Bradford (Bradauford, Bradeford) was the site of a battle in 652 between Kenwal and his kinsman Cuthred. A monastery existed here in the 8th century, of which St Aldhelm was abbot at the time of his being made bishop of Sherborne in A.D. 705. In 1001 Æthelred gave this monastery and the town of Bradford to the nunnery of Shaftesbury, in order that the nuns might have a safe refuge against the insults of the Danes. No mention of the monastery occurs after the Conquest, but the nunnery of Shaftesbury retained the lordship of the manor until the dissolution in the reign of Henry VIII. In a synod held here in 954, Dunstan was elected bishop of Winchester. Bradford appears as a borough in the Domesday survey, and is there assessed at 42 hides. No charter of incorporation is recorded, however, and after returning two members to the parliament of 1295 the town does not appear to have enjoyed any of the privileges of a borough. The market is of ancient origin, and was formerly held on Monday; in the survey the tolls are assessed at 45 shillings. Bradford was at one time the centre of the clothing industry in the west of England, and was especially famous for its broadcloths and mixtures, the waters of the Avon being especially favourable to the production of good colours and superior dyes. The industry declined in the 18th century, and in 1740 we find the woollen merchants of Bradford petitioning for an act of parliament to improve their trade and so re-establish their credit in foreign markets.