Blagdon

Last updated

Blagdon
Blagdon.JPG
Blagdon with the lake in the foreground
Somerset UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Blagdon
Location within Somerset
Population1,116 (2011) [1]
OS grid reference ST500589
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town BRISTOL
Postcode district BS40
Dialling code 01761
Police Avon and Somerset
Fire Avon
Ambulance South Western
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Somerset
51°19′37″N2°43′01″W / 51.327°N 2.717°W / 51.327; -2.717

Blagdon is a village and civil parish in the ceremonial county of Somerset, within the unitary authority of North Somerset, in England. It is located in the Mendip Hills, a recognised Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. According to the 2011 census it has a population of 1,116. [1] The village is about 12 miles (19  km ) east of Weston-super-Mare on the A368 between Churchill and Compton Martin.

Contents

History

The village was called Blachedon in the 1086 Domesday Book and the name comes from the Old English bloec and dun meaning 'the black or bleak down'. [2]

Romans

There was a Roman presence in Blagdon from about 49 AD [3] until the end of the Roman occupation of Britain. Several Roman coins and fragments of Roman pottery have been found in the village. There were lead and silver workings in Charterhouse, about a mile and a half uphill to the south, so it is likely that the wealthier supervisors had their houses away from the toxic smoke in the village. Wade and Wade in their 1929 book Somerset suggest traces of Roman mines such as tools and pigs of lead have been found at Blagdon. [3]

Saxons

The parish was part of the Hundred of Winterstoke. [4]

Norman feudal barony

Blagdon is believed to have been the caput of the feudal barony held by Serlo de Burci (died c. 1086), who is recorded as holding the manor in the Domesday Book of 1086. However the caput may have been Dartington. [5] The Domesday Book recorded a land area for Blagdon approximating to 2,000 acres (8 km²), including 200 acres (0.8 km²) of woodland. Serlo left no sons and his daughter Geva was his sole heiress. She married twice: firstly to "Martin" (died before 1086), to whom she bore a son and heir Robert FitzMartin (died 1159), and secondly to William de Falaise. In 1154 Robert FitzMartin gave St Andrews Church and other land from around the East End of the village to Stanley Abbey in Wiltshire. He also gave land at Blagdon to the Knights Templar which became known as the Temple Hydon Estate. [6] Robert's son was William FitzMartin (1155–1209), whose own son and heir was William FitzMartin (died before 15 February 1216). Next to inherit was Nicholas FitzMartin (1210–1282) whose son Nicholas (died 1260)predeceased him, but had married the sole heiress of the feudal barony of Barnstaple, Maud de Tracy (died before Michaelmas 1279), daughter and sole heiress of Henry de Tracy (died 1274). Nicholas's son William FitzMartin (died 1324) thus inherited Barnstaple from his mother and Blagdon from his grandfather. On the death in 1326 of William's son William without children, his co-heirs were his surviving sister Eleanor and James Audley (died 1386) the son of his deceased sister Joan FitzMartin (died 1322). Eleanor FitzMartin (died 1342) died without children, albeit having married twice. James Audley, 2nd Baron Audley (died 1386) was Joan's son by her second husband Nicholas Audley, 1st Baron Audley (died 1316) of Heleigh Castle, Staffordshire. James Audley thus in 1342 inherited his childless aunt Eleanor's moieties of the two baronies of Barnstaple and Blagdon, thus giving him possession of the whole of each. [7] [8]

The Blagdon Controversy

In the late eighteenth century, the famous writer and educational pioneer Hannah More, shocked at the poverty and ignorance to be found in Mendip villages, was active establishing schools in the area. In 1795 she founded a Sunday School in Blagdon, in the building now called Hannah More House. [9] About this time she wrote to William Wilberforce, the anti-slavery campaigner, about her school, "Several of the grown-up youths had been tried at the last assizes; three were children of a person lately condemned to be hanged — many thieves! Of this banditti we have enlisted one hundred and seventy; and when the clergyman, a hard man, who is also the magistrate, saw these creatures kneeling around us, whom he had seldom seen but to commit or punish in some way, he burst into tears". [10]

