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Kings Norton, alternatively King's Norton, is an area of
Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...
, England.
Historically History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...
in
Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see His ...
, it was also a Birmingham City Council
ward Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...
within the
Government of Birmingham, England This article is about the government of Birmingham, England. Civic history Most of Birmingham was historically a part of Warwickshire, though the modern city also includes villages and towns historically in Staffordshire or Worcestershire. Unti ...
. The district lies 6.5 miles south-southwest of Birmingham city centre and is within 1.5 miles of the north Worcestershire border. Kings Norton has been split into two wards, Kings Norton North and Kings Norton South.


History

There was Romano-British occupation near the later town. Excavations at Kings Norton found signs of a small Romano-British settlement, including Roman pottery and a Roman ditch at Parsons Hill, near
Icknield Street Icknield Street or Ryknild Street is a Roman road in England, with a route roughly south-west to north-east. It runs from the Fosse Way at Bourton on the Water in Gloucestershire () to Templeborough in South Yorkshire (). It passes through ...
. Kings Norton derives its origin from the basic Early English ''Nor + tun'', meaning North settlement and belonging to or held by the king, when Kings Norton was the northernmost of the berewicks or outlying manors of
Bromsgrove Bromsgrove is a town in Worcestershire, England, about northeast of Worcester and southwest of Birmingham city centre. It had a population of 29,237 in 2001 (39,644 in the wider Bromsgrove/Catshill urban area). Bromsgrove is the main town in the ...
in
Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see His ...
. Before 1066 these manors with many others in Birmingham had belonged to
Earl Edwin Edwin (Old English: ''Ēadwine'') (died 1071) was the elder brother of Morcar, Earl of Northumbria, son of Ælfgār, Earl of Mercia and grandson of Leofric, Earl of Mercia. He succeeded to his father's title and responsibilities on Ælfgār's d ...
, the Anglo-Saxon Earl of Mercia. When in that year a Viking army sailed up the
River Humber The Humber is a large tidal estuary on the east coast of Northern England. It is formed at Trent Falls, Faxfleet, by the confluence of the tidal rivers Ouse and Trent. From there to the North Sea, it forms part of the boundary between the ...
to invade England, Edwin went to do battle, but was heavily defeated at the Battle of Fulford Bridge near York. King Harold arrived the next day, and after defeating the Vikings at the
Battle of Stamford Bridge The Battle of Stamford Bridge ( ang, Gefeoht æt Stanfordbrycge) took place at the village of Stamford Bridge, East Riding of Yorkshire, in England, on 25 September 1066, between an English army under King Harold Godwinson and an invading No ...
, immediately marched back south to be himself defeated at the
Battle of Hastings The Battle of Hastings nrf, Batâle dé Hastings was fought on 14 October 1066 between the Norman-French army of William the Conqueror, William, the Duke of Normandy, and an English army under the Anglo-Saxons, Anglo-Saxon King Harold Godw ...
. Edwin and his broken remnant of an army were unable go with him. Thus, after the
Norman Conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Norman, Breton, Flemish, and French troops, all led by the Duke of Normandy, later styled William the Conque ...
, when
William William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...
punished Harold's supporters, Edwin was not amongst them and did not forfeit his lands. Two years later, however, Edwin revolted against William who confiscated his holdings to give as rewards to his followers. Bromsgrove and its berewicks he kept, with himself both as tenant-in-chief and manorial lord. Thus, the manor became Kings Norton remained royal from Domesday until 1804.


Civil war

Kings Norton was the scene of a couple of minor incidents during the
English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of re ...
. In the first of these, a force led by
Prince Rupert of the Rhine Prince Rupert of the Rhine, Duke of Cumberland, (17 December 1619 (O.S.) / 27 December (N.S.) – 29 November 1682 (O.S.)) was an English army officer, admiral, scientist and colonial governor. He first came to prominence as a Royalist cavalr ...
, numbering some 300, was resting on Kings Norton Green. There, they were surprised by a smaller group led by Lord Willoughby of Parham. A skirmish took place, in which fifty of Prince Rupert's men were killed, and twenty were taken prisoner. The Parliamentarian force lost twenty men. This took place on 17 October 1642. In a later incident,
Queen Henrietta Maria Henrietta Maria (french: link=no, Henriette Marie; 25 November 1609 – 10 September 1669) was Queen of England, Scotland, and Ireland from her marriage to King Charles I on 13 June 1625 until Charles was executed on 30 January 1649. She was ...
arrived in Kings Norton with an army of around 5,500 men that she had raised in
Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...
. It is believed that she stayed the night in the
Saracen's Head The Saracen's Head is the name formerly given to a group of late medieval buildings in Kings Norton, Birmingham. The buildings, together with the nearby Old Grammar School, won the BBC '' Restoration'' series in 2004. Following the restoration ...
, while the army camped on land behind the church, now Kings Norton Park (giving rise to the modern road name "Camp Lane"). There is also a public house on this road named ''The Camp Inn''.


