Westbury is a village and

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 ...

in Shropshire, England. It includes the settlements of Caus Forest, Lake, Marche, Newtown, Stoney Stretton, Vennington, Wallop, Westbury, Whitton, Winsley and

Yockleton Yockleton is a village in Shropshire, England. Yockleton is west of the county town of Shrewsbury, on the B4386 road to Montgomery and near the River Severn. The population as taken at the 2011 census can be found under Westbury. Yockleton ...

. It lies west of the town of

Shrewsbury Shrewsbury ( , also ) is a market town, civil parish, and the county town of Shropshire, England, on the River Severn, north-west of London; at the 2021 census, it had a population of 76,782. The town's name can be pronounced as either 'Sh ...

, very close to the Wales-England border. It is located at 135 m altitude. It had a population of 1,352 according to the 2011 census. In 2005, Westbury parish expanded with the annexation of half of the former Wollaston parish. It is situated on the

B4386 road B roads are numbered routes in Great Britain of lesser importance than A roads. See the article Great Britain road numbering scheme The Great Britain road numbering scheme is a numbering scheme used to classify and identify all roads in Gre ...

which travels from

to Montgomery. Amenities include a

Marstons Marston's plc is a British pub and hotel operator. Founded by John Marston in 1834, it is listed on the London Stock Exchange. Marston's disposed of its brewing operations in 2020, selling the assets to a newly formed joint venture with the Ca ...

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 ...

called 'The Lion', a medical practice surgery, and a cemetery on Hinwood Road. The primary school (St Mary's CE Aided) closed in 2017, merging in a federation with Worthen and Hope into the Long Mountain School at

Worthen Worthen is a village in Shropshire, England approximately 13 miles west of Shrewsbury. The village forms part of the Worthen with Shelve civil parish, which includes the hamlet of Little Worthen immediately to the north-east and the villages ...

History

Roman

During the Roman settlement of Britain it was an outpost of

Wroxeter Wroxeter is a village in Shropshire, England, which forms part of the civil parish of Wroxeter and Uppington, beside the River Severn, south-east of Shrewsbury. ''Viroconium Cornoviorum'', the fourth largest city in Roman Britain, was sited ...

. The present Shrewsbury to Westbury road is thought to follow the alignment of a Roman road from Wroxeter to forts at

Forden Gaer Forden Gaer, Y Gaer, Caer Flos and Lavrobrinta are respective English, Welsh and possible Latin names for the Roman fort in the township of Thornbury, in the parish of Forden, in the old county of Montgomeryshire, which now forms part of Powys, Wa ...

and

Caersws Caersws ( cy, Caersŵs; ) is a village and community on the River Severn, in the Welsh county of Powys (Montgomeryshire) west of Newtown, and halfway between Aberystwyth and Shrewsbury. It has a station on the Cambrian Line from Aberystwyth ...

. In about 1848, a piece of lead was found with markings of the name of the Roman Emperor

Aurelian Aurelian ( la, Lucius Domitius Aurelianus; 9 September 214 October 275) was a Roman emperor, who reigned during the Crisis of the Third Century, from 270 to 275. As emperor, he won an unprecedented series of military victories which reunited t ...

Middle Ages

During the early Middle Ages the Rea Valley was of strategic importance in the defence of the

Welsh Marches The Welsh Marches ( cy, Y Mers) is an imprecisely defined area along the border between England and Wales in the United Kingdom. The precise meaning of the term has varied at different periods. The English term Welsh March (in Medieval Latin ...

west of Shrewsbury as the main route from Montgomery to Shrewsbury came through the village. Frontier guards are said to be have been killed at Westbury in 1053 when the manor was held by Ernui. About from Westbury lie the scant ruins of

Caus Castle Caus Castle is a ruin of a hill fort and medieval castle in the civil parish of Westbury in the English county of Shropshire. It is situated up on the eastern foothills of the Long Mountain guarding the route from Shrewsbury, Shropshire to Mon ...

. Built in the late 11th century originally it was used as a border stronghold. Westbury’s strategic importance was diminished after the Norman Conquest when

Montgomery Castle Montgomery Castle ( cy, Castell Trefaldwyn) is a stone-built castle looking over the town of Montgomery in Powys, Mid Wales. It is one of many Norman castles on the border between Wales and England. Its strategic importance in the Welsh March ...

was built.

Domesday

Westbury is recorded in the

Domesday Book Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...

as the property of Roger Fitz Corbet who held it on behalf of the Earl of Shrewsbury, Roger de Montgomery. Two priests were also recorded as incumbent at Westbury church. After the lapse of the suzerainty of the Earls of Shrewsbury in 1102, the manor was held by the barony of Caus until the end of feudal tenures.

