Northamptonshire

Map of the Northamptonshire Area

Northamptonshire is located in the East Midlands of the UK and is landlocked my Leicestershire, Warwickshire, Cambridgeshire, Bedfordshire, Rutland, Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Lincolnshire. It has a population of 629676 (source: link) with a density of 733 people per square mile and its county town is Northampton. It is split into districts which include, Northampton, South Northamptonshire, Daventry, Wellingbrough, Corby, Kettering and East Northamptonshire. The shortest boundary in the UK is between Northamptonshire and Lincolnshire.

The county is predominately upland in geography and it includes the watershed between The Wash and the Severn. The River Nene and the Warwickshire Avon both have their sources in the county. The highest point in the county reaches a level of 225 metres above the sea. The population in Northamptonshire is mainly concentrated in a central band which includes the four biggest towns. The rest of the county is chiefly rural with scattered small villages and towns.

There are some traces of Roman development in the region and there were also Celtic and pre-Celtic inhabitants in the area. After the Roman occupation the region became Anglo-Saxon and part of the kingdom of Mercia with Northampton functioning as an administrative core. The county is mainly agricultural, forestry and pastoral and the rivers that run through it include the Nene and two canals: the Grand Union Canal and the Oxford. It is richly cultivated and is famed for its ash trees. The county covers an area of 1003 square miles.

The county became industrialised during the 18th and 19 centuries and both shoe making and the leather industry became prominent in the area. It is considered to be the home of the UK's shoe making industry (source: link) and it also has the largest market square in the country. In the north of the county an iron quarrying industry was developed and during the 1930's the town of Corby was recognised as a major steel centre of the world. The family of George Washington, America's first president were from Northamptonshire. Northamptonshire has many places of interest including the sporting areas of the Silverstone Race Track and Northampton Cricket Club.