Snitterfield is a village and
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 ...
in the
Stratford on 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 ...
district of
Warwickshire
Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Av ...
, England, less than to the north of the
A46 road
The A46 is a major A road in England. It starts east of Bath, Somerset and ends in Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire, but it does not form a continuous route. Large portions of the old road have been lost, bypassed, or replaced by motorway developmen ...
, from
Stratford upon Avon, from
Warwick
Warwick ( ) is a market town, civil parish and the county town of Warwickshire in the Warwick District in England, adjacent to the River Avon. It is south of Coventry, and south-east of Birmingham. It is adjoined with Leamington Spa and Whi ...
and from
Coventry
Coventry ( or ) is a city in the West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its city status until the Middle Ages. The city is governed b ...
. The population of the civil parish at the
2011 census was 1,226.
History
The early name of Snitterfield was "Snytenfeld", open field of snipe, "Feld", signifying a cleared stretch of land amid the
Forest of Arden
Arden is an area located mainly in Warwickshire, England, with parts in Staffordshire and Worcestershire, and is traditionally regarded as extending from the River Avon to the River Tame. It was once heavily wooded, giving rise to the name 'F ...
and "Snyten" referring to the
snipe
A snipe is any of about 26 wading bird species in three genera in the family Scolopacidae. They are characterized by a very long, slender bill, eyes placed high on the head, and cryptic/ camouflaging plumage. The ''Gallinago'' snipes have a ...
frequenting the
meadow
A meadow ( ) is an open habitat, or field, vegetated by grasses, herbs, and other non- woody plants. Trees or shrubs may sparsely populate meadows, as long as these areas maintain an open character. Meadows may be naturally occurring or arti ...
s near the
Sherbourne Brook which runs through the village. The earliest record of Snitterfield is on a map dated 1630 by
John Speed and as late as 1814, Snitterfield was spelt as Snitfield. At the time of 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 Con ...
Snitefeld was held by Saxi who also possessed land at
Walton Walton may refer to:
People
* Walton (given name)
* Walton (surname)
* Susana, Lady Walton (1926–2010), Argentine writer
Places
Canada
* Walton, Nova Scotia, a community
** Walton River (Nova Scotia)
*Walton, Ontario, a hamlet
United Kingdo ...
,
Charlecote
Charlecote is a village and civil parish south of Warwick, on the River Avon, in the Stratford-on-Avon district, in the county of Warwickshire, England. In 2011 the parish had a population of 194. The parish touches Wasperton, Newbold Pacey ...
, Bramcote,
Dorsington and Werlavescote but by 1086 it was held by the
Count of Meulan
The county of Meulan, in Normandy, France, appeared as an entity within the region of the Vexin when the otherwise unknown Count Waleran established an independent power base on a fortified island in the River Seine, around the year 1020. Waleran' ...
; "in Ferncombe
hundred
100 or one hundred (Roman numeral: C) is the natural number following 99 and preceding 101.
In medieval contexts, it may be described as the short hundred or five score in order to differentiate the English and Germanic use of "hundred" to des ...
, Snitefeld. Saxi held it he was a free man. 4
hides. Land for 14 ploughs. In lordship 2; 10 slaves.11 villagers with a priest and 4 smallholders have 6 ploughs. Meadow 12 acres. Value before 1066 and later £4; now 100s."
Economy
Welcombe Hills
vineyard
A vineyard (; also ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines, grown mainly for winemaking, but also raisins, table grapes and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is known as viticulture. Vineya ...
was established in 2001 situated at Vine Cottage, Kings Lane, Snitterfield, producing English wines from
Pinot Noir,
Dornfelder
Dornfelder is a dark-skinned variety of grape of German origin used for red wine. and
Bacchus
In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, myth, Dionysus (; grc, wikt:Διόνυσος, Διόνυσος ) is the god of the grape-harvest, winemaking, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstas ...
grape varieties. In August 2009, all five Welcombe Hills wines entered in the Mercian Vineyards Association regional competition won medals. Shakespearean connections are reflected in the home of some of Snitterfield's major employers, at Prospero Barn, The Green Snitterfield;
Prospero
Prospero ( ) is a fictional character and the protagonist of William Shakespeare's play '' The Tempest''.
