High Legh is a village, civil and

ecclesiastical parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

in the unitary authority of

Cheshire East Cheshire East is a unitary authority area with borough status in Cheshire, England. The local authority is Cheshire East Council, which is based in the town of Sandbach. Other towns within the area include Crewe, Macclesfield, Congleton, Wilms ...

and the ceremonial county of

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Merseyside to the north-west, Greater Manchester to the north-east, Derbyshire to the east, Staffordshire to the south-east, and Shrop ...

, England. It is north west of

Knutsford Knutsford () is a market town and civil parish in the Cheshire East district, in Cheshire, England; it is located south-west of Manchester, north-west of Macclesfield and south-east of Warrington. The population of the parish at the 2021 Uni ...

, east of

Warrington Warrington () is an industrial town in the Borough of Warrington, borough of the same name in Cheshire, England. The town sits on the banks of the River Mersey and was Historic counties of England, historically part of Lancashire. It is east o ...

and south west of

Manchester City Centre Manchester city centre is the central business district of Manchester, England, within the confines of Great Ancoats Street, A6042 Trinity Way, and A57(M) Mancunian Way, which collectively form an inner ring road. The City Centre ward had a ...

. The population of the entire civil parish was estimated at 1,705 in 2019.

History

Unusually this village was the

seat A seat is a place to sit. The term may encompass additional features, such as back, armrest, head restraint but may also refer to concentrations of power in a wider sense (i.e " seat (legal entity)"). See disambiguation. Types of seat The ...

of two ancient landed gentry families for generations, namely: Leigh of West Hall and Cornwall-Legh of East Hall. Both

hall In architecture, a hall is a relatively large space enclosed by a roof and walls. In the Iron Age and the Early Middle Ages in northern Europe, a mead hall was where a lord and his retainers ate and also slept. Later in the Middle Ages, the gre ...

s have now been demolished, but both families are still represented today, the head of the "West Hall" family being

Sir Edward Leigh Sir Edward Julian Egerton Leigh (born 20 July 1950) is a British Conservative Party (UK), Conservative Party politician who has been serving as the Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Gainsborough (UK Parliamen ...

MP but no longer associated or living within the

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

and that of the "East Hall" family being headed by Richard, 6th Baron Grey of Codnor. A member of a

cadet branch A cadet branch consists of the male-line descendants of a monarch's or patriarch's younger sons ( cadets). In the ruling dynasties and noble families of much of Europe and Asia, the family's major assets (realm, titles, fiefs, property and incom ...

of the Leigh of West Hall family was created a

baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

in 1773 as Sir Egerton Leigh, but this

title A title is one or more words used before or after a person's name, in certain contexts. It may signify their generation, official position, military rank, professional or academic qualification, or nobility. In some languages, titles may be ins ...

is now dormant. Other cadet branches were the Leigh-Traffords of nearby Oughtrington Hall as well as the Barons Leigh of Stoneleigh Abbey in Warwickshire and the Barons Newton of

Lyme Park Lyme Park is a large Estate (land), estate south of Disley, Cheshire, England. It is managed by the National Trust and consists of a mansion house surrounded by formal gardens and a Deer park (England), deer park in the Peak District National ...

. The third lordship of the manor was held by the

Egerton family The Egerton family (pronunciation: "''edge-er-ton''") is a British aristocratic family. Over time, several members of the Egerton family were made Dukes, Earls, knights, baronets and peers. Hereditary titles held by the Egerton family include th ...

of Tatton and all three landed families swapped and consolidated their estates throughout the 18th and 19th centuries until the Egerton Leighs sold their High Legh estate to the Cornwall-Leghs just before World War I. When Maurice, 4th and last Lord Egerton of Tatton, sold off the remaining farms and land in High Legh in the 1930s, so ended a connection dating back to the 13th century. East Hall was demolished in the early 1970s (as West Hall had been some 20 years previously) and the debris was used as foundations for the first Thelwall

viaduct A viaduct is a specific type of bridge that consists of a series of arches, piers or columns supporting a long elevated railway or road. Typically a viaduct connects two points of roughly equal elevation, allowing direct overpass across a wide ...

bridge of the M6. High Legh Hall (the East Hall) resembled nearby

Tatton Park Tatton Park is a historic Estate (house), estate in Cheshire, England, north of the town of Knutsford. It contains a mansion, Tatton Hall; a medieval manor house, Tatton Old Hall; Tatton Park Gardens, a farm and a Deer park (England), deer park o ...

and the West Hall ( Egerton Leigh family) was a beautiful Tudor building similar architecturally to

Little Moreton Hall Little Moreton Hall, also known as Old Moreton Hall, is a moated timber framing, half-timbered manor house south-west of Congleton in Cheshire, England. The earliest parts of the house were built for the prosperous Cheshire landowner William ...

. In a mainly agricultural area, its proximity to

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

and the area now known as ''Gold Trafford'' has made it nowadays a desirable residential area. High Legh was recorded in the Domesday Survey as having two Saxons theins (Ulviet or Wulfgeat, and Dob). The boundary between Mere and High Legh is still known as Dobb Lane and is, in fact, the

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

boundary between the two parishes. A moated site has been found, alongside the Roman road which connected Wilderspool and Latchford, Cheshire to Watling Street (A556) which contained Samian pottery from

Cirencester Cirencester ( , ; see #Pronunciation, below for more variations) is a market town and civil parish in the Cotswold District of Gloucestershire, England. Cirencester lies on the River Churn, a tributary of the River Thames. It is the List of ...

