Cambridgeshire

For other uses, see Cambridgeshire (disambiguation).
Cambridgeshire
County
Flag Coat of arms
Motto: "CORDE UNO SAPIENTES SIMUS" ("With one heart let us be wise")

Cambridgeshire shown within England
Coordinates: 52°20′N 0°0′W / 52.333°N -0.000°E / 52.333; -0.000Coordinates: 52°20′N 0°0′W / 52.333°N -0.000°E / 52.333; -0.000
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Country England
Region East
Established 1 April 1974
Established by Local Government Act 1972
Preceded by Cambridgeshire and Isle of Ely
Huntingdon and Peterborough
Origin Ancient
Ceremonial county
Lord Lieutenant Hugh Duberly
High Sheriff Aubrey James Francis Buxton
Area 3,389 km2 (1,309 sq mi)
 – Ranked 15th of 48
Population (mid-2014 est.) 806,700
 – Ranked 28th of 48
Density 238/km2 (620/sq mi)
Ethnicity 94.6% White
2.6% S.Asian
Non-metropolitan county
County council Cambridgeshire County Council
Executive Conservative
Admin HQ Cambridge
Area 3,046 km2 (1,176 sq mi)
 – Ranked 15th of 27
Population 622,200
 – Ranked 18th of 27
Density 204/km2 (530/sq mi)
ISO 3166-2 GB-CAM
ONS code 12
GSS code E10000003
NUTS UKH12
Website www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk
Unitary authorities
Councils Peterborough City Council

Districts of Cambridgeshire
  Unitary   County council area
Districts
  1. City of Cambridge
  2. South Cambridgeshire
  3. Huntingdonshire
  4. Fenland
  5. East Cambridgeshire
  6. City of Peterborough
Members of Parliament List of MPs
Police Cambridgeshire Constabulary
Time zone GMT (UTC)
– Summer (DST) BST (UTC+1)

Cambridgeshire (/ˈkeɪmbrɪdʒʃər/ or /ˈkeɪmbrɪdʒʃɪər/; abbreviated Cambs.) is an East Anglian county in England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the west. The city of Cambridge is the county town. Modern Cambridgeshire was formed in 1974 as an amalgamation of the counties of Cambridgeshire and Isle of Ely and Huntingdon and Peterborough, which had been created in 1965 from the historic counties of Cambridgeshire, Huntingdonshire, the Isle of Ely and the Soke of Peterborough. It contains most of the region known as Silicon Fen.

History

Cambridgeshire is noted as the site of Flag Fen in Fengate, one of the earliest-known Neolithic permanent settlements in the United Kingdom, compared in importance to Balbridie in Aberdeen, Scotland. A great quantity of archaeological finds from the Stone Age, the Bronze Age and the Iron Age were made in East Cambridgeshire. Most items were found in Isleham.

Cambridgeshire was recorded in the Domesday Book as "Grantbridgeshire" (or rather Grentebrigescire) (related to the river Granta).

Covering a large part of East Anglia, Cambridgeshire today is the result of several local government unifications. In 1888 when county councils were introduced, separate councils were set up, following the traditional division of Cambridgeshire, for

In 1965, these two administrative counties were merged to form Cambridgeshire and the Isle of Ely.[1] Under the Local Government Act 1972 this merged with the county to the west, Huntingdon and Peterborough. (The latter had been organised in 1965 by the merger of Huntingdonshire with the Soke of Peterborough – previously a part of Northamptonshire which had its own county council). The resulting county was called simply Cambridgeshire.[2]

Since 1998, the City of Peterborough has been a separately administered area, as a unitary authority. It is associated with Cambridgeshire for ceremonial purposes such as Lieutenancy, and functions such as policing and the fire service.[3]

In 2002, the conservation charity Plantlife unofficially designated Cambridgeshire's county flower as the Pasqueflower.

The Cambridgeshire Regiment (or Fen Tigers), the county-based army unit, fought in the Boer War of South Africa, the First World War and Second World War.

