WHITE LADIES ASTON
Eastun, Estun (xi cent.); Eston (xii and xiii cent.);
Bishop's Aston, Aston Episcopi (xiv cent.); Bysshopusaston, Byshoppes Aston (xv cent.); Aston Episcopi,
Whiteladiaston (xvi cent.).
The parish of White Ladies Aston lies to the
south-east of the town of Worcester. Bow Brook,
running southwards into the River Avon near Defford,
forms the eastern, and Saw Brook, a tributary of Bow
Brook, forms the southern boundary. The area of
the parish is 1,236 acres. In 1905 the parish contained 446 acres of arable land and 772 of permanent
grass. (fn. 1)
The soil is clay with a little sand and the subsoil
is Lower Lias. The chief crops are wheat, beans
and barley. The slope of the land is from west to
east, the highest point, 205 ft. above the ordnance
datum, being on Low Hill, on the western boundary
of the parish.
The village of White Ladies Aston lies near the
centre of the parish, a little distance to the south of the
Alcester and Stratford road. The houses are grouped
along a winding by-road, running roughly north and
south, with the church at the east side of the road
at the north end of the village, to which the many
half-timber cottages with their thatched roofs give
a characteristic and unspoiled appearance. Aston
Hall, a farm-house at the lower end of the village, is
a half-timber L-shaped house two stories in height, with
tiled roofs. The north wing, containing the kitchen
and dairy, though encased in 18th-century brickwork,
dates probably from the 16th century, and originally
formed a rectangular cottage of the normal central
chimney type. The south wing, comprising a large
hall and connecting staircase with apartments above,
was added early in the 17th century, the house being
then transformed into one of greater importance.
The timbers of this latter part of the house are
exposed, and the square panels which they form are
filled with lath and plaster work. Against the gabled
west wall is an original square brick chimney stack
with a long vertical panel on the outer face in which
the brickwork is arranged in a lattice pattern. The
hall has a cellar under the east part, and is now
divided into two apartments with a modern chimney
stack on the east. The dog-legged stairs between
the hall and kitchen are of early 17th-century date,
and have square newels with moulded finials, chamfered rails, and plain flat balusters. Between this
and the kitchen is a doorway made through the south
wall of the original building, one of the horizontal
timbers being partly cut away. The kitchen has a
fine ceiling with a heavy beam along the centre
about 12 in. square supporting the cross members,
and a wide open fireplace. The brick chimney
above is mainly original. Some of the old half-timber work of this part of the house is exposed at
the north gable. At the north-west of the house
there is a timber barn with a thatched roof, which
dates probably from the 17th century, and at the,
north-east there is another of similar character and
date. An old stone cider press in another barn near
the house is still in use.
A little to the north of Aston Hall, facing a bend
of the road, is the house known as the 'Moat Farm,'
which appears to have been rebuilt early in the
19th century to the west of the moated site from
which it takes its name. The moat, which is still
filled with water, is nearly perfect. Aston Court (fn. 2)
is a modern red brick house of no architectural
interest. Sneachill is a hamlet in the north-west of
the parish on the Worcester and Evesham road.
The nearest railway station is Stoulton, 1½ miles
from the village, on the Great Western railway.
The Worcester and Evesham road forms the
western boundary, and from it in the north of the
parish another road branches off and runs east to
Naunton Beauchamp, crossing Bow Brook by Edward's
Bridge and ford. In the south another branch from
the Worcester and Evesham road runs to Pershore.
Other roads lead from the village of White Ladies
Aston north to Churchill and south-east to Peopleton, the latter crossing Bow Brook near Hays Brake
by Barrel Bridge and Barrel Ford.
An Inclosure Act for White Ladies Aston was
passed in 1825. (fn. 3)
Chimney Stack at Aston Hall, White Ladies Aston
The following place-names have been found:
Farmelandes (fn. 4) (xvi cent.); Hunt Place and Cock (fn. 5)
(xvii cent.).
MANORS
The manor of ASTON formed at
the time of the Domesday Survey a
part of the manor of Northwick, (fn. 6) and
was probably given with Northwick to the Bishop of
Worcester, as no separate grant of it has been found.
