The History of the Borough of High Wycombe

Book excerpt: First Published in 1960, The History of the Borough of High Wycombe presents the history of an English community, which in the space of some seven hundred years, grew up, flourished and declined and eventually superseded. Even by the standards of the Middle Ages Wycombe was a small town and remained so until very recently. At the beginning of the 19th century, after a hundred years of steady growth, it still contained only about 450 houses. Yet, though small, it was for centuries the only independent borough in Buckinghamshire. John Hampden was closely associated with Wycombe. The Earl of Shelburne, who negotiated peace with the American colonies, was an alderman of the borough. Here Disraeli made his first attempts to enter parliament and lived for many years nearby, at Bradenham and Hughenden. The history of Wycombe is the story of a small, but vigorous and independent community, as rich in character as any biography of an English eccentric. This is an interesting read for scholars of British history.