Англезарк: История и природа Ланкашира

Anglezarke is a sparsely populated civil parish in the Borough of Chorley in Lancashire, England. It is an agricultural area used for sheep farming and is also the site of reservoirs that were built to supply water to Liverpool. The area has a large expanse of moorland with many public footpaths and bridleways. The area is popular with walkers and tourists; it lies in the West Pennine Moors in Lancashire, sandwiched between the moors of Withnell and Rivington, and is close to the towns of Chorley, Horwich and Darwen. At the 2001 census it had a population of 23, but at the 2011 census the population was included within Heapey civil parish. The area was subjected to depopulation after the reservoirs were built.

Anglezarke is derived from the Old Norse name Anlaf and the Old Norse erg, a 'hill pasture or shieling'. The elements together mean 'Anlaf's hill pasture'. In 1202 it was recorded as 'Andelevesarewe'. By 1225, this had become 'Anlavesargh'. In a deed of 1270, three variations were used: 'Arlawesarwe', 'Anlasargh' and 'Anlezark'. By 1559, 'Anlazarghe' was more common.

Human activity around Anglezarke can be traced to pre historic times. Rushey Brow on Anglezarke Moor has a site of special archaeological interest. Evidence is present of a working floor from shelters in the Mesolithic period and flint implements found, dated to 8th millennium BC. Pikestones, a Neolithic chambered cairn, the only one in Lancashire, has an internal burial chamber with evidence of the original entrance and Round Loaf, a Neolithic to late Bronze Age tumulus which can be seen from the route across Great Hill from White Coppice are scheduled monuments on Anglezarke Moor.

Anglezarke was dependent on the barony of Manchester. Albert Grelley gave two oxgangs of land to Robert de Lathom for an annual rent of 3 shillings. Between 1230 and 1264, Robert son of Richard, Lord of Lathom, granted his land known as 'Swinlehehurst' to Burscough Priory. In 1270 Lord Robert de Lathom and Peter de Hepay were in dispute concerning a structure in the common land. The Knights Hospitallers held land at Anglezarke. Anglezarke was joined with Rivington, Hempshaws and Foulds through the founding of the Rivington Church and school by royal charter in 1566. Records are preserved at Lancashire Records Office of the court baron of the Manor of Anglezarke. In 1600, the William Earl of Derby, Edward Rigbye, Thomas Ireland and Michaell Doughtye of Lathom, sold the manor to London merchant, Frances Mosseley and Edward Mosseley of Grays Inn for £400. There was an assignment of the manor of Anlazarghe by Richard Chorlton of Wythington, yeoman, to Richard Banyster of Brightmeate and Asheton Nuttall of Farnworth, gents in 1602, the indenture references earlier documents showing possession by the Earls of Derby and Earl of Northumberland. Other documents show the Earl purchased former church land from the government after dissolution of the monasteries. In the 17th century, the Standishes purchased rights to the manor. In 1721, Sir Thomas Standish leased common land near White and Black Coppice to Sir Henry Hoghton of Hoghton Tower for 21 years. Sir Richard Standish's descendants had inherited an interest in the manor from 1677, until in 1812, when the line came to an end. The extent of the Standish interests is illustrated in a large coloured map produced in 1774 for Sir Frank Standish by George Lang. The manor next passed to a distant cousin, Frank Hall, who assumed the name Standish and died without issue in 1840. Tithe records of 1850 show all land on which rent was due was to be paid to the Earl of Bradford. The tithes due from leases owned by William Standish at Anglezarke were for 88 acres 3 roods and 31 perches of meadow and other land and buildings with sub leases to various parties. Other landowners were the heirs of the Shaw family being Edmund Cunliffe and John Grundy, tithes 11 Great Meadow and 21 kitchen meadow at Jepsons, occupied by William Berry. Richard Rainshaw Rothwell owned freehold on meadow at tithe 12, occupied by Mary Pilkington of Stones House. Richard Willis owned meadow land at tithes 13 and 14, occupiers were Thomas Pilkington of meadow now under the reservoir and Isabella Clayton at long meadow near Brook House. Meadow at Lester Mill, tithe 1, now under the reservoir, was occupied and farmed by Roger Gerrard, alongside Mary Pilkington and her family, who are recorded at the old Lester Mill on the 1841 census. Properties at Anglezarke benefitted from rights in common on the moorland. Percival Sumner Mayhew bought the Standish share in 1898 and held rights to shoot game at the common near White and Black Coppice during his lifetime. At the turn of the 20th century Liverpool Corporation acquired a large part of the land to protect the Rivington water supply and many properties were demolished, leaving only one or two working farms.

