Kinwarton
Encyclopedia
Kinwarton is a village in the valley of the River Alne
, Warwickshire
, finding itself today being steadily encroached upon by the spread of nearby Alcester
. The ground is mostly low-lying, with a maximum altitude of 206 ft. and some of the fields near the river are liable to floods. The road from Alcester to Henley-in-Arden runs through the middle of the parish. A branch road leads off to the church and rectory about a quarter of a mile to the south and thence continues as a field-path down to a ford across the Arrow below Hoo Mill. From the north side of the main road a by-road branches off to Coughton
.
towards the endowment of his newly founded monastery at Evesham
. This is then confirmed by the Domesday Book
which records it as being part of the land of Evesham Church "in the Ferncombe Hundred in Chenevertone (Kinwarton) 3 hides
. Ranulf holds from the Abbot. Land for 5 ploughs. In Lordship 1; 3 slaves; 3 villagers and 2 smallholders with 1 plough. A mill at 3s; meadow, 1 furlong long and 12 perches
wide. The value was 40s; later 5s; now 20s."
After the dissolution of the monasteries
the manor was purchased by Sir Fulke Greville, 1st Baron Brooke
from the Skinner family.
, whose current Member of Parliament is Nadhim Zahawi
of the Conservative Party
.
It is included in the West Midlands
electoral region of the European Parliament and the six members are; Mike Nattrass
(UK Independence), Liz Lynne
,(Liberal Democrat), Malcolm Harbour
(Conservative), Michael Cashman
(Labour), Philip Bradbourn
OBE (Conservative) and Nicole Sinclaire
(UK Independence).
The church here together with the chapels at Alne and Witheley were given to the monks of Evesham during the reign of Henry II
1154-1189 by Ranulph de Kinwarton for the health of his soul and that of his wife Christian. In 1291 the church was valued at 24 marks, half a mark yearly being payable to the Abbot of Winchcombe. The church was rebuilt in 1316, and consecrated by Walter de Maydston the then Bishop of Worcester
.
The church consists of a chancel
, nave
, south porch, and a shingled bell turret at the west end and the whole chamber has clasping east corner butresses
.
The structure is mostly 13th century including the northern lancet windows. two south windows are 14th century with some fragments of old glass. The west buttresses and windows are 19th century dating from a restoration of 1850.
The weather-boarded bell turret stands on two posts with bracing forming an arch with two X's and probably dates from the 16th or 17th century. There is a fifteenth-century sculpted alabaster panel which shows the dedication of the Madonna, Joachim and Anne bringing Mary to the Temple, with five veiled women standing by, their hands clasped in prayer, and a priest with an angel at his feet. This gem, probably part of a reredos, was found by a rector of this church among the rubbish in a carpenter's shop at Binton
in 1836. There is also a chandelier of the 18th century a font of Norman date, a memorial to a former rector and a brass memorial plaque to a Royal Air Force
Squadron Leader
shot down over France
in 1944.
Trees surround the church and churchyard, from which can be seen the open countryside. Not far distant, to the north, are Coughton and Sambourne
.
The rectory is a Georgian red-brick house of 1788.
Not far from the church is Glebe Farm of mid-17th-century square timber-framing, with tiled roofs. The plan is of T-shape, the ends of the wings being gabled. A barn and other farm-buildings west of the house are also timber-framed.
North of the church, on old glebe land, stands Kinwarton Dovecote
, a circular dovecote
built in the fourteenth century for the abbots, its lantern being added three centuries later. It contains over 500 nesting boxes, and is one of the few dovecotes still surviving in Warwickshire. It is now the property of the National Trust
.
River Alne
The River Alne is a tributary of the Warwickshire Avon and has its headwaters to the north of Wootton Wawen. The River Alne flows generally southwards before joining with the River Arrow at Alcester, which itself joins the River Avon near Salford Priors....
, Warwickshire
Warwickshire
Warwickshire is a landlocked non-metropolitan county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, although the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare...
, finding itself today being steadily encroached upon by the spread of nearby Alcester
Alcester
Alcester is an old market town of Roman origin at the junction of the River Alne and River Arrow in Warwickshire, England. It is situated approximately west of Stratford-upon-Avon, and 8 miles south of Redditch, close to the Worcestershire border...
. The ground is mostly low-lying, with a maximum altitude of 206 ft. and some of the fields near the river are liable to floods. The road from Alcester to Henley-in-Arden runs through the middle of the parish. A branch road leads off to the church and rectory about a quarter of a mile to the south and thence continues as a field-path down to a ford across the Arrow below Hoo Mill. From the north side of the main road a by-road branches off to Coughton
Coughton
Coughton may refer to:* places in England:** Coughton, a hamlet in Herefordshire** Coughton, a village in Warwickshire** Coughton Court, a country house in Warwickshire...
