ÆthelflædÆthelflæd, Lady of the Mercians (870 – 12 June 918) ruled Mercia in the English Midlands from 911 until her death. She was the eldest daughter of Alfred the Great, king of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Wessex, and his wife Ealhswith. Æthelflæd was born around 870 at the height of the Viking invasions of England. By 878, most of England was under Danish Viking rule – East Anglia and Northumbria having been conquered, and Mercia partitioned between the English and the Vikings – but in that year Alfred won a crucial victory at the Battle of Edington.
BedfordBedford is a market town and unparished area in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of the Bedford built-up area (including Biddenham and Kempston) was 106,940, making it the second-largest settlement in Bedfordshire, behind Luton, whilst the Borough of Bedford had a population of 157,479. Bedford is also the historic county town of Bedfordshire. Bedford was founded at a ford on the River Great Ouse and is thought to have been the burial place of King Offa of Mercia, who is remembered for building Offa's Dyke on the Welsh border.
DerbyshireDerbyshire (ˈdɑːrbiʃɪər,-ʃər,-ɪ- ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It borders Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, and South Yorkshire to the north, Nottinghamshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south-east, Staffordshire to the south and west, and Cheshire to the west. Derby is the largest settlement, and Matlock is the county town. The county has an area of and a population of 1,053,316. The east of the county is more densely populated than the west, and contains the county's largest settlements: Derby (261,400), Chesterfield (88,483), and Swadlincote (45,000).
CheshireCheshire (ˈtʃɛʃər,_-ɪər ) is a ceremonial county in North West England. It borders Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south, and the Welsh counties of Flintshire and Wrexham to the west, with a short coastline on the Dee Estuary. Warrington is the largest settlement. The county has an area of and a population of around 1,059,271. After Warrington (212,000), the largest settlements are Chester (86,011) and Crewe (71,722).
SuffolkSuffolk (ˈsʌfək) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Norfolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Essex to the south, and Cambridgeshire to the west. The largest settlement is Ipswich. The county has an area of and a population of 758,556. After Ipswich (144,957), in the south, the largest towns are Lowestoft (73,800) in the north-east and Bury St Edmunds (40,664) in the west. For administrative purposes Suffolk is a two-tier non-metropolitan county governed by Suffolk County Council and six district councils.
OxfordshireOxfordshire (ˈɒksfədʃər,_-ʃɪər, , abbreviated Oxon) is a ceremonial county in South East England. The county is bordered by Northamptonshire and Warwickshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the east, Berkshire to the south, and Wiltshire and Gloucestershire to the west. The largest settlement is the city of Oxford. The county is largely rural, with an area of and a population of 691,667. After Oxford (162,100), the largest settlements are Banbury (54,355) and Abingdon-on-Thames (37,931).
HwicceHwicce (ˈʍittʃe) was a tribal kingdom in Anglo-Saxon England. According to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, the kingdom was established in 577, after the Battle of Deorham. After 628, the kingdom became a client or sub-kingdom of Mercia as a result of the Battle of Cirencester. The Tribal Hidage assessed Hwicce at 7,000 hides, an agricultural economy akin to either the kingdom of Essex or Sussex. The exact boundaries of the kingdom remain uncertain, though it is likely that they coincided with those of the old Diocese of Worcester, founded in 679–680, the early bishops of which bore the title Episcopus Hwicciorum.
RutlandRutland (ˈrʌtlənd), archaically Rutlandshire, is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It borders Leicestershire to the north and west, Lincolnshire to the north-east, and Northamptonshire to the south-west. Oakham is the largest town. Rutland has an area of and a population of 41,049, the second-smallest ceremonial county population after the City of London. The county is rural, and the only towns are Oakham (12,149) and Uppingham (4,745), both in the west of the county; the largest settlement in the east is the village of Ketton (1,926).
Robin HoodRobin Hood is a legendary heroic outlaw originally depicted in English folklore and subsequently featured in literature and film. According to legend, he was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. In some versions of the legend, he is depicted as being of noble birth, and in modern retellings he is sometimes depicted as having fought in the Crusades before returning to England to find his lands taken by the Sheriff. In the oldest known versions, he is instead a member of the yeoman class.
GloucestershireGloucestershire (ˈɡlɒstərʃər,_-ʃɪər abbreviated Glos) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Herefordshire to the north-west, Worcestershire to the north, Warwickshire to the north-east, Oxfordshire to the east, Wiltshire to the south, Bristol and Somerset to the south-west, and the Welsh county of Monmouthshire to the west. The city of Gloucester is the largest settlement and the county town. The county is predominantly rural, with an area of and a population of 916,212.
