Astley, Warwickshire

Historical Description

Astley, a parish in Warwickshire, on the Sow brook, 3 miles SW of Stockingfcrd station on the M.R., and 4½ SW by W of Nuneaton, under which it has a post office; money order office, Stockingford; telegraph office, Stockingford railway station. Acreage, 2629; population, 275. The manor belonged to the family of Astley, one of whom fell on the field of Evesham fighting against Henry III., two were taken prisoners on the field of Bannockburn, and one was distinguished for military services in the time of Henry VIII.; it passed by marriage to the Greys of Ruthin, of whom were the Duke of Suffolk and his daugliter, Lady Jane Grey, who suffered on the block for their claim to the crown; and it now belongs to the Newdegate family of the neighbouring seat of Arbury Hall. Astley Castle, the ancient residence of the Greys, rebuilt in the time of Queen Mary, was allowed to fall into neglect, and was used as a farmhouse; but is now a renovated. and handsome residence, and contains the writing table and chair used by the Duke of Suffolk when in hiding after the failure of Sir Thomas Wyatt's insurrection. The old parts of it are picturesquely clothed with ivy, and a moat around it has remains of massive masonry along the inner edge, and is overshadowed with fine trees. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Worcester; value, £138. The church is part of an edifice built in the time of Edward III. by Sir Thomas de Astley, and was formerly cruciform, and adorned with a tall spire, which served as a landmark in the broad surrounding woodlands, and was popularly called " the Lanthorn of Ar-den." It now consists of chancel, nave, S porch, and an embattled tower with pinnacles; it was restored in 1876. It contains a monument to the Duke of Suffolk, mentioned above, and his wife, and a brass of the fifteenth century. There is a third monument, supposed to be that of Lady Jane Grey.

Administration

The following is a list of the administrative units in which this place was either wholly or partly included.

Any dates in this table should be used as a guide only.

Church Records

The Warwickshire County Record Office hold the following registers for Astley:

Most of the records prior to 1911 have been digitised and are available on Ancestry.co.uk

Directories & Gazetteers

We have transcribed the entry for Astley from the following:

• Samuel Lewis' A Topographical Dictionary of England, by Samuel Lewis, seventh edition, published 1858. (Astley (St. Mary))

Land and Property

The Return of Owners of Land in 1873 for Warwickshire is available to browse.

Maps

Online maps of Astley are available from a number of sites:

• Bing (Current Ordnance Survey maps).
• Google Streetview.
• National Library of Scotland. (Old maps)
• OpenStreetMap.
• old-maps.co.uk (Old Ordnance Survey maps to buy).
• Streetmap.co.uk (Current Ordnance Survey maps).
• A Vision of Britain through Time. (Old maps)

Newspapers and Periodicals

The British Newspaper Archive have fully searchable digitised copies of the following Warwickshire papers online:

• Leamington Spa Courier

Visitations Heraldic

The Visitation of Warwickshire 1619 is available on the Heraldry page.