Hart is a village and civil parish in County Durham, England, northwest of Hartlepool.

Hart
Hart is located in County Durham
Hart
Hart
Location within County Durham
Population771 (2011)[1]
OS grid referenceNZ4717634987
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townHARTLEPOOL
Postcode districtTS27
PoliceCleveland
FireCleveland
AmbulanceNorth East
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
County Durham
54°42′27″N 1°16′16″W / 54.70750°N 1.27111°W / 54.70750; -1.27111

History

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Evidence of occupation in Hart can be seen from 6000 BC, with farming first appearing around 3500 BC.[2] By 1000 BC the area was more extensively settled, including farming buildings and field systems.[2] Activity increased around 650 AD with the establishment of St Hilda's Monastery in Hartlepool. The monastery was destroyed by Vikings in the 9th and 10th centuries, whose lords continued to inhabit Hart.[3]

Robert de Brus I gained control of the area in around 1119, with control passing to the Clifford family in 1306 following Robert de Brus VII's attempt on the Scottish throne.[4]

In 1587 the parish suffered from the plague, and it was noted in the parish register that "89 corpses were buried, whereof tenne were strangers". In 1652 John Pasmore was buried "on Black Monday 29 March. There was a star appeared in the South-east, ye sun eclipsed."[5]

In 1596 Ellen Thompson was condemned as a witch and buried under the stile of St Mary Magdalene church (the mother church of St Hilda's) at the east entrance to the churchyard.[6] Another woman, known as Old Mother Midnight of Elwick, may have been buried in the same place in 1641. Other Hart women accused of witchcraft include Helen de Inferno (1454) and Alison Lawe (1582).[7]

The Jesuit Thomas Ellerker was born in Hart in 1738.[8]

In May 2021, the parish council alongside the parish councils of the villages of Elwick, Dalton Piercy and Greatham all issued individual votes of no confidence in Hartlepool Borough Council, and expressed their desire to re-join County Durham.[9]

Manor house and church

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In the late 1100s the de Brus family build the manor house and chapel; the latter remains as the basis of the St Mary Magdalene Church.[10] Following Robert Brus VII's attempt on the Scottish throne in 1306 the manor farm is one of the assets seized by the English authorities and given to the Clifford family.[11] The Cliffords hold ownership until 1586, when it is sold to John Lord Lumley, and it is sold to Sir George Pocock in 1770.[11] In 1830 the estate passes to William Henry, Duke of Cleveland, and is subsequently inherited by Frederick Aclom Milbank, whose family own the manor until at least 1928.[12] Only a little of the original manor and its associated buildings can still be seen,[13] including an 18th-century outbuilding wall and a section of 14th-century wall, which is a scheduled monument.[14]

The Norman-era St Mary Magdalene Church is Grade I listed[15] and has undergone significant modification since it was built, including the carving of St George and the Dragon on the south exterior wall.[16] The church is part of the Durham Diocese and is (current to 2017) a Church of England parish church.[17]

Just outside the village is Hart Bog, which is on the List of Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Cleveland.

Climate

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Climate in this area has small differences between highs and lows and there is adequate rainfall year-round. The Köppen Climate Classification subtype for this climate is "Cfb" (Marine West Coast Climate/Oceanic climate).[18]

Climate data for Hart
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 7
(45)
8
(46)
10
(50)
12
(54)
15
(59)
18
(64)
21
(70)
20
(68)
17
(63)
14
(57)
10
(50)
7
(45)
13
(55)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 3
(37)
2
(36)
3
(37)
5
(41)
7
(45)
10
(50)
12
(54)
12
(54)
10
(50)
7
(45)
4
(39)
2
(36)
6
(43)
Average precipitation days 18 15 15 16 14 15 14 14 14 17 17 16 185
Source: Weatherbase[19]

References

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  1. ^ "Civil Parish population 2011". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 22 July 2015.
  2. ^ a b Horsley, Kevin (2009). "The Heritage of Hart Project 2009: A Historic Environment Survey of Hart, Hartlepool" (PDF). Tees Archaeology. p. 4. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
  3. ^ Horsley, Kevin (October 2009). "The Heritage of Hart Project 2009: A Historic Environment Survey of Hart, Hartlepool" (PDF). Tees Archaeology. p. 5. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
  4. ^ Horsley, Kevin (October 2009). "The Heritage of Hart Project 2009: A Historic Environment Survey of Hart, Hartlepool" (PDF). Tees Archaeology. p. 7. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
  5. ^ Willam Page (1928). "'Parishes: Hart', A History of the County of Durham: Volume 3 (1928), pp. 254-263". British History Online. Retrieved 9 March 2008.
  6. ^ "Surrounding Hartlepool are many picturesque villages ..." Destination Hartlepool. Archived from the original on 7 February 2012. Retrieved 9 March 2008.
  7. ^ "Hartlepool's own cast of Hogwarts characters". www.hartlepoolmail.co.uk. Retrieved 8 November 2017.
  8. ^ Thompson Cooper, 'Ellerker, Thomas (1738–1795)', rev. Robert Brown, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004 accessed 2 May 2011
  9. ^ Nic Marko (10 May 2021), Four Hartlepool villages have 'no confidence' in borough council and want to join Durham, Hartlepool: Hartlepool Mail
  10. ^ Horsley, Kevin (October 2009). "The Heritage of Hart Project 2009: A Historic Environment Survey of Hart, Hartlepool" (PDF). Tees Archaeology. pp. 5–6. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
  11. ^ a b Horsley, Kevin (October 2009). "The Heritage of Hart Project 2009: A Historic Environment Survey of Hart, Hartlepool" (PDF). Tees Archaeology. p. 6. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
  12. ^ Horsley, Kevin (October 2009). "The Heritage of Hart Project 2009: A Historic Environment Survey of Hart, Hartlepool" (PDF). Tees Archaeology. p. 7. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
  13. ^ Horsley, Kevin (October 2009). "The Heritage of Hart Project 2009: A Historic Environment Survey of Hart, Hartlepool" (PDF). Tees Archaeology. p. 7. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
  14. ^ Horsley, Kevin (October 2009). "The Heritage of Hart Project 2009: A Historic Environment Survey of Hart, Hartlepool" (PDF). Tees Archaeology. pp. 25–26. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
  15. ^ Historic England. "CHURCH OF ST MARY MAGDALENE, Hart (1249898)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
  16. ^ Horsley, Kevin (October 2009). "The Heritage of Hart Project 2009: A Historic Environment Survey of Hart, Hartlepool" (PDF). Tees Archaeology. p. 29. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
  17. ^ "About | Hart Village Church". hartchurch.org.uk. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
  18. ^ Climate Summary for Hart, England
  19. ^ "Weatherbase.com". Weatherbase. 2013. Retrieved on July 12, 2013.
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