Markets and fairs

In 1616, King James granted permission to hold markets and fairs at Kings Norton. Both the original fairs and the market eventually fell into disuse. At some later date, a
mop fair Hiring fairs, also called statute or mop fairs, were regular events in pre-modern Great Britain and Ireland where labourers were hired for fixed terms. They date from the time of Edward III, and his attempt to regulate the labour market by the ...
began to be held on the Green on the first Monday of October. A mop fair was a hiring fair where people would go looking for employment. After the decline of hiring fairs, the mop became a village
fête In Britain and some of its former colonies, fêtes are traditional public festivals, held outdoors and organised to raise funds for a charity. They typically include entertainment and the sale of goods and refreshments. Village fêtes Village f ...
organised by the Round Table and raising money for local people. More recently, the Round Table handed over running the mop to a commercial fun fair. A new
farmers' market A farmers' market (or farmers market according to the AP stylebook, also farmer's market in the Cambridge Dictionary) is a physical retail marketplace intended to sell foods directly by farmers to consumers. Farmers' markets may be indoors or o ...
was set up in 2005, operating on The Green once a month.


Industrialisation and expansion

In 1796, the
Worcester and Birmingham Canal The Worcester and Birmingham Canal is a canal linking Birmingham and Worcester in England. It starts in Worcester, as an 'offshoot' of the River Severn (just after the river lock) and ends in Gas Street Basin in Birmingham. It is long. There ar ...
was built through Kings Norton, linking Birmingham to the
River Severn , name_etymology = , image = SevernFromCastleCB.JPG , image_size = 288 , image_caption = The river seen from Shrewsbury Castle , map = RiverSevernMap.jpg , map_size = 288 , map_c ...
. This was linked to the
Stratford-upon-Avon Canal The Stratford-upon-Avon Canal is a canal in the south Midlands of England. The canal, which was built between 1793 and 1816, runs for in total, and consists of two sections. The dividing line is at Kingswood Junction, which gives access to the ...
by
Kings Norton Junction Kings Norton Junction () is the name of the canal junction where the Stratford-upon-Avon Canal terminates and meets the Worcester and Birmingham Canal at Kings Norton, Birmingham, England. History The Worcester and Birmingham Canal was ...
, allowing access to
Stratford-upon-Avon Stratford-upon-Avon (), commonly known as just Stratford, is a market town and civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon district, in the county of Warwickshire, in the West Midlands region of England. It is situated on the River Avon, north-we ...
and, more significantly, the
Grand Union Canal The Grand Union Canal in England is part of the British canal system. It is the principal navigable waterway between London and the Midlands. Starting in London, one arm runs to Leicester and another ends in Birmingham, with the latter st ...
. Just beyond the junction is a rare example of a
guillotine lock A guillotine lock is a type of canal lock. The lock itself operates on the same principle as any normal pound lock, but is unusual in that each gate is a single piece, usually of steel, that slides vertically upwards when opened to allow a boat ...
used here as a stop lock. Discontent with Parliamentary under-representation led to the
Priestley Riots The Priestley Riots (also known as the Birmingham Riots of 1791) took place from 14 July to 17 July 1791 in Birmingham, England; the rioters' main targets were religious dissenters, most notably the politically and theologically controversial Jo ...
in Birmingham 1791, in which buildings including Moseley Hall were burnt down in King's Norton. Kings Norton, along with many of the small towns near Birmingham, expanded considerably in the 19th century with a railway link into Birmingham passing by the new Bournville factory just to the north. Historically, Kings Norton had been part of
Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see His ...
, but from 1898, it was part of the King's Norton and Northfield
urban district Urban district may refer to: * District * Urban area * Quarter (urban subdivision) * Neighbourhood Specific subdivisions in some countries: * Urban districts of Denmark * Urban districts of Germany * Urban district (Great Britain and Ireland) (hist ...
until added to Birmingham in 1911 by the Greater Birmingham Act.


