Newnham or Newnham on Severn is a village in west Gloucestershire, England. It lies in the Royal Forest of Dean, on the west bank of the River Severn, approximately 10 miles south-west of Gloucester and three miles southeast of Cinderford. It is on the A48 road between Gloucester and Chepstow, Monmouthshire, Wales. The village has a parish council.

Newnham
St Peter's Church, Newnham
Newnham on Severn from the riverside
Newnham Location within Gloucestershire
Population	1,296 (2011)[1]
OS grid reference	SO691117
Civil parish	Newnham
District	Forest of Dean
Shire county	Gloucestershire
Region	South West
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	NEWNHAM
Postcode district	GL14
Dialling code	01594
Police	Gloucestershire
Fire	Gloucestershire
Ambulance	South Western
UK Parliament	Forest of Dean
List of places UK England Gloucestershire 51°48′11″N 2°27′00″W / 51.803°N 2.450°W / 51.803; -2.450

A parish church was established in the 14th century (although there had been a chapel of ease since 1018), and in 1366 a new church building was built on the high ground of the village as the old one faced erosion from the river. The new building has itself been damaged by a gunpowder explosion in 1644 during the English Civil War and a fire in 1881, but is still in use.

The Ancient Romans built three roads through the location, where they forded the River Severn. The Anglo-Saxons established a permanent settlement, the Normans built a motte-and-bailey fortification for defence, and in medieval times it became a major port with links around Great Britain and Ireland. In 1171, Henry II of England staged an invasion of Ireland from Newnham. One account claimed that he set sail with 400 ships and 5,000 men, which suggests its importance as a port. For a time Newnham was the most successful Gloucestershire town west of the Severn. Its role as a port and trading hub declined, however, rapidly with the 1827 opening of the Gloucester and Sharpness Canal.

In 1810, an early attempt at a Severn tunnel began construction just south of Newnham. Work was abandoned after flooding in 1812.

Matron Eva Luckes of The London Hospital lived in Newnham.^[2]

The scenic Gloucester to Newport railway line goes through a tunnel here. Newnham railway station opened in 1851 and closed in 1964.