Wensley | |
---|---|
Wensley | |
Location within Derbyshire | |
OS grid reference | SK263610 |
District | |
Shire county | |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | MATLOCK |
Postcode district | DE4 |
Police | Derbyshire |
Fire | Derbyshire |
Ambulance | East Midlands |
Wensley is a small village in South Darley parish in Derbyshire of limestone and gritstone properties mainly arranged along the single road which zig-zags through the village or around the square. The whole village, together with part of the adjacent Wensley Dale is a Conservation Area. Until fairly recently there was a Methodist Chapel, a village shop and two public houses, but these have all closed. The former school is now a village hall, Wensley Reading Room. Quite a few of the houses are holiday lets.
The parish church is St Mary the Virgin in the Cross Green area of Darley Bridge. [1]
The nearest schools are South Darley Primary School, Winster Primary School, Elton Primary School and Darley Dale Primary School. Its nearest senior schools are Lady Manners School in Bakewell and Highfields School in Matlock, Derbyshire.
The 172 bus route of Hulleys of Baslow runs from Bakewell to Matlock, via Wensley, Darley Bridge and Darley Dale.
The place-name of Wensley in Derbyshire is first attested in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as ‘Wodnesleie’. It appears as ‘Wodneslega’ in the Pipe Rolls of 1167, and as ‘Wednesleg’ in the Book of Fees in 1212. The name means “grove or glade dedicated to Woden”. [2]
The villagers in Wensley were employed in the lead mining industry in the fields around the village in the 18th and 19th centuries, after the London Lead Company obtained the mining rights in the 1720s. [3]
Bakewell is a market town and civil parish in the Derbyshire Dales district of Derbyshire, England, known for Bakewell pudding. It lies on the River Wye, 15 miles (23 km) south-west of Sheffield. It is the largest settlement and only town within the boundaries of the Peak District National Park. At the 2011 census, the population of the civil parish was 3,949. It was estimated at 3,695 in 2019. The town is close to the tourist attractions of Chatsworth House and Haddon Hall.
Matlock is the county town of Derbyshire, England. It is in the south-eastern part of the Peak District, with the National Park directly to the west. The spa resort of Matlock Bath is immediately south of the town as well as Cromford lying further south still. The civil parish of Matlock Town had a population in the 2021 UK census of 10,000.
Matlock Bath is a village and civil parish in Derbyshire, England. It lies in the Derbyshire Dales, south of Matlock on the main A6 road, and approximately halfway between Buxton and Derby. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 census was 753. Originally built at the head of a dead-end dirt road running along the valley of the River Derwent from Matlock, the settlement developed in the 19th century as residential and a spa town which remains a tourist destination. The steep hillside restricts development with most buildings on one side of the valley and only footbridges across the river. The road was upgraded, becoming a through-way, now designated A6, avoiding the previous coaching road approach to Matlock from Cromford over very steep hills near to the Riber plateau area.
Derbyshire Dales is a local government district in Derbyshire, England. The district was created in 1974 as West Derbyshire; the name was changed to Derbyshire Dales in 1987. The council is based in the town of Matlock, and the district also includes the towns of Ashbourne, Bakewell, Darley Dale and Wirksworth, as well as numerous villages and extensive rural areas. Much of the district is within the Peak District National Park.
Darley Dale, formerly Darley, is a town and civil parish in the Derbyshire Dales district of Derbyshire, England, with a population of 5,413. It lies north of Matlock, on the River Derwent and the A6 road. The town forms part of a built-up area with both Matlock and Rowsley.
Cromford is a village and civil parish in Derbyshire, England, in the valley of the River Derwent between Wirksworth and Matlock. It is 17 miles (27 km) north of Derby, 2 miles (3.2 km) south of Matlock and 1 mile (1.6 km) south of Matlock Bath. It is first mentioned in the 11th-century Domesday Book as Crumforde, a berewick of Wirksworth, and this remained the case throughout the Middle Ages. The population at the 2011 Census was 1,433. It is principally known for its historical connection with Richard Arkwright and the nearby Cromford Mill, which he built outside the village in 1771. Cromford is in the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site.
Peak Rail is a preserved railway in Derbyshire, England, which operates a steam and heritage diesel service for tourists and visitors to both the Peak District and the Derbyshire Dales.
All Saints' Church, Bakewell, is the parish church of Bakewell, Derbyshire, England. It is a Grade I listed building.
Elton is a village and civil parish in the Derbyshire Dales district of Derbyshire, England, and lies within the Peak District. Its nearest towns are Bakewell and Matlock.
Hackney and Upper Hackney are areas of settlement in Derbyshire, England. The population taken at the 2011 Census is included in the civil parish of Darley Dale.
Parwich is a village and parish in the Derbyshire Dales, 7 miles north of Ashbourne. In the 2011 census the population of the civil parish was 472.
Darley Bridge is a village in Derbyshire, located in South Darley parish in the Derbyshire Dales, bordering the Peak District. The village lies at the bottom of the hill below Wensley where the road crosses the River Derwent. A grade II* listed stone bridge spans the river and links the village with Darley Dale. Close to the bridge, the road winds between terraced stone houses in the oldest part of the village. The only public house in the parish, The Three Stags Heads, is in this area.
Sir Thomas Wensley of Wensley in Derbyshire, served five times as a Member of Parliament for Derbyshire, in 1382, 1384, 1386, 1390 and 1394. He was a follower of John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster and was killed on 21 July 1403, fighting at the Battle of Shrewsbury for the Lancastrian cause.
South Darley is a civil parish in the Derbyshire Dales. It is a largely rural parish and covers the villages of Darley Bridge, Wensley and the hamlets of Oker and Snitterton. South Darley lies west of Matlock and east of Winster. The River Derwent forms the north-eastern boundary of South Darley parish with Darley Dale parish on the other bank. About two thirds of the parish lies within the Peak District.
Oker is a hamlet in Derbyshire, located in South Darley parish, with groups of houses along two sides of Oker Hill. The houses are largely older limestone properties including several farms, but with some more recent semi-detached properties too. A former Methodist chapel has been converted to a holiday let.
Snitterton is a hamlet in Derbyshire, England, in South Darley parish, of some fifteen properties including two working farms and Snitterton Hall, a late 16th century manor house which is Grade I listed. There are signs that it was once a larger village.
Northwood and Tinkersley is a civil parish within the Derbyshire Dales district, in the county of Derbyshire, England. Named for its main settlements, with a mix of rural and built up areas, it had a population of 665 residents in 2011. The parish is 126 miles (203 km) north west of London, 18 miles (29 km) north west of the county city of Derby, and 3+1⁄2 miles (5.6 km) north west of the nearest market town of Matlock. Northwood and Tinkersley is directly adjacent to the Peak District national park to the west, and shares a border with the parishes of Darley Dale, Rowsley and Stanton.
South Darley is a civil parish in the Derbyshire Dales district of Derbyshire, England. The parish contains nine listed buildings that are recorded in the National Heritage List for England. Of these, one is listed at Grade I, the highest of the three grades, and the others are at Grade II, the lowest grade. The parish contains the villages of Darley Bridge, Snitterton and Wensley, and the surrounding countryside. The listed buildings consist of houses and associated structures, a public house, a church, a milestone and a telephone kiosk.
Media related to Wensley, Derbyshire at Wikimedia Commons