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the town in Worcestershire

Evesham ('/iː//v//(//ɪ//)//ʃ//ə//m//, /'/iː//s//ə//m/) is a market town and parish in the Wychavon district of Worcestershire, in the West Midlands region of England. It is located roughly equidistant between Worcester, Cheltenham and Stratford upon Avon. It lies within the Vale of Evesham, an area comprising the flood plain of the River Avon, which has been renowned for market gardening. The town centre, situated within a meander of the river, is subjected regularly to flooding. The 2007 floods were the most severe in recorded history. The town was founded around an 8th century abbey, one of the largest in Europe, which was destroyed during the Dissolution of the Monasteries, with only Abbot Lichfield's Bell Tower remaining. During the 13th century, one of the two main battles of England's Second Barons' War took place near the town, marking the victory of Prince Edward, who later became King Edward I; this was the Battle of Evesham.

Evesham is derived from the Old English homme or ham, and Eof, the name of a swineherd in the service of Egwin, third bishop of Worcester. It was originally named Homme or Haum and recorded as Eveshomme in 709 and Evesham in 1086.

Evesham Abbey, which became possibly the third largest in England, was founded by Saint Egwin, the third Bishop of Worcester, in around 701 AD, following the vision of the Virgin Mary to a local swineherd or shepherd named Eof. An entry in the Great Domesday Book of 1086 lists Evesham, mentioning "Two free men; Two radmen; Abbey of St Mary of Evesham; Abbey of St Mary of Pershore; Edmund, Abbot of St Mary of Pershore; Walter, Abbot of St Mary of Evesham; Aethelwig, Abbot of St Mary of Evesham; King William as donor; Odo, Bishop of Bayeux; Ranulph; Turstin, Abbot of St Mary of Pershore; Walter Ponther; Westminster, Gilbert Crispin, Abbot of St Peter." The abbey was redeveloped and extended after the Norman Conquest, employing many tradesmen and significantly contributing to the growth of Evesham. Income for the abbey came from pilgrims to the abbey to celebrate the vision and visitors to the tomb of Simon de Montfort. As a result of Henry VIII's dissolution of the monasteries, Evesham Abbey was dismantled in 1540 and sold as building stone, leaving little but the Lichfield Bell Tower. The abbey remains are a Scheduled Ancient Monument (No. WT253), and parts of the abbey complex, Abbot Reginald's Wall (registered monument) and the ruins of Abbot Chryton's Wall (Grade II), are English Heritage listed buildings. The abbey's coat of arms is used as the crest of Prince Henry's High School. Two surviving buildings with links to the abbey are the Middle Littleton Tythe Barn and the Almonry Museum and Heritage Centre, which is housed in the old almonry of the abbey and also displays artefacts from excavations there.

Following the Battle of Lewes a year earlier, where Simon de Montfort had gained control of parliament, the Battle of Evesham in August 1265 was the second of two main battles of the Second Barons' War. It marked the victory of Prince Edward, who led the 8,000 strong army of his father Henry III, over the 6,000 men of de Montfort, and the beginning of the end of the rebellion. The battle was a massacre; de Montfort's army were trapped in the horseshoe bend of the river, Although Simon de Montfort and his son were killed, Prince Edward's victory was not decisive towards the King's hold on the country, and the struggle continued until 1267, after which the kingdom returned to a period of unity and progress that was to last until the early 1290s. During the battle the royal army wore the Saint George's Cross as their distinguishing mark. It is believed that the Battle was one of the first times that the cross was used to officially represent England. According to the chronicler William Rishanger, when de Montfort saw the advance of the royal troops, he exclaimed that "They have not learned that for themselves, but were taught it by me."

Evesham Borough Council, which was based at Evesham Town Hall, administered the town until 1974 when Wychavon District Council became the local authority. Evesham is now a town and civil parish governed at the lowest tier of local government by Evesham Town Council, part of the Wychavon District of the County of Worcestershire. Residents in the eight council electoral wards are represented by 24 elected members. The wards, based on streets, are represented by elected councillors: Abbey (1), Avon (2), Bengeworth (5), Fairfield (1), Great Hampton (3), Little Hampton (5), South (5), Twyford (2). The council is chaired by a mayor, and has a Town Clerk who acts as chief officer.

