A Little History of Brackley Town

Beautifully Different Brackley, our gorgeous clothing and accessories boutique, is now well established within Brackley town centre – a ‘beautifully different’ market town itself! We are soon to celebrate 5 years of success within this friendly community and look forward to many more fun years to come.  To introduce the area where our boutique is located we’ve been digging about into the fascinating stories that lie behind this pretty town…..

Image of Brackley facing up the hill taken from The Market Place - a leafy open road in the summer sunshine.

 Brackley appears in the Doomsday book in 1086, when it was held by a Saxon earl called Alberic. Its name comes from the old English for ‘woodland clearing’ and it was originally known as Brachelai or Brackele. Its history however goes even further back as a large Roman settlement was unearthed in Brackley in the 70s.

 It was an important place for a couple of well-known monarchs; King Richard the Lionheart designated it as one of five places in the kingdom that could officially hold jousting tournaments and later it hosted a pivotal meeting between English barons and representatives of King John, during the negotiations to agree the Magna Carta. It was due to be the venue for the signing as well but for some reason they decided to do that at Runnymede instead!

Brackley developed a strong wool making industry until the industrial revolution saw much of that specialism move up to the northern towns. Lacemaking and boot-making also flourished, and because of its geographical position, it also became an important staging post. At one time there were 28 hostelries and public houses along the High Street! Several breweries also sprang up to meet demand and, while all of them have now closed, several coaching inns remain such as The Crown and The Plough.

 The town has seen a population explosion over the years, with its 2,467 residents in 1901, swelling to over 15,000 today. We’re very proud to be part of a thriving community which supports some fantastic local businesses, and which, in a typical year, boasts a full calendar of festivals and community events.

 Look out for next months blog when we will be introducing you to the individual characters within our fabulous and helpful team at Beautifully Different Brackley.

 Until then, feel free to drop in to our well stocked Brackley store at 48 Market Place, NN13 7DP and experience for yourself a little of what the Brackley Market Place has to offer in 2021!

 Liz xx