Pentrich

Mentioned in the Domesday Book as Pentric, this hilltop village with its brownstone gabled houses is very charming. Some Pentrich houses still stand exactly where medieval cottages were shown in maps of the 16th and 17th centuries. Its sturdy Parish Church of St Matthew is approached via a picturesque flight of 48 steps. It dates back to the 12th century, with much rebuilding and alterations being carried out in the 15th century. A striking stained-glass War Memorial window created in 1916 depicts the warrior saints of England and France and a figure of St Michael.

Pentrich is probably most famous for the Pentrich Revolution of 1817. A small band of half-starved weavers, labourers and stockingers - no more than 200 or 300 men - met and marched towards Nottingham, where they expected to meet up with more men before marching on London. However, the uprising was soon quelled, with a resultant trial of 50 of the insurgents in Derby that lasted 10 days. The men were accused of high treason, and a few were pardoned, 11 sent to Australia for life and three to Australia for 14 years.  Three of the men, however, were executed at Derby Gaol. The poet Shelley witnessed the scene and described the despair of the relatives and the disturbance of the crowd as the men were beheaded. So restless and angry was the crowd watching the executions that the executioners were masked and their names kept secret. The execution block is still to be seen in Derby Prison.

The history of Pentrich almost stopped with the revolution. The 1821 census recorded a decrease of a third in the population of the parish because the Duke of Devonshire’s agents destroyed many of the houses after the insurrection. Wives and children were put out of their tenancies and years later could be traced in other parts of the country, still scraping a livelihood after their disgrace. The village became smaller and less important in succeeding years.