Stamford St John's

Market town on the River Welland in Lincolnshire, east-central England, 20 km/12 mi northwest of Peterborough; population (2001) 6,250. Agriculture, engineering, plastics, and the timber and stone trades are important.

Founded by the Danes in the 7th century, Stamford became an important town in the wool trade in the Middle Ages. Its many old buildings include 17th-19th-century houses and public buildings, and medieval churches.

Stamford became a royal borough in 972. Part of the earthworks of a Norman castle may still be seen. Seventeen parish churches were built here in the Middle Ages, of which six survive.

Burghley House, south of the town, was begun in 1575 by Elizabeth I's adviser William Cecil Burghley. During the Middle Ages a number of monasteries were founded; the Benedictine priory of St Leonard retains a Norman arcade and a fine west front. Browne's Hospital, dating from the time of Edward IV (late 15th century), is noteworthy for its glass and screen in the chapel.

The Lincoln, Rutland, and Stamford Mercury is one of the oldest newspapers in the country, and is said to have been established in 1695.