England: Shropshire
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Shropshire is a landlocked, and mainly rural, county in the West Midlands of England which borders the country of Wales and shares its borders with the counties of Cheshire, Herefordshire, Staffordshire and Worcestershire. Often shortened to Shrops, the county is the ideal UK vacation destination for a relaxing vacation in idyllic British countryside. In fact roughly a quarter of the county's land area, the Shropshire Hills, is classed as am Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Although there are a fair few settlements there are no cities in Shropshire and even the county town Shrewsbury has thoroughly rural and historic qualities and even the much larger Telford has such appealing qualities that it is one of the fastest growing town in the UK. Although Telford is a "new town", built in the 1960s & 70s, the boundaries include such spectacularly scenic areas as the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Ironbridge Gorge.
Ironbridge is often marketed as the "birthplace of the Industrial Revolution. It is internationally accepted that the area was certainly important, especially the small village of Coalbrookdale where Abraham Darby first smelted iron-ore. The gorge takes its name from the famous Iron Bridge (pictured beelow right) which was the very first of its type in the world.
Shrewsbury is a beautiful market town which has managed to retain its medieval street plan and well over six hundred historic listed buildings. The most noticable buildings are the 15th and 16th century black and white timber framed architecture, the distinctive red sandstone Shrewsbury Castle and Shrewsbury Abbey (The Abbey of Saint Peter and Saint Paul) which dates back to 1083. The many narrow streets and passages of the town are a joy to explore.
At one time Shropshire had a vast network of railways and canals but following the reforms of the 1960s many of the railways were closed. Today there are three heritage railways with another planned for the future, three canals are in full working order but, sadly, the Shrewsbury and Newport Canal is in a complete mess but not beyond restoration and maybe one day it will be possible to take a cruise along this historic canal.
Shropshire Hotels & Accommodation
Places To Visit In Shropshire, England
Settlements In The County Of Shropshire
Shrewsbury is the county town however, by population, the town of Telford is considerably larger. Other towns and villages in Shropshire include; Albrighton, Baschurch, Bridgnorth, Broseley, Church Stretton, Clun, Craven Arms, Ellesmere, Ludlow, Market Drayton, Much Wenlock, Newport, Oswestry, Pontesbury, Prees, Shifnal, Wellington, Wem and Whitchurch.
Museums & Art Galleries
Acton Scott Historic Working Farm, Coleham Pumping Station, Ironbridge, House on Crutches Museum, Ludlow Museum Resource Centre, Ludlow Museum, Much Wenlock Museum, Museum on the Move, RAF Museum Cosford (also known as The Aerospace Museum), Shrewsbury Castle and Shrewsbury Museum & Art Gallery.
Heritage Railways
The Bishop's Castle Railway, the Minsterley branch line and the Severn Valley Railway.
Parks & Gardens, Places Of Natural Beauty
Ironbridge Gorge
Historic Religious Buildings
Combermere Abbey
Historic Houses & Stately Homes
Acton Round Hall, Adcote, Attingham Park, Benthall Hall, Boscobel House, Coton Hall, Cound Hall, Cronkhill, Davenport House, Dudmaston, Hawkstone Park, Longford Hall, Mawley Hall, Oakly Park, Shelvock Manor, Shipton Hall, Sild Hall, Soulton Hall, Stokesay Court, Upton Cressett Hall, Walcot Hall, Wilderhope Manor and Willey Hall.
Castles
Acton Burnell Castle (Ruins), Alberbury Castle (Ruins), Bishop's Castle, Bridgnorth Castle, Broncroft Castle (Privately owned, pictured at the bottom right of this page), Bryn Amlwg Castle, Caus Castle, Charlton Castle, Cheney Longville Castle, Cleobury Castle, Clun Castle, Ellesmere Castle, Holdgate Castle, Hopton Castle Knockin Castle, Ludlow Castle, Moreton Corbet Castle, Oswestry Castle (Ruins), Shrewsbury Castle, (the oldest fortified manor house in England), Stokesay Castle (shown to the right), Tyrley Castle (Ruins) and Whittington Castle.
Other Places In Shropshire To Visit
Tour the Shropshire canals, the Llangollen Canal, the Montgomery Canal and the Shropshire Union Canal.
Other Interesting Buildings To Visit In Shropshire
Hotels In Shropshire
To find Shropshire hotels simply click on the vacation destinations below:
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Useful Shropshire Links
Shropshire Bed & Breakfast
Listings of guest houses and B&B in Shropshire.
Shropshire Hotels
Listings of hotels in towns & villages in Shropshire.
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