Raithby by Spilsby or Raithby is a village and

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 ...

in the

East Lindsey East Lindsey is a Non-metropolitan district, local government district in Lincolnshire, England. Its council is based in Horncastle and the largest town is Skegness. Other towns include Alford, Lincolnshire, Alford, Burgh le Marsh, Coningsby, L ...

district A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (), abbreviated ''Lincs'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands and Yorkshire and the Humber regions of England. It is bordered by the East Riding of Yorkshire across the Humber estuary to th ...

, England. It is situated about north-west from the town of

Spilsby Spilsby is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England. The town is adjacent to the main A16 road (England), A16, east of Lincoln, Lincolnshire, Lincoln, north-east of Boston ...

. Raithby has associations with founder of

Methodism 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 ...

John Wesley John Wesley ( ; 2 March 1791) was an English cleric, Christian theology, theologian, and Evangelism, evangelist who was a principal leader of a Christian revival, revival movement within the Church of England known as Methodism. The societies ...

, and the

Victorian Victorian or Victorians may refer to: 19th century * Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign ** Victorian architecture ** Victorian house ** Victorian decorative arts ** Victorian fashion ** Victorian literatur ...

architect,

George Gilbert Scott Sir George Gilbert Scott (13 July 1811 – 27 March 1878), largely known as Sir Gilbert Scott, was a prolific English Gothic Revival architect, chiefly associated with the design, building and renovation of churches and cathedrals, although he ...

History

Raithby is listed in the 1086 ''

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 "Radebi", with 26 households, a mill and a church. The parish church is a Grade II*

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 ...

dating from the 12th century, although it was largely rebuilt in 1873 by Sir

. The

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the Choir (architecture), choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may termi ...

was enlarged in 1886 by

Temple Moore Temple Lushington Moore (7 June 1856 – 30 June 1920) was an English architect who practised in London but whose work can be seen across England, particularly in the North. He is famous for a series of fine Gothic Revival churches built betwe ...

, and the tower renewed by

Hodgson Fowler Charles Hodgson Fowler (2 March 1840 – 14 December 1910) was a prolific English ecclesiastical architect who specialised in building and, especially, restoring churches. Life He was born in Nottinghamshire, the son of Robert Hodgson Fowler ...

in 1895. The

lychgate A lychgate (from Old English ''līc'', corpse) or resurrection gate is a covered gateway found at the entrance to a traditional English or English-style churchyard. Examples also exist outside the British Isles in places such as Newfoundland, the ...

is Grade II listed and dates from 1907. It was dedicated to the memory of Sophy Janet Rawnsley, of Raithby Hall. In the grounds of the churchyard is a stone cross, mostly dating from 1903 but using part of an earlier shaft. The old base is not used and lies away. The red-brick Raithby Hall was the seat of the Brackenbury and Rawnsley families, built around 1760 for Robert Carr Brackenbury and extended in 1848 and 1873 by Sir George Gilbert Scott. It is now an old peoples home, and is Grade II listed. This village played an important role in the spread of Methodism in Lincolnshire. After visiting Raithby in 1788, John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, declared it 'an earthly paradise'. Raithby contains one of the oldest Methodist chapels in England, and one of the few surviving chapels opened by Wesley himself. Raithby Chapel was built over a stable block in the grounds of Raithby Hall in 1779 by

Robert Carr Brackenbury Robert Carr Brackenbury (28 May 1752 – 11 August 1818) was an English Methodist preacher. His biographer, Terence R. Leach, describes him as a ‘poet, practitioner, philanthropist and mystic’. Methodism Robert Carr Brackenbury was the son of C ...

, and was dedicated by Wesley on 5 July 1779. It is a Grade I listed building. The children of Raithby were served by a village school from 1668 when Thomas Lawford founded a Free School where children from Raithby,

Mavis Enderby Mavis Enderby is a hamlet and civil parish in the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England. It lies in the Lincolnshire Wolds, east from Horncastle. History An early reference may be seen in 1349 when both parts of the name appear to end ...

Hundleby Hundleby is a village and civil parish in the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England. The village is a suburb of the market town of Spilsby. Hundleby is listed in the Domesday Book of 1086 as "Hundelbi", with Ivo Tallboys (Ivo Talleb ...

and

Sausthorpe Sausthorpe is a small village and civil parish in the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England, east of Horncastle and north-west of Spilsby. It lies on the southern edge of the Lincolnshire Wolds – a designated Area of Outstanding Na ...

were educated. The school was rebuilt in 1866 to hold 45 pupils. By the 1870s it was known as Raithby and Mavis Enderby School, and Raithby and Enderby CE School by 1925. It closed on 21 December 1949.

Community

Raithby is situated from

Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the 16th president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincoln (na ...

, and around from the market town of

Horncastle Horncastle is a market town and civil parish in the East Lindsey district in Lincolnshire, England. It is east of Lincoln. Its population was 6,815 at the 2011 census and estimated at 7,123 in 2019. A section of the ancient Roman walls rema ...

, the "gateway to the Wolds". It is also north-west from the coastal resort of

Skegness Skegness ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the East Lindsey District of Lincolnshire, England. On the Lincolnshire coast of the North Sea, the town is east of Lincoln and north-east of Boston. With a population of 21,128 as of 2021 ...

. Nearby attractions include the birthplaces of

Alfred, Lord Tennyson Alfred Tennyson, 1st Baron Tennyson (; 6 August 1809 – 6 October 1892) was an English poet. He was the Poet Laureate during much of Queen Victoria's reign. In 1829, Tennyson was awarded the Chancellor's Gold Medal at Cambridge for one of ...

at Somersby, and explorer

Sir John Franklin Sir John Franklin (16 April 1786 – 11 June 1847) was a British Royal Navy officer, explorer and colonial administrator. After serving in the Napoleonic Wars and the War of 1812, he led two expeditions into the Canadian Arctic and thro ...

at Spilsby. The mid-18th-century

Grade II listed 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, H ...

The Red Lion Inn is the village

public house A pub (short for public house) is in several countries a drinking establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption Licensing laws of the United Kingdom#On-licence, on the premises. The term first appeared in England in the ...

. Raithby is served by the Interconnet 56 bus service runs which runs from Lincoln Central bus station to Skegness Interchange. The bus stops outside the Red Lion Inn pub.

Notable people

John Morley John Morley, 1st Viscount Morley of Blackburn, (24 December 1838 – 23 September 1923), was a British Liberal statesman, writer and newspaper editor. Initially a journalist in the North of England and then editor of the newly Liberal-leani ...

(1838–1864), first-class cricketer

References

External links

*
The Red Lion Inn
{{authority control Villages in Lincolnshire Civil parishes in Lincolnshire East Lindsey District