However, Mr Bere, the curate referred to in this letter, soon became implacably opposed to the school and after years of pressure it was forced to close. Nevertheless, the furore created made the "Blagdon Controversy" a milestone of national importance in the development of education for the labouring classes. [11]

Physical history

There are several houses in the village dating from medieval times and earlier. The houses facing on to Bell Square in the north corner of the West End date from the fourteenth century. The shape of some of the existing fields suggest they are of medieval origin. [12]

Blagdon in the twentieth century

In 1901 the Wrington Vale Light Railway reached Blagdon. It closed to passengers just 30 years later in 1931. Part of the line remained for freight only, but this closed in 1962.

Governance

The parish council has responsibility for local issues, including setting an annual precept (local rate) to cover the council’s operating costs and producing annual accounts for public scrutiny. The parish council evaluates local planning applications and works with the local police, district council officers, and neighbourhood watch groups on matters of crime, security, and traffic. The parish council's role also includes initiating projects for the maintenance and repair of parish facilities, such as the village hall or community centre, playing fields and playgrounds, as well as consulting with the district council on the maintenance, repair, and improvement of highways, drainage, footpaths, public transport, and street cleaning. Conservation matters (including trees and listed buildings) and environmental issues are also of interest to the council.

Blagdon and Churchill Ward is represented by one councillor - currently Cllr Patrick Keating [13] - on the unitary authority of North Somerset which was created in 1996, as established by the Local Government Act 1992. It provides a single tier of local government with responsibility for almost all local government functions within its area including local planning and building control, local roads, council housing, environmental health, markets and fairs, refuse collection, recycling, cemeteries, crematoria, leisure services, parks, and tourism. It is also responsible for education, social services, libraries, main roads, public transport, trading standards, waste disposal and strategic planning, although fire, police and ambulance services are provided jointly with other authorities through the Avon Fire and Rescue Service, Avon and Somerset Constabulary and the South Western Ambulance Service.

North Somerset's area covers part of the ceremonial county of Somerset but it is administered independently of the non-metropolitan county. Its administrative headquarters is in the town hall in Weston-super-Mare. Between 1 April 1974 and 1 April 1996, it was the Woodspring district of the county of Avon. [14] Before 1974 that the parish was part of the Axbridge Rural District. [15]

The parish is represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom as part of the Weston-super-Mare constituency. It was also part of the South West England constituency of the European Parliament, prior to Britain leaving the European Union in January 2020..

Geography

Church tower with the lake behind Blagdon church and lake.jpg
Church tower with the lake behind

The village is located on the northern edge of the Mendip Hills on the A368, overlooking Blagdon Lake. The headquarters of the dairy company Yeo Valley Organic is located in the village.

When describing Blagdon the names of the three former separate settlements that merged to form Blagdon are usually used: West End, East End, and Street End.

The new road serving the housing is named Baynard Close after the Lord of the Manor of Blagdon who founded the forerunner of the current village school in 1687. [16] The New Inn is a Grade II listed building. [17]

Demographics

According to the 2001 Census, the Blagdon and Churchill Ward had 1,423 residents, living in 594 households, with an average age of 41.9 years. Of these 75% of residents described their health as 'good', 19% of 16- to 74-year-olds had no qualifications; and the area had an unemployment rate of 1.2% of all economically active people aged 16–74. In the Index of Multiple Deprivation 2004, it was ranked at 24,228 out of 32,482 wards in England, where 1 was the most deprived LSOA and 32,482 the least deprived. [18] The 2011 Census highlights that the population had dropped to 1,116 within 737 hectares of land. [1] 938 of these people were of working age and 155 had no qualifications. [1]

Transport

Blagdon is served by several bus services going to Bristol, Bath, Wells and Weston-super-Mare. A Blagdon Minibus is available for groups to use at a small charge. The A368 to Bath goes through Blagdon. The M5 motorway is easily accessible around 13 miles (21  km ) away at junctions 21 and 22. The nearest railway station is Yatton. Blagdon formerly had its own railway station as the terminus of the Wrington Vale Light Railway from 1901 to 1931 (freight traffic continued until 1950).