Due to the county's flat terrain and proximity to the continent, during the Second World War the military built many airfields here for RAF Bomber Command, RAF Fighter Command, and the allied USAAF. In recognition of this collaboration, the Cambridge American Cemetery and Memorial is located in Madingley. It is the only WWII burial ground in England for American servicemen who died during that event.

Most English counties have nicknames for their people, such as a "Tyke" from Yorkshire and a "Yellowbelly" from Lincolnshire. The traditional nicknames for people from Cambridgeshire are "Cambridgeshire Camel" or "Cambridgeshire Crane", referring to the wildfowl that were once abundant in the fens. The term "Fenners" was often applied to those who come from the flat country to the north of Cambridge. Since the late 20th century, this term is considered to be derogatory and has been discouraged in use.

Original historical documents relating to Cambridgeshire are held by Cambridgeshire Archives and Local Studies.

Geography

See also Geology of Cambridgeshire

Large areas of the county are extremely low-lying and Holme Fen is notable for being the UK's lowest physical point at 2.75 m (9 ft) below sea level. The highest point is in the village of Great Chishill at 146 m (480 ft) above sea level. Other prominent hills are Little Trees Hill and Wandlebury Hill in the Gog Magog Downs, Rivey Hill above Linton, Rowley's Hill and the Madingley Hills.

Politics

The Flag of Cambridgeshire County Council

Cambridgeshire contains seven Parliamentary constituencies:

Constituency Member of Parliament
Cambridge   Daniel Zeichner
Huntingdon   Jonathan Djanogly
North East Cambridgeshire   Stephen Barclay
North West Cambridgeshire   Shailesh Vara
Peterborough   Stewart Jackson
South Cambridgeshire   Heidi Allen
South East Cambridgeshire   Lucy Frazer

Economy

This is a chart of trend of regional gross value added of Cambridgeshire at current basic prices published (pp. 240–253) by Office for National Statistics with figures in millions of English Pounds Sterling.

Year Regional Gross Value Added[4] Agriculture[5] Industry[6] Services[7]
1995 5,896 228 1,646 4,022
2000 7,996 166 2,029 5,801
2003 10,154 207 2,195 7,752

AWG plc is based in Huntingdon. The RAF has several stations in the Huntingdon and St Ives area. RAF Waterbeach, 6 miles north of Cambridge, is a former RAF airfield, now used as an army barracks. RAF Alconbury, 3 miles north of Huntingdon, is being reorganised after a period of obsolescence following the departure of the USAF, to be the focus of RAF/USAFE intelligence operations, with activities at Upwood and Molesworth being transferred there. Most of Cambridgeshire is agricultural. Close to Cambridge is the so-called Silicon Fen area of high-technology (electronics, computing and biotechnology) companies. ARM Limited is based in Cherry Hinton.

Education

Primary and secondary

Cambridgeshire has a completely comprehensive education system with 12 independent schools and over 240 state schools, not including sixth form colleges.

Some of the secondary schools act as Village Colleges, institutions unique to Cambridgeshire. For example, Bottisham Village College.

Tertiary

Cambridgeshire is home to a number of institutes of higher education:

In addition, Cambridge Regional College and Huntingdonshire Regional College both offer a limited range of higher education courses in conjunction with partner universities.

Settlements

Map of the Cambridgeshire area (1904)

These are the settlements in Cambridgeshire with a town charter, city status or a population over 5,000; for a complete list of settlements see list of places in Cambridgeshire.

The town of Newmarket is surrounded on three sides by Cambridgeshire, being connected by a narrow strip of land to the rest of Suffolk.

