Cambridge, city and district,
Cambridgeshire, E central England, on the River Cam. The city, set in flat
country, is most famous as the site of the Univ. of Cambridge, and tourism is an economic
mainstay. Originally the site of a Roman military camp, Cambridge was an
administrative and trading center in Anglo-Saxon times. William I had a fort and mint
constructed, and two monastic establishments were built in early medieval
times. The university has its origins in the 12th cent. Central Cambridge
still maintains much of its medieval atmosphere and appearance. Its noted
medieval churches include St. Benet's or Bene't's, the oldest, dating from
the late Saxon period; St. Edward's (begun 12th cent.), where Hugh Latimer preached; St. Mary the Great
(1478), the university church; and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, one of
four Norman round churches in England. Cambridge also has varied light
industries. High-technology firms, drawing on the university's scientific
prominence, have multiplied in recent years, and the city has come to be
called “Silicon Fen.”
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