Dunsley is a hamlet in

Kinver Kinver is a large village in the District of South Staffordshire in Staffordshire, England. It is in the far south-west of the county, at the end of the narrow finger of land surrounded by the counties of Shropshire, Worcestershire and the ...

Staffordshire Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation ''Staffs''.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It borders Cheshire to the north-west, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, ...

, England. The settled part of the hamlet is the part of the village of Kinver, lying east of the River Stour.

Dunsley manor

The majority of the land in the hamlet was within the manor of Kinver and Stourton, but there was also a submanor of Dunsley. This existed as a freehold virgate in the 13th century, owned by a family who took their name from the place. In the 15th century, it belonged to members of the Everdon family, lords of the manor of Orton in

Wombourne Wombourne is a major village and civil parish located in the district of South Staffordshire, in the county of Staffordshire, England. It is 4 miles (6 km) south-west of Wolverhampton and on the border with the former West Midlands Co ...

, but in 15321 passed to

William Whorwood Sir William Whorwood (c.1500 – 28 May 1545) was a landowner in Staffordshire and the neighbouring counties, a distinguished lawyer, and a politician in the reign of Henry VIII. He achieved the positions of Solicitor General and Attorney Gene ...

, who subsequently bought the manor of Kinver. Under a mortgage of 1635, the manor was granted to William Carter, whose daughter Catherine and her son John Hamerton sold the manor to Philip Foley in 1709. Dunsley Hall remained part of the Foleys' Prestwood estate until sold by a descendant in 1918. It was purchased by Alfred Marsh of Marsh & Baxter Limited. This was converted to a hotel about the beginning of the 21st century.

Gibbet Wood

In December 1812 Benjamin Robins of Dunsley Hall was murdered while walking home from

Stourbridge Stourbridge () is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Situated on the River Stour, Worcestershire, River Stour, the town lies around west of Birmingham, at the southwester ...

. His killer William Howe, alias John Wood, was arrested in London and executed at Stafford the following year. His corpse was hung on a

gibbet Gibbeting is the use of a gallows-type structure from which the dead or dying bodies of criminals were hanged on public display to deter other existing or potential criminals. Occasionally, the gibbet () was also used as a method of public ex ...

at the scene of the crime for twelve months, giving rise to the names of nearby Gibbet Wood and Gibbet Lane that runs through it.''Victoria County History, Staffordshire'', XX, 124.

References

{{coord, 52.452, -2.222, type:city_region:GB, display=title Hamlets in Staffordshire