Discover Market Harborough, Leicestershire

Market Harborough, Leicestershire: Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:MarketHarboroughTown-1.jpg
Author: Mat Fascione


Market Harborough is a market town on the southeastern edge of Leicestershire, England, on the border with Northamptonshire. It has a population of around 22,000 people (2012 estimate). It is within the Harborough district and includes the villages of Great Bowden and Little Bowden.

The history of Market Harborough goes back to at least the 13th century though judging by its name, it is probably of Anglo-Saxon origin (the name Harborough is derived from the Anglo-Saxon for "oat hill"). It did not appear in the Domesday Book of 1086, but is believed to be formed out of the Royal Manor of Bowden which was. Simply known as Harboroough until the 19th century, it was established as a market site for trading in goods and farm produce.

During the English Civil War, Harborough served as the headquarters of the King's Army. It was here that the King decided to confront Parliamentary forces. However they were defeated by Oliver Cromwell in the Battle of Naseby, which took place in nearby Naseby.

In the 18th century, the mud and thatch houses in Harborough were gradually replaced by brick buildings. There is also an improvement of public infrastructure which led to industrialization of the town and region. A canal was built to connect Harborough to Foxton, leading into the London to Birmingham canal. This allow Harborough to develop as a distribution center for coal and corn. Further progress in transportation was made with the construction of a railway line in 1840. The following year Thomas Cook organized what turned out to be the first packaged tour in the world, from Leicester to Loughborough, leading the founding of the travel agency that bears his name.

The dawn of the 21st century saw general revitalization work being carried out in the Market Harborough area. The footpath along the Harborough-Foxton canal was improved into a cycleway while the town itself made more pedestrian friendly.

Old Grammar School, Market Harborough: Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Market_Harborough_Grammar_School.jpg
Author: G-Man

Visiting Market Harborough

From London, take the M1 motorway to Junction 20, then continue east on the A304 road until you arrive at Market Harborough.

Places of Interest in Market Harborough

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Thanks for reading this page. My name is Timothy Tye. My hobby is to research information about places, and share the information with people on this website. I started this website on 5 January 2003, and since then, have written about over 20,000 places, mostly in Malaysia and Singapore.

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