Urbanisation

During the 20th century, the area grew further with additional private and public housing. In October 1920, 25½ acres of land at Kings Norton (just below St Nicolas' Church) were purchased by the
Birmingham Civic Society Birmingham Civic Society is a voluntary body in Birmingham, England, and is registered with the Civic Trust. History The society was founded at an inaugural meeting on 10 June 1918 in the Birmingham Council House. The first president of the ...
and afterwards presented to the city for the benefit of the citizens of Birmingham. The Society also designed and paid for the formal gardens, gates on the Pershore Road side and stone benches. In 1937 the Birmingham Medical Officer of Health reported that 'a substantial number of dwellings in King's Norton village reunfit for human habitation', with many of the houses affected over a hundred years old. In June 1937 the City Council ordered the making of clearance orders, under section 25 of the Housing Act, 1936. With the clearance of city centre slum housing, there was a pressing need for additional social housing in Birmingham. As part of this programme, the City Council built several new housing estates in Kings Norton, including the Wychall Farm and Pool Farm estates in the 1950s and the Primrose and
Hawkesley Hawkesley is an area of Birmingham, England. It is part of 'The Three Estates', the housing estates Hawkesley, Pool Farm, and Primrose. These are to the south of (and effectively sub-areas of) Kings Norton. The Ordnance Survey grid reference is S ...
estates in the 1960s and 1970s. These new estates occupied land that had previously been open farmland, most notably the area known as the Three Estates (Pool Farm, Primrose and Hawkesley), which lies mostly to the east of the Birmingham and Worcester canal and the A441 Redditch Road. In the mid-1970s, a large housing estate featuring both private and social housing as well as a small shopping area (although many of the shops have long since closed), a public house, a primary school and a day centre was built on what was once the Kings Norton Golf Course and is often colloquially referred to as the 'Golf Course Estate'. The Wychall Farm housing estate, which is in the historic parish of Kings Norton, was developed by the city council during the 1950s, and also included Wychall Farm Primary School, for pupils aged 5–11 years, which opened in 1956. However, the housing fell into increasing disrepair towards the end of the 20th century and by the summer of 2006 a demolition programme had begun on the estate, with 500 homes demolished to make way for a 350-home housing association development. Within three years, most of the demolition had been completed and some of the new homes were already occupied.


Education

Over the years, Kings Norton has had many educational institutions named after the area and built in the area. Some include: *
Ark Kings Academy Ark Kings Academy is a co-educational all-through school and sixth form located over two sites in the Kings Norton area of Birmingham, West Midlands, England. The school is funded by the Department for Education and operated by Ark Schools, ...
*
Cadbury Sixth Form College Cadbury Sixth Form College is a sixth form college in Kings Norton, Birmingham, United Kingdom. It takes students from over 100 schools in the West Midlands. The College's Principal is Julia Stevens who was appointed in 2019. Founded in 1983, t ...
*
King's Norton Boys' School King's Norton Boys' School is a secondary school for around 650 pupils aged 11 to 16. It is located in Northfield Road in Kings Norton within the formal district of Northfield near the centre of the city of Birmingham, England. It is situated e ...
*
Kings Norton Girls' School Kings Norton Girls' School is an all-girls Academy (English school), academy school for pupils aged 11–19. Established in 1910, it is located in Selly Oak Road in Kings Norton within the formal district of Northfield, Birmingham, Northfield, ...
* St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic School * Broadmeadow Junior School * Fairway Primary School * Hawkesley Church Primary School * Kings Norton Primary School * St Joseph's Catholic Primary School


