High Ercall ( ), also known in the past as Ercall Magna (), is a village in the borough of

Telford and Wrekin Telford and Wrekin is a Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough and unitary authority in Shropshire, England. In 1974, a non-metropolitan district of Shropshire was created called the Wrekin, named after The Wrekin, a prominent hill to the ...

and

ceremonial county Ceremonial counties, formally known as ''counties for the purposes of the lieutenancies'', are areas of England to which lord-lieutenant, lord-lieutenants are appointed. A lord-lieutenant is the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, monarch's repres ...

Shropshire Shropshire (; abbreviated SalopAlso used officially as the name of the county from 1974–1980. The demonym for inhabitants of the county "Salopian" derives from this name.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West M ...

, England. The

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

is still called Ercall Magna, and had a total population of 1,679 at the 2001 census,Ercall Magna CP
ONS reducing to 1,639 at the 2011 census. The parish includes the villages of Rowton,

Ellerdine Ellerdine () is a small hamlet located six miles north of the market town of Wellington, Shropshire. It is located at the convergence of six ancient footpaths and comprises two small communities; Ellerdine and Ellerdine Heath and is located wit ...

and

Cold Hatton Cold Hatton is a small village in Shropshire, England, approximately six miles south of Hodnet near the confluence of the River Tern and River Meese. It is in the civil parish of Ercall Magna. Since 1998 it has been part of the Telford and Wreki ...

, and a number of hamlets including Cotwall, Osbaston, Poynton and

Roden Roden is a name of Germanic origin, originally meaning "red valley" or an anglicization of the Gaelic name "O'Rodain". It may refer to: Places *Roden, Bavaria, a town in the Main-Spessart district of Bavaria, Germany *Roden, Netherlands, a town ...

. The village lies on the junction of the B5062 and

B5063 road B roads are numbered routes in Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the ...

History, architecture

The etymology of the name ''Ercall'' (also seen in

Child's Ercall Child's Ercall ( ) is a village and civil parish in Shropshire, England. It is located in a rural area between the towns of Market Drayton and Newport: the civil parish had a total population of 599 at the 2001 census,Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, of or about Wales * Welsh language, spoken in Wales * Welsh people, an ethnic group native to Wales Places * Welsh, Arkansas, U.S. * Welsh, Louisiana, U.S. * Welsh, Ohio, U.S. * Welsh Basin, during t ...

name ''Ercal''.Gelling, M. ''The place-names of Shropshire'', pt.1, English Place-Name Society, 1990, pp.125-6Raven, M. ''A Guide to Shropshire'', 2005, p.89 High Ercall was recorded in the

Domesday Book Domesday Book ( ; the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book") is a manuscript record of the Great Survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 at the behest of William the Conqueror. The manuscript was originally known by ...

as "Archelou": it was stated to have been held by Earl Eduin in the time of

Edward the Confessor Edward the Confessor ( 1003 – 5 January 1066) was King of England from 1042 until his death in 1066. He was the last reigning monarch of the House of Wessex. Edward was the son of Æthelred the Unready and Emma of Normandy. He succeede ...

, when it was worth £20.Anderson, J. C. ''Shropshire: its early history and antiquities'', p.117 At the time of the survey it contained two mills and a fishery yielding "1502 great eels" annually. It is thought a church may have stood in High Ercall since Saxon times, but the present St Michael's Church shows mostly medieval work with a tower dating from the 14th century. The base of the tower is badly weather-beaten. The parishioners, however, have a more romanticised explanation, that the damage is due to people sharpening their weapons on it in ancient times. In the churchyard, as well as graves covering several centuries, there is a sundial from the 18th-century which records the time in

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

and Plymouth in Massachusetts. High Ercall Hall - geograph

The village is clustered around what remains of

High Ercall Hall High Ercall Hall or Ercall Hall is the remaining part of a larger complex in the village of High Ercall, Shropshire, 8 miles (13 km) north-east of Shrewsbury. The present structure is a Grade II* L-shaped, three-storey building of 16th-c ...

, originally a fortified 13th-century manor owned by the Arkle family; in the seventeenth century the house was owned by the Newport family, having been rebuilt in 1608 for Sir Francis Newport, the father of

Richard Newport, 1st Baron Newport Richard Newport, 1st Baron Newport (7 May 1587 – 8 February 1651). was an England, English landowner and politician who sat in the House of Commons of England, House of Commons at various times between 1614 and 1629. He supported the Cavaliers ...

. The Newports were prominent royalists and during the

English Civil War The English Civil War or Great Rebellion was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Cavaliers, Royalists and Roundhead, Parliamentarians in the Kingdom of England from 1642 to 1651. Part of the wider 1639 to 1653 Wars of th ...

Richard garrisoned the Hall for the King.Manganiello, S. ''The concise encyclopedia of the revolutions and wars of England, Scotland, and Ireland, 1639-1660 Between 1644 and 1646 the house withstood repeated attacks by local Parliamentarian forces, culminating in a prolonged siege, using artillery, from July 1645. The Royalist commander at High Ercall, Sir Vincent Corbet, eventually surrendered on 28 March 1646. The history and archaeology of this event was covered by the ''

Time Team ''Time Team'' is a British television programme that originally aired on Channel 4, Channel 4 from 16 January 1994 to 7 September 2014. It returned in 2022 on online platforms YouTube and Patreon. Created by television produce ...

