Upton

The name 'Upton' literally means "Up town" as the village sits on a hill top commanding a grand view over the Trent valley with the beautiful Southwell Minster only a couple of miles to the west.

Upton has a close artistic community with at least six artists taking part in the annual Open Studios Notts event. This is a wonderful way to spend a day: wandering round this lovely village, popping in to chat with local artists, viewing their work and ending with tea and cakes in a local café or a pint in the pub beer garden.  Unfortunately the event was cancelled for 2020 but follow the link above and you can enjoy a virtual tour.

Here is Upton Church by Susan Isaac:

We began our visit at Upton Hall home of the British Horological Institute.  The Museum of Timekeeping is usually open to the public (but closed due to Corona Virus at the moment).  It holds some quite beautiful timepieces (the watch worn by Captain Scott on his final polar expedition in 1912, for example) and there are fascinating bits of information to pick up (Were you aware that the H in H Samuel the famous jeweller stands for HARRIET? No, me neither!).  The Institute holds special events throughout the year, plus courses and there is an extensive specialist library for researchers (open by appointment only).

The Hall was built in 1828 for Nottinghamshire banker, Thomas Wright (1773 - 1845).  Wright was an amateur landscape painter and an avid art collector so the Hall was designed to house his paintings. Wright was a patron of J M W Turner and had such an interest in Richard Wilson he wrote a biography of the artist which he published in 1824.

In 1895 the property was purchased by John Warwick of 'Warwick and Richardson Brewers', Newark.  There was obviously plenty of money to be made in beer ... the Warwicks overhauled the Hall by adding a Billiard Room, a Ball Room and six extra bed rooms.

John's father Richard Warwick had acquired a small brewery in 1856.  This company merged with Trent Brewery in 1888; four years later they acquired their main Newark rivals, the Henry Jessop Brewery and the Cromwell Brewery; five years later they had moved further afield taking over the Doncaster company of Eadon and Co before then buying out Morris Rutland of Oakham.  Their empire continued to grow until the 1950 when the brewery and around 100 pubs were bought out by John Smith's of Tadcaster who, unfortunately, stopped trading in 1966.

In 1914 John Warwick's third son enlisted with the 1st South Nottinghamshire Hussars. 
A memorial to Lt John Cedrick Warwick can be found in the village church.

He had been stationed in the Middle East but was returning to France on board the Leasowe Castle when it was torpedoed by a German submarine at 1.30am on 27th May 1918.  Help was at hand as they were travelling in a convoy of six transporters and accompanied by a number of destroyers.  The men on board remained calm by all accounts as the ship remained a afloat and the rescue was going smoothly.  Unfortunately a bulkhead on the aft side of the ship gave way very suddenly and those remaining on the ship had to jump for their lives.  Of the 2,900 men and crew on board 102 were lost to the sea.  Lt Warwick's body was never recovered.

During the 1930s Upton Hall became the home of another bereft father: Sir Albert Ball, father of the more famous Albert Ball VC, First World War fighter pilot and flying ace who crashed to his death in France on 7th May 1917 aged just 20.  He had gained such a reputation for his bravery that even his German enemy acknowledged "He was by far the best English flying man."

For a while Upton Hall became a Roman Catholic College for missionaries but since 1972 it has been the HQ of the British Horological Institute.

Down the road from the hall is the one remaining public house in the village.

The Cross Keys is a welcoming, traditional country pub with a beer garden.  They serve real ale and good food (again it is closed at the moment due to the virus).

We wandered through the village and found the 13th century church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul.

The Oglethorpes were the pre-eminent family of the village during the fifteenth century and several family members are buried inside the church.  Unfortunately their memorials have been concealed due to different renovations over the centuries.  

Owen Oglethorpe (1502 - 1559) was a prestigious member of this family. Not many people know his name but he played a very important part in English history.

