Earl of Leicester

The title Earl of Leicester (pronounced /ˈlɛstər/ LESS-tər) was created in the 12th century in the Peerage of England (now extinct), and is currently a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom, created in 1837.

Early creations

The title was first created for Robert de Beaumont, but he nearly always used his French title of Count of Meulan. Three generations of his descendants, all also named Robert, called themselves Earls of Leicester. The Beaumont male line ended with the death of the Fourth Earl. His property was split between his two sisters, with Simon IV de Montfort, the son of the eldest sister, acquiring Leicester and the rights to the earldom. (The husband of the younger daughter, Saer de Quincy, was created Earl of Winchester.) De Montfort however was never formally recognized as earl, due to the antipathy between France and England at that time. His second son, Simon V de Montfort, did succeed in taking possession of the earldom and its associated properties. He is the Simon de Montfort who became so prominent during the reign of Henry III. He was killed at the Battle of Evesham in 1265, and his lands and titles were forfeited.

Leicester

Coordinates: 52°38′N 1°8′W / 52.633°N 1.133°W / 52.633; -1.133

Leicester (ⁱ/ˈlɛstər/ LESS-tər,but often locally /ˈlɛstɒ/) is a city and unitary authority area in the East Midlands of England, and the county town of Leicestershire. The city lies on the River Soar and at the edge of the National Forest. It is the burial place of King Richard III.

In the 2011 census the population of the Leicester unitary authority was c.330,000 making it the most populous unitary authority in the East Midlands region. The associated urban area is also the 11th largest by population in England and the 13th largest in the United Kingdom.

"Unlike almost every other city in the UK, Leicester has retained a remarkable record of its past in buildings that still stand today". Ancient Roman pavements and baths remain in Leicester from its early settlement as Ratae, a Roman military outpost in a region inhabited by the Celtic Corieltauvi tribe. Following the Roman withdrawal from Britain, the early medieval Ratae is shrouded in obscurity, but when the settlement was captured by the Danes it became one of five fortified towns important to the Danelaw and it appeared in the Domesday Book as "Ledecestre". Leicester continued to grow throughout the Early Modern period as a market town, although it was the Industrial Revolution that facilitated a process of rapid unplanned urbanisation in the area.

HM Prison Leicester

Coordinates: 52°37′38.72″N 1°7′54.92″W / 52.6274222°N 1.1319222°W / 52.6274222; -1.1319222

HM Prison Leicester is a local men's prison, located in the Southfields area of Leicester, Leicestershire, England. The term 'local' means that the prison holds people on remand to the local courts, as well as sentenced prisoners. Leicester Prison is operated by Her Majesty's Prison Service, and is situated immediately north of Nelson Mandela Park (formerly Welford Road Recreation Ground), a sign in which quotes Nelson Mandela: "There is no easy walk to freedom anywhere".

History

The prison was designed by Leicester county surveyor William Parsons to resemble a castle and cost £20,000. The oldest part dates from 1825, and it was opened in 1828. The gatehouse including the adjoining building to north and south and the perimeter wall are grade II listed.

Between 1900 and 1953, eight executions took place at the prison. The last was that of John Reynolds, convicted of murder at Leicester Assizes, and hanged on November 17, 1953.

Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad Station (Leicester, New York)

The Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad Station, built during the years 1907-1908 at a cost of $ 601,780.96 in the Neo-Classical Revival style by the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad Company, is one of the most impressive buildings in Scranton. The architects of the station were Kenneth Murchison of New York and Edward Langley of Scranton, while the designer was Lincoln Bush, chief engineer of the railroad company. The Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad was one of the most important railroads in the northeast region of Pennsylvania. Its beginnings date back to 1832 and the Ligget's Gap Railroad, later the Lackawanna & Western, and the Delaware & Cobb's Gap Railroad. These two lines merged in 1853 to form the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad, while the Erie-Lackawanna was not formed until 1960 from the merger of the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western with the Erie. Anthracite coal was a major factor in the growth of the railroad, and by 1925 the company owned or controlled through lease nearly all coal underlying West Scranton and had also acquired large areas in other parts of the county as well as in Luzerne County. The profits from the mining and transportation of coal enabled the company to construct such an impressive station as the one at Scranton.