| Seisdon | |
|---|---|
| Former subdivision of England | |
 Seisdon Hundred (red) shown in Staffordshire | |
| History | |
| • Origin | Anglo-Saxon period |
| • Created | 10th century |
| • Abolished | 1894 (obsolete) |
| • Succeeded by | various |
| Status | obsolete area |
| Government | Hundred |
| Subdivisions | |
| • Type | Parishes (see text) |
| • Units | Parishes |
Seisdon is a hundred in the county of Staffordshire, England, located in the south-west of that county. It is named after Seisdon, a locality in the parish of Trysull and Seisdon.
The name appears to mean "hill of the Saxons", [1] deriving from the Anglo-Saxon words Seis meaning Saxon and Dun meaning hill. The first element may alternatively be a personal name. A large number of Hundred names refer to hills or mounds. Some of these at least are very conspicuous hills, which afford a commanding view of the countryside for miles around. It seems likely that such sites were chosen as being' remote, and where interference was most easily avoided. [2] The hundred and the hamlet may be named from the hill that was the meeting place of the hundred, instead of the hundred being named after the hamlet. [3]
The origin of the hundred dates from the division of his kingdom by King Alfred the Great into counties, hundreds and tithings. From the beginning, Staffordshire was divided into the hundreds of Seisdon, Pirehill, Totmonslow, Cuttleston and Offlow. [4] Each hundred was formed to support a military unit.
Seisdon Hundred is the smallest in area of the five hundreds of Staffordshire, but it has a relatively high population density and agricultural productivity. It formed the south-western portion of the county, bounded on the west by Shropshire, on the south by Worcestershire, on the east by Offlow Hundred, and on the north by Cuttleston Hundred. The old Forest of Brewood formed the boundary of Seisdon and Cuttleston. [2]
The Hundred contained Wolverhampton, the largest town of the county, and many populous villages, which were constituted into 15 parishes, part of 5 others and 2 extra-parochial areas. The extensive parish of Wolverhampton contained several townships, only some of which were in Seisdon Hundred. [5]
Seison Hundred was divided into North and South Divisions. each with their own High Constable. This arrangement dates back to 17th century, at least. [6]
One parish, Tettenhall, was divided between the two Divisions of Seisdon. The parish was subdivided into 4 Prebends [7] Two of these, Pendeford and Wrottesley, belonged to Seisdon South and the rest of the parish was in Seisdon North. [8]
The town of Dudley with its suburbs formed a detached portion of the county of Worcestershire. However, Dudley Castle, a ruined castle, with the limestone hill on which it stands, was an extra-parochial area in Seisdon South. It had no inhabitants. [9] [10]
Clent (including Broome and Rowley Regis) were seized by the Sheriff of Staffordshire (called Aevic) in 1016, which resulted in them becoming part of Staffordshire [11] Although they were now in Staffordshire, in 19th century Broome, Clent, and Rowley Regis were the only parishes in Staffordshire not included in the Diocese of Lichfield, as they belonged to that of Worcester. [12] All three parishes were included in Seisdon Hundred, but the parishes of Clent and Broome formed a detached part of Staffordshire surrounded by Worcestershire and a detached part of Shropshire. They left Seisdon Hundred in 1844 as they were transferred to Worcestershire. [13]
Seisdon contained following local government units: [8] [7] [14] [15] [16]
Seisdon North
| NAME | UNIT | AREA |
|---|---|---|
| Bushbury (part) | Parish | |
| - Bushbury | Township | 3,520 |
| Dudley Castle Hill | Extra Par. | 69 |
| Himley | Parish | 1,200 |
| Kingswinford | Parish | 7,130 |
| Penn | Parish | 3,890 |
| Rowley Regis | Parish | 3,670 |
| Sedgley | Parish | 5,170 |
| Tettenhall (Part) | Parish | 4,119 |
| - Tettenhall with Compton | Prebend | |
| - Pirton with Trescott | Prebend | |
| Wolverhampton (part) | Parish | |
| - Wolverhampton | Township | 3,200 |
| - Bilston | Township | 2,580 |
| TOTAL | 34,548 |
Seisdon South
| NAME | UNIT | AREA |
|---|---|---|
| Bobbington (part) | Parish | 1,880 |
| Broome | Parish | 550 |
| Clent | Parish | 2,520 |
| Codsall | Parish | 2,580 |
| Enville | Parish | 4,930 |
| Kinver (Kinfare) | Parish | 8,790 |
| Old Swinford (part) | Parish | |
| - Amblecote | Hamlet | 570 |
| Patshull | Parish | 1,850 |
| Pattingham (part) | Parish | 2,710 |
| Tettenhall (Part) | Parish | |
| - Pendeford | Prebend | 1868 |
| - Wrottesley | Prebend | 2319 |
| Trysull | Parish | 3,110 |
| Upper Arley | Parish | 5,160 |
| Wombourne | Parish | 4,680 |
| Woodford Grange | Extra Par. | 180 |
| TOTAL | 43,697 |
The Hundred presented a great diversity of soil and scenery. It was rich in coal, ironstone, lime, and freestone, and renowned for its extensive mines and iron works, and for the manufacture of a great variety of articles in iron, steel, and other metals. [5]
Worcestershire is a ceremonial county in the West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Shropshire, Staffordshire, and the West Midlands county to the north, Warwickshire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south, and Herefordshire to the west. The city of Worcester is the largest settlement and the county town.