He studied at Magdalen College Oxford before becoming Rector at Saint Peter's Church East Bridgford.  He could not have given much pastoral care to this Nottinghamshire congregation however because he was also one of King Henry VIII's chaplains as well as being Canon at both Saint George Chapel Windsor and Christ Church Oxford.  He was an incredibly busy man as any spare time was taken up laying the foundations for the newly formed Church of England.  He was one of a select group of clergy chosen to debate theology with Archbishop Thomas Cranmer, Bishop Hugh Latimer and Bishop Nicholas Ridley … all three of whom were known as the Oxford Martyrs as they were burnt at the stake by Queen Mary I for their Protestant views.  Oglethorpe was  not quite as rigid in his opinions and Mary promoted him to Bishop.

When Queen Elizabeth I came to the throne in 1558 Owen Oglethorpe conducted the service at her first public appearance.  Unfortunately all did not go well for Oglethorpe.  He raised the Host as he consecrated the bread and wine indicating the corporal presence of Jesus Christ.  The Protestant Queen was outraged at this Roman Catholic belief and stormed out of the service.

Three weeks later Oglethorpe had to officiate at Queen Elizabeth's coronation service in West Minster Abbey.  Apparently he was trusted to place the crown upon the royal head but the communion service was entrusted to someone else to ensure Elizabeth was not embarrassed a second time. 

Oglethorpe refused to swear the Oath of Supremacy (acknowledging Queen Elizabeth as Head of the Church) and was deprived of his see.  He died at the age of 49 a few months later.

A second connection with royalty can be made through villager James Tennant (1808 - 1881).  One of 12 children he spent his childhood in Upton before being apprenticed to a London mineral dealer in 1824.  He bought the business in 1840 and after attending classes at the Mechanics Institute and attending Michael Faraday's lectures at the Royal Institute he began teaching geology at King's College London where he rose to a professorship.

In 1840 he became the mineralogist to Queen Victoria and supervised the cutting of the Koh-I-Noor diamond (one of the largest cut diamonds in the world).

There was a great deal of excitement when Tobias Matthew visited Upton in 1603.  They threw a street party.

In 1609 - 1610 the village was struck by the plague.  The population of around 300 was reduced over a short period with 110 burial recorded in the parish register.

The village squire, yet another Owen Oglethorpe, fled from the village but died at Blidworth.

A famous daughter of Upton is Fiona Thornewill who set a record of 42 days for walking to the South Pole alone and unaided.  An outstanding achievement made even more remarkable by the fact she lost her satellite navigation system 10 days into the journey.

The village green is planted with apple trees …. Bramley Apple pie anyone?

Google map of Upton: click here.

Averham

Saint Michael and All Angels Church

AVERHAM is pronounced HEIRHAM.... no V sound.  

Why?  Who knows!  Even the church gargoyles look confused.

Saint Michael and All Angels Church

The herringbone brick-work on the Church of Saint Michael and All Angels dates it to Pre-Conquest days.  I find that an amazing thought … that wall was being built nearly a thousand years ago!

This is the oldest church in Nottinghamshire still holding regular services.

St Michael and All Angels Church

They chose a lovely location for their place of worship, next to the River Trent.

River Trent

The main church door is topped by three shields relating to members of the illustrious Sutton family.  

Above church door

Here, with two wolves' heads, are the initials T.S. for Thomas Manners- Sutton (1756 - 1842), Lord Chancellor of Ireland, M.P. for Newark, Solicitor-General, Baron of the Exchequer, Baron Manners of Foston, and Member of the Privy Council.  Quite a list!

Thomas was the elder brother of the Most Reverend Charles Manners-Sutton (1755 - 1828).  He was educated at Charterhouse (which was founded by another Thomas Sutton) and began his church career as Rector of Averham but within a few years he was elevated to Archbishop of Canterbury M.A., D.D.  He donated £1000 towards the foundation of the Anglican King's College in London and helped to form the National Society for the Education of the Poor: aimed at helping children of the labouring classes to become literate in order to improve their moral and spiritual education.  

