- For the record label, see Biddulph Recordings
Biddulph Recordings is a small record label based in Devon, England, specializing in classical music, especially by string instrument players. The label was founded in 1989 by Peter Biddulph, a violin dealer, and Eric Wen, a violinist and music writer....
- For the actor, see Cyril Biddulph
Cyril Biddulph was a Canadian stage actor who frequently performed in the United States.Cyril Biddulph was born 28 January 1887 on the British military base Curragh Camp in County Kildare, Ireland. As a young man Biddulph moved to New York City where he found employment as an actor...
Biddulph is a town in
StaffordshireStaffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. Part of the National Forest lies within its borders...
,
EnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the North Sea to the east, with the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, north of
Stoke-on-TrentStoke-on-Trent is a city in Staffordshire, England, which forms a linear conurbation almost 12 miles long, with an area of . Together with the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme and Kidsgrove, Stoke forms the The Potteries Urban Area...
and south east of
CongletonCongleton is a town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England, on the banks of the River Dane, and to the west of the Macclesfield Canal...
,
CheshireCheshire ; also known, archaically, as the County of Chester) is a ceremonial county in North West England. The traditional county town is the city of Chester, although Cheshire's largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Widnes, Runcorn, Macclesfield,...
.
Biddulph is a town steeped in history and within the bowl created by the ridges of
Mow CopMow Cop is a village on a high isolated hill. The village straddles the Cheshire - Staffordshire border, and in this capacity, is also divided between the North West and West Midlands regions of England.The name is first recorded as "Mowel" around 1270 AD...
and Biddulph Moor, there are ancient burial mounds; evidence of the
English Civil WarThe English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists. The first and second civil wars pitted the supporters of King Charles I against the supporters of the Long Parliament, while the third war saw fighting between supporters of...
; the
bubonic plaguePlague is a deadly infectious disease caused by the enterobacteria Yersinia pestis . Plague is a zoonotic, primarily carried by rodents and spread to humans via fleas. Plague is notorious throughout history, due to the unrivaled scale of death and devastation it brought...
; Black Bull Colliery; tombs of possible
CrusaderThe Crusades were a series of religiously-sanctioned military campaigns waged by much of Latin Christian Europe, particularly the Franks of France and the Holy Roman Empire. The specific crusades to restore Christian control of the Holy Land were fought over a period of nearly 200 years, between...
knights; an
Iron AgeIn archaeology, the Iron Age is the prehistoric period in any area during which cutting tools and weapons were mainly made of iron or steel. The adoption of this material coincided with other changes in society, including differing agricultural practices, religious beliefs and artistic styles.The...
fort; and the site of a meeting of part of the Methodist movement with the Wesleys. Also at Biddulph are:-
- Biddulph Grange
Biddulph Grange is a National Trust house and landscaped gardens, situated in Biddulph near Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England. "Behind a gloomy Victorian shrubbery there's a gloomy Victorian mansion, but behind that lurks one of the most extraordinary gardens in Britain...it contains whole...
, a house and landscaped gardens owned by the National TrustThe National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as the National Trust, is a conservation organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
.
Water runs both east and west from Biddulph which is an unusual feature in itself. To the east, it is the source of the
River TrentThe River Trent is one of the major rivers of England. Its source is in Staffordshire between Biddulph and Biddulph Moor. It flows through the Midlands until it joins the River Ouse at Trent Falls to form the Humber Estuary, which empties into the North Sea below Hull and Immingham.The Trent is...
and to the west, it is the
LiverpoolLiverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
and
ManchesterManchester is a city and metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. In 2007, the population of the city was estimated to be 458,100...
canal system.
Origin of the name
Biddulph's name may come from
Anglo-SaxonOld English , also called Anglo-Saxon, is an early form of the English language that was spoken and written in parts of what are now England and south-eastern Scotland between at least the mid-5th century and the mid-12th century. What survives through writing represents primarily the literary...
bī dylfe = "beside the pit or quarry"; but some said that the name Biddulph is a corruption of "the Saxon Bidulfe signifying Wolf Slayer" and as a result the Biddulph family crest is a wolf
rampantIn heraldry, an attitude is the position in which an animal, fictional beast, mythical creature, human or human-like being is emblazoned as a charge, supporter or crest. Many attitudes apply only to predatory beasts and are exemplified by the beast most frequently found in heraldry — the lion. ...
.
Education
Biddulph has one
high schoolHigh school is the name used in some parts of the world, particularly in Scotland, Northern America and Oceania, to describe an institution that provides all or part of secondary education...
(ages 13 to 16) with a
sixth formThe sixth form , in the English, Welsh and Northern Irish education systems, Commonwealth West Indian countries such as Barbados, Belize, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago, and Malta is the final two years of secondary schooling when students are sixteen to eighteen years of age and normally prepare...
(ages 16 to 18). The school is called Biddulph High School and was awarded
Sports CollegeSports Colleges were introduced in 1997 as part of the Specialist Schools Programme in the United Kingdom. The system enables secondary schools to specialise in certain fields, in this case, PE, sports and dance. Schools that successfully apply to the Specialist Schools Trust and become Sports...
status in 2002 it has since gained
Technology CollegeTechnology College is a term used in the United Kingdom for a secondary specialist school that focuses on design and technology, mathematics and science. These were the first type of specialist schools, beginning in 1994. In 2008 there were 598 Technology Colleges in England, of which 12 also...
status. Biddulph also has two
middle schoolMiddle school or junior high school serves as a "bridge" between elementary school and high school. The terms can be used in different ways in different countries, sometimes interchangeably...
s: Woodhouse Middle School and James Bateman Junior High School (formerly Park Middle School) serving ages 9–13. These are fed by several first schools such as Kingsfield First School, Knypersley First School, Squirrel Hayes First School, Oxhey Primary School, and several more.