Cambridgeshire has seen 32,869 dwellings created from 2002-2013 [8] and there are a further 35,360 planned new dwellings between now and 2023.[9]

Climate

Cambridgeshire has a maritime temperate climate which is broadly similar to the rest of the United Kingdom, though it is drier than the UK average due to its low altitude and easterly location, the prevailing southwesterly winds having already deposited moisture on higher ground further west. Average winter temperatures are cooler than the English average, due to Cambridgeshire's inland location and relative nearness to continental Europe, which results in the moderating maritime influence being less strong. Snowfall is slightly more common than in western areas, due to the relative winter coolness and easterly winds bringing occasional snow from the North Sea. In summer temperatures are average or slightly above, due to less cloud cover. It reaches 25 °C (77 °F) on around 10 days each year, and is comparable to parts of Kent and East Anglia.

Climate data for Cambridge 1971–2000 average
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Average high °C (°F) 7.0
(44.6)		 7.4
(45.3)		 10.2
(50.4)		 12.6
(54.7)		 16.5
(61.7)		 19.4
(66.9)		 22.2
(72)		 22.3
(72.1)		 18.9
(66)		 14.6
(58.3)		 9.9
(49.8)		 7.8
(46)		 14.1
(57.4)
Average low °C (°F) 1.3
(34.3)		 1.1
(34)		 2.9
(37.2)		 4.0
(39.2)		 6.7
(44.1)		 9.8
(49.6)		 12.0
(53.6)		 11.9
(53.4)		 10.1
(50.2)		 7.1
(44.8)		 3.7
(38.7)		 2.3
(36.1)		 6.1
(43)
Average rainfall mm (inches) 45.0
(1.772)		 32.7
(1.287)		 41.5
(1.634)		 43.1
(1.697)		 44.5
(1.752)		 53.8
(2.118)		 38.2
(1.504)		 48.8
(1.921)		 51.0
(2.008)		 53.8
(2.118)		 51.1
(2.012)		 50.0
(1.969)		 553.5
(21.791)
Source: Met Office

Culture

Sports

Various forms of football have been popular in Cambridgeshire since medieval times at least. In 1579 one match played at Chesterton between townspeople and Cambridge University students ended in a violent brawl that led the Vice-Chancellor to issue a decree forbidding them to play "footeball” outside of college grounds.[10] Despite this and other decrees, football continued to be popular. George Elwes Corrie, Master of Jesus College, observed in 1838, that while walking past a park named Parker's Piece he "saw some forty Gownsmen playing at football. The novelty and liveliness of the scene were amusing!"[11] By 1839, Albert Pell was organising football matches at the university; because each town or school had different rules, students had to devise a compromise set of rules.[12]

At Cambridge University in 1846, H. de Winton and J. C. Thring formed a pioneering football club. Only a few matches were played, but in 1848 interest in football increased and that year the Cambridge rules, the first attempt to codify a form of football were drawn up in Cambridge. The Cambridge rules are generally regarded as the main precursor of Association football.

As a result of its role in the formation of the first football rules, Parker's Piece remains hallowed turf for football fans and historians.[13] According to folklore, there are 11 players on each team because, when the game was invented, there were 11 trees on either side of Parker's Piece. In commemoration of the creation of Football; a statue is to be raised in the middle of the park where the game was invented.

Cambridgeshire is also the birthplace of bandy, now an IOC accepted sport.[14] According to documents from 1813 Bury Fen Bandy Club was undefeated for 100 years. A member of the club, Charles Tebbutt, wrote down the first official rules in 1882. Tebbutt was instrumental in spreading the sport to many countries.[15] Bandy Federation of England is based in Cambridgeshire.

On 6–7 June 2015, the inaugural Tour of Cambridgeshire cycle race took place on closed roads across the county. The event was an official UCI qualification event, and consisted of a Time Trial on the 6th, and a Gran Fondo event on the 7th. The Gran Fondo event was open to the public, and over 6000 riders took part in the 128 km (80 mi) race.

Contemporary Art

Cambridge is home to the Kettle's Yard gallery and the artist run Aid and Abet project Space. Nine miles west of Cambridge next to the village of Bourn is Wysing Arts Centre.[16]

Places of interest

Key
Abbey/Priory/Cathedral
Accessible open space
Amusement/Theme Park
Castle
Country Park
English Heritage
Forestry Commission
Heritage railway
Historic House

 Museum (free/not free)
National Trust
Theatre
Zoo

Famous people from Cambridgeshire

As well as those born in the county there are many notable people from, or associated with, Cambridgeshire who moved there, particularly due to the presence of Cambridge University.

