Shrewley Tunnel

Shrewley is a village and civil parish in Warwickshire, England, about 5 miles north-west of Warwick. It consists of Little Shrewley, and Shrewley Common, Hatton Station, Station Road and Five Ways. It has the Grand Union Canal, which passes through Shrewley Tunnel and cutting which is a SSSI, with the Chiltern Main Line railway and M40 motorway all running parallel and in close proximity at the south-western end of Shrewley Common. The parish has two pubs, The Durham Ox, in Shrewley Common, once well known for its Marrow Sunday post-harvest celebration, steam fair and produce competition and auction, and The Case is Altered at Five Ways. Shrewley has no church, but until the 1990s had an independent chapel with a regular congregation, the site of which has now been converted into a dwelling.

The Mercia Mudstone Group is an early Triassic lithostratigraphic group (a sequence of rock strata) which is widespread in Britain, especially in the English Midlands—the name is derived from the ancient kingdom of Mercia which corresponds to that area. It is frequently encountered in older literature as the Keuper Marl or Keuper Marl Series.The Mercia Mudstone Group is now divided into five formations recognised and mappable across its entire outcrop and subcrop. The formations are a mix of mudstones, siltstones, sandstones and halites. Historically this sequence of rocks has been subdivided in different ways with different names in each of the basinal areas in which it is found. Increasing knowledge of the sequences and the more recent development of seamless electronic mapping by the British Geological Survey (BGS) necessitated a reappraisal of these divisions. A report published by BGS in 2008 recommended the abandonment of previous divisions and naming schemes in favour of a simpler approach which, having now been adopted, is set out below. Blue Anchor Formation Branscombe Mudstone Formation Arden Sandstone Formation Sidmouth Mudstone Formation Tarporley Siltstone FormationOlder schemes will remain in maps and literature well into the future, providing a source of potential confusion. An example might be the Arden Sandstone Formation which previously enjoyed lower status as a member and also higher status as a group.

Pinley Priory, also called Pinley Abbey, was a Cistercian nunnery in the parish of Rowington in Warwickshire, England. It was founded in the early 12th century and dissolved in 1536.The site of the priory is now occupied by the lands and buildings of Pinley Abbey Farm, and only traces now survive of the original priory buildings. The present Pinley Abbey Farmhouse, a Grade II* listed building, dates from the mid 15th century with later alterations. It incorporates part of a wall believed to have been part of an earlier monastic building, that also extends beyond it. To the north-west there is a cottage, originally 14th century but also later altered, that was probably once the priory guest house, also Grade II* listed. Various surviving earthworths, and re-used bits of masonry worked into later buildings, give further clues to the original complex.

Hatton railway station takes the name of the village of Hatton in Warwickshire, England, although it is about 1 mile (1.6 km) from the village. It is situated in the linear settlement of the same name (Hatton Station), that evolved around the station, mainly in the 1950s and 1960s. Other close settlements are Little Shrewley and Shrewley. The station is managed by Chiltern Railways. Hatton is the junction station at which the lines from Leamington Spa to Stratford-upon-Avon and Birmingham diverge. The station is unstaffed; ticketing is restricted to a 'Permit-to-Travel' machine located at the single entrance to the station on the London-bound (southbound) platform. There is a small shelter on Platform 1 (southbound - for trains from Birmingham to Leamington Spa) and also one on the island platform, which consists of Platforms 2 and 3 (Platform 2 is for Birmingham-bound services and Platform 3 is for stations from/to Stratford upon Avon, which bear to the west immediately north of the station. Trains can, however, use both Platforms 2 and 3 to reach Birmingham, as just outside the station, the lines re-join). A footbridge links Platform 1 with island Platform 2/3. Each platform at the station is equipped with a real-time electronic information departure screen.

Rowington is a village and civil parish in the English county of Warwickshire. It is five miles north-west of the town of Warwick and five miles south-west of the town of Kenilworth. The parish, which also includes Lowsonford, Pinley and Mousley End, had a population of 925 according to the 2001 UK Census, increasing to 944 at the 2011 Census. The Grand Union Canal runs just south of the village and the M40 motorway is also close by. The Heart of England Way for long-distance walkers passes through the village. The parish church of St. Laurence which dates from medieval times is found on a hill in the centre of the village. In the Tudor era Rowington manor was owned by Queen Catherine Parr.Possibly the most famous building however is Shakespeare Hall, where a branch of William Shakespeare's family is reputed to have lived at the same time he was alive, and indeed Rowington is specifically mentioned in Shakespeare's will. It has been claimed he wrote As You Like It there. There is a more modern rival claim (dating from 1973) that that play was written at Billesley.There were once several windmills in the village but only one remains and its sails have been removed and the building converted into a house. At one time Rowington quarries supplied sandstone for several important buildings including St Philip's Cathedral in Birmingham, the parish church of St. Laurence and nearby Baddesley Clinton manor house. No quarries remain in Rowington. The village is home to several farms and livery yards. James Blyth once lived in the village and became a life peer in 1995.

