Cleobury Mortimer
| Cleobury Mortimer | |
|---|---|
 High Street and the Talbot Hotel |
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 Cleobury Mortimer
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| Cleobury Mortimer shown within Shropshire | |
| Population | 3,036 (2011) |
| OS grid reference | SO675758 |
| Civil parish |
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| Unitary authority | |
| Ceremonial county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | KIDDERMINSTER |
| Postcode district | DY14 8 |
| Dialling code | 01299 |
| Police | West Mercia |
| Fire | Shropshire |
| Ambulance | West Midlands |
| EU Parliament | West Midlands |
| UK Parliament | |
Cleobury Mortimer is a market town and civil parish in Shropshire, England, which had a population of 3,036 at the 2011 census. One of the smallest towns in Shropshire, it was granted its market charter in 1253.
The town is usually referred to simply as Cleobury. Several pronunciations of the town's name are in use. In Cleobury itself "Clib-bree" is commonly used, while in surrounding areas variations such as "Cleb-bree" and "Clee-bree" are used.
The name is believed to derive from the contraction of the Old English clifu meaning a steep place and bury meaning fortified settlement. Mortimer comes from Ranulph de Mortimer of Normandy to whom the land was granted after the Norman conquest. He founded the Mortimer dynasty of Marcher Lords who held power in the Welsh Marches throughout the Middle Ages and were closely involved with power struggles with successive English monarchs and other powerful Lords. Cleobury has a significant entry in the Domesday Book, and the vicinity was the location of at least two castles. Cleobury Castle, which was situated near St Mary's Church, was destroyed in 1155 and only earthworks remain today. Toot Castle was situated on the other side of the River Rea from the town.
The central section of the town was laid out in burgage plots, the lines of which are still evident. With the decline of the Marcher Lords, and peace along the Welsh border, Cleobury's importance declined during the Middle Ages, leaving it as an undistinguished market town, albeit with a dependent hinterland. In the 16th century, exploitation of local iron ores became important, and when Elizabeth I granted the town to Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, his familiarity with modern ironworking technology led to the establishment of an important iron industry, with at least two furnaces (in which iron ore was converted to pig iron) and two water-powered forges (in which pig iron was converted to wrought iron). For a while, Cleobury's iron industry was an important part of the general industrialisation in Shropshire (sometimes claimed as the seat of the Industrial Revolution), and iron from Cleobury's forges was valued as a high-quality material. However, poor transport connections led to the decline of Cleobury's iron industry in the early 19th century, and soon the town reverted to being an agricultural hub, although a large water-powered paper mill survived on the River Rea until a catastrophic fire towards the end of the century. By 1900, the town was an important civic centre, with a railway station, union workhouse, magistrates' court, police station, Agricultural College, Infants' School and Primary School. Since the start of the twentieth century, Cleobury lost many of these facilities, although its population has grown. It thus exemplifies a common pattern for rural settlements, where centralisation and the rise of road transport have seen a decline in the local provision of services, despite a rising population.
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Wikipedia