Cambridgeshire

Cambridgeshire, county (1991 pop. 640,700), 1,313 sq mi (3,402 sq km), E central England. The county seat is Cambridge. Most of the area is alluvial fenland, rising to the low, chalky East Anglian Hills in the south, with the Gogmagog Hills near Cambridge the most conspicuous feature. The main rivers are the Ouse, with its tributaries, and the Nene. Efforts to reclaim the fens date back to the days of Roman occupation, but in the subsequent periods of invasion by Danes, Saxons, and Normans they were abandoned. The fens were drained after the Dutchman Cornelius Vermuyden completed a vast drainage project in 1653. Agriculture and light industry are the dominant economic activities. Wheat, barley, potatoes, sugar beets, and fruits are raised. Food processing is an important industry as well as radio engineering and the manufacture of cement, bricks, and scientific instruments. The town of Ely has been an ecclesiastical center for centuries. Cambridge Univ. dates from the early 13th cent.

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Cambridgeshire

Administrative (pop., 2001: 552,655), geographic, and historic county, eastern England. Greatly enlarged in the government reorganization in 1974, Cambridgeshire now includes part of the former county of Huntingdonshire and the Isle of Ely; the county seat is Cambridge. Prehistoric tracks ring the fens; drainage was begun by the Romans. Major structures include Ely Cathedral and the buildings of the University of Cambridge. Cambridgeshire is crossed by two major rivers, the Nen and the Ouse, with its tributary the Cam.

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Cambridgeshire

a county of E England, in East Anglia: includes the former counties of the Isle of Ely and Huntingdon and lies largely in the Fens: Peterborough became an independent unitary authority in 1998. Administrative centre: Cambridge. Pop. (excluding Peterborough): 571 000 (2003 est.). Area (excluding Peterborough): 3068 sq. km (184 sq. miles)

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Cambridgeshire 

a county in Great Britain, in England, in the Ouse river basin. Area, 2,300 sq km. Population, 302,500 (1971). Administrative center, Cambridge. The county is divided into two administrative sections: Cambridgeshire proper (area, 1,300 sq km) and the Isle of Ely (area, 1,000 sq km). Cambridgeshire is primarily an agricultural area.