Warfield - History

History

Warfield was originally an Anglo-Saxon settlement and is recorded in the Domesday Book as Warwelt . The name is believed to have originated from the Old English wær + feld, meaning 'Open land by a weir'. The medieval church is one of the finest in Berkshire, particularly noted for its Decorated Period chancel with beautiful carvings and 'Green Men'. There are several memorials to the Stavertons who lived at the old manor house in the moat at Hayley Green. This was replaced, in the Georgian period, by Warfield House alias Warfield Grove, the home of Admiral Sir George Bowyer and, later, the political writer, Sir John Coxe Hippisley. Another fine old country house was Warfield Park. In the 18th century, it was the home of John Walsh, the Secretary to Lord Clive and an amateur scientist, and later to his descendants the Lords Ormathwaite. It was pulled down in 1955.

There was formerly much brickworking in the south of the parish, most notably under the Lawrence family. The Thomas Lawrence & Sons Brickworks was founded in 1857, and by the late 19th century was producing over 12 million bricks a year. The brown clay to be found in this area was ideal for making rich warm red-fired bricks, and Lawrence's bricks were used in the building of the Albert Hall, Westminster Cathedral and in restoration work at 10 Downing Street and Hampton Court Palace. The brickworks closed in 1985, and the last of the buildings were pulled down in the 1990s to make way for the housing development, Lawrence Hill. A memorial to the brickworks was put in place near the original site.