Leicestershire

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This article has not been researched and written yet

This article has not been researched and written yet

This article has not been researched and written yet

This article has not been researched and written yet

This article has not been researched and written yet

Lying ‘in the centre and heart of the shire ... in a most rich, delicate and pleasant soil and delicious air (it wants only a navigable river)’, Leicester was ‘one of the ancientest and greatest towns’ belonging to the duchy of Lancaster and the only borough constituency in Leicestershire. E.

Situated in the east midlands, Leicestershire enjoyed relatively good connections with London and the rest of the country via Watling Street and the Fosse Way, which intersected close to the county’s south western border with Warwickshire. It was noted during the Stuart period for being ‘exceedingly fertile for all sorts of grain’, producing ‘great abundance of peas and beans, more than any other country [i.e. county]’.