About the town » Didsbury, Manchester, England, Great Britain

Didsbury is a suburban area and dormitory community of the City of Manchester, England. It lies on the north bank of the River Mersey, 4.5 miles south of Manchester city centre, in the southern half of the Greater Manchester Urban Area. Historically a part of Lancashire, there are records of Didsbury existing as a small hamlet as early as the 13th century. Its early history was dominated by its association with Withington under a feudal estate, which covered other areas in what is now the south of Manchester. During the 18th century, Didsbury was being described as a township separate from outside influence. In 1745 Charles Edward Stuart crossed the Mersey at Didsbury in the Jacobite march south from Manchester to Derby, and again in the subsequent retreat. Didsbury was largely rural until the mid-19th century, when it underwent development and urbanisation during the Industrial Revolution. Introduced into the inner boundaries of Manchester in 1904, Didsbury was integrated into the city 45 years after Manchester gained city status. The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds was formed in Didsbury in 1889.