18 June 2024

On what promised to be a lovely summer evening, 17 of our members gathered at The Cross in Quorn to embark on a guided tour of this lovely village, led by well-known local historian Sue Templeman.

Sue described how, many years ago, the main road through the village was an important coaching route from London to the north.  That south-north route crossed the old Salt Way (from East Anglia to the Midlands) at Quorn Cross.  A number of nearby coaching inns reflected the importance of this route.  We were shown the White horse public house nearby and many other ex-coaching Inn sites as we walked around the village.

Today, Quorn (or Quorndon as it was originally called), comes across as a pleasant residential area with a very thriving café and pub culture but, years ago, the scene was very different.  In the Centre, close to today’s very informative Millennium Map, the presence of tanneries and a chandler resulted in unpleasant smells of mutton fat, urine, and dog ‘poo’ (courtesy of the hounds at the once famous Quorn Hunt).  All of the latter were being used in candle or leather production.  Add to these the activities of the night-soil man and the presence of open sewers and factory chimney smoke, and the image is not a rosy one.  Noise and pollution, from Wright’s Mill, which produced heavy duty elastic webbing for the military, added to a very noisy, smelly, polluted environment in the late nineteenth century.

Quorn was also famous for lacemaking (a local man even held a patent for lace evening gloves!) and a lace workshop was located on the spot which the Church Rooms now occupy.

In a more peaceful setting, surrounded by a very large cemetery, is Quorn Parish Church which has been central to life in Quorn since it was built, of pink local quarry granite, around 1150, (although it only became a parish church in 1868).  The church is the only one in Leicestershire which has a family chapel with its own exterior door, separate from the main entrance.  It is owned by the trustees of the Farnham family of Quorn.  John Farnham was a courtier of Queen Elizabeth the First, and, although Farnham’s descendants now live in Leicester, the family’s ashes still have a place in the chapel, which can be viewed, through a locked gate, from inside the Church.  The Farnhams were Quorn’s principal family and they held land from the 1200s until they left Quorn in 1993.

Outside the church we were shown many amazing gravestones, all standing (or lying) in their original positions.  The clarity of their messages, inscriptions, and pictorial engravings (see the attached photo of a ‘Belvoir Angel’ on one of the headstones) owed their longevity to the amazing slate from which they had been hewn.  Many were made of Swithland slate which was tough but very hard to split; others were of Welsh slate which was available when transportation became easier.  A visit to Quorn Churchyard is a must!!

Beyond the churchyard, we passed a number of small attractive cottages before arriving at Rawlins Academy.  Thomas Rawlins, an ex-Londoner, had founded a small school in Woodhouse Eaves in 1691.  This closed in 1864 and a new school opened in Quorn in 1897, funded by The Thomas Rawlins Trust.

Passing the Quorndon Fox, an important coaching inn in the 1700s, we walked along High Street where our Guide pointed out an important building, the premises of local chemist William Shuttlewood from 1905 to 1909.  Shuttlewood’s Chemists was short-lived but his superb, high-quality plate photographs of Quorn and its landmarks survive today and are widely used by historians.

Sue Templeman proved to be an excellent, knowledgeable guide who had obviously researched the history of Quorn over many years.  She is a valuable asset to the village.  Unfortunately, “our lovely summer evening” became a torrential downpour but our group had enjoyed their guided tour of Quorn.

20 August 2024

Peter Smith writes:

If you noticed groups of people wandering around Thurcaston in a confused way one Tuesday evening in August – perhaps taking down details from telegraph poles, staring towards the rooftops or peering at defibrillator instructions – there’s no need for concern: it was just the Local History Society doing something a little different to end our summer programme with a Treasure Hunt around the village.  Our member Barbara Bradley, working with Jim Matthews, had devised the fiendish clues, which required sharp observation and lateral – some might say twisted – thinking.  To keep within the aims of the Society, there were bonus points for historical knowledge.  Rarely can Danger Mouse and Hugh Latimer have featured in the same event!

All the teams managed to make it back to the Wheatsheaf before dark for the solutions to be revealed, prizes to be awarded and a convivial end to the evening.

Barbara Bradley writes:

If you thought an hour’s wander around the village answering a few questions was difficult, try setting the questions.  The original hunt (thanks Jim) being 2 years old had to be checked:  were the answers still visible, still there, still relevant?  Notices had been bleached out and garden ornaments had disappeared with former residents or been engulfed by the rewilding trend!

