Visit Macclesfield Places

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The Walkfo guide to things to do & explore in Macclesfield

  

Macclesfield Places Overview: History, Culture & Facts about Macclesfield

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Macclesfield history

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Before the Norman Conquest, Macclesfield was held by Edwin, Earl of Mercia, who also held much of the east of the county. Three crosses survive from this period, originally located in Sutton, and J. D. Bu’Lock speculates that there might have been a Pre-Conquest church. The area was devastated by the Normans in 1070, and had not recovered by 1086; the Domesday Book records the manor as having fallen in value from £8 to 20 shillings. Hugh d’Avranches, Earl of Chester held the manor himself after the Conquest; there was a mill, meadow for oxen, and woodland 6 leagues by 4 leagues. A Norman castle was built at Macclesfield. Macclesfield was granted a borough charter by Ranulf de Blondeville, Earl of Chester, in the early 13th century, and in 1261 a second charter was granted by the future King Edward I, allowing a market, fair and judicial court. The medieval town stood on the hilltop, centred on the parish church of All Saints, which was built in 1278, an extension of a chapel built in approximately 1220. In 1357, a hall was built in the town for the mayor’s court and the borough court (portmote). The town lacked industries at this date and was described as poor, remaining a small market town until the end of the 15th century, with a population numbered in the hundreds. The borough had a weekly market and two annual fairs: the Barnaby fair on St Barnabas day (11 June), the other on the feast of All Souls (2 November). In recent years the Barnaby fair has been reinvented as the Barnaby Festival, a cultural festival in mid-June. The weekly market no longer happens but on the last Sunday of each month the Treacle Market is held, a large market selling locally produced food and handmade items such as clothing, handmade goods and pottery. Macclesfield was the administrative centre of the Hundred of Macclesfield, which occupied most of east Cheshire. The Earl of Chester’s manor of Macclesfield was very large, and its boundary extended to Disley. The manor house was on the edge of the deer park, on the west of the town. In the 14th century, it had a king’s chamber and a queen’s hall, as well as a large stable, and the manor served as a stud farm for Edward the Black Prince. The Earls of Chester established the Forest of Macclesfield, which was much larger than its present-day namesake. It was used for hunting deer and pasturing sheep and cattle. By the end of the 13th century, large areas of the forest had been ploughed because of the pressure of population growth. In 1356, two trees from the forest were given to archer William Jauderell to repair his home. Macclesfield Castle was a fortified town house built by John de Macclesfield in the later Middle Ages. Construction began in 1398, and that year an application was made for a licence to crenellate, or fortify, the building. Two chantries were founded in the town: one in 1422 by the Legh family, and one in 1504 by Thomas Savage. In 1502, Macclesfield Grammar School was founded by Sir John Percyvale. No proof exists that Macclesfield was ever a walled town. When the settlement was first established and for some centuries afterwards there would have certainly been some sort of ditch and palisade round the western side of the town which was not naturally defended. This was necessary in order to keep out undesirable people and stray animals. No physical trace of a ditch remains though measurements and the shape of certain streets suggest where such a ditch could have been and most of the medieval building were within this area. It is unlikely that the ditch and palisade were succeeded by a wall for no record has been found of a murage tax, which would certainly have been levied to keep the wall in repair. The suffix “Gate” in the names of several Macclesfield streets has been taken to indicate the former presence of a gate in the sense of a guarded opening in a wall, however, this is very unlikely as the term ‘gate’ is derived from ‘gata’, Scandinavian for road, which became gate in Middle English. Therefore, Chester Gate, the Jordan Gate and the Church Wall Gate (some sources give the name Well Gate for this gate), are simply referring to the road to/from Chester or the road leading from the church to the well. These names are preserved in the names of three streets in the town, Chestergate, Jordangate and Back Wallgate. A charter of 1595 established a town governing body consisting of the mayor, two aldermen and 24 “capital burgesses”, and the powers of this body were increased by a charter of 1684. By the Tudor era, Macclesfield was prospering, with industries including the manufacture of harnesses, gloves and especially buttons, and later ribbons, tapes and fancy ware. Coal was mined from the 16th century. In 1664, the population was around 2,600, making Macclesfield the third-largest town in the county, after Chester and Nantwich, although the town had expanded little from its medieval extent and had fewer large houses than Nantwich and Stockport. By around 1720, the number of households had increased to 925, and this rapid population growth continued throughout the 18th century, reaching 8,743 in 1801. In the 1580s, Macclesfield was one of the earliest towns in the county to have Puritan preaching “Exercises”, and it was also an early centre for the Quakers. By 1718 an estimated 10% of the population was Nonconformist. Towards the end of that century, the town had a large Methodist congregation, and Christ Church was the only Anglican church in the county to invite John Wesley to preach. During the Civil War, in 1642 the town was occupied for the King by Sir Thomas Aston, a Royalist. In the Jacobite Rising of 1745, Charles Stuart and his army marched through Macclesfield as they attempted to reach London. The mayor was forced to welcome the prince, and the event is commemorated in one of the town’s silk tapestries. The population was 24,137 by 1841. Armoury Towers was completed in 1858 and the Bridge Street drill hall was completed in 1871.

