Northop () is a village,

community A community is a social unit (a group of people) with a shared socially-significant characteristic, such as place, set of norms, culture, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given g ...

and

electoral ward A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected t ...

situated in

Flintshire Flintshire () is a county in the north-east of Wales. It borders the Irish Sea to the north, the Dee Estuary to the north-east, the English county of Cheshire to the east, Wrexham County Borough to the south, and Denbighshire to the west. ...

, Wales, approximately 12 miles west of the city of

Chester Chester is a cathedral city in Cheshire, England, on the River Dee, Wales, River Dee, close to the England–Wales border. With a built-up area population of 92,760 in 2021, it is the most populous settlement in the borough of Cheshire West an ...

, midway between

Mold A mold () or mould () is one of the structures that certain fungus, fungi can form. The dust-like, colored appearance of molds is due to the formation of Spore#Fungi, spores containing Secondary metabolite#Fungal secondary metabolites, fungal ...

and

Flint Flint, occasionally flintstone, is a sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as the variety of chert that occurs in chalk or marly limestone. Historically, flint was widely used to make stone tools and start ...

, and situated just off junction 33 of the A55 North Wales Expressway. At the 2001 Census, the population of Northop was 2,983, increasing to 3,049 at the 2011 census. The community includes Sychdyn. The village is home to two

pub A pub (short for public house) is in several countries a drinking establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term first appeared in England in the late 17th century, to differentiate private ho ...

s, a

cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

club, and a

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various Golf club, clubs to hit a Golf ball, ball into a series of holes on a golf course, course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standa ...

course. At the centre of the village stands the church of St Eurgain and

St Peter Saint Peter (born Shimon Bar Yonah; 1 BC – AD 64/68), also known as Peter the Apostle, Simon Peter, Simeon, Simon, or Cephas, was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus and one of the first leaders of the early Christian Church. He appears repe ...

, towering 98 feet above the village. Northop College based in Northop, offering horticultural courses for students of all ages, in areas such as Animal Care,

floristry Floristry is the production, commerce, and trade in flowers. It encompasses flower care and handling, floral design, floral design and arrangement, merchandising, production, display and flower delivery. Wholesale florists sell bulk flowers ...

, Horse Care, Horticulture and

agricultural Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created f ...

machinery.

Wrexham University Wrexham University (; ) is a public university in the North East Wales, north-east of Wales, with campuses in Wrexham, Northop and St Asaph. It offers both undergraduate and postgraduate degrees, as well as professional courses. The universit ...

has a campus based in Northop; this is the university's home for land-based and rural education, and a centre for courses on animal studies and biodiversity.

English toponym

The name seems to be derived from ''North Hope'', to distinguish it from the nearby village of

Hope Hope is an optimistic state of mind that is based on an expectation of positive outcomes with respect to events and circumstances in one's own life, or the world at large. As a verb, Merriam-Webster defines ''hope'' as "to expect with confid ...

, which has also been known as East Hoped. Another source claims the name originates from ''North'' and ''Thorpe'', the latter word meaning village or town in the Saxon language. Written in ancient records as ''Northorpe'', the name ''Northop'' was in use after the surrender of

Egbert of Wessex Ecgberht (died 839), also spelled Egbert, Ecgbert, Ecgbriht, Ecgbeorht, and Ecbert, was King of Wessex from 802 until his death in 839. His father was King Ealhmund of Kent. In the 780s, Ecgberht was forced into exile to Charlemagne's court i ...

, circa AD 828, when Flintshire was brought under

Saxon The Saxons, sometimes called the Old Saxons or Continental Saxons, were a Germanic people of early medieval "Old" Saxony () which became a Carolingian " stem duchy" in 804, in what is now northern Germany. Many of their neighbours were, like th ...

rule.

St Eurgain and St Peter's Church

There has been evidence of a church in Northop since the 6th century. It is said that Eurgain, a niece of

Saint Asaph Saint Asaph (or Asaf, Asa) was, in the second half of the 6th century, the first Bishop of St Asaph, i.e. bishop of the diocese of Saint Asaph. Biography No traditional Welsh language, Welsh account devoted to the life of Asaph exists. He is, ...

, passed through Northop and founded the church here on a Celtic mound, upon which it still stands. The Welsh placename for Northop, ''Llaneurgain'' translates as "The holy enclosure of Eurgain". Records indicate that there was a stone church erected here during the 12th century, with the tower being completed to its 98-foot height in 1571. The present building was extensively rebuilt during 1840, with further alterations being carried out in 1877. The churchyard of St Eurgain and St Peter still houses the old grammar school for Northop, constructed during the 16th century.
St Eurgain and St Peter's church
is the seat of 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 ...

of Northop, which comprises the districts of Northop,

Northop Hall Northop Hall is a village and Community (Wales), community near Connah's Quay in Flintshire, Wales. Located to the east of Northop, near the A55 road, A55 North Wales Expressway, the village is largely residential in character. At the United Kin ...

, Sychdyn,

Halkyn Halkyn ( ; locally: ) is a village and community in Flintshire, north-east Wales and situated between Pentre Halkyn, Northop and Rhosesmor. At the 2001 Census the population of the community was 2,876, increasing slightly to 2,879 at the 20 ...

