Sutton Coldfield's Parade before conversion into a shopping mall (See Below)

The Arms of Sutton Coldfield are based on the Arms of the towns greatest benefactor, John Harman, otherwise known as Vesey. Born in Sutton in the fifteenth century, he attained high office during the reign of King Henry VIII, being consecrated Bishop of Exeter in 1519. From the Arms of Vesey, the town Arms have taken the cross on a silver field with a stags head in the centre, and four birds, one on each arm of the cross. The stag surmounting the helmet holds two gold crossed keys and a sword, which are taken from the Arms of the Bishopric of Exeter. The mitre on the shield is a further allusion to Vesey as Bishop. The gold greyhound and red dragon supporters were used on the Arms of the early Tudor kings and commemorate the fact that Henry VIII granted a charter of incorporation for Sutton Coldfield to be a Royal Town in 1528 and placing the Chase and Manor in the hands of a local body for the benefit of the inhabitants in perpetuity.

John Harman, the eldest son of William and Joan Harman, was born in about 1462 in a property on the estate of Moor Hall in Sutton Coldfield. It is likely he was brought up in the household of distant relations of his mother, the Veseys, whose name he adopted as his own.  He studied at Oxford and in 1489, having taken holy orders, was appointed chaplain to the household of Henry the Sevenths' Queen, Elizabeth of York, a post he held when the future King Henry the Eighth was born to the Queen in 1491. Vesey rose to distinction as a result of natural ability, hard work, ambition and a pleasing manner. He was, in his 40's, well entrenched in the ecclesiastical hierarchy.

In 1509, Henry the Eighth became King and Vesey was one of a handful of men to whom the inexperienced and wilful King came to rely upon. In 1519, Vesey was appointed Bishop of Exeter, and the following year, he was one of six bishops to accompany King Henry the Eighth to an important meeting with Francis the First in France.

Vesey returned to Sutton Coldfield in 1524 to attend his mothers funeral and found his home town was in a sorry state. Under the patronage of the Earls of Warwick, Sutton had once been a busy and prosperous market town but when Richard Neville Earl of Warwick died in 1471, his lands, including the manor of Sutton, were forfeited to the crown. By 1524, the market place was deserted and the Manor House had been demolished.  Vesey did not like what he saw.

In 1528 Vesey obtained from the King a charter of incorporation for Sutton which entrusted the government of the town to a warden and 24 local inhabitants known together as the Warden and Society of the Royal Town of Sutton Coldfield. He rebuilt the market place so that the fairs and markets could flourish again, built a town hall and founded the Grammar School which still bears his name.  He died at Moor Hall in Sutton on October 23rd 1554 and he is remembered by a monument in Holy Trinity Church.

The association of Vesey with Henry the Eighth was also instrumental in giving to Sutton Coldfield the Tudor Rose as its emblem. Henry the Eighths father, Henry Tudor, Earl of Richmond, and grandson of Owen Tudor, a Welsh knight, had become the first sovereign of the House of Tudor.

Not caring greatly for the complicated heraldic devices of mediaeval times, he took for his own emblem a simple rose, whose petals of both red and white, symbolised the reconciliation which took place between the Houses of York and Lancaster at the end of the Wars of the Roses.

While hunting one day in Sutton Park, Henry the Eighth, accompanied by Bishop Vesey was subjected to a sudden and quite unexpected charge by a wild boar. Before the animal could harm the King, however, it fell dead with an arrow through its heart.  The cry went out for the kings unknown saviour to be brought forward so that royal gratitude could be shown in some tangible way.  Much to the Kings surprise, the unseen marksman was found to be a young and beautiful woman and when Henry was told that her family had been dispossessed of their property, he ordered that restitution should be made to them.  Furthermore, to the young woman herself, he presented the Tudor Rose, his family emblem, which he said should henceforth also be the emblem of Sutton Coldfield, the girls native town.

Sutton Coldfield has a mention by Shakespeare, spoken by Falstaff. 

"Bardolph, get thee before to Coventry. Fill me a bottle of sack;
our soldiers shall march through; we'll to Sutton Cofil tonight."

Henry IV, Part 1, Act IV, Scene 2.

As a result of a forced merger of land boundaries, a takeover by Birmingham Metropolitan District in 1974,
Sutton Coldfield was forced to lose its Coat of Arms.  Still much lamented by Sutton Coldfield residents to this day, as was the acquisition by Birmingham!!

