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	County Town: Preston County Population: 1,500,000 (estimate)
	Lancashire is surrounded by the Pennine Hills to the east, the Forest of Bowland and its rounded hills to the north, and the industrial areas of Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the south. The land to the west and south is generally low-lying, with a very flat and sandy coastline. Both the estuary of the river Kent, and the Forest of Bowland are designated Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
	The Romans left Lancashire in 409 and it reverted to the control of the native Britons, and the area was fought over by the rulers of Mercia and Northumbria from the late 7th century onwards. The Danes invaded the area repeatedly during the 9th century, until the peace of Wedmore ceded the territory to the Danish Kingdom of Northumbria in 878. The Norman Conquest finally saw the area becoming part of England, but over the next century, the county passed between the Crown and various noblemen numerous times, and was later involved in the Wars of the Roses, a series of dynastic civil wars fought by the rival houses of Lancaster and York between 1455 and 1485.
	The county struggled to make a living from wool production for many centuries but under the reign of the Tudors trade expanded and gradually cotton began to become a more valuable source of income. By the late 17th century cotton production was the county's major industry, then supporting a population similar to that of London. Lancashire was the heart of the Industrial Revolution, with mills powered by coal-fuelled steam engines covering what had once been a rural landscape. The spread of the railways and canals also brought further wealth to Lancashire during the 19th century.
	Now the county is mainly rural with fertile farmland found on the low-lying areas of the coast, and dairy farming on the more hilly ground. Largely dependent on tourism, with holidaymakers attracted by seaside resorts such as Blackpool, and the beautiful of wooded hills inland, the industries that were so successful during the 19th century have been replaced by modern companies and light industries.
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