| Whitwell | |
|---|---|
 | |
  Whitwell Location within Rutland | |
| Area | 0.98 sq mi (2.5 km2) [1] |
| Population | 41 2001 Census[2] |
| • Density | 42/sq mi (16/km2) |
| OS grid reference | SK923088 |
| • London | 84 miles (135 km) SSE |
| Unitary authority | |
| Shire county | |
| Ceremonial county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | OAKHAM |
| Postcode district | LE15 |
| Dialling code | 01572 |
| Police | Leicestershire |
| Fire | Leicestershire |
| Ambulance | East Midlands |
| UK Parliament | |
Whitwell is a village and civil parish in the county of Rutland in the East Midlands of England. The population at the 2001 census was 41. At the 2011 census the population remained less than 100 and was included together with the neighbouring parish of Exton.
It is located on the A606, about four miles (6 km) east of Oakham, on the north shore of Rutland Water with car parking off Bull Brig Lane. Whitwell Harbour is a popular sailing and water sports area and a pleasure boat known as the Rutland Belle operates from the harbour. Whitwell is one of the smallest villages in Rutland; it only has 19 houses, plus The Noel pub, the name of which comes from the Earls of Gainsborough, who were landholders in the area.[3]
The village's name means 'spring/stream which is white', probably meaning it was infertile.[4]
Whitwell claims to be twinned with Paris, France. In 1980, regulars from the pub, the Noel Arms wrote to the then Mayor of Paris, Jacques Chirac proposing the link and with a tight deadline for a response. As no answer arrived from the Mayor's office by the set date, the village unilaterally declared itself to be twinned and erected road signs to that effect.[5][6] The original wooden signs were later replaced in metal by Rutland County Council.[7]
- ^ "A vision of Britain through time". University of Portsmouth. Retrieved 21 March 2009.
- ^ "Rutland Civil Parish Populations" (PDF). Rutland County Council. 2001. Retrieved 21 March 2009.
- ^ Poulton-Smith, Anthony (2008). Leicestershire and Rutland Place-names. History Press. p. 142. ISBN 978-0-7509-5045-9.
- ^ "Key to English place-names - Whitwell". Retrieved 26 October 2023.
- ^ Story of how Whitwell came to be twinned with Paris, as told to Parliament by local MP Alan Duncan in 1992. (Scroll down to bottom of "Column 1137")
- ^ A column from the Guardian, 19 April 2003, mentioning how Whitwell became twinned with Paris. (about 2/3 of the way down)
- ^ "European elections 2019: The village (Sort of) twinned with Paris". BBC News. 21 May 2019.