St John's | |
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View of St John in Bedwardine Church of England |
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St John's shown within Worcestershire | |
Population | 8,033 (2001 Census) |
OS grid reference | SO84053 |
District | |
Shire county | |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | WORCESTER |
Postcode district | WR2 |
Dialling code | 01905 |
Police | West Mercia |
Fire | Hereford and Worcester |
Ambulance | West Midlands |
EU Parliament | West Midlands |
UK Parliament | |
St John's is a large suburb of Worcester, England, west of the city centre and the River Severn. It became part of the City of Worcester in 1837. The area is locally referred to as the "Village in the City" which is partly due to the area being an independent township before joining the city. Although there is still a strong sense of regional pride and identity within the community it seems that there is no plan to regain independent status.
St John's is a suburb of the City of Worcester, the largest settlement and administrative seat in Worcestershire. It constitutes as one of the 15 wards in the city . The A44 is the road which runs through the area; is the most direct route from City of Worcester to Leominster, Herefordshire.
St John's is roughly 1093.6 yards west from the centre of Worcester and is made up of the area surrounding St John's church, a short part of Bromyard Road, Bransford Road and Bromwich Lane. However, the west of the River Severn is often wholly referred to as St John's, therefore encompassing the University, the county ground and Cripplegate Park.
The name St John's probably derives from the saint John the Baptist; the parish name is St John-in-Bedwardine which refers to the Baptist.
St John's played a role in the English Civil War. The Parliamentary commander Fleetwood forced his way across the River Teme, to the south of the parish and successfully managed to force his way into St John's, pushing back Royalist forces. Parliamentary soldiers plundered the nearby parish church and set it on fire. The soldiers also used the church walls to sharpen their pikes and even today the scars are still visible on the sandstone. The tower was also used by the soldiers as an observation post, but the spire was shot off by cannon fire, most likely being hit by Cromwell's artillery bombardment on the city, from Red Hill and Perry Wood across the river on the western heights of the city. When the civil war was over, Parliament gave £80 towards its restoration.