Places of interest

St Nicolas' Church dates from the 13th century, and the spire dates from the 15th century. In addition, the Green contains three later medieval buildings from the 15th century: the Old Grammar School, the
Saracen's Head The Saracen's Head is the name formerly given to a group of late medieval buildings in Kings Norton, Birmingham. The buildings, together with the nearby Old Grammar School, won the BBC '' Restoration'' series in 2004. Following the restoration ...
and number 10 The Green. In the summer of 2004, two of these ancient buildings, the Saracen's Head and the Old Grammar School, were the winners of the BBC's ''
Restoration Restoration is the act of restoring something to its original state and may refer to: * Conservation and restoration of cultural heritage ** Audio restoration ** Film restoration ** Image restoration ** Textile restoration * Restoration ecology ...
'' competition and were awarded over £3 million towards the cost of major refurbishment. In 2006, planning permission was granted for the restoration of these buildings, and work started. The Old Grammar School and Saracen's Head were reopened to the public in June 2008, and in December 2008 were renamed as Saint Nicolas Place. It is possible to visit "Saint Nicolas Place" to see the room where Queen Henrietta Maria is reputed to have stayed 1643.


Kings Norton Park

Kings Norton Park is an
urban park An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a municipal park (North America) or a public park, public open space, or municipal gardens ( UK), is a park in cities and other incorporated places that offer recreation and green space to resi ...
in Kings Norton. It contains a small to medium-sized
skateboarding Skateboarding is an extreme sport, action sport originating in the United States that involves riding and performing tricks using a skateboard, as well as a recreational activity, an art form, an entertainment industry Profession, job, and a ...
park made from a mixture of polished concrete and steel equipment for use in
Skateboarding Skateboarding is an extreme sport, action sport originating in the United States that involves riding and performing tricks using a skateboard, as well as a recreational activity, an art form, an entertainment industry Profession, job, and a ...
, BMX Stunt Riding, and use by other
extreme sports Action sports, adventure sports or extreme sports are activities perceived as involving a high degree of risk. These activities often involve speed, height, a high level of physical exertion and highly specialized gear. Extreme tourism overl ...
enthusiasts providing a mixed environment consisting of both flat urban terrain, as well as the more common ramps and railings. Amongst some of the features available are a concrete
half pipe A half-pipe is a structure used in gravity extreme sports such as snowboarding, skateboarding, skiing, freestyle BMX, skating, and scooter riding. Overview The structure resembles a cross-section of a swimming pool, essentially two concave ram ...
with a deck at each end, a
Funbox A funbox is a standard element of a skatepark. It generally consists of a box shape with a flat top and a ramp on two or more sides. A funbox may also include other elements that allow for more complicated skateboarding tricks.''Thrasher'' ma ...
that includes a flat rail, stairs with a ledge on either side, a Vulcano which also has ledge, as well as a concrete spine with Coping. There's also two Roll-in's at either end of the skatepark, one with a long, shallow gradient side ramp at the street end.


Transport

Modern Kings Norton lies on the A441 Pershore Road South, which runs between Birmingham and
Redditch Redditch is a town, and local government district, in north-east Worcestershire, England, approximately south of Birmingham. The district has a population of 85,000 as of 2019. In the 19th century, it became the international centre for the ...
to the south. It also has a
railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...
on the
Cross-City Line The Cross-City Line is a commuter rail line in the West Midlands region of England. It runs for from Redditch and Bromsgrove in Worcestershire, its two southern termini, to Lichfield, Staffordshire, its northern terminus, via Birmingham New ...
. The line of Icknield or Ryknild Street, a Roman road running northwards from
Alcester Alcester () is a market town and civil parish of Roman origin at the junction of the River Alne and River Arrow in the Stratford-on-Avon District in Warwickshire, England, approximately west of Stratford-upon-Avon, and 7 miles south of Redditc ...
via
Metchley Fort Metchley Fort was a Roman fort in what is now Birmingham, England. It lies on the course of a Roman road, Icknield Street, which is now the site of the present Queen Elizabeth Hospital and the University of Birmingham in Edgbaston. The fort was ...
in
Edgbaston Edgbaston () is an affluent suburban area of central Birmingham, England, historically in Warwickshire, and curved around the southwest of the city centre. In the 19th century, the area was under the control of the Gough-Calthorpe family an ...
towards
Sutton Coldfield Sutton Coldfield or the Royal Town of Sutton Coldfield, known locally as Sutton ( ), is a town and civil parish in the City of Birmingham, West Midlands, England. The town lies around 8 miles northeast of Birmingham city centre, 9 miles south ...
and beyond, can be traced through the eastern edge of the district. Buses run to Birmingham city centre every few minutes along the Pershore Road and are mostly operated by
National Express West Midlands National Express West Midlands (NXWM) is a bus operator in the West Midlands that operates services in Birmingham, Dudley, Sandwell, Walsall, Wolverhampton, and Solihull, as well as limited routes outside of the general area of Birmingham, su ...
. Previously
Midland Red West First Midland Red Buses,Companies House extract company no 1556327< ...
operated service 146 to
Redditch Redditch is a town, and local government district, in north-east Worcestershire, England, approximately south of Birmingham. The district has a population of 85,000 as of 2019. In the 19th century, it became the international centre for the ...
and
Evesham Evesham () is a market town and parish in the Wychavon district of Worcestershire, in the West Midlands region of England. It is located roughly equidistant between Worcester, Cheltenham and Stratford-upon-Avon. It lies within the Vale of Evesha ...
but this was cut back to operate between Redditch and
Evesham Evesham () is a market town and parish in the Wychavon district of Worcestershire, in the West Midlands region of England. It is located roughly equidistant between Worcester, Cheltenham and Stratford-upon-Avon. It lies within the Vale of Evesha ...
only.