Prospero is the rightful Duke of Milan, whose usurping brother, Antonio, had put him (with his three-year-old daughter, Miranda) to se ...
is a character in ''
The Tempest''. Prospero Barn houses Structured Training Ltd, SalesPathways Ltd and Predaptive OD Ltd. Other employers include the
Stratford Manor Hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a re ...
, a
Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to as Mercedes and sometimes as Benz, is a German luxury and commercial vehicle automotive brand established in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a Mercedes-Benz Group subsidiary established in 2019) is headquartere ...
dealership, and the local
Wyevale Garden Centre. Snitterfield is also home to one of the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
's oldest-established independent
factoring brokerages, Factoring Partners.
Governance
Snitterfield is a
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 ...
of
Stratford-on-Avon District Council and represented by
Councillor
A councillor is an elected representative for a local government council in some countries.
Canada
Due to the control that the provinces have over their municipal governments, terms that councillors serve vary from province to province. Unl ...
Peter Richards,
Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
. Nationally it is part of
Stratford-on-Avon parliamentary constituency
An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other poli ...
, whose current
MP following the
2010 election is
Nadhim Zahawi
Nadhim Zahawi ( ar, ناظم الزهاوي, translit=Nāẓim az-Zahāwī; ku, نەدیم زەهاوی, translit=Nedîm Zehawî; born 2 June 1967) is an Iraqi-born British politician serving as Chairman of the Conservative Party and Minister ...
of the Conservative Party. Prior to
Brexit
Brexit (; a portmanteau of "British exit") was the withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU) at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February 2020 CET).The UK also left the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC ...
in 2020 it was part of the
West Midlands electoral region of the
European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...
.
Notable buildings
The
parish church
A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...
of
St. James the Great consists of a
chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may terminate in an apse.
Ov ...
,
nave
The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...
, north and south
aisle
An aisle is, in general, a space for walking with rows of non-walking spaces on both sides. Aisles with seating on both sides can be seen in airplanes, certain types of buildings, such as churches, cathedrals, synagogues, meeting halls, par ...
s, and a west
tower
A tower is a tall structure, taller than it is wide, often by a significant factor. Towers are distinguished from masts by their lack of guy-wires and are therefore, along with tall buildings, self-supporting structures.
Towers are specifi ...
. There are also modern
vestries
A vestry was a committee for the local secular and ecclesiastical government for a parish in England, Wales and some English colonies which originally met in the vestry or sacristy of the parish church, and consequently became known colloquially ...
north of the chancel and south of the tower. The sequence of the earlier development of the building is a little uncertain owing to the proximity of the various periods, added to the marked differences in detail, and some confusion is caused by later alterations. The south
arcade
Arcade most often refers to:
* Arcade game, a coin-operated game machine
** Arcade cabinet, housing which holds an arcade game's hardware
** Arcade system board, a standardized printed circuit board
* Amusement arcade, a place with arcade games
* ...
probably dates from the latter half of the 13th century and the north from the early 14th century, but the similarity of the windows in both aisles suggests that after the north aisle was built the south aisle was widened to . to match the other.
The
chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may terminate in an apse.
Ov ...
, built of rubble, is of severer detail and may have followed soon after the 14th-century north
aisle
An aisle is, in general, a space for walking with rows of non-walking spaces on both sides. Aisles with seating on both sides can be seen in airplanes, certain types of buildings, such as churches, cathedrals, synagogues, meeting halls, par ...
; it is of great length compared with the
nave
The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...
and has large windows. The west
tower
A tower is a tall structure, taller than it is wide, often by a significant factor. Towers are distinguished from masts by their lack of guy-wires and are therefore, along with tall buildings, self-supporting structures.
Towers are specifi ...
was evidently erected in several successive stages: the lowest . in the early 14th century, continued up another 8 or . about 1340 with
ashlar walling, the west window having moulded
jamb
A jamb (from French ''jambe'', "leg"), in architecture, is the side-post or lining of a doorway or other aperture. The jambs of a window outside the frame are called “reveals.” Small shafts to doors and windows with caps and bases are known ...
s rather like those of the south doorway, and completed c. 1400 in ashlar of larger stones.
[A History of the County of Warwick: Volume 3](_blank)
/ref> The clerestory was added early in the 16th century: there seems to have been some trouble from weaknesses in the arcade
Arcade most often refers to:
* Arcade game, a coin-operated game machine
** Arcade cabinet, housing which holds an arcade game's hardware
** Arcade system board, a standardized printed circuit board
* Amusement arcade, a place with arcade games
* ...
s, especially the northern, which shows inequalities in the arches resulting probably from partial reconstructions, and most of its capitals have been rather crudely remoulded.
