Freiburg, the Mayor had recently hosted a very successful visit by a delegation from Freiburg."
4. Guildford-Mukono Link Website
5. Astolat Model Railway Club Website
6. beerintheevening.com Website: Astolat, Guildford, Surrey
7. Surrey Domesday Book
8. Guildford Borough Council Website: Castle and Grounds
9. www.castleexplorer.co.uk
10. The Guildford Guy Riots, Gavin Morgan, , , Northside Books, ,
11. icons.org.uk
12. CAIN: Chronology of the conflict October 1974
13. BBC News: 19 October 1989
14. Guildford Borough Council Website-Tourist Information Centre
15. A History of The Angel Posting House
16. Channel 4 "The Best and the Worst Places to Live In Britain"
17. PRNewswire: Top of the Shops - Gerald Eve Publishes Prime Retail
18. Gerald Eve Prime Retail Flyer
19. Der Spiegel (German): Der 8 Megapixel-Filmpalast
20. COG Press Release 6 Feb 2007 "Ambient Picnic moves to Epsom"
21. Ambient Picnic Official Website
22. Derby City Council Bulletin 4 July 2005 "highest score of 87% which was given to Guildford Spectrum"
23. National Pool Safety Awards
24. Guildford Spectrum Website- Swimming
25. Guildford Spectrum Website- Tenpin Bowling
26. Guildford Spectrum Website- Childrens Parties
27. Guildford Borough Council Website- Tourism- Laser Quest
28. Guildford Spectrum Website- Ice Skating
29. Guildford Flames Official Website
30. BBC News- Election 2007- Local Council Elections- Guildford Council
31. National Express Website
32. Guildford Borough Council Website- Lewis Carroll
33. Today in Literature-P.G.Wodehouse
34. Gerald Seymour at Transworld
35. Harper Collins Author Profile:Albert Jack
36. oulitnet.co.za Interview with Albert Jack
37. Stranglers website: History
38. Internet Movie Database- Stuart Wilson
39. CollectorsPost Website: Yvonne Arnaud Biography
40. Royal Grammar School website- Terry Jones
41. Motoring.co.za: Woman driver set to test for Minardi
42.
43. Famous Mathematicians of Guildford
44. BBC Correspondents
45. Frances Spalding, Roger Fry, art and life (1980) ISBN 0-520-04126-7
46. The Hitch Hikers Guide to the Galaxy, , Douglas, Adams, , 1979,
47. Song Title-"No, I Don't Remember Guildford" on his 1999 album "Jewels for Sophia" nndb entry
48. BBC News: "Singer Tweedy guilty of assault"
49. BBC News: "Sugababe arrested over 'assault'"
50. Daily Mail. "Sugababe singer arrested after nightclub brawl"

External links

★ Guildford Borough Council

★ Guildford tourist guide from Wikitravel

★ Information and archive images of Guildford's Lost Theatres