Historic Development
To the north of Trusley runs a Roman road that once linked Rocester with Derby
(Derventio), and this route is now known as Long Lane. The name of the road continues
for several miles in either direction and Long Lane is also the name given to the linear
settlement on this road, just to the north of Trusley. It contains a range of buildings, which
Trusley was too small to sustain, that would have had an important relationship with the
hamlet of Trusley in the 19th century, including a public house and school.
The continued presence of the Roman road into the modern period indicates that this was
a well-travelled route and the presence of a shrunken medieval village, at Osleston, just to
the north-west of Trusley, confirms its historic significance as an area with many phases of
development.
Beyond the Roman road, and still within the parish, lies a former medieval Grange, now
known as Grangefields, that was once occupied by the Abbey of Croxden. A separate area
now called Nun’s Field, previously known as Turmundel, then Thursmanleigh, was part of a
subsidiary manor owned by the Benedictine Priory of King’s Mead in Derby in the early 12th
century, and at some time later it became part of the late dissolved Abbey of Croxden.
Following the Norman Conquest, the manor of Trusley was handed over from Ulchetel and
Auic to Hugh, under the overall control of Henry de Ferrers. The village is probably the
settlement listed as “Toxenai” in Domesday Book, which seems to mean “at the oxen
enclosure”, and this is the first known documented reference. At this time it had 4 villagers
and 5 smallholders who had 2½ ploughs. There were 33 acres of meadow, woodland
pasture 1 league long by 4 furlongs wide, and 5 tributaries paid 5s. The area had decreased
in value since 1066 with less land for the plough. This description seems to suggest that
given the proximity of the brook it was probably at that time boggy in places and used
primarily for grazing and pasture with limited arable use, although it was still quite valuable
and productive land.
The first strong link with the name Trusley is Trusselai recorded in 1141. The derivation of
the name is probably from “trūs, lēah”, meaning brushwood clearing.
By the mid to late 12th century Hugh Le Arbalester is recorded as holding the manor of
Trusley. By the late 12th century it came into the possession of the De Beufey family but
was granted in 1253-1255 to Oliver de Odingsells and remained in the ownership of this
family until 1418, when half of the manor passed by marriage to Thomas Coke and the then Trusley manor house became the Coke family home. The other half of the manor was
purchased by the Vernons of Haddon Hall in the 15th century and was eventually purchased
by Richard Coke (d.1582) in 1569 thus re-uniting the two halves of the manor.
The Coke family had some prominent figures in Stuart society. Sir John Coke (1563-1644),
Richard Coke’s fourth son, was deputy treasurer of the navy from 1599-1604 and during
the 1620s he became a “master of requests” at court under Charles I and in 1625 he
became one of the king’s two principal secretaries of state. He was knighted in 1624. In
1629 he purchased Sir Francis Nedham’s estate in Melbourne, his ancestral home in Trusley
remaining with his brother Sir Francis Coke, the eldest son. Sir John Coke’s descendants
continued to develop their estate at Melbourne and, after obtaining the freehold of
Melbourne Hall in 1704, Thomas Coke set about creating the house and its garden that we
see today. George Coke (1570-1646), the fifth son of Richard Coke, became Bishop of
Bristol in 1633 and Bishop of Hereford in 1636.
Although the Trusley estate remained with the Coke family almost continuously thereafter
from 1418, there was a break in this ownership when, after the death of William Coke in
1718, it passed by marriage to the Wilmot family and only returned to the Coke family in
1818, when following John Coke’s marriage to Susanna Wilmot of Spondon in 1806,
Trusley was left to her in 1818 on the death of her bachelor brother Francis Wilmot.
Whilst William Coke was residing
at Trusley in 1712, he paid for the
construction of the new church of
All Saints. He would have resided
in a manor house that looked very
different from what we see today.
It was probably timber-framed.
Only the lower sections of the
existing large external stone
chimney stack seem to have
survived from this house. The
manor house appears to have been
demolished. The tenanted
farmhouse which was built on the
site was known as Oldhall Farm. Much of the brick farmhouse that we see today was
constructed in the mid 18th century. Much of the brick building that we see today was
constructed in the mid 18th century. An image of the previous manor house appears as a
sketch drawing on the Trusley map of 1724. It comprised an L-shaped range, with the main
part running east-west near the alignment of the current Village Hall. The main part had a
central, tower-like section with paired gables and chimney stacks on either side, with a
lower range, possibly the original hall, to the east. The garden to the south and west of the
house was very formal, with a series of compartments, probably walled. The summer house
that still survives was a prominent feature of the gardens at this time.
The Coke family were absent from the village for almost two hundred years from 1718-
1902.
A large part of the history of the Coke family is documented within “Coke Of Trusley” a
family history written by Major John Talbot Coke in January 1880, although he resided at
Debdale Hall in Notts. at that time. He states “the only remains of the old Hall at this time is the kitchen end, into which has been built the farmhouse….the summer house also stands, and is used as a store house”.
