Withypool

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Withypool
Withypool bridge.jpg
Bridge over the River Barle
Somerset UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Withypool
Location within Somerset
Population201 (201) [1]
OS grid reference SS845355
Civil parish
Unitary authority
Shire county
Region
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town Minehead
Postcode district TA24
Police Avon and Somerset
Fire Devon and Somerset
Ambulance South Western
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Somerset
51°06′26″N3°39′04″W / 51.107125°N 3.651191°W / 51.107125; -3.651191

Withypool (formerly Widepolle, Widipol, Withypoole) is a small village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Withypool and Hawkridge, in the Somerset district, in the ceremonial county of Somerset, England, near the centre of Exmoor National Park and close to the border with Devon. The word Withy means "willow". The parish of Withypool and Hawkridge, covers 3,097 hectares (7,653 acres), includes the village of Hawkridge and has a population around 201. [1]

Contents

Withypool is in the Barle Valley on the River Barle. The village lies on the route of the Two Moors Way and the Celtic Way Exmoor Option.

To the southwest of the village lie Withypool Common and Withypool Hill.

History

The area around Withypool has been inhabited since the Bronze Age and the Withypool Stone Circle can still be seen on top of Withypool Hill. The Brightworthy barrows lie on the Common; of three original, two survive. [2] [3]

Withypool is mentioned in the Domesday Book as being tended by three foresters: Dodo, Almer and Godric. [4] The parishes of Hawkridge and Withypool were part of the Williton and Freemanners Hundred. [5]

In the 14th century, Geoffrey Chaucer was in charge of the village in his duties as forester of North Petherton.

The red sandstone Withypool Bridge (or New Bridge) carries a small road over the River Barle. It was built in the 19th century and is a Grade II* listed building. [6] [7] [8]

Civil parish

On 1 April 1933 part of the parish of Hawkridge was merged with Withypool, [9] on 1 June 1992 the merged parish was renamed "Withypool & Hawkridge". [10] In 1931 the parish of Withypool (prior to the merge) had a population of 222. [11]

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, 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 the responsibility of the council.

Until 2023 The village fell within the non-metropolitan district of Somerset West and Taunton, which was established on 1 April 2019. It was previously in the district of West Somerset, which was formed on 1 April 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972, and part of Dulverton Rural District before that. [12] The district council was responsible for local planning and building control, local roads, council housing, environmental health, markets and fairs, refuse collection and recycling, cemeteries and crematoria, leisure services, parks, and tourism.

Somerset Council is responsible for running the largest and most expensive local services such as education, social services, libraries, main roads, public transport, policing and fire services, trading standards, waste disposal and strategic planning.

As Withypool falls within the Exmoor National Park some functions normally administered by district or county councils have, since 1997, fallen under the Exmoor National Park Authority, which is known as a ‘single purpose’ authority, which aims to "conserve and enhance the natural beauty, wildlife and cultural heritage of the National Parks" and "promote opportunities for the understanding and enjoyment of the special qualities of the Parks by the public", [13] including responsibility for the conservation of the historic environment. [14]

It is also part of the Bridgwater and West Somerset county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.

Landmarks

2 miles upstream of the village, the River Barle passes under a late medieval five-arch stone Landacre Bridge. [15]

The Royal Oak Inn

The village's Royal Oak Inn has seen its share of history since its construction in the late 17th century. R. D. Blackmore wrote part of Lorna Doone in the bar, and artist Alfred Munnings had a studio in the loft. In the 1930s, the inn was owned by Gwladys and Maxwell Knight, a spy-ring leader and radio broadcaster upon whom Ian Fleming based the character of James Bond's boss, M. During World War II, the nearby Woolacombe beach was used to simulate the invasion of Normandy, and General Dwight Eisenhower planned some of the operation from the Royal Oak. [16]

Religious sites

The late medieval Church of St Andrew is a Grade II* listed building. The tower was rebuilt in the early 17th century, restored and refitted in 1887, and restored extensively and rebuilt again in 1902. [17]

The Norman Church of St Giles in Hawkridge has 14th-century origins. [18]

Notable people

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Exmoor</span> Area of hilly open moorland in west Somerset and north Devon in South West England

Exmoor is loosely defined as an area of hilly open moorland in west Somerset and north Devon in South West England. It is named after the River Exe, the source of which is situated in the centre of the area, two miles north-west of Simonsbath. Exmoor is more precisely defined as the area of the former ancient royal hunting forest, also called Exmoor, which was officially surveyed 1815–1818 as 18,810 acres (7,610 ha) in extent. The moor has given its name to a National Park, which includes the Brendon Hills, the East Lyn Valley, the Vale of Porlock and 55 km (34 mi) of the Bristol Channel coast. The total area of the Exmoor National Park is 692.8 km2 (267.5 sq mi), of which 71% is in Somerset and 29% in Devon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Somerset</span> Former non-metropolitan district in England

