Wightwick ( ) is a part of

Tettenhall Wightwick Tettenhall Wightwick is a ward of Wolverhampton City Council, West Midlands. The population of this ward taken at the 2011 census was 10,872. Geography It is one of two wards covering the Tettenhall area, the other being Tettenhall Regis. It ...

ward Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...

Wolverhampton Wolverhampton ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands of England. Located around 12 miles (20 km) north of Birmingham, it forms the northwestern part of the West Midlands conurbation, with the towns of ...

, West Midlands,

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. It is named after an ancient local family the "de Wightwicks". It is on the western fringe of Wolverhampton and borders the rural

South Staffordshire South Staffordshire is a local government district in Staffordshire, England. Its council is based in Codsall. Other notable settlements include Brewood, Cheslyn Hay, Coven, Essington, Featherstone, Four Ashes, Great Wyrley, Huntington, ...

area that includes neighbourhoods such as

Perton Perton is a large estate and civil parish located in the South Staffordshire District, Staffordshire, England. It lies 3 miles to the south of Codsall and 4 miles west of Wolverhampton, where part of the estate is conjoined to the estate ...

. Of note is

Wightwick Manor Wightwick Manor ( ) is a Victorian era, Victorian house in Wightwick Bank, a suburb of Wolverhampton, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. It was commissioned in 1887 from the architect Edward Ould by Theodore Mander family, Mander ...

, a

Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the reign of Queen Victoria, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. Slightly different definitions are sometimes used. The era followed the ...

manor house A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were usually held the lord's manorial courts, communal mea ...

in the

arts and crafts style The Arts and Crafts movement was an international trend in the Decorative arts, decorative and fine arts that developed earliest and most fully in the British Isles and subsequently spread across the British Empire and to the rest of Europe and ...

. The interior features extensive use of

William Morris William Morris (24 March 1834 – 3 October 1896) was an English textile designer, poet, artist, writer, and socialist activist associated with the British Arts and Crafts movement. He was a major contributor to the revival of traditiona ...

designs and is noted as one of his pioneering works. The house is the former home of the

Mander family The Mander family has held for over 200 years a prominent position in the Midland counties of England, both in the family business and public life. In the early Industrial Revolution, the Mander family entered the vanguard of the expansion of ...

who achieved wealth through the ownership of Mander Brothers, paint and varnish manufacturers since 1773, and fame through public service and political office. Sir Geoffrey Le Mesurier Mander was the first of the Mander family to sit in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of ...

. The house is now in the hands of the

National Trust The National Trust () is a heritage and nature conservation charity and membership organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Trust was founded in 1895 by Octavia Hill, Sir Robert Hunter and Hardwicke Rawnsley to "promote the ...

. The Mander family also owned the nearby 'Mount', seat of the Mander Baronets, which is now a hotel and conference centre with views as far as the

Malvern hills The Malvern Hills are in the English counties of Worcestershire, Herefordshire and a small area of northern Gloucestershire, dominating the surrounding countryside and the towns and villages of the district of Malvern. The highest summit af ...

, over away. Wightwick Hall is also in the area, being less than a mile via the lanes that connect the two properties. Sir

Alfred Hickman Alfred Hickman (25 February 1873 – 9 April 1931) was an English actor. He was married to actress Nance O'Neil. He appeared in 35 films between 1914 and 1931. Hickman began his career as an actor on the British stage in the early 1890s. In 18 ...

owned Wightwick Hall. Nearby Elmsdale Hall was owned by the former Wolverhampton Mayor and industrialist

Sir John Morris Sir John Morris, 1st Baronet (15 July 1745 – 25 June 1819), was a British industrialist, active in copper-smelting and coal-mining in Swansea, South Wales. Biography Early life John Morris was born on 15 July 1745. He was the son of Robert Mo ...

. Morris was spontaneously knighted by

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...

in 1866 at her first public appearance since the death of her husband Albert, for the unveiling of a statue of her dead husband. The hall has been converted to residential apartments. The

Staffordshire and Worcestershire canal The Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal is a navigable narrow canal in Staffordshire and Worcestershire in the The Midlands, England, Midlands of England. It is long, linking the River Severn at Stourport in Worcestershire with the Trent a ...

and the

Smestow Brook The Smestow Brook, sometimes called the River Smestow, is a small river that plays an important part in the drainage of Wolverhampton, South Staffordshire, and parts of Dudley in the United Kingdom, and has contributed to the industrial develop ...

run through the valley beneath Wightwick Manor, roughly parallel to the '

Bridgnorth Bridgnorth is a market town and civil parish in Shropshire, England. The River Severn splits it into High Town and Low Town, the upper town on the right bank and the lower on the left bank of the River Severn. The population at the United Kingd ...

Road'. Wightwick is an extremely pleasant part of the more traditionally affluent western side of Wolverhampton.

References

External links

"Sir Geoffrey Mander: the last of the Midland Radicals"
by Nicholas Mander
Photos of Wightwick and surrounding area on geograph.org.uk
Areas of Wolverhampton Tettenhall {{WestMidlands-geo-stub