Farnham
Market town in Surrey, England / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dear Wikiwand AI, let's keep it short by simply answering these key questions:
Can you list the top facts and stats about Farnham?
Summarize this article for a 10 year old
Farnham (/ˈfɑːrnəm/)[2] is a market town and civil parish in Surrey, England, around 36 miles (58 km) southwest of London. It is in the Borough of Waverley, close to the county border with Hampshire. The town is on the north branch of the River Wey, a tributary of the Thames, and is at the western end of the North Downs. The civil parish, which includes the villages of Badshot Lea, Hale and Wrecclesham, covers 14.1 sq mi (37 km2) and had a population of 39,488 in 2011.[3]
Farnham | |
---|---|
Market town | |
Castle Street | |
Coat of arms Motto: 'By Worth' | |
Location within Surrey | |
Area | 36.52 km2 (14.10 sq mi) |
Population | 39,488 (civil parish)[1] |
• Density | 1,081/km2 (2,800/sq mi) |
OS grid reference | SU8447 |
Civil parish |
|
District | |
Shire county | |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | Farnham |
Postcode district | GU9 |
Dialling code | 01252 |
Police | Surrey |
Fire | Surrey |
Ambulance | South East Coast |
UK Parliament | |
51°12′54″N 0°47′56″W |
From at least 803, the settlement was under the control of the Bishops of Winchester and the castle was built as a residence for Bishop Henry de Blois in 1138. Henry VIII is thought to have spent part of his childhood under the care of Bishop Richard Foxe and is known to have lived at Farnham Castle when he was 16.
In the late medieval period, the primary local industry was the production of kersey, a coarse, woollen cloth. In the early modern period, the town's weekly corn market was said to the second largest in England after London. Between 1600 and the 1970s, the area was a centre for growing hops and for the brewing industry. The town began to expand in the early Victorian period, stimulated in part by the opening of the railway in 1849 and the arrival of the army in nearby Aldershot in 1855. Farnham became an Urban District in 1894, but under the Local Government Act 1972, its status was reduced to a civil parish with a town council.