West Somerset was a local government district in the English county of Somerset. The council covered a largely rural area, with a population of 34,900 in an area of 740 square kilometres (290 sq mi); it was the least populous non-unitary district in England. According to figures released by the Office for National Statistics in 2009, the population of West Somerset has the oldest average age in the United Kingdom at 52. The largest centres of population are the coastal towns of Minehead and Watchet (4,400).

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

Dulverton is a small town and civil parish in west Somerset, England, near the border with Devon. The town had a population of 1,408 at the 2011 Census. The parish includes the hamlets of Battleton and Ashwick which is located approximately 3.5 miles (5.6 km) north west of Dulverton. To the west of the hamlet lies Ashwick House, built in the Edwardian style in 1901. Also nearby is the estate of Northmoor, formerly a seat of Sir Frederick Wills, 1st Baronet of Northmoor, one of the four Wills Baronetcys, and the founders of the Imperial Tobacco Company. In 1929 Sir Frederick's son & heir, Sir Gilbert Wills, 2nd Baronet, was raised to the peerage as Baron Dulverton, whose principal seat was at Batsford Park, near Batsford, Gloucestershire.

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

Brompton Regis is a village and civil parish in the Somerset West and Taunton district of Somerset, England about 5 miles (8.0 km) north-east of Dulverton. It is situated on the River Pulham in the Brendon Hills within the Exmoor National Park, close to Wimbleball Lake, a water supply reservoir constructed in the 1970s and completed in 1979. According to the 2011 census the village had a population of 449. The parish boundary is marked by the River Exe which is crossed by the medieval Chilly Bridge and Hele Bridge. The Haddeo is crossed by Bury Bridge.

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

Brushford is a village and civil parish 2 miles (3.2 km) south of Dulverton and 12 miles (19 km) north of Tiverton in Devon, in the Somerset West and Taunton district of Somerset, England. According to the 2001 census, it had a population of 535 in 243 households, reducing to 519 at the 2011 Census. It covers an area of 1,149 hectares (11 km2) of which 3 hectares (0.030 km2) is within the Exmoor National Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brendon</span> Village in Devon, England

Brendon is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Brendon and Countisbury, in the North Devon district, in the county of Devon, England. It is close to the border with Somerset within the Exmoor National Park, the village is 1.5 miles (2.4 km) southeast of Lynton and 15 miles (24 km) west of Minehead in the East Lyn Valley. It is located just off the A39 and is on two long distance footpaths, the Coleridge Way and the Samaritans Way South West. The Church of St Brendon is 2 mi (3 km) from the village and was built in 1738, possibly with building material brought from another site. In 2001 the parish had a population of 159.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">River Barle</span> River in Somerset and Devon, England

The River Barle runs from the Chains on northern Exmoor, in Somerset, England to join the River Exe at Exebridge, Devon. The river and the Barle Valley are both designated as biological Sites of Special Scientific Interest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tarr Steps</span> Bridge in Somerset, England

The Tarr Steps is a clapper bridge across the River Barle in the Exmoor National Park, Somerset, England. They are located in a national nature reserve about 2.5 miles (4 km) south east of Withypool and 4 miles (6 km) north west of Dulverton.

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

Exford is a rural village at the centre of Exmoor National Park, 7 miles (11 km) north-west of Dulverton, and 10 miles (16 km) south-west of Minehead, in Somerset, England. Less than a mile away is the hamlet of Lyncombe.

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

Oare is a village and civil parish on Oare Water on Exmoor in the Somerset West and Taunton district of Somerset, England. It is located 6 miles (10 km) east of Lynton and the parish includes the hamlet of Oareford and the village of Culbone which contains its own tiny church.

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

Winsford is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England, located about 5 miles (8 km) north-west of Dulverton.

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

Luccombe or Luckham is a village and civil parish in the Exmoor National Park in the English county of Somerset. It at the foot of the moor's highest hill, the 1,750 feet (533 m) Dunkery Beacon, and is about one mile south of the A39 road between Porlock and Minehead. Administratively it forms part of the district of Somerset West and Taunton. The parish includes the hamlets of Stoke Pero and Horner, as well as the former hamlet of Wilmersham.

