Great Ryton is a small village in
Shropshire
Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to ...
, England, to the south of
Shrewsbury.
It is located less than to the northeast of the village of
Dorrington and the
A49 road
The A49 is an A road in western England, which traverses the Welsh Marches region. It runs north from Ross-on-Wye in Herefordshire via Hereford, Leominster, Ludlow, Shrewsbury and Whitchurch, then continues through central Cheshire to Warrin ...
there.
Together with the neighbouring
hamlet
''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...
of Little Ryton and Ryton Grove, the combined community is often referred to as simply "Ryton". (Not to be confused however with the village and parish of
Ryton, which also is in Shropshire but in
Bridgnorth
Bridgnorth is a town in Shropshire, England. The River Severn splits it into High Town and Low Town, the upper town on the right bank and the lower on the left bank of the River Severn. The population at the 2011 Census was 12,079.
Histor ...
district.) Ryton lies at around 106m
above sea level. The population was estimated as being 142 in 2008.
Parish
Ryton lies within the
civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...
of
Condover
Condover is a village and civil parish in Shropshire, England. It is about south of the county town of Shrewsbury, and just east of the A49. The Cound Brook flows through the village on its way from the Stretton Hills to a confluence with the R ...
, a village to the north. The parish is subdivided into a number of wards, one of which is Ryton, which sends one councillor to the parish council.
Amenities and features
In Little Ryton is a
public house
A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and wa ...
called "The Fox".
In Great Ryton is a small red-brick "Ryton Mission Church", the size of a
chapel
A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...
, which forms part of the Condover
ecclesiastical parish
A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...
and is dedicated to
Saint Thomas.
In Little Ryton is the Ryton
Village Hall
A village hall is a public building in a village used for various things such as:
United Kingdom
In the United Kingdom, a village hall is usually a building which contains at least one large room (plus kitchen and toilets), is owned by a local ...
.
Transport
Minsterley Motors
Minsterley Motors is a bus and coach operator in Shropshire, England.
The company's main operations concentrate on stage service and schools contract work for Shropshire Council. It also provides transport for the Shropshire Schools & Colleges F ...
route 435 (Shrewsbury-
Ludlow
Ludlow () is a market town in Shropshire, England. The town is significant in the history of the Welsh Marches and in relation to Wales. It is located south of Shrewsbury and north of Hereford, on the A49 road which bypasses the town. The ...
and ''vice versa'') runs through the area and calls at Great Ryton. The service runs Mondays-Saturdays.
Regional Cycle Route 32/33 passes through Great Ryton and Little Ryton, on its way from Condover to
Longnor.
Notable residents
Josiah Oldfield
Josiah Oldfield (23 February 1863 – 2 February 1953) was an English lawyer, physician and promoter of his own variant of fruitarianism which was virtually indistinguishable from lacto-ovo vegetarianism. He became a versatile author, a prolifi ...
, the lawyer, physician and advocate of
fruitarian diet, was born at Great Ryton in 1863.
Two unrelated
Admirals who each became
Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth
The Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth, was a senior commander of the Royal Navy for hundreds of years. Plymouth Command was a name given to the units, establishments, and staff operating under the admiral's command. Between 1845 and 1896, this offic ...
, had their homes in Great Ryton after retirement.
Sir Cecil Thursby, a distinguished commander in
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, lived at The Styche until his death in 1936,
[Obituary.] while
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
veteran
Sir Richard Onslow
Sir Richard Onslow (1601 – 19 May 1664) was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons of England, House of Commons at various times between 1628 and 1664. He fought on the Roundhead, Parliamentary side during the English Civil War ...
lived at Ryton Grove until his death in 1975.
General
A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry.
In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...
Sir Peter de la Billiere (born 1934), who ultimately commanded the British contingent in the
First Gulf War, lived at Ryton at time he enlisted in the
British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
.
[Report by Toby Neal on laying up of Shropshire branch standard of the British Korea Veterans Association, which de la Billiere attended.]
See also
*
Listed buildings in Condover
References
Villages in Shropshire
Shrewsbury and Atcham
{{Shropshire-geo-stub