Fine Photographs of Chester and Liverpool at the Black & White Picture Place
Beautiful handmade prints- hundreds of subjects. Click on the bandstand to find out more
Fine Photographs of Chester and Liverpool at the Black & White Picture Place Beautiful handmade prints- hundreds of subjects. Click on the bandstand to find out more |
 Northgate part III |
A Virtual Stroll Around the Walls of Chester 2. The North Wall
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|
ere
is
the
view,
as
seen
on
a particularly
snowy
day
as
we
leave
the
Northgate
and
proceed
along
the
North
Wall
with
the
Shropshire
Union
Canal
running
far
below
us.
This
section
is,
in
my
view,
the
most
spectacular
and
evocative
of
the
entire
circuit.
Roman
Wall
As
you
look
out
from
the
parapet,
you
will
often
observe
people
standing
on
the
bridge
immediately
outside
the
Northgate,
peering
through
the
railings
at
the
spectacular
masonry
of
the
North
Wall
and
the
canal
running
far
below. You
should
take
the
trouble
to
join
them
before
we
move
on-
especially
in
Springtime,
when
the
entire
length
of
the
wall
base
is
covered
with
a
mass
of
daffodils.
A
stroll
along
the
newly-resurfaced
canal
towpath
below
is
also
highly
recommended
at
some
time
during
your
visit-
access
is
through
an
archway
in
the
wall
close
to
Morgan's
Mount
or
via
the
wooden
steps
near
the
Kaleyard
Gate.
The
masonry
immediately
below
the
parapet-
best
viewed
from
the
aforementioned
bridge
or
from
the
towpath-
deserves
your
close
attention
as
it
is
the
finest
surviving
stretch
of
actual
Roman
stonework
in
the
entire
circuit;
laid
in
place,
amazingly,
around
sixteen
hundred
years
ago- c. 90 to 120 AD-
and
bearing
witness
to
the
skill
of
the
Legionary
engineers
in
utilising
only
the
best
available
stone
in
the
construction
of
their
defences.
Much
of
this
material
for
the
fortress
was
labouriously
transported
from
a
large
quarry
on
the
far
side
of
the
River
Dee,
today
a
park
known
as
Edgar's
Field
which
supplied
fine
building
stone
throughout
the
Roman
occupation
and
after.
Doubtless,
additional
supplies
of
building
stone
also
came
from
sources
nearer
to
hand,
such
as
that
excavated
during
the
construction
of
the
deep
defensive
ditch
or
fosse
which
we
see
before
us
carrying
the
canal.
(Much
later,
in
1711,
there
was
a
mention
of
a "quarry
near
the Phoenix
Tower" and
the
site
of
another
small
local
quarry,
known
as
the Abbey
Quarry
still
exists
just
behind
the
buildings
on
the
far
side
of
Abbey
Green
and
is
today
utilised
for
car
parking)
Excavated
at
the
base
of
the
natural
sandstone
escarpment,
this
fosse,
during
the
centuries
of
Roman
occupation
would
have
been
carefully
kept
clear
of
any
debris
and
vegetation
by
which
a
potential
enemy
might
gain
cover
or
even
a
handhold
to
assist
in
scaling
the
wall.
Maintainance
ceased
with
the
withdrawal
of
the
Legions,
and
subsequent
natural
erosion,
as
well
as-
in
those
less-than-scrupulous
times-
domestic
waste
of
all
kinds
being
disposed
of
by
simply
being
thrown
over
the
wall,
over
the
course
of
centuries
resulted
in
the
fosse
filling
up
and
virtually
disapearing.
By
the
13th
century,
the
section
below
us
was
occupied
by
a
low-lying,
unsavoury
sounding
thoroughfare
by
the
name
of
Boggelone
(Bog
Lane)
which
ran
parallel
with
the
wall
immediately
outside
the
Northgate.
At
the
commencement
of
the
Baron's
War
in
1264,
between
Henry
III
and
his
barons,
led
by
Simon
de
Montfort,
steps
were
taken
to
put
the
city
into
a
state
of
defence,
much
to
the
distress
of
the
monks
of
Chester
Abbey-
partly
due
to
the
fact
that
they
sympathised
(but
not
too
openly)
with
De
Montford,
but
also
because
they
owned
houses
in
Bog
Lane,
which
were
demolished
when
the
old
Roman
defences
were
re-excavated.
