Tettenhall

Tettenhall is a historic part of the city of Wolverhampton, England. The name Tettenhall is probably derived from Teotta's Halh, Teotta being a person's name and Halh being a sheltered position. [http://www.localhistory.scit.wlv.ac.uk/articles/Tettenhall/tetten02.htm "A Short History of Tettenhall"] ]

History

The Battle of Tettenhall in 910 was the turning point in the battle against the Viking invaders by Edward the Elder of Wessex. ["Encyclopaedia Brittanica" "United Kingdom: the reconquest of the Danelaw"] It saw the crushing defeat of the last of the large Viking armies to ravage England; and the north part of the village is known as Danescourt.

The Tettenhall Dick pear was named after Tettenhall. These pears are known outside of the Black Country as Perry pears. They are small, dry pears. The Bees & Trees charity began a scheme to plant 2000 Tettenhall Dick trees across the Midlands in a bid to save them as very few of them existed anymore. These trees were grafted from existing Tettenhall Dick trees and the scheme has proven to be a success with trees being planted in a variety of different locations.

Tettenhall today

Tettenhall village green, the Upper Green, is situated on high ground near the edge of a ridge that runs in a broadly East-West direction, from Aldersley to Perton. To the North the ground is gently undulating and heads away from the urban conurbation of the West Midlands towards rural Shropshire and Staffordshire. To the South is a steep drop to the areas of Compton, Newbridge and Aldersley and a fine view of Wolverhampton City centre. The approach roads from the South run through man made cuts in the sandstone to broach the steep ridge, the A41 at a stretch know as The Rock and further West at the minor roads, The Holloway and Wightwick Bank.

The Upper Green has a large paddling pool, an extensive open grass area, a cricket pitch, practice nets and the clubhouse of Wolverhampton Cricket Club.

Tettenhall Lower Green is at the bottom of The Rock. It is a sloping grassy area, popular for sledging on snowy winter days, overlooked by The Mitre public house.

Upper Green has a small shopping area overlooking the green and paddling pool. A clock tower, built in 1912 to celebrate the coronation of King George V, is a key landmark in Upper Green.

The parish church is St. Michael and All Angels, located at the base of the ridge, leading off Lower Green.

The A41 runs through the village green as a single carriageway road. Tettenhall was previously an Urban District in its own right, until most areas become part of the Borough of Wolverhampton in 1966, with some areas of the District being placed within the present South Staffordshire district. Tettenhall retains its rural village character.

There are two wards of Wolverhampton City Council which cover Tettenhall: Tettenhall Regis (the northern part) and Tettenhall Wightwick (the southern part).

Tettenhall is the final resting place of TV presenter Mark Speight. [cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/west_midlands/7370490.stm|title=Funeral for hanged TV presenter|accessdate=2008-04-30|date=2008-04-28|publisher=BBC News]

Education

Tettenhall has its own public school Tettenhall College which is based in "Tettenhall Towers" the former home of the Thorneycroft family. [ [http://www.localhistory.scit.wlv.ac.uk/articles/Tettenhall/tetten02.htm "A Short History of Tettenhall"] ]

The King's C.E. School, formerly Regis Secondary School, is a non fee paying school for 11 to 19-year-olds, in Tettenhall.

Christ Church Infants and Juniors are also prominent schools in the area, linked to the church of the same name, situated in Tettenhall Wood.

St Michael's CofE School and Woodthorne Primary School are also located here.

References

Further reading

* Geoffrey Hancock. "A Tettenhall History". Broadside, 1991.