History of Shrewsbury
The town of Shrewsbury in Shropshire, England, has a history that extends back at least as far as the year 901, but it could have been first settled earlier. During the early Middle Ages, the town was a centre of the wool trade, and this was a peak in its importance. During the Industrial Revolution, comparatively little development took place in the town, although it did serve as a significant railway town after the development of rail transport in the area. The town today retains much of its historic architecture. Foundation Evidence of Neolithic occupation dating back before 2,000 BC of a religious form, was discovered in 2017 in the grounds of a church, the medieval Church of the Holy Fathers in Sutton, making it Britain's oldest place of worship. It is believed the area of Shrewsbury was settled in the 5th century by refugees from the nearby Roman City of Viroconium Cornoviorum, but the first physical evidence dates from the 7th century Saxons. Shrewsbury was probably founded as a town in the 8th century by the Saxon rulers of Mercia, who needed a fortified burh to control the Severn river-crossing on the road between the burhs of Hereford and