Where is stow horse fair

Rose Jordan. Posted May 7, at PM. Posted January 28, at AM. I would really love to come to this but we are not travellers.. Posted January 28, at PM. Carolyn mongan. Posted May 9, at AM. Posted May 9, at PM. Adam Palk. Posted December 21, at AM. Posted December 21, at PM. Leave a Reply Cancel reply Your email address will not be published. Welcome to Calendar Customs! The Normans were quick to encourage the creation of markets on Manor land as this ensured an outlet for surplus goods from the estates, and brought in a steady income.

After the 11th century, there was a marked increase in urban development because of an acceptance of a more structured approach to trade and marketing. So, when the abbot of Evesham appealed to Henry 1 in for official recognition of the market in Stow it was readily granted. The charter gave the abbot and the people of Stow the right to hold their market every Thursday in the square, and to fix a payment for those who wished to use it.

Over time, additions and concessions were acquired from the king so that Stow gained considerable status over other towns in the Cotswolds. A market cross was erected as a symbol to people that they could do business safely and honestly. It's interesting to note that this market continued for years, only ceasing about In the abbot petitioned for a charter for two fairs, the first in May and the second in October.

Edward the Confessor and these dates are still used today to decide the gypsy horse fair. The main source of wealth in the Cotswolds was wool and by holding two fairs a year in Stow it allowed people in the surrounding hills to bring their sheep to be sold. Flocks would be driven to the perimeter of the town in the days leading up to the fair and then, it is said, driven to the square down the narrow alleyways we call 'tures' that radiate out in all directions from the town centre.

These alleyways offered a good way to manage the sheep and it was once noted that 20, were sold on a good day. The fairs were also a public holiday and people would travel in to Stow to see what goods the Italian, French and Flemish traders had to sell. The foreign goods must have attracted great interest among Cotswold folk, there were dates and figs, olive oil, sugar and almonds, ginger, pepper and cloves. There were carpets, tapestries and soap, damask, taffeta and lace. The gaudily-painted traditional caravans, young boys and girls riding ponies barebacked, women cooking on open fires, men standing around talking tack and trailers, their accents Donegal, Glamorgan, Durham, Yorkshire and Dumfries - gypsies and travellers from near and far gather twice a year on this picturesque site to renew acquaintances, talk shop, strike deals and yes, trade horses.

A cursory look around this long-established fair - a mainstay of the travelling community calendar - seems to present a vignette of a rural past in which gypsies and travellers - if not always wholeheartedly welcomed - shared the countryside and its ways with established farming communities. This fair is not only the preserve of gypsies; visitors come from all over the area for a slice of the nostalgia pie, and as they park their pristine 4x4s in nearby lanes and pull on equally shiny Wellingtons, there is a sense that a very British community increasingly shunned, feared, marginalised and looked down upon is - for a weekend, at least - seen as a kind of curious tourist attraction for those who have long since lost such an intimate connection with the land.

But is this the whole story? Look into the corner of the field and you'll see a large mast-mounted CCTV camera keeping a not-at-all subtle eye on proceedings. Police officers are everywhere; on horseback, on foot and in marked police vans. The atmosphere is tense with anticipation. In this corner of the field, at least, it feels less of an agricultural show and more like a grudge match between rival football teams.

Stow itself is quiet. A majority of shops and businesses have shut for the duration, with the honourable exception of a chippy called Greedy's which appears to be doing outrageously good business, judging by the queue. With shuttered windows and hand-written 'closed' signs over doors, the rest of the trading community in Stow seems to be passing silent comment on the fair, which has existed since - 'Go away. You are not welcome here.

Certainly, Stow Fair which is not actually in Stow - it's just over the parish boundary in Maugersbury, on gypsy-owned land has had its problems. Rowdiness, pilfering, litter, drunkenness, violence, human excrement left in gardens; the quaint notion of a gypsy gathering has often been offset by the damage, detritus and general discontent left in its wake. So bad were the problems in the mid s and beyond that calls for the fair to pack up and leave town for ever were increasingly difficult to ignore.

But rather than take this draconian course of action and end centuries of tradition, a working party was set up involving local and county councillors, police, MPs and representatives of the gypsy community. A meeting of townspeople in Stow decided they want to see it much more tightly controlled and better policed.

The fair comes to town again this May, and with it the knockabout atmosphere which is part-market, part-festival and part-family gathering. When we visited last October the event is twice-yearly we came across a hurly-burly and slightly anarchic but otherwise extremely good-natured event.

No-one muttered a curse and refused to talk to us; indeed, gypsies and travellers went out of their way to show friendliness and courtesy towards representatives of a British media industry which, on the whole, has been far from benevolent towards them. Perhaps they've wised up and learned a PR trick or two; whatever the motives, we felt welcome among them.

Making tea over an open fire, Scots traveller Jimmy is happy to explain why he's here. I've been coming here three years now and the kids love it. But the recent bad weather in the area left conditions slippery as its main walkway was thick with mud. The traveller community has been meeting in the town for the biannual event since Despite its roots in history, the event is unpopular with many locals and businesses sometimes close whilst it is on. The next event is due to be held in October Hundreds of people attended today's Stow Gypsy Horse Fair in Gloucestershire, despite the very muddy conditions.

Despite the muddy conditions some people chose to wear fashionable outfits for their trip to the Stow Gypsy Horse Fair in Gloucestershire.