Bentley Cairn the secrets of the stone
Bentley near Willenhall is home to one of the borough’s best kept secrets.
Standing next to Bentley Emmanuel Church is a cairn stone which holds the clues to a rich historical past. The stone marks the site of three former manor houses, two of which were known as Bentley Hall. The second of these played its part in one of the most significant and dramatic events in British history.
Monarch on the run
On the night of September 10th 1651, King Charles II took shelter at the hall. The English Civil War had just ended with Charles’s defeat at the Battle of Worcester and he was now fleeing for his life from Oliver Cromwell's victorious troops.
The King was helped by the then owner Colonel John Lane and his sister Jane Lane. The next day she took Charles, disguised as her servant, to Bristol. From there he continued what became over a 950km (600-mile) escape route to France. The journey is now commemorated by the Monarch's Way long distance footpath.
Methodism madness
Nearly a hundred years later, the hall had another famous visitor – Reverend John Wesley, founder of the Methodist Church. On October 20th 1743, a mob from Wednesbury, angered by his preaching, and egged on by the local Anglican vicar, Edward Egginton, brought him there to demand his prosecution by Mr John Lane, Justice of the Peace, a descendant of Colonel Lane.
Some members of the mob, having gone on ahead, spoke to Mr Lane. He replied, “What have I to do with Mr Wesley? Go and carry him back again.” When the rest arrived, a servant informed them Mr Lane was in bed. John Lane’s son appeared and told them to “go home and be quiet”. The mob then went on to Walsall, where, during a fight with a rival gang, Wesley managed to escape.
A three building story
William the Conqueror granted the manor of Bentley to ‘Drew’, whose descendants took the name Bentley. Around 1427 the manor was sold to Richard Lane. Evidence suggests that he then built a house, possibly with a moat.
The illustration is taken from Robert Plot’s Natural History of Staffordshire published in 1686. It shows the Lane family’s second hall – a Jacobean period building dating from the early 17th century.
Bentley Hall, 1651. Courtesy of Walsall Local History Centre
The Lanes held the manor until 1748 when it was sold to Joseph Turton of Wolverhampton and then to Lord Anson of Shugborough. At the end of the 18th century the hall was converted into a modern farm house, leaving little of the Jacobean building.
Bentley Hall, circa 1904. Courtesy of Walsall Local History Centre
The area around Bentley Hall was mined for ironstone between the 1850s and ‘60s, and for coal in the early 20th century. As the photo shows, coal mining came right up to the hall. This eventually caused the hall’s collapse and total demolition in 1929.
Colliery winding gear 1926. Courtesy of Walsall Local History Centre
Stonework from this hall is featured in the landscaping around the cairn, whilst its main column comes from nearby Pouk Hill quarry.
Improvements to the monument have been carried out by the Bentley Cairn Restoration Group, supported by Walsall Council, with funding from the Local Heritage Initiative, a partnership between the Heritage Lottery Fund, the Nationwide Building Society and the Countryside Agency, and the Landfill Tax credit scheme from the Waste Recycling Group Ltd, administered by WREN.
Bentley Cairn is located next to Bentley Emmanuel Church access is via Cairn Drive off Queen Elizabeth Avenue.