Macclesfield (/ˈmækəlzfiəld/) is a market town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East, Cheshire, England. It is sited on the River Bollin and the edge of the Cheshire Plain, with Macclesfield Forest to its east; the town lies 16 miles (26 km) south of Manchester and 38 miles (61 km) east of Chester.
Before the Norman Conquest, Macclesfield was held by Edwin, Earl of Mercia and was assessed at £8. The medieval town grew up on the hilltop around what is now St Michael's Church. It was granted a municipal charter in 1261. Macclesfield Grammar School was founded in 1502. The town had a silk-button industry from at least the middle of the 17th century and became a major silk-manufacturing centre from the mid-18th century. The Macclesfield Canal was constructed in 1826–31.