Two sets of initials top the central stone but the first is in an unusual font ….. it looks like E

backwards but I have no idea about the second letter.  I have not discovered a connection to an RD

either … sorry!  The name of Jesus presented as IHC takes centre stage.  These are the Greek letters iota, eta and sigma: the first, second and last letters of the name Jesus. There seems to be the name MARIA at the bottom but again the font is rather strange.  There is some similarity to the Alpha/Omega signs in the M and the final A (another sign for Jesus from his words "I am the Alpha and Omega." (in Revelations 1:8, 21:6 and 22:13) but the stone mason has also given us 3 Ts (if you look closely at the first A, the I and the final A) which is a Triple Tau. In Christianity this would be a sign of the Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Ghost. Free Masons use it as a sign of being 'A Servant of God'.

Above church door

Above church door

The third stone has ears of wheat topped by two tuns (wine casks) so it represents the bread and wine of the Holy Communion. 

Then that odd font has been used again … at first glance it looks like it says 'Mr Lies' but you will probably find a different reading!  

Two tuns and strange letters are a theme on these stones. The shield shows a set of compasses and a writing implement as far as I can tell.  The wavy lines look like flags in a breeze. 

Carved stone at the front of St Michael and All Angels Church

The church was locked unfortunately.  Inside are more memorials to the Suttons.

  

The family had very close connections to the Manners family going back generations hence the addition of Manners to the Sutton surname.  Robert Sutton Lord Lexington (1594 - 1668) was married to Elizabeth Manners, sister to Sir John Manners Earl of Rutland.  The Manners family seat was Belvoir Castle.  The Suttons and Manners were the most pre-eminent families in the region.  (Link to Lady Grace Manners showing family connections).  Thoroton, in his History of Nottinghamshire, pointed out the Suttons were also closely related to the family of Robert Dudley, favourite of Queen Elizabeth I.  (Click here for link).

Unsurprisingly then Sir Robert supported King Charles I during the English Civil War and paid for the defence of Newark.  This put a huge strain on the family finances but he was created Lord Lexington in 1645.  His estate and titles were lost during the Commonwealth then restored to him in 1660 by King Charles II.

Sir Robert was abroad when he died in 1668 but rumour has it his heart is buried in an urn positioned above this monument!

Memorial to Robert Sutton Lord Lexington

Unfortunately a 1984 someone broke into the church, cut off the praying hands of an effigy to Sir William Sutton (Robert's father, courtier to Queen Elizabeth I, who died in 1611) and daubed the large monument with red paint. 

The building is obviously well looked after, ensuring the gargoyles survive the weather. 

St Michael and All Angels Church gargoyle

They appear to have cats' ears and lions' manes.

These two seem to be suggesting they have witnessed something amazing and they are opening their mouths to tell us about it.

St Michael and All Angels Church gargoyle

Can they be trusted to tell us the truth though?  

St Michael and All Angel gargoyle

This one is my personal favourite: is it a Trinity head?

St Michael and All Angels Church gargoyle

Or is that cyclopes' eye suggesting you are always being watched?

The left-hand mouth is turned down slightly possibly making this a representation of the Comedy/Tragedy Masks of the Greek Theatre.  That explanation would certainly be appropriate because Averham is home to The Robin Hood Theatre Company.

Robin Hood Theatre

The Theatre began life as The Robin Hood Opera House.  Reverend Joseph Cyril Walker (d. 1941) conceived the idea in 1913 and had local carpenter Robert Lee build it in the grounds of the church Rectory.   He lead a troupe of actors calling themselves 'The Country Bumpkins'.
 (Link to RHTC history).

The Rectory

After Rev. Walker died the theatre continued for ten years but had to close in 1951.  It opened again in 1961 but struggled financially and the County Council took over in 1881.  Safety concerns closed it again in 2007 but the acting troupe continued by working in schools and village halls.  Fund raising with contributions from Ian McKellen, Sylvia Syms and Judi Dench meant restoration could be carried out and the theatre tradition continues in Averham (without the V!)

Stone carving on the Rectory

Rectory Farm Airfield  allows aviators to land their planes, at their own risk, on a picturesque runway next to the River Trent.  They do not charge a landing fee but ask for a voluntary contribution of £10 towards up-keep costs.

