Lapford | |
---|---|
Lapford | |
Location within Devon | |
Population | 867 (2011) |
OS grid reference | SS7308 |
Civil parish |
|
District | |
Shire county | |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | CREDITON |
Postcode district | EX17 |
Dialling code | 01363 |
Police | Devon and Cornwall |
Fire | Devon and Somerset |
Ambulance | South Western |
UK Parliament | |
Lapford is a village and civil parish in Mid Devon in the English county of Devon. It had a population of 993 in 2001, [1] reducing to 867 at the 2011 census. [2] Lapford is part of Taw Valley ward whose population at the above census was 1,629. [3]
There are three churches in the village. St Thomas of Canterbury C of E church, [4] Lapford Community Church [5] and Lapford Congregational church. [6]
Originally a Norman chapel, the church of St Thomas of Canterbury is listed Grade I and partly dates back to shortly after the murder of Thomas Becket (1170), having been almost completely rebuilt, extended and then re-dedicated on the orders of King Henry II by William de Tracey, one of the assassins. De Tracey was lord of the manor of Bradninch, which then included most of what is now Lapford. It was further rebuilt and extended in the 15th & 16th centuries. The wall paintings and plasterwork were lost at the time of the Reformation and the original 12th-century chancel was rebuilt in the late 19th century.
Of special interest is a very fine late 15th-century carved screen, uniquely carved on both sides, and still almost complete. Like many Devon churches, St Thomas' has a fascinating series of intricate carved pew ends, variously dating from the 14th, 15th and 16th centuries.
The nearby Bury Barton is the site of a Roman fort, thought to be a large pre-Flavian fort that was succeeded by a smaller one that in turn was abandoned early in the Flavian period. [7] [8]
In the early part of the 20th century the milk processing company Ambrosia had a large creamery and processing facility at Lapford. [9]
There is one pub in the village. "The Old Malt Scoop Inn", located in the village centre, is an old coaching inn dating back to the 16th century.
Lapford playing field features two play areas, a large area of grass including a football pitch and also a fenced playground with various play equipment such as swings, slides and roundabouts.
Lapford railway station is a request stop station.
The village is said to be haunted by the spirit of the former Vicar of Lapford's church, the St Thomas of Canterbury Church, John Radford. He murdered his curate, in the 1860s, but was spared from the gallows by a jury consisting of many of his village parishioners and returned to his parish duties. His dying wish was to be buried in the church chancel, he made the ominous threat to haunt the village if his wishes were not carried out. The church authorities would not allow this, instead he was buried outside the vestry door where his grave can still be seen today. His spirit is said to still wander around the village. [10] [11]
Lapford is also said to be haunted by the spirit of the former Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Becket. [12] On the anniversary of his murder he is said to gallop through the village on horseback on his way to confront Sir William de Tracey, of nearby Nymet Tracy, for his part in the brutal murder.
Thomas Becket, also known as Saint Thomas of Canterbury, Thomas of London and later Thomas à Becket, was Archbishop of Canterbury from 1162 until his murder in 1170. He is venerated as a saint and martyr by the Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion. He engaged in conflict with Henry II, King of England, over the rights and privileges of the Church and was murdered by followers of the king in Canterbury Cathedral. Soon after his death, he was canonised by Pope Alexander III.
South Cadbury is a village in the civil parish of South Cadbury and Sutton Montis, in the South Somerset council area of the English county of Somerset. The parish includes the village of Sutton Montis.
Box is a large village and civil parish within the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in Wiltshire, England, about 3 miles (5 km) west of Corsham and 5 miles (8 km) northeast of Bath. Box also falls in the easternmost part of the Avon Green Belt. Besides the village of Box, the parish includes the villages of Ashley and Box Hill; Hazelbury manor; and the hamlets of Alcombe, Blue Vein, Chapel Plaister, Ditteridge, Henley, Kingsdown, Middlehill, and Wadswick. To the east the parish includes much of Rudloe, formerly a hamlet but now a housing estate, and the defence establishments and related businesses on the site of RAF Rudloe Manor.
Fremington is a large village, civil parish and former manor in North Devon, England, the historic centre of which is situated three miles (5 km) west of Barnstaple. The village lies between the south bank of the tidal estuary of the River Taw and a small inlet of that river known as Fremington Pill. The parish is surrounded clockwise from the north by the parishes of Heanton Punchardon, Ashford, West Pilton, Barnstaple, Tawstock, Horwood, Lovacott and Newton Tracey, and Instow.
Bovey Tracey is a small town and civil parish in Devon, England, on the edge of Dartmoor, its proximity to which gives rise to the "slogan" used on the town's boundary signs, "The Gateway to the Moor". It is often known locally as "Bovey". It is about 10 miles south-west of Exeter and lies on the A382 road, about halfway between Newton Abbot and Moretonhampstead. The village is at the centre of the electoral ward of Bovey. At the 2011 census the population of this ward was 7,721.
Kingswear is a village and civil parish in the South Hams area of the English county of Devon. The village is located on the east bank of the tidal River Dart, close to the river's mouth and opposite the small town of Dartmouth. It lies within the South Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and has a population of 1,332, reducing to 1,217 at the 2011 census.