We checked and rechecked that each clue was unambiguous and could be seen from the path by standing and sitting hunters.  We even rechecked the route before printing the hunt sheets the day before!

The winning team was only 3 points short of perfect and most people are still speaking to me.  So “All’s well that ends well”, as someone once said.

Bonus point if you can name him!

17 September 2024

For our return to indoor meetings in September, we held a second “Village Memories” event, following a successful first session in 2022.  Once again, we welcomed long-term residents of our two villages to join us for an informal conversation under the gentle guidance of our chair, Sylvia Cole.  They shared recollections about how life here was different in the past, which enlightened and entertained the other audience members, as well as providing a slice of oral history for the Society’s archives.

The annual carnival was fondly remembered as a highlight of the summer.  Many of the farmers dressed up as women for the procession, which ended either at the football ground or at Hunter’s Green (now the site of the Wallis Close).  There were also memories of at least one garden party held by the Bryan family at Thurcaston House during the 1960s.  Their grounds used to occupy most of the land between the Memorial Hall and Rectory Lane and included tennis courts and a much-missed row of horse chestnut trees along Anstey Lane.

The 77th Leicester Bradgate Scouts were very active and held fantastic dances in the Village Hall.  Mrs Haddon ran the 1^st Thurcaston & Cropston Girl Guides for many years and the work she put into organizing camps and other activities was highly appreciated – at least with hindsight!  There was also a cub pack and a short-lived Boys’ Brigade, which mostly seems to have involved marching round the hall.  Cropston Chapel once had a thriving Sunday School and its youth club, run by Paul Webster, continued until only about 10 years ago.  However, most of the time children roamed the countryside making their own entertainment, such as collecting tadpoles or building rafts to sail on the brook – and often falling into it!

There were few cars on the roads but bicycles and horses were commonly used for transport, not just recreation.  Gypsies and other travellers regularly stopped in the villages for a few days to help with the harvest at busy periods on the farms.  (Locals could earn a few extra shillings by doing the same.)  Several people remembered a charming tramp known as “White Eyes”.

Other intriguing recollections included Mr & Mrs Bent, who ran a “tea room” off Reservoir Road but only served home-made nettle tea; and the occupants of the Thatch, who kept a badger as an indoor pet.  There must be many more such tales to be uncovered.

16 July 2024

Probably fewer of us find reasons to visit the centre of Leicester these days but a dozen of the Society’s members did just that one fine July evening to discover the architectural treasures we can easily miss when we are focussed on the shop fronts or on avoiding other pedestrians, bikes and scooters.  Our favourite guide, Steve Bruce, started the tour with a warning of sore necks as his subject this time was “Looking Up in Leicester”.

The Town Hall was a good place to start spotting two Leicester emblems that recur all round the city: the cinquefoil (a five-petalled flower) and the wyvern (a two-legged dragon).  Across the square on Horsefair Street, the decorative façade of the Royal Hotel was preserved when the buildings behind were knocked down.

Granby Street has a fine jumble of Victorian buildings, of which Balmoral House was named to evoke Queen Victoria herself.  This narrow building might look ecclesiastical but was in fact a boot and shoe factory.  Opposite, Thomas Cook’s Temperance Hotel was built to a modest design and is now in a poor state but it deserves to be preserved.  Also in a poor state but still open, the Grand Hotel was constructed in multiple phases.  The elaborate “wedding cake” on the corner was by Amos Hall and the extension along Granby Street was by Orson Wright, whose monogram appears in two places.  (Wright was also responsible for developing much of the terraced housing in Newfoundpool and South Wigston.)  One of the city’s most beautiful buildings is the former News Room on the corner of Belvoir Street, which is covered with classical sculptures of the Greek Muses, the Fates and various representations of Arts, Industry and Trade.

Bank buildings were designed to appear solid and reassuring.  Look out for the former Barclays on Gallowtree Gate, which features two hooded figures, one with eyes open and one with them closed, to represent your money being secure both day and night.  Nearby, Steve elucidated us about those better-known landmarks, the Clock Tower and Lewis’s Tower, as well as the much-missed Brucciani’s.

High Street was widened in the Edwardian period to make room for electric trams so it offers some delights from the early 20^th century if you raise your eyes above street level.  They include the golden globe of the Electric Theatre, the glazed tiles advertising Butler’s chemists, and the former Singer Building with its Union Jacks and symbols of British dominions linked by the unbreakable chains of empire!  Do go and explore for yourself.