The
restored
defensive
ditch
also
prevented
access
to
the
monk's
vegetable
gardens
outside
the
East
Wall,
the
Kaleyards,
and
later "It
was
ordered
that
a
drawbridge
should
be
put
across
the
fosse
at
the
Kaleyard
Gate".
These
precautions
did
not
prevent
the
city
being
briefly
captured
soon
after
by
the
Earl
of
Derby,
but
the
monks
eventually
got
their
revenge,
as
he
was
afterwards, "Imprisoned
for
a
long
time
in
the
Tower
of
London,
on
account
of
his
many
excesses
of
authority,
and
especially
on
account
of
the
injuries
done
by
him
to
ecclesiastics".
After
the
restoration
of
peace,
the
old
fosse
presumably
resumed
its
ancient
role
as
town
dump
and,
though
it
is
shown
on
Braun's
map
of
1573,
it
evidently
filled
up
again
and
by
the
start
of
the
17th
century
part
of
it
was
being
used
as
a
pinfold-
a
place
to
confine
straying
animals.
Civil
War
There
was
even
less
evidence
of
a
ditch
here
later
in
the
17th
century,
during
the
Civil
War
Siege
of
Chester,
when
there
was
a
danger
of
this
stretch
of
wall
being
breached
by
cannon
and
mortar
fire,
allowing
access
to
the
Parliamentary
attackers.
Great
piles
of
earth
were
raised
against
the
insides
of
the
wall
to
prevent
this-
although
the
defenders
may
only
have
had
to
reinforce
the
existing
embankments
surviving
from
the
remains
of
the
Roman
turf
ramparts
which
preceded
the
erection
of
permanent
stone
walls.
These
old
earthworks,
now
planted
with
trees,
remain
clearly
visible
around
the
edge
of
the
Deanery
Field
to
this
day.
You
can
gain
access
to
this
field,
a
very
pleasant
spot,
by
going
down
the
steps
into
Rufus
Court
and
turning
left
along
Abbey
Green.
We
are
grateful
to
correspondant
Richard
Edkins
for
the
following:
"During
the
1970s
I
served
as
voluntary
assistant
to
the
Museum
photographer,
Tom
Ward,
during
the
Abbey
Green
section
of
the
North
Wall
excavations.
If
you
examine
the
site
report,
you
will
find
that
the
Civil
War
entrenchments
were
dug
through
the
Roman
turf
and
timber
backing
mound
of
the
Wall.
The
mural
buildings
built
into
the
mound
included
well-preserved
Roman
baking
ovens
and
storehouses,
partly
destroyed
by
Civil
War
entrenchments
and
by
the
1940s
excavations
of
Professor
Robert
Newstead.
The
grim
reality
of
warfare
was
shown
by
large
numbers
of
flattened
and
spent
musket
balls
embedded
in
the
back
of
the
Civil
War
trench.
If
my
memory
serves
me
correctly,
the
attack
was
at
dawn
on
7th
July
1644,
and
was
successfully
beaten
off".
In
1995,
shards
of
pottery
found
here
and
assumed
to
be
of
Iron
Age
origin,
were
identified
by
the
British
Museum
as
actually
being
Neolithic
(c.
3500-1700BC)
making
them
the
first
examples
of
pottery
of
this
period
known
from
Cheshire,
and
a
graphic
illustration
of
the
great
antiquity
of
human
occupation
of
this
site.
More
prehistoric
artefacts
came
to
light
during
at
Chester's
Roman
amphitheatre
in
the
Summer
of
2000,
when,
during
an
excavation
led
by
archaeologist
Keith
Matthews,
a
volunteer
discovered
a
Neolithic
flint
blade
dating
from
around
4000BC,
and
later
an
arrow
or
spear
point
from
around
4500BC
came
to
light-
a
period
before
widespread
farming
when
hunters
roamed
the
land
in
search
of
deer
and
wild
boar.
Roman
Memorials
During
repairs
to
the
North
Wall
near
to
Morgan's
Mount
in
1883,
the
workmen
were
surprised
to
discover
large
quantities
of
sculpted
and
inscribed
stones
packed
into
the
wall's
interior.
When,
four
years
later,
in
1887,
further
repairs
were
carried
out
in
the
vicinity
of
the
Deanery
Field,
a
great
many
similar
finds
were
made
When
it
was
realised
these
were
Roman,
a
systematic
investigation
was
commenced
and,
by
the
end
of
1892,
over
two
hundred
complete
or
fragmentary
pieces
had
been
recovered.
