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TEWKESBURY TOWN

Tewkesbury is a town in Gloucestershire, England. It stands at the meeting point of the River Severn and the River Avon, and also minor tributaries the Swilgate and Carrant Brook.
Tewkesbury is named after a Saxon hermit, who may have founded a hermitage here in the 7th century. In the Saxon tongue, it  was called Theocsbury. Evidence suggests that a considerable settlement rose up on the site previous to the Norman Conquest  of 1066 (invasion of the Kingdom of England by William the Conqueror, Duke of Normandy). It was the site of the Battle of Tewkesbury on 4 May 1471. At the Bloody Meadow, south of the town, Edward IV's Yorkist forces defeated the House of Lancaster in an historic and bloody battle of the Wars of the Roses. Tewkesbury was incorporated during the reign of Elizabeth I. 
Tewkesbury expanded following World War II, and today has a small and significant high technology industry. It has also been a centre for flour milling for many centuries, and was once thought to be the place of the largest and most modern flour mill in the world. The area also hosts a large Armed forces vehicle supply/maintenance depot at nearby Ashchurch. The town has had recent cycles of prosperity and decline with a few local shops and businesses opening and closing, which included the town's Roses Theatre which re-opened in 1996.
The town features many notable Tudor (1485 - 1603) buildings, with its major claim to fame being Tewkesbury Abbey.
In July 2007 the area came to national and international prominence, when it suffered from some of the worst flooding in recorded British history. The Severn and Avon were overwhelmed by the 5 inches of rain that fell in the surrounding areas on one day, Friday 20th July. All 4 access roads to the town, the Gloucester road (old A38) from the South, the A38 to the North West, the B4080 North East to Bredon and the A438 east were flooded and impassable. The only major remaining access was via what was once a railway line, the embankment allowing for access via foot or cycle. Despite the lack of access several businesses remained open, notably the Old Plough Pub on Barton Street, where the clientele lined much of the street.