Lord of manor after £6,500 spree

This is the first picture of the new Lord of the Manor of Burlton in Shropshire - Susan Rees, a retired legal eagle from Hertfordshire who bought the ancient title at auction for £6,500.

Mrs Rees was one of two bidders who splashed out thousands of pounds to purchase grand and historic county titles at the sale run by auctioneers Strutt & Parker at Ironmongers Hall, Barbican, London.

A second title, the Lordship of the Manor of Wappenshall, between Wellington and Leegomery, went to a mystery phone bidder, for £6,500.

After buying the Lordship of the Manor of Burlton, in Loppington near Shrewsbury, Mrs Rees, from St Albans, said: "It's the biggest shopping spree I've ever had. Now I need to win the lottery."

She bid for the title saying she has ancestors, including her great grandmother, who lived near the Shropshire-Staffordshire border and believed that some of them travelled to work in Shropshire.

As a local history enthusiast who is keen to trace her roots, she believes she has more, as yet unknown, family connections to the region.

She said she was delighted to have snapped up a slice of Shropshire's heritage at the sale and that it represented the beginning of a new search for her roots.

"I'm really pleased to be a part of the history of Shropshire. I must have had people from my family working on the land.

"I have an immediate affinity with Shropshire and doubtless I will be going there more often now."

Although she has never been to Burlton, the Manor itself encompasses the hamlet of Burlton and Burlton Hall, midway between Shrewsbury and Ellesmere, about four miles south west of Wem.

The title is held in direct line from the Vaughan family, descendants of the ancient Welsh family of Tudor Trevor. The manor can be traced back over 900 years through the direct bloodline of one of the oldest families in the country.

The Manor of Wappenshall was held by the Toret family from the Conquest to 1528, with one or two reversions to the Crown. The Manor eventually passed to the current Countess of Sutherland.

Jonathan Chaplin, a partner for auctioneers Strutt & Parker, explained the reason why such titles are being sold today. He said: "For those who had big estates, death duties have shrunk the size of the estates and a number of lordships may be on the periphery."

By Ben Bentley