Bitteswell is a small village and former

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 ...

, now in the parish of Bitteswell with Bittesby, in the Harborough district of Leicestershire in England. It is situated just north of the town of

Lutterworth Lutterworth is a market town and civil parish in the Harborough district of Leicestershire, England. The town is located in southern Leicestershire, close to the borders with Warwickshire and Northamptonshire. It is located north of Rugby ...

, and in the 2001 census had a population of 454 (including Magna Park). The population had increased to 554 at the 2011 census. It was recorded in the Domesday Book as Betmeswelle. The village's name means 'the spring/stream in the broad valley'.

History

The village contains two thatched houses and a number of Georgian dwellings alongside modern houses. Population figures have not altered much since records began in 1801 with a population of 398 was recorded as against around 380 today. In 1841 there was a big increase caused by the building of Bitteswell Hall, north of the village. This brought employment and new families as it had its own farms, gas installation etc., but in the 1920s it was demolished, the land and buildings split up. The village also had its own airfield; a

RAF 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) and ...

station called

RAF Bitteswell Royal Air Force Bitteswell or more simply RAF Bitteswell is a former Royal Air Force satellite station located west of Lutterworth, Leicestershire and north of Rugby, Warwickshire, England. Construction of the grass airfield at RAF Bittesw ...

. The construction of the grass airfield started in March 1940 and by August 1941 night flight training was able to commence using

Vickers Wellington The Vickers Wellington was a British twin-engined, long-range medium bomber. It was designed during the mid-1930s at Brooklands in Weybridge, Surrey. Led by Vickers-Armstrongs' chief designer Rex Pierson; a key feature of the aircraft is its ...

bombers. By 1943, three concrete runways were completed with connecting perimeter track and hard standings. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, Hawker Siddeley built a factory next to the airfield, where

Vulcan Vulcan may refer to: Mythology * Vulcan (mythology), the god of fire, volcanoes, metalworking, and the forge in Roman mythology Arts, entertainment and media Film and television * Vulcan (''Star Trek''), name of a fictional race and their home p ...

bombers (and many other aircraft) were built and maintained. Bitteswell has a Grade II* listed

Church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * C ...

, with 13 domestic buildings, two memorials and a village telephone box that are Grade II listed, a Church of England Primary School, and two pubs (The Man at Arms and The Old Royal Oak).

Sport

Cricket

Bitteswell Cricket Club is an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

amateur

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 ...

club, established in 1903, that is situated north of the village on Ullesthorpe Road. Bitteswell have 2 Saturday senior XI teams that compete in the Leicestershire & Rutland Cricket League, a Sunday XI team, and a junior training section that play competitive cricket in the Leicestershire Youth League.

Rugby

Lutterworth RFC was established in 1872, and their ground is situated on the northern edge of the parish boundary on Ashby Lane and they claim to be the oldest rugby union club in Leicestershire.

Tennis

Lutterworth Tennis club is based on Hall Lane and has a clubhouse with 5 tennis courts and floodlights. The club plays competitive matches in the Leicestershire and Rugby leagues for adults and juniors.

Notable people

* Frederic Watson (1840–1885), cricketer

References

External links

Bitteswell Parish Council
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bitteswell Villages in Leicestershire Former civil parishes in Leicestershire Harborough District