a town of Leicesterhire in England, 110 miles from London. It is the second town in the county, and was in the Saxons time a royal village. Its market is on Thursday; the number of inhabitants in 1801 exceeded 4500. It has a large church, and a free school; besides a charity school for 80 boys, and another for 20 girls. It has been very much reduced by fires; but is still a very agreeable town, with rich meadow-ground, on the soke, which runs here almost parallel with the river Soar. The new canal has made the coal trade here very extensive.