{"id":35756,"date":"2020-04-05T19:04:15","date_gmt":"2020-04-05T19:04:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.fiveminutesspare.com\/travel\/?p=35756"},"modified":"2021-01-08T16:50:56","modified_gmt":"2021-01-08T16:50:56","slug":"mansfield-the-five-minute-spare-guide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fiveminutesspare.com\/travel\/mansfield-the-five-minute-spare-guide\/","title":{"rendered":"Mansfield: The Five Minute Spare Guide"},"content":{"rendered":"

Mansfield The Epitome of a Nottinghamshire Market Town.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Mansfield\"<\/p>\n

Mansfield is a market town with a history that extends back to Roman settlement times. It lies on the route between\u00a0<\/span>Sheffield<\/span><\/a>\u00a0and Sherwood Forest, in an area of international acclaim. It is an interesting town and initially, we wanted to find out about the towns Roman roots \u2013 wasn\u2019t it mostly forest back then?<\/span><\/p>\n

Let\u2019s find out the\u00a0<\/span>Five Minutes Spare<\/span><\/a>\u00a0way\u2026 This time our story starts around 40 AD\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n

Early History of Mansfield<\/span><\/h2>\n

Mansfield was once called Mamesfelde, to the point where this is how it is recorded in early history. It quite literally means the field on the River Maun. It has become a popular\u00a0<\/span>second name<\/span><\/a>\u00a0in some areas. In very early Britain those who had no second names would name their families after towns or areas. If you are of the Mansfield family then you are probably descended from old English roots.<\/span><\/p>\n

The earliest settlement of Mansfield would have been around Roman times when a villa is said to have been erected. The remains of this villa were discovered in the 18th century and a stash of Roman coins was later found in the same area. Back in those days you would bury your treasure instead of banking it. Especially if you wanted to hide it from your enemies or invading parties \u2013 like the Vikings.<\/span><\/p>\n

In Roman times the town fell under the territories of the Cortani and would have been in the province of Flavia Caesariensis. The discovered villa is recorded and even drawn out in great detail (<\/span>here<\/span><\/a>) but has been lost to time and the farmer\u2019s plough since. A terrible shame. Evidence doesn\u2019t suggest the presence of a fort, though, so the potential single villa may have been a summer residence for a noteworthy Roman.<\/span><\/p>\n

For the next nearly a thousand years, not much mention is made of Mansfield. We do know, however, that Sherwood Forest was an important Viking site. Among the same trees that Robin Hood would call home hundreds of years afterwards, the Vikings held meetings and used the forest as a sort of court space. Disputes would be settled, cases pled and fights witnessed \u2013 all in the forest. This likely happened because of its central location to Nottinghamshire<\/span>[i]<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

The Viking site of honour in Sherwood is called Thynghowe. Here, a circle would have been held to pass judgement on another Norsemen. Although Mansfield might never have held a Viking fort town, it still contributed to the Viking world.<\/span><\/p>\n

Domesday \u2013 Not the End of the World<\/span><\/h2>\n

By the time of the Domesday Survey, Mansfield had grown enough to become mentioned, at least. Under the entry of Mamesfelde, it is recorded as having a notable population of 20.7 households. We are not sure what the .7 is all about. Maybe it had twenty households and one beggar.<\/span><\/p>\n

The lands of Mansfield belonged to the King in 1086\u2026 that\u2019s the Norman King who had invaded ten years before\u2026 King William. This means it probably belonged to Saxon nobles before this. At any rate, the land contained two leagues of woodland, 24 acres of fields, 1 mill, 1 fishery and two churches. This is so sizable it is in the top 40% of all settlements recorded. The previous owner is marked only as King Edward.<\/span><\/p>\n

They also had 35 villagers, 5 freemen, 20 smallholders, 2 priests (a sign of astonishing wealth) and 19.5 ploughmen. Again\u2026 we\u2019re not sure where the .5 ploughmen came from and we really don\u2019t want to speculate. If you want to read the entry yourself you can visit the\u00a0<\/span>Open Domesday Archives<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Sometime in the 1100s, a Royal lodging was built in Clipstone, a nearby settlement. Known as King John\u2019s Palace, this area was used as a retreat by royals and nobles right up until the 15th century. Throughout this period, those same royals might be spotted around Nottinghamshire, perhaps even visiting the noble families of Mansfield\u2026 so much information has been lost to time.<\/span><\/p>\n

In 1227 the town was granted its first actual market charter. This meant that previous markets were technically illegal. The charter was granted by King Henry III and allowed \u2018the men of Maunesfield\u2019 to have a Monday market. In 1377 this charter was extended by Richard II to allow a four day fair, to commence two days after the Feast of the Blessed Peter and Paul. It is also recorded that the Parish church of St. Peter was damaged in a fire<\/span>[ii]<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

In 1475 the Church gained an extra two Chantry chapels. Unfortunately, through most of the middle ages, the Churches were the only folk that thought to write anything down. While this is brilliant for posterity \u2013 there is a lot of church detail and not much else.<\/span><\/p>\n

