Welcome to the Berkshire portal
Berkshire (/ˈbɑːrkʃɪər, -ʃər/ ⓘ BARK-sheer, -shər; abbreviated Berks.), officially the Royal County of Berkshire, is a ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Oxfordshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the north-east, Greater London to the east, Surrey to the south-east, Hampshire to the south, and Wiltshire to the west. Reading is the largest settlement and the county town.
The county has an area of 1,263 km2 (488 sq mi) and a population of 911,403. The population is concentrated in the east, the area closest to Greater London, which includes the county's largest towns: Reading (174,224), Slough (164,793), Bracknell (113,205), and Maidenhead (70,374). The west is rural, and its largest town is Newbury (33,841). For local government purposes Berkshire comprises six unitary authority areas: Bracknell Forest, Reading, Slough, West Berkshire, Windsor and Maidenhead, and Wokingham. The historic county included the parts of Oxfordshire south of the River Thames, which formed its northern border, but excluded Caversham and Slough.
The Berkshire Downs, a chalk downland and area of outstanding natural beauty, occupy the west of the county. They are the source of the River Kennet, which flows east through Newbury before meeting the Thames at Reading. The Thames then forms Berkshire's northern border, flowing past Maidenhead, before entering the county and flowing past Slough and Windsor. The south-east of the county contains Swinley Forest, a remnant of Windsor Forest now used as a forestry plantation.
There is evidence of prehistoric settlement on the Berkshire Downs, including the Iron Age Uffington White Horse, now in Oxfordshire. In the Anglo-Saxon period the region was contested by Mercia and Wessex, and Alfred the Great was born in Wantage, also now in Oxfordshire. Windsor Castle, which would become the official country residence of the British monarch, was built after the Norman Conquest. The county has been the site of several battles, particularly during the First English Civil War, when Reading and Wallingford were besieged two battles took place at Newbury, in 1643 and 1644. The proximity of the east of the county to London led to development from the nineteenth century, when Slough became an industrial centre and Bracknell was designated a new town. Software development and high-tech industry dominate the economy in the east, but the west remains an agricultural region. (Full article...)
Selected article
The Fat Duck is a fine dining restaurant in Bray, Berkshire, England, owned by the chef Heston Blumenthal. Housed in a 16th-century building, the Fat Duck opened on 16 August 1995. Although it originally served food similar to a French bistro, it soon acquired a reputation for precision and innovation, and has been at the forefront of many modern culinary developments, such as food pairing, flavour encapsulation and multi-sensory cooking.
The number of staff in the kitchen increased from four when the Fat Duck first opened to 42, resulting in a ratio of one kitchen staff member per customer. The Fat Duck gained its first Michelin star in 1999, its second in 2002 and its third in 2004, making it one of eight restaurants in the United Kingdom to earn three Michelin stars. In 2005, the World's 50 Best Restaurants named the Fat Duck the best restaurant in the world. It lost its stars in 2016 when it closed for renovation, but regained all three the following year.
The Fat Duck is known for its tasting menu featuring dishes such as nitro-scrambled egg and bacon ice cream, an Alice in Wonderland-inspired mock turtle soup involving a bouillon packet made up to look like a fob watch dissolved in tea, and a dish called Sound of the Sea which includes an audio element. It has an associated laboratory where Blumenthal and his team develop new dish concepts. In 2009, the Fat Duck suffered from the largest norovirus outbreak ever documented at a restaurant, with more than 400 diners falling ill. (Full article...)
Selected biography
Carole Elizabeth Middleton (née Goldsmith; born 31 January 1955) is a British businesswoman. She is the mother of Catherine, Princess of Wales, Philippa Matthews, and James Middleton.
Born in Perivale and brought up in Southall, London, Middleton was educated at Featherstone High School before working as a private secretary. She joined British Airways and worked as a flight attendant until her marriage to Michael Middleton, a member of the Middleton family. Middleton founded Party Pieces, a mail order party supply company, in 1987. Her first three grandchildren, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis, are second, third, and fourth in line to the British throne respectively. The Middleton family resides at Bucklebury Manor, in Berkshire. (Full article...)
Topics
History: Battle of Reading (871) • Battle of Reading (1688) • First Battle of Newbury • Second Battle of Newbury • Siege of Reading
Geography: River Thames • Swinley Forest • The Ridgeway • Walbury Hill • Windsor Great Park
Towns: Ascot • Bracknell • Crowthorne • Earley • Eton • Hungerford • Maidenhead • Newbury • Reading • Sandhurst • Slough • Thatcham • Windsor • Wokingham • Woodley
Politics: Parliamentary constituencies • Parliamentary representation
Culture: Henley Royal Regatta • Museum of English Rural Life • Reading festival • Windsor Castle
Selected pictures
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Windsor Castle Upper Ward Quadrangle (from Portal:Berkshire/Selected pictures) -
A view of Newbury, Berkshire and its surroundings (from Portal:Berkshire/Selected pictures) -
Windsor Castle, viewed from the Long Walk (from Portal:Berkshire/Selected pictures) -
Reading Festival in 2007 (from Portal:Berkshire/Selected pictures) -
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Donnington Castle in Berkshire (from Portal:Berkshire/Selected pictures) -
The grandstand at Ascot Racecourse (from Portal:Berkshire/Selected pictures) -
Slough Trading Estate plays a major part in making Slough an important business centre in South East England (from Portal:Berkshire/Selected pictures) -
Large red damselfly in Swinley Forest, Berkshire (from Portal:Berkshire/Selected pictures) -
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Virginia Water Lake on the southern edge of Windsor Great Park (from Portal:Berkshire/Selected pictures)
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Did you know
- ... that today's funeral procession of Elizabeth II to Windsor Castle started at the gate to Shaw Farm?
- ... that three gasholders at the Windsor Street Gasworks were painted in the claret and blue colours of local football team Aston Villa?
- ... that Herbert James Gunn used a paper cut-out of Princess Elizabeth's corgi dog to help him paint his Conversation Piece at the Royal Lodge, Windsor?
- ... that comic book artist Barry Windsor-Smith wrote, drew, inked, and lettered every page of his graphic novel Monsters by himself?
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