Stanway, Gloucestershire

Stanway House

Stanway is a small crossroads village in the county of Gloucestershire, England, and about 1 mile south of Stanton: both villages are on the Cotswold Way. The population of Stanway taken at the 2011 census was 343.[1] It is part of the Tewkesbury Borough Council area.

The village is dominated by Stanway House, a Jacobean manor house, owned by the Earl of Wemyss and March. In recent years the house has seen restoration which is ongoing.

The Estate contains the single highest gravity-fed fountain in the UK at just over 300 feet. It was restored for operation in 2004 and can be seen for several miles when running.

St Peter's Church was rebuilt in the 12th century, the tower added in the 13th century and the whole building thoroughly restored in 1896. The Tithe Barn was built in the 14th century for Tewkesbury Abbey. The bell tower contains a ring of five bells dating from (in order 1-5 wish founders) 2014 (Whitechapel, London) 1625 (Worcester Foundry, possibly James Keene), 1904 (Bond of Burford), 1826 (Rudhall, Gloucester) and 1634 (Unknown founder). They are hung for English Change Ringing and were restored in 2015. The largest (Tenor) bell is a maiden (untuned) bell and is listed for preservation. It weighs just over 11cwt.

Stanway war memorial is situated at the south side of the village, at the junction of the B4077 road (which runs from Stow-on-the-Wold to the A46 at the Teddington Hands, 3 miles north of Bishop's Cleeve) and the southernmost end of the Stanton Road. The bronze of St George and the Dragon is by Alexander Fisher, the stone column and plinth by Sir Philip Stott carved by Eric Gill. The war memorial in the church chancel is also by Fisher and Gill.

Stanway has a cricket pitch, a fenced ground, in the middle of a field. The field has an undulating surface, which was reportedly made uneven to make landing difficult for - possibly hypothetical - German gliders during the Second World War. The cricket ground - itself flat - possesses a pavilion, which is built on staddle stones, and was the gift of the author J. M. Barrie who stayed at Stanway House in the 1920s.

The manor house has recently reopened its brewery, one of only two coal-fired brewing houses in the country.

For many years, the Stanway Flower Show was held in the hamlet - and many people travelled to visit the show. The Tithe Barn hosted the exhibits, which included flowers, vegetables and handcrafts, and there was a number of stalls - including a coconut shy and nine-pin bowling - in the grounds of Stanway House.

Locality

References

  1. ↑ "Parish population 2011.Retrieved 2 April 2015".

Coordinates: 51°59′14″N 1°54′51″W / 51.98732°N 1.91404°W / 51.98732; -1.91404


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