Coordinates: 52°32′29″N 1°22′21″W / 52.5413°N 1.3725°W / 52.5413; -1.3725

Hinckley
Hinckley  Hinckley shown within Leicestershire
Population	43,246 (2001)
OS grid reference	SP425939
District	Hinckley and Bosworth
Shire county	Leicestershire
Region	East Midlands
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	HINCKLEY
Postcode district	LE10
Dialling code	01455
Police	Leicestershire
Fire	Leicestershire
Ambulance	East Midlands
EU Parliament	East Midlands
UK Parliament	Bosworth
List of places: UK • England • Leicestershire

Hinckley is a town in southwest Leicestershire, England. It has a population of 43,246 (2001 census). It is administered by Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council. Hinckley is currently the second largest town in Leicestershire, after Loughborough (Leicester itself being a city which is not part of the non-metropolitan county of Leicestershire).^[1]

Although part of Leicestershire, it is situated in close proximity to the larger town of Nuneaton in Warwickshire, and comprises part of the Nuneaton Urban Area.

History[link]

Hinckley has a history going back to Saxon times.^[2] By the time of the Domesday Book in 1086, Hinckley was quite a large village, and grew over the course of the following 200 years into a small market town—a market was first recorded there in 1311.^[3] To the west of Hinckley lies Saxon Paddock where in 2000 archaeologists from Northampton University discovered a Romano-British settlement and later Saxon items.

17th century[link]

In the 17th century, the town developed a hosiery industry, producing stockings and similar items.^[4] Hinckley played a prominent part in the English Civil War. Its proximity to several rival strongholds—the royalist garrisons at Ashby de la Zouch and Leicester, those of the Parliamentarians at Tamworth and Coventry, and the presence of parties of troops or brigands occupying several fortified houses in nearby Warwickshire—ensured frequent visits by the warring parties. The local townsfolk were forced to decide whether to declare their allegiances openly or attempt to remain neutral—with the risk of having to pay levies, ransoms, and fines to both sides. In March 1644, Hinckley was occupied by a group of Royalist troops, though they were soon driven out by a force of Parliamentarians, who took many prisoners.

The Civil War years were a particularly unsettled time for the clergy in and around Hinckley. Parsons with parliamentary leanings like Thomas Cleveland, the vicar of Hinckley, suffered sequestration by the Leicester County Committee, like some of his "malignant" neighbours accused of visiting royalist garrisons or preaching against Parliament.^[5]

The town was visited by both parliamentary and royalists troops from the rival garrisons, particularly parliamentary troops from Tamworth, Coventry and Astley Castle in Warwickshire. Troops from Coventry garrison were particularly active in the town, taking horses and "free quarter" and availing themselves of 'dyett and Beere', and taking some of the inhabitants hostage for ransom. Royalist troops raided the town to threaten those with parliamentary sympathies. The notorious Lord Hastings of Ashby de la Zouch is recorded to have "coursed about the country as far as Dunton and Lutterworth and took near upon a hundred of the clergymen and others, and carried them prisoners … threatening to hang all them that should take the Parliament's Covenant". Parliamentary newsheets record that on the night of 4 March 1644, Hastings' men brought in "26 honest countrymen from several towns" intending to take them to Ashby de la Zouch, along with a huge herd of cattle, oxen and horses from the country people and a minister named Mr Warner. These prisoners were herded into Hinckley church and asked "in a jeering manner, 'Where are the Round-heads your brethren at Leicester? Why come they not to redeem you?'"

The Parliamentarians responded in a memorable "Skirmish or Great Victory for Parliament". Colonel Grey with 120 foot soldiers and 30 troopers from Bagworth House rushed to Hinckley and re-took the town, routed the Royalists, rescued the cattle and released their imprisoned countrymen. No doubt the inhabitants of the town were as relieved as any when Ashby finally surrendered, as Vicars records, "a great mercy and mighty preservation of the peace and tranquillity of all those adjacent parts about it."^[6]

19th century[link]

At the time of the first national census in 1801, Hinckley had a population of 5,158: twenty years later it had increased by about a thousand. The largest industry in the early 19th century was the making of hosiery and only Leicester had a larger output of stockings. In the district, it was estimated ca. 1830 that 6,000 persons were employed in this work.^[7]

Castle Street is the first known location of 'Luddism', where disgruntled workers, replaced by machinery in their jobs, took sledgehammers to the machines.^[8] Joseph Hansom built the first Hansom cab in Hinckley in 1835.

