[1] The town has played an important role in English history starting with the surrender of Stigand to William the Conqueror in 1066, which led to his taking the throne and the creation of Wallingford Castle.

The town then entered a period of decline after the arrival of the Black Death and falling out of favour with the Tudor monarchs before being called on once again during the English Civil War.

It was enclosed with substantial earthworks by King Alfred the Great in the ninth century as part of a network of fortified towns known as burhs, or burghs, to protect Wessex against the Vikings.

During the Norman Conquest in 1066, the Anglo-Saxon lord Wigod allowed William the Conqueror's invading armies into Wallingford to rest and to cross the Thames unopposed.

From Wallingford, William with Stigand and his armies rode east to Berkhamsted, where he received the final surrender from Edgar and the rest of the English leadership before marching on London for his coronation on Christmas Day.

The town subsequently stood in high favour with the Normans as Wallingford Castle was built soon afterward on the orders of William, and became a key strategic centre controlling the Thames crossing and surrounding area.

The opening of Abingdon Bridge and loss of traffic that the road had brought caused the town to enter a steep economic decline.

In August 1643 Colonel Blagge was granted warrants from the King and Prince Rupert to collect taxes from Reading and other local towns in order to proceed with the repairs.

[10] Although his retreat went initially unchallenged, the next day at a meeting of the War Council it was resolved that Cromwell, Balfour and Sir Arthur Hesilrige were to be allowed to take cavalry to pursue the King.

The king held up at Oxford for the winter, with the intention of riding south to relieve and retake positions in Berkshire, but the failure of reinforcements to arrive from the west and the imminent threat of siege by General Fairfax forced him to flee north.

It was only a matter of time, but still Blagge held that he would not surrender without the king's order and even threatened to set fire to the town during a full assault.

They were also very concerned that they were risking making a martyr of the town to the Royalist cause in Berkshire if the townspeople suffered too much, either in a prolonged siege or an assault.

However, by July, with the king's surrender to the Scotch Army and Wallingford now being the only stronghold in Berkshire still loyal to the crown, he knew that there would be no relief or reinforcements.

General Fairfax respected Blagge as a fellow soldier for his work in resurrecting the castle for the war, and for the manner in which he chose to hold for as long as possible instead of surrendering.

[9] Sir William Blackstone, a famous English jurist, judge and Tory politician lived in Wallingford and held the office of Recorder of the town.

The mansion, abandoned due to rising costs, was demolished in 1972, allowing Wallingford Castle to be declared a scheduled monument as well as a Grade I listed building.

A local resident, Sir William Blackstone, a lawyer and author of the Commentaries on the Laws of England, took an interest in the building of the spire and paid for the clock face visible from his house.

[16] The west bell tower was originally 12th century, but its upper stages were rebuilt in a Perpendicular Gothic style[16] out of the stone from Wallingford Castle when it was demolished by Oliver Cromwell after the Civil War.

The church interior is noted for a series of four angel murals painted in 1889 by acclaimed artist George Dunlop Leslie who at the time lived on Thames Street.

[19] The inscription reads: TO THE GLORY OF GOD AND IN HONOURED AND GRATEFUL MEMORY OF THE MEN OF WALLINGFORD WHO LAID DOWN THEIR LIVES IN THE GREAT WAR 1914–1918.

THEIR NAME LIVETH FOR EVERMOREPASS NOT THIS STONE IN SORROWNO SORROW BUT IN PRIDEAND STRIVE TO LIVEAS NOBLY AS THEY DIED[19]The memorial is Grade II listed.

It comprises an open area of about seven acres surrounded on the south and western sides by ancient Saxon earthworks and formed part of the defensive fortifications of the town when it was an important Burh in the kingdom of Wessex.

Events held in the Kinecroft include Bonfire Night, BunkFest, The Vintage Car Rally, The Wallingford Festival of Cycling and The Circus.

Wallingford Town Hall was constructed in 1670 and is located on the southern side of the market square with the War Memorial in front and the church of St Mary-le-More behind.

As the removal of the lock and weir meant that this was the longest clear stretch of the upper river, it was an ideal site for rowing, so the Oxford University Boat Club which had long trained here built a boathouse at Chalmore in 2006.

The plan had been to continue the branch line to Watlington, but in May 1866, the Overend, Gurney & Co bank had crashed, causing one of the severest financial crises of the 19th century.

[58] The regatta was held on the same reach at Wallingford for most of its existence, but river conditions caused problems, and there was a growing need for larger facilities.

Located on the site of the disused Wallingford marina on the Thames Path, the building designed by Tuke Manton Architects LLP[59] replaced the club's historic home on the Isis, which was destroyed by fire in 1999.

[63] Starting in 2002 in the Cross Keys pub, BunkFest, usually being held in the first week of September, has become the largest free multi-day festival in the UK with an attendance of over 25,000 in 2017.

Other venues around the town feature a wide variety of acts, ranging from quiet, contemplative folk artists and singer-songwriters to raucous rock bands.