Kingshurst
| Kingshurst | |
|---|---|
 Kingshurst
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| Kingshurst shown within the West Midlands | |
| Population | 7,868 (2011) |
| Civil parish |
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| Metropolitan borough | |
| Metropolitan county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | BIRMINGHAM |
| Postcode district | B37 |
| Dialling code | 0121 |
| Police | West Midlands |
| Fire | West Midlands |
| Ambulance | West Midlands |
| EU Parliament | West Midlands |
| UK Parliament | |
Kingshurst is a post-war housing estate and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull, in the West Midlands. It lies about 9 miles (14 km) east of Birmingham city centre. The Smith's Wood area of Solihull borders it to the north and east, Fordbridge to the south and the Shard End area of Birmingham to the west.
The name Kingshurst comes from having previously been a Royal Manor, and "hurst" meaning wood. The earliest record of Kingshurst is in documents from the late 13th and early 14th centuries, when it is referred to as part of the Manor of Coleshill. Tenant farming was administered from here and Simon de Montford of Coleshill was an English nobleman who built a moated manor house near Kingshurst. The Hall had its own park and farmlands.
Kingshurst took on an independent existence from Coleshill with the arrival of the Mountfords. It is unclear how Kingshurst came into their possession although it is probable that they bought the area around 1332 from the Clintons, who were then Lords of the Manor at Coleshill. What is certain is that they were in possession by about 1352.
The Mountfords trace their ancestry back to Gilbert de Gant, who fought with William the Conqueror in 1066. He married Alice, daughter of Hugh de Montfort, another of the knights who accompanied Duke William on his English expedition. As a result of this connection Gilbert's son, named Hugh de Gant, changed his name to Hugh de Monfort and from then on the name continued becoming Mountford by the 15th century.
The last proprietor of Kingshurst Hall, Walter Townsend, lacked the means to prevent the house from falling into a state of disrepair. All plans to salvage it came to nothing, due to a lack of funds. In 1960, Walter was moved to a house in Castle Bromwich and in 1962 the hall was demolished.
The remains of the moat of Kingshurst Hall are still visible today.
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Wikipedia