Village view

Pingley Dyke … what a great name! ....runs across the fields between Averham and Staythorpe Power Station.

Way across the fields to Staythorpe Power Station.

Map of Averham:  Click here.

Shelford

Shelford village

Shelford is situated quite close to a bend in the River Trent so the water slows down slightly causing silt deposits making the river shallower here ... and this probably accounts for the village name: Shelford or shallow ford.

Village sign

An Augustinian Monastery dedicated to the Virgin Mary was founded here sometime around 1160.  The friars adopted a self sufficiant communal life, giving up ownership of all possessions. It sounds idyllic,  I can picture them now ... semi-bald black friars with their little rotund bellies, quaffing ale and singing three part harmonies as they hoed a field ... but these monks started to enjoy life at Shelford a little too much! Following a visitation in 1280 the Prior was ordered to abstain from drink; told to attend church services at the proper time and he had to retain no waster or quarrelsome person. His deputy was warned to take better care of the poor and abstain from all manner of business, plus the person in charge of the cellar was instructed to present accurate yearly accounts. It doesn't seem to have made much difference ... a new Prior was appointed a short time later.

St Peter & St Paul Church

Henry VIII put paid to the friar's debauchery by closing the monastery in 1536. The following relics were recorded as being venerated there: some of the oil of the Holy Cross, a girdle that had belonged to the Virgin Mary, some of her breast milk (!) and part of a candle used in her Purification service after the birth of Jesus!  Unbelievable! 

At the time of the closure three Cannons were found guilty of "unnatural sin" and three others wanted to be released from their vows.

 Archbishop Cranmer (see Aslockton) asked for the monastery farm to be given to his brother in law "or some other house in Notts now suppressed."  (This petition failed but he was allowed to purchase Kirkstall Abbey and Arthington Priory both near Leeds in West Yorkshire, for his own use.)  

Shelford was bestowed on Michael Stanhope (1508 - 1552).  Michael's half sister Anne was married to Sir Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset (1500 - 1552), elder brother to Queen Jane Seymour.  Powerful relatives were obviously extremely useful. 

The Stanhopes prospered even further when Henry VIII died (1547) and Edward Seymour convinced other members of the Privy Council to appoint him as Lord Protector of England during King Edward VI minority.  For a time Edward and Anne Seymour were the most powerful couple in the country and Michael Stanhope continued to profit.  

However, all was not well in the Seymour household.  Edward's younger brother, Thomas Seymour, was an ambitious man looking to ingratiate himself with the boy-king at Edward's expense.  He supplied the king with sums of cash, while suggesting the Lord Protector was exceeding his authority and side-lining the young monarch.  

Thomas Seymour

Thomas began to make plans to marry 13 year old Princess Elizabeth … a step too far for Edward Seymour who vetoed the idea so Thomas married the widowed Queen Katherine Parr instead.  Anne Stanhope Seymour was far from impressed when it was suggested Katherine should claim possession of some of the Crown Jewels … as wife of the Lord Protector she felt she was the First Lady of England so they belonged to her.  On another occasion Anne refused to carry Katherine's train and almost barged the queen out of the way in order to gain access to a doorway ahead of her!  These quarrels between their wives added to the enmity between the brothers.

 Katherine Parr during her pregnancy

Katherine Parr died in September 1548, a week after giving birth to a daughter.  A few rumours suggested Thomas had helped her into the next world in order to rekindle his previous plan to marry Elizabeth Tudor.  Elizabeth had lived with the new-married Seymours for a time and her governess, Kat Ashley reported Thomas had behaved quite outrageously towards her mistress: coming into her chamber bare-legged while Elizabeth was still in bed, patting her behind and leaning in to kiss her.  Katherine decided matters had gone too far and in May 1548 Elizabeth went to Cheshunt to stay with Lord Anthony Denny in rural Hertfordshire. Denny was married to Joan Champernowne, sister to Catherine Raleigh who was the mother of Walter Raleigh.  Curiously Kat Ashley's maiden name was also Champernowne.

