Stratford-upon-Avon, United Kingdom

Stratford, then referred to as strete ford, remained a village until the late 12th century when it was developed into a town by the lord of the manor, Bishop John of Coutances. He laid out a new town in 1196 around 1⁄2 mile (0.80 km) north of the original settlement, based on a grid system to expand Stratford and allow people to rent property in order to trade within the town. Coutances granted his new tenants the right to rent property and transmit it at death; this was called burgage tenure. Each development plot or "burgage" consisted of around 0.25 acres (0.10 hectares). A charter was granted to Stratford by King Richard I in 1196 which allowed a weekly market to be held in the town, giving it its status as a market town. These two charters, which formed the foundations of Stratford's transformation from a village to a town, make the town of Stratford over 800 years old: the town celebrated its 800th anniversary in 1996.

John of Coutances' plans to develop Stratford into a town meant it became a place of work for tradesmen and merchants. By 1252 the town had approximately 240 burgages (town rental properties owned by a king or lord), as well as shops, stalls and other buildings. Stratford's tradesmen established the Guild of the Holy Cross for their business and religious requirements. The guild developed into the town's main institution of local government, and included the most important townsmen, who elected officials to oversee local affairs. They built a Guild Chapel in the 13th century, and a Guildhall and almshouses on Church Street in around 1417. The guild established an educational institution in the late 13th century.

Many of the town's earliest and most important buildings are along what is known as Stratford's Historic Spine, which was once the main route from the town centre to the parish church. The route of the Historic Spine begins at Shakespeare's Birthplace in Henley Street. It continues through Henley Street to the top end of Bridge Street and into the High Street where many Elizabethan buildings are found, including Harvard House. The route carries on through Chapel Street past Nash's House and New Place. Opposite New Place was The Falcon Hotel (now Hotel Indigo), at the corner of Scholars Lane. It is a timber-framed house with nearly 100-ft frontage to the street and dating perhaps from the end of the 15th century. The Historic Spine continues along Church Street where there are Guild buildings from the 15th century, as well as 18th- and 19th-century properties. The route finishes in the Old Town, which includes Hall's Croft and the Holy Trinity Church.

During Stratford's early expansion into a town, the only access across the River Avon into and out of the town was over a wooden bridge, which was first mentioned in 1235. The bridge could not be crossed at times due to the river rising and was described by antiquarian John Leland as "a poor bridge of timber and no causeway to it, whereby many poor folks and other refused to come to Stratford when the Avon was up, or coming thither stood in jeopardy of life." In 1484, a masonry arch bridge was built to replace it called Clopton Bridge, named after Hugh Clopton, a wealthy local man who paid for its construction and later became Lord Mayor of London. The new bridge made it easier for people to trade within Stratford and for passing travellers to stay in the town.

The medieval structures of local governance underwent significant changes during the Tudor period: The Guild of the Holy Cross was abolished in 1547 under King Edward VI's suppression of religious guilds, and the inhabitants of Stratford petitioned the Crown for a charter of incorporation as a borough, which they received in 1553. This allowed the formation a new Town Council which inherited the property and responsibilities of the abolished guild. The Charter of Incorporation refounded Stratford's school as the King Edward VI School.

The Cotswolds, located close to Stratford, was a major sheep-producing area up until the latter part of the 19th century, with Stratford one of its main centres for the processing, marketing, and distribution of sheep and wool. Consequently, Stratford became a centre for tanning during the 15th–17th centuries. Glove making was an important industry, which was at its zenith in the 15th and 16th centuries. As was malting, the processing of grain to turn it into malt.