Rowington is a village and civil parish in the English county of Warwickshire. It is five miles north-west of the town of Warwick and five miles south-west of the town of Kenilworth. The parish, which also includes Lowsonford, Pinley and Mousley End, [1] had a population of 925 according to the 2001 UK Census, increasing to 944 at the 2011 Census. [2] The Grand Union Canal runs just south of the village and the M40 motorway is also close by. The Heart of England Way for long-distance walkers passes through the village. The parish church of St. Laurence which dates from medieval times is found on a hill in the centre of the village. In the Tudor era Rowington manor was owned by Queen Catherine Parr. [3]
Possibly the most famous building however is Shakespeare Hall, where a branch of William Shakespeare's family is reputed to have lived at the same time he was alive, and indeed Rowington is specifically mentioned in Shakespeare's will. It has been claimed he wrote As You Like It there. [4] There is a more modern rival claim (dating from 1973) that that play was written at Billesley. [5]
There were once several windmills in the village but only one remains and its sails have been removed and the building converted into a house. At one time Rowington quarries supplied sandstone for several important buildings including St Philip's Cathedral in Birmingham, the parish church of St. Laurence and nearby Baddesley Clinton manor house. No quarries remain in Rowington. [3] The village is home to several farms and livery yards. James Blyth once lived in the village and became a life peer in 1995. [6]
Stratford-upon-Avon, commonly known as just Stratford, is a market town and civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon district, in the county of Warwickshire, in the West Midlands region of England. It is situated on the River Avon, 91 miles (146 km) north-west of London, 22 miles (35 km) south-east of Birmingham and 8 miles (13 km) south-west of Warwick. The town is the southernmost point of the Arden area on the edge of the Cotswolds. In the 2021 census Stratford had a population of 30,495.
Southam is a market town and civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon district of Warwickshire, England. Southam is situated on the River Stowe, which flows from Napton-on-the-Hill and joins Warwickshire's River Itchen at Stoneythorpe, just outside the town.
Portesham, sometimes also spelled Portisham, is a village and civil parish in the county of Dorset in southwest England, situated in the Dorset Council administrative area approximately 6 miles (10 km) northwest of Weymouth, 6 miles (10 km) southwest of the county town Dorchester, and 2 miles (3 km) northeast of the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site at Chesil Beach. The parish is quite large, covering several outlying hamlets and what were once their manors. In the 2011 census it had a population of 685 in 316 households and 342 dwellings.
Bidford-on-Avon is a large village and civil parish in the English county of Warwickshire, very close to the border with Worcestershire. In the 2001 census it had a population of 4,830, increasing to 5,350 at the 2011 census.
Long Lawford is a village and civil parish in the Rugby borough of Warwickshire, England, located just west of Rugby, around 1.75 miles (2.82 km) west of Rugby town centre. In the 2021 census, the population of the parish was 4,545, a significant increase from 3,180 at the 2011 census, and 2,863 in 2001.
Box is a large village and civil parish within the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in Wiltshire, England, about 3 miles (5 km) west of Corsham and 5 miles (8 km) northeast of Bath. Box also falls in the easternmost part of the Avon Green Belt. Besides the village of Box, the parish includes the villages of Ashley and Box Hill; Hazelbury manor; and the hamlets of Alcombe, Blue Vein, Chapel Plaister, Ditteridge, Henley, Kingsdown, Middlehill, and Wadswick. To the east the parish includes much of Rudloe, formerly a hamlet but now a housing estate, and the defence establishments and related businesses on the site of the former RAF Rudloe Manor.
Lapworth is a village and civil parish in Warwickshire, England, which had a population of 2,100 according to the 2001 census; this had fallen to 1,828 at the 2011 Census. It lies six miles (10 km) south of Solihull and ten miles (16 km) northwest of Warwick, and incorporates the hamlet of Kingswood. Lapworth boasts a historic church, the Church of St Mary the Virgin, a chapel. Two National Trust sites are nearby: Baddesley Clinton, a medieval moated manor house and garden located in the village of Baddesley Clinton; and Packwood House, a Tudor manor house and yew garden with over 100 trees in Packwood.
Wilmcote is a village, and since 2004 a separate civil parish, in the English county of Warwickshire, about 3 miles (5 km) north of Stratford-upon-Avon. Prior to 2004, it was part of the same parish as Aston Cantlow, and the 2001 population for the whole area was 1,670, reducing to 1,229 at the 2011 Census.
Aston Cantlow is a village in Warwickshire, England, on the River Alne 5 miles (8.0 km) north-west of Stratford-upon-Avon and 2 miles (3.2 km) north-west of Wilmcote, close to Little Alnoe, Shelfield, and Newnham. It was the home of Mary Arden, William Shakespeare's mother. At the 2001 census, it had a population of 1,674, being measured again as 437 at the 2011 Census.
Billesley is a village and civil parish in the Stratford district of Warwickshire, England, between Stratford and Alcester. According to the 2001 Census, the parish had a population of 46.
