Wisbech, England
| Wisbech | |
|---|---|
 North Brink |
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 Wisbech
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| Wisbech shown within Cambridgeshire | |
| Population | 31,573 (2011) |
| OS grid reference | TF4609 |
| Civil parish |
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| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | WISBECH |
| Postcode district | PE13, PE14 |
| Dialling code | 01945 |
| Police | Cambridgeshire |
| Fire | Cambridgeshire |
| Ambulance | East of England |
| EU Parliament | East of England |
| UK Parliament | |
Wisbech (/ˈwɪzbiːtʃ/) is a market town, inland port and civil parish in the Fens of Cambridgeshire, England. Situated in the far north-east of the county, bordering Norfolk and only 5 miles (8 km) south of Lincolnshire, it had a population of 31,573 in 2011. The tidal River Nene runs through the centre of the town and is spanned by two bridges. The name is believed to mean "on the back of the (River) Ouse", Ouse being a common Celtic word relating to water, and the name of a river that once flowed through the town. Since 2011, Wisbech has become the second largest town in Cambridgeshire (after St Neots; Before the Local Government Act 1972 came into force in 1974 Wisbech was a municipal borough.
During the Iron Age, the area where Wisbech would develop lay in the west of the Brythonic Iceni tribe's territory. Like the rest of Cambridgeshire, Wisbech was part of the Kingdom of East Anglia after the Anglo-Saxon invasion.
The first authentic reference to Wisbech occurs about 1000, when Oswy and Leoflede, on the admission of their son Aelfwin as a monk, gave the vill to the monastery of Ely. In 1086 Wisbech was held by the abbot, there may have been some 65 to 70 families, or about 300 to 350 persons, in Wisbech manor. However, Wisbech, which is the only one of the Marshland vills of the Isle to be mentioned in the Domesday Book, probably comprised the whole area from Tydd Gote down to the far end of Upwell at Welney.
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