Queen Elizabeth I aged 13

Just four months after his wife's death Thomas was discovered with a pistol outside King Edward's bedchamber around midnight with no real excuse for being there.  He was arrested and sent to the Tower.  Edward Seymour failed to dash to his rescue and Thomas was executed for High Treason on 20th March 1549.  One of the Articles against him was the claim he intended to marry Elizabeth.  When Elizabeth was question over the matter she denied any involvement in such a scheme.  As a princess of the realm she could only marry with the approval of the Privy Council.  She faced being disinherited from the line of succession if she had failed to abide by this.


Thomas had been a charismatic character so his execution reflected badly on his brother.
Within a couple of years Edward Seymour had fallen from grace in the eyes of King Edward and members of the Privy Council.  John Dudley Earl of Warwick had made sure of that! Eventually Edward Seymour and Michael Stanhope were arrested on charges of treason.  Both men were executed in 1552. 

John Dudley would follow them to the scaffold soon after Queen Mary I took the crown from Queen Jane Grey! 

Tomb of Anne Stanhope ( d 1587) wife of Michael Stanhope

Michael Stanhope left behind a wife, Anne, and five children.  The couple had chosen some rather pertinent names for their off-spring in that there is a Thomas, an Edward, a John, a Jane and a second Edward (a third Edward having died in infancy).   A plaque inside the Church of St. Peter and St. Paul informs us that Anne lived a further 35 years after her husband's execution.  Her children all made good marriages and found favour in the Court of Queen Elizabeth I.  There are eight children depicted on the base of Anne's tomb: 3 sons and 5 daughters but Michael and Anne Stanhope had 5 sons and 3 daughters!  Now look very carefully at the second and fourth child from the left … surely they are men wearing dresses like actors of the time.  The third child appears to have rather an odd posture too.  

The beautiful East window was designed by Charles Kempe (1837 - 1907), whose studio produced over 4000 church and great cathedral windows - this one is considered to be one of his best.  It depicts the reading habits of St. Peter and St. Paul on either side of Christ on the cross.  

Four more windows show the writers of the four gospels ... all holding books:

Matthew: The Book of Generations        

Mark: The voice of one crying in the wilderness

Luke: The Angel Gabriel from God

John: In the beginning was the Word

All have Charles Kempe's trade-mark wheatsheaf designs.

You can find more information on Shelford Church here.

Shelford Manor House site of the demolished Shelford Priory

Slate gravestone

Michael Stanhope's son, Thomas, was only 12 years old when he inherited Shelford Priory. He was rather a forthright character and got involved in a number of quite violent disputes with his wealthy neighbours. He would die in 1596 heavily in debt ... mostly due to the cost of repairing and rebuilding his home! 

There were plans to build a beautiful mansion to rival Lord Willoughby's Wollaton Hall but it never materialised. 


There is a well researched, detailed biography of Thomas Stanhope (details here) by B Cobbing and P Priestland. 

Thomas's grandson,  Sir Philip Stanhope (1584 - 1656) ... the 1st Earl of Chesterfield married Catherine Hastings in 1604 and had eleven sons and two daughters with her.  The family fought for the King during the Civil War.  One of Sir Philip's sons, Colonel Philip Stanhope, was left  defending Shelford Manor and the village when, on 3rd November 1645, the place was attacked by the Parliamentarians, led by Colonel John Hutchinson (see Owthorpe).  Colonel Stanhope was offered the chance to surrender but he refused. About 140 men died that night. 

There is a dip in the ground near the church showing where Hutchinson positioned his gun battery (this is a listed monument).

Slate gravestone

The Southwell and Nottingham Church History Project records the following event at Shelford:
"During the fighting, some Shelford men took over the church tower, drawing up the ladder and bell ropes after them. From there they fired on Roundhead troops, refusing to come down despite warnings that no quarter would be given if they did not. Hutchinson then sent for straw, set light to it and smoked out the defenders. Smoke damage could still be seen in Victorian times, and today the wall at the base of the tower staircase is darker than higher up - possibly the legacy of this event. Within the body of the church there was damage to Lady Anne Stanhope's monument and the font, which had to be replaced in 1662 after the Restoration. Philip Stanhope died from wounds received in the seige and much of the Stanhopes’ manor house was destroyed in a fire."