, a Roman cloak clasp, and a flint knife. High Legh was also a high-status

Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...

burial site. High Legh is the location of an early

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

chapel in Northwood Lane, with

Wesleyan Wesleyan theology, otherwise known as Wesleyan–Arminian theology, or Methodist theology, is a theological tradition in Protestant Christianity based upon the ministry of the 18th-century evangelical reformer brothers John Wesley and Charle ...

connections. Northwood Methodist Chapel was founded by the Okell family of High Legh (who married into the Egerton Leigh (''West Hall'') family). In the early 19th century, Robert Moffat, a young Scottish man, came to work on the West Hall estate as a gardener, but in 1814 he joined the

London Missionary Society The London Missionary Society was an interdenominational evangelical missionary society formed in England in 1795 at the instigation of Welsh Congregationalist minister Edward Williams. It was largely Reformed tradition, Reformed in outlook, with ...

and moved to Plantation Farm in

Dukinfield Dukinfield is a town in Tameside, Greater Manchester, England, on the south bank of the River Tame, Greater Manchester, River Tame opposite Ashton-under-Lyne, east of Manchester. At the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 census, the built up ar ...

. In 1816 he left with his wife for southern Africa where he became a

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group who is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thoma ...

; his daughter met and fell in love with their student preacher,

David Livingstone David Livingstone (; 19 March 1813 – 1 May 1873) was a Scottish physician, Congregationalist, pioneer Christian missionary with the London Missionary Society, and an explorer in Africa. Livingstone was married to Mary Moffat Livings ...

. The oldest building in the parish is believed to be St Mary's Chapel, formerly the domestic chapel of the Cornwall-Legh family of High Legh Hall (or East Hall), which is sometimes open to the public. However, other older buildings in the parish contain

wattle and daub Wattle and daub is a composite material, composite building method in which a woven lattice of wooden strips called "wattle (construction), wattle" is "daubed" with a sticky material usually made of some combination of wet soil, clay, sand, and ...

but no evidence of their dates has yet been established. The

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

Church of St John was formerly the domestic chapel of the ''Leighs of West Hall'' (Egerton Leigh family). The park of East Hall, High Legh was laid out by Humphrey Repton for George John Legh in 1791, and John Nash was also engaged to create an idyll village, but this was never completed. Repton removed the old

toll road A toll road, also known as a turnpike or tollway, is a public or private road for which a fee (or ''Toll (fee), toll'') is assessed for passage. It is a form of road pricing typically implemented to help recoup the costs of road construction and ...

(the original Roman road) and dropped it to its present position (the A50), removing the village and creating a more enclosed entrance to the estate and pleasure gardens. Both mansions were used by the government for the training of

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is the engineering arm of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces ...

during

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 ...

after the families moved out; they never returned to their respective

s and subsequently sold the internal section of the estate to two building companies, Wimpey Homes, and Crossley Homes. In the 1980s more of the estate pleasure gardens was sold off for housing to Ideal Homes. In the 1990s another estate was built on the former

Army camp A military camp or bivouac is a semi-permanent military base, for the lodging of an army. Camps are erected when a military force travels away from a major installation or fort during training or military operations, operations, and often have t ...

buildings, now known as The Belfry. All the street names in these developments have a connection with the history of High Legh through either one of the ancient landed families (Legh & Leigh), prominent people within the

or parts of the former park (Pheasant Walk).

Coats of arms

File:Blason Fr famille Labetz (Mixe).svg, ''Leigh of West Hall'' File:Blason de la ville de Mittelwihr (68).svg, ''Legh of East Hall''

Transport

On 10 October 2009, High Legh Railway (a gauge railway) was opened by Louise Robbins (

Headteacher A headmaster/headmistress, head teacher, head, school administrator, principal or school director (sometimes another title is used) is the staff member of a school with the greatest responsibility for the management of the school. Role While s ...

of High Legh Primary School). On 26 November 2011, the railway was extended further making the route a little short of . The extension was opened by Harold Brooks (in the guise of

Father Christmas Father Christmas is the traditional English name for the personification of Christmas. Although now known as a Christmas gift-bringer, and typically considered to be synonymous with Santa Claus, he was originally part of a much older and unrela ...

) and Frank Sidebottom from the 7 Inch Gauge Society; High Legh Railway is operated by Vee Limited. The railway is the brainchild of Andrew John Higgins

Education

There have been three schools in High Legh. The one within the triangle on the side of the A50 is now High Legh Village Hall, managed by High Legh Community Association. The latest school (with new extensions 1993–94) was built on Wrenshot Lane in 1976; this land was donated by Charles Cornwall-Legh (''later'' Lord Grey of Codnor) to

Cheshire County Council Cheshire County Council was the county council of Cheshire. Founded on 1 April 1889, it was officially dissolved on 31 March 2009, when it and its districts were superseded by two unitary authorities: Cheshire West and Chester and Cheshire East. ...

Sport

The village now has several sporting facilities including High Legh Cricket Club which plays at

Arley Hall Arley Hall is a English country house, country house in the village of Arley, Cheshire, Arley, Cheshire, England, about south of Lymm and north of Northwich. It is home to the owner, Viscount Ashbrook, and his family. The house is a Grade&n ...

the home of the Viscount Ashbrook, golf at High Legh Park Country Club on land formerly part of the West Hall estate, High Legh Bowling Club, opposite the Village Hall and High Legh Tennis Club. In 2008 an annual early season 10K running race was started, called the High Legh Robert Moffat Memorial 10K race. It has developed into a very popular local race. The race is jointly organised by High Legh Community Association and Lymm Runners Running ClubLymm Runners Official Site
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References

External links

High Legh Community website
{{authority control Villages in Cheshire Civil parishes in Cheshire