Prestwich-cum-Oldham
| Prestwich-cum-Oldham | |
|---|---|
 Church of St Mary the Virgin, Prestwich |
|
 |
|
| Area | |
| 21,625 acres (87.51 km2) | |
| Population | |
| • 1851 | 94,470 |
| • 1861 | 117,961 |
| History | |
| • Created | High Middle Ages |
| • Abolished | 20th century |
| • Succeeded by |
Prestwich Oldham (parishes) |
| Status | Ecclesiastical parish |
| • HQ | Church of St Mary the Virgin, Prestwich |
| Subdivisions | |
| • Type | Townships |
| • Units | Alkrington, Chadderton, Crompton, Great Heaton, Little Heaton, Oldham, Pilkington, Prestwich, Royton, Tonge |
Prestwich-cum-Oldham (also known as Prestwich with Oldham) was an ancient ecclesiastical parish of the hundred of Salford, within the historic county boundaries of Lancashire, England. With the Parish Church of St Mary the Virgin, Prestwich as its centre, this parish encompassed a total of ten townships, and within them, several smaller chapelries.
Prestwich-cum-Oldham was divided into two non-contiguous sections: the townships of Great Heaton, Little Heaton, Pilkington, and Prestwich on the west; Alkrington, Tonge, Chadderton, Crompton, Oldham and Royton on the east. The parish of Middleton divided these two portions of Prestwich-cum-Oldham from north to south. The parish covered 21,625 acres (87.51 km2) and was noted in 1851 to have a population of 94,470, and again in 1861, to have 117,961.
The parish of Prestwich-cum-Oldham has "no united history", and instead was a loose affiliation of rural townships between the South Pennines and West Pennine Moors that had one early-medieval church building between them. Prestwich-cum-Oldham traces its existence to the colony of priests whose presence gave Prestwich its name, as well as tithes, levies and terms of land-tenure related to the ancient Royal Manor of Tottington, a unit used for governance in the manorial system that spanned most of the territory. Stretching for 13 miles (21 km) from east to west from the High Middle Ages onwards, Prestwich-cum-Oldham was probably larger in extent in earlier times; documents suggest an ecclesiastical connection with Radcliffe and Middleton. Manorialism in the parish was comparatively weak when compared nationally; ruling families were either non-resident or of "only local importance". An exception was the Pilkingtons, from the western portion of the parish, who ranked "among the great families of the county". Their military allegiance to Richard III and the House of York during the Wars of the Roses, though, brought about their overthrow in the late-15th century.
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Wikipedia