It was only in 1902-04 that the Coke family returned to live in Trusley, when Major
General John Talbot Coke built Trusley Manor, a large Edwardian red brick house, designed
by F. Bowles of London as a new centre for the estate, built to the south of the original
manor house and its garden. As well as the new Trusley Manor, a walled garden and a
gardener’s cottage were built to its west. As part of the 1902 scheme for the new house,
the Oldhall farmhouse was converted into stables, coach-house and living quarters. The
tenant of the Oldhall farmhouse was re-housed in a purpose-built new farm unit called
Goldhurst Farm elsewhere on the estate.
Between 1913-1946 the large manor house was used occasionally by General E.S.D’E Coke
when he returned from his numerous postings abroad and latterly during the Second
World War it was used as a school and then occupied by the Land Army. Eventually in the
late 1940s a large portion of the building was demolished. The half of the 1902-04 house
that still stands today was converted into four flats and is still owned by the Coke family,
who now live in The Old Hall.
At the end of World War II the male line of the Trusley branch of the Coke family died out
with the deaths in action at the very end of the Second World War of the two male heirs
and it was left to their sister, Frances, to carry the line. She married Ronald Steel and the
family took the name Coke-Steel. The estate is still owned by the Coke-Steel family.
The development of Trusley can be seen on a series of historic maps; an estate plan of
1724 (“A Mapp of ye Mannor of Trusley….Late The Estate of William Coke Esq,”.. 1724 by
John Billington), another estate map of 15th February 1822, the Tithe map and award of
1840, followed by the first, second and third edition Ordnance Survey maps published in
1881, 1901 and 1922 respectively. There are strong similarities between all five maps and
little discernible difference in the plan form of the settlement. The layout that we see today
was probably established in the early post-medieval period. Many of the buildings that stand
today appear to have been rebuilt on the same footprint as earlier buildings. For example,
the 1724 map shows that predecessors existed for the farm buildings at Ivy Close Farm, the
farm buildings at Hall Farm, Eaton’s Cottage, Lane End Cottage and The Old Rectory. Most
of these buildings would have been timber framed.
The plan form of the village is interesting to attempt to unravel. There is no obvious
planned structure to the village and it seems to have developed organically, in an almost
piecemeal fashion, with a series of encroachments.
The most direct link with the Roman road from Trusley would have been along Taylor’s
Lane, which runs almost due north of the settlement, but now peters out at several
farmsteads. A footpath continues northwards from the end of Taylor’s Lane as far as Long
Lane. The road may have been re-routed via Hilltop Lane to the north-west of Trusley
when these detached farms were created and/or when the open fields were first enclosed.
This may explain the unusual and awkward dog-leg in the lane running to the west of the
hamlet, where it passes Ivy Close Farm.
The area is characterised by its dense and complex network of public footpaths threading
between the settlements and farms to the south of Long Lane, a number of which pass
through Trusley.
The north-south alignment of Taylor’s Lane continues
southwards in the lane running to the south of Trusley
and this seems to be a most natural continuation. A
natural focal point of the village was the junction of
Taylor’s Lane with the lanes to the south and west. At
the heart of this space, in the early 18th century, was a
well. The oldest known building standing within the
village is Tatlow’s Cottage, on Taylor’s Lane, which is
cruck-framed and dates from the 15th century, although
most of what can be seen today from the outside is 18th
century brickwork. Ivy Close Farmhouse may date
originally from the 17th century, if not earlier, although
what can be seen today from the outside is largely of the
early 18th century, with 19th century alterations. A
building was certainly here in 1724 with a range of farm
buildings opposite, the footprint preserved in the current
buildings.
The only obvious building line relates to the location of
the church and the rectory to its east, and a range of
farm buildings to the east of the rectory (demolished). All
of these buildings are south facing and appear to be part of a building line established in the
medieval period. The alignment also corresponds with a deep ditch running east-west to
the west of the church, which also marked the limit of the manor house grounds in 1724.
The field to the south of this ditch contains earthworks and the proximity and relationship
of these earthworks to the church may indicate the site of an earlier manifestation of the
manor house, or, if the earthworks are not building platforms, may be associated with
garden features.
The first edition Ordnance Survey map clearly shows The north-south alignment of Taylor’s Lane continues
southwards in the lane running to the south of Trusley
and this seems to be a most natural continuation. A
natural focal point of the village was the junction of
Taylor’s Lane with the lanes to the south and west. At
the heart of this space, in the early 18th century, was a
well. The oldest known building standing within the
village is Tatlow’s Cottage, on Taylor’s Lane, which is
cruck-framed and dates from the 15th century, although
most of what can be seen today from the outside is 18th
century brickwork. Ivy Close Farmhouse may date
originally from the 17th century, if not earlier, although
what can be seen today from the outside is largely of the
early 18th century, with 19th century alterations. A
building was certainly here in 1724 with a range of farm
buildings opposite, the footprint preserved in the current
buildings.
The only obvious building line relates to the location of
the church and the rectory to its east, and a range of
farm buildings to the east of the rectory (demolished). All
of these buildings are south facing and appear to be part of a building line established in the
medieval period. The alignment also corresponds with a deep ditch running east-west to
the west of the church, which also marked the limit of the manor house grounds in 1724.
The field to the south of this ditch contains earthworks and the proximity and relationship
of these earthworks to the church may indicate the site of an earlier manifestation of the
manor house, or, if the earthworks are not building platforms, may be associated with
garden features.
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