Walton-on-Trent
| Walton-upon-Trent | |
|---|---|
 Walton is in the National Forest' |
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 Walton-upon-Trent
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| Walton-upon-Trent shown within Derbyshire | |
| Population | 872 (2011) |
| OS grid reference | SK216180 |
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | SWADLINCOTE |
| Postcode district | DE12 |
| Police | Derbyshire |
| Fire | Derbyshire |
| Ambulance | East Midlands |
| EU Parliament | East Midlands |
Walton-on-Trent is a parish and village in the National Forest in Derbyshire, England. The population of the civil parish as taken at the 2011 Census was 872. As its name implies it is an ancient crossing point of the River Trent. It was at this point that King Edward II crossed the river in pursuit of the disaffected barons including the Earl of Lancaster. Listed buildings in the parish include Catton Hall and Walton Hall. Today the town is situated almost exactly midway between Birmingham and Derby.
The name Walton comes from settlement/farmstead of Wealas - native Celts which is what the new Anglo Saxon speaking peoples called the native inhabitants of England. There is strong evidence that in many areas of England taken over by Germanic speaking settlers, the native British (Wealas) remained undisturbed, farming the same land they did when the Romans left. Over time they just adopted or forgot their Celtic tongue (similar to Old Welsh/Cornish) for the language and culture of the newcomers in order to climb the social ladder or were coerced to do so. It was in the Anglo Saxon interest that the native British carry on as usual to ensure the economy produced food and goods for the new landowners.
The original bridge was built in 1834 and lasted for over one hundred years before being replaced in 1948 by a temporary Bailey bridge. This was erected by the Royal Engineers over the top of the old bridge, part of which was removed to allow a support to be built on the Staffordshire bank of the river, the temporary bridge had to be built due to flood damage to the old bridge after the severe winter of 1947. This bridge had to again be replaced in 1974 by a more modern version of the temporary bridge. The old bridge was a toll bridge for many years and pictures of the "old bridge" and the toll house are still available.
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Wikipedia