Local government[link]

Hinckley became an urban district under the Local Government Act 1894, covering the ancient parish of Hinckley. In 1934, under a County Review Order, Hinckley urban district expanded to include the ancient parishes of Barwell, Burbage and Earl Shilton and most of Stoke Golding. In 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972 the Hinckley urban district was abolished, becoming an unparished area in the borough of Hinckley and Bosworth. Since then, the civil parishes of Barwell, Burbage, Earl Shilton and Stoke Golding have been re-established. The core urban area remained unparished.

Geography[link]

The framework knitters cottages, Hinckley

The canalside pub, The Lime Kilns, nr. hinckley stands at the point where the Ashby Canal is crossed by the A5

Hollycroft, Middlefield, and Wykin are suburbs of Hinckley.

Burbage is often thought to be a suburb of Hinckley but is in fact separate. It is a large village merging with Hinckley to the south, separated by the railway line. Sketchley is another small village which has merged into Burbage.

Places of interest[link]

• The site of the Battle of Bosworth, administered by Leicestershire County Council, includes an interpretation centre at Ambion Hill, where Richard III encamped the night before the battle. St James's Church at Dadlington is the place where many of the dead were buried and where a chantry was founded on their behalf.
• Hinckley Museum is in a range of 17th century^[9] timber-framed framework knitters' cottages.
• Stoke Golding has one of the most beautiful medieval churches in Leicestershire, with an exquisitely carved arcade and very fine 13th-century window tracery.
• The Church of England parish church of the Assumption of Saint Mary the Virgin,^[10] in the centre of Hinckley, is 13th-century. There is a local folk tale that a tombstone in the churchyard marking the grave of Richard Smith, a young saddler murdered in the Market Place in 1727, "bleeds" every April.^[11]
• The Great Meeting of 1722, hidden away behind old hosiery factories, is a notable early example of nonconformist architecture with a galleried interior.
• Britannia (Burbage) Scout HQ: the home of 1st Britannia Scout Group is a specially designed and built scout hall.
• Parks Hollycroft Park was donated by the notable local Atkins family to the people of Hinckley in 1934, the park has two tennis courts, a bowling green, golf course, band stand and gardens. The park is the base for some of the towns biggest events including the Proms and Worldfest music events.Due to the high standards achieved within Hollycroft park it has been awarded with Green Flag status for both 2010/1 and 2011/2.
• Brodick Park in the west of Hinckley was recently the subject of controversy between local people and the Council which had wanted to sell the park for housing, however following a recent change in administration, this sale has been cancelled.^[12]
• The Ashby Canal, the longest contour canal in England, passes through the town.
• The award-winning public toilets in Station Road by St Mary's car park. Operated by Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council, they are open during daytime hours.
• Hinckley has two former quarries, quite close to one another, called the Little Pit and Big Pit. The Little Pit is now designated a Site of Ecological Interest (SINC),^[13] and has been transformed by a local community group into an angling club^[14] to preserve the area of water and surrounding wildlife. The Big Pit remains the subject of controversy between local residents and developers.^[15]
• Shopping Centres: Hinckley's biggest shopping centre, Britannia Centre on Castle Street has more than 12 stores and stalls. Hansom Court on Stockwell Head has a number of stores. The Edwards Centre located on Regent Street is a small row of about six stores.

Industry[link]

The Triumph Motorcycle Factory at Hinckley

Hinckley is a traditional centre of the hosiery industry. The first framework knitting machine was brought here by Joseph Iliffe in the 17th century and by the 19th century Hinckley was responsible for a large proportion of Britain's hosiery production. Since the Second World War the hosiery industry has steadily shrunk in size although several textile firms remain in the area.^[16] Hinckley & District Museum, which is housed in a range of former framework knitters' cottages, tells the story of the hosiery industry and contains some examples of framework knitting machines. Hinckley also has a history of engineering and is home to the Triumph Motorcycle company.

Ultima Sports Ltd, a manufacturer of sports cars is based in Hinckley as is Paynes Garages Ltd,^[17] one of the oldest family-owned Ford Motor Dealerships in the UK. Established by JA Payne in 1907, the firm became Ford Dealers in 1922. The business remains family owned with Nigel Payne, grandson of the founder, one of the current Directors.

The town's central location and good links to the UK motorway network have made it a popular location for distribution warehouses. Hammonds Furniture, a family owned nationwide fitted furniture company, was established in the town in 1926 by Thomas Hammonds, and currently employs over 850 people in its two Hinckley factories.

Transport links[link]

Hinckley is served by the A5 and the M69. The M69 links Hinckley to the nearest cities, Coventry, and Leicester, and the M1 and M6 motorways.

Hinckley railway station is on the Nuneaton–Leicester section of the Birmingham to Peterborough Line and has regular services between Birmingham and Leicester via Narborough and Nuneaton. Journeys to London can be made via the West Coast Main Line through Nuneaton or the Midland Main Line via Leicester. The terminus of the Midland route is London St Pancras which has become the home of Eurostar international services since November 2007.^[18]

The nearest airports are Coventry, East Midlands and Birmingham International.

