Short answers, pulled from the story.
The name Gloucester means "bright fort," according to an etymology proposed by the Austrian philologist Alfred Holder in 1896. The Welsh name for the city, Caerloyw, combines caer (fort or stronghold) with loyw, derived from gloyw, meaning bright or shiny. An alternative reading links the first element to a Welsh word meaning "valiant," giving the meaning "fortress of the valiant."
Roman forces established a garrison at the site now known as Kingsholm around AD 48. In AD 97, under Emperor Nerva, the settlement was elevated to the rank of colonia and formally named Colonia Nervia Glevensium, the highest civic status Rome could grant an overseas community.
Henry III was crowned at Gloucester Cathedral in 1216 at the age of nine. Because no proper crown was available, a gilded iron ring was used in its place, and the ceremony took place in the Chapter House.
Gloucester Cathedral's cloisters were used for corridor scenes in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, and Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince.
The Gloucestershire Aircraft Company, based at Brockworth near Gloucester, renamed itself the Gloster Aircraft Company in 1926 because international customers found "Gloucestershire" too difficult to spell. The company's Gloster E.28/39 aircraft, powered by Frank Whittle's pioneering turbojet engine, became the first British jet aircraft to fly.
The largest ice-cream factory in Europe is the Unilever factory in the Barnwood district of Gloucester. It has been producing ice cream since 1962, with products including the Cornetto and the Viennetta.
The July 2007 flooding in Gloucester left around 40,000 people without power for 24 hours and the entire city without piped water for 17 days, with hundreds of homes flooded across the city and surrounding areas.