present to this day. The Forest Law of 1217 For people who broke Forest Laws the punishment were severe. Under the 1217 Charter of King Henry III the Forest Laws were removed from Aston parish. The village is located in the north of the Horewell Forest. As a result of this Charter villagers could hunt and gather wood with impunity. This change came about because of the deforestation of the area around Aston caused by a greater need for farm land. Over this time the area changed dramatically in appearance, unlike the neighboring village of Churchill which lay within the Forest of Feckenham and as a result the villagers of Churchill where still subject to the old laws. The Manor of Aston Episcopi from the 12th Century to 17th Century In 1120 part of Aston Episcopi manor was given by Bishop Theulf to Robert de Evercy. A descendant of the same name obtained a recognition of his right to build a stone church at Aston in 1204. Walter de Cantilupe, Bishop of Worcester, in 1242 acquired additional land for Aston Episcopi from the Manor of Aston Bruley owned by the de Bruley family. In 1255 part of the revenue from Aston Episcopi was granted to the eight Cistercian Nuns running the newly formed Whistones Priory in Barbourne, Worcester. The nuns were of the Cistercian Order and wore white habits so creating the village name, White Ladies Aston. During the Reformation of Henry VIII Whistones Nunnery was dissolved in October 1536. The dissolution of the nunnery might have caused another change in the name of the manor but the name White Ladies Aston remained. This manor was granted on 14 July 1544 to Richard Andrews and John Howe, and on 30 July they sold it to Thomas Hill. A descendant of Thomas Hill, Francis Hill died in 1611 leaving a daughter Alice, wife of Richard Andrews, who sold the manor, in 1612, to Robert Berkeley of Spetchley and the lands continue under Berkeley ownership today. The rest of the Manor of Aston Episcopi was retained by the bishop and remained in the possession of the see of Worcester until 1648. It was then sold by the Parliamentary trustees to Thomas Rawlins, Edmund Giles and Christopher Giles but was restored to the see at the Restoration of Charles II in 1660 and remained in the hands of successive bishops until the death