A BRIEF HISTORY......OF KIRKBY MALLORY

HISTORY AND ANTIQUITIES OF LEICESTERSHIRE ... BY J.NICHOLS .HISTORY OF THE CHURCH AND PARISH OF KIRKBY MALLORY... BY DOROTHY FOX and
G. FARNHAM`S MEDIEVAL VILLAGE NOTES

        Kirkby Mallory stands on the old Roman road that ran North East from Leicester to join with the Watling Street approximately 8 miles South of Atherstone. The Watling Street, now the A5, was the main Roman arterial road out of London to access North Wales.

          Villages in mediaeval times often took their name`s from eminent local landowners and Kirkby Mallory was no exception. References to the Malory ( or Mallorre), family date back to the reign of King Stephen in the early 12th century. The first known "Mallory" was Richard living in about 1100. It is believed that the family originated from France and possibly came over with William the Conquer. One of several documents relating to the family and referred to in Farnham`s Medieval Village Notes is shown below. It concerns a descendent Thomas Mallorre confirming his families connection with the village.

         Hastings MSS.           Dated 1299 on the ascension 27 Edward I.         Charter by which Ralph de Esseby granted to Thomas Mallorre Lord of Kyrkeby and his lawful issue, an acre of land in Kyrkeby which the grantor had bought from Thomas de Cherlecote. Witnessed by .....William Motun of Peckleton,  Richard de Shelton, Richard de Caleby,  Simon de Dersford   and others.

        The above text gives us the status of Thomas Mallorre as being that of "Lord " of the village of Kyrkeby. Note the witnesses association with other nearby settlements, ie. the present day villages of Cadeby, Shilton and Desford. 
        An earlier distinguished Mallory descendant was Ankital Malory, who was keeper of Leicester Castle, he Died in 1187.
        The Mallory familie's connection with the village was to last for several generations, as indicated in this next extract dated 1345 , again indicating a Mallory as being "Lord of the Manor ".

Recommended reading for further information on the mallory family "History of the Mallory family" by S V Mallory Smith published by Phillimere Co Ltd.   Also an excellent site to check out.    Senior Medieval Mallory family - Genealogy.com http://www.genealogy.com/forum/surnames/topics/mallory/2742/   by Hiukaru Kilabayoshi

It was not until 1920 that excavation work began to reveal the foundation stones that are now visible today, as shown in the picture, left , but this is only a part of the unearthed Abbey foundations. This stonework can now be seen on the outer edge of Abbey Park which is located about a mile from the city centre. It must have been a truly impressive building in its day and reputed to have been one of the richest in England.

 After the destruction of the Abbey, its wealth and lands were duly confiscated by the crown. And so it was throughout the land that Henry through his chief minister Thomas Cromwell, proceeded to vent his anger upon the church seeking revenge after the Pope had refused to annul his marriage with Catherine of Aragon.

        KING RICHARD  III,  1485 ...It is probable that King Richard passed though Kirkby Mallory on his way to confront the army of Henry Tudor, though his exact route is hotly contended. This historic battle was to become known as the" Battle of Bosworth" and was the final engagement in the War of the Roses. On the 22nd of August, Richard was defeated and killed. The battlefield at Redmoor Plain lay some 2 miles South of Market Bosworth and the old Roman road, which ran through the villages of Kirkby Mallory and Peckleton would certainly have been the most direct route back into Leicester to where Richard`s body was finally taken. For the inhabitants of Kirkby Mallory those few days would have been quite traumatic particularly after the battle with soldiers, either escaping or celebrating, depending upon which side they fought would have dispersed through these nearby settlements.

      

Plaque at Battlefield site denoting spot where Richard was killed. Site walk and Visitors Centre open to public www.boswothbattlefield.com

      KING HENRY VIII    In 1541 after the dissolution of the monasteries King Henry VIII granted the Lordship of Kirkby Mallory to Thomas Harvey, an already wealthy land owner. His estates at that time included lands at Elmsthorpe, Fleckney, Barwell and Hinckley which together with  that of Kirkby Mallory added up to almost 4,000 acres. The text describes his holdings as being a 1000 acres of land,  500 of meadow,  1000 pasture,  200 wood,  1000 furze and heath  and with respect to Kirkby Mallory it also included about 30 Homesteads. However in 1544, three years after acquiring the Kirkby Mallory Manor, Thomas Harvey died, and was buried in the nearby village of Peckleton, which would infer that this was his place of residence at the time.

