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To the Manor Born #77

...by.  The River Trent ran near to the village and in 1770 a canal was built and it seems that there was a thriving River port there at one time with a bustling community of boat-builders, rope walks, stables, workshops and offices.  They even say that Bonnie Prince Charlie marched through the village in 1745 on his way to claim the throne in London, stopping at nearby Swarkestone Bridge (which is the oldest stone bridge in the UK). So there was lots of history to this village and I had a very happy childhood there running free across the fields at the back of our house and making dens in the nearby woods.  The house had a lovely big garden at the back with an...

Hoar Cross Hall - a bit of history #13

...HOAR CROSS HALL - A BIT OF HISTORY:       Hoar Cross was part of Needwood Forest, the 11th century lands of Henry de Ferrers. The land was passed down to Henry’s son and subsequent various people over the course of 500 years ending with the Webb family, around the 1730s, who bought the land and house known as the Manor of the Cross. This was quite a large house built on a hill near Yoxall (which is the village next to Hoar Cross). In 1740 the manor house was demolished and later the Hon. Charles Talbot bought the estate for £17,000. Eventually it was sold to Hugo Meynell, who already owned huge amounts of property all over the county. This branch of the...

Hoar Cross Hall - a bit of history #14

...Hoar Cross was part of Needwood Forest, the 11th century lands of Henry de Ferrers. The land was passed down to Henry’s son and subsequent various people over the course of 500 years ending with the Webb family, around the 1730s, who bought the land and house known as the Manor of the Cross. This was quite a large house built on a hill near Yoxall (which is the village next to Hoar Cross). In 1740 the manor house was demolished and later the Hon. Charles Talbot bought the estate for £17,000. Eventually it was sold to Hugo Meynell, who already owned huge amounts of property all over the county. This branch of the Meynell family originated from Leicestershire,...

A Home fit for a King #21

...In this week's blog I am focusing on the royal family again and the stately homes which they grew up in. The main residence for the Royal family is Buckingham Palace which is the administrative headquarters of the monarch of the United Kingdom and where many state occasions take place, but Buckingham Palace was originally known as Buckingham House. The building at the core of today's palace was a large townhouse built for the Duke of Buckingham in 1703 on a site that had been in private ownership for at least 150 years. It was acquired by King George III in 1761 as a private residence for Queen Charlotte and became known as The Queen's House. During the 19th ce...

Home fit for a King #53

...With the Coronation of King Charles III almost upon us, this week's blog focuses on the Palace that he now calls home – or the 'Headquarters' of the Royal Family. This residence is Buckingham Palace which is the administrative headquarters of the monarch of the United Kingdom and where many state occasions take place, but Buckingham Palace was originally known as Buckingham House. The building at the core of today's palace was a large townhouse built for the Duke of Buckingham in 1703 on a site that had been in private ownership for at least 150 years. It was acquired by King George III in 1761 as a private residence for Queen Charlotte and became known as Th...

Meet the Neighbours - Trentham Gardens #83

...he nearby River Trent was getting more polluted with sewage and effluent from the local pottery businesses (the ‘potteries’ being the local name for Stoke-on-Trent) and this put them off taking it on as this would make a residential institute undesirable.  The sculpture gallery, clock tower and church were not demolished and the grounds were used as pleasure gardens throughout the last century – they even hosted the Lombard RAC Rally!  As my father had been a racing dRiver and this was my  background growing up, I was quite keen to take up rally driving when I got older, so we often went to watch the cars skid and screech around the muddy tracks in the...