Lilleshall
Encyclopedia
Lilleshall is a village in Shropshire
, England.
It lies between the towns of Telford
and Newport
, on the A518
, in the Telford and Wrekin
borough and the Wrekin
constituency.
The village dates back to Anglo-Saxon
times, the parish church being founded by St Chad. It is mentioned in the Domesday book
.
An Augustinian Abbey was founded in the twelfth century, the ruins of which are protected by English Heritage
. After the dissolution of the monasteries
the estate was bought by a merchant called Leveson. The family became lords of Stafford and later Dukes of Sutherland (as the Leveson-Gower family).
There is a monument, a cricket club, a tennis club, a church and a primary school clustered around a bracken-covered hill named Lilleshall Hill. Lilleshall Monument is a 70 feet (21.3 m) high local landmark which stands on top of Lilleshall Hill and was erected in honour of the Duke of Sutherland.
Lilleshall is surrounded by farmland. The village and surrounds were the site of a lot of early industrial development in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, with relatively shallow deposits of coal
and limestone
being mined. The history of the mining of limestone is reflected in the naming of a road called 'Limekiln Lane' in Lilleshall. The former limestone mines are tucked away in treeland at the Newport end of the village, locally known as "the Slang", which is effectively several pits now filled with water, popular with local fishermen and unpopular with local parents of young children - the water is deep and the former minepits area quite dark, abandoned and dangerous.
At a similar time to the mining of limestone an early example of the English canal network was dug, the Donnington Wood Canal
and its Lilleshall branch which were connected by an inclined plane
, reflected in the naming of a road named The Incline in Lilleshall.
The Dukes of Sutherland became one of the richest families in the United Kingdom partly as a result of this industrial development and in the late nineteenth century built a new residence, Lilleshall Hall
which lies at the heart of the estate a mile from the village.
The Sutherland estate was sold off between 1915 and 1917 and the hall eventually passed into state ownership as a sporting facility. It is now the Lilleshall Hall National Sports Centre
, once the site of the Football Association
youth academy, and now the home of British gymnastics and archery. Lilleshall Hall Golf Club is also in the grounds of Lilleshall Hall.
Shropshire
Shropshire is a 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. It borders Wales to the west...
, England.
It lies between the towns of Telford
Telford
Telford is a large new town in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial county of Shropshire, England, approximately east of Shrewsbury, and west of Birmingham...
and Newport
Newport, Shropshire
Newport is a market town in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial county of Shropshire, England. It lies some north of Telford and some west of Stafford sitting on the Shropshire/Staffordshire border...
, on the A518
A518 road
The A518 is a road in the United Kingdom which runs from Uttoxeter, Staffordshire to Telford, Shropshire via Stafford and Newport. Between Uttoxeter and Stafford it is a single carriageway, with a staggered junction with the dual carriageway A51...
, in the Telford and Wrekin
Telford and Wrekin
Telford and Wrekin is a unitary district with borough status in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. The district was created in 1974 as The...
borough and the Wrekin
The Wrekin (UK Parliament constituency)
The Wrekin is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom since 1918. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election...
constituency.
The village dates back to Anglo-Saxon
Anglo-Saxon
Anglo-Saxon may refer to:* Anglo-Saxons, a group that invaded Britain** Old English, their language** Anglo-Saxon England, their history, one of various ships* White Anglo-Saxon Protestant, an ethnicity* Anglo-Saxon economy, modern macroeconomic term...
times, the parish church being founded by St Chad. It is mentioned in 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...
.
An Augustinian Abbey was founded in the twelfth century, the ruins of which are protected by English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
. 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 estate was bought by a merchant called Leveson. The family became lords of Stafford and later Dukes of Sutherland (as the Leveson-Gower family).
There is a monument, a cricket club, a tennis club, a church and a primary school clustered around a bracken-covered hill named Lilleshall Hill. Lilleshall Monument is a 70 feet (21.3 m) high local landmark which stands on top of Lilleshall Hill and was erected in honour of the Duke of Sutherland.
Lilleshall is surrounded by farmland. The village and surrounds were the site of a lot of early industrial development in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, with relatively shallow deposits of coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
and limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
being mined. The history of the mining of limestone is reflected in the naming of a road called 'Limekiln Lane' in Lilleshall. The former limestone mines are tucked away in treeland at the Newport end of the village, locally known as "the Slang", which is effectively several pits now filled with water, popular with local fishermen and unpopular with local parents of young children - the water is deep and the former minepits area quite dark, abandoned and dangerous.
At a similar time to the mining of limestone an early example of the English canal network was dug, the Donnington Wood Canal
Donnington Wood Canal
The Donnington Wood Canal was a private canal in East Shropshire, England, which ran from coal pits owned by Earl Gower at Donnington Wood to Pave Lane on the Wolverhampton to Newport Turnpike Road. It was completed in about 1767 and abandoned in 1904...
and its Lilleshall branch which were connected by an inclined plane
Canal inclined plane
An inclined plane is a system used on some canals for raising boats between different water levels. Boats may be conveyed afloat, in caissons, or may be carried in cradles or slings. It can be considered as a specialised type of cable railway....
, reflected in the naming of a road named The Incline in Lilleshall.
The Dukes of Sutherland became one of the richest families in the United Kingdom partly as a result of this industrial development and in the late nineteenth century built a new residence, Lilleshall Hall
Lilleshall Hall
Lilleshall Hall is a large former country house and estate located near Lilleshall in Shropshire, England. It was founded as an Augustinian Abbey in the 12th century, with its estate running to some...
which lies at the heart of the estate a mile from the village.
The Sutherland estate was sold off between 1915 and 1917 and the hall eventually passed into state ownership as a sporting facility. It is now the Lilleshall Hall National Sports Centre
National Sports Centres
There are five National Sports Centres as part of Sport England's strategy to create an elite of English grown world class sporting talent:* Bisham Abbey* Crystal Palace* Holme Pierrepont National Watersports Centre* Lilleshall...
, once the site of the Football Association
The Football Association
The Football Association, also known as simply The FA, is the governing body of football in England, and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. It was formed in 1863, and is the oldest national football association...
youth academy, and now the home of British gymnastics and archery. Lilleshall Hall Golf Club is also in the grounds of Lilleshall Hall.