St Peter & St Paul Church Tower

Yet another Philip Stanhope (4th Earl of Chesterfield) is also worth a mention here.He was a statesman and an acclaimed wit of his day (in his later years a friend asked after his health: he replied that he had been dead for two years but did not wish it to be known!)  He is remembered for a critical letter written to him by Samuel Johnson after the Dictionary of the English Language had been published.  The Earl had written in praise of Johnson's hard work and dedication in producing such a fine document.  Instead of showing his gratitude at this noble endorsement Johnson expressed his annoyance that more help had not been forthcoming while he had been struggling with debts during the time of writing it.  The Earl could have been highly offended by this: instead he praised the way Johnson had expressed his insults!



Johnson was not quite so forgiving ... over a number of years the Earl had written letters of advice to his son explaining how a gentleman was expected to behave.  When these letters were published Johnson said of them, "They teach the morals of a whore, and the manners of a dancing master."

Top of Stoke Ferry Lane

We can not leave the Stanhopes without mentioning George Edward Stanhope Molyneux Herbert, 5th Earl of Carnarvon or Lord Porchester (1866 - 1923), famous for funding the discovery of Tutankhamun's tomb.  He was one of the first to enter the tomb to see the many "wonderful things" they had spied through a tiny hole before it was opened. 

Unfortunately he died after being bitten by a mosquito and the Pharoah's Curse was thought to have claimed a victim. It was this Stanhope who had the village school built in 1873.  The school closed in 1964 and the building is now the Village Hall. 

Read The Thoroton Society write up on the Stanhopes here.

Bingham market place holds a reminder of a most genial squire from Shelford.  His name was John Hassall.  He was so well liked and respected that when he died in 1859 local people collected the £700 to pay for the erection of the Bingham Buttercross.  The gilt lettering round the top reads: "To be Beloved is better that all Bargains" a motto he lived by.

 
A number of well-tended War Graves can be found in Shelford grave yard.  Four commemorate an Australian aircrew who died during the Second World war.

Arthur Mee tells a darkly amusing tale of a village tailor in Victorian times who started supplying beautiful velvet waistcoats at very competitive prices. He was also the church sexton so he had access to the Stanhope family vaults.  He was stripping the velvet from the coffins to make the garments. (Arthur Mee's 'Nottinghamshire')





The footpath fingerpost in this photograph leads to a field with one of the best views of ridge and furrow fields in Nottinghamshire.

  

Ridge and furrow fields

The village pub is the Earl of Chesterfield ("one of Nottinghamshire's finest ...") which obviously takes its name from the Stanhope family.  The pub was on the point of closing a few years ago but the locals organised a take over and saved it.  The business is now a thriving enterprise with good beer and excellent food.  We can highly recommend the lunchtime menu and the Christmas dinner.

Earl of Chesterfield

This has always been an agricultural community with farm building nestling amongst the cottages. At one time there were up to 30 acres of willows growing near the Manor House as the villagers harvested the stems to supply local basket weavers. Today we came across a field full of alpacas showing how the community is adapting to modern trends.

Stoke Ferry Lane

Stoke Ferry Lane leads down to the River Trent where a short ferry ride used to take passengers across to Stoke Bardolph.  It was once a busy form of transport.  Here is a description from 1908:  

"There is a very pretty view from hence down the Trent, Burton Joyce appearing just at the elbow, where the river turns.  Nor is this place altogether lonely, for there is a tolerably quick succession of passengers crossing the ferry to and fro, and boats sailing up against, or down with the stream.  A day or two in summer, might be passed very pleasantly in this neighbourhood ..."

Map of Shelford: click here.

Village website: click here. 

Millenium Stone