Most
of
these
were
tombstones
which
seem
to
have
been
taken
from
a
nearby
cemetery
situated
outside
the
fortress.
Burials
were
not
allowed
(but
did
occasionally
occur)
within
Roman
forts
and
cemeteries
were
commonly
located
in
prominent
positions
on
either
side
of
the
approach
roads.
Generations
of
soldiers
had
been
buried
there
and
the
tombstones
recorded
the
names,
ranks
and
sometimes
portraits
of
these
deceased
warriors
and
members
of
their
families,
and
commonly
included
a
carving
of
a
wild
boar,
the
symbol
of
the
XXth
Legion.
They
range
in
date
from
around
70AD
to
the
early
third
century
and
represent
every
type
of
citzen:
soldiers
and
civilians,
men
and
women,
young
and
old-
from
France,
Spain,
Italy,
Slovenia
and
Turkey.
Illustrated
is
a
typical
memorial
stone
from
the
North
Wall.
It
measures
50
inches
high
by
25
inches
wide
and
contains
a
full-length
portrait
of
the
deceased,
under
which
is
inscribed: "To
the
memory
of
Caecilius
Avitus
of
Emerita
Augusta, Optio of
the
Twentieth
Legion,
who
served
for
fifteen
years
and
lived
thirty
four
years.
His
heir
had
this
erected."
It
remains
a
mystery
why-
and
by
whom-
these
stones
came
to
be
placed
in
the
wall.
Despite
the
respect
the
Romans
had
for
their
dead,
it
seems
they
were
no
sentimentalists-
they
had
lived
and
died
for
the
Empire
and
now
their
tombstones
would
contribute
further
to
its
defence.
Whatever
the
cause,
for
us
at
least
it
was
a
fortunate
event,
for
the
stones
have
remained
fresh
and
unweathered
over
the
centuries
and
are
now
proudly
displayed
in
their
own
room
at
the
Grosvenor
Museum-
one
of
the
most
important
collections
of
Roman
inscriptions
and
sculpture
in
north-west
Europe.
We
highly
recommend
you
take
the
time
to
go
and
see
them,
together
with
the
superb
mural
by
Chester-based
artist
Gregory
Macmillan
which
depicts
the
great
fortress
of
Deva
and
the
people
from
all
parts
of
the
Roman
Empire
who
once
lived
within
the
shelter
of
its
walls.
This
photograph
shows
the
North
Wall
from
the
far
side
of
the
canal.
Clearly
visible
is
the
face
of
the
Triassic
sandstone
outcrop
upon
which
Chester
sits-
liberally
decorated
by
a
mass
of
spring
daffodils
and
topped
by
the
splendid
Roman
wall
and
Thomas
Harrison's
Classical
Northgate. Compare
this
with
Moses
Griffith's
view
in
the
previous
chapter.
From
1307,
Chester
collected
revenue
for
the
maintainance
of
its
walls
and
other
defences
by
exacting
a
toll
known
as
murage
on
all
goods
entering
the
town
that
could
not
be
carried
by
hand.
For
this
purpose,
tollhouses
were
erected
outside
the
gates
and
the
small
building
you
can
see
on
the
right
of
the
Northgate
in
this
picture
is
the
city's
only
surviving
example,
though
much
altered
and
long
since
converted
to
a
private
residence.
If
someone
refused
to
pay
the
toll,
the
gatekeeper
had
the
right
to
take
the
bridle
off
his
horse.
The
last
time
this
happened,
the
horse
bolted
and
ran
amok-
an
incident
that
contributed
to
the
eventual
ending
of
the
practice.
Murage
was
also
charged
on
goods
entering
the
Port
of
Chester.
At
the
end
of
the
18th
century,
a
duty
of
twopence
was
charged
on
every
100
yards
of
Irish
linen
imported.
In
1786,
about
five
and
a
half
million
yards
entered
the
port,
excluding
that
destined
for
Liverpool,
which
also
paid
duty
to
Chester.
The
tolls
were
eventually
abolished
in
1835.
