Donington Hall
Encyclopedia
Castle Donington
Castle Donington is a village, with a population of around 7000 in the North West of Leicestershire, part of the Derby postcode area and on the edge of the National Forest. It is the closest town to East Midlands Airport.-Transport and housing:...
, North West Leicestershire
North West Leicestershire
North West Leicestershire is a local government district in Leicestershire, England. Its main towns are Ashby-de-la-Zouch and Coalville.The district contains East Midlands Airport, which operates flights to the rest of Britain and to various places in Europe...
, located close to the city of Derby
Derby
Derby , is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands region of England. It lies upon the banks of the River Derwent and is located in the south of the ceremonial county of Derbyshire. In the 2001 census, the population of the city was 233,700, whilst that of the Derby Urban Area was 229,407...
. The Hall serves as the headquarters for airline BMI
Bmi (airline)
British Midland Airways Limited , is an airline based at Donington Hall in Castle Donington in the United Kingdom, close to East Midlands Airport, and a fully owned subsidiary of Lufthansa...
.
The residual estate was purchased from the Gillies Shields family in 1971 by Tom Wheatcroft
Tom Wheatcroft
Frederick Bernard "Tom" Wheatcroft was an English businessman, who made his fortune through building and construction.-Biography:...
, who leased the Donington Park
Donington Park
Donington Park is a motorsport circuit near Castle Donington in Leicestershire, England.Originally part of the Donington Hall estate, it was created as a racing circuit during the pre-war period when the German Silver Arrows were battling for the European Championship...
motor racing circuit and the museum to Donington Leisure Ventures on a 150 year lease
Lease
A lease is a contractual arrangement calling for the lessee to pay the lessor for use of an asset. A rental agreement is a lease in which the asset is tangible property...
from January 2007 via his company Wheatcroft & Son.
Donington Hall
Built in the 17th century as the home of the Earl of Moira, and from the late 1800s the property of the Gillies Shields family, the hall was requisitioned at the start of World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
by the British government and turned into a prisoner of war camp. In 1915 Gunther Plüschow
Gunther Plüschow
Gunther Plüschow was a German aviator, aerial explorer and author from Munich, Bavaria. His feats include the only escape by a German prisoner of war in either World War from Britain back to Germany; he was the first man to explore and film Tierra del Fuego and Patagonia from the air...
, a German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
pilot, made the only successful escape of either world wars from Donington.
The circuit at Donington Park was closed in 1939 due to World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, when it was requisitioned by the Ministry of Defence
Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)
The Ministry of Defence is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces....
and was converted into a military vehicle depot and storage area.
With the whole estate needing extensive renovations after the war, the family rented the estate out as farm land. They retained the Hall, which after the Soviet Army
Soviet Army
The Soviet Army is the name given to the main part of the Armed Forces of the Soviet Union between 1946 and 1992. Previously, it had been known as the Red Army. Informally, Армия referred to all the MOD armed forces, except, in some cases, the Soviet Navy.This article covers the Soviet Ground...
ensured a Communist regime in Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
, became a refugee camp for those who came to the East Midlands. A letter to the Daily Telegraph from the Gillies Shields and Joyce Pearce thanked all those who were providing clothing, books and toys for the children, promising that once the immediate crisis was over, it was their intention to turn Donington Hall into “a home and school for children of all nationalities who now live without hope in the displaced persons camps in Germany, their parents were our allies, their sufferings caused through loyalty to our cause.”
In 1976, British Midland Airways purchased the hall from the Shields family, then renovated and converted it into their headquarters.
In 2007 BMI employed 800 workers at Donington Hall.
Donington Park
Donington ParkDonington Park
Donington Park is a motorsport circuit near Castle Donington in Leicestershire, England.Originally part of the Donington Hall estate, it was created as a racing circuit during the pre-war period when the German Silver Arrows were battling for the European Championship...
motor racing circuit was the first permanent park
Park
A park is a protected area, in its natural or semi-natural state, or planted, and set aside for human recreation and enjoyment, or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. It may consist of rocks, soil, water, flora and fauna and grass areas. Many parks are legally protected by...
circuit in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, which also ended the race circuit monopoly
Monopoly
A monopoly exists when a specific person or enterprise is the only supplier of a particular commodity...
that Brooklands
Brooklands
Brooklands was a motor racing circuit and aerodrome built near Weybridge in Surrey, England. It opened in 1907, and was the world's first purpose-built motorsport venue, as well as one of Britain's first airfields...
had held since 1907.