Religious sites

St Andrews Church Blagdon church.jpg
St Andrews Church

St Andrew's Church (Church of England) has a 116-foot tower with pinnacles and a cusped lozenge pattern parapet, with a stair turret spirelet in the north-east corner. [19] The tower dates from the 15th century and is one of the tallest in Somerset. The remainder of the church was rebuilt in 1907–09 by Lord Winterstoke (of the Wills tobacco family) [20] The tower contains a bell dating from 1716 and made by Edward Bilbie of the Bilbie family. [21] It is a Grade II* listed building [22] The lychgate to the east of the church is also a Grade II listed building in its own right. [23] Above the door are four primitive Norman carvings which survived three rebuildings. [24]

There is also a Baptist chapel, the former Methodist chapel having been converted into residential housing.

Culture

Blagdon is the setting of Chapters 8 and 9 of Victor Canning's best-selling novel of 1934, Mr Finchley Discovers his England.

Blagdon has many clubs and organisations including:

Famous residents

Augustus Montague Toplady Augustus Montague Toplady - Project Gutenberg eText 18444.jpg
Augustus Montague Toplady

Listed buildings

There are several Grade II listed buildings:

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chewton Mendip</span> Human settlement in England

Chewton Mendip is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England. It is situated 4 miles (6 km) north of Wells, 16 miles (26 km) south of Bath and Bristol on the A39 very close to the A37. The village is in a valley on the Mendip Hills and is the source of the River Chew. The parish includes the hamlets of Bathway and Green Ore.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shipham</span> Human settlement in England

Shipham is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England. It is on the western edge of the Mendip Hills near the A38, approximately 15 miles (24 km) south of Bristol. The parish includes the village of Rowberrow and the hamlet of Star. The parish population, according to the 2011 census, is 1,087.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Churchill, Somerset</span> Village and civil parish in Somerset, England

Churchill is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority of North Somerset, part of the ceremonial county of Somerset. It is located on the western edge of the Mendip Hills, about 8 miles (12.9 km) east of Weston-super-Mare, and about 15 miles (24.1 km) south-west of Bristol. The parish, which includes the village of Lower Langford and the hamlet of Upper Langford, has a population of 2,250.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Compton Martin</span> Village and civil parish in England

Compton Martin is a small village and civil parish within the Chew Valley in Somerset and in the Bath and North East Somerset unitary authority in England. The parish has a population of 508. It lies between Chew Valley Lake and Blagdon Lake, north of the Mendip Hills, approximately 10 miles (16 km) south of Bristol on the A368 road Weston-super-Mare to Bath, between Blagdon and West Harptree.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East Harptree</span> Human settlement in England

East Harptree is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England. It is situated 5 miles (8.0 km) north of Wells and 15 miles (24.1 km) south of Bristol, on the northern slope of the Mendip Hills overlooking the Chew Valley. The parish has a population of 644. The parish includes the hamlet of Coley.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A368 road</span> Road in England

The A368 is a part primary status A road in North Somerset, England. It runs from Marksbury to Banwell along the northern edge of the Mendip Hills and past the reservoir at Chew Valley Lake.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Temple Cloud</span> Village in the Chew Valley, Somerset, England

Temple Cloud is a village in the Chew Valley in Somerset on the A37 road. It is in the civil parish of Temple Cloud with Cameley and in the council area of Bath and North East Somerset. It is 10 miles (16 km) from Bristol and 5 miles (8 km) from the town of Midsomer Norton. The villages of Cameley and Clutton are nearby.