October 2006: Something of an almighty row has recently broken out regarding the state of our precious walls as people started to notice a decline in their condition, including loose handrails and weeds- even small trees- growing from them. It's certainly the case that the nearby Morgan's Mount has, sadly, long been closed off from visitors for safety reasons. (the inexplicable and unforgivable closure of the Phoenix, Water and Bonewaldesthorne's Towers is another matter, however). It is alleged that vital maintainance work has not been carried out for some considerable time and the funds set aside for the purpose have instead been spent on other projects including planning for the eventual and much-needed restoration of Chester railway station and its surroundings (not its actual restoration you understand- merely the consultation work, production of plans, 'artist's impressions', PR and the like). Much hand-wringing has ensued- not to mention a great deal of accusation and name-calling between political parties- and a council working party have reported that, much as they wish it otherwise, there simply isn't enough money avilable to do the job properly and desperate appeals are now being made to central government to make up the shortfall.
For many centuries past, when keeping the walls in good order was seen as vital to the safety and well-being of the city, laws to ensure that all who did business here contributed to the cost of their upkeep were strictly enforced. Today, it remains equally vital- albeit for economic and cultural, rather than defensive reasons- that Chester's City Walls and Rows are maintained to the highest possible standards.
Is it not reasonable then, and especially in the face of likely government indifference, that the ancient practise of murage should be revived and that the numerous big business interests currently developing hotels, nightclubs, housing and retail complexes in and around our city, confident as they doubtless are of extracting large profits, should not, perhaps as a condition of their planning permission, to be compelled to do their bit and give a little back?
Fear mongering became reality a few months later, however, when the stretch of City Wall adjoing the Grosvenor Precinct was actually closed to the public. It seemed that a section of 18th century brick wall started to signs of collapse. It once formed the rear wall of an 18th stable block and was which unaccountably allowed to remain in place when this was demolished to make way for the precinct. The walkway remained closed to the public for several months until, with reassurances that all was well, reopening. But much more serious trouble was to follow a few months later, in April 2008. Work had recently started on removing the troublesome brick wall when a great stretch of the ancient City Wall itself collapsed onto the recently-erected scaffolding! The entire stretch has now been sealed off and it will now, sadly, remain closed for the forseeable future.
It seems that the 'scaremongers' were right all along. Go here for the latest...
Extensive
repairs
were
carried
out
on
the
wall
between
the
Northgate
and
the
Phoenix
Tower
during
the
severe
winter
of
1981-82.
This
necessitated
the
erection
of
scaffolding
from
the
canal
towpath
some
fifty
feet
below
and
the
masons
working
in
this
exposed
position
compared
conditions
to
the "north
face
of
the
Eiger"...
The
Coming
of
the
Canal
In
the
middle
of
the
18th
century,
the
canal
builders
came
to
Chester
and
it
was
decided
that
its
course
of
their
new
cut
should
run
outside,
and
parallel
with
the
line
of
the
North
Wall.
The
contractors,
expecting
to
have
to
cut
through
solid
rock,
were
surprised
and
pleased
to
encounter
the
long-forgotten
Roman
fosse,
having
estimated,
and
been
paid
for,
a
much
longer
and
more
difficult
excavation.
As
it
was,
the
job
cost £80,000
and
was
completed
in
1779.
We
will
hear
more
of
the
opening
of
Chester's
canal
shortly,
when
we
reach
the Kaleyard
Gate.
Right: the rich mixture of architectural styles- 18th C cottages, 19th C school, chapel, pub (the excellent Ship Victory), 1960s tower blocks and car parks- visible as we reach the northeast corner of the city walls.
The
towpath
alongside
the
canal
was
was
for
long
exceedingly
poorly
maintained
and
as
a
result
was
frequently
waterlogged
and
muddy,
giving
rise
to
numerous
complaints
from
users.
Despite
all
manner
of
excuses
from
British
Waterways,
a
much-needed
restoration has finally
been
completed
and
it
is
now
a
delight
to
cycle
and
walk
upon.
The
section
that
passes
under
the Phoenix
Tower and
the
old
sandstone
arch
outside
the Northgate is
quite
spectacular
and
well
worth
investigating.
Chester
is
a
popular
centre
for
canal
holidays
and
in
the
summer
months,
as
you
look
down
from
the
wall,
you
will
see
many
craft
passing
by,
on
their
way
into
rural
Cheshire
or
via
the
spectacular
Llangollen
Canal
into
North
Wales.
Once,
however,
these
canals
were
the
motorways
of
their
day
and
Chester
was
an
important
junction
and
distribution
centre
in
the
system.
From
the
last
quarter
of
the
Eighteenth
Century
to
the
end
of
the
Second
World
War,
generations
of
horse-drawn
working
craft
would
have
passed
this
way,
which
not
only
carried
all
manner
of
heavy
goods,
but
were
also
homes
to
the
bargees
and
their
often-large
families.