       Following his death in1544 and then of his wife's in 1553 his estates and lands were divided between his co -heirs, being his surviving daughters, and a granddaughter named Anne Fowler, then aged 14. (Anne's mother Barbra had married John Fowler of Wellsborough), Anne subsequently went on to inherited the Manor of Kirkby Mallory. She later married John Noel, son of Andrew Noel, Earl of Gainsborough. This was to be the beginning of the Noel association with Kirkby Mallory which was to last some 370 years

      In  1564  it was recorded, there were then 25 families living in Kirkby Mallory.

A point of interest ........ James Harrington also owned the nearby 2,000 acre Bagworth Park, bought from Lord William Hasting`s son. Lord Hastings commissioned the building of the Ashby and Kirby Muxlow Castles. He was however executed for treason before Kirby Muxlow Castle could be completed.

Richard Dilke died at Kirkby Mallory on the 13th Feb 1595, leaving his 1/4 share of the Manor to his eldest son George. A memorial stone dedicated to Richard Dilke ( originally a floor stone) may be seen inside Kirkby Mallory church against the West wall to the right of the Belfry, ( see photograph, left ). The inscription reads as follows.-  "Here lyeth the bodies of Richard Dilke of Kirkbye Malorie and Ann his 1st. wife who had issue 3 sons and 1 daughter   and Elizabeth 2nd wife who had issue 2 sons and 7 daughters.  Richard died 13th day    Feb. Anno Dom 1595

Leicester Probate Registry.  Will of Richard Dilke.  Inquisition  23rd Aug. 1595
Below is an abridged version of Richards Dilks Will. For the full text click here

         Trying to identify prominent houses of the time, based on the information given in Richard`s Will, is difficult, for instance, could the "Manor House of Kirkby Mallory,"and the property referred to as "my now dwelling house" be considered the same property ? I think unlikely. George Dilke was obviously a very wealthy man, so his dwelling house would have been quite substantial. The Noel family also had considerable wealth with Anne Fowler inheriting the "Lordship of Kirkby Mallory" together with several other estates from Thomas Harvey.
 John Noel (husband of Anne Fowler) had died in 1593 . We know that Sir Verney Noel was living at the Hall in 1666 from the Hearth Tax returns. So we could speculate on the sites for these three notable houses thus.

1.   The fortified manor house known as "The Moats" I am sure would have been (The Manor House of Kirkby Mallory)
2.  The original "Kirkby Hall " was certainly the residence of John and Anne Noel
3.  Then lastly the residence of George Dilk, "My now dwelling house", could this have been the old Manor Farm?. This building is a good candidate as it was situated in the centre of the old village, of course there are other possibilities, perhaps the farm at the Beckfield Pastures to the North of the village as mentioned earlier.

      Note " Fine" in this context refers to a contract or sale.
              "advowson" The right to appoint or recommend a member of clergy.
The above text, records a sale in which George Dilk sold land and property to Thomas Glover for £400  within the Manor of Kirkby Mallory
George`s father and stepmother had recently died 1595 and 1603 respectively, so this sale would now make him a very rich man, a millionaire by todays standard.

The area described in the 1771 act totalled some 780 acres and came into force on the 10th. day of October of that year, . The act however excluded several Crofts, one being Battling Croft, a 10 acre field which is now one of "Mallory Parks" car parking areas, see picture right. Battling Croft, together with a cottage in the tenure of Thomas Cooper, plus a further 106 acres of land, all belonging to the Parish Church were exempt from the above act.

LEFT Showing Boundary Map of the Kirkby Mallory Manor estate, outlined in red, giving approximate position of the Open Fields

For the full text of the Kirkby Mallory Enclosure Act click here

The village changed little over the following century. In 1871 there were 56 houses / cottages with 220 inhabitants.

