History of Cambridge

Cambridge played a significant role in the early part of the English Civil War as it was the headquarters of the Eastern Counties Association, an organisation administering a regional East Anglian army, which became the mainstay of the Parliamentarian military effort prior to the formation of the New Model Army. In 1643 control of the town was given by Parliament to Oliver Cromwell, who had been educated at the University's Sidney Sussex College. The town's castle was fortified, with troops garrisoned there and some bridges destroyed to aid the defence. Although Royalist forces came within 2 miles (3 km) of the town in 1644, the defences were never used and the garrison was stood down the following year.

In the 19th century, in common with many other English towns, Cambridge expanded rapidly. This was due in part to increased life expectancy and also improved agricultural production leading to increased trade in town markets. Inclosure Acts of 1801 and 1807 enabled expansion of the town over surrounding open fields and eventually in 1912 and again in 1935 the boundaries were extended to include areas such as Chesterton, Cherry Hinton, Fen Ditton, Trumpington, and Grantchester.

The railway came to Cambridge in 1845 after initially being resisted, with the opening of the Great Eastern London to Norwich line. The station was placed outside the town centre following pressure from the University, who restricted travel by undergraduates. With the arrival of the railway and its associated employment came expansion of the areas around the station, such as Romsey Town. The train link to London stimulated heavier industries, such as the production of brick, cement and malt.

20th century

From the 1930s to the 1980s, the size of the city was increased by several large council estates. The biggest impact has