Industry

Macclesfield was once the world’s biggest producer of finished silk. A domestic button industry had been established in the town by the mid-16th century. There were 71 silk mills operating in 1832, employing 10,000 people. A crash occurred in 1851 and many mill-workers emigrated to the American silk town of Paterson, New Jersey.

Macclesfield culture & places

Macclesfield has four museums including the Silk Museum, a former silk mill, and West Park Museum, which houses Ancient Egyptian artefacts. The Northern Chamber Orchestra, the oldest professional chamber ensemble in the North West, presents a series of eight concerts a year, attracting international guest soloists. The town was the home town of Ian Curtis and Stephen Morris of Joy Division and Gillian Gilbert, who was a member of New Order.

Macclesfield toponymy

Macclesfield is recorded in the Domesday Book as “Maclesfeld” and “Makeslesfeld” The English Place-Name Society gives its name as being derived from the Old English name, Maccel, and field, yielding the meaning “Maccel’s open country”

Macclesfield landmarks

Macclesfield is famous for its once thriving silk industry. The Georgian Town Hall was designed by Francis Goodwin in 1823. The town is home to an Augustus Pugin church, St Alban’s.

Macclesfield geography / climate

Macclesfield is in the east of Cheshire, on the River Bollin, a tributary of the River Mersey. It is close to the county borders of Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east and Staffordshire to the south. To the west of the town lies the Cheshire Plain and the Peak District.

Climate

Macclesfield has a temperate maritime climate (Köppen: Cfb) Records of the climate extend back to at least 1850. Between 1881 and 2005, the highest temperature has been 33.1 °C (91.6 °F) on 3 August 1990.

You can visit Macclesfield places with Walkfo Macclesfield to hear history at Macclesfield’s places whilst walking around using the free digital tour app. Walkfo Macclesfield has 48 places to visit in our interactive Macclesfield map, with amazing history, culture & travel facts you can explore the same way you would at a museum or art gallery with information audio headset. With Walkfo, you can travel by foot, bike or bus throughout Macclesfield, being in the moment, without digital distraction or limits to a specific walking route. Our historic audio walks, National Trust interactive audio experiences, digital tour guides for English Heritage locations are available at Macclesfield places, with a AI tour guide to help you get the best from a visit to Macclesfield & the surrounding areas.

“Curated content for millions of locations across the UK, with 48 audio facts unique to Macclesfield places in an interactive Macclesfield map you can explore.”

Walkfo: Visit Macclesfield Places Map
48 tourist, history, culture & geography spots

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Macclesfield historic spots	Macclesfield tourist destinations	Macclesfield plaques	Macclesfield geographic features
Walkfo Macclesfield tourism map key: places to see & visit like National Trust sites, Blue Plaques, English Heritage locations & top tourist destinations in Macclesfield

  

Best Macclesfield places to visit

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Macclesfield has places to explore by foot, bike or bus. Below are a selection of the varied Macclesfield’s destinations you can visit with additional content available at the Walkfo Macclesfield’s information audio spots:

Macclesfield Town Hall Macclesfield Town Hall is a Georgian municipal building in the Market Place. The building incorporates the former Borough Police Station. The town hall is listed at grade II*.

Holy Trinity Church, Hurdsfield Holy Trinity Church is in Hurdsfield Road, Macclesfield, Cheshire. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II listed building.

St George’s Church, Macclesfield St George’s Church is a former church in High Street, Macclesfield, Cheshire, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II listed building.

St Peter’s Church, Macclesfield St Peter’s Church is in Windmill Street, Macclesfield, Cheshire, England. It is an active Anglican parish church in the diocese of Chester. It was a Commissioners’ church having received a grant towards its construction from the Church Building Commission.

2nd Royal Cheshire Militia The 2nd Royal Cheshire Militia was a militia infantry battalion raised in Macclesfield, Cheshire, England in 1853. Later linked to the regular Cheshire Regiment as its 4th (Militia) Battalion, the unit served in the Second Anglo-Boer War.

Parkside Hospital Parkside Hospital was a mental health facility at Victoria Road in Macclesfield, Cheshire, England. The administration block survives and is a Grade II listed building.

Sutton Hall, Sutton Lane Ends Sutton Hall is a former country house to the west of the village of Sutton Lane Ends, Cheshire. The present building dates from the middle of the 17th century, with additions and alterations in the late 18th century. It has since been converted into a pub/restaurant.

Tegg’s Nose Tegg’s Nose is a hill east of Macclesfield in Cheshire, England. It has a high point of 380 metres (1246 feet) at SJ947725, terminating in a promontory at the southern end. It lies on the western edge of the Peak District, although outside the national park.

St Thomas’ Church, Henbury St Thomas’ Church is in Church Lane in Henbury, Cheshire, England. It is an active Anglican parish church in the deanery of Macclesfield, the archdeaconry of Macclefield, and the diocese of Chester. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a Grade II listed building.

St Peter’s Church, Prestbury St Peter’s Church is the parish church of Prestbury, Cheshire, England. It is probably the fourth church on the site. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building.

Visit Macclesfield plaques