 THE RECTORY    dates back to the early 17th century ( mentioned in 1643 ) ,then being a Half timbered building .The Historian, J.Nichols states that the rectory was rebuilt by the Rev Clobery Noel, then altered and enlarged in the 18th century by his successor the Rev.Rowney Noel . The 1881 census gives us some idea of the Domestic staff considered necessary for the upkeep of the Rectory. These being
                                                                            

Ann Rowly...............Cook,         Hannah Eagleton .....Ladies Maid   Harriet Wood ..........House Maid,     Sarah Lasitarn......... Parlour Maid   Mary Newcombe.....Kitchen Maid,      George Gibson.........Groom   John Kerrison..........Gardener

         

ALL SAINTS CHURCH KIRKBY MALLORY

Left view taken in 1950   Right view taken, 1999

Inside All Saints Church Kirkby Mallory Photo left circa 1920 Photo below 2016

The Village Church dates back to the early 13th century. The choir stalls are Jacobean, the rectors stall is early 17th century and the wrought iron work for the communion rail has been dated 1615 A new ball and vane was erected on the tower cupola in 1799. The church organ was acquired and installed in 1878. Later in 1888 work began on a major refurbishment program which was to cost some £800. This involved building a new chamber on the North side of the church to rehouse the organ, on redesigning the West arch and window, and also carrying out repairs to the nave roof.

    The Bell Tower contains 6 bells, the earlier 3 bells are possibly 16th century. The 4th and 5th bells were installed to commemorate the dead of World War 1 and were made in Loughborough. The 6th bell the Tenor was installed in memory of the Rev.Octavius Philpot who died in 1933.

      On the 5th of June 1939 following a meeting between the Church Wardens, being Mr Alec Summers and Mr A.E. Birch together with other parishioners and the Rev. Edgar Mills. A unanimous decision was taken to partition the Bishop of Leicester that "The Electric Light be installed" within the church. The Leicestershire & Warwick Electric Power Company had recently brought electricity into the village, so taking advantage of this new energy source with its labour saving advantages would have been quite a priority. With permission granted the contract was eventually awarded to .......... Messrs T.H. Wathes & Co, Electrical Engineers, Leicester.  

         The church organ of course relied upon a continuous supply of air for its operation, and originally this was supplied by a hand operated bellows pump at the rear of the organ. On brief occasions I was able to accompany my uncle, (Frank Heath), who had volunteered his services at that time (the late 1940's) to attend the daily services and operate this hand pump during the hymn singing. However it was not until 1950 or thereabouts that the organ was eventually converted to operate via the aid of an electric fan.
           The tower clock was donated by the Newton family and was installed in 1927.
     A survey of the church roof carried out in the late 1960`s had revealed extensive decay due to infestation and damp. Consequently in 1969 work began to completely replace the church roof. This major undertaking was duly completed by the end of the following year. Normal church services, which had been transferred to the School Room, could now be resumed once again in the church.
         

The Christmas Nativity play held in the church and performed by the villagers My uncle, Joe Heath is second from left and my mother is fourth from left. Circa 1962

However In 1968 the school was finally closed and is now used as the Village Hall.
    To see past school group photographs click here

The blacksmiths cottage / Post Office The census returns for 1881 / 91 gives us some insight into the village community, for instance the village had a blacksmiths shop, the cottage on the corner of Desford Lane (see above photo) . This was once thatched, but now much modernised and extended, and is shown again pictured left. In the same location, moving to the right in the picture is the cottage known as "Atlasta"this was reputed to have been an old Coaching House standing conveniently as it did next to the Roe Buck Inn, pictured below

          There were two Blacksmiths listed, Charles Rowley and Robert Hassell the latter also being the Parish Clerk. Sarah Gibson kept  a grocery shop . Anna Hill was also listed as a Shopkeeper . The local carpenter was William Bonsir, other occupations to be found were Thomas Edwards... Butler, unemployed, William Gibson...Groom, Stephen Pool...Sheppard and William Matkin was a Provisions Dealer living at Gardeners Cottage (North Lodge?).

Stapleton Lane   circa  1920, known locally as  Dark Lane, This lane eventually settled into a cart track when once past the "Kirkby New Parks Farm" by which time it had more or less aligned itself with the old Roman road again Picture shows Hill Farm House in the foreground.Rose Cottage in the distance

 The earlier 1861 census gives John Geary (born in Groby) as the Gamekeeper living at Keepers House . Later in 1871 Colin Vann had taken over as estate gamekeeper, George Ellis was Head Gardener at the Hall ,and Thomas Beck was " Vintner " at the Roe Buck Inn, the white house on the corner of Peckleton Road . By the time of the following census was taken 1881 John Cahill with his wife Elizabeth had taken over the tenancy of the Roe Buck Inn

The Roe Buck Inn /  Off licence.....        The White House pictured right on the corner of Peckleton lane

