Wigston
| Wigston Magna | |
|---|---|
 Wigston Magna
|
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| Wigston Magna shown within Leicestershire | |
| Population | 32,321 |
| OS grid reference | SP6197 |
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | WIGSTON |
| Postcode district | LE18 |
| Dialling code | 0116 |
| Police | Leicestershire |
| Fire | Leicestershire |
| Ambulance | East Midlands |
| EU Parliament | East Midlands |
| UK Parliament | |
Wigston Magna, or Wigston, is a town in Leicestershire, England, just south of Leicester on the A5199. Wigston had a population of 32,321 in 2011.
Wigston is five miles south of Leicester, at the centre of Leicestershire and the East Midlands. Oadby is to the east, connected by the B582 road. To the west along the B582, or Blaby Road is South Wigston.
The Grand Union Canal runs from Wistow, south of Wigston, to nearby Kilby Bridge, and for several miles through South Wigston, Glen Parva, Blaby and on towards Leicester.
Wigston's population of approximately 30,000 live in both the post-war private suburban housing estates surrounding the old town centre, and the 19th century buildings now sandwiched between modern housing developments. The oldest of the post-war developments is Wigston Fields north of Wigston towards Knighton and Leicester; the Meadows and Little Hill estates were developed in the 1970s and 1980s to the east and south of Wigston's old centre. Wigston Harcourt is an area of housing developed up until the early 1990s between the Little Hill and Meadows estates. These three estates mark the boundary of the greater Leicester urban area, beyond which lies agricultural land.
One of the earliest records of Wigston is in the Domesday book as Wichingstone in the ancient wapentake of Guthlaxton, listed amongst the lands held by Hugh de Grandmesnil for the King.
In the Middle Ages it was known as Wigston Two Spires as, unusually, there were two mediaeval churches there, All Saints' and St Wistan's.
St Wistan's is so called because it was one of the places where the body of St Wistan or Wigstan rested before burial. Wigstan was a Mercian prince who was assassinated, but was regarded as a Martyr. He was initially buried at Repton, but his body was then moved to Evesham.
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Wikipedia