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

Simonsbath is a small village high on Exmoor in the English county of Somerset. It is the principal settlement in the Exmoor civil parish, which is the largest and most sparsely populated civil parish on Exmoor, covering nearly 32 square miles (83 km2) but with a population, at the time of the 2001 census, of 203 in 78 households, reducing to 156 at the 2011 census. The River Exe rises from a valley to the north, and the River Barle runs through the village and is crossed by a triple-arched medieval bridge that was extensively repaired after floods in 1952.

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

Exton is a village and civil parish 5 miles (8 km) north-east of Dulverton and 9 miles (14 km) south-west of Dunster in Somerset, England. It lies on the River Exe on Exmoor. The parish includes the village of Bridgetown and covers 2,017 ha, all of which is within the national park.

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

Skilgate is a village and civil parish 5 miles (8 km) east of Dulverton and 8 miles (13 km) west of Wiveliscombe in the Somerset West and Taunton district of Somerset, England. It has a population of 96.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pixton Park</span> Country house in Somerset, England

Pixton Park is a country house in the parish of Dulverton, Somerset, England. It is associated with at least three historically significant families, successively by descent: Acland, amongst the largest landowners in the Westcountry; Herbert, politicians and diplomats; and Waugh, writers. The present grade II* listed Georgian mansion house was built circa 1760 by the Acland family and in 1870 was altered by Henry Herbert, 4th Earl of Carnarvon (1831–1890). Although Pixton Park is situated within the manor of Dulverton, the manorial chapel relating to Pixton is situated not at Dulverton but within the Church of St Nicholas, Brushford, across the River Barle, as the lordship of the manor of Dulverton was held from 1568 by the Sydenham family seated at Combe House, on the opposite side of the River Barle to Dulverton and Pixton.

Dulverton was a rural district in Somerset, England, from 1894 to 1974.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Landacre Bridge</span> Bridge

Landacre Bridge carries Landacre Lane across the River Barle near Withypool on Exmoor in the English county of Somerset. It has been designated as a scheduled monument and a Grade II* listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barle Bridge</span> Bridge in Somerset, England

Barle Bridge is a five span stone arch bridge over the River Barle in Dulverton within the English county of Somerset, which is medieval in origin. It has been scheduled as an ancient monument and is a Grade II listed building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Withypool Bridge</span> Bridge in United Kingdom

The Withypool Bridge is an arch bridge that carries a small road over the River Barle at Withypool in Somerset, England. It is a Grade II* listed building.

References

  1. 1 2 "Statistics for Wards, LSOAs and Parishes — SUMMARY Profiles" (Excel). Somerset Intelligence. Retrieved 4 January 2014.
  2. ↑ "Brightworthy Barrows". Modern Antiquarian. Retrieved 18 October 2008.
  3. ↑ "Withypool circle". Megalithic Portal. Retrieved 18 October 2008.
  4. ↑ "Withypool". Everything Exmoor. Retrieved 18 October 2008.
  5. ↑ "Somerset Hundreds". GENUKI. Retrieved 23 October 2011.
  6. ↑ Historic England. "Withypool Bridge at NGR SS 8452 (1057969)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 22 October 2017.
  7. ↑ "MSO8671 - New Bridge, Withypool". Exmoor Historic Environment Record. Exmoor National Park. Retrieved 22 October 2017.
  8. ↑ Historic England. "New Bridge (35757)". Research records (formerly PastScape). Retrieved 22 October 2017.
  9. ↑ "Relationships and changes Withypool CP/Ch through time". A Vision of Britain through Time. Retrieved 3 August 2023.
  10. ↑ "West Somerset Registration District". UKBMD. Retrieved 3 August 2023.
  11. ↑ "Population statistics Withypool CP/Ch through time". A Vision of Britain through Time . Retrieved 3 August 2023.
  12. ↑ "Dulverton RD". A vision of Britain Through Time. University of Portsmouth. Retrieved 5 January 2014.
  13. ↑ "The Authority". Exmoor National Park. Archived from the original on 24 December 2007. Retrieved 29 November 2007.
  14. ↑ "Exmoor National Park NMP". English Heritage. Retrieved 29 November 2007.
  15. ↑ Historic England. "Landacre Bridge (1058006)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 18 October 2008.
  16. ↑ "History". Royal Oak Inn. Archived from the original on 10 May 2008. Retrieved 18 October 2008.
  17. ↑ Historic England. "Church of St Andrew (1057968)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 18 October 2008.
  18. ↑ Historic England. "Church of St Giles (1174221)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 18 October 2008.
  19. ↑ IMDb Database retrieved 07 June 2020

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