Mancetter
Encyclopedia
Mancetter is a village and civil parish on the outskirts of Atherstone
in North Warwickshire
, at the crossing of Watling Street
over the River Anker
.
a posting station was built athwart Watling Street close to the river crossing, and a rectangular earthwork of this station is still extant. Around the station grew the settlement of Manduessedum
. It is thought that Mancetter is the most likely location of the Battle of Watling Street
, between an alliance of indigenous British
peoples led by Boudica
and a Roman army
led by Gaius Suetonius Paulinus
, although the exact location is unknown.
Mancetter does not appear in the Domesday Book
of 1086 but in 1196 a Walter de Mancetter granted land to endow the parish church. The chancel
walls of the Church of England parish church
of Saint Peter
still include 12th century masonry. The chancel and nave
were remodelled early in the 13th century and the north aisle was added later in the 13th century. The bell tower
, the south aisle and the clerestorey of the nave all seem to have been added in the 15th century. The south porch was added early in the 17th century. Restoration work was carried out in 1876, 1911 and 1930, and the Gothic Revival architect
C.C. Rolfe may have undertaken restoration work in 1899. The tower has a peal
of five bells, of which the oldest was cast about 1350, another early in the 16th century and the treble, tenor and third bell in the middle of the 17th century.
The advowson
of St. Peter's was impropriated by the Cistercian Abbey of Merevale
in 1449.
Mancetter Manor House
is a timber-framed building dating from about 1330. An intermediate floor was inserted in the great hall in about 1480 and the south wing was added in about 1580. The central chinmeystack was probably inserted in the 17th century and small extensions to the house were made in the 18th and 19th centuries.
Atherstone
Atherstone is a town in Warwickshire, England. The town is located near the northernmost tip of Warwickshire, close to the border with Staffordshire and Leicestershire and is the administrative headquarters of the borough of North Warwickshire.-History:...
in North Warwickshire
North Warwickshire
North Warwickshire is a local government district and borough in Warwickshire, England. The main town in the district is Atherstone where the council is based...
, at the crossing of Watling Street
Watling Street
Watling Street is the name given to an ancient trackway in England and Wales that was first used by the Britons mainly between the modern cities of Canterbury and St Albans. The Romans later paved the route, part of which is identified on the Antonine Itinerary as Iter III: "Item a Londinio ad...
over the River Anker
River Anker
The River Anker is a river in England. The river flows through the centre of Nuneaton towards Tamworth in Staffordshire. The river continues on before merging with the River Tame in Tamworth...
.
History
During the Roman occupation of BritainRoman Britain
Roman Britain was the part of the island of Great Britain controlled by the Roman Empire from AD 43 until ca. AD 410.The Romans referred to the imperial province as Britannia, which eventually comprised all of the island of Great Britain south of the fluid frontier with Caledonia...
a posting station was built athwart Watling Street close to the river crossing, and a rectangular earthwork of this station is still extant. Around the station grew the settlement of Manduessedum
Manduessedum
Manduessedum was a Roman fort and later a civilian small town in the Roman Province of Britannia. Today it is known as Mancetter, located in the English county of Warwickshire.The fort was founded in around c AD 50-AD 60 on the Watling Street Roman road...
. It is thought that Mancetter is the most likely location of the Battle of Watling Street
Battle of Watling Street
The Battle of Watling Street took place in Roman-occupied Britain in AD 60 or 61 between an alliance of indigenous British peoples led by Boudica and a Roman army led by Gaius Suetonius Paulinus. Although outnumbered, the Romans decisively defeated the allied tribes, inflicting heavy losses on them...
, between an alliance of indigenous British
Britons (historical)
The Britons were the Celtic people culturally dominating Great Britain from the Iron Age through the Early Middle Ages. They spoke the Insular Celtic language known as British or Brythonic...
peoples led by Boudica
Boudica
Boudica , also known as Boadicea and known in Welsh as "Buddug" was queen of the British Iceni tribe who led an uprising against the occupying forces of the Roman Empire....
and a Roman army
Roman army
The Roman army is the generic term for the terrestrial armed forces deployed by the kingdom of Rome , the Roman Republic , the Roman Empire and its successor, the Byzantine empire...
led by Gaius Suetonius Paulinus
Gaius Suetonius Paulinus
Gaius Suetonius Paulinus, also spelled Paullinus, was a Roman general best known as the commander who defeated the rebellion of Boudica.-Career:...
, although the exact location is unknown.
Mancetter does not appear 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...
of 1086 but in 1196 a Walter de Mancetter granted land to endow the parish church. The 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...
walls of the Church of England parish church
Church of England parish church
A parish church in the Church of England is the church which acts as the religious centre for the people within the smallest and most basic Church of England administrative region, known as a parish.-Parishes in England:...
of Saint Peter
Saint Peter
Saint Peter or Simon Peter was an early Christian leader, who is featured prominently in the New Testament Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. The son of John or of Jonah and from the village of Bethsaida in the province of Galilee, his brother Andrew was also an apostle...
still include 12th century masonry. The chancel and 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...
were remodelled early in the 13th century and the north aisle was added later in the 13th century. The bell tower
Bell tower
A bell tower is a tower which contains one or more bells, or which is designed to hold bells, even if it has none. In the European tradition, such a tower most commonly serves as part of a church and contains church bells. When attached to a city hall or other civic building, especially in...
, the south aisle and the clerestorey of the nave all seem to have been added in the 15th century. The south porch was added early in the 17th century. Restoration work was carried out in 1876, 1911 and 1930, and the Gothic Revival architect
Gothic Revival architecture
The Gothic Revival is an architectural movement that began in the 1740s in England...
C.C. Rolfe may have undertaken restoration work in 1899. The tower has a peal
Change ringing
Change ringing is the art of ringing a set of tuned bells in a series of mathematical patterns called "changes". It differs from many other forms of campanology in that no attempt is made to produce a conventional melody....
of five bells, of which the oldest was cast about 1350, another early in the 16th century and the treble, tenor and third bell in the middle of the 17th century.
The advowson
Advowson
Advowson is the right in English law of a patron to present or appoint a nominee to a vacant ecclesiastical benefice or church living, a process known as presentation. In effect this means the right to nominate a person to hold a church office in a parish...
of St. Peter's was impropriated by the Cistercian Abbey of Merevale
Merevale
Merevale is a Village and Civil Parish in the North Warwickshire district of the county of Warwickshire in England. Located about one and a half miles west of Atherstone, it is the site of a medieval Cistercian Abbey and Merevale Hall, .-Merevale Abbey:An abbey was built in Merevale in 1148 by...
in 1449.
Mancetter Manor House
Manor house
A manor house is a country house that historically formed the administrative centre of a manor, the lowest unit of territorial organisation in the feudal system in Europe. The term is applied to country houses that belonged to the gentry and other grand stately homes...
is a timber-framed building dating from about 1330. An intermediate floor was inserted in the great hall in about 1480 and the south wing was added in about 1580. The central chinmeystack was probably inserted in the 17th century and small extensions to the house were made in the 18th and 19th centuries.
External links
- Atherstone-forum Mancetter and Athersone online forums