Malmesbury History
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Maildulph, a Celtic monk settles in
Malmesbury at the start of the towns long association with Christianity.
The name of Malmesbury is believed to be derived from Maildulph,
although Maildulph's Borough to Malmesbury suggests that at least 2 of
the Three Rs did not figure strongly in the education syllabus of the
time
St Aldhelm buried in St Michael's Church Malmesbury King Alfred makes Malmesbury a Borough, now the oldest in England. There are a few upstarts who claim to be older, but we dismiss them as impostors and charlatans Elmer, a monk from the Abbey, built himself wings and "flew" from the top of the old Minster Church until the lack of a tail caused him to land rather abruptly, breaking both his legs in the process. As a monk, we feel confident that he can refute Richard Branson's claim to have been responsible for the first virgin flight. |
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| 1490 | One of the finest surviving market crosses in England was built by local stone masons. While this glorious structure may appear to have a religious or ceremonial significance it was in fact built as a glorified bus shelter where people could retreat from the rain. | |
| 1588 | Thomas Hobbs was born. The son of a Malmesbury vicar he became tutor to Charles 11 and Britain's greatest philosopher. ( We all knew that didn't we ? ) | |
| 1703 | Hannah Twynnoy, a local servant girl was killed by a tiger from a travelling menagerie | |
| 1877 | The Railway comes to Malmesbury, which is at the end of a branch line joining with the GWR at Dauntsey | |
| 1951 | The Railway passenger service ceased due to lack of interest | |
| 1962 | The railway goods service ceases | |
| 1963 | The railway line is dismantled | |
| 1970 | The old station site becomes an industrial estate | |
| 1980 | 1100 years of the town's charter are celebrated by the formation of the cloister gardens to the north of the Abbey. They are officially opened by Princess Anne | |
| 1994 | Acquisition of the Abbey House and gardens by the Pollard family. | |
| 1995 | Dyson move their vacuum cleaner manufacturing facility into the old Linolite building. | |
| 1998 | Two Tamworth pigs become international celebrities after their escape from a local abattoir. Just a few short months later this abattoir had been demolished to make way for new houses, proving that you don't mess with the " Tamworth Two". | |
| 2000 | Malmesbury has been twinned with the German town of Niebull for more than 20 years. Early in 2000, a partnership was created with Gien from the Loire region of France. | |
| 2002 | Dyson move their vacuum cleaner manufacturing facility out of the old Linolite building (these newcomers have no stamina!). | |
| 2003 | The BBC are to make a film on the "Tamworth Two". Butch and Sundance (the names given to the pigs by the media) now reside at the Rare Breeds Centre, in Ashford Kent. The film is to be made in the Isle of Man, obviously! |