The Era of the Beautiful Black-and-White Buildings of Shrewsbury - Part 16 - The Story Of Shrewsbury

During the 160 peaceful years, which began 1485, when Henry Tudor took control, Shrewsbury became a beautiful town.

It was during this period that the many successful cloth-merchants and wool-merchants, lived their prosperous lives. They built wonderful wood-frame buildings many of which survive to this day.

These were people like the Owens and the Irelands.

They built the wealth of black-and-white buildings for which Shrewsbury is now famous.

Watch our video to see these lovely old Shrewsbury merchants buildings, but when done, please do come back here, and scroll down to read more and comment on what you thought about our video:

The finest of these timber-framed houses is Ireland's Mansion, as seen here. (Ireland Mansion, Shrewsbury. A view up the High Street from Pride Hill.)

An imposing building, four stories high and finished with gables, dates from the 1570s.

On the left opposite the market square is another large half-timbered house.

The old market-hall of 1595 in the Square, remains another notable feature of the town, with its open arcades and an upper floor where, until not so long ago, the town's magistrates sat.

In Elizabethan times, the corn-market was held at ground level.

Built to replace an older building on the same site, it seems to be an early example of pre-fabrication, as it was reputedly built quite rapidly.

The stone-work and timber-framing was set up in less than four months.

Here is a selection of Shrewsbury's other black and white buildings...

These lovely buildings are just some of the remaining examples. There would have been many more in those days, before the 1960s.

Text based upon "The Story of Shrewsbury", by Richard Graves, Hardwick House, Ellesmere 1993.

Bye for now, but watch out for Part 17: Shrewsbury School starts and handsome Stone Buildings!