No important changes occurred before the 19th century, but there was some deterioration, as a description of 1858 mentions that the chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may terminate in an apse.
Ov ...
was heavily buttress
A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall. Buttresses are fairly common on more ancient buildings, as a means of providing support to act against the lateral ( ...
ed on the north side and its windows had lost their tracery
Tracery is an architectural device by which windows (or screens, panels, and vaults) are divided into sections of various proportions by stone ''bars'' or ''ribs'' of moulding. Most commonly, it refers to the stonework elements that support the ...
. The closing of the side doorways and insertion of the west doorway were done before that time. Scars and repairs in the arcade
Arcade most often refers to:
* Arcade game, a coin-operated game machine
** Arcade cabinet, housing which holds an arcade game's hardware
** Arcade system board, a standardized printed circuit board
* Amusement arcade, a place with arcade games
* ...
s are evidence of the damage caused to the masonry
Masonry is the building of structures from individual units, which are often laid in and bound together by mortar; the term ''masonry'' can also refer to the units themselves. The common materials of masonry construction are bricks, building ...
by the erection of galleries in 1841. Probably the vestry
A vestry was a committee for the local secular and ecclesiastical government for a parish in England, Wales and some English colonies which originally met in the vestry or sacristy of the parish church, and consequently became known colloquiall ...
south of the tower
A tower is a tall structure, taller than it is wide, often by a significant factor. Towers are distinguished from masts by their lack of guy-wires and are therefore, along with tall buildings, self-supporting structures.
Towers are specifi ...
was then added. Since then the church has been well restored, the chancel windows provided with tracery, and the north vestry and organ chamber added.
Transport links
The Monarch's Way
The Monarch's Way is a long-distance footpath in England that approximates the escape route taken by King Charles II in 1651 after being defeated in the Battle of Worcester. It runs from Worcester via Bristol and Yeovil to Shoreham, West Su ...
, a long-distance footpath which approximates the escape route taken by King Charles II after being defeated in the Battle of Worcester
The Battle of Worcester took place on 3 September 1651 in and around the city of Worcester, England and was the last major battle of the 1639 to 1653 Wars of the Three Kingdoms. A Parliamentarian army of around 28,000 under Oliver Cromwell d ...
, passes through Snitterfield. King's Lane owes its name to the tradition which says that Charles II rode through here with Jane Lane during his escape in September 1651.
Sports and leisure
Snitterfield has a sport horse training centre, a riding school An equestrian facility is created and maintained for the purpose of accommodating, training or competing equids, especially horses. Based on their use, they may be known as a barn, stables, or riding hall and may include commercial operations descr ...
, and a sports club, incorporating tennis
Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...
, bowls, cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by str ...
, and football. RAF Snitterfield a former Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...
station is situated to the west of the village. The northern section is now the Stratford Oaks Golf Course
A golf course is the grounds on which the sport of golf is played. It consists of a series of holes, each consisting of a tee box, a fairway, the rough and other hazards, and a green with a cylindrical hole in the ground, known as a "cup". ...
and Driving Range. This was completed in 1992 while the south-east side is home to a glider
Glider may refer to:
Aircraft and transport Aircraft
* Glider (aircraft), heavier-than-air aircraft primarily intended for unpowered flight
** Glider (sailplane), a rigid-winged glider aircraft with an undercarriage, used in the sport of glidin ...
club. The local Scouts
Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement employing the Scout method, a program of informal education with an emphasis on practical outdoor activities, including camping, woodcraft, aquatics, hiking, backpack ...
Group is 'Bearley
Bearley is a village and civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon district of Warwickshire, England. The village is about five miles (8 km) north of Stratford-upon-Avon, bounded on the north by Wootton Wawen, on the east by Snitterfield, an ...
& Snitterfield' which includes Beaver, Cub and Scout sections. The village has grown with a 10 per cent increase in the amount of housing between 2002 and 2003. Further development is limited to barn conversion
The conversion of barns involves the conversion of old farming barns to structures of commercial or residential use.
Responsible residential conversion
According to the United States National Park Service, a medium-sized barn with sufficient extan ...
s and plots for no more than five properties. The village has one pub
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 was ...
