The 800th anniversary of a market charter being granted to Cockermouth has been celebrated during a ceremony.
On May 19th 1221 King Henry III granted the manor of Cockermouth a charter to hold a Saturday market and on November 20 1221, a revised charter was issued for a Monday market.
The town no longer holds a market, although Allerdale council is exploring introducing new markets in the borough, including the Georgian town.
To celebrate the milestone, the Cockermouth Civic Trust organised an event whereby the Lord Lieutenant of Cumbria, Claire Hensman ceremonially handed over the market charter to the town once again.
The charter – now officially held by Allerdale Borough Council – was handed to Cockermouth mayor Julie Laidlow in Market Place after the town crier rang the market bell.
It is hoped that a number of events will be organised over the course of the year to further celebrate the anniversary.
Phil Campbell, chairman of the civic trust, said: “Cockermouth is known as a Georgian town because of the predominance of Georgian architecture in the town centre.
“However, the town’s history and town centre layout date from medieval times, following the building of our Norman castle.
“Cockermouth was granted a Royal Market Charter in its early history and we in the civic trust feel that the 800th anniversary is well worth celebrating, contributing to a sense of pride in our heritage.
“We have all just lived through a difficult year and we thought that having something to celebrate might help lift people’s spirits, so we hope that there will be more anniversary celebrations later in the year as the COVID restrictions are eased.”
The council is also planning this year’s Taste Cumbria event, scheduled to run in Cockermouth between September 24 and 26.