The town is equidistant (19 km/12 miles) from Coventry and Leicester and 8 km (5.0 mi) to the east of Nuneaton. The small town of Ibstock is 18 km (11 mi) to the north on the A447.

The A47 was by-passed around the town during the early 1990s when the Northern Perimeter Road (Normandy Way) was completed. As well as relieving congestion in the town centre, new commercial developments have been built along the route.

Media and culture[link]

The local radio station, OakFM, 107.9 fm serves the town and the surrounding area. The main local newspaper is the weekly Hinckley Times, which has its own website. The daily Leicester Mercury no longer publishes a Hinckley edition. The free (advertising-funded) Hinckley Herald & Journal is distributed to most houses. Hinckley has its own community website and online news resource.^[19] take5 community news is a full colour gloss community magazine distributed free to homes and businesses.^[20]

There is a 400 seat theatre located near the centre of the town in Stockwell Head (Concordia Theatre), which holds regular productions. Further, the local council holds an annual 'Proms in The Park' event.^[21]

Sport[link]

Hinckley has one football team, Hinckley United,^[22] who compete in the Conference North. Hinckley United was formed in 1997 from the amalgamation of Hinckley Town and Hinckley Athletic, and is known as the Knitters — a nickname that comes from the town's history as a textile-producing centre. In 2006, a Hinckley United player, Matt Gadsby, died during a match against Harrogate Town.

The only rugby club, Hinckley Rugby Football Club,^[23] was formed in 1893 and has been based at the Leicester Road Sports ground since 1968. Hinckley RFC have been involved in league rugby since 1987, during which time the first team has been as high as National League 3 North (level 4). They currently reside in Midlands 1 (level 5).

The town's largest school, John Cleveland College, is noted for its many achievements on the rugby field and has produced many professional players, many of whom have gone on to play for England. These include England and Leicester Tigers legends Graham Rowntree and Dean Richards, as well as current pros Ollie Smith, Sam Vesty and Manu Tuilagi. Vesty is the most recent ex-JCC man to make his international bow, coming on as sub against Argentina at Old Trafford in June 2009.

There is also one basketball team—the Hinckley 69ers; a name derived from the town's proximity to the M69 motorway. It was founded in 1974 and has involved some staff, ex-students and current students of John Cleveland College, as well as other interested, local players, throughout most of its history. The team play in Division 2 of the Leicestershire men's amateur league, having been promoted in the 2007/08 season. The 2007/08 season was one of the team's best performances, with a cup win too. The team are based at John Cleveland College and have home games and training there every Friday at 7:00 pm.

Hollycroft Park, in the centre of Hinckley is recognised as a great area for sports—the park contains two tennis courts, a golf pitch n putt and a lawn bowls green with pavilion.

Hinckley has one high performance Gymnastics Club^[24] based at Clarendon Park. In its 30 years of existence, it has never failed to have a number of its members competing for their home nations or for Great Britain.

Hinckleys longest established priviate fitness club is Empire Fitness (formally John's Gym), www.EmpireFitness.net

Hinckley Ladies Netball Club is based at Redmoor High School and has four senior teams in the Coventry and Warwickshire Netball League.

Education[link]

The main primary schools in the area are Battling Brook CP, Holliers Walk, Richmond, St. Peters Catholic, St. Mary's Church of England, Westfield Infant/Junior and Sketchley Hill Primary School. The high (secondary) schools include Mount Grace, Redmoor, St. Martins (in Stoke Golding) and Hastings (in Burbage)—all feeder schools for John Cleveland College, the main college in the town for Years 10 and 11. JCC also includes a Sixth Form, as does North Warwickshire & Hinckley College, a Further Education college. The only other major college in the area is William Bradford (Earl Shilton).

Cultural associations[link]

• Famed French organist and composer Louis Vierne stayed briefly in Hinckley while on a tour of England, and later wrote a carillon piece for organ called "The Bells of Hinckley", inspired by a carillon of bells he heard there. It is the last movement of his fourth suite of Vingt-quatre pièces de fantaisie.
• The town is mentioned in Shakespeare's Henry IV, Part 2 (Act 5, Scene 1):

Davy: Now, sir, a new link to the bucket must need be had: and, sir, do you mean to stop any of William's wages, about the sack he lost the other day at Hinckley fair?

