Spital, Merseyside
| Spital | |
|---|---|
.jpg) The Three Stags public house, at the junction of the B5136 Church Road and B5137 Spital Road |
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 Spital
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| Spital shown within Merseyside | |
| Population | 4,190 (2001 Census) |
| OS grid reference | SJ3483 |
| • London | 176 mi (283 km) SE |
| Metropolitan borough | |
| Metropolitan county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | WIRRAL |
| Postcode district | CH62, CH63 |
| Dialling code | 0151 |
| ISO 3166 code | GB-WRL |
| Police | Merseyside |
| Fire | Merseyside |
| Ambulance | North West |
| EU Parliament | North West England |
| UK Parliament | |
Spital (locally /ˈspɪtəl/) is a suburban area of the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, in Merseyside, England. It is located mid-way on the Wirral Peninsula, and is mostly incorporated into the town of Bebington and the most westerly point of Spital forms the most northern edge of Bromborough.
Spital is primarily a residential suburb which has apartments, and close proximity to the motorway network. The area contains shops, two bars, a chip shop and a primary school.
Legend has it that Irish patron saint, St Patrick, blessed a well in the local Brotherton Park during a trip to England.
Spital has a history spanning over 800 years. The first recorded dwelling in the area was a small chapel built sometime before AD 1183 with the name St. Thomas the Martyr. It is not known who built this chapel but was probably used by workers and owners of the Poulton Estate, founded in 1133 at nearby Poulton Lancelyn. In 1283, the brethren of Bebington were given licence to use the forested land where Spital stands today to be used as a hospital for lepers. This hospital was probably attached to the chapel already in the area, but there are no remains of this building today.
The word "spital" was a term given to a place or building (or "spital house") that acted as a hospital or colony for lepers. Therefore, it seems obvious that the name Spital derives from this; however it could also be argued that Spital's name derived from the term "hospitality" - this was due to the large proportion of people who worked as servants at the Poulton estate in Poulton Lancelyn. However many villages with the name "Spital" in their title can be put down to hospitals being in the area many years previously. Poulton cum Spital and Spital Old Hall were the original names for the village until part of this was formally dropped at the end of the 19th century.
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