Before 1086 Urse D'Abitot the Sheriff had obtained
possession of part of the manor of Aston, and though
this land was included under the possessions of the
see of Worcester it does not appear that Urse did
any service for it. Three hides and a virgate in the
manor were held under the Bishop by Ordric, and
this land had been and then was part of the demesne
of the capital manor of Northwick. (fn. 7) King William I
restored land at 'Eastun' to Bishop Wulfstan, (fn. 8) and
this was probably Ordric's holding at Aston, for the
land held in the manor of Northwick by
the bishop in demesne had increased
between 1086 and the time of Henry I
by 3 hides, approximately the amount
of Ordric's holding at White Ladies
Aston. (fn. 9) Part of the manor of White
Ladies Aston was given by Bishop Theulf
(1113–23) to Robert de Evercy, (fn. 10) but a
manor called 'the manor of Aston
Episcopi' was retained by the bishop
and remained in the possession of the
see of Worcester (fn. 11) until 1648. It was
then sold by the Parliamentary trustees
for the sale of the lands of the bishops
to Thomas Rawlins, Edmund Giles and
Christopher Giles. (fn. 12) It was restored to
the see at the Restoration and remained
in the hands of successive bishops until
the death of Henry Pepys, Bishop of
Worcester, in 1860, when it became
vested in the Ecclesiastical Commissioners, who are the present owners. (fn. 13)
Walter, Bishop of Worcester, obtained
a grant of free warren at 'Eston' in
1255. (fn. 14)
The part of the manor given by
Bishop Theulf to Robert de Evercy (fn. 15)
probably comprised half the vill of
Aston, (fn. 16) and afterwards became known
as the manor of WHITE LADIES
ASTON. It was held of the Bishop of
Worcester's manor of Northwick by
knight's service. (fn. 17) Robert de Evercy
held the manor in 1166, (fn. 18) and he or a
descendant of the same name obtained a
recognition of his right to present to the
church of Aston in 1204. (fn. 19) Olimpia
daughter and heir of Robert de Evercy
married Ralph de Wilington, (fn. 20) and in 1205 Robert
granted half the vill of Aston to Ralph and Olimpia,
retaining for himself a life interest in the estate, (fn. 21)
and this was confirmed by a fine in 1207. (fn. 22) Ralph
de Wilington received seisin of the manor in 1208, (fn. 23)
Robert de Evercy having died at about that time. (fn. 24)
In 1215 Walter Gray, Bishop of Worcester, recovered
from Ralph de Wilington the manor and advowson of
Aston, (fn. 25) and in March 1215 the Sheriff of Worcester
was commanded to give the bishop seisin of the
manor, which, it was said, his predecessor Bishop
Mauger had held before he fled the country in
1208. (fn. 26) In 1216 the sheriff was ordered to restore
the land to Ralph, (fn. 27) but between 1216 and 1218
Ralph with the consent of his wife Olimpia granted
the manor and the advowson of the church to
Silvester of Evesham, Bishop of Worcester, (fn. 28) and
Cecily de Evercy, widow of Robert de Evercy, released all her claim to a third of the manor to William
of Blois, who succeeded Silvester as bishop in 1218. (fn. 29)
This estate evidently formed part of the manor at
Aston granted about the middle of the 13th century by Bishop Walter Cantilupe (1237–66) to the
newly-founded nunnery at Whistones, (fn. 30) for in 1346
it was stated that the Prioress of Whistones held a
fifth of a knight's fee in Aston Bishop and Barbourne which 'Ralph de Wilymet' once held. (fn. 31) The
estate of the nunnery also included half a hide at
Aston held in the time of Henry II by Robert de
Burford, (fn. 32) and early in the 13th century by Walter de
Burford, of the Bishop of Worcester's manor of Northwick, for the service of a tenth of a knight's fee, (fn. 33) this
land having been acquired by the nuns before 1299. (fn. 34)
Whistones Nunnery was suppressed in October 1536, (fn. 35)
and at that time the nuns' manor of White Ladies
Aston consisted of demesne lands worth £6 7s. 10d.,
a rent of 64s. 4d. and king's alms amounting to
£10. (fn. 36) The manor was granted on 14 July 1544
to Richard Andrews and John Howe, (fn. 37) and they on
30 July sold it to Thomas Hill. (fn. 38) Thomas died in
1557, (fn. 39) but this manor does not seem to have passed
to his son and heir William, but to a younger son
Francis, who had joined with his parents in buying
the manor. (fn. 40) Francis Hill died in 1611, leaving a
daughter Alice wife of Richard Andrews of Piddington, co. Northants. (fn. 41) Richard and Alice sold the
manor in 1612 to Robert Berkeley of Spetchley, (fn. 42)
and the manor has since descended in the same way
as Spetchley to Robert Valentine Berkeley. (fn. 43)
Land at White Ladies Aston, afterwards known as
