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In 1066, Whitchurch was called Weston, likely named for its location on the western edge of Shropshire, bordering the north Welsh Marches. By the time Whitchurch was recorded in the Doomsday Book, a 1086 survey of England, Whitchurch was held by William de Warenne, 1st Earl of Surrey, and of Roger de Montgomery. At that time, it was part of the hundred of Hodnet, Shropshire in 1086. The Doomsday Book estimates that the property was worth £10 annually (in 1086) and that it was worth £8 during the reign of Edward the Confessor (1042-1066). The name of Whitchurch is from the Middle English for "White Church",
There are a few old houses, including Higginson’s almshouses founded in 1647.
The birthplace of Sir Edward German, born in 1862, composer of Tom Jones and Merrie England.
Sir Henry Percy (Sir Harry Hotspur) was killed in 1403 at the Battle of Shrewsbury and buried in Whitchurch, only for his body to be later exhumed and quartered. Also buried here is Sir John Talbot, a warrior commander who in 1429 fought French armies inspired by Joan of Arc. He was born at Black Mere Castle; the site is now a scheduled monument named Blakemere Moat , northeast of Whitchurch along Black
- Type:
- Landmark