It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is known as the Red Rose county. The traditional county is larger than the current administrative county which was set up in 1974, when the cities of Manchester and Liverpool were hived off to become the hubs of two new Metropolitan Counties, Greater Manchester and Merseyside, and the portion of Lancashire to the north of Morecambe Bay, sometimes called Lancashire North of the Sands, was made a part of the new county of Cumbria.
Lancashire is one of only three County Palatines in England, with special authority and autonomy from the rest of the kingdom. In feudal times, Counts Palatine exercised royal authority, and ruled their counties largely independently of the king, though they owed allegiance to him. Nowadays the distinction is largely ceremonial.
Lancashire featured prominently in the '''industrial revolution''' with many towns built around the '''textile industry'''. The inland towns still show this industrial heritage. Conversely, the coastal towns developed into holiday resorts for the textile mill workers, including Blackpool, Morecambe, and Southport.
There are, however, many beautiful rural areas, mainly upland. Most of these are ideal for walking, in particular the Pennine hills and foothills to the east, and the spectacularly beautiful Forest or Trough of Bowland in the heart of Lancashire.
Lancashire enjoys a friendly rivalry with neighbour Yorkshire which dates back to the '''War of the Roses''' when the two royal houses of Lancaster (Red Rose) and York (White Rose) vied for the English throne.
Historically the County of Lancashire has been strongly associated with the cities of Manchester and Liverpool. From a very early time, they lay within the historic county boundaries of Lancashire, and many Mancunians in particular still consider themselves Lancastrians. In 1889, the cities, along with most of the large Lancashire towns, became county boroughs, running their own affairs separate from Lancashire County Council. In 1974, the Local Government Act 1972 came into force and created two new Metropolitan Counties. Northern parts of the County has closer ties to Lancaster.
The '''Pendle witch trials''' of 1612 are among the most famous witch trials in English history. The 12 women accused were charged with murdering 10 people in and around the Pendle Hill area of Lancashire. Most of the accused were tried at Lancaster Assizes in what became known as the Lancashire witch trials. "The Witch Way", the Burnley and Pendle bus services from Manchester use a flying witch as its logo. Pendle Hill dominates the landscape of the area and continues to be associated with witchcraft, and every Halloween there is a hilltop gathering on the summit.
The '''Forest of Bowland''' (sometimes called the Trough of Bowland) is often described as 'Lancashire's hidden gem'. It remained inaccessible until late in the twentieth century and is almost completely unchanged. The southern part of Bowland bordering onto the Ribble Valley, around Stoneyhurst College, was the inspiration for Tolkein's vision of Middle Earth in 'The Hobbit'. An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, which was the first region in England to be awarded Europarc status, its villages are characterful and well worth visiting. Visit '''Bowland Wild Boar Park''' PR3 2QT; 01995 61554, wildboar6@o2.co.uk situated about 2 miles from the picturesque village of Chipping, on the Chipping to Dunsop Bridge road in the Forest of Bowland. It is signposted clearly from all directions.
The '''Pennine''' foothills around '''Rossendale''' (Rawtenstall, Haslingden, Waterfoot, Bacup and district) also provide interesting walking, and are rich in the remnants of industrial, textile and quarrying, archaeology. These small mill-towns are surrounded by accessible moorland and make a good base for exploring Lancashire.
Rawtenstall is home to '''Fitzpatricks''' 5, Bank Street, BB4 6QS (01706 231836), founded in 1890 it's the last remaining Temperance Bar in the UK, where it serves black beer, sarspirilla, blood tonic, cream soda and other non-alcoholic drinks.
Waterfoot has '''The Boo''' Bacup Rd, BB4 7HB (01706 220241), an arts venue that puts on an unusual programme of family-friendly performances and runs an annual Puppet Festival. The Boo is also the home of the much acclaimed Horse + Bamboo Theatre company.
People from Lancashire tend to speak English with a Northern accent called Lancastrian. The accent can differ from one town to another, although non-Brits are unlikely to be able to tell any difference. Traditional Lancashire accents are rhotic, as are most American and Irish accents.
As with most of the UK, very few natives speak other foreign languages, however, many ethnic minorities/immigrants now reside there and languages such as such as Hindi, Urdu Chinese, Polish and Lithuanian are also spoken within these groups.
You can reach Lancashire via ferry from Ireland, by road via the UK motorway network, or you can fly in via airports in Liverpool, Manchester, or Blackpool.
The county is well served by motorways. The M6 runs north-south through the county, there are various spur motorways linking the M6 to towns (eg the M55 to Blackpool, the M65 to Blackburn and Burnley, the M58 to Merseyside), and the M62 crosses the Pennines to Yorkshire.
The '''Leeds-Liverpool Canal''' is a picturesque but slower way to travel in Lancashire.
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The County has distinctive culinary traditions. '''Black pudding''', '''cow-heel''' and '''tripe''', and a wide variety of savoury '''pies''' are traditional foods, some of which have been picked up and developed by a new generation of chefs. Other local specialities include young '''lamb''' from the hill farms, '''Lancashire hotpot''' (a lamb based stew), soft '''Lancashire oatcakes'''; Eccles cakes and Chorley cakes. Local bakers remain a common sight.
'''Lancashire cheese''' is considered one of the premier products of the county. It is associated with the town of Leigh, and Ben Gunn, a character in the Robert Louis Stevenson novel Treasure Island, craved Leigh Toaster during his three-year exile as a castaway. Lancashire cheese can be classified as either "tasty", "crumbly" or "creamy". Matured Lancashire Cheese is referred to locally as "tasty". Creamy and tasty are the original Lancashire cheeses, crumbly being a 1960s invention to effectively compete with Cheshire, Wensleydale and Caerphilly. It is reputed to be the best toasting cheese in the world and as such is a favourite for Welsh rarebit.
Pubs sell all sorts of alcohol, although keep in mind the drink drive limit. Off licenses also sell alcohol, amongst other things. There's also '''Fitzpatricks Temperance Bar''' (see above) in Rawtenstall.
Basically, common sense is a good thing to have. It is best to avoid unlit areas at night, to hide valuables you are wearing and to keep mobiles/mp3 players etc out of sight. Women are generally safe to be by themselves, but late at night is dangerous anywhere and they should stay with friends when out.
On Friday and Saturday nights, especially late at night in the bigger city and town centres, you may see drunken behaviour and a lot more police officers. The best advice is to keep away from drunks, stay alert and don't get involved in fights.
Ferries and flights for the Isle of Man leave from Lancashire, while to the North the Lake District is generally considered Lancashire's playground.