When William invaded England in 1066 he gave parcels of land to his supporters as a thank you gift. Bridgwater, then known as Quayside was given to Walter of Douai in France. Bryj, meaning ‘Quayside’ in French, now belonged to him and would be known as Walter’s Quayside, ‘Bryj of Walter’, hence Bridgwater. This explains the lack of the ‘e’ in the middle of Bridgwater. It’s not the ‘e’ that’s missing from Bridgwater but the ‘l’ from Walter. Bridgwater is steeped in ... (more)