Blithbury
Encyclopedia
Blithbury is a small village in Lichfield District
, Staffordshire
, England. Part of the civil parish
of Mavesyn Ridware
, it lies near the River Blithe
, about 3 miles (5 km) north of Handsacre
, 3 miles north-east of Rugeley
, and 3 miles south of Abbots Bromley
.
The public house
bears the name The Bull and Spectacles. In the 19th century it had the more common name of Bulls Head.
In the first half of the 12th century religious houses for monks and nuns were founded at Blithbury. Within a few decades only the nuns are mentioned. The order was associated with the nuns of Black Ladies Priory
, Brewood
, and was eventually absorbed by them, so that there is no mention of the nuns of Blithbury after the early 14th century.
According to Douglas Adams
' 1983 humorous dictionary "The Meaning of Liff
", a Blithbury is "A look someone gives you by which you become aware that they're much too drunk to have understood anything you've said to them in the last twenty minutes".
Lichfield (district)
Lichfield is a local government district in Staffordshire, England. It is administered by Lichfield District Council, based in Lichfield.The dignity and privileges of the City of Lichfield are vested in the parish council of the 14 km² Lichfield civil parish...
, Staffordshire
Staffordshire
Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. Part of the National Forest lies within its borders...
, England. Part of the civil parish
Civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
of Mavesyn Ridware
Mavesyn Ridware
Mavesyn Ridware is a small village and civil parish in Lichfield District, Staffordshire, England. The parish also includes the villages of Hill Ridware, Rake End, Pipe Ridware and Blithbury, all of which lie between the River Trent and a small tributary, the River Blithe...
, it lies near the River Blithe
River Blithe
The River Blithe is a river in Staffordshire, England. It is a Tributary of the River Trent and runs for around 20 miles from source to its confluence with the River Trent.-Etymology:...
, about 3 miles (5 km) north of Handsacre
Handsacre
Handsacre is a village in Staffordshire, England. It is adjacent to the larger village of Armitage.It is roughly five miles north of the city of Lichfield and 3 miles south of the town of Rugeley.-Village Services:...
, 3 miles north-east of Rugeley
Rugeley
Rugeley is a historic market town in the county of Staffordshire, England. It lies on the northern edge of Cannock Chase, and is situated roughly midway between the towns of Stafford, Cannock, Lichfield and Uttoxeter...
, and 3 miles south of Abbots Bromley
Abbots Bromley
Abbots Bromley is a village in Staffordshire, England. It is famous for the annual Abbots Bromley Horn Dance. It is also the home of one of the Woodard Schools, Abbots Bromley School for Girls...
.
The public house
Public house
A public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
bears the name The Bull and Spectacles. In the 19th century it had the more common name of Bulls Head.
In the first half of the 12th century religious houses for monks and nuns were founded at Blithbury. Within a few decades only the nuns are mentioned. The order was associated with the nuns of Black Ladies Priory
Black Ladies Priory
Black Ladies Priory was a house of Benedictine nuns, located about 4km west of Brewood in Staffordshire, on the northern edge of the hamlet of Kiddemore Green. Founded in the mid-12th century, it was a small, often struggling, house. It was dissolved in 1538, and a large house was built on the site...
, Brewood
Brewood
Brewood refers both to a settlement, which was once a town but is now a village, in South Staffordshire, England, and to the civil parish of which it is the centre. Located around , Brewood village lies near the River Penk, eight miles north of Wolverhampton city centre and eleven miles south of...
, and was eventually absorbed by them, so that there is no mention of the nuns of Blithbury after the early 14th century.
According to Douglas Adams
Douglas Adams
Douglas Noel Adams was an English writer and dramatist. He is best known as the author of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, which started life in 1978 as a BBC radio comedy before developing into a "trilogy" of five books that sold over 15 million copies in his lifetime, a television...
' 1983 humorous dictionary "The Meaning of Liff
The Meaning of Liff
The Meaning of Liff is a humorous dictionary of toponymy and etymology, written by Douglas Adams and John Lloyd, published in the United Kingdom in 1983, and the USA in 1984....
", a Blithbury is "A look someone gives you by which you become aware that they're much too drunk to have understood anything you've said to them in the last twenty minutes".