Lapworth is a village and civil parish in Warwickshire, England, which had a population of 2,100 according to the 2001 census; this had fallen to 1,828 at the 2011 Census. It lies six miles (10 km) south of Solihull and ten miles (16 km) northwest of Warwick, and incorporates the hamlet of Kingswood. Lapworth boasts a historic church, the Church of

St Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother of ...

the Virgin, a chapel. Two National Trust sites are nearby:

Baddesley Clinton Baddesley Clinton () is a moated manor house, about 8 miles (13 km) north-west of the town of Warwick, in the village of Baddesley Clinton, Warwickshire, England. The house probably originated in the 13th century, when large areas of the ...

, a medieval

moat A moat is a deep, broad ditch, either dry or filled with water, that is dug and surrounds a castle, fortification, building or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. In some places moats evolved into more extensive ...

ed manor house and garden located in the village of

; and

Packwood House Packwood House is a timber-framed Tudor manor house in Packwood on the Solihull border near Lapworth, Warwickshire. Owned by the National Trust since 1941, the house is a Grade I listed building. It has a wealth of tapestries and fine furnitu ...

, a Tudor manor house and yew garden with over 100 trees in Packwood. The church is a building largely of the 13th and 14th centuries. It includes several unusual features: the steeple is connected by a passage to the north aisle and is built sheer with a projecting stair; the

clerestory In architecture, a clerestory ( ; , also clearstory, clearstorey, or overstorey) is a high section of wall that contains windows above eye level. Its purpose is to admit light, fresh air, or both. Historically, ''clerestory'' denoted an upper l ...

has square-headed windows; and there is a two-storey annex at the west end. In the church the Portland

memorial A memorial is an object or place which serves as a focus for the memory or the commemoration of something, usually an influential, deceased person or a historical, tragic event. Popular forms of memorials include landmark objects or works of a ...

to Florence Bradshaw was the work of Eric Gill and was installed in 1928. It is a Virgin and Child carved in low relief.Goodall, John (2015). ''Parish Church Treasures''. London: Bloomsbury; p. 280 The village is a popular area for cuisine, with three pubs "''The Boot''", "''The Navigation''" and "''The Punch Bowl''". At

Kingswood Junction Kingswood Junction () is a series of canal junction where the Stratford-upon-Avon Canal meets the Grand Union Canal at Kingswood, Warwickshire, England. History The Grand Union Canal was a late addition to the British canal system, being form ...

, the Grand Union Canal joins the Stratford-upon-Avon Canal, which has a major flight of locks. Catesby Lane in Lapworth is named after William Catesby (the great grandfather of Robert Catesby of Gunpowder Plot fame), whose family had been settled at Bushwood Hall, in the neighbouring parish of

Bushwood Bushwood is a hamlet in Warwickshire, located three miles north of Henley in Arden and a mile west of the M40 motorway. There is no village centre as such because all the buildings in the hamlet are spread out so widely. It is named after the wo ...

, since the 14th century. The manor house was probably at Lapworth Hall, today Ireland's Farm, and in the 17th and 18th centuries the house of the

Mander family The Mander family has held for over 200 years a prominent position in the Midland counties of England, both in the family business and public life. In the early industrial revolution, the Mander family entered the vanguard of the expansion of ...

of Wolverhampton. The furniture designer and maker Hugh Birkett worked from the late 1940s until 1966 in the garage at his parents' home in Lapworth. Examples of his work can be seen at

Cheltenham Museum The Wilson, formerly known as Cheltenham Art Gallery and Museum, in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, was opened in 1899. It offers free admission, and has a programme of special exhibitions. It was renamed The Wilson in honour of polar explorer Edwar ...

Transport

Lapworth railway station Lapworth railway station serves the village of Kingswood, Warwickshire, near the village of Lapworth from which it takes its name. It has two platforms connected by a footbridge. Most trains are those provided by Chiltern on its London Marylebo ...

is on the Chiltern line from to . Originally called Kingswood, the station name was changed to Lapworth to avoid confusion with Kingswood railway station in

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

. Junction 16 of the

M40 motorway The M40 motorway links London, Oxford and Birmingham in England, a distance of approximately . The motorway is dual three lanes except for junction 1A to junction 3 (which is dual four lanes) a short section in-between the exit and entry slip-r ...

has only northbound entry and southbound exit to prevent traffic diverting through Hockley Heath as a shortcut to and from nearby junction 4 of the M42. The village is effectively a commuter village for professionals employed in Birmingham and Coventry, most of whom today drive to their places of work.

Notable persons

* Baron Edmiston of Lapworth * Robert Catesby, Gunpowder Plot conspirator *

Jonathan Darlington Jonathan Philip Darlington (born 1956 in Lapworth, England) is a British conductor, Music Director Emeritus of the Vancouver Opera and the former Music Director of the Duisburg Philharmonic Orchestra. He is known for his broad repertoire of both ...

, conductor and Music Director of the

Duisburg Philharmonic The Duisburg Philharmonic Orchestra (in German: Duisburger Philharmoniker) is a German orchestra based in Duisburg. The orchestra was founded in 1877. Conductors include: * Walter Josephson (1899 to 1920) * Paul Scheinpflug (1920 to 1928) * Eug ...

and Vancouver Opera *Bob Davis a.k.a. Jasper Carrott *

Tony Iommi Anthony Frank Iommi () (born 19 February 1948) is a British musician. He co-founded the pioneering heavy metal band Black Sabbath, and was the band's guitarist, leader and primary composer and sole continuous member for nearly five decades. I ...

, guitarist and founding member of Black Sabbath, currently resides near the village

References

External links

Lapworth websiteSolihull and Leamington
{{authority control Villages in Warwickshire Civil parishes in Warwickshire Warwick District