Berkshire
Royal county in South East England with historic and economic significance.
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The county's name derives from a wood of box trees called Bearroc, a Celtic word meaning "hilly".[1] The ceremonial county in South East England known as Berkshire is also referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire.[2] Because Windsor Castle is located there, the county was granted the "Royal County" designation in 1957.[3]
Geography and history
The Berkshire Geoconservation Group notes that Berkshire lies west of London, with scenery varying from chalk downlands to lower lying Palaeogene strata.[4] Windsor Castle was built after the Norman Conquest.[5] The Thames river system collects all water runoff from the entire county.[6] During the Anglo-Saxon era, the kingdoms of Mercia and Wessex both laid claim to this area.[5]
A number of military engagements have occurred in the county, including conflicts from the First English Civil War.[5] Abingdon was replaced as the county town by Reading in 1867.[7] The Local Government Act 1972 caused Berkshire's borders to be altered, effective 1 April 1974.[3]
What the cited sources add
The same source explains that this is because the area lies on an uplifted belt known as the Berkshire-Chiltern shelf.[4]
References
- Wikipedia, "Berkshire" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Cook, "Asser's Life of King Alfred, translated from the text of Stevenson's edition", Ginn and Company, 1905, p. 1; "Berkshire", Online Etymology Dictionary; Stenton, "The Place-Names of Berkshire: An Essay", Reading University College, 1911, p. 3 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Berkshire" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Berkshire definition and meaning", Collins English Dictionary (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Berkshire" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Berkshire County History." Berkshire History Society, 2020. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- "BGG - Berkshire Geology", berksgeoconservation.org.uk. facts only, no text reused. berksgeoconservation.org.uk
- Wikipedia, "Berkshire" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Berkshire England, Map, History, & Facts", Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2023-06-15; Chisholm 1911, p. 783–784 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Berkshire" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Berkshire - The Building Stones of England", Historic England, November 2017; "BGG - Berkshire Geology", berksgeoconservation.org.uk (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Berkshire" (CC BY-SA 4.0) en.wikipedia.org
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Berkshire (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
Also in the Codexery
More in Regions Of England
Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Berkshire (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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