Where
the
canal
turns
the
corner
under
the
Phoenix
Tower,
you
can
still
clearly
see
where
their
towropes
have
worn
deep
grooves
into
the
sandstone.
We
will
learn
more
of
Chester's
canals
when
we
visit Tower
Wharf,
later
in
out
stroll.
As
we
proceed
further
along
the
wall,
on
the
right
and
behind
Rufus
Court,
we
see
the
pleasant
garden
area
known
as Abbey
Green,
behind
which
are
some
fine
18th
century
houses,
and
in
the
background
rises
the
tower
of
the Town
Hall.
The
bases
of
two
vanished
Roman
interval
towers
lie
under
the
grass
at
our
feet.
The
bricked-up
doorway
on
the
wall
to
our
right
was
built
in
1768
by
Thomas
Boswell
as
an
entrance
to
Abbey
Green
and
a
long-vanished bowling
green
built
on
the
Abbey
orchard.
A contributor to the Cheshire Sheaf from February 1913 wrote the following, "people familiar with the walls of Chester between King Charles' Tower and the Northgate will, no doubt, have noticed a door, set in a frame of brickwork, and opening upon steps leading to the quiet cul-de-sac known as Abbey Green.
The little group of houses bearing this adress, with their cobbled approaches, their frontages of mellowed brick and regular rows of windows, although possessing no great individuality, are of a certain interest by reason of their air of solid comfort and respectability, and on account of the rapid rate at which dwelling houses of this period are being deserted for those of a more recent type, which, if they offer a greater variety to the eye, cannot, in many instances, compare with the former as regards material and workmanship.
The doorway was apparently made as a result of a petition to the Mayor and Corporation enrolled in the Assembly Book under the date 30 September 1768. In it Thomas Boswell stated that he had lately erected several houses on a piece of land between the Abbey Court and the Walls of the City, and was desirous of having a footway off the Walls to the said houses, but was prevented from having such way by a rail lately fixed to the Walls. He therefore prayed leave to cut off about a yard of the said rail so as to open a way as desired. An inspection was ordered and evidently the petitioner eventually received a favourable answer".
The local press of July 1817 informed its readers that, "Miss Marianne Briscoe, reflecting with gratitude upon the kind interest, favour and partronage which she has already experience in her Ladies' Boarding School in Abbey Green, Chester, hopes that her assiduous care to promote those mental, personal and religious acquirements which are of such infinite importance in the formation of the female character, will ensure for her establishment the encouragement and approbation of the public".
Immediately
after,
visible
across
the
larger
Deanery
Field
rises
the
bulk
of
Chester
Cathedral,
which
we
will
shortly
be
visiting.
Excavations
on
this
field
have
shown
that
this
section
of
the
Roman
fortress
was
largely
occupied
by
barrack
blocks-
over
sixty
of
which,
each
housing
a
century
of
eighty
men
and
a
centurion,
were
packed
within
the
walls. For
centuries
after
this
whole
area
was
occupied
by
gardens
and
cultivated
land,
remarkably
remaining
unbuilt
upon
to
this
day.
These
agricultural
areas
within
the
walls
were
a
common
feature
of
medieval
Chester,
but
today
the
Deanery
Field
is
perhaps
a
surprising
sight
in
such
a
small,
closely-packed
city
centre.
Long
may
it
remain
so.
Modern Times
Looking
outside
the
wall,
a
Primitive
Methodist
Chapel
formerly
stood
where
the
shabby-looking
Delamere
Street
Bus
Station
until very recently was located. Demolition of this bus station commenced during the late summer of 2005 and the site will be partially utilised as a car park as part of the massive- and very controversial- Northgate Redevelopment scheme and also for the erection of yet more 'luxury' apartments. By April 2008, work on excavating the ground was well advanced. Our photograph shows the fascinating sight of an ancient quarry face, exposed to view for the first time in centuries- and in the foreground, the fate awaiting it- to be smashed into rubble to make way for an underground car park.
More photographs of this area as it once was may be seen here.
