Mickleton in Bloom
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Mickleton in Bloom
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Mickleton |
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Introduction Mickleton village lies in the area of transition between the Cotswold limestone escarpment and the Vale of Evesham. Consequently, the hybrid nature of the village makes it somewhat special. To the east the Cotswold escarpment shelters the village where the land rises gradually to the wooded slopes of Kiftsgate Court and the parish boundary. To the West it extends to the edge of the Vale. The subtle mixture of architectural styles, building traditions and materials together with the informal layout and street pattern, makes Mickleton a tempting village to explore. Points
of Interest On
Meon Hill, an outlier of the Cotswolds, there are remains of an Iron Age
Fort. Mickleton
derives its name from the Saxon word ‘Mycclantune’ which translates
into ‘large village”. The
earliest roads through the village were tracks created in the I 3th
century. These
were the Salt Way (Droitwich to Stow) and the White Way (Cirencester to Stratford). In
1349 the Black Death killed 50% of the population. Land was given over to
sheep farming; wool and weaving industries flourished. The resulting
wealth helped to renovate the church. Following
the Dissolution of the Monasteries, the Manor, which had been the crown
property, was in 1494 leased long term by the Porter family In 1513
Richard Porter established a charity, which still provides support for the
church and school. Public
water supplies were instituted by the Lord of the Manor, Sir Maxwell Steel
Graves in the 19th Century and the decorated stand pipes at The Plantation
and Tadpole Alley still exist. Graves the author of ‘Spiritual Quixote’
was born in Mickleton House. Sir
Anthony Keck a very eminent lawyer was born in the parish of Mickleton
(National Gazetteer 1868) The
village was founded on the success of agriculture and then horticulture,
but there is little evidence remaining of Mickleton’s I 9th & 20th
century market garden tradition, which once had a significant impact on
the landscape. |
