Whilton is a village and 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 authorit ...

in the

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 ...

county of

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 ...

. The population (including Slapton) at the 2011 Census was 271. The village is in

West Northamptonshire West Northamptonshire is a unitary authority area covering part of the ceremonial county of Northamptonshire, England, created in 2021. By far the largest settlement in West Northamptonshire is the county town of Northampton. Its other signific ...

. Whilton is northwest of London, west of Northampton and southeast of Rugby. The village lies east of the nearest town of

Daventry Daventry ( , historically ) is a market town and civil parish in the West Northamptonshire unitary authority in Northamptonshire, England, close to the border with Warwickshire. At the 2021 Census Daventry had a population of 28,123, making ...

. The nearest railway station is at

Long Buckby Long Buckby is a large village and civil parish in West Northamptonshire, England. In 2020 the parish of Long Buckby, which includes the hamlet of Long Buckby Wharf, was estimated to have a population of 4,303. Long Buckby is hill top village, ...

for the Northampton loop of the

West Coast Main Line The West Coast Main Line (WCML) is one of the most important railway corridors in the United Kingdom, connecting the major cities of London and Glasgow with branches to Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester and Edinburgh. It is one of the busiest ...

which runs between Rugby, Northampton and London. The nearest airport is

Birmingham Airport Birmingham Airport , formerly ''Birmingham International Airport'', is an international airport located east-southeast of Birmingham city centre, west-northwest of Coventry slightly north of Bickenhill village, in the Metropolitan Borou ...

. Whilton gives its name to the nearby Whilton Locks and Whilton Marina on the

Grand Union Canal The Grand Union Canal in England is part of the British canal system. It is the principal navigable waterway between London and the Midlands. Starting in London, one arm runs to Leicester and another ends in Birmingham, with the latter ...

History

The village's name means ' Wheel farm/settlement', either alluding to the circular hill on which the village stands or the bending course of the stream here. Whilton is mentioned 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 manus ...

of 1068, where it is listed under the name of ‘Woltone’. The main tenant landowner was Robert, Count of Mortain who was the half-brother to William the Bastard, Duke of

Normandy Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...

and later king

William I of England William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first Norman king of England, reigning from 1066 until his death in 10 ...

. Whilton gives its name to a book described as a Social-Legal Study of Dispute Settlement in Medieval England, called 'The Whilton Dispute, 1264 to 1380', written by Robert C Palmer, in which the Whelton family was engaged. The Mortimer & Montgomery families were also involved.

The Parish Church of Saint Andrew

The Parish Church of Saint Andrew is constructed from the local Northamptonshire Ironstone and was built between the 12th and 13th centuries, although very little remains of this original, having been restored in late 18th century. The tower had a ring of 6 bells, which had been given in 1777 by the patron of the time William Lucas Rose, who also paid for their installation and the building work. Three of these original bells and three newer replacements were recast and, with added metal, were made into a ring of eight bells in 1994. They were cast by the

Whitechapel Bell Foundry The Whitechapel Bell Foundry was a business in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. At the time of the closure of its Whitechapel premises, it was the oldest manufacturing company in Great Britain. The bell foundry primarily made church bells ...

. The tenor (heaviest) bell weighs and bears the inscription: CANON J.J. RICHARDSON, PRIEST /HAROLD HAYNES, JANET C. BOWERS CHURCHWARDENS /WHITECHAPEL 1994. The church clock is unusual as it was originally a one handed clock divided into ¼ hours and therefore does not have 60 minutes. In 1779 William Lucas Rose also gave a gift of communion vessels which are still in use today. The Church’s east window, the only stained glass in the building, portrays the

crucifixion of Jesus The crucifixion and death of Jesus occurred in 1st-century Judea, most likely in AD 30 or AD 33. It is described in the four canonical gospels, referred to in the New Testament epistles, attested to by other ancient sources, and consid ...

and dates from 1878.

Amenities

The nearby Whilton Marina is close to Whilton Locks on the Grand Union canal. It was dug out in 1971 by the Steele family who still own and operate the business. The marina has over 200 moorings. The village also has a karting track nearby called Whilton Mill.Whilton Mill
/ref> Whilton Northamptonshire 39 03 08 (1)

References

External links

Whilton Village website
{{authority control Villages in Northamptonshire Civil parishes in Northamptonshire West Northamptonshire District