Felley
Encyclopedia
Felley is a civil parish
in the District of Ashfield
in Nottinghamshire
, England
, located between Hucknall
and Sutton-in-Ashfield
. According to the 2001 census
, the parish had a population of four. Prior to 1974 it was part of Basford Rural District
.
The parish is grouped with the neighbouring parish of Annesley
(pop 1,096) to elect a joint parish council.
of Felley has been overshadowed by the Augustinian priory
, Felley Priory. Therefore, few records of the secular settlement exist.
In 1539, following the Dissolution of the Monasteries
by King Henry VIII
, the priory’s land was granted to William Bolles, but he did not hold them for long. As Mary I
sold the land to Sir Anthony Strelley, whose family held Strelley, near Nottingham
Again the old priory's Felley property reverted to the Crown, James I
letting it to Anthony Millington and his heirs. The Millingtons made it their family seat. It became the home of Gilbert Millington
, Anthony's son. A member of the Long Parliament
and Deputy Lieutenant
of the county in 1642 when the civil war
broke out between Charles I
and Parliament, he was marked out for punishment by the Royalists
who seized and sacked his home at Felley.
Millington was one of those who signed the king's death warrant
, for which at the Restoration
he was condemned to death along with other regicides. However, he was spared the gallows
and spent the rest of his life in captivity on Jersey
until he died in 1676.
Civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
in the District of Ashfield
Ashfield
Ashfield is a local government district in western Nottinghamshire, England. According to the 2001 UK census, it has a population of 111,387. The district is mostly urban, with a tradition of coal mining. There are three towns in the district; the largest being Sutton-in-Ashfield...
in Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire is a county in the East Midlands of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, located between Hucknall
Hucknall
Hucknall, formerly known as Hucknall Torkard, is a town in Greater Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, England, in the district of Ashfield. The town was historically a centre for framework knitting and then for mining but is now a focus for other industries as well providing housing for workers in...
and Sutton-in-Ashfield
Sutton-in-Ashfield
Sutton-in-Ashfield is a market town in the Ashfield district of Nottinghamshire, England, with a population of around 43,000. It is situated four miles west of Mansfield, close to the Derbyshire border.-Geography:...
. According to the 2001 census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
, the parish had a population of four. Prior to 1974 it was part of Basford Rural District
Basford Rural District
Basford was an rural district close to Nottingham, England, from 1894 to 1974. The district consisted of two detached parts, to the north and south of Nottingham...
.
The parish is grouped with the neighbouring parish of Annesley
Annesley
Annesley is a village and civil parish in the District of Ashfield in Nottinghamshire, England, located between Hucknall and Kirkby-in-Ashfield. According to the 2001 census the parish had a population of 1,096. Nearby to the west is Annesley Woodhouse...
(pop 1,096) to elect a joint parish council.
Felley Priory
Throughout its history the hamletHamlet (place)
A hamlet is usually a rural settlement which is too small to be considered a village, though sometimes the word is used for a different sort of community. Historically, when a hamlet became large enough to justify building a church, it was then classified as a village...
of Felley has been overshadowed by the Augustinian priory
Priory
A priory is a house of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. Priories may be houses of mendicant friars or religious sisters , or monasteries of monks or nuns .The Benedictines and their offshoots , the Premonstratensians, and the...
, Felley Priory. Therefore, few records of the secular settlement exist.
In 1539, following the Dissolution of the Monasteries
Dissolution of the Monasteries
The Dissolution of the Monasteries, sometimes referred to as the Suppression of the Monasteries, was the set of administrative and legal processes between 1536 and 1541 by which Henry VIII disbanded monasteries, priories, convents and friaries in England, Wales and Ireland; appropriated their...
by King Henry VIII
Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
, the priory’s land was granted to William Bolles, but he did not hold them for long. As Mary I
Mary I of England
Mary I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from July 1553 until her death.She was the only surviving child born of the ill-fated marriage of Henry VIII and his first wife Catherine of Aragon. Her younger half-brother, Edward VI, succeeded Henry in 1547...
sold the land to Sir Anthony Strelley, whose family held Strelley, near Nottingham
Nottingham
Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...
Again the old priory's Felley property reverted to the Crown, James I
James I of England
James VI and I was King of Scots as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the English and Scottish crowns on 24 March 1603...
letting it to Anthony Millington and his heirs. The Millingtons made it their family seat. It became the home of Gilbert Millington
Gilbert Millington
Gilbert Millington was a barrister and one of the Regicides of King Charles I of England.Millington was the eldest son of Anthony Millington of Felley Abbey, Nottinghamshire and was educated at Peterhouse, Cambridge, becaming a member of Lincoln's Inn in 1614.He was elected as an M.P...
, Anthony's son. A member of the Long Parliament
Long Parliament
The Long Parliament was made on 3 November 1640, following the Bishops' Wars. It received its name from the fact that through an Act of Parliament, it could only be dissolved with the agreement of the members, and those members did not agree to its dissolution until after the English Civil War and...
and Deputy Lieutenant
Deputy Lieutenant
In the United Kingdom, a Deputy Lieutenant is one of several deputies to the Lord Lieutenant of a lieutenancy area; an English ceremonial county, Welsh preserved county, Scottish lieutenancy area, or Northern Irish county borough or county....
of the county in 1642 when the civil war
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
broke out between Charles I
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
and Parliament, he was marked out for punishment by the Royalists
Cavalier
Cavalier was the name used by Parliamentarians for a Royalist supporter of King Charles I and son Charles II during the English Civil War, the Interregnum, and the Restoration...
who seized and sacked his home at Felley.
Millington was one of those who signed the king's death warrant
Execution warrant
An execution warrant is a writ which authorizes the execution of a judgment of death on an individual...
, for which at the Restoration
English Restoration
The Restoration of the English monarchy began in 1660 when the English, Scottish and Irish monarchies were all restored under Charles II after the Interregnum that followed the Wars of the Three Kingdoms...
he was condemned to death along with other regicides. However, he was spared the gallows
Gallows
A gallows is a frame, typically wooden, used for execution by hanging, or by means to torture before execution, as was used when being hanged, drawn and quartered...
and spent the rest of his life in captivity on Jersey
Jersey
Jersey, officially the Bailiwick of Jersey is a British Crown Dependency off the coast of Normandy, France. As well as the island of Jersey itself, the bailiwick includes two groups of small islands that are no longer permanently inhabited, the Minquiers and Écréhous, and the Pierres de Lecq and...
until he died in 1676.