XXV.—Manorial Government 148 XXVI.—Modern Self-Government 153 XXVII.—The Town of Locks and Keys 158 XXVIII.—Willenhall in Fiction 167 XXIX.—Bibliography 175 XXX.—Topography 179 XXXI.—Old Families and Names of Note 184 XXXII.—Manners and Customs 187 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. Seal of Local Authority Title Page. St. Giles’ Church v Rev. Wm. Moreton v Rev. G. H. Fisher, M.A. v Dr. Richard Wilkes v Moseley Hall 65 Boscobel 65 Bentley Hall 137 Willenhall Trade Token (farthing) 166 Borrow, George 169 Borrow’s Birthplace 169 Neptune Inn 177 Bell Inn 177 Old Bull’s Head 177 The Plough 177 Tildesley, James 185 Tildesley, Josiah 185 Pearce, George Ley 185 Hartill, Jeremiah 185 Austin, John 185 [Picture: St. Giles’ Church (before Restoration). 1755 to 1871] [Picture: The Rev. Wm. Moreton (Incumbent of St. Giles’ Church, 1788–1834)] [Picture: Rev. G. Hutchinson Fisher, M.A. (Incumbent of St. Giles’ Church, 1834–1894)] [Picture: Dr. Richard Wilkes] I.—Its Name and Its Antiquity Willenhall, vulgo Willnal, is undoubtedly a place of great antiquity; on the evidence of its name it manifestly had its foundation in an early Saxon settlement. The Anglo-Saxon form of the name Willanhale may be interpreted as “the meadow land of Willa”—Willa being a personal name, probably that of the tribal leader, the head of a Teutonic family, who settled here. In the Domesday Book the name appears as Winehala, but by the twelfth century had approached as near to its modern form as Willenhal and Willenhale. Dr. Oliver, in his History of Wolverhampton, derives the name from Velen, the Sun-god, and the Rev. H. Barber, of Ashby-de-la-Zouch, who tries to find a Danish origin for nearly all our old Midland place-names, suggests the Norse form Vil-hjalmr; or perhaps a connection with Scandinavian family names such as Willing and Wlmer. Dr. Barber fortifies himself by quoting Scott:—