Kirkby House Farm  is to the right in this photograph. The 1891 census tells us that this is the home of tenant farmer Timothy Summers, and gives his place of birth as Sutton Cheney, (a small village about six miles away).  He lived there with his wife Sarah and family being, Tim, Lucy, Charles, Sarah, Frances, Rose and Arthur together with their Governess, Edith Stevens. Also there are three servants, Sarah Miller, Frank Cope and John Preston. Timothy's son, also named Timothy ("Tim"), later went on to farm at Hill Farm in Stapleton Lane up until the early 1950's

               

	THATCHED COTTAGES  late 19th. century, long since demolished on the left, that stood in Church Road opposite the house that was later to become the Village Post Office in the1940`s. The road shown here provided access to Kirkby Hall, which lay behind the trees, and also to the Rectory, turn left in front of the beech tree .
click here for painting see more detail

THE ESTATE. Up until the early 1920's the village cottages and the surrounding farms were all owned by the Kirkby Hall Estate. In 1921 the village was put up for sale,
The tenant farmers and villagers were now to be given the opportunity to purchase their own homes, the Manor was to be split up and sold off.

AMENITIES in the late 1940`s and 50`s,  I well remember when growing up
        The Post Office and general stores in Church Road, was kept by two sisters, Molly and Mable Vann. Mrs Biddles owned the Garage, which provided a taxi service, sold Esso petrol and carried out minor repairs. The nearest cinema was in Station Road, Earl Shilton which was about two miles away, so within easy cycling distance. The small field in the centre of the village known as the "Leas"(meaning grassy meadow), accommodated the Village Cricket Club. The village had its own "road sweeper" Mr Jack Parry, employed by the council, but was not a resident in the village, he lived in Barwell I believe. Mr. Huntridge was manager at the Hall, and Mr. Dowler was the gardener there, he  lived in Earl Shilton. Produce from the large garden was on sale to the village. The Church Wardens were Mr. Alec Summers and Mr.Burch. The Sextant was Mr.Fred Heath and the church organist was Miss Edith Summers while Mr. Ben Gibson serviced the church clock.
Mrs Nellie Farmer  took over the position as the "live in" school teacher circa 1956 to 1964
          Up until the late 1950`s the community relied heavily upon traders from outside the village to provide essential provisions. They would visit weekly or less, some in dedicated vehicles fitted out for the purpose. Mr. Cooper (from Leicester) would supply a wide range of hardware and cleaning material. Mr. J. Weston (from Desford) was the Greengrocer, His Family owned the grocery shop there for many years. John served in the R.A.F. during the war. When 18 he served as a rear gunner in Lancasters, like he later said on his 90th birthday "lucky to be here".

      Then there was "Archers" (also from Desford) sold cycle parts and batteries etc., bicycles far out numbered cars so this was quite a lucrative business at the time. The Baker, Butcher, Grocer etc. would each have their respective rounds, again visiting as necessary.

WOMANS GROUPS

Womans institute 1949. Kirkby Mallory supported two woman's groups, "The Womans Institute" founded in 1924 and the "Mothers Union". Both these groups being very well attended in the past Click here for enlargement, plus names

TRANSPORT         

Probably the earliest bus service to be operated between Kirkby Mallory and Leicester  (Western Boulevard) was one provided by Mr. Fred Preston, father of Tom Preston who later managed the village garage for Mrs Biddle There is no date on the card, but it would have been around 1920 Many thanks to Helen Hamer for the photocopies.

          

The document shown below is a receipt for the conveyance of that property then known as "The Old Post Office" from the Countess of Lovelace & Others to   Mr. Edward Gibson  for £120  dated Jan. 1921, being the time of the estate breakup . The Messuage refered to, i.e. the Outbuilding, was the Blacksmiths Forge, see photo Re. Mr. Edward Gibson

(Copy)        Mr Edward Gibson                           ...... to .....               S.H. & W.J. Pilgrim   Jan  1921....... The professional charges in connection with the conveyance to you from the Countess of Lovelace & others of a messuage & premises known as the Old Post Office Kirkby Mallory, the consideration being £120 including completion in London £2-15s Payments Stamp on conveyance 12s-6d        Parchment paper for conveyance 3s   Share of expenses to London £1-15s £4-10s-6d received S.H. Pilgrim

Original invoice

Courtesy of Mr Lance Gibson

Village map circa 1920
Aerial picture of village, mid 1950`s
Village photographs, comparisons between the old and the new
The sites of the Kirkby Manor Water and Wind Mills
Contributions to the History site,      New
School Photographs 1910 to 1952
Return to Index Page