Great Easton Church St Andrew
At the south eastern tip of Leicestershire is the village of Great Easton set in the Welland valley. It is located in the extreme south-east of the county and is very close to the borders with Northamptonshire and Rutland. It is just south of the Eyebrook Reservoir. This village had a recorded population of 558 in the census of 2001. The church of St Andrew sits on the high ground on the edge of the village and from the south porch there are fine views over the Welland valley and village itself. The earliest parts of the church date...
read moreGumley Church St Helen’s
Gumley is eleven miles south-east of Leicester and is sited on the ridge of high ground with its near neighbours Mowsley and Laughton. Foxton village and the locks are also nearby. In 1086 the recorded population was 20, by 1821 this had risen to 289 before a gradual fall to just over a 100 today. The village is mentioned even earlier in 749 when King Aethelbald of Mercia held a synod at Gumley under the instigation of Pope Boniface. Gumley must have been held in some importance as King Offa also visited Gumley in 772 & 779. The village...
read moreHoby Church All Saints
The church is situated on a slight hill overlooking the Wreake Valley ten miles north-east of Leicester. The church consists of a west tower with recessed spire, north & south aisles, nave and chancel. The tower has a 13th century base with the spire added later, probably in the 14th century at the same time as the clerestory. The rest of the church dates to the 13th century with some Victorian restoration work in the chancel. The two 13th century arcades have piers of unusual shapes, one pair round with four attached demi-shafts with...
read moreEdmonthorpe Church St Michael
This small village of around 80 residents is 17 miles from Leicester and 8 miles from Melton very close to the county border with Rutland. The name may refer to a Saxon monk called Eadmer or mean ‘east mound’ or ‘barrier’. Thorpe is a Norse name meaning ‘street, village or daughter settlement’ which is common throughout the Danelaw area. In the Domesday Book it is recorded as Edmerestorp and was held by Henry of Ferrers who also held nearby Wymondham. The church is now in the care of The Churches...
read moreEllistown Church St Christopher
Designed by Goddard, Paget and Goddard this church built in 1895-96 of local brick is nearly as old as the village itself. Ellistown is 11 miles north-west from Leicester and 2 miles south from Coalville. The village is situated in the mining area of north-west Leicestershire and coal has been mined in the area for centuries. There was a Swinfen Grange which was part of the estate of Garendon Abbey near Loughborough that used to be in the area of modern Ellistown. This was part of the parish of Ibstock. It was eventually called Pykeringe...
read moreHungarton Church St John the Baptist
This small village is approximately ten miles north-east of Leicester near to Beeby and Keyham and has a population of a few hundred. I visited the church during the annual Ride & Stride event in 2010. The history of the village is tied in with nearby Quenby Hall. Between 1764 and 1776 Shuckbrugh Ashby of the hall built a model village in Hungarton with many brick built dwellings, they all have a yellow and red brick pattern and date stones so you should be able to find them. There are some earlier buildings and many later ones now but it...
read moreGoadby Church St John the Baptist
Goadby is a village and parish in the Harborough district of Leicestershire. It is approximately 11 miles south-east of Leicester and 8 miles north of Market Harborough. It lies in some very pretty rural countryside typical of this part of Leicestershire. The 2001 population was recorded as 43 in 2001 so more a hamlet than a village. The Danes were here (like in so many villages in Leicestershire & Rutland) as Goadby as the suffix ‘by’ which is indicative of Danish origin. This area was included in the Five Burghs of the...
read moreGilmorton Church All Saints
Some 10 miles south of Leicester is the village of Gilmorton. It is recorded in the Domesday Book and has a population of around 900 people. There has been some modern development to the east of the village but the village still retains a rural charm. The name may derive from the Anglo-Saxon ‘gilden’ (or glyden) meaning golden, and ‘morton’, a town on the moor. There are some earthworks (raised mound and perhaps moat) in the field near to the west of the church which may signify a former small ‘motte and...
read moreSwepstone Church St Peter’s
Some 4 miles south-west of Coalville and nearly 15 miles north-west of Leicester is the small parish of Swepstone that also includes Newton Burgoland, the population for the parish was 575 in 2001. The village is recorded in the Domesday Book as Scropestone and after the Norman Conquest the manor past to Henry de Ferrers, who was given 210 manors throughout Derbyshire & Leicestershire for his support during and after the battle, Swepstone was one of these. There was a church probably on the site before the Normans arrived but no signs of...
read moreWilloughby Waterleys St Mary
The village of Willoughby Waterleys is approx 8 miles south of Leicester near to the villages of Peatling Magna and Ashby Magna. It lies in the district of Harborough and was originally known as Willoughby Waterless. The village consists of one street running north to south with several farms and some new housing developments mostly consisting of bungalows and large detached housing in a couple of cul-de-sacs. There is one pub the General Elliott and there used to be a Methodist Chapel which is now a private home. There are also a number of...
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