18th and 19th centuries

The road to Asterley originated as a field road to the Common Wood of Hinwood, but became of some importance in the 18th century when used by coal wagons from the Asterley Mines. In the Middle Ages the road which passes through Vennington and along the crest of the Long Mountain was the principal route between Shrewsbury and Newtown, and was still used as an alternative route to Welshpool up to the 1820s. In 1870–72, Westbury was described by

John Marius Wilson John Marius Wilson (c. 1805–1885) was a British writer and an editor, most notable for his gazetteers. The ''Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales'' (published 1870–72), was a substantial topographical dictionary in six volumes. It was a c ...

's ''Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales'' like this: : "WESTBURY, a township and a parish in Atcham district, Salop. The township lies on the Shrewsbury and Welshpool railway, 11½ miles W by S of Shrewsbury; contains a village of its own name; and has a post-office under Shrewsbury, and a r ilway station. Real property, £6,174; of which £200 are in mines. Pop lation in 1851, 1,497; in 1861, 1,655. Houses, 298. The property is not much divided. The parish includes

Minsterley Minsterley is a village and civil parish in Shropshire, England. In the 2011 census, its population was 1,777. Minsterley lies one mile south-west of Pontesbury and 10 miles south-west of Shrewsbury. East from Minsterley along the A488, is the la ...

chapelry, and forms a sub-district. Acres, 11,274. Rated property in 1869, £16,158. Pop., 2,545. Houses, 476. The living is a rectory in the

diocese of Hereford The Diocese of Hereford is a Church of England diocese based in Hereford, covering Herefordshire, southern Shropshire and a few parishes within Worcestershire in England, and a few parishes within Powys and Monmouthshire in Wales. The cathedral ...

. Value, £766. Patron, R. Cholmondeley, Esq. The church is good. The p rpetual curacy of Minsterley is a separate benefice. There are dissenting chapels, an endowed school with £30 a year, and charities £44." Westbury population time series 1881-2011

Westbury population time series 1881-2011

In 1831 the dominating occupation was working in agriculture and farming. There were no manufacturing jobs in 1831. In 2001 there were 80, which decreased to 52 in 2011. Several coal and lead mines were being worked near Shrewsbury and Westbury at the former time. Many collieries were closed by 1921, with the last closing in 1941. Council housing in Westbury - geograph

Railways

Previously served by Westbury station on the

Cambrian Line The Cambrian Line ( cy, Llinell y Cambrian), also known as the Cambrian Main Line ( cy, Prif Linell y Cambrian) and Cambrian Coast Line ( cy, Llinell Arfordir y Cambrian), is a railway line that runs from Shrewsbury, England, westwards to Aber ...

. The station closed in 1960.

Notable people

Henry Stafford, 1st Baron Stafford Henry Stafford, 1st Baron Stafford (18 September 1501 – 30 April 1563) was an English nobleman. After the execution for treason in 1521 and posthumous attainder of his father Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham, with the forfeiture of al ...

(1501-1563), died at Caus Castle in the parish. *

Sir Thomas Higgons Sir Thomas Higgons (c 1624 – 24 November 1691) was an English diplomat and politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1659 and 1687. Life Higgons was the son of Rev. Thomas Higgons, DD, rector of Westbury, Shropshire, ...

(c1624-1691), politician and diplomat, was son of a Rector of Westbury. *

Elhanan Bicknell Elhanan Bicknell (21 December 1788 – 27 November 1861) was a successful London businessman and shipowner. He used his wealth as a patronage, patron of the arts, becoming one of the leading collectors of contemporary British art. Early life Elh ...

(1788-1861), London art collector, lived at Caus in the parish for a year to learn farming. *

William Cureton William Cureton (180817 June 1864) was an English Orientalist. Life He was born in Westbury, Shropshire. After being educated at the Adams' Grammar School in Newport, Shropshire and at Christ Church, Oxford, he took orders in 1832, became chapl ...

(1808-1864), Orientalist, was born at Westbury. *

John Edmund Severne John Edmund Severne (24 April 1826 – 21 April 1899) was an English Conservative politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1865 to 1885. Severne was the son of John Michael Severne of Wallop Hall, Westbury near Shrewsbury and his wif ...

(1826-1899),

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 i ...

politician, lived at Wallop Hall in Westbury parish, buried in Westbury Churchyard. *

John Doogan John Doogan ( ga, Seán Ó Dubhagáin; March 1853 in Aughrim, County Galway – 24 January 1940 in Folkestone, Kent) was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy t ...

(1853-1940),

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...

recipient, was living at Cause Mountain in Westbury parish in 1911. *

Sir Smith Child, 2nd Baronet Sir Smith Hill Child, 2nd Baronet, (19 September 1880 – 11 November 1958) was an officer in the British Army and a Conservative Party politician. Early life and education Hill Child was educated at Eton College and Christ Church, Oxford. He ...

(1880-1958), Conservative politician and former army officer, lived at Whitton HallEarliest mention of Whitton Hall as home. in the parish and is buried in Westbury Churchyard.

References

External links

Shropshire Council webpage
{{authority control Civil parishes in Shropshire Villages in Shropshire Shrewsbury and Atcham