Life in Eighteenth-Century Theale, Berkshire

Theale is a small village off the M4 near Tilehurst. Victorian and Georgian cottages, a few shops, cafés and more pubs than you'd expect. But what was it like to live in Theale during the Georgian era? 

The general appearance of Theale today would have been similar in the 1700s, with the High Street snaking its way past a row of homes and public houses. But it wouldn't have had the imposing church of The Holy Trinity that stands today. The church, thought to have been modelled on Salisbury Cathedral, was built in the following century, although there are some suggestions that there was once a medieval chapel on its site. The railway station, too, was another product of the 1800s, and so Theale in the 1770s was pretty much restricted to the main village we see today - no business park and no main roads, other than the old Bath Road, which passes the village, now the A4. 

The Crown Inn, Theale

These roads could be treacherous back in the eighteenth century. Walking through the village you would have seen carts and carriages bumbling their way through the dusty streets, and it was a main picking up and dropping off point between Reading and London, probably one of the reasons it has so many inns and public houses that were active at this time. One newspaper report of 1773 however described a cart that turned over near Theale in a gravel pit off the side of the road, killing its passenger, Mr Thorn, of Aldermaston. But walking could also present problems, particularly on account of the many pubs from one end of Theale to the other. The Lamb inn dates to 1497, and so was certainly standing in the 1700s. The Falcon, The Crown and the Bull are all mentioned in newspaper reports of the time, too. In February 1785 a passer-by reported a body they had found in a ditch, identified as a butcher from nearby Stanford Dingley. Witnesses reported that he was 'very much in liquor' the night before at The Crown, where he was told to go home to bed. Instead, he carried on drinking and was discovered drowned in the ditch in the early hours of the morning. 

The village's pubs must have seen their fair share of drunken behaviour, but they were also meeting places where local business was conducted and public views considered. In an age before Whatsapp and Facebook groups, pubs provided somewhere warm to auction off lands and goods, and decide on the future of the community. In August 1784, The Bull held a Meeting of the Justices, while in May 1798, Mr Poyntz arranged a meeting at The Falcon to canvass villagers about raising a troop of cavalry in the area. At The Crown, May Day entertainments were also held towards the end of the century, offering prizes for winning different games. It offered 'all gentleman gamesters and others' the chance to win a gold laced hat to the value of one guinea for winning a game of bowls. Other prizes were cheeses, a pair of gloves, a belt and a Holland shift that women competed for. It's also one of the rare occasions that we hear of a violent old country game called Backswords. The game involved hitting an opponent's head with the back of a sword, aiming to break the skin. You only won if the blood ran more than an inch down the competitor's head. The advertisement for the event also promised a prize of a pair of garters 'to be grinned for'.

The Falcon, Theale

What's really exciting is that we can even pin down some of the names of Theale residents that were active during this time. Mrs Jane Fewtrell was landlady of The Falcon Inn in the 1770s, until the establishment was taken over in May 1775 by James Clarke, who had the premises fully fitted out and refurnished to welcome his customers. If you visited during Jane's ownership at the inn, an inventory of her goods shows that you would have eaten from ornamental plates and china on a mahogany table draped with tablecloths in a damask pattern. You'd have had matching napkins and the coffee pots she owned show that you could have ordered a cup of coffee before going up to your room for the night. There, beds were lined with crimson damask at the head of the bed, and filled with goose feathers to ensure you enjoyed a peaceful night's sleep. Quilts and blankets were available on the colder nights. Jane Fewtrell clearly took pride in her role in Theale's local community as a businesswoman and providing a luxurious touch to customers of her inn during the early 1770s.

A man named Samuel White worked in Theale for a short period as a blacksmith, but was found to have been a deserter of the king's army, based in Wallingford. A newspaper report in the Reading Mercury gave a description of him, and urged anyone who recognised him to alert the authorities. He was 24 years old, five feet and nine inches in height with brown hair, pale skin and hazel eyes. The report offered him, and another man, a free pardon if they handed themselves in to Lieutenant Colonel Sir Charles Marsh, at Reading. It's not known whether Samuel was ever found or handed himself in. An apothecary and surgeon named Dawson also lived in Theale, who in October 1779 invited residents to visit him and be inoculated against smallpox. At the time this was a new treatment for the condition, its success already seen in London and among members of the royal family. 

You might pass through Theale nowadays to visit the dentist, go out for Sunday dinner or pick up a kebab, but it is such an old village with a rich history. Royal histories are important for us to establish national policies and timelines, but it is through the work of those like James Clarke, Samuel White, Mr Poyntz and Jane Fewtrell that more local stories took their shape. Remember them when you next walk through Theale. 

You might also like The Tudors in the Village of Tilehurst Berkshire, Sir Francis Englefield, Reading's Rebel Knight and Historic Pubs: The Fox and Hounds in Tilehurst, Berkshire.

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Sources

Reading Mercury, 2 August 1784, 24 January 1780, 5 July 1784, 22 May 1775, 18 October 1779, 28 May 1787, 14 May 1798, 16 february 1795, 28 February 1785, 11 January 1773, 13 March, 1775 [accessed 9 August 2025) via britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk