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Astwell is a hamlet in Northamptonshire, England. With
Falcutt Falcutt (or Fancote) is a hamlet in the English county of Northamptonshire. With Astwell, it forms part the civil parish of Helmdon and is south of the village of that name. Historically, Falcutt and Astwell were part of the Wappenham Wappe ...
, it is part of the civil parish of Helmdon , but formerly Astwell was split between the parishes of Syresham and Wappenham. The hamlet is northeast of Brackley and by road southwest of the county town 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; ...
. Today the hamlet contains little more than the Astwell Castle and a mill.


History

The hamlets name means 'eastern spring/stream'. The De Wauncys were amongst the earliest holders of the Astwell
manor Manor may refer to: Land ownership *Manorialism or "manor system", the method of land ownership (or "tenure") in parts of medieval Europe, notably England *Lord of the manor, the owner of an agreed area of land (or "manor") under manorialism *Man ...
since the
Norman conquest of England The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Normans, Norman, Duchy of Brittany, Breton, County of Flanders, Flemish, and Kingdom of France, French troops, ...
. A
Robert de Wauncy The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...
, who witnessed the
Magna Carta (Medieval Latin for "Great Charter of Freedoms"), commonly called (also ''Magna Charta''; "Great Charter"), is a royal charter of rights agreed to by King John of England at Runnymede, near Windsor, on 15 June 1215. First drafted by the ...
, is documented as holding the manors of Astwell and Fancote (Falcutt) in the reigns of Henry III and
Edward I Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he ruled the duchies of Aquitaine and Gascony as a vassal o ...
. In 1453, a John Thorn of Brackley is recorded as being a witness to a grant of land in Astwell, Northamptonshire, The manor maintained close links to nearby Syresham. when the son of Arthur Brooke made an exchange, to Thomas Lovett II (d. 1492), the first of the Lovett family, who held it for the next hundred years. The building of Astwell Castle is attributed to Thomas Lovett II. His grandson, George Shirley, lived here; and from his great-grandson, Robert Shirley, 1st Earl Ferrers, the manor descended to Washington Shirley, 5th Earl Ferrers (1722–78). The Astwell fields were enclosed in 1761, and two years later, the manor was sold to Richard Grenville-Temple, 2nd Earl Temple (1711–1779). He was succeeded by his nephew, George Nugent-Temple-Grenville, 1st Marquess of Buckingham (1753–1813), and his son, Richard Temple-Nugent-Brydges-Chandos-Grenville, 1st Duke of Buckingham and Chandos (1776–1839) was also associated with Astwell. In 1841, there were 6 houses and 46 inhabitants at Astwell. Richard Temple-Nugent-Brydges-Chandos-Grenville, 2nd Duke of Buckingham and Chandos (1797–1861) sold Astwell in 1850 to the Earl of Southampton, who sold it 12 years later to Lord Penrhyn (1800–86). In 1871, there were only 5 houses and 37 inhabitants, and, according to the ''
Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales The ''Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales'' is a substantial topographical dictionary first published between 1870 and 1872, edited by the Reverend John Marius Wilson. It contains a detailed description of England and Wales. Its six volumes h ...
'' of 1870–72 by John Marius Wilson, the hamlet had become a sportsmen's resort. On 30 November 1943 a
B-17 Flying Fortress The Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress is a four-engined heavy bomber developed in the 1930s for the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC). Relatively fast and high-flying for a bomber of its era, the B-17 was used primarily in the European Theater ...
bomber, No. 42–3048 from USAAF station 109 Podington of the 327th bomb squadron, 92nd bomb group, 8th bomber command crashed near the castle farm buildings. It had taken off on its way with the rest of the squadron on a mission to bomb the industrial complex at Solingen, Germany. All 10 crew members died in the crash. On 9 November 2008, Lt Col Terry Hayes, Deputy Commander of the USAF 422nd Air Base Group at
RAF Croughton Royal Air Force Croughton or more simply RAF Croughton is a Royal Air Force station which is currently a United States Air Force communications station in Northamptonshire, England. It is southeast of the village of Croughton. The station is ...
laid a special wreath and read out the names of the US airmen. The men were included in the 2008 Remembrance Service at Helmdon parish church.


Geography

Astwell is in southwest Northamptonshire. It is on a tributary of the
River Tove A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...
, northeast of Brackley, and about south of Wappenham. By road, Astwell is northeast of Banbury and southwest 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; ...
. It covers about . Astwell Mill is in the northern part of the hamlet on the Helmdon–Wappenham road, north of the castle, along the road west of Astwell Spinney and fish ponds.


Notable people

*
Thomas Lovett III Thomas Lovett III (23 September 1473 - 16 December 1542) was High Sheriff of Northamptonshire in 1505, and was the King's Escheator in Northamptonshire in 1528 and 1533. Lovett was born at Astwell Castle, Northamptonshire, England. His father, Tho ...
(1473–1542), son and heir of Thomas Lovett II, born here, and became High Sheriff of Northamptonshire and King's Escheator. He married Elizabeth Boteler. * Selina Hastings, Countess of Huntingdon (1707–1791), born here, was patroness of the Calvinistic " Countess of Huntingdon's Connexion".


References


External links

* {{OpenDomesday, SP6044, astwell, Astwell Hamlets in Northamptonshire West Northamptonshire District