, The Snitterfield Arms and a village shop, (voted England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
's best in 2002). The other village pub, The Foxhunter, was badly damaged by fire in June 2007 and after lying in a dilapidated condition for five years was demolished following an application by the local council. It has since been replaced by residential properties.
Education
Snitterfield has Snitterfield Primary School
A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary e ...
.
Notable residents
* John Grant was born in Snitterfield of an old and respected family and lived at the now demolished moated house of Norbrook.[Warwickshire People and Places, John Burman, 1936] He was brother-in-law to Thomas Wintour
Robert Wintour (1568 – 30 January 1606) and Thomas Wintour (1571 or 1572 – 31 January 1606), also spelt Winter, were members of the Gunpowder Plot, a failed conspiracy to assassinate King James I. Brothers, they were related to other consp ...
whose sister, Dorothy, he had married and was recruited into the Gunpowder Plot
The Gunpowder Plot of 1605, in earlier centuries often called the Gunpowder Treason Plot or the Jesuit Treason, was a failed assassination attempt against King James I by a group of provincial English Catholics led by Robert Catesby who sough ...
along with Robert Wintour and Catesby's servant Thomas Bates in March 1605. Norbrook became the plotters' Warwickshire
Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Av ...
headquarters and magazine where Grant stored gunpowder and weapons during the summer of 1605 and rode from here to the Red Lion Inn
Inns are generally establishments or buildings where travelers can seek lodging, and usually, food and drink. Inns are typically located in the country or along a highway; before the advent of motorized transportation they also provided accommo ...
, Dunchurch
Dunchurch is a large village and civil parish on the south-western outskirts of Rugby in Warwickshire, England, approximately southwest of central Rugby. The civil parish which also includes the nearby hamlet of Toft, had a population of 4,12 ...
to await news of Guy Fawkes
Guy Fawkes (; 13 April 1570 – 31 January 1606), also known as Guido Fawkes while fighting for the Spanish, was a member of a group of provincial English Catholics involved in the failed Gunpowder Plot of 1605. He was born and educated ...
' attempt. When the failure became known the conspirators dispersed, some to Norbrook where they rested the night of 6 November 1605 before making their way to Holbeche House
Holbeche House (also, in some texts, Holbeach or Holbeache) is a mansion located approximately north of Kingswinford, now in the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley but historically in Staffordshire.Aikin, L. p.244 Some members of the Gunpowder P ...
, Staffordshire where they made their final stand. Here, Grant was blinded, his eyes being burnt out when a spark from the fire ignited the gunpowder they were trying to dry, which had become wet on the journey. He was captured and imprisoned in the Tower of London
The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, which is sep ...
. After being found guilty along with the other conspirators, on Thursday 30 January he was executed outside St Paul's Cathedral, London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
along with Digby, Thomas Wintour and Thomas Bates. He refused to confess his treason saying it was "no sin against God". Still blinded, he allowed himself to be led quietly up the ladder to the halter and after crossing himself, went to his death. His estate was confiscated and granted to Bartholomew Hales, then Lord of Snitterfield.
* Richard Jago, the poet
A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems ( oral or wri ...
, was rector
Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to:
Style or title
*Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations
*Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...
here from 1754 to 1781. He was born in 1715 at Beaudesert Rectory, Henley in Arden where his father Richard was rector. Educated at Solihull School, one of the houses is named after him, where he met another minor poet William Shenstone
William Shenstone (18 November 171411 February 1763) was an English poet and one of the earliest practitioners of landscape gardening through the development of his estate, '' The Leasowes''.
Biography
Son of Thomas Shenstone and Anne Penn, ...
. From there he went to University College
In a number of countries, a university college is a college institution that provides tertiary education but does not have full or independent university status. A university college is often part of a larger university. The precise usage varies ...
where he took his MA in 1738 having been made curate at Snitterfield the previous year. He became vicar
A vicar (; Latin: '' vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pre ...
of Harbury
Harbury is a village and civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon district of Warwickshire, England. It is about west-southwest of Southam and about southeast of Royal Leamington Spa. The parish includes the hamlet of Deppers Bridge. The 2011 C ...
in 1746 and shortly after Chesterton both in Warwickshire
Warwickshire (; abbreviated Warks) is a county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, and the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare at Stratford-upon-Av ...
followed by Snitterfield in 1754 where he took up residence until his death in 1781. Lord Willoughby de Broke presented him with the rectory at Kimcote in Leicestershire in 1771 and he resigned Harbury and Chesterton keeping Snitterfiled and Kimcote. His best known poem is the long topographical, '' Edge Hill'' (1767). Three silver birch
''Betula pendula'', commonly known as silver birch, warty birch, European white birch, or East Asian white birch, is a species of tree in the family Betulaceae, native to Europe and parts of Asia, though in southern Europe, it is only found ...
es were planted in the vicarage garden by his daughters.