The area of today's Cambridgeshire lieutenancy may lay claim to famous men and women from two shires and a soke:

Cambridgeshire HuntingdonshireSoke of Peterborough
Hereward the Wake, who resisted the Normans Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell, Prime Minister John Major, and businessman Henry Royce
Social reformers
Octavia Hill and Thomas Clarkson, and economist John Maynard Keynes.
Scientists include:
Stephen Hawking, and Nobel laureate Harold Kroto, and Brian J. Ford
Literary figures who hail from these shires include:
Jeffrey Archer, Douglas Adams, and Olaudah Equiano, Samuel Pepys, Lucy M. Boston, and John Clare
In entertainment,
cartoonist Ronald Searle, comedian Rory McGrath,
Richard Attenborough, Jeremy Irvine and Warwick Davis are all associated with film, television presenter Sarah Cawood, and radio sports presenter Adrian Durham
while musicians include
Andrew Eldritch, lead singer of The Sisters of Mercy, David Gilmour, Roger Waters, Bob Klose and Roger Keith "Syd" Barrett of Pink Floyd; Don Airey, keyboardist in the rock band Deep Purple, and Matt Bellamy Paul Nicholas, Andy Bell, lead singer for Erasure; trombonist Don Lusher; Keith Palmer, of dance music band The Prodigy; singer Aston Merrygold of JLS; and the members of Britain's Got Talent Popera band The Arrangement
In athletics are,
Sir Jack Hobbs, Marty Scurll, Joe Bugner and Louis Smith
Richard Garriott, the video game entrepreneur leads a 'Silicon Fen' contingent from Cambridgeshire

See also

References

  1. ↑ The Cambridgeshire and Isle of Ely Order 1964 (SI 1964/366), see Local Government Commission for England (1958 - 1967), Report and Proposals for the East Midlands General Review Area (Report No.3), 31 July 1961 and Report and Proposals for the Lincolnshire and East Anglia General Review Area (Report No.9), 7 May 1965
  2. ↑ The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Definition) Order 1972 (SI 1972/2039) Part 5: County of Cambridgeshire
  3. ↑ The Cambridgeshire (City of Peterborough) (Structural, Boundary and Electoral Changes) Order 1996 (SI 1996/1878), see Local Government Commission for England (1992), Final Recommendations for the Future Local Government of Cambridgeshire, October 1994 and Final Recommendations on the Future Local Government of Basildon & Thurrock, Blackburn & Blackpool, Broxtowe, Gedling & Rushcliffe, Dartford & Gravesham, Gillingham & Rochester upon Medway, Exeter, Gloucester, Halton & Warrington, Huntingdonshire & Peterborough, Northampton, Norwich, Spelthorne and the Wrekin, December 1995
  4. ↑ Components may not sum to totals due to rounding
  5. ↑ includes hunting and forestry
  6. ↑ includes energy and construction
  7. ↑ includes financial intermediation services indirectly measured
  8. ↑ Housing Development in Cambridgeshire 2013
  9. ↑ Dwelling Commitments in Cambridgeshire
  10. ↑ History, Cambridgeshire County FA.
  11. ↑ http://www.cuafc.org/history.php
  12. ↑ Harvey 2005, p. 48
  13. ↑ Cambridge... the birthplace of football?!, BBC, Cambridgeshire, UK, 2006.
  14. ↑ "Federation of International Bandy-Olympic". Internationalbandy.com. 12 August 2004. Retrieved 25 September 2010.
  15. ↑ "Cambridgeshire - History - A handy Bandy guide". BBC. 21 February 2006. Retrieved 25 September 2010.
  16. ↑ "cultunet". cultunet.com. 3 December 2012. Retrieved 3 February 2013.

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