The Villages History
Kindly donated by Christopher Monkhouse
The name 'Warndon' comes from the Anglo-Saxon 'Werman' - to fortify, and 'Dun' - a hill. In the past it has been known variously as Wermindum - 12th Century, Warnington - 15th Century, Warnton - 16th Century and finally Warndon - 19th Century.
In the 1950s, the whole area now covered by Warndon Villages and Warndon estate was classified as housing land. By the mid 1960s, only half the area was built on as the Council ran out of money. I can remember, in the early 1960s, driving a tractor through what are now large glass doors of the Pub/Restaurant on Berkeley Way to drop off hay and straw in the barn.
From 1986, when the first public meeting about the villages took place, through to 1988 when the first roads and houses were built, I was the first Warndon Parish Councilor responsible for roads and footpaths. As such, I met with the City planning officers and housing developers regularly. At the meeting to discuss village and road names, it was suggested that, as the farmland was being buried under bricks and tarmac, some of the old history should be kept - such as farm, field, and previous Rectors names.
The area covered by the villages consisted of four farms: Great Tolladine (Pub on Berkeley Way), Little Tolladine and Warndon Court in the North. Lyppard Grange (Pub near Tesco) in the middle, Lyppard is an ancient form of 'Leopard'. And Trotshill Farm in the South. The road name signs have three sections - area name, village name and road name.
Area Names:
The Harleys - the last farmers of Trotshill Farm.
The Berkeleys - the last farmers of Warndon Farm.
Lyppard - the name of the Farm in the centre.
Village Names:
All those between Woodgreen Drive and the M5 are the names of previous Rectors of Warndon Parish Church There is a list of Rectors names just inside the entrance door from the church porch. It will reveal Pendesham, Hunderton, Beverborne and many others!
Road Names:
The Harleys - are named after various people (engineers, etc) who helped create Britain's past.
The Berkeleys - are named after towns and cities in Britain where castles had been built.
The Lyppards - are named after the original field names of the district, as well as other ancient animal and bird names as detailed here.
