Aylesbury

Excavations in the town centre in 1985 found an Iron Age hillfort dating from the early 4th century BCE. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle portrays Aylesbury as being captured from the Britons by one Cuthwulf following the Battle of Bedcanford; the historicity of this event is doubtful, but the portrayal at least indicates that in the early Middle Ages the settlement was thought to be of some strategic importance. During the early medieval period, Aylesbury became a major market town and the burial place of Saint Osgyth, whose shrine attracted pilgrims. The town was a royal manor, with eight attached hundreds in 1086, and some historians have supposed that it was already a royal manor before the…

In the 18th century, selective breeding of white common ducks led to a white domestic duck, generally known as the English White. Since at least the 1690s, ducks had been farmed in Aylesbury and made the town known throughout England and beyond. They were bred and brought up by poor people, and sent to London by the weekly carriers. They went on to be known as the Aylesbury duck. ]] The duck business in the town went into decline in the 19th century. By the time Beatrix Potter's 1908 The Tale of Jemima Puddle-Duck caused renewed interest in the breed, the Aylesbury duck was in steep decline. The duckers of Buckinghamshire had generally failed to introduce technological improvements, such as…

in different guises; he debuted Ziggy Stardust in the town.]] A live music nightclub was prominent in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s; it wad renamed the Friars' Club in 1969. The venue hosted many of the top artists of the time, including Jimi Hendrix, the Rolling Stones, Cream, Otis Redding, the Clash, Hawkwind, Queen, Genesis, U2, David Bowie, Talking Heads, Marillion and the Ramones. Friars' Club celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2009 by holding three special concerts that reflected the various phases of the club's musical history. The first concert in June featured the Edgar Broughton Band, the Groundhogs and the Pretty Things. The rock band Marillion have a close association with…