Whittington, Staffordshire

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Coordinates: 52°40′N 1°46′W / 52.67°N 1.76°W / 52.67; -1.76
Whittington

Whittington from the north showing St.Giles Church on the left and the heath in the distance on the right
Whittington

 Whittington shown within Staffordshire
OS grid reference SK162085
Civil parish Whittington
District Lichfield
Shire county Staffordshire
Region West Midlands
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town LICHFIELD
Postcode district WS14
Dialling code 01543
Police Staffordshire
Fire Staffordshire
Ambulance West Midlands
EU Parliament West Midlands
UK Parliament Lichfield[1]
List of places
UK
England
Staffordshire

Whittington is a village and civil parish[2] which lies approximately 3 miles south east of Lichfield in the Lichfield district of Staffordshire, England. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 2,591. The parish council is a joint one with Fisherwick.[3] The Coventry Canal borders the village to the north and east.

Most famous for the military barracks there known locally as Whittington Barracks.

Toponomy

The name Whittington is believed to come from Old English, and to mean farm associated with Hwita.[4]

Religious sites

St Giles Church

The village has long had a church dedicated to St. Giles. However, the 13th century building was destroyed by fire in 1760, and was rebuilt in Georgian style using sandstone quarried from Hopwas Hayes wood. The church contains memorial panelling for Samuel Lipscomb Seckham (1827–1900), architect and High Sheriff of Staffordshire, who lived at Whittington Old Hall, a 16th century mansion.[5]

One family produced three vicars of Whittington: the Levett family. Rev. Richard Levett served as vicar from 1743 to 1751. His son, also Rev. Richard Levett, served as vicar of Whittington from 1795 to 1796. And Rev. Thomas Levett served for forty years, from 1796 to 1836.[6] There are memorials to the Levetts in St. Giles Church.[7] Large landowners, the family also established charitable gifts towards the Whittington Free School.[8][9][10] A subsequent rector of Whittington was Hon. Rev. George Barrington Legge, son of William Legge, 4th Earl of Dartmouth, who was married to the daughter of John Levett of Wychnor Park.

The co-founder of Marks & Spencer plc, Thomas Spencer d. 1905, is buried in St. Giles Church, Whittington.

References

  1. ↑ "United Kingdom Parliament". Retrieved 18 September 2009. 
  2. ↑ "Names and codes for Administrative Geography". Office for National Statistics. 31 December 2008. Archived from the original on 3 April 2010. Retrieved 15 September 2009. 
  3. ↑ "Parish clerk contact details". Lichfield District Council. 2009. Retrieved 16 September 2009. 
  4. ↑ "Key to English Place Names". Institute for Name-Studies. Retrieved 29 September 2009. 
  5. ↑ Church Memorials Wheaton Aston-Winshill, The Staffordshire Encyclopedia.
  6. ↑ Vicars and Curates, Whittington & District History Society
  7. ↑ A Topographical Dictionary of England, Vol. IV, Samuel Lewis, S. Lewis & Co., London, 1831
  8. ↑ The Free Schools and Endowments of Staffordshire, George Griffith, 1860
  9. ↑ 's.htm Whittington, 1834 White's Directory
  10. ↑ Levett family, Whittington, British History Online

External links

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