21 May 2024

In 2022, Janet Spavold gave us an excellent talk called “How to Read a House”, in which she described features of old buildings that you can use to work out their age and history.  At that time she mainly discussed layouts and exteriors but in May we welcomed Janet back for Part 2, which focused more on details and interiors.

Until about the 1570s in our area, most houses had an open fire with no chimney.  When chimneys became fashionable, they were added to the outsides of existing buildings and you can sometimes see that they are barely bonded into the earlier structure.  A chimney extending high above the roofline might show that the building was once thatched.  The chimney’s base is often widened to create an inglenook.  Smaller ones were only intended for heating the room but larger ones were used for cooking: tell-tale signs are a cupboard for keeping salt or herbs dry and a small window that admits light to work by.  If you have a chance to look up inside such a chimney, you might see a bar from which the food or cooking pots were hung, their height being adjustable to control the temperature.  A cheaper alternative to an inglenook was a hood made of timber and plaster.

Bricks thinner than 2½ inches date from before the Brick Act of 1572, which prescribed that as a standard size.  In 1784, the government introduced a tax per 100 bricks to pay for the American War of Independence.  Some manufacturers, such as Joseph Wilkes of Measham, made giant bricks (“Wilkes’ gobs”) to reduce the number needed and they can still be found in the area.  For economy, bricks were sometimes laid on their sides but this resulted in a thinner and weaker wall.  Look round the corner of a house and you will often find that the side walls are made of older or cheaper materials than the facade facing the street.  This trick is known as a “Queen Anne front with a Mary‑Anne back”!  Different regions of the country had bricks of distinctively different colours, according to the local clay.  If you see a house with multi-coloured brickwork, it dates from after the mid-19^th century, when railway transport became available.  The Edwardians were fond of terracotta, which could be moulded into fine details around windows and doors.  Whitwick had a supply of the very pure clay required, which brought more money into the town than its coal mines.

Janet provided much more information on subjects including windows, beams and staircases, which will certainly enhance our members’ future visits to historic houses, not to mention some more venerable pubs!

19 March 2024

In September 1921, there was a violent clash between police and protesters outside Leicester’s Poor Law Offices.  Ned Newitt visited us in March to explain the causes of this “Rupert Street Revolt” and to tell us how Leicester’s poor were treated before the advent of the Welfare State.

The Poor Law of 1834 replaced an earlier system, in which individual parishes were responsible for supporting impoverished members of their community, mostly through payments known as “outdoor relief”.  The new Act bound parishes into Poor Law Unions, each with a workhouse.  You could only obtain relief by entering the workhouse and conditions there were designed to be harsh enough that no-one would choose to go there if they were able to do any other kind of labour.  For example, husbands, wives and children were separated; the food was poor; and occupants were given menial tasks like breaking rocks or picking apart tarred ropes (“oakum”).

Leicester’s workhouse was built soon afterwards on Swain Street – the site now overlooking the sidings of the railway station.  It was designed by the same architect as Welford Road Prison and the two buildings had many features in common.  A recession in 1841 made more people unemployed than the building could accommodate so a manually operated corn mill was installed and out-relief would only be given in exchange for many hours spent working the mill.  The men found that, if they looked like finishing too quickly, the mill would be adjusted to make the work harder.  In protest, they broke the mill, which led to court action and riots.  During a further recession in 1848, applicants for out-relief were required to break stone in a yard.  When the rules were changed to require attendance for 13 hours a day, their protests had to be suppressed by the local militia and a curfew was imposed.  One outcome was that a larger workhouse was built but, with the rapidly growing population of the town, it soon became fully occupied by the aged and infirm, unmarried mothers and the mentally ill.

Alternative provision was gradually made for those unable to work.  The North Evington Poor Law Infirmary received the sick and the Borough and County Lunatic Asylums received the mentally ill.  (These institutions later became Leicester General Hospital, the Towers Hospital and the Fielding Johnson Building of Leicester University.)  The Countesthorpe Cottage Homes were built for orphans.  From 1910, labour exchanges were created and unemployment insurance could be paid for up to 6 months, subject to strict criteria.  The government also established local Distress Funds – though without any funding.

