Gloucester, (ancient Glevum), city, administrative centre of Gloucestershire, western England, on the River Severn. Gloucester is an inland port, connected by a deepwater canal, completed in 1827, to docks on the Severn estuary. Harbour traffic consists chiefly of petroleum imports. Manufactured goods include aircraft parts, agricultural machinery, rail equipment, and food products. Gloucester Cathedral is essentially an 11th-century Norman structure with Gothic additions. Edward II, who was murdered nearby, is buried in the cathedral. Also here are a historical museum, an art gallery, and a college of art. Gloucester was founded by the Romans about AD 97. Development was spurred after 681 when the Abbey of St Peter was built here. The town became the capital of Mercia, and by the early 11th century it had a royal palace and a mint. It was made the seat of an episcopal see in 1541. Population (1991 preliminary) 91,800.
Gloucester Cathedral, the former abbey church of St Peter in Gloucester,
southwest England, elevated to the rank of cathedral by Henry VIII in 1541.
Founded c. 681 and Benedictine from 1022, Gloucester Abbey was one of the
richest in the West Country. It acquired particular fame when the murdered
Edward II was buried there, under a magnificently carved tomb, in 1327.
The
present cathedral was begun in 1089. The surviving Norman nave, with its massive
cylindrical arcades, dates from 1120 to 1160. A comprehensive remodelling, which
transformed the east end and the transepts, began in the 1330s, when the abbey
was enjoying generous patronage from Edward III. The new work was a pioneering
example of the Perpendicular style of Gothic architecture. The Lady Chapel and
central tower date from the second half of the 15th century. The east window,
dating from the 1350s, commemorates those who fought at the Battle of Crécy.
The chief surviving relic of the monastic buildings is the fan-vaulted cloister,
completed in 1412.
Utrecht, city, capital of Utrecht Province in the central Netherlands, located where the Kromme Rijn divides to form the Oude Rijn and Vecht rivers (branches of the Lower Rhine). It is a commercial, manufacturing, financial, and transport centre. Major products include machinery, processed food, metal items, chemicals, clothing, furniture, and printed materials. Tourism and construction are also important to the city's economy. Utrecht is the site of the State University of Utrecht (1636), the Utrecht Conservatory (1947), and the State Archives of Utrecht (1843). Points of interest include the Central Museum, which contains a collection of works by Utrecht artists from the 15th to the 20th century, as well as displays of pre-Roman, Roman, and early medieval items; the Netherlands Railway Museum; and a Protestant cathedral (13th-16th century; severely damaged by a hurricane in 1674).
It was settled as a Roman fort (castellum) after emperor Claudius had
decided in 47 after Christ that the Rhine had to be the northern border of the
Roman Empire. It was already destroyed by the Batavians in AD 70. The Roman name
was Traiectum.
The community became an episcopal see in 696 and was
ruled by the bishops of Utrecht until 1527, when it passed to the Habsburgs. In
1579 it was the scene of the signing of the Union of Utrecht, an alliance of
Dutch provinces against Spain, and in 1713-1715 the Peace of Utrecht brought the
War of the Spanish Succession to a close. Adrian VI, the only Dutch pope, was
born here in 1459. Population (1993 estimate) 234,170.
Union of Utrecht (1579), agreement which united the rebellious provinces in
the Dutch Wars of Independence. On January 23, 1579, the Union of Utrecht, an
agreement to defend traditional provincial rights against Philip II of Spain,
was signed by representatives of the States assemblies of Holland, Zeeland,
Utrecht, and Groningen (excluding the city of that name) in the chapter-house of
Utrecht Cathedral and proclaimed at the Stadhuis (city hall). It was later
signed by representatives of Friesland, Overijssel, Drenthe, and Gelderland, and
by William I of Orange, leader of the rebel forces. Since these northern
provinces, dominated by Calvinists, did not intend to separate from those
southern provinces, still mainly Catholic, which had left the States General
assembly and signed the Union of Arras, they included a guarantee of religious
toleration in the agreement. However, in practice the two Unions became the
founding documents of the countries now known as the Netherlands and Belgium.
The Union of Utrecht served as the constitution of the Dutch Republic of the
United Provinces up to the foundation of the Batavian Republic in 1795. Its
provisions for a Captain-General, a Council of State, and a States General
assembly, each granted limited powers by the sovereign provinces, influenced the
Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union (1774) which preceded the
Constitution of the United States (1787).
Peace of Utrecht, collective name for several treaties concluded at Utrecht
in the Netherlands between 1713 and 1715 which ended the War of the Spanish
Succession (1701-1714) and established a balance of power in Europe. The
settlement consisted of the Treaty of Utrecht (1713) and the treaties of Rastatt
and Baden (1714).
The Peace of Utrecht settled the War of the Spanish
Succession by recognizing Philip, Duke of Anjou, grandson of Louis XIV of
France, as Philip V, king of Spain, under the condition that the Spanish and
French kingdoms would not be united. France made peace with Britain, the Dutch
Republic, Prussia, Savoy, and Portugal, all of which had fought in the war to
prevent the French empire from gaining Spain. (The conflict between France and
Britain had spread to their North American colonies in 1702, resulting in the
conflict known as Queen Anne's War.) Louis XIV also recognized George I as king
of Great Britain and ceded the North American territories of Nova Scotia,
Newfoundland, and Hudson Bay to the British. He also agreed to the transfer of
the Spanish Netherlands to Austria. On July 13, 1713, Spain concluded a treaty
ceding Gibraltar to Great Britain and giving the British sole rights to the
slave trade in the Spanish colonies in the Americas. In the following month,
Spain ceded Sicily to Savoy. France signed a separate peace agreement with
Austria at Rastatt, Germany, on March 7, 1714. Spain made peace with the Dutch
on June 26, 1714, and with Portugal in February 1715. The Peace of Utrecht ended
the period of French hegemony in Europe, increased British prestige, and
temporarily relaxed strained Anglo-French relations.
More about the history of Utrecht Chess Club
Back to Town Match