the manor of ASTON BRULEY (Nether Aston,
xvii cent.), was held under the Bishop of Worcester
as of his manor of Northwick (fn. 44) by the Bruleys from
very early times. In the Bishop of Worcester's
Domesday (c. 1182), Richard de Bruley is entered
as holding a hide at Aston, (fn. 45) and Richard 'Brusle' is
mentioned in the Pipe Roll of 1175–6. (fn. 46) In the early
13th century a descendant of Richard's bearing the
same name held a hide at Aston for the service of a
fifth part of a knight's fee. (fn. 47) Milicent widow of
Richard de Bruley sued Henry de Bruley in 1274–5
for not keeping a covenant made between them as to
3 virgates of land at Aston under Oswaldslow. (fn. 48) No
further mention has been found of this manor until
1346, but it probably passed from Henry Bruley to his
son Henry, (fn. 49) and from him to his eldest son William. (fn. 50)
Henry Bruley son of William left a daughter Agnes,
who married a cousin William Bruley, (fn. 51) and William
in 1346 held the land in Aston which Richard
Bruley had formerly held. (fn. 52) In 1413–14 he and
Agnes conveyed a toft and 2 virgates of land in Aston
Bishop to John Lynton and John Bertelmewe. (fn. 53)
William and Agnes Bruley had
a son John, whose daughter
and heir Joan married John
Danvers of Ipswell and Calthorpe, co. Oxon. (fn. 54) John
Danvers died about 1448, (fn. 55)
and Thomas, the eldest son of
John and Joan Danvers, died
in 1502 without issue, being
succeeded by his brother Sir
William Danvers. (fn. 56) The manor
passed in 1504 (fn. 57) from Sir
William to his son John, who
died in 1508, leaving an
infant son John. (fn. 58) On his
death while still a minor in 1517 (fn. 59) this manor
passed to his youngest sister Dorothy, who married
Nicholas Hubaud or Hubold. (fn. 60) It was settled in
1532 upon them and the heirs of their bodies with
remainder in default to Dorothy's heirs. (fn. 61) Nicholas
died in 1553 and Dorothy in 1558, (fn. 62) and the
manor was sold by their son Sir John Hubaud to
William Solley, (fn. 63) whose son Leonard Solley held it
at the time of Habington's Survey of Worcestershire. (fn. 64)
In 1610–11 Sir — Fitton, kt., was lord of the manor
of Aston Bruley. (fn. 65) Its further descent has not been
traced, and the manor no longer exists.
Danvers. Argent a bend gules with three martlets or thereon.
The manor at White Ladies Aston held in 1086
by Urse, in the manor of Northwick, remained part
of that manor probably till about the middle of the
13th century. (fn. 66) The bishop's overlordship seems to
have lapsed after that time. Urse's interest in the
manor passed with his other possessions to the Beauchamps, who were overlords of this manor until about
1316, when the overlordship is mentioned for the
last time. (fn. 67)
This manor was held under Urse D'Abitot by
a certain Robert, and, like the manor which he
held at Warndon, this manor passed subsequently to
the Bracy family. (fn. 68) It descended apparently in the
same way as Warndon until, according to Habington,
it was sold by Robert Bracy to Walter Cantilupe,
Bishop of Worcester (1237–66), who endowed
Whistones Nunnery with it. (fn. 69) Robert de Bracy
was said to be holding Aston about 1316, (fn. 70) and in
1346 the manor was again returned as held by
Robert Bracy, (fn. 71) but all records of the estate cease
after this time.
Habington refers to another property in White
Ladies Aston, which he states was held by Sir Hugh
de Eston in 1269, and descended to Richard de
Eston, whose heir Isabel married Adam de Clifton.
He adds that 'Clyfton injoyed thease landes in Eston
tyll thys family once worthy but nowe synckinge with
theyre ruinatinge house, Mr. Francis Clyfton sould
thease in Eston called Clyfton's place to Richard
Wagstaffe, and Wagstaffe to Mr. Thomas Simonds
who now inhabiteth theare.' (fn. 72)
There seems to be little evidence to confirm this
account beyond a claim by Elena daughter of Richard
de Aston in 1313–14 from John son of Richard le
Clerk of Aston Bishop of a third of two messuages and
land in Aston Bruley which Isabel wife of Richard le
Clerk claimed as dower. (fn. 73) In 1594 Eleanor and
Anne Clifton had livery of three messuages in White
Ladies Aston or Nether Aston (Aston Bruley), which
had belonged to their grandfather Nicholas Clifton at
the time of his death in 1588. (fn. 74) The Thomas
Symonds who purchased from Wagstaffe was probably
Thomas Symonds of Aston Bishop, who died in 1640. (fn. 75)
In 1656 George Symonds and Jane his wife and
Thomas Symonds conveyed a moiety of the manor of
White Ladies Aston to Jasper Brittaine and Thomas
Harris, (fn. 76) evidently for the purpose of some settlement.
