Monyash
| Monyash | |
|---|---|
 Village green |
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 Monyash
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| Monyash shown within Derbyshire | |
| Population | 314 (2011) |
| OS grid reference | SK149665 |
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | BAKEWELL |
| Postcode district | DE45 |
| Police | Derbyshire |
| Fire | Derbyshire |
| Ambulance | East Midlands |
| EU Parliament | East Midlands |
| UK Parliament | |
Monyash (/muhn-ee-ash/ munyash) is a small village in the limestone southern upland of the Peak District in Derbyshire about five miles west of the market town of Bakewell. It is in an area popular with walkers exploring the network of footpaths around the hills and dales. Centered on a traditional village green, the village, with about 280 inhabitants living in around 145 houses, lies about 900 feet above sea level at the head of Lathkill Dale. The population increased to 314 at the 2011 Census. Tourism and farming (milk, beef and lamb) are the predominant activities of the village. The area has a reputation for beautiful scenery, pleasant walks and a peaceful environment. This tranquillity contrasts with the village’s vibrant past as an important meeting place around 2000 BC, later as a watering point for drovers’ animals at the intersection of several trade routes, and, for over 700 years, as a busy industrial centre supporting the local lead mining industry.
People have been living in and around Monyash since Neolithic times (3750-1750 BC) and probably before then. The nearby impressive stone circle and henge, Arbor Low, was likely built around 2000 BC by people living in the village who also farmed the relatively fertile soils at the head of Lathkill Dale.
The village can attribute its existence, and its name, to water. Lying underneath the centre of the village is a narrow band of clay deposited during the Ice Age. This resulted in pools of standing water, a highly unusual feature in a limestone area. Over time meres (ponds) were fashioned into the clay by the villagers that enabled life before piped water. Only one remains today, called Fere Mere, which is situated behind the Primary School.
The Domesday Book of 1086 names the village as Maneis, a berewick of Bakewell and owned by the King. The name Maneis means "many springs or waters".
In an Anglo-Saxon tumulus on Benty Grange Farm, in the south of the parish, the famous Benty Grange helmet was discovered in 1848.
During the 14th century Monyash prospered from the mining of lead and with the granting of a charter for a weekly market. Indeed, over the next few hundred years Monyash grew into a major lead mining area with its own Barmote Court. Besides farming, other activities included limestone quarrying and marble polishing. As a result of all this activity, by the middle of the 19th century, Monyash was a busy place, with a population of some 500 inhabitants, almost twice what it is today, with a wide range of trades including blacksmiths, cobblers, butchers, wheelwrights, wool merchants, joiners, dressmakers, shoe makers, and five pubs.
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Wikipedia