.
History
Dugdale believed the name to be Saxon deriving from the popular Saxon name Kineward. The name first appears in 708 when land at Kinwarton was given by Coenred King of Mercia to Bishop EgwinEgwin
Egcwine was the third Bishop of Worcester in England.-Life:He was the founder of the Evesham Abbey. His biographers say that king, clergy, and commonalty all united in demanding his elevation as bishop; but the popularity which led him to the episcopal office dissipated in response to his...
towards the endowment of his newly founded monastery at Evesham
Evesham Abbey
Evesham Abbey was founded by Saint Egwin at Evesham in England between 700 and 710 A.D. following a vision of the Virgin Mary by Eof.According to the monastic history, Evesham came through the Norman Conquest unusually well, because of a quick approach by Abbot Æthelwig to William the Conqueror...
. This is then confirmed by the Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
which records it as being part of the land of Evesham Church "in the Ferncombe Hundred in Chenevertone (Kinwarton) 3 hides
Hide (unit)
The hide was originally an amount of land sufficient to support a household, but later in Anglo-Saxon England became a unit used in assessing land for liability to "geld", or land tax. The geld would be collected at a stated rate per hide...
. Ranulf holds from the Abbot. Land for 5 ploughs. In Lordship 1; 3 slaves; 3 villagers and 2 smallholders with 1 plough. A mill at 3s; meadow, 1 furlong long and 12 perches
Perch (unit of measure)
A perch is as a unit of measurement used for length, area, and volume in a number of systems of measurement. Its name derives from the Ancient Roman unit, the pertica.-Origin:...
wide. The value was 40s; later 5s; now 20s."
After the dissolution of the monasteries
Dissolution of the Monasteries
The Dissolution of the Monasteries, sometimes referred to as the Suppression of the Monasteries, was the set of administrative and legal processes between 1536 and 1541 by which Henry VIII disbanded monasteries, priories, convents and friaries in England, Wales and Ireland; appropriated their...
the manor was purchased by Sir Fulke Greville, 1st Baron Brooke
Fulke Greville, 1st Baron Brooke
Fulke Greville, 1st Baron Brooke, de jure 13th Baron Latimer and 5th Baron Willoughby de Broke , known before 1621 as Sir Fulke Greville, was an Elizabethan poet, dramatist, and statesman....
from the Skinner family.
Governance
Kinwarton is in the Kinwarton ward of Stratford on Avon District Council and represented by Councillor Mike Gittus, Conservative. Nationally it is part of Stratford-on-Avon (UK Parliament constituency)Stratford-on-Avon (UK Parliament constituency)
-By-elections:-Notes and references:...
, whose current Member of Parliament is Nadhim Zahawi
Nadhim Zahawi
Nadhim Zahawi is a British Conservative Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Stratford-on-Avon since 2010, after the retirement of previous MP John Maples....
of the Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
.
It is included in the West Midlands
West Midlands (European Parliament constituency)
West Midlands is a constituency of the European Parliament. For 2009 it elected 6 MEPs using the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation. The constituency will also elect a "virtual MEP" who will be able to sit in the Parliament if the Treaty of Lisbon comes into effect...
electoral region of the European Parliament and the six members are; Mike Nattrass
Mike Nattrass
Mike Nattrass is an English politician and Member of the European Parliament, representing the West Midlands constituency for the UK Independence Party , elected for the first time in June 2004 and re-elected in June 2009....
(UK Independence), Liz Lynne
Liz Lynne
Elizabeth Lynne, known as Liz Lynne, is a British politician, and has been a Member of the European Parliament for the West Midlands for the Liberal Democrats since her election at the 1999 European election...
,(Liberal Democrat), Malcolm Harbour
Malcolm Harbour
Malcolm Harbour is a British politician. He is a Conservative Member of the European Parliament for the West Midlands. He is a member of the European Conservatives and Reformists Group and the Chairman of the Committee on Internal Market and Consumer Protection.-Motor industry:Malcolm Harbour was...
(Conservative), Michael Cashman
Michael Cashman
Michael Maurice Cashman is a British former actor, now a Labour politician. He has been a Member of the European Parliament for the West Midlands constituency since 1999.- Acting :...
