Duddeston

Flats in Duddeston. Teviot House, a tower block is on the left.

Duddeston is an inner-city area of Birmingham, England in the ward of Nechells. It was part of the Birmingham Duddeston constituency until it ceased to exist in 1950.

Etymology

Duddeston comes from Dud's Town with Dud being the Saxon proprietor, Lord of Dudley who probably had a seat in Duddeston. It was speculated that Duddeston came from Dudda's tun but nothing is known of Dudda.

History

Duddeston is first mentioned in a charter granted to Wulfget the Thane by Eadgar, King of the Angles in 963. There is no mention of Duddeston for another 200 years until it said that the Holte family were the residents of Duddeston Manor, a large house located next to the River Rea. This had been purchased by the family in 1365 by the family who also owned the manor of Nechells and were related to a prominent family in Erdington. Their wealth of land expanded two years later when the manor of Aston was bestowed upon them.

100 years later, Thomas Holte became the Chief Justice of Wales and a close friend of King Henry VIII. In 1546, Thomas died and Duddeston Hall was a sign of his wealth. His grandson, also called Thomas Holte, supplied a small army in defending Ireland and for this he was knighted. He commissioned the construction of Aston Hall soon after.

During the 1700s, many adverts for cock fighting at the hall appeared and in many, the name Vauxhall appeared. The first use of the name Vauxhall was in 1751 and was spelt Vaux Hall. It was referred to as another name for the hall. It is also known that the building had been refurbish, possibly rebuilt, to accommodate travellers. Large gardens had also been created and it became an attraction for the city. Travelling there was made easier with the opening of Duddeston and Vauxhall railway station. However, the owners of the hall ran into financial difficulty and the last celebrations in the gardens were held in September 1850, before the gardens were removed. Houses were built on site.

During the Priestly Riots of 1791, the military established a barracks on the grounds. The barracks remained until 1932, when they were demolished by the Birmingham Corporation for the construction of maisonettes.

After sustaining heavy damage during World War II bombing raids, as a result of its close proximity to targets such as factories and gas works, the area was named as one of five regeneration areas of the city. Most of the area was rebuilt in the 1950s and 1960s. This began with the construction of four tower blocks, which were the first tower blocks in the city. Collectively known as the Duddeston Four, the 12-storey High, Queens, Home and South Towers, were all completed between 1954 and 1955 to a design by SN Cooke and Partners. They consist of a stretched X-shaped footprint and have brick cladding with porthole shaped windows. The design was expensive and upon their completion, they were criticised by the council over their cost, despite received positive reviews from the "Municipal Journal" and "Architectural Review". In the 1990s, they were refurbished and a new security system was installed.

Transport

Duddeston railway station is served by trains on the Birmingham Cross-City Line and the Walsall Line.

References

• Vauxhall Gardens history