Whittington, Shropshire Genealogy

Whittington is a village and parish, near Oswestry, in Shropshire, England close to the border with Wales.

The ancient parish of Whittington was made up of the townships of Berghill; Daywall; Ebnal; Fernhill; Henlle; Hindford; Old Marton; Welsh Frankton and Whittington.

History
Whittington's early history appears to have been associated with Cynddylan, the 7th century ruler of Pengwern.

Whittington was granted to William Peverel around 1114 when Henry I of England invaded Powys. It was this William who founded Whittington Castle. This castle was later granted to Roger Powys by Henry II of England and remained in the Powys family until King John of England granted it to the FitzWarin family.

In 1221, the castle was re-built in stone after it had been destroyed by Llywelyn ab Iorwerth of Wales but it is was recaptured by Llywelyn Fawr in 1223. It remained in the hands of the FitzWarins until 1420.

The castle ruins were recently renovated and are open to the public.

The area only became part of Shropshire when it was annexed by of England in the 16th Century.

The parish of Whittington originally formed part of the Welsh Diocese of St Asaph. However, following the disestablishment of the Anglican church in Wales in 1920, the parish was transferred to the English Diocese of Lichfield.

Census Records
The parish of Whittington formed part of the Oswestry Registrar's District.

Church Records
The following records of Whittington are available on the IGI:

Bishop's transcripts held at Lichfield Record Office Bap 1662-1840 Marr 1662-1837 Bur 1662-1840

Civil Records
The parish of Whittington formed a sub-district of the Oswestry Registration District and any entries for births, marriages or deaths from 1837 in Whittington will appear as Oswestry in the GRO Indexes.

Oswestry: XVIII (1837-1851); 6a (1852-1946); 9A (1946-1974).