Ellesmere is a market town near Oswestry in north Shropshire, England, significant for its closeness to a number of prominent Meres. The town is found alongside Ellesmere (aka 'the Mere'), among the largest natural meres in England outside the Lake District and also among nine antarctic meres in the area. ('glacial' indicates that the depression inhabited by the mere was the location of a block of ice that continued at the end of the last Ice Age). These meres are different from those in the Lake District because they do not have a circulation of water right into them to preserve the level. A synthetic island in the Mere was built in 1812 from dirt dug out during the making of the gardens at Ellesmere House. This was later called Moscow Island, as Napoleon was required to pull back from Moscow that year. The Mere has a site visitors' centre and also is popular with birdwatchers, a lot of whom visit to see grey herons nesting. There are eight various other meres nearby: Blakemere, Colemere, Crosemere, Kettlemere, Newtonmere, Whitemere, Sweatmere and Hanmer Mere. The civil parish which constitutes the town is Ellesmere Urban; the surrounding parish, covering a huge backwoods, is Ellesmere Rural.