Beyond
the building work,
on
the
site
now
occupied
by
Chester's
main
swimming
baths
and
indoor
sports
venue,
the
Northgate
Arena (illustrated above),
formerly
stood
the
old
Northgate
railway
station. Chester is not renowned for the quality of its 1960/70s architecture but to many, the Arena is an exception. Its interior may possibly be in need of some sprucing up and the building would benefit from an extension to provide extra sports and leisure facilities, but there is, in theory, ample room to allow for that. Encased in parts in maturing greenery and surrounded by trees, the Northgate Arena is a handsome building that does much to relieve the somewhat grim environment of the Inner Ring Road and its pools and other facilities are very good and extremely popular with local people.
A shame then that, in their wisdom, our planners have recently decided that, after a mere thirty years, the Arena is "out of date" and have proposed that its replacement should be sited well out of the city centre in the windswept wasteland of the Greyhound Retail Park. This writer's children are regular visitors to the Arena- and we don't need to drive them there. All that, of course, will change if this foolish plot comes about. The facts that the council 
apparently hatched a deal with a hotel chain for the site and with West Cheshire College- who wished to flog off their spacious green belt campus (doubtless a very attractive location for the speculative house builder) in Handbridge and, ludicrously, build a new one on the Arena's relatively cramped car park- were, of course, completely coincidental.
The college plot eventually, in a hail of criticism, came to nought but talk of relocating the Arena continue. Interestingly, in January 2008, it beat over 450 other entrants to be named the best leisure centre in the UK by the Association for Public Service Excellence (APSE).
The
large
open
space
outside
the
wall
at
this
point
has
for
centuries
been
known
by
the
curious
name
of Gorse
Stacks,
owing
to
part
of
it
at
one
time
being utilised
for
the
safe
storage
outside
the
walls
of
brushwood
and
suchlike
fuel
for
baker's
ovens.
Currently
an
unattractive
area
used
for
car
parking,
it
has
for
long
been
the
subject
of
much
local
debate.
Once
the
centre
of
a
thriving
commercial
district
centred
upon
the Cattle
Market,
which
was
demolished
in
the
1960s
to
make
way
for
a
traffic
island
on
the
Inner
Ring
Road,
it
is
generally
accepted
to
be
in
urgent
need
of
improvement.
Major
reports
in
1964
and
1968
recommended
the
area
be
redeveloped
and the
building
of
a
hotel
here
was
proposed,
but
not
acted
upon,
at
the
end
of
the
1980s.
Then,
in
1995,
it
was
proposed
to
enclose
the
entire
area
within
a
new Millennium
Wall,
within
which
would
be
created
a
landscaped
'cultural
quarter'
containing
galleries,
shops,
restaurants
and
the
like-
plus
a
new
public
square
and
open
air
market.
Some
of
the
'science
fiction-style'
artist's
impressions
of
the
time- see example above- gave
rise
to
considerable
local
criticism
and
no
little
hilarity.
Moreover,
it
was
estimated
that
the
project
would
cost
an
astonishing £118 million,
much
of
which
was
expected
to
come
from
the
private
sector
and
local
authorities,
but
over £60
million
was
applied
for
from
the
Millennium
Commission-
unsuccessfully, to nobody's great surprise.
Without
this
crucial
funding,
the
entire
project
foundered
and
no
mention
of
it
has
since
been
heard-
although,
independently
of
this,
an
organisation
by
the
name
of Chester
in
Concert has
tirelessly
campaigned
for
the
erection
of
a
purpose-built
concert
hall,
exhibition
and
arts
centre
on
Gorse
Stacks.
We may have thought the Millennium Wall was bonkers, but in the Spring of 2004 we first heard news of an even dottier plan hatched up by the city council and Dutch insurers/property developers ING (who are also undertaking the controversial Northgate Redevelopment) for the erection of a massive new glass and steel council headquarters building on Gorse Stacks. The proposed design, however, was, to say the least, unpopular, attracting a great deal of ridicule and has ever since been referred to- most appropriately, as our illustration shows- as the "Glass Slug". Prince Charles, the Earl of Chester, to the annoyance of those local politicians who thought erecting a thing like this in a historic city centre was a good idea, made it known that he thought the design was horrible too.
Soon afterwards, local elections were held. The Conservatives had pledged that, should they be elected, they would cancel the building. They did take control of the formerly LibDem/Labour controlled council, for the first time in many years- and they did cancel it.
But
now,
reaching
the
northeast
corner
of
the
city
walls,
we
see
rising
before
us
the
venerable
Phoenix
Tower...
Curiousities from Chester's History no. 3
Top
of
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Site
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Door
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Site
Index
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Chester
Stroll
Introduction
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Northgate
III
|
Phoenix
Tower
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