Cuttleston

Cuttleston or Cuttlestone is a hundred in the county of Staffordshire, England, located in the centre of that county, south of Stafford.

Cuttleston
Former subdivision of England

Cuttlestone Hundred (red) shown in Staffordshire
History
 • OriginAnglo-Saxon period
 • Created10th century
 • Abolished1894 (obsolete)
 • Succeeded byvarious
Statusobsolete area
GovernmentHundred
Subdivisions
 • TypeParishes (see text)
 • UnitsParishes

Cuttleston was the most thinly populated and the second smallest of the five Hundreds of Staffordshire. In 1871 it had an area of 106,340 acres (43,030 ha) and a population of 35,939. [1] It was bounded on the west by Shropshire, on the south by Seisdon Hundred, on the east by Offlow Hundred, and on the north by Pirehill Hundred. It is about 20 mi (32 km) in length and 12 mi (19 km) in breadth. In the east is Cannock Chase, an extensive heath and former royal forest.[2] The old Forest of Brewood formed the boundary of Seisdon and Cuttleston. [3] The Hundred was separated into the East and West Divisions, under two chief constables. It contains three small market towns: Rugeley, Brewood and Penkridge. In the 19th century it comprised 17 parishes, 2 extra parochial places and 6 chapelries. These were subdivided into 36 townships. [2]

The name is derived from the combination of the Old English words Cūþwulf (a personal name) and stān (stone).[3] The origin of the Hundred dates from the division of his kingdom by King Alfred the Great into counties, hundreds and tithings. From the beginning, Staffordshire was divided into the hundreds of Offlow, Pirehill, Totmonslow, Cuttleston and Seisdon.[4]

Notes
  1. Census of England and Wales 1871, Population tables, Vol. I. Counties;p.345
  2. History, Gazetteer and Directory of Staffordshire by William White (1834), pp.293-296
  3. Anderson, Olof (1934). The English Hundred Names (PDF). Lund, Sweden: Håkan Ohlsson. p. 145-6.
  4. A topographical history of Staffordshire, by William Pitt, pub J. Smith (Newcastle-under-Lyme), 1817; page 13

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