Alton Pancras
Encyclopedia
Alton Pancras is a small village in the West Dorset
district of Dorset
, England. It is sited at an altitude of 125 metres in the valley of the River Piddle
, which has its source just north of the village. The surrounding chalk hills
rise to between 230 and 260 metres. The late broadcaster and agriculturist Ralph Wightman, who was born and lived in the nearby village of Piddletrenthide
, described these surrounding hills as "very much in the centre of Dorset"
The village is situated on the B3143 road, which connects it to the county town of Dorchester 9 miles (14 km) to the south. Other local travel links include Maiden Newton railway station
7 miles (11 km) to the south-west, and Bournemouth International Airport 26 miles (42 km) to the east. The village has a population of 145 according to the 2001 Census
.
The village church is dedicated to Saint Pancras, which provides part of the village name. The parish was formerly a liberty
, containing only the parish itself.
. The name of the village was then Awultune, meaning in West Saxon 'village at the source of the river' (the River Piddle
). After conversion to Christianity
, the village name incorporated the little known St Pancras and certainly by the time of the Battle of Agincourt
was known as Aulton Pancras.
The current church was restored
in the 19th century after an earlier Norman church was near collapse. All that remains of the old church is the 15th century spire and a Norman arch. The church organ used to be a fairground organ. The floor tiles were created by Poole Pottery
.
West Dorset
West Dorset is a local government district and parliamentary constituency in Dorset, England. Its council is based in Dorchester. The district was formed on 1 April 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972, and was a merger of the boroughs of Bridport, Dorchester and Lyme Regis, along with...
district of Dorset
Dorset
Dorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...
, England. It is sited at an altitude of 125 metres in the valley of the River Piddle
River Piddle
The River Piddle or Trent or North River is a small rural Dorset river which rises next to Alton Pancras church and flows south and then south-easterly more or less parallel with its bigger neighbour, the River Frome, to Wareham, where they both enter Poole Harbour via...
, which has its source just north of the village. The surrounding chalk hills
Dorset Downs
The Dorset Downs are an area of Chalk downland in the centre of the county Dorset in south west England. The downs are the most western part of a larger Chalk Formation which also includes Cranborne Chase, Salisbury Plain, Hampshire Downs, Chiltern Hills, North Downs and South Downs.The Dorset...
rise to between 230 and 260 metres. The late broadcaster and agriculturist Ralph Wightman, who was born and lived in the nearby village of Piddletrenthide
Piddletrenthide
Piddletrenthide is a village in west Dorset, England, situated in the Piddle valley on the dip slope of the Dorset Downs, eight miles north of Dorchester. The village has a population of 691...
, described these surrounding hills as "very much in the centre of Dorset"
The village is situated on the B3143 road, which connects it to the county town of Dorchester 9 miles (14 km) to the south. Other local travel links include Maiden Newton railway station
Maiden Newton railway station
Maiden Newton railway station is a railway station serving the village of Maiden Newton in Dorset, England. The station is located on the Heart of Wessex line between and .-History:...
7 miles (11 km) to the south-west, and Bournemouth International Airport 26 miles (42 km) to the east. The village has a population of 145 according to the 2001 Census
United Kingdom Census 2001
A nationwide census, known as Census 2001, was conducted in the United Kingdom on Sunday, 29 April 2001. This was the 20th UK Census and recorded a resident population of 58,789,194....
.
The village church is dedicated to Saint Pancras, which provides part of the village name. The parish was formerly a liberty
Liberty (division)
Originating in the Middle Ages, a liberty was traditionally defined as an area in which regalian rights were revoked and where land was held by a mesne lord...
, containing only the parish itself.
History
The village was first likely settled by Saxons during the expansion of the Kingdom of WessexWessex
The Kingdom of Wessex or Kingdom of the West Saxons was an Anglo-Saxon kingdom of the West Saxons, in South West England, from the 6th century, until the emergence of a united English state in the 10th century, under the Wessex dynasty. It was to be an earldom after Canute the Great's conquest...
. The name of the village was then Awultune, meaning in West Saxon 'village at the source of the river' (the River Piddle
River Piddle
The River Piddle or Trent or North River is a small rural Dorset river which rises next to Alton Pancras church and flows south and then south-easterly more or less parallel with its bigger neighbour, the River Frome, to Wareham, where they both enter Poole Harbour via...
). After conversion to Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
, the village name incorporated the little known St Pancras and certainly by the time of the Battle of Agincourt
Battle of Agincourt
The Battle of Agincourt was a major English victory against a numerically superior French army in the Hundred Years' War. The battle occurred on Friday, 25 October 1415 , near modern-day Azincourt, in northern France...
was known as Aulton Pancras.
The current church was restored
Victorian restoration
Victorian restoration is the term commonly used to refer to the widespread and extensive refurbishment and rebuilding of Church of England churches and cathedrals that took place in England and Wales during the 19th-century reign of Queen Victoria...
in the 19th century after an earlier Norman church was near collapse. All that remains of the old church is the 15th century spire and a Norman arch. The church organ used to be a fairground organ. The floor tiles were created by Poole Pottery
Poole Pottery
Poole Pottery is a pottery manufacturer, originally based in Poole, Dorset, England. The company was founded in 1873 on Poole quayside, where it continued to produce pottery by hand before moving its factory operations away from the quay in 1999. Production continued at the new site in Sopers Lane...
.