Sedgley is a town in the north of the Dudley district, in the county of the West Midlands, England.
Kingswinford is a town of the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley in the English West Midlands, situated 5 miles (8 km) west-southwest of central Dudley. In 2011 the area had a population of 25,191, down from 25,808 at the 2001 Census.
Penn is an area which is divided between the City of Wolverhampton and South Staffordshire district. The population of the Wolverhampton Ward taken at the 2011 census was 12,718. Originally, it was a village in the historic county of Staffordshire. There is considerable confusion about exactly which areas fall within Penn. In 19th century censuses, Merry Hill, Bradmore are understood to form part of Penn, although these areas are generally understood to be separate today. However, there has never been any doubt that the two historic settlements of Upper and Lower Penn form the core of the area.
Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands of England. It adjoins Cheshire to the north west, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the south east, West Midlands and Worcestershire to the south, and Shropshire to the west. The historic county of Staffordshire includes Wolverhampton, Walsall, and West Bromwich, these three being removed for administrative purposes in 1974 to the new West Midlands authority. The resulting administrative area of Staffordshire has a narrow southwards protrusion that runs west of West Midlands to the border of Worcestershire. The city of Stoke-on-Trent was removed from the admin area in the 1990s to form a unitary authority, but is still part of Staffordshire for ceremonial and traditional purposes.
Seisdon is a rural village in the parish of Trysull and Seisdon, Staffordshire approximately six miles west of Wolverhampton and the name of one of the five hundreds of Staffordshire. The population recorded at the 2011 census does not distinguish this hamlet from the rest of the parish, which had a population of 1,150.
Wombourne is a 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 West Midlands County.
Broome is a village and civil parish in the Wyre Forest District of Worcestershire, England. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 338. The village is situated on the lower slopes of the Clent Hills and lies to one side of Broome Lane, a minor road that runs westwards from the outskirts of Clent to the outskirts of Hagley.
Brierley Hill parliamentary constituency was located in the West Midlands of England. It returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post system.
Clent is a village and civil parish in the Bromsgrove District of Worcestershire, England, southwest of Birmingham and close to the edge of the West Midlands conurbation. At the 2001 census it had a population of 2,600.
Trysull is a rural village in the county of Staffordshire, England approximately five miles south-west of Wolverhampton. With the adjacent village of Seisdon, it forms the civil parish of Trysull and Seisdon, within the South Staffordshire non-metropolitan district. Until 1974 it formed part of Seisdon Rural District. The 2011 census recorded a usually resident population for the parish of Trysull & Seisdon of 1,150 persons in 455 households.
The Smestow Brook, sometimes called the River Smestow, is a small river that plays an important part in the drainage of Wolverhampton, South Staffordshire, and parts of Dudley in the United Kingdom, and has contributed to the industrial development of the Black Country. It is the most important tributary of the River Stour, Worcestershire and part of the River Severn catchment.
The administrative boundaries of Worcestershire, England have been fluid for over 150 years since the first major changes in 1844. There were many detached parts of Worcestershire in the surrounding counties, and conversely there were islands of other counties within Worcestershire. The 1844 Counties Act began the process of eliminating these, but the process was not completed until 1966, when Dudley was absorbed into Staffordshire.
Pirehill is a hundred in the county of Staffordshire, England. The Hundred is located in the north-west and toward the upper centre of Staffordshire. It is about 28 miles in length, north to south, and around 8 to 20 miles in breadth. It is bounded on the north-east by Totmonslow (Totmanslow) Hundred, on the east by Offlow Hundred, on the south by Cuttleston Hundred, and on the west and north-west by Shropshire and Cheshire.
Totmonslow is a hundred in the county of Staffordshire, England. The hundred is in the north-east of Staffordshire and is named after the hamlet of the same name, which is a half mile east of Draycott in the Moors. The hamlet was the seat of the hundred court.
Halfshire was one of the hundreds in the English county of Worcestershire. As three of the five hundreds in the county were jurisdictions exempt from the authority of the sheriff, the hundred was considered to be half what was subject to his jurisdiction, whence the name.
Offlow is a hundred in the county of Staffordshire, England, located in the south-east of that county. It is named after a tumulus or mound in the parish of Swinfen and Packington, 2+1⁄2 miles south of Lichfield. The hundred is recorded in the Domesday Book under the name "Offelav".
Cuttleston or Cuttlestone is a hundred in the county of Staffordshire, England, located in the centre of that county, south of Stafford.
Patshull is a former civil parish, now in the parish of Pattingham and Patshull, in the South Staffordshire district, in the county of Staffordshire, England. It is 7 miles west of Wolverhampton and 7½ miles east of Bridgnorth. According to the 2011 census it had a population of 212. The parish consisted of Patshull, Burnhill Green and, along its eastern boundary, Westbeech. It formerly contained several farmhouses and small cottages, but Burnhill Green is the main hamlet.