Keyham is an English village in

Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire to the north, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire to the south-east, Warw ...

. It lies about east of

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...

, in the district of

Harborough Market Harborough is a market town in the Harborough district of Leicestershire, England, close to the border with Northamptonshire. The population was 24,779 at the 2021 census. It is the administrative headquarters of the Harborough dis ...

. The population at the 2001 census was 118, which rose to 124 at the 2011 census.

Heritage

Mention of Keyham can be found as early as the 11th century. The Anglican Parish Church of All Saints is a Grade II* listed building. Its nave and chancel were probably built in the 13th and 14th centuries and the tower added in the 15th. The church was restored in the 19th century. The tower has a fleuron frieze below its

battlement A battlement, in defensive architecture, such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet (a defensive low wall between chest-height and head-height), in which gaps or indentations, which are often rectangular, occur at intervals ...

s. Keyham Old Hall is one of eleven Grade II

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

s in the village. It was built in red brick with stone dressings and dates from the late 16th to 17th centuries, but it was much altered and enlarged in the 19th century. Keyham had a board school from 1885 until 1939 with a single teacher. A history of the school by Michael Freeman is available online.

1964 air accident

English Electric Lightning The English Electric Lightning is a British fighter aircraft that served as an interceptor during the 1960s, the 1970s and into the late 1980s. It is capable of a top speed above Mach 2. The Lightning was designed, developed, and manufactured ...

'XN723', owned by Rolls-Royce, crashed from

RAF Hucknall Hucknall Aerodrome was a former general aviation and RAF aerodrome located north north-west of Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, England, and west of Hucknall town. The aerodrome had been operated by the Merlin Flying Club since 1971 and then by ...

on 25 March 1964. 31 year old Denis Whitham, of 41 Holly Road,

Watnall Watnall is an area in the Borough of Broxtowe in Nottinghamshire, England. It is part of Greasley civil parish, and is located one mile north of Kimberley. It is in the Nuthall West and Greasley (Watnall) ward of Broxtowe Council. The village ...

, ejected at 5,000 ft. He landed near

Houghton on the Hill Houghton on the Hill is a village and civil parish lying to the east of Leicester in the Harborough district, in Leicestershire, East Midlands in England. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 census was 1,524. An entry for Hough ...

, and walked to Uppingham Road, the A47, and knocked on the door of the local policeman, Mr Tomlinson. The policeman's wife phoned an ambulance, and made the pilot a cup of tea. He was taken to

Leicester Royal Infirmary The Leicester Royal Infirmary (LRI) is a National Health Service (England), National Health Service teaching hospital in Leicester, England. It is located to the south-west of the Leicester City Centre, city centre. It has an Emergency departm ...

. Fire engines came from Leicester,

Billesdon Billesdon is a village and civil parish in the Harborough District, Harborough district of Leicestershire, England, with a population of 745 according to the 2001 census, increasing to 901 at the 2011 census. It is just off the A47 road, A47, ...

and

Syston Syston ( ) is a town and civil parish in the district of Charnwood in Leicestershire, England. The population was 11,508 at the 2001 census, rising to 12,804 at the 2011 census. Overview There has been a settlement on the site for over 1,000 ...

. The ejector seat landed in the Thurnby Lodge Estate, in

Scraptoft Scraptoft is a village in Leicestershire, England. It has a population of about 1,500, measured at the 2011 census as 1,804. It lies north of the A47 road east of Leicester, and runs directly into the built up area of Thurnby and Bushby to t ...

. Two other RAF aircraft crashed that day, including a helicopter crash at

RAF Tern Hill Royal Air Force Tern Hill, or more simply RAF Tern Hill, was a Royal Air Force station at Ternhill in Shropshire, England, near the towns of Newport and Market Drayton. The station closed in 1976, with the technical and administrative site ...

that killed both pilots.

Social amenities

The village includes a village hall and a

public house A pub (short for public house) is in several countries a drinking establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption Licensing laws of the United Kingdom#On-licence, on the premises. The term first appeared in England in the ...

, the ''Dog and Gun''. There is a camp and caravan site at Long Meadow Farm, and a kennels and cattery in Snows Lane. The Anglican All Saints' Church forms part of a group benefice with

Hungarton Hungarton (or Hungerton) is a small village and civil parish in the Harborough District, Harborough district of Leicestershire, England, about north-east of Leicester and south-west of Melton Mowbray. The population of the civil parish was 26 ...

Goadby Goadby is a village and civil parish in the Harborough district of Leicestershire, England, about 8 miles north of Market Harborough. It had a population of 204 according to the 2011 census. The village's name means 'farm/settlement of Gaut ...

and

Skeffington Skeffington is a village and civil parish in the Harborough district of Leicestershire, England. It lies 11 miles/18 km east of Leicester on the A47 Uppingham road, between Billesdon and Tugby and Keythorpe. The population at the 2011 cens ...

. A service is held there about once a month.A Church Near You. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
/ref> The village has no public transport. The nearest railway station is at

(4½ miles, 7 km).

References

External links

Keyham Parish Walks
Villages in Leicestershire Civil parishes in Harborough District {{Leicestershire-geo-stub