Trinity Church - March 26th 2003

Reddicap Hill - 26 March 2003

Trinity Church Sutton Coldfield Jan 2001

The Lych Gate, Trinity Church, Sutton Coldfield - Jan 2001

Trinity Church Sutton Coldfield from the North - Jan 2001

And in the opposite direction, the road to Lichfield - Jan 2001

Once probably the proud home of a successful business man, now some sort of antique shop - Jan 2001. Stands on Maney Corner.

Our one and only cinema, the art deco styled Odeon. - a listed building (Jan 2001) And this image taken in Nov 2001 - Note "facelift"?

Looking down Birmingham Road towards the centre of Sutton Coldfield and the Gracechurch Centre (Nov 2001)

Looking back towards Sutton Coldfield Town Centre from Reddicap Hill (Nov 2001)

Reddicap Hill, taken on 13 February 2004 for an Australian correspondent.

St Georges Barracks as it was in approx 1956 when an RAF Maintenance Unit. Numbers: (1) Where I live, extreme right of the picture. (2) What was main gate when St Georges Barracks. (3) Building where I worked when it became the home of the Army School of Recruiting. (4) Leftover from WW2, a Barrage Balloon hangar.  This was still there when I worked there 1991-94 and was painted white; used as a gymnasium. It was a "listed" building but had to be demolished as it was built with asbestos linings and was too dangerous to keep. (5) Barely visible - a Spitfire sits here, just to the left of the "5". This whole area is now a private housing estate.

The Three Tuns Public House Sutton Coldfield, allegedly the oldest surviving building in
Sutton Coldfield - old coaching station. Supposedly the oldest building in Sutton.

I took this on the way into Aldridge on the way home one morning en route to Four Oaks, then home - April 2004

Gracechurch Centre near Post Office

Gracechurch Centre By Boots (right)

Gracechurch - Main Concourse

The sign, almost hidden in the middle of the roundabout, denotes the Royal Town of Sutton Coldfield

Victoria Street Car Park & Sutton Market in background

Victoria Street Car Park & the "chippy". Nothing to do with the late George Best I might add.

Looking towards Holy Trinity Church and eastwards from top of Victoria Street Car Park

Building on left is the town Library and Gracechurch car park beyond

Looking towards Boldmere from Victoria Street Car Park

Sutton Library & Adult Education Centre

The next 8 photos were taken on January 11th 2006 and reflect the changing face of central Sutton Coldfield

Behind The Cup, Birmingham Road. The current trend (2006) in buildings is mass produced EXPENSIVE so called "luxury apartments".

Looking towards the Gracechurch Centre from Birmingham Road

Watch That space! What was a tree lined car park is now going to be a long row of shops and probably more "luxury" apartments

The roundabout at the top of Gracechurch with a sign that still denotes The ROYAL Borough of Sutton Coldfield

Built in seconds, cost a fortune, will last for years (maybe!)

Birmingham Road from the Roundabout

Gracechurch and some of the shops

The Bus terminal at Gracechurch

Birmingham Road looking back towards Town Centre

Plantsbrook School.  These and those below taken Sunday 26 Nov 06

Looking towards Wylde Green from Victoria Car Park roof

Trinity Church from Victoria Car Park roof

Victoria Road - looking right

The Market

Library

Looking back towards Victoria Car Park on South Parade

New Hall Hotel
The oldest moated house in the world!

New Hall is reputed to be the oldest listed inhabited moated house in England. Prior to the Norman Conquest the land was owned by Edwin, Earl of Mercia, who was executed by William the Conqueror in 1071 and his property was annexed by the Crown. In 1126 Henry I exchanged it for other lands with Roger de Newburgh, Earl of Warwick. By 1340 the estate was held by another Earl of Warwick, Thomas Beauchamp, who in the following year released it to Sir John Lizours, Knight, using the name “New Hall” for the first time. During the Wars of the Roses, 1455- 1485, the fortunes of the Hall waxed and waned, as did those of the Earls or Warwick, and in 1487 Anne, Countess of Warwick, ceded it again to the crown. By 1525 William Gibbons was in residence and it was his son, Thomas Gibbons, who made the first extensions in 1542.

