Shropshire

Frodesley ( FRODZ-lee) is a tiny village and civil parish in the English county of Shropshire, and is situated partly within the Shropshire Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The population of the civil parish at the 2011 census was 256. The population was 223 in the 2021 census. The name probably derives from an Anglo-Saxon chief "Frod" who was the founder, and leah or clearing. It is mentioned in the Domesday Book: one hide paying tax, land for two ploughs, woodland for 30 pigs, valued at eight shillings. Most of Frodesley extends perpendicular to the south-west extension the Roman road Watling Street, running from Wroxeter (Viroconium) to Leintwardine (Bravonium or Branogenium) - Iter XII of the Antonine Itinerary. An important route built in the 1st century AD, the stretch here has been in continuous use. The parish has an area of about 900 hectares and lies between two hills, one at 145 metres on arable land, the other Lodge Hill rising to 304 metres and forested. The latter consists of Hoar Edge Grit, a tough Ordovician sandstone quarried for the construction of Viroconium. The forest is also known as Causeway Wood, possibly on account of a Roman track used to convey stone to the main road. There is a conjecture that this causeway corresponds to a bridleway running from the north-east edge of the forest. Originally a chapelry of Condover, the medieval church of St Mark was demolished and replaced with the present small Georgian church in 1809. Notable for its box pews, it is a Grade II listed building. A north aisle was added in 1859. The congregation has been declining for some years. On the edge of Lodge Hill lies a curious old building, built in 1591, known as Frodesley Lodge, or the Stone House. At the northern end is a round tower containing a spiral stone staircase the whole height of the building, opening on to the leaded roof, which has extensive views. Apparently it was built as a hunting lodge by Edward Scriven (1549-1631). Generations of his Scriven ancestors dating back to Reginald Scriven, who died in 1428, were born and died in Frodesley, as did Edward's son, Sir Thomas Scriven (1584-1644). Formerly isolated, the oft renovated Lodge now lies among more recent barn conversion dwellings. Just down the hill from the Lodge is the venerable, 90% dead, Frodesley Oak, more than 700 years old. A document from 1848 mentions the discovery near the Lodge of a Roman votive altar dedicated to the goddesses of Britain and bearing the name L Caractacus. Between 1922 and 2018 the village had its own water supply managed by the "Frodesley Water Committee". It was decommissioned because of irreparable corrosion to the pipes. Until July 2006 there was a public house, the Swan. This has since been converted to a private dwelling. Sir Herbert Edwardes, the 19th century soldier-administrator in India, known as the "Hero of Multan", was born at Frodesley when his father was local Rector. The 19th century naturalist and entomologist Frederick William Hope, donor of Oxford University's Hope Collection of insect specimens, was briefly parish curate at Frodesley. The area is agricultural, predominantly livestock with some arable. Nearby villages are Acton Burnell and Longnor.

Acton Burnell () is a village and parish in the English county of Shropshire. Home to Concord College, it is also famous for an early meeting of Parliament where the Statute of Acton Burnell was passed in 1283. The population at the 2011 census was 544. The village today has a post office and Anglican parish church, as well as a Roman Catholic cemetery.

Pitchford is a small village in the English county of Shropshire. It is located between Cantlop and Acton Burnell and stands on an affluent of the River Severn. Pitchford takes its name from a bituminous spring/pitch in the village, located near The Row Brook. It is home to Pitchford Hall, one of the most notable Elizabethan houses in Britain. The Church of St Michael and All Angels stands near to the house which contains a carved oak 13th century effigy of Sir John de Pitchford. It is also the name for the civil parish.

Pitchford Hall is a Grade I listed Tudor country house in the village of Pitchford, Shropshire, 6 miles south east of Shrewsbury. It was built c.1560 on the site of a medieval building and has been modified several times since, particularly in the 1870s and 1880s when it was substantially restored, remodelled and extended. It is a timber-framed two-storey building with rendered red sandstone panels, a stone roof and brick chimneys. The floor plan is E-shaped round a courtyard to the south with a Victorian service wing to the west. There is also an orangery and walled garden on the grounds. A deer park established in 1638 was disparked in 1790. 100 metres north of the hall is a bitumen well, near a ford across the Row Brook, from which the village gets its name. The bitumen or pitch was once used for waterproofing the timbers of the house. A 17th-century tree house in a large lime tree is one of the oldest in the world. A stretch of the Roman Watling Street runs through the estate. The hall and its contents were sold at auction in 1992. The hall was repurchased in 2016 by the Colthurst family, who had retained the estate, and is under restoration after falling derelict.