Following the First World War, returning soldiers faced mass unemployment and they rallied under the slogan “Work or Maintenance” to demand that some provision other than the workhouse should be made for them.  By 1921, the Leicester Poor Law Guardians had proposed a relief scheme but it seemed to be endlessly delayed while waiting for approval from government.  The Guardians’ office was on Rupert Street (at the back of Pocklington’s Walk) and on 30^th September, a crowd of protesters gathered outside, demanding an interview.  Their spokesman was Charles Jennett, originally from Leicester but with a dubious history, having deserted from the navy and been arrested several times in London for breaches of the peace.  His presence might explain the action of the police, who emerged from the office wielding truncheons and “striking indiscriminately anyone who came in their way.”  There were many injuries on both sides, including Jennett, who was struck down from behind.  A photograph shows the police leading him away.  During the evening, several thousand people gathered to call for Jennett’s release and there were pitched battles at the Town Hall and the Clock Tower.  On the same day the Guardians offered an increased payment, then followed up with schemes to create work such as digging culverts. Although protests and recriminations continued, they were largely peaceful.

These reforms probably would not have happened without the riot, which was one of many events across the country that contributed to the development of the welfare state as it exists today.  In 1948 the NHS was established and Leicester Workhouse was converted into Hillcrest Hospital for the care of the elderly.  It was finally demolished in 1977 and now only the front gate can be seen.

16 January 2024

What would you discover if you could take a slice through 1500 years of Leicester’s history?  “Leicester Cathedral Revealed” is a project to refurbish the building and accommodate the 10-fold increase in visitors since Richard III was re-interred there.  To create the basement rooms of the new interpretation centre, a hole was cut 6 metres deep in the north-east corner of the graveyard – but not before Mathew Morris and his team from the University of Leicester had seized this rare opportunity to investigate a continuous sequence of archaeology in the heart of the city.  At the Society’s first meeting of the New Year, our members and visitors heard an excellent presentation by Mathew, explaining what the excavation had uncovered.

The uppermost burials date from just before the graveyard was closed in 1856.  In some of them, name plates from the coffins can still be read so we can match the individuals to their historical records.  For example, Edward Wilkinson was a surgeon at the Infirmary – where he bought Leicester’s first ambulance – and subsequently the first house officer at the new Lunatic Asylum.  In 1846 he died of typhus, which was so prevalent in the city that is was nick-named the “Leicester disease”.  Like many of the individuals who have been identified, Edward lived within the parish of St. Martin, close to the church.

Lower levels take us further back in time and reveal changing burial practices.  In the medieval period, bodies were usually buried in simple shrouds, of which the fastening pins can sometimes be found.  In Georgian times, those “at rest” wore sleeping attire but the Victorians preferred to dress them in their Sunday best.  The use of coffins became gradually more prevalent, at first being built by local furniture makers and decorated with upholstery studs; later using mass-produced fittings that can be matched with examples in catalogues from the period.

Towards the end of the excavation, the team discovered a deep pit containing a mass burial.  Radio carbon techniques date it to around 1100AD and this probably represents a previously unknown outbreak of disease in the city.  This date is also earlier than the first written record of St. Martin’s, making it highly likely that it was one of the six Leicester churches mentioned in the Domesday Book.

A final surprise was a chamber of Roman date, which had painted walls and contained the base of an altar.  It was probably a private shrine belonging to one of several cults that worshipped in underground spaces – but not the full-blown Roman temple that legend tells us lies beneath the Cathedral!

Altogether, the excavation found more than 19,000 artefacts and 1237 skeletons.  They are being treated with respect and will be re-buried at Gilroes Cemetery, close to other remains that have been recovered from medieval churchyards.  Meanwhile, analysis of the findings will continue, with researchers in many fields showing interest in the resulting data about the residents of one place over such a long period.  You can follow progress on the monthly blog at:

https://ulasnews.com/leicester-cathedral-revealed/

20 February 2024

In the medieval period, this country had numerous abbeys and priories, which were widely believed to make a vital contribution to society.  The prayers and contemp­lation by the monks and nuns supported the spiritual wellbeing of the whole population.  They also provided services such as education, accom­modation for travellers and charity for the poor or sick.  So why did these institutions disappear and how did some end up as grand stately homes like those at Newstead, Woburn or even Downton Abbey?  At our February meeting, our old friend Peter Liddle explained how the Dissolution of the Monasteries played out in our local area.

The Dissolution happened because of a combination of factors.  Henry VIII was desperate to divorce Catherine of Aragon and marry Anne Boleyn.  The pope would not give permission so in 1534 Henry took matters into his own hands and declared himself Supreme Head of the Church in England.  This gave his chief minister Thomas Cromwell (of Wolf Hall fame) an opportunity to exercise his strongly Protestant views and start dismantling the system of Catholic monasteries.  Cromwell moved quickly: by the following year he had carried out a valuation of the assets of the Church and the first wave of suppression of the smaller religious houses took place in 1536.

