Gloucestershire

Gloucestershire (/ˈɡlɒstərʃər/ ^ⓘ GLOST-ər-shər, /-ʃɪər/ -⁠sheer; abbreviated Glos.) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Herefordshire to the north-west, Worcestershire to the north, Warwickshire to the north-east, Oxfordshire to the east, Wiltshire to the south, Bristol and Somerset to the south-west, and the Welsh county of Monmouthshire to the west. The largest settlement is the city of Gloucester.

The county is predominantly rural, with an area of 3,150 square kilometres (1,220 sq mi), and an estimated population of 975,712 in 2024. Gloucester is located in the north-centre of the county, and the spa town of Cheltenham is immediately to the east. Other towns include Tewkesbury in the north, Cirencester in the east, Stroud in the centre, and Yate in the south. The far south of the county, including Filton and Kingswood, is densely populated and forms part of the Bristol built-up area. For local government purposes Gloucestershire comprises a non-metropolitan county, with six districts, and the unitary authority area of South Gloucestershire. South Gloucestershire Council is a member of the West of England Combined Authority.

Gloucestershire is bisected by the river River Severn, which enters the county near Tewkesbury and forms a wide valley down its centre before broadening into a large tidal estuary. The east of the county contains the majority of the Cotswolds, and the uplands in the west are part of the Forest of Dean and the Wye Valley. All three areas have been designated national landscapes.

Gloucestershire was likely established in the tenth century and expanded to approximately its current borders in the eleventh. The county was relatively settled during the late Middle Ages, and contained several wealthy monasteries such as Tewkesbury, Gloucester, Hailes, and Cirencester; the Forest of Dean was also a major iron-producing region in this period. The city of Bristol became an independent county in 1373, by which point it was the third-largest city in England. Gloucestershire was not heavily industrialised during the Industrial Revolution, but the Port of Gloucester was expanded with new docks and the small Forest of Dean coalfield was exploited.