Berkshire

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Berkshire sometimes abbreviated to Berks is a county in the south of England, to the west of London and also bordering on Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Greater London, Surrey, Wiltshire and Hampshire. It covers an area of 486 square miles (1,259 sq. Km). The County Town is Reading. According to 2003 estimates there are 803,657 people in Berkshire, or 636 people / km2. The population is mostly based in the urban areas to the east of the county, with West Berkshire being much more rural. Berkshire is a ceremonial and traditional county, and it is unusual in England in that it is the only administrative county with no county council. The district councils are unitary authorities but have no county status

Geography

The highest point in the county is Walbury Hill at 297m (974ft). It is the highest point on Salisbury Plain and in the whole of South East England. Berkshire is largely a lowland drained by the Thames and Kennet rivers.

Industry

Agriculture, especially dairying and livestock raising, is important to the economy. Industry is concentrated in Reading, Slough, Newbury, and Bracknell, the chief towns. The county has a varied industrial base with agriculture an important element outside of the towns. Reading is the silicon valley of Britain and is probably the most important business centre in South East England and outside Greater London, often referred to as the capital of the Thames Valley with the headquarters of some major British companies and the UK offices of a number of major foreign multinationals.

History

The area contains relics of ancient occupation. The construction of Windsor Castle here was begun by William the Conqueror. Trade and commerce flourished in the county in the Middle Ages. The county takes its name from a large forest of birch trees that was called Bearroc (Celtic for 'hilly') and was originally a transaction of land to King Cenwalh of Wessex. The county is one of the oldest in England, being reliably dated back to the setting of the county borders by King Alfred the Great of Wessex. Following the reorganisation of the counties in 1974, Abingdon (its former county town) and the Vale of the White Horse were transferred to Oxfordshire, Slough was added from Buckinghamshire, and Reading became the county town. On April 1, 1998 the county council was abolished and the districts became unitary authorities.

Notable towns in Berkshire are:

Bracknell, Caversham, Hungerford, Maidenhead, Newbury, Reading, Windsor, Wokingham

Places of interest

Ashdown House , Basildon Park, Berkshire Downs , Bisham Abbey, California Country Park, Combe Gibbet, Donnington Castle, Eton College, Frogmore House, Greenham Common, Lardon Chase, the Holies and Lough Down, Legoland Windsor, Museum of English Rural Life , Museum of Reading, Reading Abbey, Stanlake Park Wine Estate, The Ridgeway, Walbury Hill, Welford Park, Windsor Castle, Windsor Great Park