(Labour), Philip Bradbourn
Philip Bradbourn
Philip Bradbourn OBE MEP is a British politician, and Member of the European Parliament for the West Midlands, for the Conservative Party...
OBE (Conservative) and Nicole Sinclaire
Nikki Sinclaire
Nicole Sinclaire is a European politician from the United Kingdom and is a current MEP.Educated at the University of Canterbury graduating with a Bachelor of Laws qualification. Sinclaire has worked for Lloyds as a 'problem troubleshooter' was employed as a Gateway store manager and worked in...
(UK Independence).
Notable buildings
There was once a large village here, and tucked away down a road by the old toll house is the tiny (57 feet long) 13th century parish church of St. Mary the Virgin. Reputed by Cave to be of Saxon origin, certainly some of the walling especially at the east angles, appears to be of an early type.The church here together with the chapels at Alne and Witheley were given to the monks of Evesham during the reign of Henry II
Henry II of England
Henry II ruled as King of England , Count of Anjou, Count of Maine, Duke of Normandy, Duke of Aquitaine, Duke of Gascony, Count of Nantes, Lord of Ireland and, at various times, controlled parts of Wales, Scotland and western France. Henry, the great-grandson of William the Conqueror, was the...
1154-1189 by Ranulph de Kinwarton for the health of his soul and that of his wife Christian. In 1291 the church was valued at 24 marks, half a mark yearly being payable to the Abbot of Winchcombe. The church was rebuilt in 1316, and consecrated by Walter de Maydston the then Bishop of Worcester
Bishop of Worcester
The Bishop of Worcester is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Worcester in the Province of Canterbury, England. He is the head of the Diocese of Worcester in the Province of Canterbury...
.
The church consists of a chancel
Chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar in the sanctuary at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building...
, nave
Nave
In Romanesque and Gothic Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and church architecture, the nave is the central approach to the high altar, the main body of the church. "Nave" was probably suggested by the keel shape of its vaulting...
, south porch, and a shingled bell turret at the west end and the whole chamber has clasping east corner butresses
Buttress
A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall...
.
The structure is mostly 13th century including the northern lancet windows. two south windows are 14th century with some fragments of old glass. The west buttresses and windows are 19th century dating from a restoration of 1850.
The weather-boarded bell turret stands on two posts with bracing forming an arch with two X's and probably dates from the 16th or 17th century. There is a fifteenth-century sculpted alabaster panel which shows the dedication of the Madonna, Joachim and Anne bringing Mary to the Temple, with five veiled women standing by, their hands clasped in prayer, and a priest with an angel at his feet. This gem, probably part of a reredos, was found by a rector of this church among the rubbish in a carpenter's shop at Binton
Binton
Binton is a village and civil parish in the Stratford district of Warwickshire, England. It is about five miles west of Stratford-upon-Avon. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 272.-History:...
in 1836. There is also a chandelier of the 18th century a font of Norman date, a memorial to a former rector and a brass memorial plaque to a Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
Squadron Leader
Squadron Leader
Squadron Leader is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence. It is also sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank in countries which have a non-English air force-specific rank structure. In these...
shot down over France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
in 1944.
Trees surround the church and churchyard, from which can be seen the open countryside. Not far distant, to the north, are Coughton and Sambourne
Sambourne
Sambourne, formerly spelled Sambourn, is a hamlet and civil parish north-west of Coughton, from Stratford upon Avon and from Warwick in the county of Warwickshire, England. It is situated on sloping ground rising westwards to about 500 feet near the ancient Ridge Way, which forms the county...
.
The rectory is a Georgian red-brick house of 1788.
Not far from the church is Glebe Farm of mid-17th-century square timber-framing, with tiled roofs. The plan is of T-shape, the ends of the wings being gabled. A barn and other farm-buildings west of the house are also timber-framed.
North of the church, on old glebe land, stands Kinwarton Dovecote
Kinwarton Dovecote
Kinwarton Dovecote is circular 14th-century dovecote situated in Kinwarton, near Alcester, Warwickshire, England. The dovecote is in the ownership of the National Trust....
, a circular dovecote
Dovecote
A dovecote or dovecot is a structure intended to house pigeons or doves. Dovecotes may be square or circular free-standing structures or built into the end of a house or barn. They generally contain pigeonholes for the birds to nest. Pigeons and doves were an important food source historically in...
built in the fourteenth century for the abbots, its lantern being added three centuries later. It contains over 500 nesting boxes, and is one of the few dovecotes still surviving in Warwickshire. It is now the property of the National Trust
National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty
The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as the National Trust, is a conservation organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
.