Industry

In 1918 and 1919 the Kings Norton Metal Company produced British one
penny A penny is a coin ( pennies) or a unit of currency (pl. pence) in various countries. Borrowed from the Carolingian denarius (hence its former abbreviation d.), it is usually the smallest denomination within a currency system. Presently, it is t ...
coins on contract from the
Royal Mint The Royal Mint is the United Kingdom's oldest company and the official maker of British coins. Operating under the legal name The Royal Mint Limited, it is a limited company that is wholly owned by His Majesty's Treasury and is under an exclus ...
, these pennies are identified by a mintmark to the left of the date of "KN". The company also produced coins for other countries. This company, many years later after many partnerships and takeovers, was in part to become the
Birmingham Mint The Birmingham Mint was a coining mint and metal-working company based in Birmingham, England. Formerly the world's largest privately-owned mint, the company produced coins for many foreign nations including France, Italy, China, and much of the ...
located at the site of the Heaton mint in
Icknield Street Icknield Street or Ryknild Street is a Roman road in England, with a route roughly south-west to north-east. It runs from the Fosse Way at Bourton on the Water in Gloucestershire () to Templeborough in South Yorkshire (). It passes through ...
,
Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...
A substantial paper mill was built by James Baldwin & Sons Ltd in the 1860s on Lifford Lane, which was operational until 1967. Part of the mill building still exists as the Lakeside Centre. Kings Norton is home to the world-famous glass manufacturers Triplex (now part of
Pilkington Pilkington is a Japanese-owned glass-manufacturing company which is based in Lathom, Lancashire, United Kingdom. In the UK it includes several legal entities and is a subsidiary of Japanese company NSG Group. Prior to its acquisition by NSG i ...
).


Redevelopment

A number of redevelopment projects have proved necessary because of the deteriorating quality of the social housing in Kings Norton. In 1999, the Pool Farm, Primrose and
Hawkesley Hawkesley is an area of Birmingham, England. It is part of 'The Three Estates', the housing estates Hawkesley, Pool Farm, and Primrose. These are to the south of (and effectively sub-areas of) Kings Norton. The Ordnance Survey grid reference is S ...
housing estates, collectively known as the 'Three Estates', were awarded a regeneration grant as part of the government's New Deal for the Community programme (NDC). The award of £50 million is designed to run over ten years. Unlike earlier government regeneration programmes, NDC is able to focus on issues such as health and employment as well as on housing. Following considerable consultation, a major rebuild of the estates is planned. A major redevelopment of the Wychall Farm estate, in the historic parish of Northfield, in the west of Kings Norton, was started in 2001. The previous housing was built using a system build approach that had exceeded its projected life-span. Bromford Housing Association have led the redevelopment.Bromford Housing Group
/ref> A large, new, private housing estate was built on the site of Monyhull Hall Hospital, just inside the boundary of Kings Norton ward.


