Devizes () is a market town and civil parish in Wiltshire, England. It developed around Devizes Castle, an 11th-century Norman castle, and received a charter in 1141. The castle was besieged during the Anarchy, a 12th-century civil war between Stephen of England and Empress Matilda, and again during the English Civil War when the Cavaliers lifted the siege at the Battle of Roundway Down. Devizes remained under Royalist control until 1645, when Oliver Cromwell attacked and forced the Royalists to surrender. The castle was destroyed in 1648 on the orders of Parliament, and today little remains of it.
From the 16th century Devizes became known for its textiles, and by the early 18th century it held the largest corn market in the West Country, constructing the Corn Exchange in 1857. In the 18th century, brewing, curing of tobacco, and snuff-making were established. The Wadworth Brewery was founded in the town in 1875.
Standing at the west edge of the Vale of Pewsey, the town is about southeast of Chippenham and north-east of the county town of Trowbridge. It has nearly five hundred listed buildings, some notable churches, a town hall and a green in the centre.
History
Devizes Castle was built by Osmund, Bishop of Salisbury in 1080, but the town is not mentioned in the Domesday Book. Because the castle was on the boundaries of the manors of Rowde, Bishops Cannings and Potterne it became known as the castrum ad divisas ("the castle at the boundaries"), hence the name Devizes. On John Speed's map of Wiltshire (1611), the town's name is recorded as The Devyses. The first castle on the site was of the motte and bailey form and was probably made of wood and earth, but this burnt down in 1113.
A new castle was built in stone by Roger of Salisbury, Osmund's successor. Devizes received its first charter in 1141, permitting regular markets. The castle changed hands several times during the Anarchy, a civil war between Stephen of Blois and Matilda in the 12th century. The castle held important prisoners, including (from 1106) Robert Curthose, eldest son of William the Conqueror.
The town has had churches since the 12th century and today has four Church of England parish churches.
During the 12th and 13th centuries, the town of Devizes developed outside the castle with craftsmen and traders setting up businesses to serve the residents of the castle. The first known market in Devizes was in 1228. The original market was in the large space outside St Mary's Church, rather than in the current Market Place, which at that time would have been within the castle's outer bailey. The chief products in the 16th and early 17th centuries were wheat, wool and yarn, with cheese, bacon and butter increasing in importance later.
In 1643, during the English Civil War, Parliamentary forces under Sir William Waller besieged Royalist forces under Sir Ralph Hopton in Devizes. The siege was lifted by a relief force from Oxford under Henry Wilmot, 1st Earl of Rochester, and Waller's forces were almost totally destroyed at the Battle of Roundway Down. Devizes remained under Royalist control until 1645, when Oliver Cromwell attacked and forced the Royalists to surrender. The castle was destroyed in 1648 on the orders of Parliament, a process known as slighting, and today little remains of it; almost all of the present structure is from the 19th century.
From the 16th century, Devizes became known for its textiles: initially white woollen broadcloth but later the manufacture of serge, drugget, felt, and cassimere or Zephyr cloth. In the mid 18th century, Devizes held the largest corn market in the West Country of England and also traded hops, cattle, horses and various types of cloth. Before the Corn Exchange was built in 1857, the trade in wheat and barley was conducted in the open, with sacks piled around the market cross. The cross erected in 1814 displays the tale of a woman, Ruth Pierce, who dropped dead suddenly after being discovered cheating.
Prosperous wool merchants built town houses in St. John's and Long Street, and around the market place. From the end of the 18th century the manufacture of textiles declined, but other trades in the town included clock-making, a bell foundry, booksellers, milliners, grocers and silversmiths. In the 18th, century brewing, curing of tobacco and snuff-making were established in the town. Brewing survives in the Wadworth Brewery, but the tobacco and snuff trades have now died out.
The pond known as The Crammer, east of the town centre, is claimed to be site of the 18th-century Moonrakers story which led to a colloquial name for Wiltshire people.