The process usually began with a visit to look for examples of misconduct that would provide an excuse for closure.  Then commissioners would arrive with a document for members of the religious community to sign, which surrendered the property.  They were usually offered generous pensions to make it easy to comply, with a threat of violence for those who would not.  The commissioners would then sell off the contents, including any building materials of value.  The lead from the roof was often the most valuable asset: at Leicester Abbey it contri­buted £1000 to the total valuation of £1500.  Removing the roof had the further advantage of making the church unusable.  The land, including any wider estates, was also sold and the proceeds went to the Crown, largely to fund Henry’s wars against France.  Corruption was rife: there are several local examples where the commissioner who was responsible for closing the monastery ended up acquiring the land, while Thomas Cromwell kept Launde Abbey for himself.

There were 15 abbeys and priories in Leicestershire and Peter took us through what is known about each of them.  Leicester Abbey was by far the largest, owning a deer park and estate that extended almost out to Thurcaston.  It was probably considered for conver­sion into a cathedral to split up the enormous diocese of Lincoln.  Instead, that honour went to Peterborough; Leicester Abbey itself was demolished but its grand gatehouse was extended first by the Hastings then by the Cavendish family.  Ulverscroft Priory is the best local example that survives, though its ruins are now at risk.  At Breedon and Owston part of the original church was preserved to serve the parish, while other sites have disappeared completely.  In most cases, the church was destroyed but other buildings such as the dormitory or abbot’s lodging were incorporated into a new country house, which could take advantage of a site with a good water supply, drainage, firm foundations and available materials.  Such houses often have a tell-tale arrangement that follows the plan of the original cloister.  At Launde, Charley and Langley Priory, parts of the medieval fabric can still be found and the same was probably true at Garendon Hall until it was sadly demolished in the 1960s.  The rubble was used to provide hardcore for the building of the M1 motorway so you might be driving over it whenever you pass Junction 23!

19 September 2023

The Carillon is surely Loughborough’s most notable landmark and also a proud memorial to those who died in the First World War and subsequent conflicts.  But how did a small town pay for such a large monument?  The project was first proposed in 1919 and money and donations were secured towards the projected cost of up to £18,000.  However, as building continued, it was necessary to raise further sums from the public to ensure that it could be completed.  For our first indoor meeting of the autumn season, we welcomed Deborah Moxom to tell us about one of those fund-raising schemes: the so-called “Alexandra Bedspread”.

The Bedspread, measuring 8¾ x 7½ feet, has an embroidered picture of the Carillon at its centre, surrounded by hundreds of 4-inch-square panels, machine-stitched together.  Subscribers paid a shilling to sign their name on one of the panels, which was then embroidered over before adding it to the Bedspread.  The finished Bedspread was used to raise further funds at a Grand Bazaar held in June 1923, by offering it as the prize in a “Guess the weight of the Carillon” competition!  The winner was James Collins, landlord of the Volunteer Inn, who proudly added his own signature, along with the word “owner”.  Through the Bedspread, the Grand Bazaar and other measures, there were sufficient funds not only to pay for the Carillon itself but also a surplus to add the marble pavement that now surrounds it.

The Bedspread passed from James to his daughter Ivy, who gave it to Charnwood Borough Council.  Unfortunately, they have not been able to find anywhere suitable to display it, except during temporary exhibitions, so it has remained in storage for many years.  Prompted by one of those exhibitions, our speaker began to research the people who had signed their names and this became something of an obsession for her during lockdown!  The signatures range from royalty – Queen Alexandra and Princess Helena, whose names are outlined with boxes – and Winston Churchill, to family, friends and neighbours of the organizer.  Based on the latter, Deborah has been able to work out that this must have been Frances Bond, whose husband managed the Prudential Insurance office in the town.  Deborah has so far been able to identify the people behind 420 of the 510 signatures and she relayed interesting stories of some of the local men and women involved, as well as speculating about the colourful characters who might have pulled strings to obtain the more prestigious contributions.

16 August 2023

There have been many touring theatre companies in the UK but probably only one actual touring theatre.  The Century Theatre has now come to rest in Coalville, where members of the Society went to visit it in August.  We were given a warm welcome by knowledgeable and enthusiastic volunteers, who provided a talk, historic film, backstage tour and refreshments.