Haseley is a small village and former civil parish in Warwickshire, England. It is four miles north-west of the county town of Warwick and nine miles (14.5 km) south-east of Solihull, now in the parish of Beausale, Haseley, Honiley and Wroxall, created on 1 April 2007. The village is on the A4177 and, as it is only five miles (8 km) from the M40 motorway, is easily accessible . Haseley proper, along with Haseley Knob, Haseley Green and Waste Green, consists mainly of detached houses spread over a large area, giving the parish a very low housing density. The 2001 census recorded 207 residents living in 92 dwellings. It is an affluent area, with an average house price of around £277,000 (about $367,325). Due to this and its proximity to the tourist towns of Warwick and Stratford upon Avon, several large and highly rated hotels are around the village. Haseley Manor, a Grade II-listed country house, formerly the staff college for the British Motor Corporation and its nationalised successor British Leyland, now consists of luxury apartments. The parish church, St Mary's, is medieval in origin and revealed evidence of its original decoration during restoration work some years ago.

Ardencote Manor is a hotel and former manor house located 0.5 miles (0.8 km) north of the village of Claverdon, Warwickshire, England. The manor was originally built in 1863 as a dowry house for Mary Phillips, the daughter of a Manchester based wool merchant Thomas. The property passed through several owners until it was purchased in 1980 by a consortium with the idea of turning it into a hotel and country club. After several defaulted attempts the current owner, a Mr Huckerby, took it over in 1996 and finally got the project off the ground.At present the hotel has conference rooms, spa facilities, a swimming pool, tennis courts and an 18-hole golf course.

Claverdon railway station serves the village of Claverdon in Warwickshire, England. It is managed by West Midlands Railway, although most of the services from the station are operated by Chiltern Railways. It is a request stop for West Midlands Railway services that call at the station, but a regular stop for Chiltern Railways services. The line on which the station stands was opened by the Stratford on Avon Railway as a single-track branch in 1860, but was doubled between Bearley and Hatton in 1938 and a new two-platform station was built at Claverdon. When the second track was lifted in 1969 Claverdon reverted to being a single-platform station.

Claverdon is a village and civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon district of Warwickshire, England, about 5 miles (8.0 km) west of the county town of Warwick. Claverdon's toponym comes from the Old English for "clover hill". The hill is near the centre of the scattered parish which included the township of Langley to the south, and formerly comprised the manors of Claverdon, Langley, Kington (to the south-west), and Songar (in the south-east). There are hamlets near the church and at Yarningale, Kington, Lye Green, and Gannaway; and there is also a group of houses near the school. It includes modern development along with historic buildings: the forge; The Stone Building; St Michael's Church; and 16th and 17th century half-timbered cottages.

Wroxall Abbey is a substantial Victorian mansion house situated at Wroxall, Warwickshire which was converted for use as a hotel, spa, wedding venue and conference centre. It is a Grade II listed building.

Wroxall Priory was a medieval monastic house in Wroxall, Warwickshire, England. It was founded c.1135 by Hugh, Lord of Hatton and Wroxall in thanks for his release from seven years' imprisonment in Jerusalem during the Crusades. After reputedly having a vision of St. Leonard, the patron saint of prisoners, he so appreciated the intervention of the saint that he gave 3,000 acres of land to the church in Wroxall to form a monastery for nuns of the Order of St. Benedict which was named the Priory of St. Leonard at Wroxall. A list of the Prioresses up to 1535 and further list of ministers from 1538 circa to the present can be found on the official website. A Charter issued by Pope Alexander III to the Priory of St. Leonard will also be found on the same web site. Along with all the religious houses of England, the house was dissolved in 1536 by Henry VIII. The Priory Chapel survives intact as St Leonard's Church and is a Grade I listed building. It is popularly known as Wren's chapel after Sir Christopher Wren bought the priory estate and is now a cathedral of the Free Methodist Church. It contains the figurine of Prioress Isabella Shakespeare, (aunt of William Shakespeare), and the tomb of Sir Christopher Wren's wife. The ruined remains of the rest of the priory buildings are Grade II* listed.The priory site is now occupied by Wroxall Abbey, a large Victorian house built by James Dugdale, High Sheriff of Warwickshire for 1868–69. It was occupied as a girls' school from 1936 to 1995 but has since been owned by the Quinn family and converted into a hotel. The legend of Sir Hugh is featured in stained glass within the house.

Wren's Cathedral, properly the Church of St Leonard and now a cathedral of the Communion of Evangelical Episcopal Churches, was originally the Lady Chapel of Wroxall Priory. Wroxall Priory was founded in 1141 as the Priory of St. Leonard for nuns at Wroxall, Warwickshire by Sir Hugh-Hatton, eldest son of the Earl of Warwick. He fought in the Crusades and was released after being held prisoner for seven years in Jerusalem and having a vision of St. Leonard, the patron saint of prisoners. He so appreciated the intervention of the saint that he gave 3,000 acres of land to the church in Wroxall to form a monastery for nuns after the Order of St. Benedict which was named the Priory of St. Leonard at Wroxall. A list of the Prioresses up to 1535 and further list of ministers from 1538 circa to the present can be found on the official website. A Charter issued by Pope Alexander III to the Priory of St. Leonard will also be found on the same web site.