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Wilmington | |
---|---|
The village hall, Wilmington | |
Location within Devon | |
OS grid reference | SY214999 |
Shire county | |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | HONITON |
Postcode district | EX14 |
Dialling code | 01404 |
Police | Devon and Cornwall |
Fire | Devon and Somerset |
Ambulance | South Western |
Wilmington is a village between Axminster and Honiton in East Devon on the A35 road. [1]
The entire village is now in the parish of Widworthy, although this is a recent change. Prior to 1989 houses on the north side of the A35 were in Offwell Parish and only those on the south side were in Widworthy. St Cuthbert's Church dates from the 14th century and nearby Castle Hill is of historical interest.
From the 15th century onwards Wilmington sat astride the main Exeter to London road. It became the Honiton to Axminster Turnpike in 1765 but the importance of this route diminished when the Upottery to Ilminster turnpike opened in 1807, which led to a steady improvement in coaching facilities in the early 19th century on what is now the A30/A303 route over the Blackdown Hills from Honiton to Ilminster.
In 1805 the village street rang to the clatter of horses' hooves as messengers raced through with news of the Battle of Trafalgar. In 2005 this historic event was marked by the unveiling of this plaque on the White Hart Inn. The plaque records details of the messengers and remembers local men who fought at the Battle. [2]
The Trafalgar Way climbs out of Honiton onto the ridge by way of Springfield Lane before descending into Wilmington along the A35. It passes through Wilmington village before leaving the A35 again and climbing steeply up Moorcox Lane to Moorcox Cross. From there it descends the next ridge to Shute Pillars and then passes through Shute Woods along the line of an old Roman Road into Kilmington.
Axminster is a market town and civil parish on the eastern border of the county of Devon in England. It is 28 miles (45 km) from the county town of Exeter. The town is built on a hill overlooking the River Axe which heads towards the English Channel at Axmouth, and is in the East Devon local government district. At the 2001 census, it had a population of 5,626, increasing to 5,761 at the 2011 census. The town contains two electoral wards whose combined population is 7,110. The market is still held every Thursday.
The A30 is a major road in England, running 284 miles (457 km) WSW from London to Land's End.
The Fosse Way was a Roman road built in Britain during the first and second centuries AD that linked Isca Dumnoniorum (Exeter) in the southwest and Lindum Colonia (Lincoln) to the northeast, via Lindinis (Ilchester), Aquae Sulis (Bath), Corinium (Cirencester), and Ratae Corieltauvorum (Leicester).
The A303 is a trunk road in southern England, running between Basingstoke in Hampshire and Honiton in Devon via Stonehenge. Connecting the M3 and the A30, it is part of one of the main routes from London to Devon and Cornwall. It is a primary A road throughout its length, passing through five counties.
The White Hart was the personal badge of Richard II, who probably derived it from the arms of his mother, Joan "The Fair Maid of Kent", heiress of Edmund of Woodstock. It may also have been a pun on his name, as in "Rich-hart". In the Wilton Diptych, which is the earliest authentic contemporary portrait of an English king, Richard II wears a gold and enamelled white hart jewel, and even the angels surrounding the Virgin Mary all wear white hart badges. In English Folklore, the white hart is associated with Herne the Hunter.
Honiton is a market town and civil parish in East Devon, situated close to the River Otter, 17 miles (27 km) north east of Exeter in the county of Devon. Honiton has a population estimated at 11,822.
The A35 is a major road in southern England, connecting Honiton in Devon and Southampton in Hampshire. It is a trunk road for some of its length. Most of its route passes through Dorset and the New Forest. It originally connected Exeter and Southampton, the original A35 ran along what is now the A3052 joining the present road at Charmouth.
Axminster railway station serves the town of Axminster in Devon, England. It is operated by South Western Railway and is situated on the West of England Main Line. It is 144 miles 41 chains (232.6 km) down the line from London Waterloo.
Cranbrook is a new town being developed in East Devon, England, which at the 2021 census, had a population of 6,743 residents across 8 "phases". However, the town is growing at a fast pace. It is located 9 kilometres east-north-east of the centre of Exeter, just north-west of the village of Rockbeare, between the B3174 road and the West of England Main Line railway. The civil parish was formed on 1 April 2015.
The Trafalgar Way is the name given to the historic route used to carry dispatches with the news of the Battle of Trafalgar overland from Falmouth to the Admiralty in London. The first messenger in November 1805 was Lieutenant John Richards Lapenotière, of HMS Pickle, who reached Falmouth on 4 November after a hard voyage in bad weather. He then raced to London bearing the dispatches containing the momentous news of Lord Nelson's victory and death in the Battle of Trafalgar on 21 October 1805.
The New Trafalgar Dispatch was part of the bicentenary celebrations of Lord Nelson's famous and momentous victory at the Battle of Trafalgar, in 1805. The prolonged and multi-focal ceremony took place between July and September 2005.
Offwell is a village and civil parish in East Devon in the English county of Devon, approximately 2 miles south-east from the nearest town, Honiton. Offwell can be accessed by the nearby A35 road.
Dalwood is a village and county parish in the East Devon district of the English county of Devon. It is approximately 3 miles (4.8 km) away from the nearest town, Axminster, and 5 miles (8.0 km) away from Honiton. Dalwood can be accessed by the nearby A35 road. The village is placed within the Blackdown Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Along with the nearby village of Stockland, until 1842 the village was a part of an outlier of the county of Dorset.
Shute is a village, parish and former manor located 3 miles (5 km) west of Axminster in East Devon, off the A35 road.
Stockland is a village and civil parish in Devon, close to the Somerset boundary. The parish is surrounded clockwise from the north by the parishes of Yarcombe, Membury, Dalwood, Widworthy, Offwell, Cotleigh and Upottery. Its nearest neighbouring towns are Honiton and Axminster, which are 6 miles (10 km) and 5 miles (8 km) away respectively. It has a population of around 600. The village is placed within the Blackdown Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The Stockland parish had historically been an exclave of Dorset until the Counties Act 1844.
Gittisham is a village and civil parish in East Devon, Devon, England, near Honiton. The village is 3 miles (5 km) from Ottery St Mary and it has a church called St Michael. The parish is surrounded, clockwise from the north, by the parishes of Awliscombe, Honiton, Sidmouth, Ottery St Mary, Feniton and Buckerell. In 2011 the parish had a population of 548.
Cotleigh is a village and civil parish near Honiton in Devon, England. It is surrounded clockwise from the north by the parishes of Upottery, Stockland, Offwell and Monkton. In the 19th century the rector of Cotleigh Devon was also rector of Barwick, Somerset.
Marsh is a village in the Blackdown Hills, Devon, England. It is part of the East Devon district, and close to the River Yarty and border with Somerset.
Widworthy is a village, parish and former manor in Devon, England. The village is 3 1/2 miles east of Honiton and the parish is surrounded clockwise from the north by the parishes of Stockland, Dalwood, Shute, Colyton, Northleigh, and Offwell. The parish church is dedicated to St Cuthbert. Near the church is Widworthy Barton, the former manor house, which is largely unaltered from its early 17th century form. Widworthy Court is a mansion within the parish built in 1830 by Sir Edward Marwood-Elton to the design of G.S. Repton.
Media related to Wilmington, Devon at Wikimedia Commons