Bondleigh is a village and civil parish in the West Devon district of Devon, England, on the River Taw, north of North Tawton. According to the 2011 census it had a population of 167.
Bow is a village and civil parish in the Mid Devon district of Devon, England, about 8 miles (13 km) west of Crediton. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 1,093 practically unchanged at the 2011 Census. There is an adjoining hamlet of Nymet Tracey which shares a church with Bow and much common history. Bow is a major part of Upper Yeo electoral ward. The total ward population at the above census was 1,708.
Buckerell is a small village and civil parish in the East Devon district of Devon, England. The village is about 2.5 miles west of the nearest town, Honiton. In the 2001 census a population of 270 was recorded for the parish, which is surrounded clockwise from the north by the parishes of Awliscombe, Honiton, Gittisham, Feniton and Payhembury.
Burlescombe is a village and civil parish in the Mid Devon district of Devon, England. The parish is surrounded, clockwise from the north, by the parishes of Holcombe Rogus, Culmstock, Uffculme, Halberton and Sampford Peverell. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 911. The village is about 5 miles (8.0 km) south west of Wellington in Somerset. The ruins of the 12th century Canonsleigh Abbey are nearby. Burlescombe is part of the electoral ward of Canonsleigh. The population of this ward was 3,218 at the 2011 Census.
St. Dunstan's is an Anglican church in Canterbury, Kent, at the junction of London Road and Whitstable Road. It is dedicated to St. Dunstan (909-988) and gives its name to the part of the city on the left bank of the River Stour. The parish has been held in plurality with others nearby at different times, in a way that has been difficult to document. In 2010 the parish was joined with the parishes of the City Centre Parish in a new pastoral grouping, City Centre with St. Dunstan.
Saltwood Castle is a castle in Saltwood village, one mile (2 km) north of Hythe, Kent, England. Of 11th century origin, the castle was expanded in the 13th and 14th centuries. After the Norman Conquest, the castle was appropriated by the Archbishop of Canterbury Lanfranc and remained the property of the archbishops, with some interruptions, until 1540, when Thomas Cranmer was compelled to cede it to Henry VIII. The castle is reputed to have been the meeting place of the four knights who carried out the assassination of Thomas Becket in 1170. By the 19th century, it was "largely ruinous" and restorations to make portions of the castle habitable were carried out in the 1880s and 1930s. In the late 19th century, the castle was bought by an ancestor of Bill Deedes, the journalist and politician, who grew up there. In the 20th century, it was sold to Sir Martin Conway who commissioned Philip Tilden to undertake a restoration. In 1953, the castle was bought by the art historian Kenneth Clark (1903–1983), and then became the home of his son, the politician and diarist, Alan Clark (1928–1999). It remains the private home of his widow, Jane Clark. The castle is a Grade I listed building.
Sir William de Tracy was a knight and the feudal baron of Bradninch, Devon, with caput at the manor of Bradninch near Exeter, and was lord of the manors of Toddington, Gloucestershire and of Moretonhampstead, Devon. He is notorious as one of the four knights who assassinated Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury, in December 1170.
Coulston is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, five miles northeast of the town of Westbury, just north of the B3098 road. The village lies under the north slope of Salisbury Plain and the parish extends south onto the Plain.
Dunchideock is a small civil parish on the north eastern slopes of the Haldon Hills in Teignbridge, Devon, England. It covers an area of 392 hectares (970 acres) and lies about 6 km (3.7 mi) south-west of Exeter and 11 km (6.8 mi) north-east of Bovey Tracey. The parish, with a population of 262 in 2001, lacks a compact village, but consists of scattered dwellings. It is surrounded clockwise from the north by the parishes of Holcombe Burnell, Ide, Shillingford St. George, Kenn, and Doddiscombsleigh.
St John the Baptist Church at Penshurst, Kent is a Grade I listed Anglican parish church in the Diocese of Rochester in England. Those buried or commemorated here include Knights, Earls, Viscounts, a Viceroy of India, a Governor-General of Australia, a Private Secretary to two Kings, two Field Marshals and two winners of the Victoria Cross. Through its courtiers, soldiers, statesmen, politicians or priests whose lives appear on memorials or through its changing architecture, brasses, carvings, effigies and windows, the church helps tell a country's story through the eyes of single village.
Horwood, Lovacott and Newton Tracey is a civil parish in North Devon district, Devon, England. In the 2011 census it was recorded as having a population of 487. It includes the villages of Horwood and Newton Tracey and the hamlet of Lovacott.
The Church of St Thomas of Canterbury in Lovington, Somerset, England was built in the 13th century. It is a Grade II* listed building.
The Church of St Thomas à Becket is the Anglican parish church for the ancient village of South Cadbury in Somerset and is dedicated to Thomas Becket. Today it is one of the 'Camelot Churches' of South Somerset in the Diocese of Bath and Wells and has been a Grade II* listed building since 1961. The church was much restored in the 1850s and 1870s.
The Church of St. Thomas à Becket is the Church of England parish church of Box, Wiltshire, in south-west England. It is one of a number of churches named after Thomas Becket following his martyrdom. The church has 12th-century origins and was substantially remodelled in the 14th, 15th, 18th and 19th centuries. It is a Grade I listed building.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Lapford . |