The Romans arrived in the Leicester area around AD 47 and gave the town a forum and a bathhouse. King Richard III was buried here at the end of the Wars of the Roses, and his skeleton was found under a car park in 2012. Canals, railways and industry helped the town grow, and since the 1960s it has welcomed new arrivals from the Indian subcontinent, East Africa and Eastern Europe.
Oldest first
Newest first
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Stone, Bronze and Iron Ages
Before AD 43
Before AD 47
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The Corieltauvi
The Celtic tribe holding the area was later recorded as the 'Coritanians'. But an inscription found in 1983 showed that this was a mistake for their real name, the 'Corieltauvians'.
From the records: “The Celtic tribe holding the area was later recorded as the "Coritanians" but an inscription recovered in 1983 showed this to have been a corruption of the original "Corieltauvians".”
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Romans
AD 43 – 410
AD 47
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The Romans arrive
The Romans are believed to have arrived in the Leicester area around AD 47, during their conquest of southern Britain. In the 2nd century the town got a forum and a bathhouse.
From the records: “It is believed that the Romans arrived in the Leicester area around AD 47, during their conquest of southern Britain.”
About AD 300
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A Roman cemetery
In 2013 archaeologists announced the discovery of a Roman cemetery from about AD 300, just outside the old city walls.
From the records: “In 2013, the discovery of a Roman cemetery found just outside the old city walls and dating back to AD 300 was announced.”
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Anglo-Saxons and Vikings
410 – 1066
679 or 680
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Bishops and Vikings
Leicester became the seat of a bishop in 679 or 680. This lasted until the 800s, when Danish Vikings captured Leicester and the Saxon bishop fled to Dorchester-on-Thames.
From the records: “It was elevated to a bishopric in either 679 or 680; this see survived until the 9th century, when Leicester was captured by Danish Vikings.”
Early 900s
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Ligeraceaster
In the early 900s the settlement was recorded as Ligeraceaster. In the Domesday Book of 1086 it's Ledecestre.
From the records: “The settlement was recorded under the name Ligeraceaster in the early 10th century.”
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Middle Ages
1066 – 1485
About 1136
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King Leir
Around 1136 Geoffrey of Monmouth wrote his History of the Kings of Britain. Based on the town's Welsh name, Kaerleir, he named a King Leir as Leicester's founder.
From the records: “Geoffrey of Monmouth composed his History of the Kings of Britain around the year 1136, naming a King Leir as an eponymous founder figure.”
1251
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The first mayor
Leicester's first mayor, in 1251, was a Norman knight called Peter fitz Roger ('Peter, son of Roger'). In the 1300s the earls of Leicester and Lancaster raised the town's prestige.
From the records: “The first mayor of Leicester was a Norman knight, Peter fitz Roger ("Peter, son of Roger") in 1251.”
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Tudors and Stuarts
1485 – 1714
End of the Wars of the Roses
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A king's burial
King Richard III was buried in Leicester's Greyfriars Church, part of a Franciscan friary. The church was pulled down after the friary was closed in 1538, and its site was later covered by buildings and a car park.
From the records: “At the end of the War of the Roses, King Richard III was buried in Leicester's Greyfriars Church a Franciscan Friary and Church which was demolished after its dissolution in 1538.”
1603–1604
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A royal visit
After the Union of the Crowns, Anne of Denmark, Prince Henry and Princess Elizabeth travelled to Leicester on 24 June 1603, once a courtier was assured the town was free of plague. In August 1604 the royal party stayed in Leicester for three days.
From the records: “After the Union of the Crowns, Anne of Denmark, Prince Henry, and Princess Elizabeth travelled to Leicester on 24 June 1603, after the courtier and usher Thomas Conway was assured that the town was free from infection or plague.”
1645
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The siege of Leicester
In the English Civil War, Charles I and Prince Rupert attacked Leicester in 1645 to draw the New Model Army away from Oxford. The assault began at 3pm on 30 May. The town had about 2,000 defenders against a Royalist army of about 10,000, and it was sacked on 31 May. Hundreds of people were killed.
From the records: “In 1645, King Charles I of England and Prince Rupert decided to attack the (then) town to draw the New Model Army away from the Royalist (colloquially called Cavaliers) headquarters of Oxford.”
Mid-1600s
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Chapels for everyone
From the mid-1600s Leicester became a noted centre of Protestant Nonconformity. Baptists, Congregationalists, Quakers, Methodists and Unitarians all built places of worship in the town.
From the records: “From the mid 17th century Leicester became a noted centre for Protestant Nonconformity and many sects constructed places of worship in the city including the Baptists, the Congregationalists, the Quakers, the Methodists, and the Unitarians.”
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Georgians
1714 – 1837
1790s
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The Grand Union Canal
The Grand Union Canal, built in the 1790s, linked Leicester to London and Birmingham.
From the records: “The construction of the Grand Union Canal in the 1790s linked Leicester to London and Birmingham.”
1832
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The first railway
Leicester's first railway station opened in 1832, on the Leicester and Swannington Railway, which brought coal to the town from nearby collieries.