• Hinckley resident Tony Alleyne has transformed his one bedroomed flat into a precise replica of a Star Trek ship. Although this was reported to have been sold in 2007 to a Star Trek fan from Birmingham for £425,000,^[25] the deal fell through and as of 2011 the flat is still in Alleyne's possession and is reported to not be for sale.^[26]
• Hinckley is mentioned by Monty Python in the "world hide and seek championships"
• Supercar manufacturer Ultima Sports Ltd are based in Hinckley. They claim to have set the fastest roadcar lap around the famous Top Gear test track with their GTR720 model, although it has never appeared on the programme
• The actress Lauren Samuels trained at Hinckley's Speech and Drama Studio, and recently appeared in the BBC show Over the Rainbow.^[27]

Notable people[link]

• Davey Graham, influential guitarist and folk singer, was born in Hinckley
• Graeme Hawley, actor who plays John Stape in Coronation Street, lived in Hinckley
• Paul Hines, BriSCA Formula 1 Stock Cars driver, former British and European Champion
• Phil Oakey, singer with The Human League, born in Hinckley
• Una Stubbs, actress, born in Hinckley

Folklore[link]

Hinckley was known to its residents for many years as "Tin 'At" (tin hat). It is reputed that, many years ago, one of the itinerant sheep drovers bragged that he could drink a hat full of ale. The local landlord put this man to the test by getting the local blacksmith to make a tin hat, which he then filled with ale. Thereafter, the town became known as "Tin 'At". Another explanation is that the people of Hinckley used to place buckets on water pumps to keep them clean and prevent the spread of illness, the bucket obviously being the "Tin 'At". A tin hat can be seen on top of the flag pole which sits on the roof of the building society at the corner of Castle Street and Market Place. There is also a pub called The Tin Hat.

Twinning[link]

Hinckley is twinned with Le Grand-Quevilly, France,^[28] and joined with Herford, Germany in the early 1970s.^[29] Hinckley is also twinned with Midland, Ohio, United States.

References[link]

External links[link]

• A listing of local events to Hinckley
• The official website for Hinckleys premier Hollycroft park
• Beavers, Cubs, Scouts and Explorers
• Collection of videos showing local bands of the area
• Descriptions of Hinckley
• Hinckley in the Civil War
• Official MET office weather forecast for Hinckley
• Some info on Burbage Common from the borough council website
• The Annual local Charity Carnival - supports local Hinckley area charities every year
• The Hinckley Times

Ronald Reagan
40th President of the United States
In office January 20, 1981 – January 20, 1989
Vice President	George H. W. Bush
Preceded by	Jimmy Carter
Succeeded by	George H. W. Bush
33rd Governor of California
In office January 2, 1967 – January 6, 1975
Lieutenant	Robert Finch Edwin Reinecke John Harmer
Preceded by	Pat Brown
Succeeded by	Jerry Brown
Personal details
Born	Ronald Wilson Reagan (1911-02-06)February 6, 1911 Tampico, Illinois, U.S.
Died	June 5, 2004(2004-06-05) (aged 93) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Resting place	Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, Simi Valley, California, U.S. 34°15′35.5896″N 118°49′11.301″W / 34.259886°N 118.81980583°W / 34.259886; -118.81980583
Political party	Republican (1962–2004)
Other political affiliations	Democratic (Before 1962)
Spouse(s)	Jane Wyman (1940–1949) Nancy Davis (1952–2004)
Children	Maureen Christine Michael Patti Ron
Alma mater	Eureka College
Religion	Disciples of Christ later Presbyterian
Signature
Military service
Service/branch	United States Army United States Army Air Forces
Years of service	1937–45
Rank	Captain

Ronald Wilson Reagan ( /ˈrɒnəld ˈwɪlsən ˈreɪɡən/; February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was the 40th President of the United States, serving from 1981 to 1989. Prior to that, he was the 33rd Governor of California from 1967 to 1975 and a radio, film and television actor.

Born in Tampico, Illinois and raised in Dixon, Reagan was educated at Eureka College, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics and sociology. After his graduation, Reagan moved first to Iowa to work as a radio broadcaster and then in to Los Angeles in 1937 where he began a career as an actor, first in films and later television. Some of his most notable films include Knute Rockne, All American, Kings Row, and Bedtime for Bonzo. Reagan served as president of the Screen Actors Guild, and later as a spokesman for General Electric (GE); his start in politics occurred during his work for GE. Originally a member of the Democratic Party, his positions began shifting rightward in the late 1950s, and he switched to the Republican Party in 1962. After delivering a rousing speech in support of Barry Goldwater's presidential candidacy in 1964, he was persuaded to seek the California governorship, winning two years later and again in 1970. He was defeated in his run for the Republican presidential nomination in 1968 as well as 1976, but won both the nomination and general election in 1980, defeating incumbent Jimmy Carter.