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Ramsbury

Coordinates:51°26′31″N1°36′22″W/ 51.442°N 1.606°W/51.442; -1.606
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Ramsbury
Oxford Street, Ramsbury
Ramsbury is located in Wiltshire
Ramsbury
Ramsbury
Location withinWiltshire
Population1,989 (in 2011)[1]
OS grid referenceSU2771
Civil parish
  • Ramsbury
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townMarlborough
Postcode districtSN8
Dialling code01672
PoliceWiltshire
FireDorset and Wiltshire
AmbulanceSouth Western
UK Parliament
WebsiteParish Council
List of places
UK
England
Wiltshire
51°26′31″N1°36′22″W/ 51.442°N 1.606°W/51.442; -1.606

Ramsburyis a village andcivil parishin the English county ofWiltshire.The village is in theKennet Valleynear theBerkshireboundary. The nearest towns areHungerfordabout 4.5 miles (7.2 km) east andMarlboroughabout 5.5 miles (8.9 km) west. The much larger town ofSwindonis about 12 miles (19 km) to the north.

The civil parish includes thehamletofAxfordabout 2.5 miles (4.0 km) west of Ramsbury, and three smaller hamlets:New Town,close to Ramsbury to the southeast, andKnightonandWhittonditch,both about 1 mile (1.6 km) to the east. The2011 Censusrecorded a parish population of 1,989.[1]

History

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TheDomesday Bookof 1086 recorded a large settlement of 156 households atRamesberie.[2]

Littlecote Roman Villais in the parish. The earliest written history of Ramsbury can be traced from theSaxon erawhen thebishopric of Ramsburywas created in 909 AD.

Between 1942 and 1946, duringWorld War II,there was aRoyal Air Forceairfield known asRAF Ramsburyon a ridge of high ground to the south of the village.[3]

Fairs

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Throughout theMiddle Ages,Ramsbury traditionally held two annual fairs – alivestockfair in the spring, and ahiring fair or Mop fairatMichaelmas.NearbyMarlborough'stradition of holding one Mop each side of Michaelmas ( "Little Mop" on the Saturday before and "Big Mop" on the Saturday after) was originally a means to accommodate the (then) more prestigious Ramsbury Mop. By the 19th century, both fairs had become cattle fairs. The spring cattle fair (traditionally held on 14 May) ceased in 1939. The Michaelmas fair slowly lost its original agricultural connections, becoming purely a funfair in 1946 before ceasing in the 1950s.

An annual carnival was instituted to replace the fairs and survived until the 1990s, but has in turn been replaced with a biennial street fair which sees the High Street closed from the Square to the Memorial Hall.

Ramsbury Building Society

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The Provident Union Investment Society was founded in Ramsbury 1846, becoming theRamsbury Building Societyin 1928. It was headquartered in the Square until 1982 and took as its logo the ancientwych-elmwhich grew immediately opposite. Subsequent mergers saw thebuilding societybeing subsumed into the Regency and West of England Building Society, then thePortman Building Society,and finally theNationwide Building Society.

Religion

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Medieval episcopal see

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Main article:Bishop of Ramsbury (ancient)

InSaxontimes, Ramsbury was an important location for the Church, and several of its early bishops went on to becomeArchbishops of Canterbury.The episcopal see of Ramsbury was created in AD 909 when Wiltshire andBerkshirewere taken from thebishopric of Winchesterto form the new diocese of Ramsbury.[4]It was occasionally referred to as the bishopric of Ramsbury andSonning.In 1058 it was joined with the bishopric ofSherborneto form thediocese of Sarum(Salisbury), and the see was translated toOld Sarumin 1075.[5]

Although no longer a diocesan see, the bishopric of Ramsbury is now anepiscopaltitle used by asuffragan bishopof theChurch of EnglandDiocese of Salisbury[6](seeBishop of Ramsbury), and is included in theCatholic Church's list oftitular sees.[7]

Parish church

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Church of the Holy Cross

TheChurch of England parish churchof the Holy Cross was begun in the 13th century, possibly on the site of the former 11th century cathedral of theDiocese of Ramsbury,[8]and enlarged later that century or in the early 14th. In the 15th century the chancel was lengthened and re-roofed. In 1891–2 the aisles were rebuilt and the south porch rebuilt.[9]