Blackdown is a hamlet and civil parish in the Warwick district of Warwickshire, England. Blackdown is about two miles north of Leamington Spa, between Leamington/Warwick and Kenilworth. It is named Blakedon in William Dudgale's Antiquities of Warwickshire in 1656 as a district within the parish of Lillington, and as having a mill on the River Avon. Blackdown Mill on Wooton Road is Grade II listed. According to the 2001 Census it had a population of 128. From the 2011 Census population details are included with Old Milverton. Blackdown Manor is a Grade II listed house on Kenilworth Road: built in the 17th century, it was remodelled in the 19th century. Just outside the village is Quarry Park Disc Golf Club which is one of only 17 courses in the United Kingdom, and was the venue for the 2008 UK championships as well as being due to host the 2009 championships. Old Leamingtonians, the town's rugby union and Leamington Royals also play home games on the edge of the village.
Long Itchington is a large village and civil parish in Warwickshire, England, which at the 2011 Census had a population of 2,013. The village is named after the River Itchen which flows to the south and west of the village. Long Itchington is around two miles north of Southam on the A423 road, just north of the Grand Union Canal.
Harbury is a village and civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon district of Warwickshire, England. It is about 3 miles (5 km) west-southwest of Southam and about 5 miles (8 km) southeast of Royal Leamington Spa. The parish includes the hamlet of Deppers Bridge. The 2011 Census recorded the parish's population as 2,420. The village is on a ridge of lias up to 390 feet (119 m) high that runs roughly northeast – southwest. The parish covers 3,397 acres (1,375 ha). It is bounded by the River Itchen to the east, Fosse Way to the northwest, a minor road to the south and field boundaries on its other sides. Adjoining parishes are Bishop's Itchington, Bishop's Tachbrook, Chesterton, Ladbroke and Southam. The A425 road and the Chiltern Main Line pass through the parish just north of Harbury village. Junction 12 on the M40 motorway is about 3 miles (5 km) south of the village.
Compton Verney is a parish and historic manor in the county of Warwickshire, England. The population taken at the 2011 census was 119. The surviving manor house is the Georgian mansion Compton Verney House.
St Newlyn East is a civil parish and village in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The village is approximately three miles (5 km) south of Newquay. The name St Newlyn East is locally abbreviated to Newlyn East and according to an anonymous historian writing in The Cornishman in 1880 it was only in recent years that Saint had been added to the parish name.
Salford Priors is a rural, agricultural village and civil parish about four miles south-west of Alcester, Warwickshire, England. The population of the civil parish as taken at the 2011 census was 1,546. It is on the Warwickshire border with Worcestershire. The village is eight miles from the popular tourist town of Stratford upon Avon, the birthplace of William Shakespeare, and the River Avon runs near to it. Evesham lies seven miles to the south-west and is an important agricultural centre and soft fruit-growing area. The population of the Salford Priors ward – which includes the communities of Abbot's Salford, Dunnington, Iron Cross, Pitchill, Rushford and Mudwalls – was 1,492 at the 2001 census.
Ilmington is a village and civil parish about 3.5 miles (5.6 km) north-west of Shipston-on-Stour and 8 miles (13 km) south of Stratford-upon-Avon in the Cotswolds in Warwickshire, England. The population of the civil parish taken at the 2011 census was 712. Ilmington is the highest village in Warwickshire and is at the foot of the Ilmington Downs, which is the highest point in Warwickshire. Residents are called "Ilmingtonians".
Luddington is a small village and civil parish in the English county of Warwickshire and is part of Stratford-on-Avon district. The community is a conservation area due to its historic aspects. In 2001, the population was 457, increasing to 515 at the 2021 Census. It is located about 5 kilometres outside the town of Stratford-upon-Avon on the banks of the river Avon and has views south over the Cotswolds. Facilities and communications include a phone box, a 19th-century church, a post box, a marina with a 17th-century lock, a village green and a recently refurbished village hall originally built in 1953. The parish encompasses Dodwell Caravan Park to the north of the village. The village is reputed to be the meeting place of Anne Hathaway and William Shakespeare, as Anne was from the parish, and local lore states that they probably conducted their courtship in the area.
Ratley is a village in the civil parish of Ratley and Upton, Stratford-on-Avon District, Warwickshire, England. The population of the civil parish in 2011 was 327. It is on the northwest side of the Edge Hill escarpment about 200 metres (660 ft) above sea level. The village is close to the county border with north Oxfordshire, some 7 miles northwest of Banbury, the closest town.
Exhall is a village and civil parish about 1+1⁄4 miles (2 km) south-south-east of Alcester in the Stratford-on-Avon district of Warwickshire, England. Its parish includes the hamlet of Little Britain and part of Ardens Grafton, the greater part of which is in the neighbouring civil parish of Temple Grafton. The 2011 Census recorded Exhall parish's population as 203. Exhall is on Hay Brook, a tributary of the River Arrow. The civil parish neighbours those of Alcester and Wixford, with which it shares both an ecclesiastical parish and a cricket club.