In the early 20th century, Foggs Farm, close to Peewet Hall, was vacated. The land was farmed by the Cocker family in the 18th century and by the Pilkingtons in the early 19th century. After properties were taken over by Liverpool Corporation they rented them out but due to neglect of the buildings, high rents, lack of amenities and shift to more accessible employment in towns the old farms were difficult to let and became abandoned, the corporation left them to become derelict, the population declined. The historic buildings and some prominent large stone built homes were either demolished or were used as target practice in military training while the area was under military use in World War II until 1950. Often, remnants of shells and sometimes live ammo have been found in the ruins. The remote farms are now landmarks for walkers and geocachers. The remains of Lower and Higher Hempshaw's, farms inhabited by the Kershaws in the 19th century, are located by a tributary of the River Yarrow which is 300 metres to the southwest. Jepson's Farm and Jepson's Gate are waypoints en route to Pikestones. The last occupants of Old Rachel's were the Evans family in the 1880s. Simms, was once a farm of 52 acres farmed by Samuel Pilkington according to voter records in the 19th century, located on a private track and footpath. The property got its water from Green Withins Brook, a tributary of the River Yarrow and after being taken over by Liverpool Corporation was occupied by the Chairman of Horwich Urban District Council in 1928–29. Waterman's Cottage is at the north end of Anglezarke Reservoir. Shorrocks was occupied by Abel Pilkington until his death in 1888; its ruins are by the bridge at White Coppice ponds at the north end of the reservoir.

In 1850, Thomas Pilkington of the Manor House sold land to the Chorley Water Company to build High Bullough Reservoir, the first reservoir in the area. Demand for stone increased with the building of the Anglezarke Reservoir, the largest in the Rivington Reservoir Chain, in the 1850s. This led to increased production at local quarries. Construction of the Yarrow Reservoir designed by Liverpool's Borough Engineer, Thomas Duncan, began in 1867. It is fed from the River Yarrow and Limestone Brook which have their sources on Anglezarke Moor. The three main reservoirs of the Rivington chain can be viewed at 'The Viewpoint', Moor Road, Anglezarke.

The area was used for food production and military training in World War II. On 16 November 1943, the crew of a Wellington Bomber (Z8799) from 28 Operational Training Unit, flying from Blackpool to Manchester, were killed when it crashed just to the North of Winter Hill, on Hurst Hill, Anglezarke Moor. According to an eye witness, the plane was disintegrating as it crashed and its impact "shook the ground". There is a memorial at the crash site, erected in June 1955 by the Horwich Rotary Club. Each year on Remembrance Sunday, a service is held at the Wellington Bomber Memorial at Lead Mines Clough, next to Limestone Brook. The old lead mines are believed to have played a role in the anti invasion plans in the 1940s. Large amounts of munitions have been recovered from the Anglezarke moors which were extensively used by the military through the Second World War, with military use extending into the early Cold War period when reservists were given use of 1000 acres for military training by the government despite opposition from locals.

Until the early 19th century, Anglezarke was a township in the ancient parish of Bolton le Moors, itself part of the hundred of Salford in Lancashire. In 1837, Anglezarke joined with other townships (or civil parishes) in the area to form the Chorley Poor Law Union which took responsibility for the administration and funding of the Poor Law in that area. In 1866, Anglezarke became a civil parish. It became part of the Chorley Rural Sanitary District from 1875 to 1894, and then part of the Chorley Rural District from 1894 to 1974. Since 1974, Anglezarke has been a civil parish of the Borough of Chorley. Anglezarke is part of the Chorley parliamentary constituency, which elected Lindsay Hoyle as member of parliament for the Labour party at the 2010 General Election.

Anglezarke covers 2,793 acres of high moorland on the western slopes of the West Pennine Moors reaching about 1,000 feet above sea level. Anglezarke is a settlement of scattered farmhouses with no village centre. The hamlet of White Coppice, where there was a cotton mill, is in the north west corner, and Hempshaws, now in ruins, in the south east. The township is crossed by a minor road on the western border from Rivington to Heapey. (b) A vision of Britain through time. (c) Adlington in Context.

Anglezarke's economy is primarily agricultural, with land used mostly for grazing. Some farmers have diversified into providing leisure and storage facilities for camping, caravanning and guest accommodation. Tourists are attracted by the historic landscape and scenery and access to a network of hiking trails.

Anglezarke Quarry is a destination for rock climbing and has been used for training by serious climbers such as Sir Chris Bonington. The area was the location for the 2002 Commonwealth Games Mountain Biking competition. There is an extensive network of footpaths providing public access for hikers.

Anglezarke Quarry was used for filming the TV series Jewel in the Crown in 1984. Musician and poet Richard Skelton used the Anglezarke landscape to inspire his writing and music.