Polesworth

Polesworth is a village and civil parish in the North Warwickshire district of Warwickshire, England. Polesworth is situated close to the northern tip of Warwickshire, adjacent to the border with Staffordshire. It is east of Tamworth, and is northwest of Atherstone. In the 2021 census, the civil parish of Polesworth had a population of 8,727 and included the villages of Birchmoor, St Helena, and Hall End directly to the south, and Warton to the East. The built-up area of Polesworth which includes the adjoining village of Dordon to the south which had a population of 9,913 in 2021. The border with Leicestershire is to the east, while Derbyshire is to the north. The River Anker runs through the village. The name Polesworth is derived from "pol" meaning a "pool" and "worth" meaning "a dwelling" or enclosure in the Old English language. Polesworth was once the site of an abbey. Polesworth Abbey was founded in 827 by King Egbert with his daughter Editha (later Saint Editha) as Abbess. It prospered for 700 years but was disbanded as part of the Dissolution of the Monasteries. In 1544 the lands of the Abbey were granted by the Crown to Francis Goodere, who used the stones of the Abbey to build a manor house; Polesworth Hall. Henry Goodere, son of Francis, was a patron of the arts and Polesworth Hall was a centre of culture during Elizabethan times. The poet Michael Drayton was in the service of the Goodere family around 1580, and his works contain allusions to Polesworth and the River Anker. Other notable figures including the dramatist Ben Jonson, architect Inigo Jones and poet John Donne, made up the core of an elite group who became known as the Polesworth Circle. It is also rumoured that William Shakespeare spent time at Polesworth. Polesworth Hall no longer exists, as it was demolished around 1870, and replaced by the vicarage. In around 1509 Thomas Cockayne constructed Pooley Hall, which today includes some of the oldest brickwork in the country. The hall still exists and overlooks Pooley View.