Berkshire

Berkshire, a midland county of England, bounded N. by Gloucester, Oxford, and Bucks, E. by Oxford and Bucks, SE. by Surrey, S. by Hampshire, and W. by Wiltshire. Its greatest length is 53 miles; its greatest breadth is 30; and the area is 705 sq. m., or 451,210 acres, nearly one-half of which is under tillage, one-fourth in pasture, and one-sixteenth in wood. Berkshire, which is one of the most beautiful of the English counties, lies in the valley of the Thames, and has an undulating surface, rising in some parts into hills. Solid chalk underlies the whole area. A range of chalk-hills, or downs, connected with the Chilterns on the east and the Marlborough Downs on the west, crosses the county into Wiltshire, from Reading to Wallingford, attaining at White Horse Hill (so called from the gigantic figure of a horse rudely defined in the chalk—a relic of ancient times) a height of 893 feet. Between this range—the west part of which is occupied by sheep-walks—and a smaller oolitic one skirting the valley of the Thames, is the Vale of the White Horse, the richest part of the county, and drained by the Ock. To the south of the Downs is the fertile Vale of Kennet, drained by the river of that name, and its feeder, the Lambourn. To the east is the forest district, comprising Windsor Forest, part of Bagshot Heath, &c. The forest chiefly consists of hazel, oak, beech, ash, and alder. The Thames skirts the whole north border of the county, winding through a course of 100 miles, but in a direct line only 52, and navigable nearly the whole way. It is the chief river of Berkshire, the other rivers of the county being its tributaries; of which the chief are the Kennet, Leddon, and Ock. The Kennet is navigable for 30 miles. The climate of Berkshire is very healthy, being mild in the valleys, and bracing on the high lands. The soil varies greatly; in the valleys it is generally a fertile loam, with a subsoil of chalk, gravel, or clay. The country between the valleys of Kennet and the White Horse consists chiefly of sheep-walks; and along the Thames, and to the west of the Ridge Way, or Downs, it is chiefly dairy and pasture land. The chief crops are oats and wheat. 'Double Gloucester' and 'pine-apple' cheese are sent in large quantities to London. Swine are extensively reared, especially near Faringdon, the breed being one of the best in England. Property is very much divided, and the number of gentlemen's seats is very great. The farms are generally of moderate size. The county is traversed by the Great Western Railway and its branch lines, and by two canals. Berkshire is divided into 20 hundreds, 151 parishes, and 12 poor-law unions. It returns five members to parliament, one for each of the three divisions (Abingdon, Newbury, Wokingham), one for Reading (the county town), and one for Windsor. Till the Seats Act of 1855, the boroughs of Wallingford and Abingdon also elected members. The county contains besides, the municipal boroughs of Newbury and Maidenhead, and the market-towns of Faringdon, Hungerford, Wantage, Wokingham, East Isley, and Lambourn. The chief manufactures are noticed under READING. The British and Roman remains are numerous, including Roman roads, and many camps and barrows. Of the old castles, the principal is Windsor; of monastic establishments, the abbeys of Abingdon and Reading. The churches are small, and from the scarcity of building-stone, are often constructed of chalk and flint. There are many Norman churches, erected in the 12th and 13th centuries. In 1836 Berkshire was transferred from the diocese of Salisbury to that of Oxford. Pop. (1801) 110,480; (1841) 161,759; (1881) 218,363; (1891) 238,446. See Lieut.-col. Cooper-King's History of Berkshire (1887).