Notable residents

*
Brian Aherne William Brian de Lacy Aherne (2 May 190210 February 1986) was an English actor of stage, screen, radio and television, who enjoyed a long and varied career in Britain and the United States. His first Broadway appearance in '' The Barretts of ...
, Oscar-nominated actor born in Kings Norton. * Pat Aherne, actor born in Kings Norton. *
Andy Akinwolere Odunayo Andrew Akinwolere (born 30 November 1982), previously known as Andy Akinwolere, is a British television presenter. Early life Akinwolere was born in Ibadan, Nigeria in 1982, and moved to the United Kingdom with his family when he was ei ...
, BBC
Blue Peter ''Blue Peter'' is a British children's television entertainment programme created by John Hunter Blair. It is the longest-running children's TV show in the world, having been broadcast since October 1958. It was broadcast primarily from BBC Tel ...
TV programme presenter, was educated here, at St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic School * The Revd W. V. Awdry, creator of
Thomas the Tank Engine Thomas the Tank Engine is an anthropomorphised fictional tank locomotive in the British ''Railway Series'' books by Wilbert Awdry and his son, Christopher, published from 1945. He became the most popular and famous character in the series, a ...
, was a curate at King's Norton from late 1940 to 1946 * Jane Bunford Britain's tallest person lived in the district. *
Reg Bunn Reginald "Reg" Bunn ( 1905–died 1971) was a British comic book artist, best known for his work on ''The Spider'' in ''Lion'', and work in other British comics during the 1960s. As a young man, Bunn produced commissioned portraits and caricatu ...
(1905–1971), artist *
Neville Chamberlain Arthur Neville Chamberlain (; 18 March 18699 November 1940) was a British politician of the Conservative Party who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from May 1937 to May 1940. He is best known for his foreign policy of appeasemen ...
, Lord Mayor of Birmingham 1915–1917 and subsequently
Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
1937–1940, lived in King's Norton for most of his life, as did his wife
Anne Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female given name Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie. Anne is sometimes used as a male name in the ...
*
Harold Roxbee Cox, Baron Kings Norton Harold Roxbee Cox, Baron Kings Norton (6 June 1902 – 21 December 1997) was a British aeronautical engineer. He was notable for his contributions to British industry, particularly aeronautical engineering, and for his part in the establishment ...
, aeronautical engineer "Lord Kings Norton" * ''Jack'' Daniels Co-designer of
Morris Minor The Morris Minor is a British economy family car that made its debut at the Earls Court Motor Show, London, in October 1948. Designed under the leadership of Alec Issigonis, more than 1.6 million were manufactured between 1948 and 1972 in th ...
and
Mini The Mini is a small, two-door, four-seat car, developed as ADO15, and produced by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) and its successors, from 1959 through 2000. Minus a brief hiatus, original Minis were built for four decades and sold during ...
. * George Dawson, non-conformist preacher and advocate of the
Civic Gospel The Civic Gospel was a philosophy of municipal activism and improvement that emerged in Birmingham, England, in the mid-19th century. Tracing its origins to the teaching of independent nonconformist preacher George Dawson, who declared that "a to ...
* Thomas Hall, non-conformist preacher, pamphleteer, author of 'The loathsomeness of long hair', appointed to Kings Norton Parish in 1629 *
Mick Harris Michael John Harris (born 4 October 1967) is an English musician from Birmingham. He was the drummer for Napalm Death between 1985 and 1991, and is credited for coining the term "grindcore". After Napalm Death, Harris joined Painkiller with Jo ...
, musician, best known for drumming in
Napalm Death Napalm Death are an English grindcore band formed in 1981 in Meriden, West Midlands. None of the band's original members has been in the group since 1986. But since ''Utopia Banished'' (1992), the lineup of bassist Shane Embury, guitarist Mitch ...
in 1985–1991; also engaged in a number of side-projects musically varying from jazz, death-grind to ambient industrial *
Raymond Huntley Horace Raymond Huntley (23 April 1904 – 15 June 1990) was an English actor who appeared in dozens of British films from the 1930s to the 1970s. He also appeared in the ITV period drama '' Upstairs, Downstairs'' as the pragmatic family so ...
Actor *
Walter Hyde Walter Hyde (6 February 1875 – 11 November 1951) was a British tenor, actor and teacher of voice whose career spanned genres from musical theatre to grand opera. In 1901 he sang Borrachio in the premiere of Stanford's ''Much Ado About Noth ...
(1875-1951), operatic tenor, was born here *
Alan Napier Alan William Napier-Clavering (7 January 1903 – 8 August 1988), better known as Alan Napier, was an English actor. After a decade in West End theatre, he had a long film career in Britain and later, in Hollywood. Napier is best remembered for ...
, actor, best known for playing the butler Alfred Pennyworth in the 1960s ''
Batman Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on ...
'' television series *
Alan Nunn May Alan Nunn May (sometimes Allan) (2 May 1911 – 12 January 2003) was a British physicist and a confessed and convicted Soviet spy who supplied secrets of British and American atomic research to the Soviet Union during World War II. Early li ...
, a
physicist A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe. Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate caus ...
and a Russian
spy Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence) from non-disclosed sources or divulging of the same without the permission of the holder of the information for a tangib ...
, was born and lived the early part of his life in Kings Norton. *
Janet Parker The 1978 smallpox outbreak in the United Kingdom resulted in the death of Janet Parker, a British medical photographer, who became the last recorded person to die from smallpox. Her illness and death, which was connected to the deaths of two oth ...
(1938–1978), medical photographer and victim of
smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by variola virus (often called smallpox virus) which belongs to the genus Orthopoxvirus. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (WHO) c ...
* Charles Piers Egerton Hall, who became one of the 50 executed and murdered by the
Gestapo The (), abbreviated Gestapo (; ), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one organi ...
on the personal orders of
Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...
on 30 March 1944 following " The Great Escape" *
Philip Stainton Philip Stainton (9 April 1908 – 1 August 1961) was an English actor. Stainton appeared in several Ealing comedies and major international movies. He specialized in playing friendly or exasperated uniformed policemen, but also appeared in ...
, actor born in Kings Norton. *
Enoch Powell John Enoch Powell, (16 June 1912 – 8 February 1998) was a British politician, classical scholar, author, linguist, soldier, philologist, and poet. He served as a Conservative Member of Parliament (1950–1974) and was Minister of Health (1 ...
, politician and Conservative MP/
Ulster Unionist Party The Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) is a unionist political party in Northern Ireland. The party was founded in 1905, emerging from the Irish Unionist Alliance in Ulster. Under Edward Carson, it led unionist opposition to the Irish Home Rule movem ...
MP, moved to King's Norton in 1918, where he lived until 1930.