From the records: “The first railway station in Leicester opened in 1832, in the form of the Leicester and Swannington Railway which provided a supply of coal to the town from nearby collieries.”
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Victorians
1837 – 1901
1851–1881
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The Secular Society
The Leicester Secular Society was founded in 1851, but speakers such as George Holyoake were often refused the use of halls. Leicester Secular Hall finally opened in 1881.
From the records: “The Leicester Secular Society was founded in 1851 but secularist speakers such as George Holyoake were often denied the use of speaking halls.”
1853–1890s
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Water for the town
In 1853 the Leicester Waterworks Company built a reservoir at Thornton to supply the town with water. Another reservoir at Cropston followed in 1870, and one at Swithland in the 1890s.
From the records: “In 1853, backed with a guarantee of dividends by the Corporation of Leicester the Leicester Waterworks Company built a reservoir at Thornton for the supply of water to the town.”
1880s
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Walker's
Henry Walker, a successful pork butcher, moved from Mansfield to Leicester in the 1880s to take over a business on High Street. His shop sold Walker's sausages and pork pies until 2012, and the Walker's crisps business was sold to an American firm in 1971.
From the records: “Henry Walker was a successful pork butcher who moved from Mansfield to Leicester in the 1880s to take over an established business in High Street.”
1900
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The Great Central Railway
In 1900 the Great Central Railway gave Leicester another link to London.
From the records: “In 1900, the Great Central Railway provided another link to London, but the rapid population growth of the previous decades had already begun to slow by the time of Queen Victoria's death in 1901.”
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The World Wars
1901 – 1945
1919
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A city again
In 1919 Leicester was recognised as a city once more, for its part in the British war effort, and its mayor became the 'Lord Mayor'.
From the records: “Nonetheless, Leicester was finally recognised as a legal city once more in 1919 in recognition of its contribution to the British war effort.”
1925
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The Arch of Remembrance
After the First World War, a memorial arch, the Arch of Remembrance, was built in Victoria Park and unveiled in 1925. Gates and lodges by Lutyens were added in the 1930s.
From the records: “Following the end of the war, a memorial arch—the Arch of Remembrance—was built in Victoria Park and unveiled in 1925.”
1927
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Leicester Cathedral
In 1927 the parish church of St Martin became Leicester Cathedral, and Leicester had its own bishop again for the first time since the 800s.
From the records: “The Saxon bishop, meanwhile, fled to Dorchester-on-Thames and Leicester did not become a bishopric again until the parish church of St Martin became Leicester Cathedral in 1927.”
1936
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Second-richest in Europe
Leicester's mix of industries helped it through the hard times of the 1920s and 1930s. In 1936 the League of Nations named it the second-richest city in Europe, and it became a destination for refugees fleeing persecution in continental Europe.
From the records: “Leicester's diversified economic base and lack of dependence on primary industries meant it was much better placed than many other cities to weather the tariff wars of the 1920s and Great Depression of the 1930s.”
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Modern times
Since 1945
1957
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Universities
The University of Leicester received its Royal Charter in 1957. Leicester Polytechnic opened in 1969 and became De Montfort University in 1992.
From the records: “Leicester is home to two universities, the University of Leicester, which attained its Royal Charter in 1957 and was ranked 12th by the 2009 Complete University Guide, and De Montfort University, which opened in 1969 as Leicester Polytechnic and achieved university status in 1992.”
1960s–1970s
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New arrivals
From the 1960s people from the Indian subcontinent came to Leicester, joined in the early 1970s by Asians from Kenya and Uganda. In 1972 Idi Amin gave Uganda's whole Asian community 90 days to leave the country, and nearly a quarter of the first Ugandan refugees, around 5,000 to 6,000 people, settled in Leicester.
From the records: “Immigrants from the Indian sub-continent began to arrive in the 1960s, their numbers boosted by Asians arriving from Kenya and Uganda in the early 1970s.”
1987
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The first Asian mayor
In 1987 Councillor Gordhan Parmar became the first Asian Mayor of Leicester.
From the records: “Following the restoration of city status in 1919 this title was elevated to "Lord Mayor." In 1987 the first Asian Mayor of Leicester was indirectly elected by the councillors, Councillor Gordhan Parmar.”
1996–2016
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A city of sport
In 1996 a statue was put up in the city centre to celebrate the success of the city's sports teams that year. Leicester was named a European City of Sport in 2008 and the UK's Greatest Sporting City in 2016.
From the records: “In 1996, a statue was erected in the city centre to commemorate the success of the city's sporting teams in this year.”
2008
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Curve
Curve, a performing arts centre designed by Rafael Viñoly, opened in autumn 2008.
From the records: “Curve: Purpose-designed performing arts centre, designed by Rafael Viñoly, opened in Autumn 2008,”
2012–2015
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The king in the car park
In September 2012, archaeologists digging in the car park on the site of Greyfriars Church found a skeleton. DNA testing helped show it was related to two descendants of Richard III's sister. In 2015 Richard III was reburied in Leicester Cathedral, more than 500 years after his death.
From the records: “However, in September 2012, an archaeological investigation of the car park revealed a skeleton which DNA testing helped verify to be related to two descendants of Richard III's sister.”