- Beaconsfield
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/bee"keuhnz feeld', bek"euhnz-/, n.2. a city in S Quebec, in E Canada: suburb of Montreal. 19,613.
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town in South Bucks district, administrative and historic county of Buckinghamshire, England, in the Chiltern Hills.The wide main street of the old town of Beaconsfield, bordered by 18th-century houses, contrasts with the modern town, in which commuters to London—28 miles (39 km) to the southeast—reside. Beaconsfield was adopted by Benjamin Disraeli (Disraeli, Benjamin, Earl Of Beaconsfield, Viscount Hughenden Of Hughenden), the 19th-century British prime minister, for his earl's title and was also the home of Edmund Burke (Burke, Edmund), the 18th-century statesman, who is buried in the parish church. Pop. (2001) 10,679.town in northern Tasmania, Australia. It lies on the west bank of the Tamar River, 29 miles (46 km) northwest of Launceston. The site of the present town, originally known as Cabbage Tree Hill, was renamed Brandy Creek when gold was found nearby in 1870. In 1879 F.A. Weld, governor of Tasmania, gave the town its present name in honour of Benjamin Disraeli, the 1st earl of Beaconsfield (and prime minister of Great Britain, 1868, 1874–80). Between 1877 and 1914 Beaconsfield's Tasmania Mine was by far the largest single source of gold in the state, reaching its peak in gold production around 1900. The mine works were dramatically impressive and attracted tourists. Mining continues; Beaconsfield is also an agricultural centre. Pop. (2001) urban centre, 995.* * *
Universalium. 2010.
