31 Facts About Salisbury

Salisbury is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England, with a population of 40,302, at the confluence of the rivers Avon, Nadder and Bourne.

Salisbury is in the southeast of Wiltshire, near the edge of Salisbury Plain.

Salisbury Cathedral was formerly north of the city at Old Sarum.

Salisbury railway station is an interchange between the West of England Main Line and the Wessex Main Line.

Name Salisbury, which is first recorded around the year 900 as Searoburg, is a partial translation of the Roman Celtic name Sorbiodunum.

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Salisbury appeared in the Welsh Chronicle of the Britons as Caer-Caradog, Caer-Gradawc and Caer-Wallawg.

In 1075 the Council of London established Herman as the first bishop of Salisbury, uniting his former sees of Sherborne and Ramsbury into a single diocese which covered the counties of Dorset, Wiltshire, and Berkshire.

Salisbury refurbished and expanded Old Sarum's cathedral in the 1110s and began work on a royal palace during the 1130s, prior to his arrest by Henry's successor, Stephen.

Salisbury was the site chosen to assemble James II's forces to resist the Glorious Revolution.

Salisbury's troops were not keen to fight Mary or her husband William, and the loyalty of many of James's commanders was in doubt.

In Salisbury, James heard that some of his officers had deserted, such as Edward Hyde, and he broke out in a nosebleed, which he took as an omen that he should retreat.

Salisbury was the major centre of production, supplemented by Trowbridge and Reading.

Several factories were set up in the centre of Salisbury and manned by predominantly young women who had no previous mechanical experience but were trained for specific tasks in the aircraft construction process.

Salisbury is within the county of Wiltshire, and the administrative district of the same name.

The Bishopdown Farm estate on the outskirts of Salisbury is part of Laverstock and Ford, joining Hampton Park and Riverdown Park.

Salisbury is approximately halfway between Exeter and London being 80 miles east-northeast of Exeter, 78 miles west-southwest of London and 34 miles south of Swindon, 20 miles northwest of Southampton and 32 miles southeast of Bath.

Salisbury has many areas and suburbs, most of them being former villages that were absorbed by the growth of the city.

Salisbury holds a Charter market on Tuesdays and Saturdays and has held markets regularly since 1227.

Salisbury was formed in 1832 with a share capital of £8,000, and its first chairman was the 3rd Earl of Radnor.

Salisbury was incorporated by a private Act of Parliament in 1864, and the Gas Orders Confirmation Act 1882 empowered it to raise capital of up to £40,000.

Salisbury was an important centre for music in the 18th century.

Salisbury holds an annual St George's Day pageant, the origins of which are claimed to go back to the 13th century.

Salisbury has a strong artistic community, with galleries situated in the city centre, including one in the public library.

Salisbury Museum is housed in the King's House, a Grade I listed building whose history dates back to the 13th century, opposite the west front of the cathedral.

Salisbury has been twinned with Saintes, France, since 1990 and with Xanten, Germany, since 2005.

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Salisbury has a Park and Ride bus scheme with five sites around the city.

Salisbury Racecourse is a flat racing course to the south-west of the city.

Salisbury used to have its own local radio station, Spire FM, which was purchased by Bauer Radio in 2019.

Salisbury Journal is the local paid-for weekly newspaper, which is available in shops every Thursday.

The nearest Met Office weather station to Salisbury is Boscombe Down, about 6 miles to the north of the city centre.

In terms of the local climate, Salisbury is among the sunniest of inland areas in the UK, averaging over 1650 hours of sunshine in a typical year.