'' episode ''Siege House in Shropshire'' (series 9, episode 8). The village also contains some

almshouses An almshouse (also known as a bede-house, poorhouse, or hospital) is charitable organization, charitable public housing, housing provided to people in a particular community, especially during the Middle Ages. They were often built for the povert ...

of 1694, built in brick with small dormer windows. A short distance from the village is a

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

airfield which as RAF High Ercall was the home of 29 MU, a

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...

maintenance unit. 68 Squadron operated from High Ercall from April 1941 for eleven months before moving to Catterick. The MU opened in 1941 and closed in 1957. The airfield site later became the headquarters for the Road Transport Industry Training Board (RTITB) Multi Occupational Training and Educational Centre (MOTEC 1), home of the RTITB National Junior Mechanic Competition 1987. An outdoor war memorial to 59 servicemen from the parish of Ercall Magna who have died in wars since 1914, in African iron Greystone granite, was unveiled in the village in April 2017.

Amenities

In addition to a

primary school A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...

and the church, there is in the village a tennis club.

Notable people

* Sir Richard Newport (by 1511–1570), politician, of family who owned the manor of High Ercall. * Magdelen Herbert ''nee'' Newport (1561 – 1627) estate manager and literary patron, daughter of Richard * Sir Francis Newport (c1555-1623), politician, son of Richard, lived High Ercall Hall, which he had rebuilt 1608. *

(1587–1651), latter's son, Civil War Royalist politician, who held Ercall Hall as fortress, made peer in 1642 as Baron Newport of High Ercall. *

Francis Newport, 1st Earl of Bradford Francis may refer to: People and characters *Pope Francis, head of the Catholic Church (2013–2025) *Francis (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Francis (surname) * Francis, a character played by YouTuber Boogie2 ...

(1620–1708), latter's son, Royalist soldier and politician, owned Ercall Hall. * Andrew Newport (1622–1699), latter's brother, Royalist politician, baptized at the church. *

Richard Baxter Richard Baxter (12 November 1615 – 8 December 1691) was an English Nonconformist (Protestantism), Nonconformist church leader and theologian from Rowton, Shropshire, who has been described as "the chief of English Protestant Schoolmen". He ma ...

(1615–1691), puritan divine, born at Rowton in the parish and baptized at the church. *

Sir Francis Geary, 1st Baronet Sir Francis Geary, 1st Baronet (1709 – 7 February 1796) was an officer of the Royal Navy. He served during the War of the Austrian Succession, the Seven Years' War, and the American War of Independence, eventually rising to the rank of Admiral ...

(1709–1796),

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

Admiral, brought up in High Ercall. * John Douglas (1721–1807), later

Bishop of Salisbury The Bishop of Salisbury is the Ordinary (officer), ordinary of the Church of England's Diocese of Salisbury in the Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers much of the counties of Wiltshire and Dorset. The Episcopal see, see is in the Salisbur ...

, was vicar of High Ercall 1750–62. *

Archibald Alison (author) Archibald Alison (13 November 175717 May 1839) was a Scottish Anglican priest and essayist. Early life He was born in Edinburgh, to Patrick Alison a Edinburgh magistrate, himself a younger son of an Alison of Newhall, near Coupar Angus. Af ...

(1757–1839), Scottish essayist, was vicar of High Ercall. *

John Beard (trade unionist) John Cecil Beard (9 December 1871 – 25 September 1950) was a British trade unionist and politician. Life Beard was born in Ellerdine Heath in Shropshire in 1871,Derek Hammond-Stroud Derek Hammond-Stroud (10 January 192614 May 2012) was an English baritone opera singer best known for his performances of German lieder and his international performances in opera, particularly the roles of Alberich in Wagner's ''Der Ring des Nib ...

(1926–2012), baritone opera singer, died resident at Roden Hall care home in the parish.

Sports

Bertha Steedman Bertha Steedman (20 July 1866 – 11 January 1945) was a British tennis player who was a four time semi finalist at the Wimbledon Championships. She also won nine All England Championships double titles, a precursor to the Wimbledon Championships ...

(1866–1945), born at High Ercall, tennis player, nine times winner of All England Championships at

Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * W ...

. *

Mary Steedman Mary Steedman (married name Vane) (March 1867 – 29 July 1921) was a British tennis player during the late 19th century who won the Northern Championships in 1890 and was a semi finalist at the Wimbledon Championships the same year. She was acti ...

(1867–1921), born at High Ercall, her sister and wife of Gilbert Vane (Vicar of High Ercall 1889–1895), tennis player, a semi-finalist at Wimbledon. Her husband and daughter are buried in the churchyard. She is referred to as Mrs. Vane and the obituary does not mention her tennis. * John Gwynne (1945-2022), born at High Ercall, sports commentator and reporter, best known for his darts commentary.

References

External links