The building is of flint with limestone dressings, and the chancel is finished inroughcast.The west tower is described as "massive" and has substantial corner buttresses.[9]

The collection of stone fragments held in the church includes four which appear to be Norman.[10]The font bowl is 12th century.[9]The interior fittings, which include two brass chandeliers dated 1751, are described byPevsneras "quite an uncommon wealth".[11]The tower has six bells, five of them dated 1708 and made by the elderAbraham Rudhall.[12]The church was recorded asGrade I listedin 1966.[9]

In 1973 Ramsbury (with Axford) was united with the benefice ofAldbourneandBaydonto form the Whitton benefice and a team ministry was established.[13]Chilton FoliatandFroxfieldwere added to Whitton in 1976.[14][15]

Others

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Until the 1790s, when it became an independent ecclesiastical parish,Baydonwas a chapelry of Ramsbury parish.[5]Achapel of easededicated to St Michael was built in 1856 at Axford and continues in use.[16]

Presbyterians,Congregationalists,Primitive MethodistsandWesleyan Methodistsmet at Ramsbury and Axford.[5]The last to close was the Methodist Church,[17]in the late 2010s.

Notable buildings

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The parish has twoGrade I listedbuildings in addition to Holy Cross church.Ramsbury Manorwas built in the 1680s byRobert HookeforSir William Jones,lawyer,Attorney Generaland member of Parliament. The house has two storeys and an attic, with nine bays at the front; to the south is a courtyard of servants' cottages.[18]It stands in parkland to the west of the village, on the north bank of the Kennet, which has been dammed to form a lake. At the park's main entrance are Grade II* listed gates and lodges.[19]

Also Grade I listed is Axford Farmhouse, built in the 17th century and altered in the 19th, with an attached 13th-century chapel.[20]

There are three Grade II* listed houses: Riverside House, Axford (16th and 17th centuries, part timber-framed);[21]Parliament Piece, Ramsbury (five bays, 17th century, extended 19th);[22]and Crowood House, north of Ramsbury (also five bays, late 17th and early 19th).[23]

Governance

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Ramsbury has an electedparish council[24]and also falls within the area of theWiltshire Councilunitary authority,which is responsible for all of the most significant local government services.

Previously the parish was part ofRamsbury Rural Districtfrom 1894 until 1934,Marlborough and Ramsbury Rural Districtuntil 1974, andKennet Districtuntil the creation of the unitary authority in 2009.

The Tree

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For centuries, Ramsbury was known for its Tree[25]– a largewych elmwhich stood in the Square at the heart of the village. The Tree was first mentioned in a report in 1751, by which time it must have already been well established. In its prime, its spread was said to have touched the buildings on all sides of the Square. Photographs from the early 20th century show the Tree in apparently fine health, although perhaps reduced from its former size. But, by the 1920s, the Tree was in noticeable decline. It gradually succumbed to old age, eventually dying in 1983 by which time it would have been well over 230 years old.

The gnarled stump remained in the Square for several years while a replacement was discussed. Many villagers wanted to keep the old tree, dead or not, where it had stood for so many centuries. However, after a referendum which threatened to split the village, it was eventually agreed that it should be replaced. Over the course of the second half of the 20th century,Dutch elm diseasehad ravaged the native populations of elm species and so anoaksapling (sponsored by Portman Building Society) was sourced fromEpping Forestand planted to replace the old tree.

Notable residents

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Local people are known as Ramsbury Bulldogs, contrasting with the neighbouring village ofAldbourne,where the locals are known as Dabchicks.

