Olton
| Olton | |
|---|---|
 St Margaret's Church |
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 Olton
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| Olton shown within the West Midlands | |
| Population | 12,167 (2011 CensusWard) |
| • London | 117 mi (188 km) |
| Metropolitan borough | |
| Metropolitan county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | SOLIHULL |
| Postcode district | B92 |
| Dialling code | 0121 |
| Police | West Midlands |
| Fire | West Midlands |
| Ambulance | West Midlands |
| EU Parliament | West Midlands |
| UK Parliament | |
Olton is an area of the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull in the West Midlands, England. In the 13th century the Lords of the Manor moved their seat and formed a new settlement, in the junction of two major roads, that village has now grown into a big town called Solihull. It was then that Ulverlei was being referred to as 'Oulton' (meaning 'old town') to distinguish it from the 'new town' of Solihull of which it is now a part. It is located on the A41 between Solihull town centre 4 miles (6.4 km), Acocks Green, 2 miles (3.2 km) and Birmingham 5.7 miles (9.2 km), dating back over a 1,000 years, it is a now a residential suburb, though historically in Warwickshire. Many of the large houses built in St. Bernard's Road and Kineton Green Road during the Victorian and Edwardian period form part of one of Solihull's conservation areas.
Olton means 'old town' and is the site of the manor of Ulverlei from where Solihull was founded. Ulverlei has been translated to mean Wulfhere's clearing or meadow. Wulfhere was the first Christian king of all of Mercia, from the end of the 650s until 675. Wulfhere's father, Penda, was killed in 655 fighting against Oswiu of Northumbria. Penda's son Peada became king under Oswiu's overlordship, but was murdered a year later. Wulfhere came to the throne when Mercian nobles organised a revolt against Northumbrian rule in 658, and drove out Oswiu's governors. As he was a youth, Wulfhere had been kept in hiding until he came of age.
After the absorption of Mercia into the rest of England, Ulverlei became the property of the Earls of Mercia, who if not descendants of the royal house were their successors. The first of these was Leofric, husband of Godiva, heroine of the Coventry legend, and the earldom descended through his son Ælfgar to Edwin, his grandson, who was in possession at the time of the Norman conquest. Perhaps, because of the royal connection, William I granted the lands to Christina, who was descended from King Edmund Ironside.
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Wikipedia