Berkeley, Gloucestershire Berkeley, Gloucestershire Berkeley ( ) is a small town and parish in Gloucestershire, England. It lies in the Vale of Berkeley between the east bank of the River Severn and the M5 motorway, within the Stroud administrative district. The town is noted for Berkeley Castle, where the imprisoned Edward II was murdered, as well as the birthplace of the physician Edward Jenner, pioneer of the smallpox vaccine, the world's first vaccine. The parish also includes the village of Berkeley Heath, which runs along the A38 Bristol to Gloucester road and the adjacent B4066 towards Berkeley. Berkeley lies midway between Bristol
Edward II of England castle. As a result of these threats, Edward was moved around to other locations in secret for a period, before returning to permanent custody at the castle in the late summer of 1327. The political situation remained unstable, and new plots appear to have been formed to free him. On 23 September Edward III was informed that his father had died at Berkeley Castle during the night of 21 September. Most historians agree that Edward II did die at Berkeley on that date, although there is a minority view, described below, that he died much later. Edward's death was, as