The village's notable residents have included SirFrancis Burdett(1770–1844), a radicalWhigpolitician, and his daughterAngela Burdett-Coutts.In 1837 Angela became the richest woman in England when she inherited her grandfather's fortune. Over several years she gave most of this money away to good causes: nearly three million pounds by the time she died in 1906. Both lived inRamsbury Manor.Other owners of the manor includeWilliam Rootes(from 1958), industrialist and motor manufacturer;[5]andHarry Hyams(from 1964 until his death in 2015), property developer.[26]

Stefan Persson,the owner ofH&M,has a main residence on the outskirts of Ramsbury.[27]He also owns the Ramsburymicrobrewery[28]which brews Ramsbury Gold bottled beer, amongst others. ComposerDavid Fanshawelived near Ramsbury until his death in July 2010.[29]

Food and drink

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There are two pubs situated in Ramsbury: The Bell on the Square and the Crown and Anchor on the corner of Crowood Lane and Oxford Street, as well as theRoyal British Legion's branch on the High Street. In addition to the Ramsbury Brewery, Distillery and Smokehouse, several other notable local food and drink producers are based in Ramsbury. The Ramsbury Tea Company,[30]in particular, has won several national awards.[31]

References

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  1. ^ab"Wiltshire Community History – Census".Wiltshire Council.Retrieved4 September2014.
  2. ^Ramsburyin theDomesday Book
  3. ^Ramsbury at War – RAF Ramsbury
  4. ^Barbara Yorke,Frithestan,Oxford Online Dictionary of National Biography, 2004
  5. ^abcdBaggs, A.P.; Freeman, Jane; Stevenson, Janet H (1983). Crowley, D.A. (ed.)."Victoria County History - Wiltshire – Vol 12 pp12–46 – Parishes: Ramsbury".British History Online.University of London.Retrieved2 December2019.
  6. ^Crockford's Clerical Directory(100th ed.). London: Church House Publishing. 2007. p. 948.ISBN978-0-7151-1030-0.
  7. ^Annuario Pontificio 2013.Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana. 2013. p. 957.ISBN978-88-209-9070-1.
  8. ^Paul Jeffery,England's Other Cathedrals,The History Press, 2012, p.48
  9. ^abcdHistoric England."Church of the Holy Cross (1365476)".National Heritage List for England.Retrieved5 December2019.
  10. ^"Holy Cross, Ramsbury, Wiltshire".Corpus of Romanesque Sculpture.King's College London.Retrieved5 December2019.
  11. ^Pevsner, Nikolaus;Cherry, Bridget (revision)(1975) [1963].Wiltshire.The Buildings of England(2nd ed.). Harmondsworth:Penguin Books.pp. 377–379.ISBN0-14-0710-26-4.
  12. ^"Ramsbury".Dove's Guide for Church Bell Ringers.Retrieved5 December2019.
  13. ^"No. 46116".The London Gazette.30 October 1973. p. 12883.
  14. ^"No. 46907".The London Gazette.21 May 1976. p. 7284.
  15. ^"Whitton Team".Retrieved2 December2019.
  16. ^"Church of St. Michael, Axford, Ramsbury".Wiltshire Community History.Wiltshire Council.Retrieved5 December2019.
  17. ^"Methodist Church, Ramsbury".Wiltshire Community History.Wiltshire Council.Retrieved5 December2019.
  18. ^Historic England."Ramsbury Manor (1184029)".National Heritage List for England.Retrieved7 December2019.
  19. ^Historic England."East gate and lodges to Ramsbury Manor (1365500)".National Heritage List for England.Retrieved7 December2019.
  20. ^Historic England."Axford Farmhouse (1300471)".National Heritage List for England.Retrieved7 December2019.
  21. ^Historic England."Riverside House (1365448)".National Heritage List for England.Retrieved7 December2019.
  22. ^Historic England."Parliament Piece (1183680)".National Heritage List for England.Retrieved7 December2019.
  23. ^Historic England."Crowood House (1365471)".National Heritage List for England.Retrieved7 December2019.
  24. ^"Ramsbury Parish Council".Retrieved13 March2013.
  25. ^"Ramsbury Raven".13 January 2018.Retrieved12 March2018.
  26. ^Brewerton, David (20 December 2015)."Harry Hyams obituary".The Guardian.ISSN0261-3077.Retrieved7 December2019.
  27. ^"The thirty landowners who own half a county".Who owns England?.17 April 2017.
  28. ^"Ramsbury Microbrewery Official Site".Retrieved15 September2008.
  29. ^Wiltshire Gazette and Herald:David FanshaweArchived21 July 2011 at theWayback Machine
  30. ^"Ramsbury Tea".Retrieved30 July2013.
  31. ^Marlborough News Online:Stirring stuff as Ramsbury Tea scoops awards

Further reading

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