* John Shakespeare, father of William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
, was born here but moved to Stratford having married Mary Arden and in 1579 surrendered his interests in the family property in Snitterfield to Robert Webbe.
*Richard Shakespeare
Richard Shakespeare (1490 – before 10 February 1561) was a husbandman of Snitterfield, Warwickshire, four miles (6.5 km) north-northeast of Stratford-upon-Avon, the father of John Shakespeare and the grandfather of William Shakespeare.
Life ...
, grandfather of the poet
A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems ( oral or wri ...
,[Dictionary of National Biography, William Shakespeare] is first mentioned in the manorial
Manorialism, also known as the manor system or manorial system, was the method of land ownership (or "tenure") in parts of Europe, notably France and later England, during the Middle Ages. Its defining features included a large, sometimes forti ...
records of Snitterfield in 1535 and finally in 1560. He does not appear in the registers which begin in 1561 and is believed to have died in the intervening time. His wife, Abigail Webb, mother of John Shakespeare the poet's father, and a sister of Mary Webb (Mary Arden's mother) died in Snitterfield in 1595. Another of her sons, Henry, remained in the 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 o ...
until his death in 1596.
*John Wootton
John Wootton (c.1686– 13 November 1764)Deuchar, S. (2003). "Wootton, John". Grove Art Online. was an English painter of sporting subjects, battle scenes and landscapes, and illustrator.
Life
Born in Snitterfield, Warwickshire (near Stratfo ...
, an English painter and illustrator of sporting subjects, battle scenes and landscapes, was born in Snitterfield around 1682. He probably received some instruction from Jan Wyck
Jan Wyck (also Jan Wiyck or Jan Wick) (29 October 1645 – 17 May 1702) was a Dutch baroque painter, best known for his works on military subjects. There are still over 150 of his works known to be in existence.
In an era when French artists d ...
in the 1690s, and was possibly patronised from an early age by the aristocratic households of Beaufort and Coventry
Coventry ( or ) is a city in the West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its city status until the Middle Ages. The city is governed b ...
(as was Wyck), perhaps while working as a page to Lady Anne Somerset at Snitterfield House.[http://www.invaluable.com/artist/wootton-john-6mv1os33ta ] Snitterfield House was situated south of the church, built in the late 17th century it was demolished in the early 19th century. However, there seems to be no real evidence for this save his early painted view of the house and the family's later acquisition of many of his works. Joseph Farington saw a painting of Diana and the Nymphs
A nymph ( grc, νύμφη, nýmphē, el, script=Latn, nímfi, label=Modern Greek; , ) in ancient Greek folklore is a minor female nature deity. Different from Greek goddesses, nymphs are generally regarded as personifications of nature, are ...
(1707; untraced) at Antony House, Cornwall
Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...
, but Wootton's earliest extant dated work is the horse portrait Bonny Black (1711; Belvoir Castle
Belvoir Castle ( ) is a faux historic castle and stately home in Leicestershire, England, situated west of the town of Grantham and northeast of Melton Mowbray. The Castle was first built immediately after the Norman Conquest of 1066 an ...
, Leicestershire). By this time he had begun to establish himself in London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
, having moved there before his first marriage, to Elizabeth Walsh, in 1706. He was a subscriber to the first English Academy
During the early part of the 17th century, and persisting in some form into the early 18th century, there were a number of proposals for an English Academy: some form of learned institution, conceived as having royal backing and a leading role in ...
of Painting and Drawing in 1711 and by 1717 had been elected a steward of the Virtuosi Club of St Luke's. He died in London on 13 November 1764.
References
External links
Village Facebook page
Village Website
Snitterfield Cricket Club
Welcombe Hills Vineyard
Snitterfield General Stores
Bearley & Snitterfield Scouts Website
Stratford on Avon Gliding Club Website
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Stratford-on-Avon District
Villages in Warwickshire