The Tomb of John De Pitchford is a 13th-century carved effigy and tomb chest of John De Pitchford (d. 1285), located at St Michael and All Angels’ Church, Pitchford, Shropshire, England.Although little record survives of John De Pitchford's life, he is assumed to have been either a knight or sheriff. His monument is positioned in the chancel of the church, and is made from solid oak, making it one of only three extant 13th-century English tombs retaining their original wooden elements.

St Mary's Church is in the village of Acton Burnell, Shropshire, England, and stands near the ruins of Acton Burnell Castle. It is an active Anglican parish church in the deanery of Condover, the archdeaconry of Ludlow, and the diocese of Hereford. Its benefice is united with those of St Andrew and St Mary, Condover, St Mark, Frodesley, and St Michael and All Angels, Pitchford. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building.

Acton Burnell Castle is a 13th-century fortified manor house, located near the village of Acton Burnell, Shropshire, England (grid reference SJ534019). It is believed that the first Parliament of England at which the Commons were fully represented was held here in 1283. Today all that remains is the outer shell of the manor house and the gable ends of the barn. It is a Grade I listed building on the Statutory List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest.

Acton Burnell Hall is a 19th-century country house, now used as a private school, located near the village of Acton Burnell, Shropshire, England. This house was built near to the castle in 1814 by the Smythe family. The hall is in classical style and is a Grade II* listed building. It is surrounded by parkland, with two lakes and a Gothic folly (Sham Castle). This folly has round towers, gothic windows and dates to 1780, standing on a mound in a field surrounded by trees. It was built for Sir Edward Smythe by Joseph Bromfield and used by the Smythe family as a music room.Acton Burnell Castle was another folly in the grounds. Large entrance doors were knocked through the private residence buildings. A pyramid roof structure was placed on top of a tower, turning it into a dovecote.Monks from the monastery of St Gregory’s, Douai, took refuge with Edward Smythe, the 5th baronet, until his death, whereupon they moved to Downside, Somerset in 1814. The relatively modern Hall and surrounding land is now a privately owned college, Concord College. The gable ends of the great barn, where the parliament sat, survive and are situated on the private land.

Concord College is an independent co-educational international day/boarding school in Shropshire, England situated in the grounds of Acton Burnell Castle. The college admits students aged between 12 and 19; the majority of whom come from overseas. Concord College excels in academic results with an 85% A*-A at A-level and 82% A*-A at GCSE level.In 2009, to celebrate its 60th year, Concord was visited by the Princess Royal.

Cantlop is a small village in the English county of Shropshire. It is part of the civil parish of Berrington. Nearby villages include Condover, to the west of Cantlop, and the village of Berrington to the north-west, on the other side of the Cound Brook which flows to the north of Cantlop, and Pitchford to the south. The area is largely agricultural. The elevation at Cantlop Cross is 96 metres (315 ft) above sea level.

Cantlop Bridge is a single span cast-iron road bridge over the Cound Brook, located to the north of Cantlop in the parish of Berrington, Shropshire. It was constructed in 1818 to a design possibly by Thomas Telford, having at least been approved by him, and replaced an unsuccessful cast iron coach bridge constructed in 1812. The design of the bridge was innovative for the period, using a light-weight design of cast-iron lattice ribs to support the road deck in a single span, and appears to be a scaled-down version of a Thomas Telford bridge at Meole Brace, Shropshire. The bridge is the only surviving Telford-approved cast-iron bridge in Shropshire, and is a Grade II* listed building and scheduled monument. It originally carried the turnpike road from Shrewsbury to Acton Burnell.

Ruckley and Langley is a civil parish in Shropshire, England. It is centred on the hamlets of Ruckley and Langley. The population at the 2011 census can be found under Frodesley. It is situated south of Acton Burnell and west of Kenley.Langley Chapel, in Langley, is a small church, built in 1601, and now owned by English Heritage.