Did you know ...? - Historical Facts

Did you know? 

The building has only been a hotel since 1965, before that it was a veterinary practice that also invented and distributed medicine for common and hard to treat illnesses. When it first opened as a hotel it only had 10 bedrooms.

Content Blocks

Our top 10 "did you know" historical facts 

  1. The earliest reference to the village of Crudwell was made in 854. The records of the ancient Malmesbury Abbey show that in 854 King Ethelwulf gave the abbey 10 hides at Crudwell (a hide being 120 acres or local variant).
  2. In those days Malmesbury Abbey held a vast estate of around 23,000 acres within the Malmesbury Hundred (the collection of local parishes). The Abbey retained its Crudwell estate until the dissolution by Henry VIII in 1539.
  3. In 1544 the Crown granted Crudwell Manor to John de Vere, Earl of Oxford. The Manorial Complex was located in Eastcourt Road where the remains of the Medieval Tithe Barn still stands today. The village also boasts a fine 12th Century Church which is probably of Saxon origin.
  4. The name of the village has changed much over the years. In 854 it was known as Croddewell and became Cruddwell (901), Creddewilla (1065), Croudewelle (1300), Curdwell (1599), Cradwell (1809) and eventually Crudwell.
  5. The likely derivation of the name Crudwell is Creoda’s spring or well. Creoda was a 6th Century King of Mercia who was killed in battle in this district. The well, by tradition, is the one lying between the Manor Farmhouse and the Tithe Barn.
  6. The Mayfield House has been a hotel since 1965. From 1889 to 1965 it had an entirely different use.  The 1911 Kelly’s Directory lists the occupants as:
  7. ‘Pettifer, Stephen and Son, veterinary chemists to H. M. the King; manufacturers of veterinary chemicals, sheep dips etc.’
  8. The Pettifer family actually produced veterinary medicines at the Mayfield House. From 1911 the family held a Royal Warrant for Santovin, a worm drench for sheep.
  9. The restaurant was originally a stable for holding the animals under treatment. 
  10. Julian Pettifer, the famous Naturalist and Television Journalist, enjoyed his childhood at the Mayfield House and has continued the family links with animals.

Download a copy of the original Pettifers pre-war poster.

Free Wifi

Pettifers Hotel | Crudwell | 3 reasons to stay with us - 1

Great Local Food

Pettifers Hotel | Crudwell | 3 reasons to stay with us - 2

Free Car Parking

Pettifers Hotel | Crudwell | 3 reasons to stay with us - 3