Northampton

Northampton developed beside the River Nene in the English Midlands. Its castle served as an occasional royal residence and meeting place for Parliament, and Richard I granted the town a charter in 1189. During the Wars of the Roses, a battle near the town in 1460 ended in a Yorkist victory and the capture of Henry VI.

Northampton supported Parliament during the Civil War and became a garrison. After the monarchy was restored, Charles II ordered the walls and part of the castle demolished in 1662. A great fire destroyed much of the centre in 1675; rebuilding widened streets and used more brick and stone. By the late eighteenth century Northampton was a major centre of footwear and leather manufacture.