1590 saw the advent of perhaps the most notable ancient family to occupy the Hall. Henry Sacheverall of Morley and Callow purchased the estate and embarked upon improvements to the house. On his death in 1620, it passed to his son Valens, and he in turn was succeeded by his son George who had for his chaplain the famous Jacobite firebrand Dr Henry Sacheverail (no relation). The doctor took up residence with his patron at New Hall after his trial for sedition in 1709 and he was later imprisoned at the house. George’s great nephew, Charles Sacheverall Chadwick, a descendent of one of the Knights who fought for the conqueror at Hastings, inherited the estate in 1715. The house remained a Chadwick possession until 1897, though it was used as a boy’s school for a few years. John de Heley Chadwick, the last of the Chadwick family to reside at New Hall, added to its size and appearance in 1870 by enlarging the north wing and building up the central tower.

Walter Wilkinson purchased the estate in 1903 and resided at the Hall for the remainder of his life. Alfred Ernest Owen was the next owner in 1923, and New Hall later became the home of his famous son, Sir Alfred Owen, Chairman of Rubery Owen and Company Limited. Michael Blakemore another Midland business man was the last person to live at New Hall before it was bought by Thistle Hotels in 1985 and has been run as a as a luxury Country House Hotel since May 1988. New Hall is one of the leading hotels in Birmingham and the West Midlands area, receiving many awards and accolades since its opening and has become famous for looking after many of the stars that perform in Birmingham and the National Exhibition Centre. The Great Hall and the Dining Room are of Anglo Saxon origin. The walls of the Great Hall are lined with Oak panelling of the late 16 Century. Fine mullioned windows contain medallions of Flemish glass of excellent 16 Century workmanship. The fireplace is 17 Century with a carved Oak overpiece. In the Dining Room the moulded stone fireplace is late 17 Century. The 16” Century Flemish glass has old Dutch wording. Other windows have the Sacheverall Arms and Crests of the various branches of the Sacheverall family and the “Fate of the Cow” is shown in three insets. The Great Chamber originally constructed in 1542 by Thomas Gibbons, was enlarged by Henry Sacheverall at the end of the 16 century, the oak panelling being of this period. The fine ribbed ceiling of moulded plasterwork, adorned with ormula and gilt, is also Elizabethan. The windows are glazed with small leaded quarters and many have diamond writings by George Sacheverall, dated 1689. Two superb 18 Century chandeliers complete the room. The moat, originally formed in medieval times to provide protection, is fed by seven springs. The terraces, which travel southwards of the moat, are 16 or 17 century and other features of the garden were probably added during the 1 and 19 centuries. The grounds have extensive established shrubbed and wooded areas. Source: New Hall

Birmingham Road, from Gracechurch.

This is about to be transformed by developers, they will try and squeeze building into every possible nook and cranny and - at a price!!

Park peripheral land near Wyndley Leisure

Moorhen foraging in the fallen leaves

Town Gate leading into Sutton Park

Looking towards Town Gate and Sutton Park

How many of you can recall the "olde shoppes" of days gone by? We still have one of these in Sutton Coldfield - the Ironmonger.

Marvellous classic comedy. Here are some images of the ironmongers in Sutton Coldfield - This is Adams.

And now, looking towards Gracechurch Shopping Centre from Barclays Bank which is opposite The Cup Public House. The clock tower corner is now the home of an Aldi supermarket. Taken on 31st October 2006.

Xmas 2006. Note the proliferation of Christmas Decorations (not)!! This is due to us being part of the People's Republic of Birmingham - a "pc" organisation.

Once Royal, now part of the Socialist Empire of Birmingham, and the state of the sign clearly shows this.

This sign is situated on the roundabout outside Gracechurch on the Birmingham Road

Birmingham Road Sutton Coldfield, by contrast Erdington, a few miles along this road, is festooned with politically correct  "winter festival" decorations

A few glittery anonymous "trees" illuminate a few lamp posts

When I arrived in Sutton Coldfield in the early 90's this was a busy farm, next to New Hall Hotel. Then the developers got their grasping hands on it.

Driveway leading to New Hall. Xmas 2006

And, the hotel itself. Xmas 2006

obviously too warm to hibernate these days.

This was to be our total snowfall for that winter

out exploring this strange occurrence

Spring 2008, the sun is shining, the air is warm, so I brushed the cobwebs and dust off the bike and went off again, first through New Hall

with bluebells, fresh grass and the trees full of blossom

but if you carry on back up the drive a way there is a turning to the left which leads directly down into New Hall Country Park

flows fairly swiftly off towards Walmley

Station Public house to the rear of

and from here, up a short passageway, through to the Town Hall

The clock Tower

and a look back at the administrative section

 here are some images of this road from Town Hall to Traffic Lights