At the 2001 UK census, Evesham had a total population of 22,304. For every 100 females, there were 96.7 males. The average household size was 2.3. Of those aged 16–74 in Evesham, 57.5% had no academic qualifications or one General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE), above the figures for all of the Wychavon district (44.2%) and England (45.5%). According to the census, 2.4% were unemployed and 9.4% were economically inactive.

Due to its exceptionally fertile soil, market gardening is carried out on a commercial scale in the surrounding area, known as the Vale of Evesham, which is known for its production of fruit and vegetables. A distinctive form of leasehold tenure, known as the Evesham Custom, still regulates market garden tenancies in the area. A decline in the second half of the 20th century resulted in the closing of Evesham's Smithfield Market while the Central Market stopped being used for produce auctions. Between 1983 and 2008, Evesham was home to computer manufacturer Evesham Micros, later renamed Evesham Technology. It was a significant contributor to the United Kingdom's domestic computer and digital television market. At its peak, the company employed up to 300 people with a chain of 19 retail stores in towns and cities throughout the UK. It went into liquidation in 2008. Retail and food outlets are provided for in the traditional high street and the Riverside Shopping Centre, and Four Pools Lane Retail Park. The Valley (formerly Evesham Country Park), is a large retail and leisure park located out of town with a diversity of stores, restaurants and cafés. The Vale includes the Evesham Vale Light Railway miniature railway.

In 1728, the London to Worcester road through Evesham was turnpiked, as was the Evesham to Alcester road in 1778, improving communications in the area. Evesham is at the junction of the A46 and A44 trunk roads – the 4 mile (6 km) £7 million, A46 single carriageway bypass to the east of the town opened in July 1987 as the A435. Work began in September 2013 to replace the Abbey Bridge and was completed in March 2014.

The River Avon is a navigable waterway linking the River Severn at Tewkesbury to the Stratford upon Avon Canal at Stratford upon Avon. The river between the town and Stratford is managed by the Upper Avon Navigation Trust and below by the Lower Avon Navigation Trust, reflecting the administration of the river since the Restoration, when the lower Avon required only modest repairs, but significant investment was required above the town. The ancient Hampton Ferry links the town to Hampton.

In 1845, an Act of Parliament was passed for the Oxford, Worcester and Wolverhampton Railway to be built; which caters mainly for students studying at the NVQ and BTEC level or undertaking practical vocational courses. The nearest higher education providers are the University of Worcester and the University of Gloucestershire. A University of the Third Age was established in 2003 and in 2010 had 600 members.

It is possible that the 8th century Anglo Saxon Minster Church of Evesham Abbey was founded on the site of an even older church. The medieval town had two parish churches, All Saints and St Lawrence built within the abbey precinct. or "Asum Grammer". The editor of the local newspaper quoted extracts from a fictitious dictionary of the language. In 1891, a glossary was published of words and phrases in South East Worcestershire, comprising the district around Evesham and Pershore. This publication itself built on that of an 1882 author identified only as "Mrs Chamberlain". Prior to the 1882 book, little attention had been paid to the dialect of "the old Worcestershire folks", despite it being "interesting and peculiar". A decline in the dialect was already being noted, attributed at that time to standardisation of English schooling, something noted also by later writers on English dialects. The dialect continues to decline, but is stronger in older generations. Asum was an ale produced by the now defunct Evesham Brewery. "Eve shum" is the more common phonetic pronunciation, but "Eve uh shum" is not uncommon. It provides a venue for professional and amateur performance. Events hosted include drama, stand up comedy, brass bands, orchestras, pantomime to ballet. The centre has a raked 312 seat auditorium, full technical facilities and film projection and a 60 seat studio space for smaller productions. The centre's foyer it is an exhibition space for local artists. The centre was managed by the Evesham Arts Association until 2020. The Henrician Evesham is now managed by Prince Henry's Evesham Arts Theatre Trust a registered charity. The Regal Cinema reopened in December 2009. Its Grade II listed building was designed in 1932 by architect Hurley Robinson. who was responsible for several public buildings in classical and Art Deco styles, including 55 other cinemas. In 2009 the cinema signed a contract to show all Universal Studios films. It also serves as a community arts centre, offering a programme of music and stand up comedy. The other public Art Deco building in the town is the former Plough, which replaced an 18th century public house on the Market Place in 1936. Since then it became a bar and grill under a variety of different names and has been recently refurbished. Medieval Evesham, and the Earl of Evesham, inspired a novel Winning His Spurs by historical fiction author G. A. Henty. A more recent novel by M. C. Beaton entitled Agatha Raisin and the Wizard of Evesham, takes place largely in Evesham, and two of the main characters visit the local sights, with descriptions. Local folklore is provided for by the Legend of Evesham surrounding the life of Eof, an 8th century swineherd credited with the founding of the town, and St Egwin the Bishop of Worcester who founded the abbey and who whose feet had been fettered and the key thrown in the River Avon. According to the legend, the key turned up in Rome inside a fish. On returning to Evesham, Egwin declared that a monastery be built on the spot where the key had been cast in the river.