Politics

Kings Norton is a ward of
Birmingham City Council Birmingham City Council is the local government body responsible for the governance of the City of Birmingham in England, which has been a metropolitan district since 1974. It is the most populated local council area in the United Kingdom (e ...
, a metropolitan unitary authority. Three councillors have been elected for Kings Norton since the local government elections in May 2011. At present Kings Norton is made up two Birmingham City Council Ward's (Kings Norton North and Kings Norton South), represented by Alex Aitken (KNN, Labour) and Peter Griffiths (KNS, Labour) (
Labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...
). Kings Norton became part of Northfield district in 2006, partitioned from
Selly Oak Selly Oak is an industrial and residential area in south-west Birmingham, England. The area gives its name to Selly Oak ward and includes the neighbourhoods of: Bournbrook, Selly Park, and Ten Acres. The adjoining wards of Edgbaston and Harborne ...
. In 2004, the ward boundary was changed as part of citywide boundary alterations overseen by the
Boundary Commission for England The boundary commissions in the United Kingdom are non-departmental public bodies responsible for determining the boundaries of constituencies for elections to the House of Commons. There are four boundary commissions: * Boundary Commission for ...
. This saw the addition of a small area of the Birmingham, Hall Green constituency in the east of the ward, and a small area of the Birmingham, Northfield constituency at the south of the ward in the West Heath area. Most of Kings Norton lies within Kings Norton ward which is part of Birmingham, Northfield and is represented by
Gary Sambrook Gary William Sambrook (born 25 June 1989) is a British Conservative Party politician who has served as the Joint Executive Secretary of the backbench 1922 Committee since 2021. He has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Birmingham Northfield ...
, although some parts of Kings Norton lie within Birmingham, Selly Oak and are represented by Steve McCabe. Kings Norton ward has adopted a Ward Support Officer with the current holder of the title being Bob Barr.


References


Sources

* *


External links


The Kings Norton Website

Birmingham City Council: Kings Norton Ward

Birmingham City Council "History of Kings Norton"

Saint Nicolas Place

The Kings Norton Ex Servicemens Club

The King’s Norton Web Site
{{Authority control Former wards of Birmingham, West Midlands Areas of Birmingham, West Midlands Northfield Constituency Conservation areas in England