Description:PATSHULL is situated in the south west of Staffordshire and juts in the neighbouring county of Shropshire. It is now 1,824 acres in area. The name is said to mean Paettel’s Hill.
In the Domesday Survey of 1086, Patshull appears as Pecleshella and it was held by Robert de Stafford and tenanted to Hugh. The recorded population was 19. There was sufficient land to support 6 ploughs and 6 are recorded in total, of which two served the demesne (lord’s) land. A mill is also listed.
By 1563 12 households were recorded and 13 households were assessed for the payment of the hearth tax in 1666. the largest of these was Patshull Hall.
By 1461 the manor of Patshull had been acquired by the Astley family. During the Civil War the Astleys, who were Royalists, fortified their manor house, which was attacked in 1645. As a result the Astley property was sequestrated but regained by the family in 1654. In 1765 Sir John Astley sold the estate to Sir George Pigot, who had acquired his wealth in India. Sir Robert Pigot sold Patshull to the Earl of Dartmouth in 1848. The Earl of Dartmouth was looking to move away from the family seat at Sandwell as the industries, growing population and development of West Bromwich started to move uncomfortably close.
Lord Dartmouth took up residence himself at Patshull Hall in 1853 and this is reflected in the population figures for the village. These rose from 112 in the 1851 census to 194 in the 1861 census, owing to the increase in the size of the household at the hall. The house and estate remained in the ownership of the Earls of Dartmouth (Legge family) until after 1958. During the Second world War part of the house was used as a rehabilitation centre. The hall has now been extensively renovated and is a hotel, conference and leisure centre.
The original Astley manor house was moated and was a large house with 18 hearths, as recorded in the hearth tax returns in 1666. It was described by Robert Plot in 1686 as ‘the most accomplished and delicious mansion in the whole county. This may have been due in part to its surrounding gardens. In the 18th century, a new manor house was built, with building beginning in the 1730s. The architect was James Gibbs but he appears to have been soon succeeded by William Baker of Audlem. Further work was carried out on the house in the 1850s by William Burn. The gardens at Patshull have always been of particular interest with very formal gardens laid out in the 17th century. Sir Richard Astley’s interest in fighting cocks was represented in the statuary and there was also an aviary. In the later 18th century the park was landscaped and it seems probable that ‘Capability’ Brown was consulted by Lord Pigot. The creation of the new park resulted in the removal of some existing houses.
A church at Patshull is recorded in the reign of King John. The present church of St Mary was built in 1743 and is situated within the park. Its design is Classical by James Gibbs. It contains a number of monuments to the Astleys and Pigots as well as to members of the Dartmouth family. Roman Catholicism was strong here in the 17th century because the Astleys were a Catholic family. A house belonging to Edward Hand was licensed a a place of worship for Congregationalists in 1672.
A school was provided at Burnhill Green in 1868, paid for by Lord Dartmouth, and enlarged in 1894. Attendances over the years were never high and the school closed in 1965.
Agriculture was always the predominant occupation in Patshull. Sir George Pigot, who owned the estate between 1796 and 1841 was described as farming ‘upon a magnificent scale’. He imposed strict conditions upon his tenants in terms of improving and maintaining their farms.
For more information about Patshull, see the Victoria County History Staffordshire, Volume XX pp 161-172.