The Almonry Museum has an 1825 oil painting by William Robert Earl (1806–1880) which shows a distant view of the town as seen from Greenhill, site of the battle of Evesham. More local views by George Willis Pryce are on show in the town hall. Dating from the 1890s, they include the gateway to Market Square, the entrance to the town across Workman's Bridge, and the former Hampton Ferry across the Avon. Elsewhere there is an Avon side painting by Edward Stott in the style of Bastien Lepage. This is titled "Feeding the Ducks" and dates from 1884, when Stott shared a cottage in North Littleton with fellow painters Walter Osborne and Nathaniel Hill.

Evesham local news has been served since 1860 by the Evesham Journal, which is now part of the Newsquest (Midlands South) Ltd., a subsidiary of Gannett; it is predominantly a weekly free newspaper that is distributed over four counties. In 2007, the weekly free newspaper Evesham Observer was launched by Midlands based Observer Standard series of newspapers, now the family owned Bullivant Media. Local news and television programmes are provided by BBC West Midlands and ITV Central. Television signals can be received from either the Sutton Coldfield or Lark Stoke TV transmitters. BBC Hereford & Worcester broadcasts on 104 FM and 94.7, while commercial radio stations include Free Radio Herefordshire & Worcestershire on 96.7 FM and Greatest Hits Radio Herefordshire & Worcestershire on 107.2 FM.

The Evesham Leisure Centre comprises two swimming pools, a climbing wall, a 100 station fitness room and a health & beauty salon. Football in Evesham is represented by Evesham United F. C., who play in the Southern Football League Division One South & West. In Rugby Union, there are senior and youth sections at Evesham Rugby Club. There is also a cricket ground. The town also has a pétanque team and a cycling club, Evesham & District Wheelers, which was founded in 1947. The town is home to various watersports, due to its location on the river, including Evesham Rowing Club, Kayaking & Canoeing provided by the Evesham Paddle Monsters club and Evesham Sailing Club. The town has two golf courses: Evesham Golf Club, which is situated outside Fladbury, and Twyford Golf Club, which is situated just outside Lenchwick. Evesham Vale Running Club hold their 10K race event annually.

The Evesham Library, managed by Worcestershire Libraries & Learning division of Worcestershire County Council, is located in the town centre and was completely modernised following a closure for refurbishment in January 2011. It offers community services that include an online catalogue, Wi Fi internet access, public internet terminals and a mobile library. The Almonry Museum and Heritage Centre is a local museum that was opened in 1957 and is funded by the council. The museum and the Tourist Information Centre are housed together in a 14th century half timbered building that was the home of the almoner of Evesham Abbey. Exhibits include many items of local interest including an exhibition themed on the battle of Evesham. Evesham has a 97 bed community hospital in Waterside, outside the town centre, used mainly by the elderly and for convalescence, although consultants from major Worcester NHS hospitals hold clinics there. The hospital maintains a Minor Injuries Unit (open from 9am to 9pm 7 days a week). The town has three health centres, providing general practitioner first care services, and a dental centre. Evesham also has several nursing and retirement homes for the care of senior citizens. The Evesham area is covered by the Midlands Air Ambulance service, which has operated from the site of Strensham motorway services since 1991.