Fred Craner was a former motorcycle
Motorcycle
A motorcycle is a single-track, two-wheeled motor vehicle. Motorcycles vary considerably depending on the task for which they are designed, such as long distance travel, navigating congested urban traffic, cruising, sport and racing, or off-road conditions.Motorcycles are one of the most...
rider who had taken part in seven Isle of Man TT
Isle of Man TT
The International Isle of Man TT Race is a motorcycle racing event held on the Isle of Man and was for many years the most prestigious motorcycle race in the world...
races, and was by 1931 a Derby garage owner and secretary of the Derby & District Motor Club. Craner approached the then owner of the estate, Alderman John Gillies Shields JP, to use the extensive roads on his land for racing. JG Shields son John Shields
John Shields
Private John Shields was, at 35, the oldest member of the Lewis and Clark Expedition.- Early Life :John Shields was born in Rockingham County, VA in 1769. His parents were Robert Shields and Nancy Stockton, who were known as the "Parents of the Ten Brothers"...
was a captain of Leicestershire County Cricket Club
Leicestershire County Cricket Club
Leicestershire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Leicestershire. It has also been representative of the county of Rutland....
, who married a descendant of Edward Cornelius.
Whit Monday
Whit Monday or Pentecost Monday is the holiday celebrated the day after Pentecost, a movable feast in the Christian calendar. It is movable because it is determined by the date of Easter....
, 1931. For 1933 Craner obtained permission to build a permanent track, with the original layout widened and tarmacked at a cost of £12,000. The first car race was held on 25 March 1933, followed by three car meetings further that year. The first Donington Park Trophy race was held on 7 October 1933, and was won by the Earl Howe
Earl Howe
Earl Howe is a title that has been created twice in British history, for members of the Howe and Curzon-Howe family respectively.The first creation, in the Peerage of Great Britain, was in 1788 for Richard Howe, but became extinct on his death in 1799....
in a Bugatti Type 51
Bugatti Type 51
The Type 51 series succeeded the famous Type 35 as Bugatti's premier racing car for the 1930s. Unlike the dominant Type 35s of the prior decade, the Type 51 were unable to compete with the government-supported German and Italian offerings.-Type 51:The original Type 51 bowed in 1931...
.
In 1935 the first 300 miles (482.8 km) Donington Grand Prix was won by Richard "Mad Jack" Shuttleworth
Shuttleworth Collection
The Shuttleworth Collection is an aeronautical and automotive museum located at the Old Warden airfield in Bedfordshire, England. It is one of the most prestigious in the world due to the variety of old and well-preserved aircraft.- History :...
in an Alfa Romeo P3
Alfa Romeo P3
The Alfa Romeo P3, P3 monoposto or Tipo B was a classic Grand Prix car designed by Vittorio Jano, one of the Alfa Romeo 8C models. The P3 was first genuine single-seat Grand Prix racing car and Alfa Romeo's second monoposto after Tipo A monoposto . It was based on the earlier successful Alfa Romeo P2...
. In the 1937 Donington Grand Prix and 1938 Donington Grand Prix, the race winners were respectively Bernd Rosemeyer
Bernd Rosemeyer
Bernd Rosemeyer was a German racing driver.- Career :...
and Tazio Nuvolari
Tazio Nuvolari
Tazio Giorgio Nuvolari was an Italian motorcycle and racecar driver, known as Il Mantovano Volante or Nivola. He was the 1932 European Champion in Grand Prix motor racing...
, both in Auto Union
Auto Union
Auto Union was an amalgamation of four German automobile manufacturers, founded in 1932 and established in 1936 in Chemnitz, Saxony, during the Great Depression. The company has evolved into present day Audi, as a subsidiary of Volkswagen Group....
"Silver Arrows
Silver Arrows
Silver Arrows was the name given by the press to Germany's dominant Mercedes-Benz and Auto Union Grand Prix motor racing cars between 1934 and 1939, and also later applied to the Mercedes-Benz Formula One and sports cars in 1954/55.For decades until the introduction of sponsorship liveries, each...
".
Closed in 1939 due to World War II, the circuit site was used as a military vehicle storage base. Racing did not return to Donington Park until 1973, when local builder Tom Wheatcroft
Tom Wheatcroft
Frederick Bernard "Tom" Wheatcroft was an English businessman, who made his fortune through building and construction.-Biography:...
purchased the entire residual estate for £110,000, and began returning the racing track to operational condition. Wheatcroft leased the land on which Donington Park motor racing circuit and the museum are located to Donington Leisure Ventures, on a 150 year lease
Lease
A lease is a contractual arrangement calling for the lessee to pay the lessor for use of an asset. A rental agreement is a lease in which the asset is tangible property...
from January 2007.