Shortly after the Second World War, two men from Hinckley hit on the madcap idea of creating a mobile theatre, which could visit provincial towns that lacked a theatre of their own.  It took four years to work out the design, raise funds and complete construction but in 1952 the Century Theatre hit the road.  The main stage and auditorium were carried on four wagons, accompanied by 19 support vehicles that provided a booking office, workshops, kitchen, dining room, bathroom etc.  In each town the local council would provide a venue, which might be anything from an elegant park to a slum clearance site, and on arrival the whole travelling company would be involved in assembling the building – a complex operation for which actors were not necessarily the ideal workforce!  The four wagons had to be carefully spaced, jacked up to the right height and aligned using in-built spirit levels and cross-hairs.  Then roof and floor sections were hinged outwards to close the gaps, end panels were fitted and the seating was ingeniously unfolded into place.  The theatre would put on shows for ten days then spend four days packing up and moving on to the next venue.  The wagons had a maximum speed of 15 mph and photos show the tricky task of manoeuvring them through town streets.

The theatre presented a wide range of plays, from Shakespeare to farces.  “Coronation Street” actor Eileen Derbyshire was among those who began her career in the company.  In 1975, changes in road safety regulations made it impractical for the wagons to keep touring so the Century Theatre took up residence in Keswick, where Tom Courtenay, Derek Fowlds, Helen Mirren and Judi Dench all appeared on its stage.  When Keswick acquired a permanent theatre in 1996, the Century Theatre was in danger of being scarapped but Leicester­shire County Council stepped in to buy it as a feature of Snibston Discovery Park.  It was threatened again when the Discovery Park closed but in the subsequent redevelopment of the site the theatre has not only been preserved but a smart new foyer and bar has been added.  It now presents a variety of films, music nights, comedy shows and other entertainments and is known for its good atmosphere and friendly welcome.

www.centurytheatre.co.uk

16 May 2023

Have you ever painted the town red?  At our May meeting, Mick Rawle took us back to the source of the expression, with a potted history of Melton Mowbray.

Though the area was inhabited in prehistoric and Roman times, the origin of the town itself was in the Anglo-Saxon period.  It was centrally located between the “Five Boroughs” of the Danelaw (Leicester, Derby, Nottingham, Lincoln and Stamford) and is first recorded as Middleton, which later became Melton.  The suffix Mowbray comes from Bishop Geoffrey de Montbray, who was granted the manor – among many others – after the Norman conquest.  (Geoffrey was also given the manor of Thurcaston but returned it to the king in exchange for Stanton under Bardon and East Norton.)

Melton was the only place in Leicestershire that the Domesday Book recorded as having a market so its history as a centre of agricultural trade is a long one.  Cheese fairs were held regularly and of course the town became famous for pork pies.  They probably began as a convenient snack that could be taken out hunting but by 1900 the firm of Tebbutt & Co was shipping Melton Mowbray pork pies all around the British Empire.

Melton stands on the River Eye, which becomes the Wreake further downstream.  Though a canal was built along its course during the 1700s and two railways arrived in the 1800s, it was fox hunting that really brought prosperity to the town.  Its location at the junction between the territories of the Quorn, Belvoir and Cottesmore Hunts attracted regular visits from aristocracy and royalty.  Mick has identified at least 17 “hunting boxes” or lodges that they built for use during the hunting season, though not all of them survive today.  In 1890 a famous Midnight Steeplechase was held, with the participants wearing nightclothes, but unfortunately the moon was hidden by clouds and the borrowed railway lamps were barely adequate to light the fences.  Sometimes the revelry got out of hand, as on 6^th April 1837, when a group of drunken “gentlemen” amused themselves by painting several doors, the sign of the White Swan pub and the town constables with red paint!  The offenders were later fined the considerable sum of £100 each at the Derby assizes but their exploits entered the English language.

St Mary’s church was described by Pevsner as the stateliest and most impressive in Leicestershire.  Before Sir Malcolm Sargent went on to national fame as the principal conductor of the Proms, his first job was as organist there from 1914 to 1924.  Nearby is Anne of Cleves’ House, which was built as a chantry house for priests but then given to Thomas Cromwell at the Dissolution of the Monasteries.  Cromwell promoted the marriage of Henry VIII to his fourth wife, Anne of Cleves, but a divorce soon followed, Cromwell was executed and the house passed to Anne as part of the settlement.  In 1550, some townsfolk purchased land to provide income for supporting a schoolmaster, lighting the streets and other good works, and the Town Estate that they created continues to run the Melton’s market and public parks to this day.