The next entry into the history books comes in 1546 when 130 houses were burned to the ground. A woman was caught, tried, and hanged in nearby Nottingham\u2026 Still, in 1581 another 150 houses were burned down by accident at Stockwell gate. As an interesting note, the town set up a commission to evaluate Sherwood forest. It had nothing to do with Robin Hood. Back then, there were 480 oaks around the town that had existed for more than two hundred years\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n

The following century saw the sale of King John\u2019s Palace to the Earl of Newcastle and the founding of an alms-houses to help the poor in town. Let\u2019s take a moment to talk about some of the fun facts to come out of Mansfield before we go any further.<\/span><\/p>\n

Fun Facts about Mansfield<\/span><\/h2>\n

Loads of awesome things have happened in this area throughout the years. Here are some of the\u00a0<\/span>Five Minutes Spare<\/span><\/a>\u00a0favourites!<\/span><\/p>\n

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  1. Mansfield is the recorded centre of Sherwood Forest \u2013 probably because of that first commission arranged away back in the 1500s. The centre of the forest is in West Gate.<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. Mansfield city council like to boast that the town centre is a better rated shopping centre than Covent Gardens, in London. We can\u2019t testify to this, but we can laugh at their arrogance. Read more about when the\u00a0<\/span>BBC<\/span><\/a>\u00a0got involved\u2026<\/span><\/li>\n
  3. DH Lawrence wrote about the town in Lady Chatterley\u2019s Lover. He described how it used to be a romantic town before the collieries took over.<\/span><\/li>\n
  4. Mansfield Railway Station is on the aptly-named Robin Hood line, and the whole town has a Robin Hood connection.<\/span><\/li>\n
  5. Speaking of which the town had no railway service from 12 October 1964 – 10 November 1995. This was due to the Beeching purge, which for reasons known only to the man himself deemed Mansfielddidn’t need a station. There were over 400,000 rail journeys from the town in 2019!<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    As you can see, there is no shortage of fun to be had in a town once mistakenly described as the worst place in Britain. We simply don\u2019t agree. We do think, however, that before the Industrial age there might have been a little less concrete to the place.<\/span><\/p>\n

    Mansfield\u2019s Great Expansion<\/span><\/h2>\n

    Like many sleepy English towns, the Industrial Revolution hit hard and fast. The streets swelled to accommodate the new residents. The main industries grew based upon coal mining, but soon came to incorporate red and white sandstone quarrying, some of which was used to build\u00a0<\/span>Westminster<\/span><\/a>! Mansfield grew so much during the revolution that it became Nottinghamshire\u2019s second largest town\u2026 impressive.<\/span><\/p>\n

    1731 saw the opening of a Charity School which led to education for even the poorest children. In 1702 the Old Meeting House in West Gate was opened. 1776 saw the addition of a bridge following rioting over pay. A trade meeting was interrupted, the papers were seized, and the peasantry carried them through the streets! From this point forward workers were paid their dues.<\/span><\/p>\n

    It was in 1786 that two separate Roman Villas were discovered \u2013 although they have been lost to the years. A second charity school was opened, and a reverend opened a learning retreat at Cromwell house\u2026 which isn\u2019t as weird as it sounds. The industrial revolution in Mansfield started, it seemed, with education.<\/span><\/p>\n

    In the 1800s there was further rioting regarding the cost of bread, but it didn\u2019t last long. The masses took their rage out on the baker houses. Around this time the population had grown to nearly 7,000 people\u2026 so presumably their riots were vicious.<\/span><\/p>\n

    1819 saw the arrival of the railway into and out of town. IT transported coal dug from nearby mines out to steelworks around Nottinghamshire. The gas works were built in 1824 and were shortly afterwards used for street lighting\u2026 a trend that would continue until electricity replaced gas lamps at the start of the following century.<\/span><\/p>\n

    1836 saw the addition of a town hall and the introduction of a Poor Law Union, who were meant to look out for the poor and avoid future riots\u2026 A clock was placed on the town hall the following year and new union workhouses were built. The people of Mansfield were dragging themselves out of the gutters, piece by piece.<\/span><\/p>\n

    After this things really sped up. A bank was added, public baths were opened, and a brewery sprang up. The cemetery was extended, and St. John\u2019s Church opened. Old Dial\u2019s Yard was built from an old public house in 1841, the White Hart Inn was founded in \u201973, and the population passed 8k. The fifteen-arch railway viaduct, the jewel of the town, was completed in 1875 and a cattle market was added two years later. In 1891 the population was 15,925 people. In one hundred years it had more than doubled\u2026 and all thanks to that railway.<\/span><\/p>\n

    Let\u2019s pause again, this time to talk about famous people out of Mansfield\u2026 are there any? Let\u2019s find out!<\/span><\/p>\n

    Famous People from Mansfield<\/span><\/h2>\n

    Some of the most widely recognised public figures to be born in Mansfield include:<\/span><\/p>\n