, Rhosesmor, and Flint Mountain. Formerly it also included

Connah's Quay Connah's Quay (), known locally as "The Quay" and formerly known as Wepre, is a town and community in Flintshire, on the River Dee and next to the border with England. With a population of 16,771, it is the largest town in Flintshire. The ...

. It is a member of the

diocese of St Asaph The Diocese of Saint Asaph is a diocese of the Church in Wales in north-east Wales, named after Saint Asaph, its second bishop. Geography The Anglican Diocese of St Asaph in the north-east corner of Wales stretches from the borders of Cheste ...

Church in Wales The Church in Wales () is an Anglican church in Wales, composed of six dioceses. The Archbishop of Wales does not have a fixed archiepiscopal see, but serves concurrently as one of the six diocesan bishops. The position is currently held b ...

. The church is a Grade I

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

Present

The village shop also incorporates a one-counter

post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letter (message), letters and parcel (package), parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post o ...

. There are two pubs, one at either end of the High Street: the Red Lion, and The Boot, the last remaining

coaching inn The coaching inn (also coaching house or staging inn) was a vital part of Europe's inland transport infrastructure until the development of the railway, providing a resting point ( layover) for people and horses. The inn served the needs of t ...

in the village that served the

Holyhead Holyhead (; , "Cybi's fort") is a historic port town, and is the list of Anglesey towns by population, largest town and a Community (Wales), community in the county of Isle of Anglesey, Wales. Holyhead is on Holy Island, Anglesey, Holy Island ...

stagecoach A stagecoach (also: stage coach, stage, road coach, ) is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by ...

route. There is also a hairdresser and a MOT garage. Northop previously had a larger number of shops and services, but due to retail developments in neighbouring towns these have disappeared, including: butchers;

fish and chip Fish and chips is a hot dish consisting of battered and fried fish, served with chips. Often considered the national dish of the United Kingdom, fish and chips originated in England in the 19th century. Today, the dish is a common takeaway ...

shop;

tea shop A teahouse or tearoom (also tea room) is an establishment which primarily serves tea and other light refreshments. A tea room may be a room set aside in a hotel, especially for serving afternoon tea, or may be an establishment that only serve ...

; cobblers; Smithy; and a

working men's club Working men's clubs are British private social clubs first created in the 19th century in industrial areas, particularly the North of England, Midlands, Scotland, Northern Ireland and South Wales Valleys, to provide recreation and education ...

. Northop is also an

, coterminous with the community. It elects one county councillor to

Flintshire County Council Flintshire County Council is the unitary local authority for the county of Flintshire, one of the principal areas of Wales. It is based at Tŷ Dewi Sant, Ewloe since 2025. It was previously based at County Hall in Mold. Elections take place ...

Notable people

* William Parry (died 1585), courtier and spy, planned to assassinate

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was List of English monarchs, Queen of England and List of Irish monarchs, Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudo ...

and was executed. * Thomas Edwards (1779–1858), writer and lexicographer. * Sir John Eldon Bankes (1854–1946), judge of the

King's Bench Division The King's Bench Division (or Queen's Bench Division when the monarch is female) of the High Court of Justice deals with a wide range of common law cases and has supervisory responsibility over certain lower courts. It hears appeals on point ...

of the

High Court of Justice The High Court of Justice in London, known properly as His Majesty's High Court of Justice in England, together with the Court of Appeal (England and Wales), Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, are the Courts of England and Wales, Senior Cour ...

* Thomas Bartley (1908 in

– 1964), Test match umpire. * Kerry Peers (born 1964 in

), actress, she played '' Suzi Croft'' in ''

The Bill ''The Bill'' is a British police procedural television series, broadcast on ITV (TV network), ITV from 16 October 1984 until 31 August 2010. The programme originated from a one-off drama, "Woodentop (The Bill), Woodentop" (part of the ''Storyb ...

'' * Rob Roberts (born 1979

), former Member of Parliament (MP) for Delyn

Northop Silver Band

In 1892 a group of young men met at Soughton ( Sychdyn) and committed themselves to playing for a year with the newly formed silver band. Within two years they had relocated to nearby Northop. The bands' first contest success was in 1921 at Flint. The band at that time rehearsed at the Boot Inn which now supplies refreshments after practices. The band has played at some prestigious venues, including the

Liverpool Philharmonic Hall Liverpool Philharmonic Hall is a concert hall on Hope Street, Liverpool, Hope Street in Liverpool, England. It is the home of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Society and is recorded in the National Heritage List f ...

, St. David's Hall, in Cardiff and the

Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London, England. It has a seating capacity of 5,272. Since the hall's opening by Queen Victoria in 1871, the world's leading artists from many performance genres ...

in London. The 1980s saw the band become 'international' with a visit to Menden in Germany. Recently band members joined forces with Parc and Dare Band from South Wales in a return visit to Germany to play at a Police Festival in Hamburg.

References

General

*Lewis,
''A Topographical Dictionary of Wales''
1834 *Edge, Roy. Jones, Rosemary. ''The Pride of Northop, a collection of stories of Northop'', 2000.

External links

Northop village websiteNorthop College, part of Deeside CollegeNorthop Silver Band (official site)Northop Parish Church (official site)
{{authority control Villages in Flintshire Communities in Flintshire Wards of Flintshire