| Shenton | |
|---|---|
 Shenton (2008) | |
  Shenton Location withinLeicestershire | |
| OS grid reference | SK385002 |
| • London | 94.01 mi (151.29 km) |
| Civil parish | |
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | NUNEATON |
| Postcode district | CV13 |
| Dialling code | 01455 |
| Police | Leicestershire |
| Fire | Leicestershire |
| Ambulance | East Midlands |
| UK Parliament | |
| Website | Sutton Cheney Parish Council |
| |
Shenton is a village and formercivil parish, now in the parish ofDadlington and Sutton Cheney, in theHinckley and Bosworth district,[1] in the county ofLeicestershire, England, situated 2.20 miles (3.54 km) south-west ofMarket Bosworth. Shenton was formerly achapelry and township of the parish of Market Bosworth.[2] The settlement is almost entirely agricultural, containing several farms. Much of the land has been in the same family sinceWilliam Wollaston purchased the manor in 1625. It is essentially a privately ownedestate village and has seen comparatively little modern development.[3] It has been designated a conservation area.[4] The settlement lies either side of the Sence Brook, which is crossed by a picturesque Victorian bridge. The area is fairly flat, and subject to flooding. In 1931 the parish had a population of 154.[5]
The hall has a fine gatehouse dated 1629, and a large, listed dovecote of 1719 within the hall grounds, close to the stable block.[6] The main hall is aGrade II* listed building[7] and was enlarged in the 19th century.[8] The hall itself was sold by the Wollaston family following government requisition during the Second World War, but most of the estate land in the settlement and the surrounding farmland, was not sold.
The Church of St John the Evangelist is aGrade II* listed building[9] and is part of Market Bosworth Benefice.[10] It was rebuilt by the Wollaston family in about 1860.[11] Admiral SirAlexander Dundas Young Arbuthnott is buried in the churchyard and the 17th-century memorial toWilliam Wollaston was moved into the church.
Shenton is close to the site of theBattle of Bosworth, which took place south-west of Market Bosworth. It is one of the four settlements named by the early 17th century historian and local man, William Burton (of Lindley), to define the area of the battlefield.[12] Some of the estate was subject to intensive archaeological surveying in recent years as part of the project to locate the site of the battlefield. The first, highly significant, find of round shot was made just west of Mill Lane, which leads from Shenton to Fenn Lanes Roman road.[13] TheAshby Canal passes to the east of the village and the road to Sutton Cheney and Market Bosworth passes beneath it through a narrow aqueduct tunnel. By the 1870s, the chapelry as it was known then listed 42 houses, along with 206 residents.[14]
Shenton became a parish in 1866, on 1 April 1935 the parish was abolished and merged with Sutton Cheney.[15]
Shenton Train station lies some way from the village on the Sutton Cheney side, east of the canal. It is the southern terminus of the preservedBattlefield Line Railway, which runs to Shenton fromShackerstone. This is a section of what was originally the Ashby to Nuneaton railway line, opened in 1873.[16] The station is located at the foot ofAmbion Hill and is actually the reconstructedHumberstone Road Station fromLeicester. The original Shenton station was demolished in the 1940s, except for a small lamp room that now serves as the Station Pottery.
Media related toShenton at Wikimedia Commons