Leicester is a city of about 300,000 located on the
Soar River in
Leicestershire in the
East Midlands of
England. Canals connect Leicester with
London and the
Trent and the town is also an important railway hub.
Leicester means "Leir's camp," and was supposedly the capital of legendary Celtic king Leir (of Shakespearean fame). Leicester was the Ratae Coritanorum of the Romans, and marked the place where the Roman Fosse Way crosses the Soar. Extensive Roman artifacts have been excavated near some Roman ruins known as the "Jewry Wall" and there is also evidence of even earlier settlement by the Britons.
In Norman times the settlement was home to a considerable burgess community. Norman-built Leicester Castle was largely dismantled in 1645, although a few ruins remain. Ruins also remain of Leicester Abbey, founded in 1143; Cardinal Wolsey died in the abbey in 1530 while on his way to London to be executed for treason. Several of the churches, including St. Nicholas, St. Mary de Castro, and All Saints, show Norman influence. Other landmarks include Trinity Hospital, founded in the 14th century, and Wyggeston School, which dates from the 1500s. Richard III stayed in Leicester the night before he was killed in the Battle of Bosworth Field and his body was brought back to Leicester for burial.
Leicester was incorporated by royal charter in 1589. The discovery of nearby coalfields in the early 19th century spurred industrial development and brought the railroad. Leicester had been known for the manufacture of hosiery and knitwear since medieval times, and in the 19th century it became especially well-known for footwear manufacturing. Other, more modern industries include chemicals, aniline dyes, textiles, woodworking machinery, and light-metal products.
The modern town of Leicester is centered around a famous clocktower, from which the streets of its shopping district radiate. The University of Leicester was founded as a college in 1918, and chartered as a university in 1957. Simon de Montfort, earl of Leicester, is the namesake of Leicester's modern concert hall and DeMontfort University, established in 1992. Today Leicester is perhaps most famous for its ethnic diversity; immigration since the 1970s has made Leicester statistically Britain's most ethnically diverse city, in terms of nonwhite population.