The Chew Valley is an affluent area in North Somerset, England, named after the River Chew, which rises at Chewton Mendip, and joins the River Avon at Keynsham. Technically, the area of the valley is bounded by the water catchment area of the Chew and its tributaries; however, the name Chew Valley is often used less formally to cover other nearby areas, for example, Blagdon Lake and its environs, which by a stricter definition are part of the Yeo Valley. The valley is an area of rich arable and dairy farmland, interspersed with a number of villages.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Harptree</span> Human settlement in England

West Harptree is a small village and civil parish in the Chew Valley, Somerset within the unitary district of Bath and North East Somerset. The parish has a population of 439.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ubley</span> Human settlement in England

Ubley is a small village and civil parish within the Chew Valley in Bath and North East Somerset about 9 miles (14.5 km) south of Bristol. It is just south-east of Blagdon Lake, just off the A368 between Compton Martin and Blagdon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Litton, Somerset</span> Human settlement in England

Litton is a small village and civil parish between Chewton Mendip and West Harptree in the Mendip Hills, Somerset, England. The parish includes the hamlet of Sherborne. Very close to the village are the Litton Reservoirs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Westbury-sub-Mendip</span> Human settlement in England

Westbury-sub-Mendip is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England. The village is on the southern slopes of the Mendip Hills, 4 miles (6.4 km) from Wells and Cheddar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Burrington, Somerset</span> Human settlement in England

Burrington is a small village and civil parish in Somerset, England. It is situated in the unitary authority of North Somerset, 5 miles (8.0 km) north east of Axbridge and about 10 miles (16 km) east of Weston-super-Mare. The parish includes the hamlets of Bourne and Rickford and has a population of 464.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Compton Bishop</span> Village and civil parish in England

Compton Bishop is a small village and civil parish, at the western end of the Mendip Hills in the English county of Somerset. It is located close to the historic town of Axbridge. Along with the village of Cross and the hamlets of Rackley and Webbington it forms the parish of Compton Bishop and Cross.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charterhouse, Somerset</span> Human settlement in England

Charterhouse, also known as Charterhouse-on-Mendip, is a hamlet and former civil parish, now in the parish of Priddy, in the Mendip Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) in the Somerset district, in the ceremonial county of Somerset, England. The area between Charterhouse and Cheddar Gorge including Velvet Bottom and Ubley Warren is covered by the Cheddar Complex Site of Special Scientific Interest. In 1931 the parish had a population of 68.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Church of St James, Cameley</span> Church in Somerset, England

The Church of St James is a redundant church in Cameley, Somerset, England, dating from the late 12th century. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building, and is in the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. It is dedicated to St. James of Compostela. The church was declared redundant on 1 January 1980, and was vested in the Trust on 18 March 1981.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Feudal barony of Barnstaple</span>

From AD 1066, the feudal barony of Barnstaple was a large feudal barony with its caput at the town of Barnstaple in north Devon, England. It was one of eight feudal baronies in Devonshire which existed in the Middle Ages. In 1236 it comprised 56 knight's fees or individual member manors. The feudal service owed for half the barony in 1274 was the provision to the royal army of two knights or four sergeants for forty days per annum, later commuted to scutage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Manor of Tawstock</span> Former manor in Devon, England

The historic manor of Tawstock was situated in North Devon, in the hundred of Fremington, 2 miles south of Barnstaple, England. According to Pole the feudal baron of Barnstaple Henry de Tracy made Tawstock his seat, apparently having abandoned Barnstaple Castle as the chief residence of the barony. Many of the historic lords of the manor are commemorated by monuments in St Peter's Church, the parish church of Tawstock which in the opinion of Pevsner contains "the best collection in the county apart from those in the cathedral", and in the opinion of Hoskins "contains the finest collection of monuments in Devon and one of the most notable in England".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Church of St Andrew, Blagdon</span> Church in Somerset, England