George Symonds died in 1664, (fn. 77) and was apparently
succeeded by Thomas Symonds, Sheriff of Worcester,
in 1669. (fn. 78) Mr. Symonds of White Ladies Aston
was executed in 1708 for the murder of Mrs. Palmer
of Upton Snodsbury, (fn. 79) and his estate escheated to
Bishop Lloyd as lord of the manor. He founded
therewith in 1713 two schools called the Bishop's
Charity Schools in Worcester. (fn. 80) The estate still
belongs to the trustees of the Charity, and is leased
to Mr. Robert V. Berkeley.
A very fine old black and white timbered house
was the residence of the Symonds family. Here it
was that Cromwell slept on his way from Evesham
to Worcester before the battle, Symonds being a
great Roundhead. The house and some land came
to Thomas Henry Bund, who pulled down the house,
and ultimately sold all his land in the parish about
1836 to Mr. Berkeley of Spetchley. (fn. 81)
There is some indication that there was a manor
of the RECTORY in this parish. When the manor of
White Ladies Aston was granted to Richard Andrews
in 1544 the mansion and chief messuage of the
rectory of Aston Bishop was included in the grant, (fn. 82)
and this mansion is mentioned in the inquisition
taken on the death of Francis Hill in 1611. (fn. 83) In a
deposition taken in 1610–11 there is mention of
a court held for Francis Hill in his house called the
Parsonage House in White Ladies Aston. (fn. 84)
CHURCH
The church of ST. JOHN BAPTIST
consists of a chancel measuring internally 23 ft. by 13 ft., nave 40 ft. by
17 ft., north aisle 10 ft. wide, and a vestry north of
the chancel. The aisle and vestry were added in
1861, up to which date the church had stood unaltered in plan since the 12th century. Larger
windows had, however, been inserted, one in the
south wall of the chancel at the end of the 14th century and another to the nave in the 15th. The
timber tower and spire, which rise above the roof
at the west end of the nave, have no distinctive
features, but probably the oldest timbers date from
the 15th century.
During the incumbency of the Rev. Henry Martin
Sherwood, who was vicar from 1839 to 1911, the
church was restored and enlarged. Besides the addition of the aisle and vestry the west wall was rebuilt in 1861 and the south porch added in 1864.
The walling of the chancel is small, wide-jointed
rubble work. The east window is a single round-headed light, probably original. A small round-headed light of modern stonework in the north wall
is either a repair or an insertion, and in the south
wall of the chancel is a two-light window under a
square head. Further west is another round-headed
window with modern stonework. The chancel arch
has square jambs with square abaci and a three-centred arch. The modern arcade to the north aisle
is of three bays with round and octagonal piers and
responds. The aisle is lighted by pairs of lancet
windows and the north doorway is of modern stonework in the style of the 12th century. The south
window of the nave is square-headed and of two
lights partly restored. The round-headed south
doorway is evidently of the 12th century, but only
the abaci and a few other stones are old. In the
modern west wall are two lancet windows with a
quatrefoil in the gable above.
The tower is supported on strong wood posts which
stand in the church. Its sides are boarded and covered
with lead on the west and south faces; the windows
to the bell-chamber are square and luffered. The
upper corners are chamfered off to the octagonal spire,
which is covered with wood shingles. The roofs are
gabled and have plastered ceilings.
The font, probably of the 13th century, is of a
dark red sandstone with a twelve-sided bowl. The
other fittings are modern.
There are three bells: the first dated 1707; the
second 1636, inscribed 'Give prays to God'; the
third 'Sancte Jacobpe, ora pro nobis,' with a crowned
female head and a cross.
The communion plate includes an Elizabethan cup
and cover paten with the hall mark of 1571.
The registers before 1812 are as follows: (i) mixed
entries 1558 to 1660 and baptisms 1661 to 1717,
marriages 1661 to 1705 and burials 1661 to 1709;
(ii) baptisms and burials 1718 to 1812 and marriages
1719 to 1753; (iii) marriages 1755 to 1812.
ADVOWSON
The advowson of the church of
Aston was evidently granted with
the manor of White Ladies Aston to
Robert de Evercy, for in 1204 Robert paid two
palfreys for having a confirmation of his right to present to the church, which seems to have been questioned by the Bishop of Worcester. (fn. 85) From that time
the advowson followed the same descent as the manor
of White Ladies Aston, (fn. 86) Mr. Robert Valentine
Berkeley being the present patron.
There do not appear to be any endowed charities
for the benefit of this parish. The children attend
the National school at Bredicot.