Upton is a
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 authority ...
north-east of
Kislingbury
Kislingbury is a village in Northamptonshire, England, about west of Northampton town centre, and close to junctions 15A and 16 of the M1 motorway.
The villages name origin is uncertain. 'At the gravelly-place fortification' or perhaps, 'at th ...
and south-west of
Dallington, in
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by
two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...
, England about west of
Northampton
Northampton () is a market town and civil parish in the East Midlands of England, on the River Nene, north-west of London and south-east of Birmingham. The county town of Northamptonshire, Northampton is one of the largest towns in England; ...
town centre along the
A4500 road
List of A roads in zone 4 in Great Britain
Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European isla ...
. Formerly a scattered
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 ...
, it is now part of the town. The area west of Northampton is now a major area of expansion of the town and named Upton after the parish.
Demographics
The
2011 census, shows the parish's population was 1720 people.
Governance
It is currently part of the Upton Ward of
Northampton Borough Council
Northampton Borough Council was the borough council and non-metropolitan district responsible for local government in the large town of Northampton in England. In 2021 the council was abolished and succeeded by West Northamptonshire Council; a uni ...
and the Sixfields Division of
Northamptonshire County Council
Northamptonshire County Council was the county council that governed the non-metropolitan county of Northamptonshire in England. It was originally formed in 1889 by the Local Government Act 1888, recreated in 1974 by the Local Government Act 19 ...
.
History
The name 'Upton' means 'Higher farm/settlement'. The village is both on a hill and is higher up the
River Nene
The River Nene ( or : see below) is a river in the east of England that rises from three sources in Northamptonshire.OS Explorer Map sheet 223, Northampton & Market Harborough, Brixworth & Pitsford Water. The river is about long, about of w ...
than Northampton.
Upton Hall
James Harington, the author of ''
The Commonwealth of Oceana
''The Commonwealth of Oceana'' , published 1656, is a work of political philosophy by the English politician and essayist James Harrington (1611–1677). The unsuccessful first attempt to publish ''Oceana'' was officially censored by Lord Prote ...
'', which found little favour with
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell (25 April 15993 September 1658) was an English politician and military officer who is widely regarded as one of the most important statesmen in English history. He came to prominence during the 1639 to 1651 Wars of the Three Ki ...
, was born in Upton Hall in 1611. He wrote the book in the nearby village of
Milton Malsor
Milton Malsor is a village and civil parish in West Northamptonshire, England. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 census was 761. It is south of Northampton town centre, south-east of Birmingham, and north of central London; jun ...
. Harington's mother was Jane Samwell (or Samuell) of Upton, daughter of
Sir William Samwell
Sir William Samwell (1559–1628) of Northampton and Upton
Upton may refer to:
Places United Kingdom England
* Upton, Slough, Berkshire (in Buckinghamshire until 1974)
* Upton, Buckinghamshire, a hamlet near Aylesbury
* Upton, Cambridgeshire, P ...
. The Samwells bought the hall in 1600 from the
Knightley family of
Fawsley
Fawsley is a hamlet and civil parish in West Northamptonshire, England.- OS Explorer Map 207: Newport Pagnell & Northampton South (1:25 000) The population at the 2001 census was 32. At the 2011 census the population remained less than 100 and ...
who had owned the hall since 1419. Most of the hall's appearance today is due to the Samwells. However, a late
medieval
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...
roof remains above the hall ceiling. The front of the hall is 17th century. Sir Thomas Samwell's initials are on a rainwater head dated 1748. The Hall is a Grade I
listed building
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
. There are interesting family pictures and fine plasterwork dating from 1737. Also notable is the carved roof with late
medieval
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...
tombers and the ballroom. The building is not open to the public except occasionally when
Northampton Borough Council
Northampton Borough Council was the borough council and non-metropolitan district responsible for local government in the large town of Northampton in England. In 2021 the council was abolished and succeeded by West Northamptonshire Council; a uni ...
organise a heritage open day, usually a weekend in September.
A girls boarding and day school was started in Upton Hall by the Misses Teape in 1946 and given the name Upton Hall School. All three ladies were very elderly when they retired in 1963 and the school was bought and a mammoth task taken on by Mrs Christine Macdonald, headmistress, and Mr Archibald Macdonald, bursar and estate manager. Mr and Mrs Macdonald cared very much for the school and the buildings and spent the summer of 1963 bringing its rooms back to a good condition and creating décor more suitable for girls in the nineteen sixties . They were helped by Mr Browning, driver and handyman, who notably at the age of 74 painted the whole of the 18th century two storey ballroom single handed. It was painted in the traditional colouring of pale green and white as can be seen in the photographs of the current school.
Archie Macdonald, known in the UK as Mac, used his knowledge of horticulture to make the three acre walled garden into a productive fruit and vegetable garden, with the help of the resident gardener and two garden lads. Amongst other things he created asparagus beds and strawberry patches. What wasn't given to the girls to eat was traded in locally for other veg. The girls suddenly found their diet was changed beyond recognition. Mac went on to use the wonderful Victorian greenhouses to grow tomatoes on an impressive scale using the ring culture method. This was also pretty successful and many trips were taken to swap in the surplus tomatoes.
In 1964 a visitor arrived at Upton Hall School with a copy of Pevsner's Buildings of England in hand asking if he could see inside the Hall and particularly to see the roof space. This visitor was Viscount Althorp, later to become the
8th Earl Spencer, who of course lived at the beautiful Althorp about 6 miles from Upton Hall. The Viscount was given a tour and tea and left very pleased to have seen the medieval roof which in those days was known probably quite incorrectly as the monks room! It was a tricky place to visit as there was a story of a young lad stepping between the beams and falling through the ballroom ceiling. The small wooden entrance door was kept firmly padlocked and the name, the sad tale and the cobwebs helped give this part of the house a marvellous sense of mystery. Not all who got to peek in the door had the courage to enter.
Quinton House School
Quinton House School is a co-educational independent school for children aged 2 to 18 years located in Upton, Northampton, England. The school is owned and operated by the Cognita Group.
History
Quinton House School is situated in the Grade I ...
, an
independent school
An independent school is independent in its finances and governance. Also known as private schools, non-governmental, privately funded, or non-state schools, they are not administered by local, state or national governments. In British Eng ...
for 2-18 year olds, now occupies Upton Hall buildings including a modern sports hall.
Quinton House School website
Retrieved 25 November 2009
St Michael's Church
The church is adjacent to the school and alongside the busy A45 road and is Norman
Norman or Normans may refer to:
Ethnic and cultural identity
* The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries
** People or things connected with the Norm ...
, and Norman windows survive. The tower is 14th century. There is a monument to Sir Richard Knightley (d.1537) and a memorial tablet to Thomas Samwell Watson Samwell (d.1835).
Saxon building
West of the church are the remains of a 6th or 7th century Saxon
The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic
*
*
*
*
peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...
timber building, excavated in 1965.
References
(Google Maps)
External links
{{authority control
Villages in Northamptonshire
Areas of Northampton
Civil parishes in Northamptonshire