The Anglican Church Of St Andrew in Blagdon, within the English county of Somerset, was built in the 15th century. It is a Grade II* listed building.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 UK Census (2011). "Local Area Report – Blagdon (E04001003)". Nomis. Office for National Statistics . Retrieved 4 January 2021.
  2. ↑ Robinson, Stephen (1992). Somerset Place Names. Wimborne, Dorset: The Dovecote Press Ltd. ISBN   1-874336-03-2.
  3. 1 2 Somerset by Wade, G.W. & Wade, J.H. at Project Gutenberg
  4. ↑ "Somerset Hundreds". GENUKI. Retrieved 9 September 2011.
  5. ↑ Sanders, I.J., English Baronies, Oxford, 1960, p.15, Blagdon
  6. ↑ Faith, Juliet. The Knights Templar in Somerset. The History Press. pp. 91–94. ISBN   9780752452562.
  7. ↑ Sanders, pp.15, Blagdon; p.104, Barnstaple
  8. ↑ "History". Blagdon Stores. Archived from the original on 10 September 2011. Retrieved 18 August 2009.
  9. ↑ Historic England. "Hannah More House (1146382)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  10. ↑ Clarke, James Freeman (1836). The Western Messenger. Western Unitarian Association. p. 26.
  11. ↑ Collingwood, Jeremy; Margaret Collingwood (1990). Hannah More. Lion Books. pp. 95–99. ISBN   978-0745915326.
  12. ↑ "Mendip Hills: An Archaeological Survey of the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty" (PDF). Somerset County Council Archaeological Projects. Retrieved 28 October 2006.
  13. ↑ "Councillor details - Patrick Keating". n-somerset.moderngov.co.uk. 2 December 2022. Retrieved 2 December 2022.
  14. ↑ "The Avon (Structural Change) Order 1995". HMSO. Archived from the original on 30 January 2008. Retrieved 9 December 2007.
  15. ↑ "Axbridge RD". A vision of Britain Through Time. University of Portsmouth. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
  16. ↑ "Baynard's Educational Trust". Blagdon.org. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  17. ↑ Historic England. "The New Inn (1146421)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  18. ↑ "Neighbourhood Statistics LSOA North Somerset 024D Blagdon and Churchill". Office for National Statistics 2001 Census. Retrieved 25 April 2006.
  19. ↑ Pevsner, Nikolaus (1958). The Buildings of England: North Somerset and Bristol. Penguin Books. ISBN   0-14-071013-2.
  20. ↑ Mason, Edmund J. & Mason, Doreen (1982). Avon Villages. Robert Hale Ltd. ISBN   0-7091-9585-0.
  21. ↑ Moore, James; Roy Rice; Ernest Hucker (1995). Bilbie and the Chew Valley clock makers. The authors. ISBN   0-9526702-0-8.
  22. ↑ Historic England. "Church of St Andrew (1146388)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  23. ↑ Historic England. "Lychgate (1320937)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  24. ↑ Atthill, Robin (1976). Mendip: A new study. Newton Abbot, Devon: David & Charles. ISBN   0-7153-7297-1.
  25. ↑ Historic England. "Aldwick Court (1129176)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  26. ↑ Historic England. "Lodge to south-west of Woodlands (1146370)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  27. ↑ Historic England. "Stables and Archway at Aldwick Court (1146346)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  28. ↑ Historic England. "Woodlands (1129177)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  29. ↑ Historic England. "Bay Trees (1129178)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  30. ↑ Historic England. "Hannah More House (1146382)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  31. ↑ Historic England. "The Old Rectory and Wing Cottage (1146401)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  32. ↑ Historic England. "Fir Tree Farmhouse and attached outbuildings (1300975)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  33. ↑ Historic England. "Blagdon Court and Court Cottage (1146437)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  34. ↑ Historic England. "Blagdon House (1320939)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  35. ↑ Historic England. "Court Farmhouse (1146442)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  36. ↑ Historic England. "Walnut Tree House (1236124)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  37. ↑ Historic England. "Coombe Lodge (1129179)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  38. ↑ Historic England. "Gate Lodge and Gates south of Coombe Lodge (1129180)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  39. ↑ Historic England. "Gauge House (1129181)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  40. ↑ Historic England. "Masonic Lodge (1320938)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
  41. ↑ Historic England. "Mill House (1311800)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 1 June 2013.

Bibliography

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.